Posts with tag elites

So between 3.0.2, the Scourge Invasion, and Hallow's End, my Hunter's seen a lot of play as I've been going after the title and the undead armor and playing with all the new changes on a live server and all, and in that time, I've had some chance to see how stuff works out when it's thrown into the crucible of live server playing. Most of my observations have ended up focusing around pets, which is probably to be expected. After all, they've changed quite a bit. Here's what's I've learned from 3.0.2 in the last few weeks about managing your pet:

One of the first rules of WoW I learned was Big = Bad News, and the Sons of Arugal beat this lesson into my head until it stuck. Initially I thought that the size of a mob would be a great tool in figuring out what I shouldn't be fighting. I mean, if they're bigger than other stuff, how could I miss them?

So you're out in Eastern Plaguelands, merily working on your 1078th Plague Bat so Tirion can get his jollies by standing next to a hero, and suddenly your screen fills with light tan wings. You try to run, but it's too late. It's not like you can see where you're going anyways, with giant Chiroptera butt in your face. You've just been Dustwing'd.

And once you hit Outlands, it seems like there's a giant baddy around every corner. Fel Reavers roam, looking for... spare parts? Lost love? I don't know, but it was pretty obvious that I should stay away when all I could see were his hubcaps. I also give wide berth to rare striders (ok, all striders because I can't tell the difference) in Zangermarsh, dragons in about 100 different zones, and anything that looks even mildly "elitish" in stature.

It's not just the bad guys that are getting in on the sizing action, either. Those enough with the good fortune of travelling to Mount Hyjal get to see the new and improved Jaina and Thrall. I can't tell you how many jokes exploded in Vent when we first saw them. Yep, that's me next to Jaina in the picture at the top. And no, I didn't have Noggenfogger on. She's really that huge now.

So who's your favorite giant mob? Do you still suffer from weekly "ZOMG NOOO..." nightmares from EPL like me?

I'm sure we're all familiar with the elite quests scattered throughout Azeroth. Or if not familiar with the particulars of each and every one of them, at least aware that there exists such a thing as quests that are flagged "elite" that involve killing more powerful "elite" monsters. Well, in the Burning Crusade you won't be seeing any of those. And, no it's not because Blizzard has decided to remove elites from the game. Instead, Blizzard has dropped the "elite" flag from quests and replaced it with a "group" flag, which I first noticed when questing on my new level 12 Blood Elf. Curious about the above Anok'suten quest, I located a partner and headed out to complete it immediately -- in the end it involved killing a single level 11 elite, surrounded by non-elites of around the same level. I might have been able to solo it -- but the suggested players hint is appreciated.

And this trend continues into Outland -- only the elites are a bit bigger.

So last night I was making yet another run through ZF trying to down Gahz and get my Carrot when the mage who was carrying our Mallet made a joke that he was probably one of four people on the server who currently had it in possession. Could that be true? Are there that few people out there carrying around the Mallet of Zul'Farrak, the only way to summon Gahz'rilla and clear Zul'Farrak?

If it is true, it's probably because of Jintha'Alor. A huge troll city practically hidden in the Hinterlands (it's just south of the entrance to the beach on the eastern coast), Jintha'Alor might be the biggest non-instanced elite area in the world of Azeroth. Home to a bevy of elite quests, tons of elite trolls, slimes and wolves, and (at the center of the city on the hill) the Altar of Zul, Jintha'Alor is definitely a great place to visit with a full party on your way to 60.

So why do so few people go there? When there's so much to do and see there, why do so few people make it to the Altar and create the Mallet?