General musings from the weekend

How raw of a deal is it to be a Draenei in WoW? Think about it.

You start off at level 1 right after the ship you were on, The Exodar, crash landed on Azeroth. Being that the 3 other satellites of Tempest Keep (Botanica, Mechanar, and Arcatraz) required that you be level 70 and in halfway decent gear to get through, it's reasonable to assume that the orders you were getting from your superiors right before reaching the Exodar to steal it and fly it away consisted of "stay behind me, shut your mouth, and don't do anything stupid, or--so help me A'dal--I promise every moment of your soul's existence in the Twisting Nether will make a day with Kil'Jaeden look like a beach vacation."

Some how, you succeed. And you crash on this strange planet. Most of those who came with you didn't survive the crash. So you set out on a grand adventure and eventually...you end up right back where you started. You go through the Dark Portal, step out into Hellfire Peninsula and think, "you have got to be effin' kidding me."

I can only imagine how that feeling multiplies on top of itself as you start clearing through the various wings of TK.

Incidentally, if we ever have to evacuate Azeroth, I'll be suggesting that we round up all the Draenei and shove them in the cargo hold with strict orders not to touch anything. I mean, seriously. They flee Argus and end up crashing their ship into what's now Nagrand. Then they flee Outland and crash their ship into Azeroth. Frankly I'm surprised we even trust them enough to fly a gryphon at this point. The hell they're ever getting anywhere near the controls of another space ship.

Moving onto a slightly different topic, my mind wandered off at one point and starting thinking about the lore-centric implications of trade skills. From a gameplay mechanic, they make perfect sense and I don't really question them. But think about it from the view of the lore. What does it mean that so many people running around are Alchemists or Blacksmiths or Jewelcrafters?

All of these people (and I use that word in the broadest sense possible) aren't the trained defenders of their realms. They're not the brave military commanders or genius strategists. They're the craftsmen of Azeroth. The simple peasants armed with little more than a crude weapon and the clothes on their back, and with a small inkling of talent (magical or otherwise) that maybe their peers don't have. And they're called to do their part because just about everyone before them has already died trying.

They're the ones who stopped Ragnaros from re-entering our plane. Who curb-stomped not one, but two old-gods. Who told the head of the Buring Legion to gtfo. Who saved Azeroth from being rebooted by the Titans. Who put an end to one of the Dragon aspects. Who felled the greatest generals of the Lich King and, ultimately, the Lich King, himself.

I'd say that's pretty impressive considering the humble beginnings.

On to my third and final topic of general musings from the weekend: my hunter. (He's a dwarf.) I spent some time leveling him last night and had a lot of time during cross-continental flights to ponder random nothings.

First, his pet--a white gorilla named Loki--is about twice his size. (He's a dwarf.) This greatly amuses me, though I'm not sure why.

Also, in regards to the upcoming Hunter Camouflage ability in Cata...I don't look at my hunter and associate this skill with his character. (He's a dwarf.) I think the only way he'd ever camouflage himself is to pass out drunk in the forest long enough for the area flora to grow over him. This would be very effective camouflage, granted...but it wouldn't get a lot of hunting done.

This has been a brief glimpse into the things my mind occupies itself with. Congratulations if you made it this far.

I like π!