You'll always remember your first
by Mike Schramm 
Jan 9th 2008 at 11:00AM
Togus is right-- there's something about your first character. Many of us, as I said yesterday, have tons of alts floating around, but your first character (while probably not your best-- I didn't understand First Aid when I started playing the game, so I just didn't train it at all) was a big deal. Finishing that starting area and realizing there was a whole World out there, grouping up for the first time, and learning just how all the spells worked and what everything looked like-- your first character may not be your main now, but odds are it's still sitting there on the server, like an old friend from years ago.This idea of a "first character" is actually especially interesting to me, as just yesterday my very first character dinged level 60. As I said on the podcast the other day, I'm going back to play the Night Elf Hunter (yeah, yeah-- I was young and impetuous, and I heard Hunter was a good solo class) I started playing the game with, and take it all the way to level 70, and then 80 when Wrath comes out. In some way, I see it as finishing what I started way back when. And after all this time playing something different in game (Horde, obviously, and classes besides Hunter-- Warrior, Shaman, Rogue, Priest), it's been extremely interesting to go back to the beginning. And seeing Outland (and eventually Northrend) through the eyes of the first character I've ever played promises to be a trip. I feel like I'm rediscovering this game I've played so much of already yet again.
What happened to the first character you ever started? You didn't delete them, did you? Were you able to get them all the way to 70? And when the next expansion comes out, will you take them further?
Filed under: Hunter, Analysis / Opinion, Virtual selves, Odds and ends, Blizzard, Leveling, Alts
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
Josef Jan 9th 2008 11:09AM
Oh god yes, I still play with my first character and hes still my main, I have gone through far too many trials and tribulations with him to give up now, plus you have all the wonderful "Noob" moments.
Like buying a demonic statue despite the fact I am a hunter
Like giving away stockade pauldrons for free
Like not realising till level 60 that I could go to dungeons.
Ahhhhhhh happy days :)
ErsatzPotato Jan 9th 2008 11:40AM
Yup yup! My first is still my main. My nub moments are so crazy I can't even be embarrassed. Grouped with a warrior for elites in Red Ridge, "No, no, you're TOTALLY WRONG!. I should pull because my pyroblast has a huge range! I put extra points in range for that!" Heck, doing UBRS nightly for an insane GL (my biggest oops was sticking with that guy's guild for a loooong time) and my gear had maybe +15 spell damage on it. We somehow did five mans with all incompetent as myself all the way to the #$@^ pull between Beast & Drakk rooms. Blew my Light of Elune* on one of those. Saved the group...to wipe on the next pull and call it.
*If it hasn't already, Phat Loot should do the Elune some time. One of the coolest quest rewards going.
Chris Jan 9th 2008 11:09AM
I started with a human warrior. He was the only character that I had as I worked him up to level 60. A couple of months after I did that, I created a warlock for the fun of it.
My warrior never saw a bit of action for months after that......
Brandon Tilley Jan 9th 2008 11:14AM
Man, I was the most n00bish n00b when I started. I understood nothing about my warlock. I sucked really.... *really* bad. I rolled a new toon on a server with some friends who helped me out... months later, I came back and did the whole alt-oholic thing, now I have 9 toons on my main server, but my first character is my main, and is level 64.
David(Postal) Jan 9th 2008 11:16AM
I was a human paladin.. i had no idea how to play him i think i got up to level 22 or 23. I can't even remember what his name or server was.. I did kind of have fun.. but I did not catch the WOW fever until I made my mage a few months later. I actually am going back to my roots now and made a new paladin, and I am finding I enjoy the game and class a lot more than I did originally.
Kathlyn Jan 9th 2008 11:17AM
Ah, yes. I was quite the noob. I too rolled a Nelf Huntard, on Illidan US. Ooops.
Lessons learned: use quest rewards. train your pet. STV is hard. and sometimes getting ganked can be funny.
Taena Jan 9th 2008 11:18AM
I'm still working on her. I never liked the idea of leveling someone else to 70 before getting her up there. It's been a huge learning experience and I made a lot of mistakes playing the game "my way" without checking guides, guilds, resources, etc from about 1-35. When I finally bit the bullet and learned what talents were good for, and caught up my main professions, it was a completely new game for me.
I still feel new in a lot of respects, but I think I am always going to feel that way as a casual gamer. :)
Zumwalah Jan 9th 2008 11:34AM
the thing about wow, is there is always someone "better". regardless of how much Epix u have, or how much gold u have, or even how much knowledge you have.. someone always knows more... soo your not "new" per say just not as hard core... thats how i look at it
Fluffylongbottom Jan 9th 2008 11:21AM
My first character was a human mage which no longer exists :(
I'm from Europe and in my ignorance started playing WoW on a free trial for the American realms. I got to level twenty I think before I realised my error but I was ok with it.
Then a friend of mine said he was starting the game around the time of the expansion and convinced me to start over on the Euro realms. The fecker quit a week thereafter. Grr.
The result being my mage was deleted and I no longer have my first character. I would have given anything to transfer between regions.
Stephen Moore Jan 9th 2008 11:56AM
My first two characters are lost on US servers as well, a 42 Rogue who never learned to make Swiftthistle Tea and a 42 Priest. My real life friends convinced my wife and I to get on the EU servers with them and we did. I don't miss the Rogue but I wish I could move the Priest over...
mcclary Jan 9th 2008 11:23AM
I rolled an undead priest as my first. At around level 4 a friend and I decided on a better name. So I rolled another undead priest with the new name, exact same skin tone, hair (bald), face, etc. The level 4 became my bank alt and the 2nd priest is my main and level 70.
Narlic Jan 9th 2008 8:33PM
My very first character was a Tauren hunter. He's currently level 58 and sitting in Everlook. He can't cook, he can't fish. His clothes don't match. His engineering skill is pathetic. He doesn't go into dungeons or battlegrounds. He's still using the wolf he charmed in the starting area, which is named after my first dog. I don't particularly identify with the character anymore, and effectively just ignore him. When I stopped playing him, I stopped playing warcraft altogether for around a month and a half.
Then there's my rogue. He's an undead L70, decked out in Kara drops and badge-purchased gear, with an assortment of pvp gear "just in case". I rolled him when I came back to warcraft, and identify with him the most. He cooks, he fishes, he makes potions. He's got stockpiles of herbs out the wazoo. He's got a pvp kill count approaching 10K (pve server, and I don't like pvp very much, so 10K is a lot to me). I've written and re-written macros just for my rogue. I browse shadowpanther.net spreadsheets when I'm bored.
I might never play that hunter again. But you're absolutely right; I can't just *delete* him. So I see him in the character selection screen every now and then, looking out at me, ready and willing just in case I want to give it another shot.
Razhlok Jan 9th 2008 11:25AM
Ha! I too rolled a Night Elf Huntard as my first character (11/24/2004). I wonder what ever happened to him? Oh wait, that's right he's in all epics, does 1100 DPS and is officer of a casual raiding guild on Illidan. I love my hunter! But, I'm thinking of switching to my priest for the next expansion. It would be hard leaving my hunter, but, by then I may be ready for a change to healing.
Chris A Jan 9th 2008 7:06PM
I didn't even know about the auction house until I was level 30ish. I actually bought my weapons, armor, and bags from the vendors...and we all know how overpriced they are!
ace danger Jan 9th 2008 11:26AM
I started an orc warrior, leveled him to 46 and I remember thinking "This sucks, I have to bandage after every fight!".
I didn't understand, and therefore did not carry, food with me. I remember thinking "if I have first aid, why should I carry around food too?".
I'm thinking I should start leveling him again, I could probably get him to 70 with the increase in xp from quests.
Smurk Jan 9th 2008 1:55PM
I can do you one better there, as my original thinking was "I can sit down and heal for free, so why should I spend money on food?"
This was on a human rogue that I levelled to 39 despite shocking incompetence. I didn't really consult any outside sources (guides etc.) for WoW knowledge and just blundered through things on my own. It is almost maddening to think how bad I was and how much time I wasted back then. Good thing it was on a PVE server or else I might have quit playing forever, instead of for 6 months.
I eventually started another rogue on a PVP server and he's now at level 69. I've also got a 54 paladin sporting my first, crappy character's name.
Shawn Jan 9th 2008 11:27AM
I don't remember my first character. I rerolled several times before getting to level 5. Then I played a dwarf paladin until level 12 and then switch to a Nelf Hunter (sorry). I stuck with him a while and then went Horde, then back to the Alliance and now I play both with a stable of toons.
Erika Jan 9th 2008 11:29AM
My first was a troll hunter and then a human paladin. Both got deleted when i made my undead rogue. My rogue took forever but i learned alot about corpse runs and aggro radius. I made a new troll hunter which is at 15 and i have never played a paladin again.
Vex47 Jan 9th 2008 11:31AM
My main, my level 70 Night Elf Warrior, is also my first character. He's been busily grinding honor and I've managed to get him a piece of gladiator gear and the vindicator's bracers.
Things weren't always easy with him though. I remember that I didn't realize you could buy better equipment on the AH till level 25, and I didn't switch from sword aand board to a two-hander till level 26, lol. Good times.
Zumwalah Jan 9th 2008 11:31AM
my first char is on my brothers account :(... possibly the worst orc hunter ever.. then again.. im sure there are worse hunters out there, atleast i knew i was a range based class.. i remeber it clearly asking my brother "whats the class that gets the cool bear pet" so i rolled a hunter and i think got to lvl 27 when one day my server was offline so he didnt show up in the list of serves.. and i lost him... but it was worth it, cause then i was like well i can get my own account now, i have nothing to lose.. but im sure good ol CDXX (thats right i named my first char a Roman Numeral) is still kickin it out there somewhere