The Mighty Battle continues! Today we'll took at another pair of mail and leather sets, this time for the Rogue and Shaman Tier 9 sets from the Crusader's Coliseum. For the past three days, we've pitted suits of armor against each other in an all-out brawl determined by the armor design's faithfulness to its class, representation of its faction, and overall badassery. It's the first time we're seeing faction-based PvE Tier armor in the World of Warcraft, so we'll see who comes out on top.

While I've outlined my criteria for judging the armor sets, we've spiced things up with a reader poll to see which armor you guys like and from the results thus far it looks like the Horde have gained a good edge in the voting. Is it a result of faction-bias? Are the armor sets really that much better for the Horde? Hit the jump to find out!

Round 1: Class
We'll take a look at the Alliance version first, as we've done in the past few days. This time we're looking at a leather armor set identical to the Druid set, albeit with different coloration. The dark blue coloration with bronze highlights is pretty elegant and gives off a different vibe than previous Rogue sets. Though the bladed shoulders are reminiscent of past tier armor, the rest gives off a more tailored look. The pockets on the shoulders are utility belt-ish, and while we're on that track, the mask gives off a Batman vibe. Or crow-man. Either way, I think it works.

The Horde set is decidedly more rough around the edges and gives off more of a 'brawler' feel, lending itself better to a Combat spec, as opposed to the Assassination and Subtlety vibe of the Alliance set. The large stitching gives it a more leather feel than the Alliance one, which looks like cloth. One beef I've got with this set are the brightly glowing shoulders. Why would a Rogue, a master of stealth, announce his presence with sun lamps?

Verdict: The Horde set looks great, no question, but the Alliance set feels more Rogue-ish. The Alliance slips past this one.

Round 2: Faction
There isn't much going for the Alliance set here other than the blue and gold coloration. Because it lacks the kilt or skirt of the Druid version, there isn't enough Elvish filigree to 'theme' the armor. The Horde Rogue set is rust-colored with charcoal, which also echoes the red and black hues of the Horde, but in addition to that, Horde symbol design elements are scattered throughout the armor set. The cool thing is that the Alliance version evokes a more 'civilized' feel as opposed to the more primal tone of the Horde version, which works for both armor sets.

Verdict: By virtue of a few more Horde symbols, the Horde take this round.

Round 3: Overall Look
I know more than a few of you aren't fans of the corseted look, but I really, really like it. Yes, it looks phenomenally better on female characters, but it works well for male toons, too. And some armor really are tied together in that manner. It's different, it looks unlike any armor we've seen in the game so far, actually. On the other hand, as cool as the Horde armor is, there's nothing particularly memorable about it. It gets points for raised leg armor, but otherwise it isn't distinctive. At least Tier 8 had that bald man helm to make it stand out.

Verdict: I'm scoring this one for the Alliance simply because it carries a distinctive style as opposed to the generic cool-and-spiky assemblage of the Horde.

Winner: Alliance 2-1

---

Patch 3.2 will bring about a new 5, 10, and 25 man instance to WoW, and usher in a new 40-man battleground called the Isle of Conquest. WoW.com will have you covered every step of the way, from extensive PTR coverage through the official live release. Check out WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.2 for all the latest!

---

Tags: armor-sets, faction-specific, faction-specific-armor-sets, mighty-battle, patch-3.2, patch-3.2-changes, patch-3.2-wow, rogue-tier-9, shaman-tier-9, tier-9, world-of-warcraft-patch-3.2, wow-3.2-changes, wow-new-patch, wow-patch, wow-patch-3.2, wow-patch-news

Filed under: Rogue, Shaman, Patches, Analysis / Opinion, Humor