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The latest patch 5.4 newsBreakfast Topic: The easy/hard grind
by Mike Schramm 
Apr 14th 2008 at 8:00AM
I'm currently working through Zangarmarsh on my Hunter, and this weekend I spent a lot of time grinding two completely different kinds of mobs. The Withered Bog Lords in northern Zangarmarsh were cake for my Hunter -- they weren't exactly gentle with my pet, but he was able to eat the damage, and I could have grinded right away on them all day. At the exact opposite end of the grinding scale, however, were those stupid Umbrafen Eels -- not only were they under water (always annoying), but they've got this on-hit electrical damage thing that just drove me nuts. I stayed to play with the Bog Lords for a long time, racking up the XP, but as soon as I was done with the Eels, I got out of the water and stayed out.Fighting these two back to back got me thinking: what's the easiest/hardest mob to grind on? Some mobs (like the tigers in Stranglethorn or the bears/spiders in Ashenvale) are super easy to grind -- they have no special abilities, they're spaced out, and they go down fast. But others -- most gnolls, in my experience, and lots of casters -- are just annoying as all get out; they run around, pull others, heal up when they're almost dead, and give you lots of headaches while taking them down. Those are the mobs you don't sit around and grind on -- they're the ones you avoid completely after you've done whatever quest requires you to kill them.
What are your favorite or least favorite mobs to just grind on in the game?
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Breakfast Topics, Leveling
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 3)
bsimmons7571 Apr 14th 2008 8:47AM
Zeth'gor
Fluffylongbottom Apr 14th 2008 9:58AM
Yes. I couldn't agree more. I'm in Hellfire at the moment and there are so many mobs that are so closely packed together in that place. That bundled with the fact that you have melee, casters with adds and mounted mobs too. Grr.
macanima Apr 14th 2008 8:50AM
Give me ogres anyday. Especially the Crushridge Ogres, except around the fortress where they like to aggro 3 and 4 at a time (including the wandering elite with his rain of fire).
Reinard Apr 22nd 2008 10:11PM
Speaking from a 54 prot paladin's point of view, so far I'd have to say the easiest are the undead at Sorrow Hill in WPL :) They're all melee, and I can take 6-8 at a time no problem.
Now, though, my least favorite? Any melee with a stun/fear/knockback/silence, and casters. The ogres in Burning Steppes have an annoying knockback that makes it hard to take more than one at a time, and the pterrodax in Un'Goro fear, which is annoying as hell. So do the bats in EPL, as I recall. And the higher level version of said bats silence. Not cool.
orso Apr 14th 2008 9:10AM
MURLOCS!! you can never pull just one. On the other hand though I have always liked killing Ogres. Big and squishy they all just seem to be big push overs.
Rodrígo Apr 14th 2008 9:02AM
the greatest pain to any mana class are all the mana-draining guys in all of netherstorm, especially as a paladin^^
FireStar Apr 14th 2008 9:09AM
I hate just about all elementals (besides maybe the Life ones - i.e. ones that drop stuff like mote of life are much easier). This is overall for all the classes (lvled them all).
shoemanchris Apr 14th 2008 9:38AM
I love Ogres, especially in Nagrand! Maybe its a little man thing as I usually drive a Gnome Rogue, but good Pickpocket Loot, reasonable cash and green drops, pots of Super Healing and Mana, plus XP for 2 factions
I hate slime, whether its Hinterlands or Netherwing, slime sucks... nasty debuffs and masses of crap for loot, but I also agree with the person who put up that quest for Uther in Plaguelands... that is horrible too!
Electrocuted Apr 14th 2008 10:31AM
Awful mobs to fight.
In my mind, any of the f*ing venture company. They're reasonably tightly packed, and run early.
The other "WORST" that I came across were those ghosts down in the Kirin tor village in Netherstorm, that walk around all normal and then change into shades to fight, then when you're just getting wound up on dps, do the shared damage thing, so BOOM, ow ow ow.
Easiest? Wolves, maybe spiders if you don't mind the poison.
jrodman Apr 14th 2008 9:52AM
Um, nothing is reasonable to grind. Never grind! Optimize your questing and you'll level much faster and with less drudgery. Duh!
kunukia Apr 14th 2008 12:02PM
Grinding is relaxing for a change. In a way, it is 'smelling the roses', while gathering gold and still getting XP. After hitting 70, I still occasionally spend an hour grinding my favorite mobs.
Ahoni Apr 14th 2008 2:34PM
Gotta agree with kunukia here ...
Sometimes grinding is relaxing. I don't have to think about where to go or how many I need or which is next. Just find an area I like, with mobs I can kill easy and go to town. Humanoids mostly, unless I'm on my skinner, then clefthoof or talbuk.
robotrock Apr 14th 2008 9:38AM
I really, really hate those effing Phase Wyrms at Bash'ir's landing.
guero Apr 14th 2008 9:39AM
This past weekend I enjoyed grinding the Jungle Stalkers and gorillas (can't remember their exact name) in Stranglethorn. Easy to drop and lots of hard leather to sell on the AH.
NeSuKuN Apr 14th 2008 9:40AM
Easiest: nagrand ogres, I start spamming dots (no fear) to 8-10 of 'em without even stopping to fight 'em, no need to rest for hours.
Hardest: most warlocks, those of the new isle annoy me a lot. I mostly focus on the imp and then kill the lock. BEM locks are also pretty annoying when they appear just behind you while banishing demons and start spamming you shadowbolts to death.
UFTimmy Apr 14th 2008 9:55AM
That's funny, I just did those same quests last week. The eels were annoying to my Rogue, but the Bog Lords were the pits. They did a ton of damage and their disease or whatever prevented cannibalize, bandaging, and stealth until it wore off. A huge PITA.
Meanwhile, I can grind on caster mobs all day long. As a Rogue I can keep them locked down and without their spells they don't do much damage.
Tryst Apr 14th 2008 9:54AM
Fire elementals, like the ones at the Throne, as a fire mage. It's like I'm slapping them with baby hands. Ridiculous.
David(Postal) Apr 14th 2008 9:56AM
I have to agree I hate the umbrafen eels!!! It took me 30 minutes of constant grinding before it dropped the first quest item!
bub Apr 14th 2008 10:27AM
As a fire mage nearly all mobs go down in 2-3 hits. Casters have less hp and its fun trying to kill them before they get off that first cast.
Worst by far are the fire immune mobs that leave you scrambling to try and find where you moved your coc too.
Juliah Apr 14th 2008 10:29AM
I'm well past them now with all of my characters, but I loved the Worgen in Duskwood. They were the first humanoids I encountered that I could skin, and they offered heavy leather, which was a big deal at that level. :)