Guild Meeting Results

These are the resulting suggestions from a meeting held by Anivas on 6/30/11. During this meeting, which was an open forum of what you, the rank and file of the Shades, would like to see from the guild. The points were then conferred to me, and I'd like to address all of them with you now! As always, you are free to post further thoughts and questions as replies to this forum.

1. Recruiting 
• With Patch 4.1 came the new Guild Interface which includes Guild Recruitment tools. Since its implementation, our guild has grown from 20 accounts to over 80! On top of this, all ranks except Peon have the power to invite new members, and are encouraged to do so. But many perhaps don't know about their permission, or how to do it, or even how to promote us as a guild. The question came up, "What kind of guild are we? What to we tell prospective members about us?"  The linked post is from 2009, but it still rings true today. We are more of a social guild than anything, and I think it's important to maintain the fun, friendly environment of cool people hanging out. This is priority over gearscore, raid experience, and PvP 'leetness.' That being said, with our eye toward Raiding, it will be important to look for max level, geared members. But equally important are crafters and gatherers. Every item crafted, every flask created, every meal cooked, counts toward guild achievements and level, and cannot be forsaken. Where do you think flasks and feasts come from? More on this later, but for now, know that Champion Ehrik summed up the type of guild we are pretty accurately in a single sentence:
• "We are a social, Heroic guild with an eye toward Raiding."
• So if you would like to see more members, then do your part, comrades! Create a recruitment macro. Fire it off in the cities, in Trade and in General. Farming, doing some Archeology? Pop it in each new zone you get to. See low levels running around? Talk to them. Find out what they're up to, and see if they'd be a good fit here. Run a dungeon with a skilled, friendly, but guildless high level? Reach out. The power is yours!
2. Increase Repair Allowances
• As we take on tougher and tougher opponents, gear repairs are an important, yet expensive, part of the game. Blizzard recently took action to try to lessen the burden that plate wearers carry, while attempting to equalize gear repairs accross the classes. While warriors, paladins, and dk's may now be paying less, balance dictates that other classes are paying more.

The Truth about Nerfs in 4.2!

There has been a lot of chatter, both online and in the forums, about the upcoming Patch 4.2.  Most players are worried about the same thing: the dreaded Class Nerf!!


While it is true that, in the attempt to balance the game in all its aspects, ungainly decreases in power and abilities have been known to occur, and will continue to occur, I call upon you to use your Reason, comrades, and remember these key points:

1. The game is Always changing and Always evolving.  Changes that do not work out are very likely to be changed again.  It's part of the game, just as much as it is a part of Life.
2. Virtually all Nerfs to player classes are due to QQ'ing of the PvP community.  While class nerfs may affect all members of a class, the actual effect may be considerably less detrimental than one might think, especially if one spends more time questing and in dungeons rather than battlefields.  
3. Every Nerf, regardless of its origin, is almost always accompanied by at least one Buff.  

This last fact becomes glaringly apparent in the following list, which I've compiled from the 4.2 patch notes.  It is a fact of life that nothing is free.  Every benefit has a cost, comrades.  The trick is to lessen the cost while increasing the benefit.  

As you'll see from this list of class changes, any and all Nerfs of 4.2 are actually reasonable costs for the incredible benefits to be experienced by nearly every class!  The patch notes have been compiled and separated into 3 categories, followed by a summary:

1. Nerf:  A change that lessens the stats and/or abilities of a given class.
2. Buff:  A change that positively modifies the stats/abilities of a given class.
3. Superficial:  A change that, while it may be cool to look at or neat in some way, does not significantly alter the stats or abilities of a given class.  (They can still be awesome though.)  

Come, comrades, click "Read More" and see for yourselves.  It's not going to be what you think!  As always, the official, original patch notes can be found here.

Rule Revisions!

There is a new system for dealing with inactive characters.  It is detailed under the Rules and Regulation Post, under "AWOL."  Basically, Inactive Characters will lose rep at an increasing scale, thereby losing Rank and Privileges, the longer they are inactive.  When they have no Rep left, they will have another month to get back into the game before being let go.


Also, the Rules for Earning Rep in Dungeons have been modified.  It is now possible to earn Rep in a guild dungeon run regardless of how many Guild members are actually in the group.  There is also a new Bonus Rep system to encourage Tanking, Healing, and Full Clears.  Raid Rep rules have also been modified similarly.  


Go forth, and Glory to the Horde!


~High Chieftain Ogami

In This Corner; Corborus!!

This gargantuan Gyreworm makes short work of the devious Millhouse Manastorm before setting its sights on the other intruders of the Stonecore: YOU!

The Heroic fight is different for one main reason; the Crystal Shards he summons periodically throughout the fight.  Not only must targets of the Crystal Barrage move away from this damaging shower, but what emerges from them is even more deadly.  The shards will hatch from them in a few seconds, and then move toward a random player.  

They are floating Grenades!  They will kill anyone they touch, and explode if destroyed by anyone other than their target, killing them as well.

For this level of the game, AoE Ranged dps is of utmost importance.  The strategy is rather simple;

Notes on Inviting New Members.

Hail, comrades!

So now that Blizzard's new Looking For Guild interface is in full effect, our ranks of active warriors has grown considerably!  All ranks, from Scout up, will be continued to be empowered to actively recruit, and are encouraged to do so.  And while this has been quite successful, there have been a few questions, which I'll address with the following FAQ:

1. "Can I invite a friend/someone I just met/anyone?"  The answer to all these is; Yes.  As your High Chieftain, I alone retain the power to decide who can invite and who cannot.  As I've empowered the entire guild to recruit new active members, then the answer is splendidly clear.
2. "What class are we supposed to be looking for?" 

The Dragonmaw Clan: Returning Ally or Traitorous Menace?

The Twilight Highlands.  A Fabled peninsula beyond the haunted gates of Grim Batol.  Hidden for years, until the world shattering Cataclysm ripped a hole into its mountainous borders.  Now we find two races on the brink of extinction.  A lost clan of Wildhammer dwarves, furious and worthy adversaries of legend, and vile, ash-skinned orcs of the despicable Dragonmaw Clan.  


Many of you, comrades, may see right away the ire with which I regard these treasonous dogs.Indeed, many of you have noticed my marked refusal to serve them beyond what is required to battle the Twilight Hammer.  Their calls for aid against the Wildhammers, for example, go unheeded.  It is not that these untamed dwarves are not worth fighting, it's that battling against them while sitting in the shadow of Deathwing's forces simply does not serve the Horde.  It is for foolish pride and hatred that our wayward cousins, so recently invited back to the fold, call for Wildhammer blood.  It is stupidity, and cowardice, nothing more.  And as alarming as those traits are for supposed allies of the Horde, it is in fact rather typical for Dragonmaw orcs.  For those of you unaware of our history, or of theirs, allow me to explain.

In this Corner; Corla, Herald of Twilight!!

Corla, the Herald of Twilight is the 2nd boss of Blackrock Caverns, a crazed but powerful zealot of the Twilight Hammer Cult bent on imbuing her minions with the energies of captured dragons!  While she herself is not too complicated a target to kill, the fact is you will encounter her in the middle of her imbuing ritual, and the results are potentially Deadly!