World First: Paragon defeats heroic 25-man Ragnaros
by Mathew McCurley 
Jul 19th 2011 at 7:00PM
The heroic version of the Ragnaros fight adds a whole new phase to the encounter in which Ragnaros regains his full Firelord strength, steps out of his swirling molten pool, and becomes mobile around the platform with his new firelegs. Cenarius, Hamuul Runetotem and Malfurion Stormrage assist the players in tackling Ragnaros' many abilities in this new phase, finally putting out the Firelord's lights for good.
Heroic modes for the Ragnaros fight and others in the Firelands were also not available on the public test realm, making it that much more difficult for these hardcore raiding guilds to get time in on these encounters.
I am excited to hear about Paragon's time with these bosses in the Firelands. At only seven bosses, the Firelands is one of the more accessible raid zones, with a time commitment that feels far smaller than the monolithic endeavors of the past, like ICC or Ulduar. Has Firelands presented enough of a challenge to the top of the top guilds? Whatever the case, congratulations again! I hope that my guild will be at heroic Rag's door in the near future.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Proffesor Orc Jul 19th 2011 7:04PM
Congratz to all of them. Can't wait for kill video.
locksoflocks Jul 19th 2011 7:04PM
FOR THE HORDE!!!!!
jamie9966 Jul 19th 2011 7:06PM
Not gonna lie, getting the title of Firelord would be amazing.
Vorken Jul 20th 2011 1:40AM
Aang the firelord? Time to go rename...
Pyromelter Jul 20th 2011 4:03AM
Pyro the Firelord
It just has a certain ring to it, doesn't it?
Interficio Jul 19th 2011 7:09PM
Yes, even the regular bosses are pretty difficult.
Matthew Jul 19th 2011 7:10PM
What happens to Majordomo Staghelm when he is killed? Does he have a retcon deathscene like Arthas?
loop_not_defined Jul 20th 2011 12:20PM
A what now?
Matthew Jul 20th 2011 1:07PM
you know where he becomes a sympathetic character saying father is it over? as if he were a victim.
For Pony Jul 19th 2011 7:21PM
Once again, no shaman in the first kill crew :/
Proffesor Orc Jul 19th 2011 7:33PM
They're a little busy at the Maelstrom, keeping the *entire world* from imploding
Skarn Jul 19th 2011 8:48PM
I'm just gonna quote Zarhym, because he rocks:
"It doesn't matter AT ALL unless you can verify and prove that Heroic Ragnaros is impossible, or way more difficult to kill, when a specific class or specialization is represented in the raid.
You're forcing together a couple of incredibly fragmented pieces of data -- and the sample size of that tested data is 25 players in the whole world fighting one boss in the entire game -- to extrapolate an entire thesis on class balance.
No one is going to benefit from trying to make an argument out of this. "
Source: http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/2869127227?page=3#48
Pyromelter Jul 20th 2011 4:15AM
This is an age-old argument, and I'll probably be downvoted for it, but I think it matters a lot more than people give it credit for. Certain classes can gain notoriety for being a part of a world first kill. Notable ones in the recent past:
Affliction Warlocks on Yogg-Saron 0 lights
Paladins on Lich King Heroic
Druids on Nefarian.
There were also some classes that were completely left out of these encounters, that many people found disappointed; for example there was no mage on that first LK25 kill. However, many guilds right after that were killing LK25 with mages, so that furor died down; also, mages have traditionally (and continue to be) very competitive on DPS meters and worthwhile to bring on raids.
The complaints regarding a lack of shaman, however, are more valid because of a long, long history of dps shaman bringing sub-standard DPS to raids. Since paladins and other classes have basically ended the need for certain totems, there has not been any reason to bring an enhancement shaman or an elemental shaman to a raid for quite a long time, due to flat-out low dps.
Do you, or anyone else want to dps in a class or spec that is known for being "low" dps? That is so reviled, that even the best guilds in the world can't bring them along in their heroic boss attempts?
I think this is one of those things that people chalk up to internet QQ, but I can't ignore the fact that the shaman, which is arguably WoW's most unique class, does not have a place in elite progression raiding. And I really don't feel like I'm the only one that is disappointed in that fact.
Pyromelter Jul 20th 2011 4:36AM
TL;DR - Most world 1sts leave out some class or spec, but in the next patch or expansion they get buffed and have at least some time to shine. Shaman have never been on the top of the dps pile, ever, and they are basically the only class that hasn't had that experience of being rebuffed to be as useful as the other 9 classes.
Therefore I find the complaint legitimate and not just thoughtless forum whining.
Fletcher Jul 20th 2011 5:32AM
Strangely enough, the Issue of Shaman was addressed by Alex Ziebart on this same day! http://wow.joystiq.com/2011/07/19/wow-archivist-patch-1-7-rise-of-the-blood-god-part-2/
loop_not_defined Jul 20th 2011 12:41PM
Pyromelter: "That is so reviled, that even the best guilds in the world can't bring them along in their heroic boss attempts?"
Correction: Best guild, singular.
Assumption: Reviled.
Incorrect: Best guilds in the world are not bringing Shaman along for Heroic boss attempts. Except they are. Evidence: http://eu.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/2364596520
Pyromelter Jul 20th 2011 3:10PM
"Incorrect: Best guilds in the world are not bringing Shaman along for Heroic boss attempts. Except they are. Evidence: http://eu.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/2364596520"
I see one shaman there who is almost definitely resto. Resto shamans have been brought along for 2 reasons in the past: Mana Tide and Bloodlust. They don't need them for lust any more, so Tide is likely the reason that that shaman was brought along. Resto shamans have generally been decent enough to bring along, although sometimes it will only be the one.
Also, the bigger problem is shaman dps. When's the last time an elemental or enhancement shaman was involved in a world 1st kill? Yes, while people can continually harp on the ".0001%" and "it shouldn't matter" type thing, I find it quite saddening that Paragon's (semi-well known) enhancement shaman basically re-rolled and now mains a hunter, because it makes a difference.
It would be nice to know that a shaman can make a difference, too.
Dril Jul 19th 2011 7:27PM
Gratz to them, the raid train rolls on :O
*lays out toy train set*
Question, though: why are they DREAM Paragon and not just Paragon? Sponsorship, merger or just a name change?
Bapo Jul 19th 2011 7:36PM
I think it's a new sponsor, I briefly glanced over their site, and that's what I gathered
argarlargar Jul 19th 2011 7:41PM
The reason they are named DREAM Paragon is because the guild is made up of individuals that engage in alternative lifestyles.
I believe there is an article about them at http://christwire.org