Find Me in World of Warcraft!

Slowly, one person at a time, I am managing to call people to my banner. The banner of World of Warcraft. OK granted, with the amount of press, the sheer number of people playing it, and of course, people managing to get their friends addicted to the crack that is this online game, the number of subscribers is increasing, but I am slowly doing my part!

But I digress. What this is all about is YOU finding ME in WoW. If you're a new player looking for advice, guidance or even a few coins to rub together, but importantly, you know me, then feel free to hunt me out in Azeroth. Also, if you're wanting to start playing (on the European servers, that is), then let me know - I have five free trial invites which, if you end up loving and buying the game, we both get a free month. And I get another five invites each month!

First off, the important part, is the Server I play on. I use Steamwheedle Cartel as my server, which is a normal (Player vs Environment) server. That is, unless you do something silly, other players of the opposite faction can't walk up to you, remove your face and poo in your neck. More importantly, it is a Roleplaying server.

This basically means in the simplest terms, that it is a fully immersive server. You shouldn't talk about last nights TV, the latest pop-hits, what your dog just vomited. In all public channels, you are YOUR CHARACTER. This also applies to naming your character. While there are lots of idiots out there that try to name themselves after Lord of the Rings characters (I swear, one more elven hunter called Leegolaass and I will snap), or worse, the people using names like "Cooldude" or "Hordeyboyz" or something equally pants, you get reported. Anyway, read the additional Game Policies Here.

Lastly is the faction. In WoW, you can play the Alliance (Humans, Night Elves, Gnomes, Dwarves, Draeni) or you can play the Horde (Orcs, Trolls, Tauren, Undead, Blood Elves). I play Horde side, which means if you play Alliance, you don't get to talk to me. Though if you try and you have made yourself PvP Enables, I will walk up to you, remove your face and poo in your neck.

So - Steamwheedle Cartel, Horde Side. Got it? Now to find me.

I have nine Horde characters, and one Alliance. The latter just sort of sits and doesn't get played unless I just want to blow off steam, but the rest are fair game.

Ushka: Level 70 Troll Priest- I heal. A lot.
Jensu: Level 70 Troll Rogue- I kill. A lot.
Clarabelle: Level 70 Tauren Hunter- I have a pet pig.
Braytusk: Level 50-ish Orc Warlock- I use demons and nasty magic.
Laninia: Level 40-ish Undead Mage- I throw a lot of spells around.
Selyne: Level 40-ish Orc Shaman- I blast and chop through it all
Haniia: Level 40-ish Tauren Druid- I pretend to be a cat.
Kallendria: Level 30-ish Undead Warrior- Sword, shield, yeeeeah.

Lastly, there is my banker. He is a level one troll that does all my buying and selling, and is where my money is stashed. No, you can't have it. Anyway, his name is Ðensu, and only the cool people can write that funky D-style at the front of his name.

Anyway, if you want it, there it is. Feel free to drop by, say hi or whatever. And if you ARE interested, just contact me in the various methods. I'm quite willing to hold your hand while you learn the ropes ;) Hell, even read the Game Guide if you want some more info.

Edit: Thought I'd add these signature thingies to make life a bit easier :)

Exhausted!

This week, I have mostly been battling with insomnia. I've been going to bed like a good boy, I've even managed to fall asleep fairly quickly (despite Jo stealing the duvet, or Tam appearing in our bed and kicking me in the head) but the trick seems to be actually staying asleep. Within an hour or two, I am not only awake, but prowling the house, checking doors, windows, kids, email and everything else. Then I go back to bed, toss and turn for a few hours, get a drink, read, watch a DVD or something, and then finally, sleep kicks in... I drift off to sleep, warm, comfortable, peaceful...

In time for Mr Alarmclock to make his presence known. And the day starts all over again.

I wake up for apparently random reasons. Usually it's because I'm hurting, sometimes I need to wee, or Tam has woken me, or Jo has woken me, or I have just woken up for no reason.

Anyway, the offshot of all this, is that when I am tired, I get down in the dumps. When it's grey and wet, I get down in the dumps. So I've been either ignoring the world and playing Warcraft, or I've been curled up on the sofa with Tam and my laptop playing stupid games.

Hence the lack of blog posts, and lack of my comments across other blogs.

Of course, getting drunk texts from people all hours of the day and night keep me amused, as does various confessions from various people, not to mention hearing about myself through the Gossip Grape Vine. That always makes me chuckle too.

So, last night wasn't much different - drunk chicks texting, lack of sleep, house prowling... My eyes feel like pissholes in the snow, and of course, considering which country I live in, it's cold, grey and wet. To WoW or Not To WoW, that is the question...

Another Warcraft Movie

Quite simply, the last Warcraft Movie I posted was what I thought to be one of the greatest ever. However, this morning I came across this amazing gem. The music might not be up to everyones taste, but the video is amazing.

Go take a peek!

Edit: You know what, just go to this guys profile and look at ALL his videos... Amazing...

Warcraft Movies

World of Warcraft is responsible for lots of things. Not only has it spawned an army nation of gaming geeks, but there is the merchandise, the expansions (The Burning Crusade, and the up-and-coming Wrath of the Lich King), the card game, the fan art, the roleplaying game and even a movie.

But WoW also appeals to the chap that sits at home making movies from game footage. Over the last couple of years, there have been contests and competitions of all kinds - some official Blizzard competitions, some third-party - as well as people making them "just for the hell of it".

The videos vary in quality, ranging from "something cobbled together" to "near-professional editing", not to mention the types - comedy, love stories, videos of someone showing off their skills, music videos...

Today, messing around on FaceBook, I noticed some daft Italian guy had a video on his profile (not his video, I should add) of a very good WoW Video. From what I can make out, it's an entry (and subsequent winner) of a Blizzard competition:


If you aren't a WoW player, have never seen anything about it - this guy has taken his character from creation, running all the way through, editing the models into his video. The bits flying around are screen elements used during play... All very well done.

Even if you're not a gamer, you have to appreciate the skill and time taken to make a video of this quality. And the song kicks bottom too!

WoW Curiosity

I am, as has been mentioned elsewhere in this blog, a big fat World of Warcraft geek. I play it "a lot" and tend to lose track of time while playing it. I can sit down for a quick run-around at lunchtime, and then realise I have to be getting Jaysen in 15 minutes. Time flies when you're having fun, and all that jazz.

So when our friend Ruth forwarded me an email about WoW, I figured it'd be one of these "Too much Warcraft kills person" or "It's not a Christian game" or something similar. But actually, it was an interesting read, putting the details into "Non-WoW-Speak" for people.

You've probably already heard plenty of scary tales about people obsessed by World of WarCraft (WoW) - from real-life romances consummated by in-game weddings (or vice versa) to people becoming so addicted that they sit hunched over in an Internet café for days at a time before keeling over dead from lack of sleep and food (true - and the player's online friends then held a funeral for her in the game world). So just what is it about WoW that has 8 million people around the world paying £8 a month, every month, to play?

For a start, you have a fair amount of control over the character you play: you can choose between two factions - Alliance ("good", a bit worthy) or Horde ("bad", a bit swarthy), each with different combinations of races - from humans to gnomes and orcs to tauren (minotaur-type things). You must also choose a specific class for your character, including damage-dealing warriors, powerful warlocks and shape-shifting druids. These choices help determine the kind of skills and abilities you can use in game. You're also able to pick your gender, tweak your appearance and choose a name - although this can be tricky, as you'll need to pick one that no-one on your chosen realm has already bagged.

Then there's the addictive nature of levelling up by gaining experience from killing monsters and completing quests. Combat is fairly simplistic at first, involving hitting the numbers on your keyboard according to the attack you want to perform. It won't take you long to rise through the first few levels and as you progress you can learn new skills and abilities which will make you increasingly powerful.

You'll quickly find more quests as you start exploring the world and as you go further afield you'll start to get an idea of just how huge the game world is -- it would take you literally hours to run round the edge of just one of the two main continents. Each area has a unique topography and atmosphere, from lush jungles to icy mountains or volcanic wastelands. At level 40 you can buy an animal mount which lets you run through the game world more than twice as fast. You can also fly between areas you've visited, once you learn the flight path.

Most of the items you collect are from monsters or picked up from quests. You can also create them yourself through skills you learn, which you can then sell to either in-game vendors, direct to other players or through the auction house system. Making (and spending) money in WoW is another hugely addictive part of the game - and in fact there's a lot of money made in the real world through dodgy sales of WoW gold, items and characters. Don't get tempted, though - you'll get banned from playing if you get caught.

As if all that's not enough to keep you hooked, there's player vs. player combat (PvP) - the art of killing the opposing faction's players for honour points, which can be traded for even more shiny new equipment and armour. You can either attack enemy players in the main game world, or enter battlegrounds or arenas for multiplayer PvP action at any time you choose.

Another thing about WoW that makes it so compelling is the need to collaborate. You may get more experience per enemy by completing quests alone, but if you team up with other players you'll burn through the quests much more easily. And instances -- special dungeon areas - can only be beaten in a group, as they're full of higher-level monsters (from which you can reap better rewards). Play nicely and you'll get invited back by the same groups again. You could also join an in-game guild of like-minded players. And who knows, romance may beckon...

Unless you have the new Burning Crusade expansion pack, level 60 is the highest you can get - and it'll probably take you a few months to get to that level. With the expansion though you can rise to 70. Other features include a whole new world to explore (Peter and Katie will be delighted), new races and classes and flying mounts.

For a lot of players, the game starts to come into its own once you hit these higher levels, as you can start doing bigger dungeon raids, with up to 40 people at once fighting bosses for higher rewards, including some seriously impressive armour and weaponry to show off with. You can also spend time building up your reputation with certain groups within the game to get even more exclusive items. Or you could just create a new character in a different race and class, and start all over again...

Overall, what makes WoW so ruddy addictive is that it's much more than the sum of its parts. Take any one aspect of the game and you'd be hard pushed to bother spending more than a few hours with it. But add the levelling and quests, the money and trading, the gear collecting, and the social aspects, plus the glorious touches of humour in the game and you get a completely compelling experience - cue many long nights of ``I'll just level up/finish this quest/stick a few more items on the auction house before I go to bed..."...and before you know it it's 3am. Again.

I hope that enlighten things a little more for those that were clueless! If you're interested, WoW Europe (It's broken into areas, US/Australia, Europe, and Asia) is currently running a free 10-day trial here, while WoW-US is running their free trial here. Obviously I play on WoW Europe, and if you play US then you won't be able to see me there. Also, bear in mind the time difference - if you're in New York @ 7pm trying to play, then it'll be midnight here.

If you DO happen to find yourself in the European Realms, then you can find me on the Horde side of the server "Steamwheel Cartel" as one of four characters: Braytusk (Orc Warlock), Ushka (Troll Priest), Laninia (Undead Mage) or Nathgoren (Blood Elf Paladin).

I Do Still Live

So I am now offically on the mend. I can smell stuff, my headache isn't quite as vile as it was, and the coughing isn't constant. Yes, I am getting better but am still feeling rough. This, of course, is good news, at least, it should be.

Jo is now coming down with it. Fingers crossed the usual case of ManFlu vs. GirlieSniffles holds out, as she's had a good afternoon with a friend over which has kept her mind occupied more than anything.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in Gotham... Jaysen and Tam are holding off on the germs so fingers crossed it avoids them. My body clock is now offically screwed, and I find myself crawling out of the bed after 9am, and laying in bed wide awake till 4am.

Ho Hum.

In other news, we finally managed to get and install the World of Warcraft expansion, Burning Crusade. Wow, very pretty... The new areas are amazing, and nice to run around and explore. The new critters roaming the lands are incredible - from the smallest little critter, up to the massive great Pit Lord that you are confronted with when you first step out of the portal...

So yes, great stuff.

So, aside from Dan being missing, and will probably be remaining as such for a few more days, all is semi-well in Chez Anglais... Or whatever.

PS, I am looking into changing the Cbox as it's still them causing all your popups. Sorry :)

South Park Meets World of Warcraft

"Gasp!" I hear you readers cry, "Dan posting about Warcraft!"

Well, yes, but this time it's something you can all enjoy. When I say "All" I mean "Those who appreciate both WoW and South Park". Comedy Central showed this a few nights back, and it's on the web already. I meant to post it in the previous post, but meh.

Now, I should add, this is South Park. It's NOT Safe For Work. It's got the usual crude humour and swearing, plus they add it to Warcraft. If you've never played or even see Warcraft, they game footage is pretty much as-is, apart from the additional animation of the game characters.

So, assuming you're old enough to watch this, don't mind swearing, violence, gross-out stuff, and all the rest of it, then Watch The Episode. If you watch it and then decide it's gross or whatever, don't blame me. You don't HAVE to click the link!

And remember - it's not safe for work nor kids, nor is it to be considered "This is what WoW is like!"

So I'm An Addict

And according to this video, it's a bad, dangerous thing

However, here are some things that really hack me off - it's this sort of press that make all of us Warcraft players look like pale-faced addicts that do nothing BUT play Warcraft.

For starters, he's 16. SHE needs to be a mother and say "That's enough". Also, the game comes with parental controls - oops, they failed to mention that!! She can set how long he can play for, from 1hr to 6hrs, what days he can't play, what times he can't play... Then they mention the chinese kid that killed himself saying he wanted to meet the heroes in the game. Well, after staying awake for 36 hours, I talk to the kettle, regardless of playing games, watching telly or whatever.

Then there is the kid swearing and getting violent. I'm sorry, but I've played WoW a long time, and have yet to throw ANYTHING at a wall, nor scream and shout at the monitor. The most damage I've done is knock a glass of wine on my keyboard while playing, and that's because I wasn't paying attention...

Fifteen-Twenty years ago, I was a bad person for playing Dungeons & Dragons - devil worship, don't you know. Ten years ago I was bad for listening to rock and metal - hidden messages. Five years ago I a bad person for living in chat rooms - full of child molesters. And NOW I'm a bad person because I play WoW.

Yes, I am the first to admit, I DO play a lot of Warcraft. But then, I don't have many friends around here, and I really really can't socialise with people face-to-face. This may come as a surprise to some, but Dan in the Flesh is shy and quiet - well, till I get to know you ;) Then there's my back - some days I hurt so bad, I just want to flop in a chair and concentrate on something. But on the other hand, I know people that watch 12 hours of TV in a day, soaps, reality TV, dramas, series - why is that different to what I do? Hell, I know two people that watched the Big Brother live channel ALL DAY LONG.

And this is going to sound SO bad. When we lost Bethy, everything on TV, everything in movies, everything outside - whatever we did, where ever we went, something reminded us of Bethany or what she went through or whatever. We played Warcraft. Our friends on there (because they ARE friends) knew what we'd been through, and it was an outlet for us to do stuff without constant reminders of what happened.

I'm actually THANKFUL to Warcraft for that.

Anyways, I've got stuff to do now - will be around later. Unless I'm jacked into Warcraft and letting my life disappear! Stupid biased news stories. Bah.

A Lay In!

For the first time in a very long time, I woke up at 10am. I can't even remember the last time I slept in so late. Granted, it probably helped that we didn't go to bed nearer one in the morning as we had Amber & Pete over. We pissed around, had a lot of laughs, and are sorting out playing D&D more regularly after people advised me it was something I should do.

You know who you are!

However, the downside? Well, it's 11am and I've only just gotten dressed, so I feel REALLY lazy. Added to this, I feel like I was up all night drinking, and have a pounding headache. Jo has acted on this, and is taking her and the kids out with her mum for a few hours so I can have peace and quiet. Her idea, not mine.

Those of you living around here - the rain at 2-3am was incredible. We have a flat roof upstairs, so the rain was hammering on there, feet above us in bed. Long Riding - as usual - disappeared under water for a while, but it was made more surreal by the fact I was on pain killers.

The cam is on and pointing out to the world once more. For those not seeing it, I am not sure WHY you're not seeing it. I suspect you're missing a plug-in of some kind, but can't figure what - if anyone can, please let me know.

As for the report of a virus being on my page somewhere, I've checked and double-checked the code this morning, and can't see anything malicious. Those of you that are technically-minded, could you have a quick peek if you have 5 minutes? I suspect it is the amount of Javascript running on the page that is causing it, but not sure why it would have started all of a sudden.

Still, with Jo off out, and me pushing this headache to the rear of my head, I am likely to jump on Warcraft today and mosh through a dungeon or something for laughs. I've discovered that if I play WoW, the camera and it have a fit over who-gets-the-most-memory, so the cam will go off when that happens.

Errorness

So I had an evening playing World of Warcraft. All fun and games, and while those we play with take it seriously, it's not that serious. Fun with laughs, is probably the best way to describe it. Jo knows a few of them from her LARP games, and I just and piss-take (*gasp*) with a few, and chat to a couple of others.

One of said "others" Kirie - an American Ex-Pat living down in Brighton - has pointed out that at the eeeeend of the page, after the last post but before my sarky footer, is a link for "older posts". Turns out it's busted. Turns out *gasp* it's not me, but a known Blogger Beta error.

So, for those wanting to stalk read further back, there is the "Archive" link in the sidebar in a drop-down menu. I've checked it and it seems to work in both Firefox and Internet Explorer, so all well and good.

And while checking I notice that Joansy has asked a question in the box there - yes darlin, Labels are a Beta only thing. I've only added to the last week-and-a-bit of posts, but will add to every new post from now. You also get a little drop-down menu that shows all the labels you've used before, so you don't end up with "friend" and "friends" or whatever :)

Anyway, with my concentration now focused away from WoW, I'm back to feeling icky. Jo has had the dose of her meds altered this week, so she's all wiggly at the moment too.

And being ever so smart, I decided this evening to rip up a load of weeds from the back garden that have been bugging me. So I went from feeling rough to feeling rough and hurting like buggery. One day I'll engage brain cell. Maybe. Anyways, to prevent me keeping her ladyship awake (Her Ladyship, Senior, that is) all night by my tossing and turning, I'm on the sofa tonight. My decision.

In other news... Well, that'd be telling (no, Jo isn't preggers!) but I'm keeping schtum for now until it all goes through......... And "She-Who-Already-Knows" - shush ;)

Last but not least - to the two of you that mailed me today and asked for the link to my private blog. Heck no. With a capital Heck No! hehehe