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When Blizzard announced that the new Tier 9 sets with Patch 3.2 would be faction-specific, I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who thought how awesome that would be. It would mark the first time tier sets would be themed to a faction. It was something many players had been asking for. But as the saying goes, “be careful what you wish for…” In this case, players such as myself are actually going to see the return of faction-specific armor except that there’s one niggling detail we’d forgotten about the first faction-specific gear sets (Level 60 PvP) — they were armor class-based.

That’s right. As wonderful as many players thought those faction-specific armor sets were, they were actually somewhat homogenous in that classes that shared the same armor type (i.e., cloth, leather, plate) had the same models. Apparently this is Blizzard’s philosophy with armor set design: either the class sets are faction-neutral but look distinct from each other or they are faction-specific but look the same across armor class. The only time Blizzard broke from tradition was with the much-maligned Sunwell Plateau gear which was both faction-neutral and shared a look across armor class. It felt lazy.

While it’s currently unconfirmed, MMO Champion has uncovered what just might be the new Tier 9 sets. The bad news is that it looks like Blizzard is sticking with their by-armor-class design philosophy and making all plate sets (what MMO Champion has discovered so far) similar to one another. The only difference is in the subtle coloration and the design on the center of the chest which, unfortunately, can be easily covered by a tabard. You do wear a tabard, right? Yeah, that’s what I thought. The uncovered sets are mostly colored blue, which could indicate that these are the Alliance versions.

So if what MMO Champion has uncovered turns out to be the new Tier 9 gear, expect Priests, Warlocks, and Mages to have the same armor in different colors, just as Shamans and Hunters, Druids and Rogues, and Death Knights, Paladins, and Warriors will all be walking around looking oddly similar to each other. This isn’t really a huge change from the status quo considering many non-set items from Naxxramas and Ulduar have the same models across armor class.

The good news is that non-tier drops from the new Crusader’s Coliseum will fit rather nicely with any plate class, effectively avoiding the clown effect. The current problem with non-set items in Ulduar, for example, is that it’s easy enough to pick up pieces that don’t match the tier set. Enhancement Shamans could possibly get shoulders that resemble Hunter shoulders, for example. While Blizzard inserted non-tier gear that shared the same models as Tier 8 items in an effort to make mixing and matching gear easier, visual clashes would still happen when certain classes would pick up non-tier pieces that were modeled after another class’ tier gear.

In theory, this should no longer be a problem if bosses drop different items for Horde and the Alliance. Otherwise, we might see Horde players sporting non-tier pieces intended to match Alliance sets and vice versa. That would be a disaster that undermines the whole faction-specific theme. It’s still a mystery how Blizzard intends to implement faction-specific gear or non-tier items considering this just might be their most complicated itemization scheme yet. Considering it will be now be much easier to maintain a cohesive look, the shared models across armor types might not be such a bad thing, after all. Looking forward to seeing the rest of the sets, particularly the Horde versions…

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This is a fun thread over on the forums, and though we’ve talked about favorite cities a few times before, I like the use of the word “settlement” — it seems different enough from “city” to consider separately. Your favorite city brings to mind images of metropolises like Stormwind or Orgrimmar, but “settlement” could mean anything — the Mirage Raceway, way out in the middle of Shimmering Flats (those Goblins probably live there, right?), or the Arrakoa camps around Terrokar Forest. “Settlement” opens up the question a lot, from the biggest cities to the smallest huts on the outsets of Azeroth.

So what’s your favorite in-game settlement? Booty Bay and Loch Modan get a lot of votes in the thread. Personally, I kind of like the Westfall Brigade Encampment up in Grizzly Hills — it was fun wandering around there and seeing the old faces from Westfall. Back in the old world, Lakeshire holds a little fascination for me — it was the first time in the game that I was out of Elwynn and starting to realize just how big the world really was.

What about you?

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Burnout is a natural part of doing anything for a long period of time whether it’s a game or your job. Right now I’ve got WoW burnout, I can’t be bothered to log on and the thought of raiding Ulduar (Ignis specifically) just makes my eyes and head hurt. It’s not too bad and I’ve certainly had worse pre-Wrath but it’s exacerbated in part I think by the lull. Patch 3.1 is out, Patch 3.2 is coming and the next unannounced expansion is a long time off yet. On top of that there aren’t enough hours in the day to work, sleep, raid and play with my cats.

It makes me wonder what’s the best way to get out of this phase? Do I go cold turkey for a week? Do I reroll or do I just try a new instance? Tell me your suggestions, please, how do you cope with burnout?

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Our podcast was live on the virtual airwaves last Saturday as usual, and it was a pretty wacky affair — Turpster, our newest blogger Eddie “Brigwyn” Carrington, and I dissected those mount changes that dropped last week, the Mountain Dew Battle-bots and how you can get your hands on one, and how scammers can get past your Authenticator (and how to stop them from doing so). We answered your emails as well, including tips about how to make sure one of your characters finally gets to 80 and all kinds of movie posters from Turpster’s little “Ocean’s 87″ script idea a little while ago. You can check out all of the fan-submitted posters in the gallery below.

Download the show via any of the links below, and do make sure, if you haven’t yet, to stop over in iTunes and give us a nice review telling us what you think of the show. It’s been a while since we had any reviews go up over there, so mixing in some new voices will probably do us some good. Thanks for listening as always — we’ll see you next week!

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The Spreading Taint, a GLBT guild that we’ve featured here on the site before, is hosting an in-game event next Saturday, their fifth annual Pride Celebration. Just like real-life Pride events, they’re planning quite the spectacle, from floats of all kinds (I’m curious to see the “>8< Spider Pride” float, featuring spider pets aplenty, both Hunter and vanity), a crafting fair in Booty Bay, and contests like a Naked Dueling event and a modeling competition. They’ve even got “a professional” shooting footage of everything, so you might be able to see yourself in the official video as well.

As we talked about in our 15 Minutes interview with them, these folks are very social and a lot of fun — while their roots are in the GLBT community, they’re interested in including people from all backgrounds, and obviously this event is open to everyone who wants to have a good time in-game (though they are strictly disallowing PvP — if you want to fight, go elsewhere). The event kicks off next Saturday, June 20th, at noon server time over on Proudmoore. The parade itself starts at Camp Taurajo in the Barrens, but we’re sure no matter where you are on the server, you’ll probably hear about them — just follow the wackiness.

NOTE: All hateful comments will get deleted and repeat offenders will be banned. You don’t have to agree, but you can disagree respectfully without personal attacks or insults.

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We’ve already seen the graphics for three out of the four new feral forms we know are coming for druids in patch 3.2: Tauren bear and cat forms, and Night Elf bear forms. This only leaves Night Elf cat forms left to be seen. (They might be redesigning moonkin and tree forms too; they’re being cagey about that when people ask. My guess would be no.)
I’ve been anxiously refreshing pages all day to see if the Night Elf cat forms would come. In vain, apparently, as Zarhym has just posted to let us know that the forms in question will be unveiled tomorrow “later in the day,” which probably means mid-afternoon (PST) sometime. In the mean time, we’ve got the other three sets of forms in the gallery below. What would your ideal Night Elf cat look like?

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World of WarCrafts spotlights art and creativity by WoW players and fans, including fan art, cooking, comics, cosplay, music, fan fiction – and yes, (War)crafts. Share your stuff by tipping us off via our tips line (attention: World of WarCrafts).

You’re not alone: Black Jelly made from Borean Man o’ War does sound disgusting. We wouldn’t make you eat that goop. Unless of course, you want a lot of mana and health back, and there’s no Mage around; then, we think you should probably give it a shot. Go on, open up. Inky … Jiggling … See that little shimmy? It’s really not that bad – rather as if it had been freshly milked from a Disgusting Oozeling. Gulp.

We hope you didn’t really fall for that, because while it’s true that we’re committed to bringing you real versions of the freshest game food, we’ve chosen the Black(berry) version instead. (We’re just sweet like that.) Read on for the world’s simplest Black(berry) Jelly recipe (no fruit pectin, no cheesecloth straining, no sterilizing little canning glass jars with screw-on lids), plus our own Top 5 Ways to Enjoy Black(berry) Jelly.

You want mana and health back? Black Jelly’s what you want to spread on that Fresh Dalaran Bread. You’ll need Cooking 400 to whip up this little delight, but it’s all for a good cause. Black Jelly will get you to 425 without having to scrounge up those ubiquitous Northern Spices. That’s something we can all get wiggly and jiggly about.

Sweeten up your Borean Man o’ War farming with some Black(berry) Jelly of your own. We’ve kept the ingredients to the bare essentials, so a single trip to the grocery store will have you licking your fingers (”Not on the mouse! Not on the mouse!”) in no time at all.

Black(berry) jelly
First, some observations on the quick-and-easy aspects of this recipe. You don’t need fruit pectin, as long as about one-quarter of your berries are under-ripe. Cheesecloth and straining isn’t necessary, either. Your jelly will be cloudy (oh, the horror!), but it will taste full-bodied and luscious. And there’s no need to sterilize all those little glass canning jars, either, because this batch is sized to be gobbled up the same day as you make it. (Don’t try to save it past its time; mold and bacteria are no fun. For more information on preserving jelly, we suggest the National Center for Home Food Preservation.)

The mats
2 cups of blackberries, about one-quarter of them not fully ripe
2 cups sugar

Form up and buff

• Form the raid group. Inspect and prep raid members/berries. Wash the raid members. Ask them to remove their stems and caps. (You’ll undoubtedly need to click on each berry by hand; it’s so hard to find experienced berries these days.) Remove bruised raid members from the raid.
• Make sure that about one-quarter of your raid members are newbies (under-ripe); otherwise, you’ll need to do additional questing and add fruit pectin in order to earn the It Jiggles! achievement.
• Buff raid members by crushing gently with a fork (just enough to get their juices flowing; don’t mash out their entire health bars).

The encounter

• Zone in. Add the raid members to a saucepan, plus just enough water (about a half a cup) to prevent Scorch.
• Unleash the Mages (but don’t let them get away with casting Scorch; watch carefully) and boil at high heat until the players are soft, about 5-10 minutes, until your juice is complete. Since we’re not going to strain the juice in this particular raid group, you can proceed directly to the next phase of this encounter.
• The Short-Sheet Me! achievement Now it’s time to jellify this raid. Add the sugar all at once, then get your tanks stirring while the Mages are still making things boil like mad. It won’t take but a minute or two; properly cooked jelly “sheets from a spoon.” Don’t worry if the raid group still looks runny; remember, it will firm up as it cools.
• Loot/skim off any foam from the raid group immediately, and pour the cooked jelly into your desired container to cool. (Remember, if you want to store this long-term, you need to investigate proper canning procedures. Our version here is designed for hungry gamers who are planning to equip their loot promptly.)

And finally, our Top 5 Ways to Enjoy Black(berry) Jelly

1. Make your own fruit yogurt; just stir in big, jiggly globs of fresh jelly to plain yogurt.
2. Toast or bagels – come on, there’s a reason everyone runs this instance.
3. “Frost” a dozen cupcakes or muffins.
4. Spread or dip with fresh fruit (especially tasty with apples or fruit that might otherwise be a little tart for your taste).
5. Spread a little on some angel food cake or pound cake, sprinkle on some leftover berries … Mmmm …

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This forum thread is full of great advice and tips for the Wrecking Ball achievement, in which you’ve got to get 20 killing blows without dying in a battleground. The key here seems to be to find a place with lots and lots of folks to kill (a spawn point, like the graveyard in WSG, works great, or you can hide behind the big groups in AV), and then just hanging out there as far out of the way as you can get. Having a pocket healer won’t hurt either, and playing fair isn’t really part of this one — you want to duck in when you’re sure to win the fight, and run like crazy when things even threaten to go against you.

Some people say that doing it at a lower bracket can help, too, because unless you’re uber geared, it’ll be better to go after lower levels than have everybody in the BG be 80. It actually sounds like it’s easier than it seems — as long as you set yourself up in the right place and be really careful about getting stuck in a fight you can’t win, you should be able to walk away with the points. Good luck!

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You may remember Taintedlore from her remake of The Womanizer Song. She’s hooked up with movie maker Leonnardum to create a new parody video, called Why can’t I raid? If you don’t recognize the music, it’s based of Rihanna’s song, Unfaithful.

The video’s pretty solid, and does a nice job of complimenting the lyrics. I like how Leonnardum has found little visual queues to match Taintedlore’s singing, without overwhelming the music with complex visuals. What really struck me about the final piece, however, was the use of modulation with Taintedlore’s singing. She seems to have a great voice, and I like hearing her sing. I don’t understand is why her voice is going through the electronic modulation, since it didn’t appear in the original song. I’d like to hear her real voice. Though, as always, it’s possible some artistic technique flew over my head, and I should get why it’s in the synthetic style.

Overall, I continue to be interested in Taintedlore’s work, and I would definitely like to see more from Leonnardum going forward.

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World of Warcraft has inspired artists to satirize and/or acknowledge its mark in popular culture. One example is the Emmy Award winning South Park episode “Make Love, Not Warcraft”.^[100][101]

The game has also been used to advertise unrelated products, such as Toyota trucks.^[102]

In late 2007, a series of television commercials for the game began airing featuring pop culture celebrities such as Mr. T, William Shatner, and Verne Troyer discussing the virtues of the character classes they play in the game.^[103] A Spanish commercial featuring Guillermo Toledo, and a French commercial featuring Jean-Claude Van Damme, were also televised.^[104] Two more were shown in November 2008, featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Steve Van Zandt.^[105]

World of Warcraft has inspired two board games, World of Warcraft: The Board Game (including Shadow of War and The Burning Crusade expansions)^[106] and World of Warcraft: The Adventure Game,^[107][108] produced by Fantasy Flight Games. There is also a trading card game^[109] and a collectible miniatures game^[110] on the market, both produced by Upper Deck Entertainment.

In November 2007, DC Comics published the first issue of the ongoing World of Warcraft comic under their Wildstorm imprint.^[111]

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