The Queue: In which MoP talents are not mopped up

There's nothing more fun in WoW than a good, respectful, and well-informed talent tree debate. I've had the pleasure of talking and working with some of the smartest bloggers out there who are savvy about WoW talents, and they all bring some amazing ideas to the table. Matt Rossi in particular seems to have an uncanny ability to predict class changes. All he needs to do now is use his powers to get us that Moose ...
And that brings us to the first question.
Kyle asked:
Why do so many people hate the Mists of Pandaria talents? They look fun and could be cool to play with.
I think this is a case of a vocal minority yelling very loudly about changes in the game. This isn't the first time it's happened, and it won't be the last. Change is hard -- doubly so for something that so many people put so many hours into. And it's even quadruply so when people feel that they're powerless to influence the direction those changes take. So there's a lot of yelling on the internet about things other than Internet Dragons, and WoW-life seems pretty bleak.
But it's not.
The changes being proposed are actually pretty darn well thought out, and they don't have any glaring holes in them. Everyone is getting something that feels overpowered, while at the same time, it isn't directly apparent that one class is getting a ton while others are being left out. While individuals obviously feel differently, taken as a whole, it seems that Ghostcrawler and the other designers have done a great job. Check out all the MoP talents we saw at BlizzCon to see what your class is shaping up to look like.
There are also two important things to remember:
- All the talents, spells, and abilities are still in development. That means they can and will change.
- Everyone has the ability to affect the outcome of these changes. You hear a lot from the Blizzard blues that they're listening to what we all are saying, that they're reading every forum post, etc. They're not just saying that; they actually are. I know for a fact the designers go out and read blogs, posts, and so on. All you have to do is act like an adult (and treat them with respect), and your ideas will be heard. Yes, it'll get added to all the other ideas and feedback, but as a whole, that feedback is very important.
One of the things I took away from BlizzCon this year is that Blizzard isn't just giving lip service to reading feedback; the devs actually are. And that's pretty cool, in my book.
So let's all go kill some Internet Dragons and give them time to work stuff out.
Mairo asked:
Is destruction going to be a viable spec in patch 4.3? What about in MoP?
I think it's going to be better, but I'm not convinced it'll be as good as Affliction yet (and I say this as a heroic raiding warlock).
As far as MoP goes, things are looking even better, but we don't have enough information yet really. After the beta is out, we'll have a better idea.
Vmob25 asked:
I'm getting complaints because my DPS is low on some fight, but I'm not dying and the boss is going down. I think my raid leader and his friends are idiots. Am I wrong?
DPS is very, very situational. Depending on what class and spec you play, your ability or spell mechanics might be entirely counterproductive to the fight. If your DPS is low over all the fights, then yes, you probably should look hard at your rotation and gear to figure out what the problem is. Spend some time on EJ and ask questions to other players of your class.
If your DPS isn't low overall but just on particular encounters ... then it's more iffy. You're not dying, so that's a big plus -- after all, you don't DPS when you're dead. And since the boss is going down, the group as a whole might be doing something right. Talk to your raid leader more and figure out what his exact issues with your DPS are.
But -- I noticed you used the word "idiot" in your question. Don't use that word when talking to your raid leader. Keep your language simple, keep your tone relaxed, and don't curse. Staying friendly and non-combative with your raid leader is more important than good DPS, in my opinion.
Filed under: The Queue






Reader Comments (Page 1 of 11)
Boz Nov 22nd 2011 11:01AM
The old armory had a function that allowed players to pose their characters. The new armory, which is otherwise superior in probably every way, does not. That said, months ago there *was* a button - grayed out - on the top right of each character armory (near the "advanced" link) that promised such a function was in development. Now it is gone.
As a pure vanity feature normally I wouldn't care, but my Hunter looks like he's got whiplash, my troll shammy has armor clipping issues, and my warrior just stands there idly. I wouldn't need to pose them myself, necessarily, so long as the default poses for certain race/class/spec combinations were a bit more attractive.
Any insight into whether armory posing has gone the way of the dance studio and opposite-gender warlock pets, or if it might still see the light of day?
RS Nov 22nd 2011 11:19AM
seconded...
I miss that.
Andrew Nov 22nd 2011 11:20AM
Not sure what the answer is, but I do hope they give the option. My human mage's legs couldn't be spread more widely apart if he were Elvis *coughormyexboyfriendcough*.
MattKrotzer Nov 22nd 2011 11:21AM
I just wish I could see my character behind her shield, now. I loved the 3D models, and the ability to pose your character how you wanted. I'm rather surprised that they didn't find a way to rework it onto the new armory.
JiBJUB Nov 22nd 2011 11:45AM
http://eu.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/3010463567
Scroll down to Blue response ... not much there but they are aware.
Nathanyel Nov 22nd 2011 12:12PM
when I saw the blue post on MMO-C's tracker, I first thought/hoped they'd implement (druid) forms for the armory picture :P ("form" is a synonym for "stance" in macros, and the initial version of the armory displayed current buffs and combat values, including changes to attack power while in Cat/Bear Form)
Vorken Nov 22nd 2011 1:35PM
I just wish you could still compare achievements with someone else on there. Was my favorite thing to do in wrath!
Infinite Duck Nov 22nd 2011 2:47PM
Maybe because people like me used interesting poses? My female space goat shadow priest (with colouring to make her look kinda like a succubus) was slapping her butt. I used the rude emote and just angled and timed it right so she was holding her butt up with her hand on it. I thought it was awesome, even though I'm a female WoW player.
Surgeon Nov 22nd 2011 2:58PM
Not sure why it's off the website but the mobile app 3d viewer works great :)
LynMars Nov 22nd 2011 3:37PM
I'm pretty sure my priest's pose shifted in the change. She's throwing a spell and eating her shoulderguards; before she was getting ready to cast. My paladin currently has a shield that doesn't hide her face, but it'll happen whenever I get a new shield. Some of my characters are just standing there. There's little rhyme or reason it seems for the changes in posing between pre-Cata characters and new alts.
I'd love the ability to change it again.
Matthew Nov 22nd 2011 5:05PM
@ Andrew - wanna go out sometime? ;)
Suzaku Nov 22nd 2011 5:08PM
I currently have Zhuque reserved, which is the Chinese translation of Suzaku.
I'm thinking dropping it for something a bit more monkish, however. Fengxing is one option I'm considering.
Another option is Shaktani, which has no meaning that I'm aware of, but was the type of blade used by Wardancers in the older pandaren lore.
Voqas Nov 22nd 2011 11:05AM
Has anyone else already reserved their monk name of choice for MOP on a level 1?
Voqas Nov 22nd 2011 11:08AM
Wait, is there a time limit I can keep the name on an inactive toon?
caniacpackkid Nov 22nd 2011 11:11AM
Dollyllama for my monk, and pandapunter for some other class havent decided yet on that one.
Hanak Nov 22nd 2011 11:17AM
You can easily make the toon appear active. Log in once every second weekend or so and go up a lvl. The toon won't go past 20, so it shouldn't feel hard to kill it in favor of the panda, but it will be an active toon all the way to MoP.
Kadzeroth Nov 22nd 2011 11:15AM
I haven't, but that's because I don't have an open character slot. I'm waiting to see if my Shaman has to bite it or if they are going to implement the talked about character slot plan (or something else).
Andrew Nov 22nd 2011 11:20AM
Shihuangdi for my non-Pandaren monk, RoflMaoZD for my Pandaren something or other. Now if only we could use capital letters in our names like that I wouldn't get nearly so many odd looks.
Voqas Nov 22nd 2011 11:16AM
Nice, I have Limubai (from Crouching Tiger) and Junfan (Bruce Lee's real name) on two different realms. I noticed all the Mortal Kombat names were taken.
bandwee Nov 22nd 2011 11:16AM
Yup. Mugugaipanda, ready and waiting.