I always loved that phrase, from way back in my Forum Rat days. Here is post ten for January, putting me on course for squeaking out ten posts a month this year. Yay me.
I chose The Dragon Isles for my Blood Elf Paladin. I felt a little guilty leaving the Ghostlands unfinished, but these feet were made for flying through the air.
My Tailor made a new Plushie for the House. I had to gather and mill a fair few Dreamleafs to get Roseate Pigment with my Inscriptionist, and Prospect also quite a bit of Leystone Ore and Felslate Ore with my Jeweler, but ta da!
Here's the Raptor in his original size, next to the embiggened Elekk Plushie.
And here I set both plushies to their maximum size, which I think I will keep.
Free for owning Midnight and logging into the game, your own personal Dark Portal. After sneering at my neighbor who had an ugly green round portal in his yard (of course I didn't actually sneer), I am going to rearrange my furniture and find a spot for this bad boy. I didn't realize I was fond of the Dark Portal, but it pleases me to no end to have it.
Thursday, a video feature was posted with Holly Longdale and Ion Hazzikostas talking about where Wow has and where it's going.
In addition to the usual roadmap layout, they talked about many new features coming to the game.
Though I don't PvP, I think it's interesting they're introducing an AI powered PvP mode so you can learn the basics without being camped at the graveyard by real people.
There's a new Delve type coming that's called Labyrinth (for now) that is huge and sprawling, as if it's numerous delves joined together. You can do the various parts as suits you.
Also I don't raid, but there are a few Single Boss Raids in the works, which seems less torturous than the normal raids. Noice.
They did also cover upcoming Mists of Pandaria and Anniversary realm events. Something for everyone.
Housing of course slipped into the presentation a fair few times. It's a fantastic feature and some players are truly doing incredible things already. Give them more tools, and what will they imagine?
I liked the presentation, but, then I like the game and play most days. Holly and Ion seemed genuinely happy and enthusiastic, which is a good thing.
Half the battle of writing a post is getting just the right title. I pondered quite a bit before that gem came up.
My plan to level her using dungeons on high pop Horde server Area 52 has not been a grand success. She's level 28, which is perhaps a little higher than she would be if I had just quested with her.
The Blood Elf starter area is Sunstrider Isle, Eversong Woods and The Ghostlands. It may be somewhat akin to Ammen Vale and Azuremyst Isle for the Draenai in size. It feels like it goes on forever. I'm in the Ghostlands portion, and you can see how much more there is to do.
There's no flight here. Also, it turns out, the whole area is in the Burning Crusade Time Period, not the Midnight era of the game. The big gate you see on the map leads to the current era. Additional timey wimey twistiness is that in order to get Classic Dungeons for my runs, I went to Orgrimmar and chose the Cataclysm timeline. I don't believe I have gotten a single low level Classic era dungeon in my queues, as they time out and try for another era. A trip to the Big Bad O for nothing.
I did travel there yet another time to get my house at level 11. I went with the traditional Blood Elf style home. I've not done much with it because I have no money (though I took 2000 gold out of the warband bank to get her started), and also, I want to use this house to experiment with changing the structure of the inner house, trying to add stairwell rooms and such. Simple is good, I can just stuff all my things away and then move walls and ceilings and doors around, constructing staircases from beams like the big boys and girls do.
I got a really nice plot looking out to sea again in the neighborhood. There aren't any close neighbors here either. It's a good escape on a day when my girl may have gotten pounded into the ground by bad guys.
I'm unsure where I'll go once I finish the Ghostlands. I was trying to think of an era of the game where there's a neutral hub so I can be in a city I'm familiar with. The three possibilities I came up with are Draenor, Legion, or Dragon Isles. Dunno.
It's only been a recent thing for me to do much transmog. Now that I like it, I'd send my character to the Transmogrifier after any session where they got new armor.
I knew changes were coming, and I initially had thought transmog would be free in Midnight. So funny!
What they did instead, on the 27th of January, was remove the transmog you had on every single character. No toon left unturned.
Here is a character who has no money to speak of. 34 Gold. I had her upgrade a bunch of Dreanor Buildings so poof went her money.
How she looks now:
Using the Transmog interface, I put her outfit back the way it was before the transmogapocalypse as best as I could.
This would cost 492 g 55 s 90 c, unless I'm mistaken. Additionally, she does not come with an outfit slot though it looks as if she has two. Nope, 200 gold for a slot. Yup 34 gold...nearly 700 gold to get to where she was...
My hope is they back track from the system as it is now. At some point soonish, they are planning to give every character one free transmog. After that, I will do little transmog. Surely I won't buy anything more from the trading post, and any reward that is a transmog reward is as dust.
I’m back in fine post form with a goal of 100 posts for the year (this blog had 11 total in 2025). My monthly goal is 10 posts each month, to slide into that 100 posts for the year with ease. This is just for me, to keep my brain going, sort of.
If you’ve been reading this blog for awhile, you know I can be ruthless getting my post count goals in. My “a post is a post” mantra gets me a long way when I’m crunching. As always, I can philosophically fall back on two things:
I write this for myself and my imaginary audience (also me).
Nobody reads this %h*t, so it doesn’t matter at all.
To those of you who are definitely not nobodies, big hugs as always for stopping by.
This counts as one of the six I need for January. Five more to come before day’s end on Saturday the 31st. Go go go!
Housing has completely changed my strategies for playing the game. Everything centers around how I can get all of the decor treasures available and upcoming everywhere.
No More Wow Classic For Me
Fan Out! Cover Each of the Expansions with 7 Crafting Characters
My new plan, my even better plan (Start the Revolution Without Me), is to play through every expansion with a set of seven characters who cover every tradeskill. Note: I only need seven characters because I always combine Tailoring and Enchanting in one character. I've been going through my character lists and am assigning them to a particular time period. Just as my "Midnight Runners" will move ahead into the Midnight Expansion, I have Draenor and Shadowlands (so far) characters who will do everything, and get every bit of reputation in those eras. No possible decor source left unturned! Well developed characters. If you're going to relive former eras, get all the resources and rewards offered. Share it with Warbandies.
Because I'm old school as well as new, I have four by six index cards for each expansion and the characters covering them. For Example:
Shadowlands
Alchemy L62 Monk
Inscription L33 Priest
Leatherworking L28 Rogue
Engineering L28 Hunter
Jewelcraft L 30 Shaman
Tailor/Enchant L28 Warlock
Blacksmith L49 Warrior
In this case, I tried to keep everyone near the same level. They aren't all on the same server, but again, via the magical Warband Bank, they can operate together. I like that some characters who haven't gotten played for a long time will have a purpose.
For the Horde?
Here's where you see just how far down the decor rabbit hole I've gone. I created a Horde Blood Elf Death Knight specifically for the upcoming really lovely Blood Elf furnishings that are on the way.
My plan for her was that I'd power level her via dungeons to level up. I gave her Herbalism and Mining. She could go everywhere and grab any Horde specific things I might want. Also lumber! (sidenote bizarrely the Horde Starter area lumber is Olembra Lumber which belongs to the Outlands expansion.)
I must briefly complain that as an Alliance player, I spent an inordinate amount of time lost in Orgrimmar (worst city layout ever), Lordaeron, and the vaunted Silvermoon City. They don't want you to get in, they don't want you to get out.
I got her to level 21! My highest Horde character ever. Then I noticed I had stuck her on Scarlet Crusade where I have a set of characters I call my "Draenor girls". They are all low level, so I actually briefly considered poofing them but they were too cute.
Sadly, the DK died. In her place, I created a Blood Elf Paladin. I put her on Area 52 after looking up servers with large Horde populations as I wasn't getting any bites on dungeon finder on Scarlet Crusade most times. She landed in the Blood Elf starter area, yay, which I have played through some of, a few times. No tormenting Orgrimmar for her, until I have to go to find Chromie there to pick Catalcysm as a timeline for Classic era dungeons. So much complication for a few tables and chairs!
I've been in decor acquisition mode for about a month. I stopped adding rooms. All I do is hunt vendors, look for recipes, use my Draenor Herb gardens for Dyes (which I've made no dyes from yet, I'm just stockpiling), and I go all over to get needed Reputation to buy stuff. All of a sudden, I noticed my main character had a rather alarmingly low (for her) amount of money. I might have spent 25k with her alone buying decor and related items.
So, I decided I needed to clear my quest log anyway, and I sent her to the Undermine, an area where I'd finished the main quest line and scooted, because the music made me buggy and the cartel blah blah annoyed me. I've done every quest now (except the golf course one), did the delve, which I liked a lot, and have been World Questing for money, and you guessed it, decor! Much of the decor is awarded from completing quests, some requires Reputation (working on it), and the price is in Resonance Crystals generally rather than gold. Filling my pockets with all the things.
I'm charmed by these flamingoes.
I don't know why, but I spent a great deal of time trying to catch enough Gold Fish to buy this insanely adorable bathtub.
I've been on a rather fiendish hunt lately for foods that I can place on my table. I hate fish in real life but spent an inordinate amount of time getting the reputation, cooking skills and ingredients for the Boralus Style Lobster Platter.
This is my Mage, who had the highest Battle For Azeroth Cooking skill to begin with, so I could level her to get that recipe. I spend quite a bit of time digging around in various character's banks for ingredients for old recipes. Here's where being a sort of pack rat pays off, because almost always, someone somewhere has the goods.
I like my kitchen. It's cozy. After having had characters in various time periods and expansions starving for food, I just like for any of them to walk into the house and voila! Food, food and more food. Welcome home, babies.
Outside, I'm just getting screening between myself and my neighbors. To my surprise, when I was taking screenshots, I saw my closest neighbor was gone! Poof! Sorry guy, but all that green glowy ugly stuff was an eyesore anyway.
I'm waiting for the housing upgrade coming soonish that will show you the border of your property so you can place and plan the space better. In the meantime...
And per my spouse's request, here's the view out across the bay from my plot.
I have never collected toys in World of Warcraft, but love them in the real world. Now that I can have them in my virtual house, gimme the toys! I enlarged the Plushie so it would show up better on my bed.
Welcome to the New Year! Thanks to World of Warcraft's Housing Early Access, my plans for sitting out the Midnight Expansion altogether, or only sending my main through have changed. Everything has changed. I completely see the game through the lens of my cozy house and what decor I can get for it.
My all new plan, my even better plan, is to send one crafter of each tradeskill through so I can get any recipes and decor available in any way. Except PvP and Raids, lol. Nope nope.
I have two Blacksmiths going, because one specializes in weapons and one in armor. I'm replacing my highest level Tailor who is a Mage with a Warlock, and my Priest Jeweler with my shiny new Druid from Legion Remix.
The Jeweler and Tailor have some catching up to do, but they'll be fine.
All the Midnight Runners are going through the Prologue. I read today you can complete it in 30 minutes to an hour. I'm still rolling on the floor laughing and it's so hard to type.
I've mentioned I struggle with Ka'resh. The Prologue softens you up by giving you a painting almost right away near Dornogol, then they send you to Ka'resh! Agghhh! Even worse, there's a second part of the prologue that sends you the (insert bad word) Maw to find Sylvanas.
I have to say, compared to Xal'atath, Sylvanas is a purring smoothie who doesn't seem so bad.
My third character is doing the Prologue. She's about to enter the Maw, which I can only take for small sessions. Smaller than half an hour!
Head down. We got this.
Welcome to another edition of Screenshot Saturday. I've been trying to get more screenies but, some of my play time is spent on a shiny...
