The Burnt Earth

Updates & Thoughts

James — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 17:56:42 +0000

I’ve got 3 different blogs going, each one I contribute to on a fairly regular basis. However, over the past 5 days off for the holiday, I’ve began to think of consolidating them into one larger blog. Right now I operate Through A Mirror Darkly, my personal blog. The Burnt Earth, my adventures in Azeroth. And a friend and I are working on Casual Pursuits, a blog hosting our soon-to-be podcast.

The integration isn’t an issue, but where I want to host the main pages is. I enjoy the layout options of MSN Spaces, but the flexability to have different “pages” on WordPress I like even more.

I’ll take the next week to think about how I want things presented and hopefully have a decision and a working plan come next weekend. Until then, thank you to my small viewing audience!

WWI ’08 Roundup, Day One

James — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 15:04:44 +0000

WoW Insider has posted a nice catagory concerning all the news and events covered on Day 1 of the Worldwide Invitational in Paris, France. They cover various Liveblogging events, discuss the breakdowns of each class, including alot of information on Death Knights and in-depth analysis by topic covered at the event (Diablo 3, Gear, Expectations, etc.)

As usual, WoW Insider has done an excellent job, in my humble opinion, and is a good source for you to check out.

Blizzard’s WoW Authenticator

James — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 06:58:10 +0000

To help in the fight against keylogging, Blizzard is set to announce their solution. It seems to be a device that requires the user to push a button when you begin a log in. The device then generates a 6-digit code that you must input each time. Starting price is guesstimated around $6.50.

Linkage:

WowInsider

Blizzard Faq

Dailies Are My Friend!

James — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 18:00:28 +0000

That’s right, perhaps the best thing since hitting 70 has been the gold that is now coming in. So far this week I’ve been doing the same dailies over and over and, along with the loot dropping, I’m raking in about 200+ gold a day. If I can keep myself from buying junk and keep the armor repair rate down, I should be on a flying mount by Thursday at the latest.

My friend Bryan, a.k.a Kalihn, and I signed up for a 2v2 team called Gross Negligence. We suck, him being a pally trying to heal and me an un-geared hunter who has no idea what’s going on. Our first 10 matches we’ve lossed, but luckily we only need 10 a week, according to him.

Guild-wise, I’m still homeless. If I had the time, I’d start my own … again …

Guild Recruitment

James — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 15:30:35 +0000

A new website offering Guild Recruitment ads can be found at http://www.guildbuzz.com/. Nice tool, check it out!

Visual Guide to Patch 2.4.3

James — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 06:32:16 +0000

Wow Insider has posted a visual tour of some new features in the latest Test Realm patch. Enjoy the show and send a postcard!

http://www.wowinsider.com/photos/patch-2-4-3/873894/

Patch Notes 2.4.3

James — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 15:52:11 +0000

Blizzard has released notes for the PTR concerning the next little patch, 2.4.3. In said patches, there is an item or two of extreme interest, and that is stirring a bit of controversy.

Highlights of note include:

Mounts at level 30
Changes to non-combat pets
Curse of Shadow and Curse of Elements have been combined
Hunter pet changes
Magisters’ Terrace nerf
Changes to Rogue’s Cheat Death ability.

Full PTR patch notes can be found at:

http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/patchnotes/test-realm-patchnotes.html

It Is Done …

James — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 19:51:38 +0000

As of 2:00 PM today, June 18, 2008, I have finally reached Level 70 on my first toon! Shavelle, the female Draeni Hunter, is officially topped and already doing dailies.

It took a total /play time of 12 days 16 hours and 46 minutes.

Over all, it took 2 1/2 years for me to find a good toon I liked to level to 70 nonstop.

Now … let the updates continue.

No Updates This Week

James — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 19:52:31 +0000

15 Bubbles away from 70 on Shavelle … must … push … on …!!

Account Action Notification!

James — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 16:06:39 +0000

It finally happened. While in Shattrath yesterday I joined the conversation with a raunchy comment about the subject being picked on. About 15 minutes later, running through Blades Edge, a friendly GM whispers me to say I’ll be receiving an email due to a complaint.

Here is the nice email directed my way …

Greetings James,
Account Name: XXXXXXXX
Realm: Stormrage
Character Name: Shavelle
A user of the above account has recently been involved in actions deemed inappropriate for the World of Warcraft by the In-Game Support staff of Blizzard Entertainment. This decision was made after a thorough investigation of the situation as a whole.
When a harassment report is made, all players involved in the incident are subject to review, which may result in account penalties. Though we are unable to discuss the outcomes of our investigations due to privacy concerns, rest assured that this incident has been looked into very thoroughly, and the appropriate actions have been taken on all involved accounts.
Any disputes or questions concerning the following account action can only be addressed by Account Administration. To learn more about how Account Administration is able to assist you, please visit us at http://www.blizzard.com/support/wowaa/.
Account Action: Warning
Offenses: Harassment Policy Violation – Sexual Orientation
This category includes both clear and masked language which:
    * Insultingly refers to any aspect of sexual orientation pertaining to themselves or other players
Harassment Policy Violation – Inappropriate
This category includes both clear and masked language which:
    * Is a mildly inappropriate reference to human anatomy or bodily functions
    * Is otherwise considered objectionable
Details (Note – Times are listed in Greenwich Mean Time, GMT):
Line Chat Type Channel Player Time Stamp Chat Text
2008/06/09 19:21:52 (GMT) – Shavelle says in Trade – City “pickle puffers united .. join today and receive a free vat of crisco”
For further information, please view the World of Warcraft Policies and Terms of Use Agreement: (http://www.blizzard.com/support/wowgm/?id=agm01712p) and (http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/termsofuse.shtml). Please be aware that additional inappropriate actions may result in further disciplinary action, up to or including account closure.
We understand that these policies may seem harsh, but they are in place to ensure that every player is able to fully enjoy their travels in the World of Warcraft. Thank you in advance for respecting our position.
Regards,
Ashenfortin
Game Master
Blizzard Entertainment
www.worldofwarcraft.com

For those that have never seen it, Blizzard has a “pyramid” of discipline it enforces. A diagram is included below. I guess I was more surprised than anything because of all the conversation that goes by in regular everyday chat that never gets reported. It’s kind of like real life … you’re gonna hear conversations you don’t like, but you don’t run up to a police officer and demand they write someone a ticket.