Breakfast Topic: Could you possibly be more excited for the Lunar Festival?
by Fox Van Allen 
Jan 20th 2011 at 8:00AM
To be honest, it took me a while to figure out just exactly what holiday the Lunar Festival was. Most holidays in Azeroth mirror our own, but I don't really celebrate Chinese New Year. So of course, being the uncultured (though handsome) dolt I am, I assumed the holiday was inspired by the canceled CBS drama Ghost Whisperer. Apparently, though, the Chinese New Year is a pretty big thing. Especially in China. Go figure!
For those who don't know, the Lunar Festival is a three-week-long super-holiday that involves running around the world to meet and "honor" all sorts of elders. If the whole thing tingles the same obsessive-compulsive part of your brain as it does mine, you'll find yourself one-manning all sorts of old instances, trying to honor some inconveniently located, long-forgotten spooks for a handful of gold and some holiday-only currency. If you want more information about it, it's all here in The OverAchiever: Guide to Lunar Festival 2011.
It's one of the most brutal travel-heavy holidays out there, but if you're interested in scoring that 310% mount from the What A Long, Strange Trip It's Been achievement, it's required. But is it worth it? Will you be celebrating the Lunar Festival holiday across all your alts? Are you excited about corpse-hopping your way through the opposing faction's capital cities?
I already made my rounds last year, so I think I'll just take it easy myself. Maybe order in some Chinese and catch a Camryn Manheim film festival instead.
Working on achievements? The Overachiever is here to help! Count on us for advice on Azeroth's holidays and special events, including new achievements, how to get 310% flight speed with achievement mounts, and reputation factions and achievements. Filed under: Breakfast Topics
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Kyte Midnight Jan 20th 2011 8:03AM
Honestly, I'm hoping for some sort of boss revamp. Cataclysm would be the perfect time to do it.
Let Omen drop some loot, yo.
Eberron Jan 20th 2011 8:28AM
No kidding. Not to be too spoiled or anything, but I really prefer holidays that feature some sort of unique "You had to be there" easy gear, a rare drop (f**k that headless horseman mount - every day on 5 toons and I never saw one! Grr!) or whatnot.
Sure, even being on an RP server I can appreciate people like the gowns or whatnot but... eh. I'm a more numbers oriented guy. Lets see some decent trinkets and weapons!
Even Pilgrim's Bounty had some nice stuff. Cheap feasts, easy secondary profession leveling, awesome buffs for alts. This.. eh. Not so much. :(
Noyou Jan 20th 2011 10:36AM
I kind of like the way Omen is set up. Free for all but everyone gets credit. Even if you die or walk up late. Boom. And it's even neat from the standpoint where you have two factions working together. Well maybe not on a PvP server but that's a totally different animal.
Drakkenfyre Jan 20th 2011 11:04AM
A few years ago, when the Lunar Festival was about to end in a day or so, there were a group of people trying to down Omen.
There were level 80 Alliance there, but only a few. I was there on my (hadn't leveled in awhile) level 70 Mage.
Level 80 Horde showed up.
There were only a few of them.
Everyone worked together to take down Omen.
I did what I could to Omen, and tossed some buffs on the other Alliance.
The Horde didn't attack us, we didn't attack the Horde.
The couple times their AOE hit us, they did an apology emote.
Omen went down, we all got the buff.
I play on a PVP server.
Swifteye Jan 20th 2011 8:05AM
I don't plan to *intentionally* participate (about the only game holidays I actually enjoy anymore are Midsummer Fire and Brewfest, to be honest)...
... but I'll likely end up getting more than a few out-of-the-way elders anyway just because "as long as I'm here" while doing out-of-the-way Archaeology sites......
*sigh*
MusedMoose Jan 20th 2011 8:07AM
Likewise, I did this last year; "Elder" seemed like a good title for my arcane mage and she still wears it. Only thing is, doing all the holiday stuff was pretty fun, and it inspired me to go for "Long, Strange Trip" with that mage. Unfortunately, last year the Lunar Festival happened *after* "Love is in the Air"... so no purple dragon for me 'till next month. @_@
I think I'll end up going to see a lot of the elders, though, if only to level up my hunter. I'm trying to get him to 85 to run heroics with my guild, and I can do both exploration and archaeology and queue for WotLK dungeons while I fly around. Good thing he just got epic flying...
KJP Jan 20th 2011 8:12AM
At least old world flight figures to ease the pain a little.
Mazaltov Jan 20th 2011 8:23AM
Lunar Fest holds a special place in my heart because I first started playing WoW during Lunar Fest '08. Of course at the time I had no idea what it was. I remember walking up to the guy in the glowing column of light and saying "Hello" to him. I thought he was an in game moderator. I went on to tell him I'm new to the game and asking him where I could find some quest item that was giving me trouble. After being miffed that he didnt bother to respond to me I walked away sulking.
To this day I always /wave at the glowing light dudes, even though they are stuck up and wont answer my questions.
Kyte Midnight Jan 20th 2011 8:43AM
I, too started playing right before the start of the Lunar Festival, granted, it was the very first one. I recall having no clue how to go anywhere except for Teldrassil and Darkshore, but I was confused over how many people were talking in trade, despite no one being in Darnassus. Needless to say, when the opportunity to magically skip across the ocean to Stormwind via the scroll you get, I took it! Got the flight path, and hearthed back home to Darnassus, only to find out that I couldn't fly there from the Village...
I also discovered Thunder Bluff and Orgrimmar that day, because the portals were "bugged" and didn't prevent you from going to opposing factions cities. That was hotfixed the next day.
Noyou Jan 20th 2011 10:42AM
I started playing about a year later in between Winter Veil and Lunar Fest. It was really cool and like you I had no clue what I was doing. I was on my mage or rogue and remember not having a clue where I was when I read that scroll (moonglade) I just kept asking the guild If I was going to get ganked or not (I had not PvPed at the time but read/heard about it). One of the things I failed to do that year (but corrected it in 2010) was pick up the alliance FP. Especially good for those toons in the 48-55 range who might have to turn in a quest or two there. Fun times. Can't wait.
Chucks Jan 20th 2011 8:24AM
I am pumped! This'll be my first level capped holiday.
Noyou Jan 20th 2011 10:44AM
Nice. Enjoy it! And if you have any alts I believe there was a decent amount of XP for meeting the elders.
Tim Jan 20th 2011 8:33AM
Sure.
sephirah Jan 20th 2011 8:33AM
Could you possibly be more excited for *any* seasonal event?
Shibdaddy Jan 20th 2011 8:35AM
Add Cairne in as one of the elders and maybe I'll get excited. :P
Kennebec Jan 20th 2011 8:49AM
That would be a perfect way to honor his untimely death.
Gossamer Jan 20th 2011 9:16AM
I like this idea, and I agree with the sentiment. I've been playing WoW for quite a while, and I have done all of the holiday achievements on my main character, and I guess that's as far as they interested me. Now that I can buy 310 flying on my other characters and because I've done some of the holidays' events several times they just don't appeal anymore. However, I think a few little changes, like adding Carne as a elder in this holiday, could spice them up a little and give old hats like me something new to do.
Prelimar Jan 20th 2011 11:53AM
i play alliance, and even i support this idea.
Nawaf Jan 20th 2011 11:53AM
They should put him in bloodhoof village. Ezra Wheathoof deserves to be the Thunder Bluff elder more.
RIP Ezra
Candina@WH Jan 20th 2011 8:50AM
wait... wha??? another Azeroth Holiday? Really? huh... go fig....
[no, I won't be bothering with Lunar Festivities]