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Archive for March, 2009

Hi! I am a hunter. Why do you hate me?

March 13, 2009 :: Posted by - Stompalina :: Category - PVE, PVP, Raiding

My name is Taffybag on the Horde side and JebusChristo on the Alliance side, and I am a hunter. Yes I have 2 hunters at 80, so you probably hate me even more now. I started playing WOW 3 or 4 months after BC was released. Why did I venture into the World of Warcraft? Well I liked to play a few PC games, but I had just bought a MacBook Pro, and WOW was the only game the store had that ran on a Mac. So as you read the rest of this post please keep in mind that I had no knowledgeable friends to point me in the right direction when it came to general or hunter specific game mechanics.


What made me decide to play a hunter?

The cashier at CompUSA, where I bought the game, asked if I had ever played, I replied with “No young man, I know nothing of this game” his response was play a warrior or a hunter, little did I know how much more the WOW community would have loved me if I rolled a warrior. But back to why you probably hate me.

You hate me because I killed that mob you were running towards.

Hunter hate starts early, so when you were level 17 in the Barrens killing manbearpig people and running towards that one last mob you needed to complete your quest I shot him from 30 yards away and tagged him, and you got really mad. See we were both new to the game and I just didn’t get the concept of being polite and that I didn’t need to tag every mob in my range. I’ll admit, it’s my bad, but I know better now, so let’s just bury the hatchet.

You hate me because I have a pet.

Listen, I am a hunter, no one else likes me, blizzard knew this would happen, so I have my trusty pet who always loves me, as long as I keep feeding him. Maybe my crab pinned you in in Wintergrasp while I shot you with my exploding bullet of death. Maybe my Devilsaur went all big and red during a raid and obscured your entire UI and you didn’t notice that a void zone had formed under you. Whatever the case just remember that my pet also ate 30% of the damage you were going to get a few times through Roar of Sacrifice and the little bugger has died so many times as a speed bump for stray mobs that were heading for healers in the hope that he could delay them long enough for a tank to pick them up.

You hate me because whenever things go wrong I find some out of the way spot to lie down and play dead.

Yes I can feign death, and yes I will do so when all is lost. I mean, just because you have to pay a repair bill doesn’t mean that I have to. And 50% of the time I have jumper cables, so if you get lucky I might save you some time running. All right it can be frustrating during a wipe fest, but it’s not just me, that rogue in the party is vanishing and saving his own narrow behind.

You hate me because there are a lot of me.

Back in BC, hunters on the realms I played on were always the most heavily represented class. And with lots of players you end up with lots of bad players. I am not saying there are more bad hunters then there are other classes, it’s just that there were so many more hunters that you were more likely to run into a bad hunter. I always got miffed when I would read LF DPS NO HUNTERS. If you just started playing in WOTLK then you probably aren’t as familiar with the glut of hunters, just think of it this way, Death Knights are the new Hunters.

You hate me because I cleared Kara at least 3 times without ever casting a single steady shot.

I don’t blame you though, I even hate myself for that. I had no idea what a shot rotation was, I would open up with an aimed shot then string together my instant casts, something like serpent sting, silencing shot and yes, even scatter shot. How could I be so bad? Hunters are easy to level, even if played badly. That’s how I got to 70 without knowing that steady shot should be used. But it’s not all my fault, see even hunters hate other hunters. On my first server good hunters kept their knowledge to themselves and didn’t like to share it. It ensured that there was less competition for the few coveted guild spots out there and that way even less competition for raid spots and loot. I learned to play from visiting Elitist Jerks and TKASomething, because while hunters on my realm didn’t share there knowledge the cats on message boards just couldn’t shut up about how to play, and I am eternally grateful to them for that.

You hate me because I destroyed the damage meters when we first started WOTLK raiding together.

Hey, don’t get made at me, I didn’t design the game. Hunters are the worst scaling class. We start off really hot when we get our first few shiny epics, but we just don’t keep gaining that steam throughout the current content. There are plenty of non hunters that out dps me on several fights. So don’t be mad, as you get more gear you will get closer and one day may even beat that hunter.

Time for the big finale, I wish I could say there was one last thing that made you really hate me, but unfortunately in the current build of wow there are two things.

If you PVP, you hate me because I killed you in arena.

Now let me say that my arena team, Catalina Wine Mixer, has yet to play a single match, but based on what I have read on the Blizzard Damage Dealing forums, I single handedly annihilated your 2v2 team, while I ate a slice of cake and played online poker. Supposedly every shot I release in arena crits, my explosive shot hits for 7k per tick, my kill shot hits for anywhere between 12k and 16k depending on who you talk to, and deterrence, disengage and frost trap make it totally and completely impossible to deal even 1 point of damage to me. I am a god in arena even though I haven’t played more than 50 matches in my entire life. In all seriousness folks, those damage numbers were posted by non hunters on the forums. We all know that’s not what’s happening most of the time, in fact I have never seen a 7k Explosive Shot tick while fully 25 man raid buffed. I am not getting into the whole hunters are or aren’t OP in arena, I am just saying don’t believe the crazy numbers people are posting all over the place in regards to hunter arena damage. I think if we all come together, we can be reasonable and come to the understanding that it’s actually Death Knights and Retribution Paladins that are entirely to OP for not just arena, but all PVP, teeheehee.

If you PVE, you hate me because I got your Betrayer of Humanity, Journey’s End, Sinister Revenge, or just about any other melee weapon you wanted.

Get over it, it’s time to learn that every piece of loot is hunter loot. Nah that’s not it. It’s just that blizzard is sort of crazy. See we don’t actually use the melee weapon, but in WOTLK they provide us with loads of sexy and valuable stats. I am not saying that I deserve any weapon as much or more than a druid, death knight, titan grip warrior, or rogue, just that melee weapon upgrades do provide a nice DPS upgrade for us too, it’s not just all about the gun. But I will wait for my Journey’s End until all the Bears and Kitties have theirs if it will make you love me.

Well anyway, I am new here, and I am around to answer your questions and provide insight on any topics you might be curious about. So if you want to know anything about being or dealing with hunters level 1-80, send an email my way.

~Taffybag, member of rawrbitchrawr

The Rawrcast Show: Live Saturday @ 4 PM, CST

March 13, 2009 :: Posted by - Stompalina :: Category - Podcast, PVE


The Rawrcast Show
Broadcasting LIVE
from our zoo to yours
this Saturday at 4 PM, CST
on Ustream

In Episode 10, we will be talking about the legend and lore behind Ulduar, and other misinterpreted World of Warcraft stories. We also disclose the second Secret Code Word for our Tweet Me, Tweet You Game Card Giveaway and introduce a second giveaway that is exclusive to our listeners in the DFW area!

We look forward to seeing you all LIVE. Happy Streaming!

Pulling Raiding in Two Different Directions

March 09, 2009 :: Posted by - Stompalina :: Category - PVE, Raiding

Is it just me, or are many raiders torn nowadays?

On one hand we are raring to get into the PTR as often as possible to get exposure to these new bosses in Ulduar. Guilds are laying down solid plans, preparing encounter strats, and initiating new directions post-3.1. But, the PTR seems to be a challenge in itself. The Critical Error boss has me on farm and I am putting up a fight…

On the other hand we are in a rut trying to finish the raiding achievements before the obtainable Black and Plagued Proto-Drake fall out of our reached, as they are removed from the game.

It seems that focus is flip-flopping between the PTR and live-raiding, and it is starting to give me problems. Attendance is becoming inconsistent and overall focus on farming content and pushing SOMETHING is faltering.

If there was a way to communicate a specific goal each week – one raiding achievement, one PTR boss encounter – and get everyone on the same page, I think I would be slightly less aggravated with the game at this point. We don’t have to be first place at whatever we decide to do, we just have to focus and drive to do something with this time before the 3.1 patch.

What are your thoughts?
Are you a raider stuck in a rut nowadays, waiting for 3.1?

The Rawrcast Show: Episode 9 – "Dirty South"

March 08, 2009 :: Posted by - Stompalina :: Category - Podcast, PVE, Raiding


This week we decided to take our balls out of our purse and rock the explicit tag moving forward in an effort to reduce the amount of colorful words being edited out each week! And, with the addition of this stimulating vocabulary, our live podcast flourished with loads of listener feedback and an outpouring of questions. So, we feel the choice has added more flavor to our already rich and rewarding show!

Topics covered this week include the upcoming Lifebloom nerf about to be bestowed upon our druid brothers and sisters, and how the new mana regeneration changes will effect play style with regards to mana conservation. And, we give our differing opinions regarding a particular blue post that appears to sanction of the practice of selling raid spots for titles.

Also this week, we kicked off the start of our Tweet Me, Tweet You Game Card Giveaway. Make sure to follow me and Hafrot on twitter.com, send either of us a @reply with this week’s Secret Code Word, and you are entered to WIN a 60-day World of Warcraft Game Card. It’s easy to enter, easy to win, and fun to play! Complete details are posted here.

Episode 9 is available for your listening pleasure via iTunes, RSS feed, download, or you can stream it from our main page.

A few links to items we discussed:

Lastly, in the spirit of giving away free shit – there is late breaking news regarding another contest that will start next week in addition to the Game Card Giveaway! So, keep those iTunes comments coming and we will do our damnedest to get some great, like-minded sponsors ready and willing to give away as much free stuff as possible!

Don’t forget to tune in for the
LIVE show next week on
Ustream – Saturday, March 14 @ 4 PM, CST
when we cover the lore of Ulduar!

Music provided by: The Brew – Boyz with that Crunk Rock
podsafe music network
MassiveBlips: vote it up!

The Rawrcast Show: LIVE Saturday @ 4PM

March 06, 2009 :: Posted by - Stompalina :: Category - Podcast, PVE

The Rawrcast Show
Broadcasting LIVE
from our teletype to yours
this Saturday, 4 PM, CST
on Ustream

In Episode 9, we will address the finer points of our week in the PTR, him and haw about the confirmed Lifebloom nerf about to be bestowed up on my druid kin, answer a couple of very interesting listener e-mails, and kick-off our month-long Tweet Me, Tweet You Game Card Giveaway! Listen all month long and enter each week to increase your chances of winning!

We look forward to seeing you all LIVE. Happy Streaming!

WIN a 60-day Game Card!

March 04, 2009 :: Posted by - Stompalina :: Category - Other

Tweet Me, Tweet You
Game Card Giveaway

As a “thank you” to our listeners, Wych from BOE and I have put together a contest to WIN a 60-day World of Warcraft Game Card. And, it couldn’t be easier to WIN it!

All you need to do is listen to The Rawrcast Show during the month of March, listen for the Secret Code Word during the show, then send a @reply through twitter.com to be entered. Easy as pie!

The first Secret Code Word will be revealed this Saturday during our LIVE broadcast on Ustream. So be there at 4PM, CST, to listen and WIN!

Complete rules and details posted here.
Happing Contesting!

3.1 Preview Part II: Mounted Combat

March 02, 2009 :: Posted by - Stompalina :: Category - PVP

This week I take a closer look at the mechanics of mounted combat at the Argent Tournament. The current available mounts are limited, so I am not entirely sure if there are tiered mounts with varied abilities (which would be cool), or anything else beyond this week’s exposure on the PTR.

As more information about the mounted combat becomes available, I will be checking, testing, and sharing it with all of you. This part of 3.1 really excites me! I can’t wait!

Ulduar Revealed: Full Map of the Instance!

March 02, 2009 :: Posted by - Stompalina :: Category - Raiding

Our fellow guild mate, and WoW-OCD compadre, Kinder created this map of the inner corridors of Ulduar. It is a great reference of the sheer mass of space that this new raid instance covers. Besides the obvious beauty of the celestial bodies, and little nugget surprises around every turn, the overwhelming size of the structures is astonishing.

Enjoy!

Click to Enlarge

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Don’t forget to watch all PTR happenings
LIVE as they happen as we
broadcast via Ustream!

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