A Sunnier Dwarf

I like coming up with backstories for my characters. Especially as a brewmaster, which doesn’t have such a classic fantasy niche as other classes and specializations, I find it interesting to connect such a weird kit with more traditional fantasy races. I also like providing my characters with a basic history and motivation. I don’t really roleplay (unless you count running around Azeroth roleplaying with myself, I guess), but I grow more attached to my character if she has a story.

As a draenei, my monk was a former pacifist priest and alchemist pushed into a vengeance quest by the kidnapping and death of her sister by the Iron Horde. As a night elf (which I never published), my monk led an experimental squad of martial artist sentinels in the assault of the Dark Portal, which ended disastrously, stranding her in the wilderness of Draenor. As another draenei (this one looked different), my monk was a rangari survivalist caught up in the war campaign of strange visitors. And finally, as a dwarf…

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Why is Resource Management Important?

As we have have moved through the Mists of Pandaria, there has been a trend of resources growing from scarce to common. Really, this happens throughout the growth of all expansions, but it became most apparent to me while playing a Brewmaster, a spec where much of the depth revolves entirely around resource management.

Where energy was slow in Mogushan Vaults, we now are at risk of capping in Siege of Orgrimmar. Where Elusive Brew procs were precious and rare in Terrace of the Endless Spring, they are now not the slightest concern. That’s natural, as our effectiveness increases with our stats. However, I found that at least for myself, it decreased my enjoyment. Sure, I was more powerful than ever, but spending those free-flowing resources was far less satisfying compared to the days when they were scarce. Why are limited resources more engaging? And why are resources fun to manage in the first place? And would it even be possible to maintain interesting resource management throughout the entire expansion.

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The Emergence of the Sturdy Damage Dealer

This is the first of a two-part post on the emergence of damage dealing-focused tank. This one covers the elements of the game that contributed to this attitude, and the next will cover how small raid sizes contributed to the changing paradigm and how 20 man Mythic Mode may help bring back the defensive tank. It’s something that I’ve been working on for more than a year, growing as the expansion aged and as knowledge of the next expansion increased.

Over the course of Mists of Pandaria, the role of the tank has evolved from the traditional, passive damage soaker. Active Mitigation has put our survival into our own hands, instead of relying entirely on our gear and healers. Vengeance has been nearly limitless and brought us to new damage-dealing heights. Traditional damage stats have emerged as an acceptable way to gear, thanks to more tanking classes who gain defensive benefits from them.

All of this has contributed to the emerging transformation of our role. Tanks, especially in small raid sizes, are no longer prized for surviving hard-hitting bosses or relieving their healers. Because survival can be easily achieved, a skilled tank is prized for their damage output. The role of tanks has steadily changed from “person who survives really well” to “person who can survive while also dealing damage”.

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How to Determine the Best Race

(Or: How to title a blog as something that sounds absolutely horrible out of context.)

Here’s how I determine my favorite race:

  • Does it have horns? +1000 pts
  • Does it have digitigrade legs? +1000pts
  • Does it have fur? +500 pts
  • Does it have a tail? +500 pts
  • Does it have good hairstyle options? +500pts
  • Does it have good hair color options? +250pts
  • Is it unusual in some way (i.e. not human)? +100pts
  • Are there a lot of this race in my raid group already? -250pts
  • Does it look good in transmog? +50pts
  • Cool animations? +50pts (not quite so important for monks, because we have unique animations)

Which puts the rankings at:

  1. Draenei: 3450 pts
  2. Tauren: 3100 pts (Sadly losing out because of lack of hairstyles and colors.)
  3. Worgen: 2150 pts
  4. Pandaren: 1950
  5. Everything else: 850, plus or minus 100 pts

Thoughts on Learning and Teaching in Games

The aspect of guide writing that has continued to fascinate me is presenting information in a way that brand new players can digest it, and balancing that with providing a resource for experienced players.

As a someone who regularly attempts to teach herself many things, presenting information in an interesting and learnable state has become increasingly important to me, and I’d like to extend that courtesy to when I am trying to teach others. Here are the things I’ve learned.

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