I keep changing my priorities…
As I am sure many, many regular readers will know, I like lists. A lot. And I’m also quite precise on my goals for pre-Cataclysm. However, my priorities keep changing. So I’m going to write my priorities down HERE because then I have to stick to them and I can’t keep changing my mind.
1. Get Sapphrina to 80 (she dinged 79 the night before last).
2. Buy her dual spec, embed her with a good holy spec, and a good prot spec. Wave goodbye and log off her!
3. Level Ellenaie to 80. She’s *still* 71. When she is 80, try and plan daily to do her minor and major inscription research in an effort to learn as many glyphs as possible! As I have no interest in playing her competitively, or at least no immediate interest, dual spec would be wasted on her, as would any extra work at this point.
4. Level Baeletha to 80. The debate still rages on in my mind as to whether to make her Disc/Holy, or keep her as Disc/Shadow. I have been levelling as Shadow and I love it, but I also want to experience both sides of priest healing. I think my new cataclysm character will be a worgen, so I may eventually make a second priest who I can level to 85, so I can have one as Disc/Shadow and one as Holy/Shadow. For now, however, on the assumption that I want to learn more about healing, she will probably have to be Disc/Holy.
5. Gear up Sapphrina as a Holy paladin.
6. Gear up Baeletha as a Disc/Holy priest.
7. Level Yessika (my titchy shammy). I’m levelling her with Zal, so I just need to ask and I know he won’t mind devoting time to levelling together. I just feel like I need to get my other alts sorted before I can fully concentrate on her. I really don’t know how high up I can get her before Cataclysm.
8. Gear up Sapphrina as a Protadin and try my hand at tanking.
My issue is, I want all my healers to be looking good and be competent in a raid setting – it seems with the speed heroics are done nowadays learning to heal in heroics is going to be incredibly hard. However if I want to get them all to 80 before Cata I just don’t think I can immediately devote the time needed to gearing them up before I move on to the next one.
This means it’s going to have to be a case of levelling 1, then levelling the next etc etc, and then going back to them to gear them up.
It’s like being stuck between a rock and a hard place really. I wish I was raiding on Petranne as well really, and I think I’m still in that “building” time with my suite of characters. I know I’ve been playing since Jan 2008, but I still don’t feel like I’m “complete”. I really want to have this like, set of characters that I am competent with and capable with. And I want that suite complete before I enter Cata, so I can go forward as like..a ‘force’. So I can be prepared to make myself some decent gold by having all the necessary skills at my fingertips, so I can be raid ready on Els as quickly as possible, and so that I can manage my time on the game effectively.
I don’t know if this sounds weird or not? I’m also not sure if I’m the only person who has this strange compulsion to be “complete”. I’m also not sure if I’m coming across as coherent!!
It’s like, it’s not just a case of being ready, being good to go. It’s a case of confidence in my own ability. If I can have that, I can do anything. Rather than being seen as ditzy and a bit dense when it comes to a lot of things, I’d like to be able to say, “yes, I can craft that”, “yea, I’ve got all the epic patterns”, “yea, I can heal/tank/dps your random”, “yea, I can help you” and most importantly, “yea, of course Elsen’s ready to raid”.
13
08 2010
Demigods: The Ancients (Part 2)
Part 2 of my lore posts about the Ancients follows my Introduction, and Part 1.
Previously we’ve discussed Aessina, Agamaggan and Aviana.
First off, today there is Cenarius.
Cenarius is Lord of the Forest, patron of all druids and one of the most powerful demigods of Azeroth. He is also known as Heart of the Land, Supreme Druid, Defender of the Emerald Dream, and Lord of the Groves.
Cenarius was born of Elune (known to the Tauren as Mu’sha), and the white stag Malorne (Ap’aro to the Tauren). Elune, despite her love for her son, gave him up to Malorne and Ysera, who became his adoptive mother. She did so as he was more mortal than God, and therefore could not live with her.
Cenarius grew into a strong, powerful and cunning individual as he was the union of heaven (in Elune) and earth (in Malorne). He held a great many powers of the natural world and was somewhat of a lothario, fathering many children, who became the ‘wise keepers of the grove‘, if they were male, and the fey dryads if they were female. Particularly prominent amongst his many offspring were Zaetar (known for his crazy relations with the elemental princess which spawned the 5 Kalimdor centaur tribes…), Remulos and Ordanus.
The tauren and the night elves are both very close to Cenarius. He himself has claimed kinship with the night elves, and his dryads and keepers have a top half similar in shape and form to that of the night elves. The tauren maintain, through legend, that Cenarius’ first contact with mortals was with the tauren. Their legend states that it was the tauren who were first taught druidism, by Cenarius, and that for many years they assisted him in protecting the natural world. The actual first mortal druid was Malfurion Stormrage.
Cenarius taught the night elves druidism and the ways of the forest, and they allied themselves with many of Cenarius’ creatures, such as the hippogryphs, which allowed the night elf arches to ride upon them. Cenarius also assisted Tyrande and the other night elves on the Long Vigil once the druids had entered the Emerald Dream, patrolling Moonglade with the Keepers.
Cenarius took a major part in the War of the Ancients. Malfurion and Tyrande called upon him when the Burning Legion started to amass their forces. When he realised the destructive nature of the Legion, Cenarius built an army of nature, which battled against Azshara and the demons, eventually destroying the Well of Eternity. Cenarius then went on to assist Malfurion in imprisoning Illidan.
The orcs arrived in Kalimdor some time later. Upon their arrival, Grom Hellscream moved to Ashenvale to harvest lumber. The Sentinels, the night elf elite, jumped to protect their forest. Grom held them off, and eventually Cenarius was called to assist.
Mannoroth, hoping to make use of the orcs once more, spilled his blood into the Fountain of Life, totally corrupting it. Grom brought his clans to the fountain, and despite objections due to Thralls’ teaching, convinced them to drink the blood. The Warsong orcs transformed into beasts powerful enough to stand up to the demigod.
A battle commenced, and Cenarius was eventually slain by Hellscream, as Mannoroth had hoped and planned for. Mannoroth appeared before the orcs, now having control over them once more after they drunk from the fountain. The orcs had slain Cenarius, patron of the druids and the night elves en masse. They were enraged, and it truly cemented their opinion that all orcs – blood tainted or no – were enemies of the elves.
This hatred continued for a long time, for when Malfurion suggested that the night elves band together with Jaina and Thrall, Tyrande vehemently disagreed, stating Cenarius’ death as one of the main reasons against a joining.
Luckily for Cenarius, his lineage through Malorne and therefore strong connection to the Emerald Dream means he can live on in the Dream as a true spirit of nature. It is believed by the elves that he sleeps in the dream whilst his wounds recover, and he will join them once more. The only clue we truly have to his location is when we see Remulos, his son, discussing him fighting the Nightmare within the Emerald Dream.
Goldrinn
Goldrinn was one of the largest beasts and ancients to roam Azeroth. Renowned for his ferocity in battle, he was already 10,000 years old when the Burning Legion first invaded Azeroth. He is referred to by the orcs as Lo’Gosh.
Goldrinn helped the night elves during the battle of Eldre’thelas and helped them protect their city, only to vanish after the battle. Goldrinn is followed by a special sect of druids known as the Druids of the Scythe. These druids shapeshifted into a severely feral worgen-esque form, and the other druids decided it was safer to imprison them deep under a tree in eternal slumber, until the day Arugal began to tamper with worgen and the summoning of them.
Goldrinn may become more visible with the coming Cataclysm and the presence of the worgen once more.
Malorne
Malorne is another figure very important in night elf and druidic history. Apa’ro, as he is known to the Tauren, roamed the land, protecting nature and nurturing creation. He fathered Cenarius, who inherited this task.
Malorne is older than Elune herself. The tauren legend, the white stag and the moon, tells of Malorne being hunted by tauren. He bargained with Elune for assistance, and loved her as part of the bargain. This love and relationship resulted in the birth of Cenarius.
Malorne has been a close protector and watcher of the night elf civilisation. He has oft presented himself during difficult times, including preventing two civil wars between the kaldorei purely by showing himself. He is particularly special in that, despite his massive power, he never shapeshifts, and always remains in his white stag form.
Malorne’s powers include his ability to enter both the physical world and the emerald dream at will, and an understanding of what happens in both planes simultaneously. There is a rumour that one particularly small sect of druids, named the druids of the antler have segregated themselves and attempt to recreate Malorne’s power.
Elune was not Malorne’s only love. He entered into a relationship with Ysera, who became adoptive mother of Cenarius, however whether the relationship between Ysera and Malorne was ever romantic is unknown.
One of the many reasons the night elves worship Malorne is his defense of them and their home during the War of the Ancients, when he fought against the Burning Legion and died. Cenarius had entered a rage after seeing the deaths of Ursoc, Ursol, Agamaggan and the apparent death of Aviana. He threw himself into battle, crushing thousands of demons. However, they began to overrun him. Malorne saw his son under siege, and entered the battle. Blinding the demons with his white, white fur, and defended his son. He looked towards the night elves, and they came, to drag Cenarius away to safety.
If Archimonde had not appeared, Malorne’s resistance and mass rage may have turned the battle back against the demons. Archimonde burnt the ground under Malorne, singing his coat, and twisted the land into great hands that magically trapped the great stag to the ground. Archimonde rose, matching Malorne in size. He freed himself, and charged at the eredar. Malorne’s power as he flew towards Archimonde, antlers down, caused tremors and quakes as the demons fell flat to the floor in shock. They battled on for some time, until Archimonde seize the great stag and snapped his neck, throwing him, lifeless, to the ground.
Malfurion, knowing Cenarius was unconscious and Malorne dead, cast a spell to wrap the eredar in thorns. Archimonde vanished in a mass of felfire. It was just seconds after this that Ysera, Soridormi and Alexstraza entered the battle. Ysera came to a fast halt, seeing the fallen stag. In one of the very few times in history, she opened her brilliant green jade eyes and screamed. She tore through the thousands of demons and carnage to reach him, fell to the ground where he was and sobbed, resting her head on his chest.
It is believed – or at least hoped – by the night elves that Malorne’s power allowed him to transcend death and either enter the Emerald Dream or to stand by Elune’s side once more.
Pretty sure that’s enough for Part 2…
12
08 2010
Resources for: Shamans
Elemental
Flame Shock
Enhancement
Restoration
Ankh=Life
Shields Up! – no longer updated but great source of info
Twenty-Five Boxes – expect more come Cata
11
08 2010
Demigods: The Ancients (Part 1)
As listed previously, one of the main groups of demigods is the Ancients.
There are too many for one post, so this post will talk about Aessina, Agamaggan and Aviana.
The Ancients we know off at the moment are:
Aessina
Aessina is a spirit of the wilderness. Although Elune is the sole deity of the night elves, Aessina is worshipped as a demigod. She has a shrine in a forest glade deep in the middle of Ashenvale. The shrine is known to be visited by dryads as well as night elves.
It has been speculated that a new shrine, if not Aessina herself, may appear in Hyjal after the Cataclysm.
Agamaggan
I’ve written about Agamaggan in depth before. He appeared, 10,000 years ago, during the War of the Ancients, to assist in the push back of the Burning Legion. The book, Shadows & Light describes Agamaggan as such:
Thick masses of thorny vines hang all over the body of the looming, immense boar, curling around a wrinkled snout ending in yellowed tusks that curve sharply upward. Dark, steely eyes peer out from underneath a furrowed brow. He paws the ground with a wagon-sized hoof, causing the earth to shake and rumble, and as he snorts a cloud of steaming vapor hisses from his nostrils.
Legend says that Agamaggan was one of the first living beings to roam Azeroth. He is an immortal giant boar, who grew and grew over time. It was Cenarius that sought the assistance of the giant boar during the War of the Ancients, convincing him that if the Burning Legion won the war, all life would be wiped out.
Agamaggan assaulted the stronghold of Azshara, slaying many thousands of demons and felguards. Agamaggans powers included a shower of thorns, breath of corrosive acid and a huge war stomp. His battle against the demons moved west across the continent, as he battled the pit lord Mannoroth. Eventually, he fell, sacrificing himself so Malfurion and the others could reach the Well of Eternity.
Agamaggan was slain in what is now known as the Barrens. It is believed by his followers, the Quillboar, that wherever Agamaggan’s blood fell, thorny vines and roots sprouted from the ground. The blood created red gems, used as totems that amplified magic. The Quillboar hope and pray that one day Agamaggan will walk amongst the living once more. His spirit is believed to reside in the afterlife, and he is patron of the Quillboar, however recently some of the wilder orcs have begun to worship him, and some night elves hold deep respect for his courage and fearlessness, and yearn for the simple times he lived in.
Aviana
Aviana was presumed to be killed in the War of the Ancients. She was a winged demigod, and mistress of the mother tree, G’Hanir. Aviana was originally a simple raven, chosen by Elune to deliver messages to her son, Cenarius.
She soon progressed to delivering messages between many of the ancients, each one granting her a little more power until she become equal to the other demigods in power.
Aviana took the form of a kaldorei and joined the other elves at the Well of Eternity, where she studied magic. It was whilst she was here that Queen Azshara built her temple and gathered her followers. Aviana became aware of the corruption within Azshara and returned to Elune.
Once the War of the Ancients had started, Aviana worked as a scout for Cenarius and Malorne, gathering information through flight on the Burning Legion. Occasionally she descended into mortal form to aid and assist endangered elves. During one such episode, Aviana was knocked from the sky and sprung upon by many demons. Doomguards fell upon her, piercing her body with spears. As the blood flowed from her, all those that touched it were removed of all corruption influences, becoming pure. G’Hanir, her realm tree, died.
She was presumed to be dead. However, she survived. She flew back across the battlefields, noting Agamaggan’s death, the death of Ursoc and Ursol, the cornering of Malorne. She contacted Cenarius, and told him of the battles. He sent her back to Elune.
Aviana recovered, and now acts as a messenger for Elune. Many of Azeroth’s races know of her, as she has been known to take mortal form, infiltrate communities and pass information back from within. Different races depict her in different ways, however. The night elves see her as an enormous women, others see her as a dove, or an eagle, or as a member of their race – a troll priest, a dwarven explorer. She is particularly revered by the night elves as one who studied and enjoyed magic without being corrupted, and with the strength to turn away.
Whether or not Aviana has descendants has been frequently speculated on. Her home tree, G’Hanir, was where the dragons went to die. She has been known to discuss aspects such as Alexstraza with an almost motherly tone. And of course, there are the harpies. It is suspected that harpies are in fact night elves that became guardians of the forest and without their matriarch turned into the brutal figurines they are today. Will Aviana take her place amongst the other ancients to protect Hyjal?
Parts 2 and 3 are are now available!
11
08 2010
The Demigods of Warcraft
When researching some lore, I thought something I don’t know much about and I often find quite confusing is the differences between the many levels of religion, the status of the different types of immortal, god, and demigod within Azeroth.
So this is a post introducing the demigods. I am slowly going to try and produce as many “mini” pages spiralling from here about all the different demigods.
Demigods are referred to as:
Immortal beings that have attained their status through populations worshipping them. Some are or were physical beings of power, others are more of an ideal.
There are six different types of demigod, along with three miscellaneous avatars that have a similar status.
Firstly, we have the Ancients.
The Ancient Demigods were created by Elune, an ancient herself. They were created to both protect and guide all creatures of the land.
Demigod ancients include Aessina (spirit of the wilderness – worshipped by night elves), Agamaggan (god of the Quillboar), the Ancients (tree-shaped protectors/oracle type beings that guard the night elves), Cenarius (forest lord and major druidic figure), Goldrinn (ancient white-wolf beast – will become very important in Cataclysm), Hetaera (defined as a false god – a three headed hydra from Azshara), Ivus the frost lord (assists the Alliance in Alterac Valley), Malorne (known as Apa’ro by the Tauren – great white stag, father of Cenarius), Omen (previously a fighter for the good, demonic infiltration from the Burning Legion overtook him), Ono (Ancient of Lore, protecting night elves of Teldrassil), Tortolla (ancient guardian similar to Malorne and Cenarius) and Ursoc and Ursol (twin bear gods of the furbolg).
Some others have included guardian ancients that have fought during the War of the Ancients, such as the Wolverine and Fox Ancient.
Secondly, there are three former mortals who have achieved the status of Demigod, due to their wielding of intense power.
- Surprise surprise, The Lich King. His first incarnation as Ner’zhul, transformed by Kil’jaeden and merged with Arthas Menethil, he is worshipped as a God by both the Cult of the Damned and, of course, the Scourge. As many discovered (trying not to give LK spoilers…), it was discovered that there must always be a Lich King.
- The leader and creator of the Naga, Empress of Nazjatar, eye of the Maelstrom. Queen Azshara leads the night elves that were manipulated and transformed into the naga, banished into the Great Sea after the Sundering.
- Creator and origin of the Satyr, Xavius. Leader of the attempt to bring Sargeras into Azeroth, returned to Azeroth as a dark titan after he was killed by Malfurion Stormrage. Banished to the bottom of the Great Sea post Sundering.
Thirdly, the titans – demigods and creators, travelling across the cosmos to bring order to worlds. They are led by the Pantheon, council of the strongest.
The Pantheon include Aggramar the Avenger (replacement after Sargeras’ betrayal, male bronze skinned eartern giant), Aman’Thul the Highfather (leader of the Pantheon, platinum skinned storm giant), Eonar the Lifebinder (consort of Aman’Thul, bronze skinned earthern giant, protector of life), Golganneth the Thunderer (son of Aman’Thul and Eonar, platinum storm giant, creator of the sea giants), Khaz’goroth the Forger (creator of the mountains, ultimate craftsman, earthern bronze giant), and Norgannon the Lorekeeper (master of magic, knowledge and wisdom, platinum storm giant). Of course, the final member of the Pantheon was Sargeras – the dark titan.
There are many other ’suspected’ titans, including Aman, Auriaya, Freya, Hodir, Ironaya, Jotun, Loken, Maiden of Grief, Maiden of Virtue, Myzrael and Thorim. These are mostly located within Northrend, except for the Maiden of Virtue, who is housed within Karazhan, and Myzrael, who is trapped deep beneath the Arathi Highlands.
The fourth category of demigod is the Gronn.
The gronn are demigods of the ogres. These are called Durn the Hungerer, Goc, Gorgrom the Dragon-Eater, Gruul the Dragonkiller (father of all the Gronn), Grulloc, Maggoc, Skulloc Soulgrinder and Slaag.
And the others…
There are a few other figures of Azeroth that are essentially demigods, either by their own design or no.
Ragnaros, the firelord, is revered as a demigod by both fire elementals and of course the dark iron dwarves. The Aspects, Malygos, Deathwing and of course Alexstraza, all have the powers of a demigod.
There’s a little mini introduction into some of the revered figures within warcraft. I’ll try and go into a bit more detail about each set of figures at another point.
10
08 2010
Resources for: Priests
09
08 2010
An Obnoxious List…
I was getting in to one of those debates on MSN earlier which I probably shouldn’t have been doing.
It resulted in me writing a list of the things I wanted to achieve before I died. I even (here’s the OCD coming out right here) had a rough age at which I wanted to have achieved most of these things. Worryingly, most of the age limits are “30″. Unless I miraculously become a millionaire, it’s highly unlikely these are actually going to happen, but hey, it’s worth a bit of ambition hmm?
Here is my current list of things to do before I die (separated into handy categories!, along with some sort of…”you must really do this more often, Soph”
Personal Image:
- Be a size 14/my average BMI (whichever comes first) – for info, I started ‘losing weight’ on 15th June 2010. Since then I have lost 11.5 lbs (5.2 kg – far less impressive in kgs) of weight. It’s a long and slow process but I will get there! I have 5st 3.5 lbs (33kg) left to lose.
Fun:
- Be able to beat any man ever at Mario Kart – I have a seriously large competitive streak. Mario Kart 64 is my game. It is what I excel at.
- Read all of the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die – since gaming took over my life (ahem), I’ve found that I don’t read enough. I have this book of books, and I really want to actually READ some of them. I do not know enough stuff, basically.
- Visit the cinema once a month – I love the pictures, but I never go, or ever get to go. I need to actually start GOING occasionally.
- Hold a season ticket for the theatre – why will nobody go to the theatre with me? Everyone’s so bloody miserable. The theatre is AWESOME.
Travel:
- Fish off Jersey/go sea fishing – I don’t eat fish. I don’t like fish. But for some reason I’ve got this desire to go sea fishing. Like, on a proper boat and stuff. I’d throw the fish back and everything. I just wanna…go fishing.
- Visit Egypt – I want to ride a camel.
- Visit Longleat – I realise this isn’t that far away, but you try and find someone willing to drive all the way to Longleat JUST to look at some animals.
- Tour America - I’d really, really like to pack up all my cliches, get in a camper van and spend 4 or 5 weeks just driving round America, seeing all the things I want to see and experiencing all the different things the country has to offer.
- Visit the Galapagos Islands - I want to go and chill out with some iguanas and tortoises before they all get made extinct.
- Visit Whipsnade – as above with Longleat!
Money:
- Own my own house/flat – with a mortgage? without a mortgage would of course be ideal, but really I’d just like to have somewhere to call my own. debate about mortgage courtesy of @velidra!
- Be earning a comfortable wage – and by this, I mean being able to afford one nice foreign holiday a year, and being able to shop at Marks & Spencers at the weekend, and not to have to worry about what I put in my shopping basket. I don’t wanna be loaded, I’m far too logical for that. I’d just like to be comfortable.
Family:
- Earn enough money to support mum & dad - my family have done so much for me. I hope that when they get old(er), I can at least help them in some way.
Sport:
- Do a bungee jump - something I’ve wanted to do for a long time!
- Go Zorbing – as suggested by @mysterybutton – this looks like the most awesome. thing. ever.
- Learn to horse ride – I’m doing this now. I’ve been riding for over a year and I love it. 7-8 on a Monday night is the BEST hour of my week. It’s the only time I’m totally happy, totally care free. I want to be able to jump properly, to be able to ride more confidently, and to be able to maybe one day do a little course – maybe an amateur show jump, or an amateur cross country. Something small. But my God, what an achievement that would be.
- Learn to scuba dive – This is another one of those things I’ve “always wanted to do” but never quite sure why…
Work:
- Get a Ba(Hons) History - I’m currently nearly halfway through my degree. It’s tiring, it takes willpower, and effort, and sometimes time I just don’t have. But if I can actually get it it’ll help my career more than anything else.
- Get promoted again – I’ve already been promoted once whilst working here, cos I work my arse off. I’d like for my work to be recognised again at some point and hopefully gain further promotion.
