I must recant a previous statement....

So yesterday I got Mhorgrim up to level 82 and then the inevitable Steel wall of slow xp to 83. It was a Blast though. I really enjoyed the hell out of Hyjal and I see subtle changes in the environment as a reward for my efforts. I pay attention to that you know. The neat thing was when the Spirit of the Ancients gave me that speech of cool guyness and how I am now charged with protecting Hyjal. I felt like I accomplished something. I know primarily it was solo work but I got pretty immersed within the storyline and its effects. I used to bitch about how I hated the phasing for quest lines. Here is the thing though, phasing allowed me to see changes in the environment that previously I didn't see. It meant I affected something with all of my questing. I know I was one of many that gave a bad rap to phased quests. I recant that statement from the past. After carefully reviewing the areas post quest line, I saw definitive effects on the environment. Why is this important? It meant I didn't live in a completely static environment. I think that's a big bonus. Now it does wreak hell on partners or groups. I got that, but really, just about every single quest is easy enough to complete. It aint that hard. In the end, despite a few flaws with phased quests, I am over all very happy with the immersive storyline.

On to other stuff,

I have learned everything I am able to learn from the Blacksmith trainers in the Major cities. I hit 82 really easy but is pretty tough getting to 83. Ran 4 dungeons last night with the guild which was very good for us as a guild. The fun thing was, my wife and I started running instances again together. I am used to her primarily being a healer so was a bit nervous when we had a member I hadn't worked with before heal for me as a newbie tank for the instances. Point is, it was a blast that we both had toons high enough to run together as a team again. She is enjoying her Boomkin blow the crap outta stuff so more power to her. We had a few hiccups though, I hadn't tanked these instances and didn't realize that compared to the easy mode crap I saw in Wrath and BC coming up through the ranks, I was in for a huge eye opener. Mobs hit a lot harder and I really wasn't geared enough for the instance. A couple of fights were a little more than spank n tank with some kiting involved. Ya I know, all you hardcore raider and heroic guys out there are laughin to tears. But hey I am still new to tankin in general. Overall, and with the patience of my guild we got through it and I started to learn what needed to be done in the future.

I am holding off for a bit on pvp while I turn serious attention to Mhorgrim's advancement. Most of my guildees are Military and therefor we are pretty tightknit. The problem of course is when one or more need to be out on the move for whatever reason. So its been tough to get enough people ready for not just heroics but also the future as 10 man crews. I doubt we will ever get to the 25man but maybe at least 10 man down the road. Anyways, when I feel Mhorgrim is progressed enough I will  hit back into pvp. Part of that of course is both Grimnhak and Damios are at level breaches where I would need to seriously concentrate on killing a couple of levels and getting the right gear since I don't own BOA gear as yet.

In the Real world, I will be moving sometime in late May, so around that time frame if I go silent for a couple of weeks its simply us moving around and getting settled.

Rant Moment

Originally I was going to talk about my pvp druid today, however I saw an article that got me all fired up. So, MMO Melting Pot as well as BBB brought up the topic of dealing with sloppy techniques and  crap attitudes in  low level instances .
 . Here is my thoughts on this:

I am seeing both sides give issues. People from ALL classes often wish to RUSH RUSH RUSH instead of practicing thier craft within the Trinity. I've watched my wife who is a competent healer get ignored by tanks who don't listen to her /oom broadcast. I've seen healers who panic over heal and burn aggro away from tanks, I've seen hunters pull mob's before the tank can even grab 1 GCD. Even with heavy handed use of macro sets this happens. The idea of teamwork has gone out the window because often players who Don't know each other, DONT care. Simple concepts such as watching your aggro threats, having that cute little Omen addon to practice for the heavier hitting instances are thrown out the window. I have two macros for party chat to let people know to wait for tank and healer and also for LOS pulls because somehow people have forgotten what those are as well. I hate it when my target markings get ignored. The excuse I get? "We ain't in ICC Heroics man..chill!"

I would chill, if I could trust the teams I'm with to act with just a slight modicum of professionalism. Instead it's like instance 101 training and babysitting for every pug we've been in. My wife hates it as a healer when I don't run tank because I always wait to make sure the party is ready for the next hit. I hate it when other people burn all their mana over healing and burning my aggro CDs because they aren't timing the damage spikes and coordinating their healing. As to DPS, some are smart, most are ass hats. I've run into both. Yes this is my Bitch session, I don't care. My real point is, how do you learn your class or learn to work with other classes when in fact you bullshit your way through instances? There is a saying "you fight as you train'. So ya, you may be awesome on one class in raids, but bringing up a new class it's important to understand their relationship with other classes and how their skills work both at low level and high level. For raiders trying to speed bag their alts up, get your guildees to do quick runs.

But then there are the "others" who simply don't want to listen. I expect mistakes in an instance. I expect sudden lag spikes between team members or the periodic DC. I expect people at low levels to forget food and water. I expect someone to occasionally over aggro. But because you'll almost never have to work with the same people in PUG again, attitudes go to shit. It's funny as my wife and I leveled together in instances, we would always offer to the good runners a spot to stay on till the next queue. 90% of the time we would have between 2-3 hangers on when they understood that the pace would be steady, not rushed. Attacks would be planned and rarely would we wipe with that pace line.

I'm no expert, and many times I would ask for assistance in attack planning for different bosses or a room with a shit load of casters. But basic tactics keep getting ignored. Things like, dps stand behind the mob to burn down quicker and avoid any parry or block. Healers knowing their average and crit heals, coordinating their time based upon what damage the tank receives. Tanks watching thier caster's mana and knowing when to pop their GCD's to best effect even at low levels or knowing when to best LoS pull vs. a charge. People have forgotten or don't care and it makes it harder for everyone.

Anyways, I'm hoping that as old hat as the lowbie instances are for many, that they remember to be courteous and work as a team. It makes instance easier to get through and more enjoyable. Anyways, for the time being, happy hunting out there.