Phat Loot Phriday: The Boreal Guard
by Mike Schramm 
Jul 3rd 2009 at 4:30PM
Name: The Boreal Guard (Wowhead, Thottbot, Armory)
Type: Epic Shield
Armor: 7960 (223 Block)
Attributes:
- +39 Strength, +92 Stamina. Pretty standard for a tanking shield.
- Two sockets: Red and Blue. This is what pretty much puts this baby over the top in terms of endgame tanking shields -- get some extra Strength, Stamina, and/or Defense in there, and this shield matches up against stuff that drops from the very hardest bosses in the game.
- Also increases defense rating by 35, parry rating by 37, and shield block rating by 33. Very nice shield.
- Plus, it's got a dude's face on it. That means that you can be like Homer when he went to jury duty -- just hold this up in front of your face, and people will think you're still awake while you're grabbing some sweet Zs during a raid!
Getting Rid of It: Sells back to vendors for 13g 97s 68c, or disenchants into an Abyss Crystal. But you'll probably keep it -- like I said, it's comparable to some of the best shields in the game, at least until the next patch comes down.
Filed under: Items, Analysis / Opinion, Instances, Screenshots, Raiding, Phat Loot Phriday, Bosses, NPCs
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Daigeil Jul 3rd 2009 4:39PM
Misinformation is bad. Hodir's hard mode is just for killing him quickly, and it absolutely requires you to make the most possible use of the NPC buffs.
Still, a nice shield for sure.
Oscren Jul 3rd 2009 4:44PM
Yeah the hard mode is to kill him in under 3 mins.
Grubba Jul 3rd 2009 5:05PM
Seriously, take two minutes and look up the hard mode requirements before posting something wrong on such a basic level.
Alex Ziebart Jul 3rd 2009 5:51PM
I've fixed it.
Shoryu Jul 3rd 2009 6:12PM
NERD RAGE
Heilig Jul 3rd 2009 5:03PM
The only known upgrade to this shield is from 25 man Algalon. This shield used to be on par with the BoE Northern Barrier at ilvl 226, but when they buffed the 10 man hard mode weapons, shields got included, so this shield is now best-in-slot before Algalon. Seems a little silly to me considering how easy it is to acquire, but whatever.
Hasjarl Jul 3rd 2009 5:24PM
If you don't have something constructive to say, shut the fuck up please. Mike does this column for us every week, simply because he wants to. If you're going to pick at him every time he makes a human mistake, don't bother reading it, and certainly don't make a smartass, disrespectful comment.
Thanks.
edaleeta Jul 3rd 2009 5:28PM
Yeah, the hard-mode bit is misinformed, however, a good piece regardless.
Zach Jul 3rd 2009 5:29PM
That shield has the same face model that is on the door guarding the Descent into Madness. I like it.
Reinard Jul 3rd 2009 5:29PM
He makes these mistakes EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. He often has no idea what he's talking about, doesn't do any research, and NEVER corrects himself. He picks a pretty weapon, simply because it is pretty, and tells us the stats and a vague and often misinformed reason as to why they are good and to what classes they're good for, also often wrong.
It wouldn't be so bad if he ever went back and corrected his mistakes. But he doesn't, and lord knows how many people believe the misinformation.
Constructive enough for you?
Falcon6 Jul 3rd 2009 5:33PM
"I've tried to be nice in my past comments here, but I really can't anymore. "
Then don't comment.
Oh, wow, sorry, did I blow your mind with the OBVIOUSNESS?
Yes, he got it wrong, and yes, he needs to correct himself, but he hardly needs to be treated with such a disrespectful tone.
Tickle Jul 3rd 2009 5:41PM
I'm sorry but I have to agree, Schramm is clueless and should just stop writing these, period.
Cowdungus Jul 3rd 2009 5:44PM
"If you don't have something constructive to say, shut the fuck up please. Mike does this column for us every week, simply because he wants to."
'Simply because he wants to' is not an excuse for being wrong and doing a shitty job.
Hasjarl Jul 3rd 2009 5:58PM
If you think he does such a shitty job, don't bother reading his column, and sure as fuck stop commenting on them. It's not like his mistakes impact any of you in any way. Go ahead and say "Oh, but his misinformation makes bad players by making people think you can get loot in incorrect ways."
I'm sorry, but any decent player researches loot and hardmodes for himself. If a player happens to read Mike's column and picks up some information, and doesn't check it elsewhere to verify it, they're simply a bad player.
The important point here is that the fine folks that contribute to wow.com have been providing the WoW player base with good, interesting material for years. For you to blatantly insult one of the contributers the way you did is just absolute dickitude. Yeah, he screwed up a fact. But your shit certainly doesn't smell any better than his does. Please go read/flame another WoW site, if you're so hostile toward this one.
Doma Jul 3rd 2009 6:00PM
for those who wish to tank with their face.
Toasty Jul 4th 2009 1:06AM
Druids have been doing it for years.
Foxfyr Jul 3rd 2009 6:41PM
"Ugh. Why do you even do this column anymore? Seriously? I've tried to be nice in my past comments here, but I really can't anymore. You're a fucking idiot."
Thank god I'm not the only one. I actually considered going back on my meds or maybe just seeing that therapist again.
Today was going fine. Work was alright, it was almost the weekend. I had spent the last few minutes browsing a couple of my favorite sites and things were looking up.
Then I come across this post and I just lost it. Before I could control myself I had smashed my USB keyboard and mouse on the wall (Lucky its a laptop or I wouldn't be able to write this). I don't know what it was... just something in me could not allow this kind of filth and misinformation to go unpunished. I started to think of all the shitty things that had had happened in my life and wondered if this post could possibly be the last straw that broke the camel's back.
I think the only thing that saved the pathetic life of poor Robert in the cubicle next to me was your reply Reinard.
Thank god I'm not alone.
Thank Reinard you get to wake up tomorrow, Robert.
Ayane Jul 3rd 2009 6:44PM
Now that looks really cool!
Budbaer Jul 3rd 2009 6:50PM
@Hasjarl:
Well if the author of a feature article repeatedly gets his information wrong then why should the "important point (...) that the fine folks that contribute to wow.com have been providing the WoW player base with good, interesting material for years" matter at all?
His contribution to this feature has had several issues of poor research.
Thus we have to second guess anything Mike Schramm writes in here.
Even a simple statement as: "This is what pretty much puts this baby over the top in terms of endgame tanking shields", we now have to take with a big grain of salt, when the author here can not even get his hard modes right.
That is poor penmanship and he has to be called out for it.
Naughton Jul 3rd 2009 7:04PM
Wish i could get paid to write articles as bad as this one.