Strange things are afoot at the Grim Guzzler
by Daniel Whitcomb 
Jul 16th 2008 at 1:00PM
A lot of us pre-Burning Crusade players hold a warm place in our hearts for the Grim Guzzler, the bar in the middle of Blackrock Depths. It's a hangout for desperadoes and shady figures run by a leper gnome with a demonic bar wench and a metallic bouncer. Most of the patrons would usually kill you as soon as look at you, but as long as they're drunk and you don't bother them too much, they'll generally leave you alone. Of course, sometimes it's worth bothering them, since a few of the patrons and staff drop some pretty cool loot.
Despite this charming atmosphere, the Grim Guzzler is in the middle of a sprawling dungeon of hostile Dark Iron Dwarves, so ever since the Burning Crusade, people don't seem to go down there too often. That said, you might want to check it out in the next few days. There's a few new faces down at the bar since patch 2.4.3 went live, including an Arena gear vendor named Griz Gutshank, a Dark Iron Brewer who can't hold his brew, and a couple of goblin roadies setting up for a Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain concert.
Check out the gallery for a complete illustrated guide to the new faces and surprises at the Grim Guzzler, and maybe I'll see you there tonight for the Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain concert. Oh, and try the Sulfuron Slammer -- It's Plugger's newest specialty!
Filed under: Dwarves, Patches, Items, News items, Instances, NPCs, Galleries
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Badger Jul 16th 2008 1:16PM
"There's a few new faces down at the bar since patch 2.4.3 went live, including an Arena gear vendor named Griz Gutshank, a Dark Iron Brewer who can't hold his brew, and a couple of goblin roadies setting up for a Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain concert."
You know what would be awesome? If the designers and the developers would spend less time finding ways to plug stupid shit like the Arena and L80ETC that the majority of players will never bother approaching, and instead, focused on things that the community believes actually need improvement, or - God forbid - ACTUALLY FIXING WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE GAME.
lol Jul 16th 2008 1:18PM
lol
Badger Jul 16th 2008 1:18PM
Great, I screwed up my own post. I meant to say:
"If the designers and the developers would spend less time finding ways to plug stupid shit like the Arena and L80ETC [in Old World locations] that the majority of players will never bother [entering]" etc.
Tridus Jul 16th 2008 1:20PM
Sure, now get players to agree on what those mythical "things that are wrong with the game" are.
Chuddy Jul 16th 2008 1:22PM
haha, badger you wear your hater goggles on way too often.
Badger Jul 16th 2008 1:25PM
"Sure, now get players to agree on what those mythical "things that are wrong with the game" are."
Yeah, that's true. It is kinda subjective. I wasn't talking about stuff like class balance issues, though; I was talking about actual, glitches. You know, stuff like falling through the floor in WSG, randomly being "tossed overboard" on boat trips, etc.
I was referring mostly to glitches, exploits, stuff like that. Quite a few of them are never fixed. (Actually, employees within Blizzard can be fired on the spot for disclosing glitches and exploits that have not or will not be corrected.)
Shadowfury Jul 16th 2008 1:31PM
Most of these glitches are those that can't be fixed without a complete overhaul on the games engine. Since most of them seldom happen (if you behave yourself), they won't bother with it until the next "what wrong with the game" meeting, scheduled to some time soon.
vanye111 Jul 16th 2008 1:40PM
Isn't the new Hallows Eve instance going to be taking place in BRD, that dwarven boss? That's probably why they've added that, in anticipation of the new reason to go (even if it is only for 2 weeks...)
Badger Jul 16th 2008 1:38PM
"Most of these glitches are those that can't be fixed without a complete overhaul on the games engine. Since most of them seldom happen (if you behave yourself), they won't bother with it until the next "what wrong with the game" meeting, scheduled to some time soon."
I don't know what's being implied here, but I "behave myself." Well, as much as a drunken Paladin can, anyway. :P
Still, it's virtually undeniable that there are some technical or aesthetic issues with the game that need a little fine-tuning. My point was that I would feel better knowing that the design and development staff were focused on minimizing or correcting these, rather than introducing gimmicky new content in locations in the game world (especially the so-called "Old Azeroth") where very few players go since the release of "Crusade."
Badger Jul 16th 2008 1:47PM
The Headless Horseman is going to BRD? My mistake, then; I wasn't aware. That could just as easily be why they overhauled the Guzzler.
When did this happen?
Badger Jul 16th 2008 1:50PM
"Isn't the new Hallows Eve instance going to be taking place in BRD, that dwarven boss? That's probably why they've added that, in anticipation of the new reason to go (even if it is only for 2 weeks...)"
Did you mean Brewfest, by chance?
Braundo Jul 16th 2008 1:56PM
Not to mention the fact that the people who work on programming the game engine are not going to be the same people who copy and paste new NPCs and dialogue/items into existing zones.
jrb Jul 16th 2008 4:12PM
"randomly being "tossed overboard" on boat trips"
i've not seen that since the few months after the initial release of vanilla wow... and i'm sure it's been addressed in more than one patch note since release.
personally, i think it's great when blizz go back and 'tweak' stuff like this in game, especially when it gets through the PTR without people noticing. It takes very little time for the world editors to put together.
i just wish they'd do it more often.
makh Jul 16th 2008 1:36PM
Dan can you tell us how long the transformation from using Dire Brew lasts? 1 hour?
Daniel Whitcomb Jul 16th 2008 2:38PM
Makh,
It is one hour, yes.
Josef Jul 16th 2008 1:41PM
What is wrong with the game badger. Seriously, WHAT? I enjoy this game, its fun! I am still enjoying this game, even after 3 years of playing.
I don't play arena that much and I don't care if people do, I don't know what is wrong, but I am more than jhappy to listen.
Badger Jul 16th 2008 1:46PM
Dude, I never said the game wasn't fun. I was talking about issues like blatant graphical clipping and random sound card freak-outs, or even some of the more common (yet sensible) complaints among the more vocal members of the player community (Druids asking for "Dire Bear" textures, I'm looking at you).
I've already been set straight by the other readers, and they had good points. The game's engine isn't an easy thing to overhaul. No need for excessive usage of the Caps Lock key. :P
Nick S Jul 16th 2008 3:16PM
I'm with Badger. Just off the top of my head, I can list a few bugs I'd love to see fixed...
-Autoshot lockout (no, you don't have to restart the game anymore, but it still happens.)
-Blink (lol backwards-blink is a feature, not a bug)
-Vanish (uh oh they can still see me...)
And those are just the first three to come to mind.
Not saying I don't love the game, but when a serious problem gets ignored patch after fun-content-filled patch, it's frustrating for the class in question. I don't like pounding the Escape key to unlock my Autoshot every few minutes in raids, don't like trying to escape from a rogue and finding myself not only NOT far away, but actually CLOSER to him. And I'm sure that Rogue doesn't like it when I'm winding up a Frostbolt and his Vanish doesn't do anything.
Josef Jul 16th 2008 1:50PM
It was only one word, plus I am generally quite bad at emphasis.
Oh I thought that you were complaining in general... Sorry, I just have a dislike for that sort of thing, my apoligise.
Badger Jul 16th 2008 1:54PM
I was being kinda vague, and I apologize for that, too.
Actually, I managed to forget about the half-billion other reasons why Blizzard would need to revamp the BRD instance, like Brewfest and Hallow's End. (See above.)
Admittedly, I put my foot so far into my mouth that I can taste my friggin' sock.