Filed under: Analysis / Opinion

There's no MMO -- or game in general, really -- that doesn't have some grinding built in. After all, you need some reason to keep logging in after you've run out of quest rewards and dungeons to clear. But sometimes the grind you go through for achievements and collectables is just too much. So when do you decide that it's time to throw in the towel on your own grinds?

Right now, I'm working on safari achievements, and I'm down to one pet left to catch in Eastern Kingdoms and one more in Kalimdor. Two more pets when I've already managed to pick up 360 unique pets shouldn't be that hard, right? Wrong. Right now I have alts camped to watch for rare spawns, and I log in now and then to sit and stare at my mini-map as if that will make them spawn faster. But this isn't exactly compelling gameplay -- in fact, this kind of tedium is the dead opposite of compelling. But I've gotten so close... I shouldn't give up with only a couple of pets to go, should I?

So today let's talk grinds. How long have you ever spent farming or grinding for a particular bauble or achievement in-game? And just when do you decide that enough is enough?

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Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today.

Anne had everyone entranced with her tinfoil hat in yesterday's Queue and left us with a serious lack of questions. Today is going to be a simple rapid-fire day.

Make with the asking!

xeraphax asked:

With the changes coming to salvaging, should I keep my crates till 6.1 or use them now?

Sunday Morning Funnies is your weekly list of WoW-related web comics.

This week, in comics: A flamingo. Droppin' coin. Adorable lowbies. Crafting doohickies (doohickeys?). Plus: Dodging dinos!

In comic news this week, From Draenor With Love has posted the cover for Chapter 5! So glad it's back. If you missed earlier news, and are wondering where some of your favorites are, well, Sara & Kleeyo is on a more sporadic posting schedule, and both Contested Territory and Best in Slot are on a hiatus while new content is produced and post-holiday breaks are had.

On Gratz Solace, Lackinganame will be posting extra information and discussion points at the bottoms of each post, so keep an eye out! And if you missed last week's discussion section, but have been thinking about getting into digital art via a tablet, you should check out the comments.

Finally, you may notice something new on the list this week! If you like it, I encourage you to check out the other artwork posted at Bear Comics and Assorted Art, and I will link to more in future.

I've been on a recent pet-hunting binge in World of Warcraft. Though I've always been a fan of collecting games, I'd avoided getting into this one because it seemed like once I got started started, I would feel compelled to catch everything... and that seemed like a tall order. Now that I'm actively working on WoW's safari achievements, I can tell I was right. In between rare spawn pets, pets that only spawn during certain weather conditions or certain times of day, and my horrible habit of accidentally killing pets I mean to catch (my Terrible Turnip isn't very high level yet), I'm pretty sure this is going to take approximately forever to finish.

So I ask you, readers: are you, too, compelled to try to catch 'em all? And if so, how is your personal safari quest going?

A note to anyone who hasn't started this crazy quest to catch every pet: don't start! Your sanity will thank you.

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Patch 6.1 is getting ever nearer, and as we learn more about what the patch will bring we all have our favorite things about it. So this week when we caught up to talk about what we were playing this weekend, we also also took the time to talk about our favorite things in patch 6.1 (so far).

Are you playing WoW this weekend? Jump into the comments to tell us what you're up to -- and what you're looking forward to in patch 6.1. Otherwise, read on for what team WoW Insider is playing this weekend.

So once again the folks at Wowhead are hard at work datamining away at Patch 6.1 on the PTR, and they've found something very interesting - new heirlooms. Specifically, neckpieces. A whole host of them, in fact.

• Eternal Talisman of Evasion
• Eternal Amulet of the Redeemed
• Eternal Will of the Martyr
• Eternal Emberfury Talisman
• Eternal Woven Ivy Necklace
• Eternal Horizon Choker

At present they don't seem to scale down on Wowhead, and they say 1 to 60 which seems odd to me, I'd expect 1 to 90. But that On Use is pretty amazing, all told. Since we're also talking about the heirloom tab coming in this patch as well, it's a good time for a set of necklace heirlooms.

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We've been waiting for new blood elf models since Warlords of Draenor was announced, and now we finally know when we're getting them. Patch 6.1's PTR will have the first look at the blood elf of the future, soon to be the blood elf of the present. These are very definitely works in progress, so there are things to keep in mind - currently all male blood elves have the same facial geometry, for instance. But you can hop on the PTR yourself and take a look right now.

To my eye they don't look very different, just improved. But what do you think?

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World of Warcraft has some pretty standard "prime time" hours. After people are out of work or school -- or after the kids are put to bed -- they return home and pile into the game. This makes these "prime" hours a great time to run LFR or find a group doing the Apexis daily, but crowds and make it a lousy time to go out trapping for savage blood or to farm rare (and camped) materials.

So with that in mind -- and following up on yesterday's topic -- just when do you jump into the game to play? I have a tendency to jump online in the middle of the day for some quiet time farming or doing other daily tasks when I'm not likely to be interrupted -- though, of course, if I'm getting in on any particular group activities I have to shoot for those prime time hours. But what about you, readers? Do you keep to late nights or do you prefer to play during the day? Just when is your prime playtime schedule?

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Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today.

I've been watching Young Justice again and find it funny that Superboy is essentially The Hulk for the bulk of the first season.

What does that have to do with World of Warcraft? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

KingMarvel asked:

Is the Blackrock Foundry raid in the 6.1 patch? I know this raid is coming out in February but is it simply unlocking or are we getting the new patch?

Sunday Morning Funnies is your weekly list of WoW-related web comics.

This week, in comics: Rare wares. A cunning squirrel. Listening to cats and robots. Brothers. Plus: Wise advice!

In comic news this week, Best in Slot finished up Chapter 2 last week, and begins a one-month hiatus this week. However, there may be the odd extra or bonus going up in the meantime, so I'll keep an eye out for everyone!

Also, Trig resumes his review of 2014 over on Gnomeregan Forever, which I highly recommend reading; whether you're heavily into the lore and storylines in WoW or whether you could use a TL:DR, you'll be hooked.

Wondering what else we've got this week? A reflection on New Year's resolutions. A Rug appears! Richard is still baby-wearing. And don't miss Away From Reality (although I feel I can't say why without risking spoiling it for you). Plus, bad poetry and dangerous missions!

Welcome to the weekend, everyone! For many of us, the weekend means it's time to game and that means World of Warcraft. This weekend, we're also abuzz about just what the recently announced Veteran Edition of WoW means -- is it a useful tool to help Blizzard bring back former players, or simply a stepping stone towards a free to play future?

Only time will tell for certain what Blizzard plans to do... but in the meanwhile, there's no reason we can't speculate. And, of course, talk about our weekend gaming plans. Read on to see just what team WoW Insider is up to this weekend -- and be sure to let us know what you're playing in the comments!

The WoW Insider Weekly Recap will return next week, but in the meantime, TradeChat brings us another edition of her WoW Jokes series hosted by her cast of fictional characters. You'll groan more often than you laugh -- but a good groan is sometimes just as good. Be warned: the video does contain some language we would consider NSFW.

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The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft.

When last I was writing about this, we covered some characters that got their chance at the spotlight in 2014. Real life then conspired to interrupt me, but I'm finally back, almost a month into 2015, to talk some more about 2014. Timely!

Anyway, I don't think my choices are going to be groundbreaking or shocking for anyone. We all know my biases, but you may be surprised by some choices anyway, because sometimes, I actually try and ignore my biases and be fair. Sometimes.

Ga'nar

Straight up - I expected to hate Ga'nar. When you first meet him, he's your typical blustering orc, going on about murdering Iron Horde with his shovel (granted, they had him digging out latrines, I'd be pretty upset too) and posturing at Hellscream as you retreat from Tanaan. But something happened on the way through Frostfire Ridge. He started to grow on me. He was arrogant and hotheaded, yes, but also brave and well, such an orc about everything. And when he challenged Durotan, he showed a quality I hadn't expected in him - as Durotan refused to even fight him, declaring that he would stand and let Ga'nar kill him if necessary, Ga'nar backed down.

The final confrontation with Fenris Wolfbrother (and the revelation that Fenris was the eldest son of Garad and Geyah) ultimately revealed Ga'nar's true self to the player. I'm a sucker for heroic sacrifices. Always have been. And this was a heck of a heroic sacrifice, all told - after dispatching their wicked elder brother, Ga'nar refuses to allow Durotan to die, instead hurling himself, a lone orc (say it in Muradin Bronzebeard's voice) against the forces of the Iron Horde, and his death buys victory for his people. I'm sorry, but as much as I often bag on orcs, this was an excellent heroes' death for Ga'nar, and it won my affection.

Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today.

I managed to lose a day this week and thought today was Tuesday rather than Wednesday. For that reason, The Queue is a little late today. I hope you'll all forgive me.

Snichy asked:

Does getting a follower to "epic" quality have any benefits over them being the same iLevel but blue?

Yes, more hotfixes. What do they entail, you ask? Well, I'm glad you did. Here's just a few highlights from this latest round of hotfixes. There are quite a few class changes, some of which I highly approve of (the ones that buff warriors) and other changes as well.

• Death Knights see Blood Boil's damage reduced by 33.3%
• Sacred Duty, formerly granting 5% additional haste from all sources, is heavily buffed and now grants 30% haste from all sources.
• For you enhancement shaman, Stormstrike sees an 11.1% damage buff.
• Gladiator Stance now only increases damage by 5%, down from 20%, but just about all damaging abilities for protection warriors see buffs - Thunder Clap, Deep Wounds and Revenge were buffed by 40%, while Devastate and Shield Slam both got 20% buffs.

There's a lot more, so head on over to the official site and take a look for yourself. Just about every class but monks saw some adjustment.

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