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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsBreakfast Topic: Lamented Mechanics
by Matthew Rossi 
Dec 27th 2009 at 8:00AM
For instance, I wish there were tanking fist weapons. I love, love, love fist weapons. I'd settle for a fist that had hit and expertise on it, even. But while I'm willing to switch to a slow main hander when I have a full rage bar to dump as Devastate threat (or for huge Cleaves when tanking lots of trash) it's just not really suitable for a good 80 to 90% of my time tanking. And yet, how I love fist weapons. I have an enhancement shaman, of course, and yet fists almost never drop for him (he's using axes at the moment) while they rain from the heavens and are almost constantly sharded when I'm tanking. I've taken to just picking them up and using them for fun. I understand there will most likely never be a dedicated tanking fist, as the only class that could use it would be a warrior (Paladins and DKs can't use fist weapons, Druids can but would almost never use one over a staff since they can't use shields).
Similarly, whenever I go elemental I always end up drooling over caster swords, and there have been a few times I've heard paladin healers sigh at a dagger drop. So what I turn to ask you is, what do you wish you could use? What drop can you either not equip or just can't effectively use?
Filed under: Druid, Paladin, Shaman, Warrior, Items, Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Breakfast Topics, Death Knight
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 7)
Swifteye Dec 27th 2009 8:27AM
As a Hunter, I probably have less room to QQ about incompatible weapons than anyone, but there are a few...
For one, I agree with Fletcher, being able to effectively use throwing weapons as a Hunter would be sweet!
And maces are just about the only thing we CAN'T equip, but danged if I don't see the things drop ALL THE TIME with loads of delicious Agi... stupid RNG just likes to mock me on drops.
And I'd really, really love to be able to use a badass axe, but I have a HELL of a time trying to find one with Hunter stats (despite technically being able to equip them)... I'm sure they're out there, but all I seem to find are Strength axes in spades. Le sigh.
Muse Dec 27th 2009 8:56AM
A hunter having problems getting a hunter weapon. Sweet ironies. ^-^
Swifteye Dec 27th 2009 10:58AM
So you'd rather I just go ahead and equip those Strength axes saying "lol I can equip so this arr Hunter weapon d00d I needz Str I liek 2 may-lay sometimes hurrrr!"...?
*sigh*
Good to know that Hunter hate is still alive and well... guess I'll go back to playing my Death Knoob so I can get a change in the derision scenery once in a while.
Tirrimas Dec 27th 2009 11:18AM
Personally, I think it's kind of silly that Hunters can use staves and fists. I dunno - it just doesn't fit with how I (personally) see the Hunter class. Maybe it's supposed to play up how "versatile" they are - able to make do with anything they find, but I'd rather be as efficient as possible. While using (decent) thrown weapons would be kind of nifty, they feel clunky compared to a gun/bow.
Speaking of thrown, my baby rogue wants to be able to apply poison to them. And letting rogues use axes - ehh. I see rogues strutting around Dalaran with those big neon Christmas ornaments of weapons and I wonder how they can be the sneaky, convert killers they are while glowing in the dark.
Swifteye Dec 27th 2009 12:50PM
I know this is all a matter of opinion, but I actually think staves are a great Hunter weapon, at least RP-wise.
Ideally, we're not supposed to be in melee *at all*. We're not consciously equipping ourselves for it, we just picked up a big stick out in the forest as a last resort, you know?
Same with maces. Perhaps not the huge metal morning star-type maces, but say the stick you picked up just happens to be shorter and fatter than your fellow Hunter's. So it's a natural club, perfectly fitting.
I may be lambasted for this, but I think the single most non-fitting Hunter weapon would be swords. A sword, seriously? I can see us maybe keeping a dagger for skinning animals (survivalists and all) and slitting the throat of a down-but-not-quite-out enemy, but what the Hell is a Hunter going to do with a sword, let alone being able to dual-wield them!
And polearms... suuuuuure. I'm shooting something and it's closing to melee fast; I REALLY have time to put my bow away and drag out an eight-foot pole with a metal dealie weighing roughly as much as a small car attached to the end.
So actually, as far as what I see as "fitting" (again, my opinion and mine alone), I'd say take away Hunters' ability to use swords and polearms and let us use maces.
......... and take away our fist weapons too. I mean, honestly... I'm a woman of the wild but I'm packin' a sweet pair of brass knucks! Take me seriously!........ *crickets chirp*
Grubba Dec 27th 2009 2:22PM
@Tirrimas
"And letting rogues use axes - ehh. I see rogues strutting around Dalaran with those big neon Christmas ornaments of weapons and I wonder how they can be the sneaky, convert killers they are while glowing in the dark."
Recognize that there is more than one archetypal character a Rogue can be. You're hung up on "assassin," when you should be thinking "swashbuckler."
Kylenne Dec 27th 2009 8:05PM
...while you made some good points, your second post fails to take into account that Hunters are an Azerothian expy of Rangers from D&D, and dual wielding swords are as iconic to the Ranger class as the Animal Companion, or the warhorse is to a Paladin. A sizable number of the weapon proficiencies and class features in WoW come straight from the classes' D&D roots.
And no, contrary to common misconceptions, Rangers dual wielding swords did not get popularized with Drizzt Do'Urden. That was an iconic class feature going back a very long time. You can thank Tolkien for Rangers wielding swords at all in D&D, which trickles down to WoW and every other RPG that has a version of a Ranger class.
zappo Dec 28th 2009 11:27AM
"And polearms... suuuuuure. I'm shooting something and it's closing to melee fast;"
I think you'll find historically in most societies, hunters started out with spears.
Artificial Dec 28th 2009 2:57PM
@Tirrimas: OMG I can't believe you even said that. The image of hunters/rangers (at least the deep forest archer types) fighting with staves is as old as Robin Hood. There's probably no more weapon better suited to the classic image of them. Suggesting it seems "silly" to you suggests a very, very deep ignorance of the lore and history of the hunter/ranger/archer in lore and fantasy literature...
Swifteye Dec 29th 2009 10:05AM
@Kylenne: I'm sorry, I really wasn't thinking of D&D type Rangers. I just view WoW Hunters as that which they have presented in their lore, which seems to me to be just natural survivalists. The rugged "mountain man" image as suggested by the grizzled Dwarf with a bear by his side in the original cinematic, you know? So I do apologize if my comment offended those loyal to D&D's idea of an archer.
@zappo: Again, I'm just commenting on WoW's depiction of Hunters, not any kind of person who's ever been called a "hunter" IRL. Furthermore, while I concede you have a point, I consider those ancient hunters' spears to be more akin to javelins, basically just a sharpened stick that could be thrown and that was used *in lieu of* a bow, rather than *in addition to*. At most (weight-wise) they had a spearhead stuck to the end (y'know, like an arrowhead enlarged to scale), as opposed to the freakin' battleaxe heads they stick to the polearms in WoW.
Actually, I guess I'm just kinda spoiled by other games, because while I suppose spears *would* be an acceptable Hunter weapon, I'm used to games in which spears and polearms are two separate weapon groups, since the weight makes them handle completely differently.
*shrugs*
vocenoctum Dec 27th 2009 8:40AM
I was looking at some drops for mybear the one time, and aside from lamenting the inability to use axes, I mainly thought "wouldn't it be cool if there were offhands for tanking" or even kittie I suppose, but screw them.
A hunter can dual wield, so they're fine, but if a druid (non-caster) goes with a one hand, they lose out on stats. I don't want them using shields, but an off-hand that had offensive stats like a dagger, but didn't actually ATTACK, just a stat booster like the caster offhands.
Or heck, even a talent to convert say, spellpower into ap or something, I dunno!
vocenoctum Dec 27th 2009 8:45AM
and by axes, I meant swords...
I always wanted the horseman's blade, but alas, was not to be for my druid.
Ramco Dec 27th 2009 8:48AM
I really want shamans to be able to use swords. There is no reason to not give them swords, but instead they gave rogues axes... On the subject of rogues, they are the only class right now who uses physical swords and daggers, so why do there have to be so many of them?
vocenoctum Dec 27th 2009 8:48AM
You know what I'd like, though it's not "mechanics" per se...
I'd like to be able to emblem some weapons, or maybe have a decent crafted one or something. It seems like my drop-chance is not tied to official numbers for stuff, and I"ll go quite a long time between weapon upgrades.
And heck, being able to get a partial refund for emblem gear that's now outdated.
Or make converting emblems to lower emblems at more than a 1 for 1 rate.
And I wouldn't mind if some of the older emblem gear went to BoE or BoA either...
bmiller Dec 27th 2009 9:01AM
You can exchange emblems more than one at a time, just shift click like you were going to buy a stack of something
henevsarhoe Dec 27th 2009 9:23AM
He means the conversion rate should be 1:2 or something, so that higher emblems are worth more then lower emblems, like dollars to euros.
Aerogwen Dec 27th 2009 10:58PM
I love the idea to make the conversion rate different than 1:1. I think that 1 triumph should = 2 heroism and 1 frost should be 2 triumph or something. I also wish that we could get some kind of refund for gear that we have grown out of.
I wish my druid could use swords like locks can.
Tyr Dec 27th 2009 8:49AM
fist weapons for my tankadin, some of them look absolutely amazing... but that require some change in itemization as well, as mentioned above :(
Lon C Dec 27th 2009 8:50AM
I wish cloth casters could equip dual swords and daggers. It's not like we actually use them in battle, they just hang off our belt.
RetPallyJil Dec 27th 2009 9:01AM
I wish rets could dual-wield :(