The Queue: OMG BlizzCon edition

After the gotta write fast adrenaline wore off, the reality started to sink in. We have a mere six months to prepare for BlizzCon coverage! I’m honestly not sure that’s enough time — ready or not, here it comes. Get those F5 fingers ready for May 4th.

You don’t need F5 skills to read the Queue though. Let’s get to it!

The Auction House. Time is money, friend. While I’m not an AH baron by any means I can roll over a stack of ore or thirty in far less time than it takes to schlep over to Hillsbrad and farm mobs, much less the several thousand mobs indicated in the Wowhead comments sections.

If you’re in the area to nab a Lofty Libram or something you may as well go on a quick murder spree to get the Cat while you’re there. Even with scaling wiping out a few dozen Stormpikes won’t take you very long — even though I assume you’re trying to press hotkeys with all your fingers crossed — as long as you’re not trying to camp and wait on the respawns. I’m also totally down with the idea that what may be fun for one person may be less fun for another, and the concept of “earning” your new pet by farming for it the old-fashioned way may feel more fulfilling to you than spending that time talking to Auctioneer Drezmit. Dude has some stories though.

Gold is fungible so if you get in the habit, you can also purchase other things — like more pets!

To some extent, any time you have a thing and that thing is taken away, you’ll feel that loss. It doesn’t matter if it’s an ability in a game or a cookie IRL, it sucks when something is taken away.

I feel like part of the reason the Artifact loss felt so bad was a combination of just how key they were to your rotations, but also how visually noticeable they were. For my Monk, Strike of the Windlord’s 40 second cooldown and high damage made it a fairly vital button press that messed up the flow of my muscle memory. Even though the Mists of Sheilun wasn’t an active ability, there was constantly green nonsense everywhere while I was healing. Losing either aspect makes it very missed. Also, despite maintaining a Hunter heavily since Vanilla I haven’t touched mine since the best boy ever Hati died. I’m aware they added a way to bring him back with a schmancy hat, but I still have to go through those five lonely levels without him — I have not touched that character.

I do feel like the Heart of Azeroth system and naturally losing it as Magni gets carted off by Old Gods or marauding Dryads or Protoss or whatever will feel bad. But I feel like having those perks being a relatively long cooldown, and on an essentially invisible stat stick, will make losing it feel less bad than losing Artifacts did.

I hope.

Aw frick.

There’s something to be said for the bunnies and stuff from the Noblegarden one, but I’m reserving judgement until we see the Brewfest one in action. I’m not sure whether it matters if it makes you chug a beer or if they’re letting everyone do the polka but either way I’m pretty sure that’s going to be my favorite.

Liz is a benevolent queen, unless you forget a serial comma or make a case error. Then sHe WiLl eNd YoU.