20130330: character updates.

20130330, samedi

A. Status updates, Uldum realm characters.

1. 90Chronosmwone, iLevel 492, mistweaver monk
2. 90Chronoslock, iLevel 481, affliction warlock
3. 90Kronospriest, iLevel 475, discipline priest
4. 90Chronosmonk, iLevel 462, windwalker monk
5. 90Chronoslycan, iLevel 447, frost death knight
6. 89Chronosdruid, iLevel 427, balance druid

B. Notes, Uldum characters.

1. Mistweaver--I have upped the average iLevel from running LFR6 (Last Stand of the Zandalari) and from purchases made available from the Shado-pan Assault reputation.  While 5.2 has increased mana problems overall, it has also increased the chi production rate.  Using this, I've kept the Mistweaver viable by changing spell sequencing, notably invoking Uplift frequently.  I'm hoping to get some more 502 gear in LFR7, but it has not happened yet.
2. Warlock--my misadventure into PvP helped get my armour level high enough to run all 7 LFRs, which is great.  I still have a lot to do on making this character stronger as DPS.
3. Priest--I changed my alt-spec from Shadow back to Discipline.  Now this character is almost OK as DPS in raids, but has a large side effect of healing with Atonement and Divine Aegis.  Once I get the spell power up significantly, the priest should become my lead character.
4. Windwalker--who cares?  Not I.
5. Frost DK--again, who cares?
6. Balance druid--finally achieved character level 89.  I revisited the character's alt-spec of Restoration, filled it out (talent choices, glyphs, action bars), and will start in as healer sometime after I hit level 90.

C. Antonidas realm.

1. I've got 11 characters there, one around level 10, the rest levels 32 to 86.
2. I should revitalize this group.  It has a full set of crafts, I think, which will ameliorate the lack of guild membership.
3. I learned a lot about WoW (particularly PvE) with Dungeon Crusaders in the Uldum realm, and should apply that to my older, nostalgic favorites.

D. Other realms.

1. I have ignored my orc, blood elf, and goblin characters for far too long.
2. It's interesting to run dungeons that I've run as Alliance in Horde mode, and observe the chatter.  A lot of it is just the same, and some not.  It's often quite a hoot.

20130320, mercredi, first day of spring

A. Shuffling.

1. I deleted some characters that I decided not to develop further in the guild's realm: 18Kronostpanda (panda Brewmaster monk), 30Kronosnetank (Night Elf Brewmaster), 39Xronospriest (human holy priest), and 51Kronoshunter, which I had dropped from the guild months ago.  I decided not to pursue tanking via the Brewmaster monk route, and had changed 90Kronospriest from Shadow to Holy, making the level 39 an unneeded duplicate.
2. I dropped my 85Chronosmage from the guild since I am no longer developing the character, and it was yet another LW/Skinner.  Eliminating a level 85 seems painful, but I'll eventually delete that one too. The guild already has an exceptionally good level 90 mage, and 90Kronospriest is 600/600 in LW/Skinning.
3. I've been moving the level 88 balance druid slowly toward level 89.  I have no interest in this character as far as dungeons or raids are concerned, but it does have 600/600 in Enchanting/Tailoring.
4. As a further slimming, my next target will be 90Chronosmonk.  This character is a Windwalker, which I do not find interesting after all, and another LW/Skinning duplicate.  I may collect armour for a Windwalker alt/spec for 90Chronosmwone, whose primary spec is Mistweaver.

B. Current armour levels:

1. 90Chronosmwone: average iLevel 488 Mistweaver
2. 90Chronoslock: average iLevel 481  Affliction Warlock, PvE; this might sometimes come up with the 475 Season 13 PvP armour.
3. 90Kronospriest: average iLevel 475 Holy Priest; I've changed the alt spec from Shadow to Discipline for LFR healer experiments.
4. 90Chronosmonk: average iLevel 462 Windwalker Monk
5. 90Chronoslycan: average iLevel 447 Frost Death Knight
6. 88Chronosdruid: average iLevel 423 Balance Druid

C. Plans.

1. Mistweaver---I'll likely keep this one, just so I have one character with the armour to play in each LFR that Blizzard offers in WoW.  Now that I've converted the character from panda to human, it is less repellent.
2. Affliction Warlock---shows some real promise in PvE, but none in PvP.  Also, this one has a 600 rating in Engineering.
3. Healer Priest---I would like to see whether this character can catch up (or surpass) the Mistweaver.  Has 600/600 in LW/Skinning, another plus.
4. Windwalker---I enjoyed this character very much until I hit the MoP content.  Now I don't see the point.  I could insert my Windwalker learning into an alt spec for the Mistweaver.  The crafting abilities of this character are duplicates, so there would be no loss from deleting it.
5. Frost Death Knight---this was my lead character until MoP.  I don't like DKs in MoP, and the thought of running my DK through the 9 MoP Heroic dungeons multiple times nauseates me.  The professions for this character are 600/600 Herbalism/Inscription, but the Mistweaver has this as well.  So, I might drop this one, since there would be no real losses involved.
6. Balance Druid---this is a crafting character pure and simple.  I will probably keep it for the crafting, but for no other reason.

D. Longer range, through later expansions.

1. I'll probably keep numbers 1, 2, 3, and 6 in Part C above.
2. Unless I regain my enjoyment of melee, I'll drop 4, and 5.

20130314, jeudi

A. At the urging of a pair of my guild mates in the Uldum realm, I tried PvP before season 13 commenced.  I undertook to get a full set of Warlock PvP gear

   Warlock in 476 Malevolent Gladiator gear

and finally completed a version of it after 93 battleground runs, 1389 honorable kills, and collecting 26,957 Honor points for the season so far.  Of course, that is nothing, zero, zip, nada.  One of the Horde characters who ganked me more than once in Gilneas had 41,000 honorable kills, not to mention the ability to fend off anything I had to send against him.  So it's not just the gear.  There are playing skills that I do not currently have and, it would seem, never will have.  I also think that when trying to knock down a steel wall using one's head as the battering ram, the massive blood flow is a sign to stop trying, not to keep going.

B. Looking over the class reviews that Blizzard posted on its client, I sought out Warlock, and saw some humorous (to me, anyway, given the above) remarks about trends:

   Warlocks, shamans, rogues

particularly the comments by Larveyza, Lightoftah, and Mightydiablo.  It's not just Warlocks that Blizzard is after, it's the whole game.  See the remark of Crotchheight...Blizzard is indeed melting all classes into one piece of sludge, and the game into something as dreary and uniform as Guild Wars II.

C. After the time-consuming, yet instructive, exercise above what do I come away with?
    Answer: PvE is nice, in comparison.  I feel slightly re-energized toward getting better PvE armour, completing LFRs, and putting up with the endless reputation quests.
    Also, the PvP armour is much better looking than the hideous PvE armour for MoP.  The PvE armour often reminds me of pandas, and pandas nauseate me.