After what felt like the upteenth time of running through Tirisfal to reach the Scarlet Monastery, Az stands at L39.
And nowhere near having enough money for a mount when she dings L40.
Still, I've decided to take a break from the Rogue Life and try something new, so that I can appreciate more of what Classic has to offer. And in honor of the lack of summons' for all of those SM runs, I created a Warlock.
I'd created a previous Warlock, a Worgen named Adelwulf, back on Ysera in Cataclysm and leveled him via Battlegrounds. To say that Cataclysm wasn't kind to Warlocks in BGs is a bit of an understatement. After being jealous of them in Wrath, I decided to create one just as they were nerfed heavily in Cata. Yes, that meant that the BG route was a real slog to get through, and when I reached somewhere around L82 or so I gave it up. I liked that ol' Wolfie, but constantly being targeted at the beginning of Warsong Gulch became a bit much.*
Since Adelwulf was born in a post-Cata world, I never got to see the original class quests, and being a Worgen meant I never got to hang in Northshire Abbey and work my way through the mostly Human oriented quests. Therefore, I decided I was not going the Gnome route that many of the Warlocks I've grouped with went, but instead decided to create a Human with a name in honor of the late MMO Wildstar, Dominius.**
Since the enormous wave at launch has long since passed, the crowd in Northshire and Elwynn Forest has diminished, but there was little trouble in grouping up when necessary, such as with those @#$&-ing Murlocs east of Crystal Lake's more tame version. I re-discovered that without a Voidwalker, I was a bit of a sitting duck if more than one Murloc decided to attack me, so grouping up became imperative if I didn't want an endless series of corpse runs.***
Still, for me the main attraction was to see the Warlock class quests, and they did not disappoint.
Yes, there are spoilers, even after all this time, because it's been since --2011, maybe?-- that we saw these class quests in all their glory?
***
After you ding a level (or two, I was out questing and went from L1 to L3 pretty fast), the initial quest giver hands you a letter and tells you to talk to Drusilla, one of the trainers, around the side of the Abbey. In the Graveyard (naturally).
The Tainted Letter checks the all of the Warlock boxes: True Power, Not All Entities, and The Good Guys Try to Scare Us But We Know Better.
Drusilla herself, while she seems to radiate that default Human cheery "Have a good one!" vocal, is more interested in having you do her dirty work in exchange for a little forbidden knowledge.
Turns out, a Defias recruit had stolen a book --written by Khadgar, no less-- that Drusilla wants. Oh, not to give back, but the Defias recuit spared her the need to actually steal it herself.
A simple fetch and carry, except that the book is surrounded by Defias, so that's a bit of a challenge. Still, I persevered, and gave Drusilla the book. In return, she let me learn how to summon an Imp.
***
The next set of Warlock trainers are hiding out in Goldshire. Unlike the Rogue trainer in Dolanaar, who happens to be hanging out right near the bar at the Inn, the Warlock trainers are a bit harder to find. I first thought "hey, another graveyard", but I guess that was too bourgeois, as I found them in the basement of the Lion's Pride Inn. Given the reputation that Moon Guard's version of the Inn had, I kind of expected them to be surrounded by toons into BDSM or something.
They were staying out of view of everybody else, who I presume would disapprove of their tinkering with "Creatures from Beyond" who make up a decent portion of the Burning Legion. And somebody had to guard those casks of ale, I guess.
Once I reached L10, one of them gives me the next class quest:
At least they gave me the name of the place in Stormwind where I'll find them, unlike the Night Elf Rogue quest which sent me all over Darnassus trying to find "where Rogues hang out". Warlocks need more hand holding, I suppose.
I made it to The Slaughtered Lamb**** and found my way down into the basement.
Compared to the basement of The Lion's Pride, this looks rather pleasant. Until you realize there are levels below this, and you're into the catacombs down there.*****
Apparently, the leader of this little group of Warlocks, Gakin the Darkbinder, had a certain affection for an apprentice named Surena Caledon. And to nobody's surprise, she ran off with the Defias. I guess the Defias have a certain allure, or Surena wasn't interested in bald guys, but Gakin had given her a choker to wear and he wanted it back.
A choker? My my my.
It was when I turned to leave that I realized that this is a pretty fashion forward bunch:
I guess The Slaughtered Lamb is some sort of hot secret club, like the sort that you'd hear Stefon talk about on Saturday Night Live.#
Surena is found at one of the farms in Elwynn, with her supposed new beau and another named Defias. Add two regular Defias operatives on either side of the house they're in, and you'll need assistance in taking her out. Luckily for me, another group had just cleared the area and Surena was the first to respawn. I quickly downed her and handled the others as they respawned one by one. Easily, this was my finest moment as a Lock so far, but I'm not gonna gloat.##
I booked it back to the basement of The Slaughtered Lamb, and my reward was to be told that they'll teach me how to summon a Voidwalker, but only if I could down one in battle first using the choker I just recovered.
So.... My reward is to fight another thing from the Nameless Beyond that can kill me? I got that choker back to you! Doesn't that count for something? What about a real reward? What about us? I guess you're going to throw it at whomever bats their eyes at you, aren't you? Well.....
(Sorry, got carried away there for a moment.)
I was to find the summoning circle in the catacombs of The Slaughtered Lamb, summon the Voidwalker, and defeat it. Then, Gakin would presumably let my training wheels off of my bike so I could summon a real tank companion.
Got it.
I descended into the bowels of the Lamb, made a wrong turn, and ended up nowhere. I backtracked, took another route, and found the summoning circle. And there, watching over the circle to presumably confirm that I did kill said Voidwalker, was Acolyte Porena.
One thing I've learned about Warlocks is that while they may have rules handed to them, they're allowed to manipulate the rules to their liking. While Gakin may have said I had to defeat the Voidwalker, he didn't say I had to face the Voidwalker alone.
So I summoned my Imp, and then proceeded to summon the Voidwalker.
Between my Imp and myself, the Voidwalker soon was returned to the Void, and I ran back upstairs to obtain my new ability to summon Voidwalkers.
Okay, the answer may be pretty self evident from the story above, but the question needs to be asked: am I enjoying life as a Warlock?
Yes. I don't like the squishy, because Rogues are less squishy than this, but I am enjoying this Classic edition of a Warlock.
After my experiences in Cata, I was ready to give that all up and simply focus solely on The Rogue Life. Now, I've got another toon competing for Az's time. A "mini-main", as it were.
Except Dominius is not a Gnome. He's much too respectable for that.
*Some people thrive on that sort of thing, but not me. Little surprise that I switched to a stealthie, the original Azshandra, after that experience.
**Named after the "bad guy" faction in Wildstar, the Dominion. Nothing says "I want to subjugate people and reach for forbidden power" quite like a name modeled after the word "dominate".
***It took a lot of corpse runs to figure this out. At times I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer.
****Sounds like a place for racks of lamb, but maybe I'm just hungry.
*****I'm pretty sure I don't want to know who the catacombs were for.
#Part of the reason why Bill Hader frequently breaks character and starts laughing is because he doesn't know what is written on the cue cards until he sees them right at that moment.
##Okay, maybe a little.
And nowhere near having enough money for a mount when she dings L40.
Still, I've decided to take a break from the Rogue Life and try something new, so that I can appreciate more of what Classic has to offer. And in honor of the lack of summons' for all of those SM runs, I created a Warlock.
 |
| Compared to Launch Day, Northshire Abbey was really quiet. Well, except for all these Kobolds. And yes, I got that cloak as my very first drop. |
Since Adelwulf was born in a post-Cata world, I never got to see the original class quests, and being a Worgen meant I never got to hang in Northshire Abbey and work my way through the mostly Human oriented quests. Therefore, I decided I was not going the Gnome route that many of the Warlocks I've grouped with went, but instead decided to create a Human with a name in honor of the late MMO Wildstar, Dominius.**
Since the enormous wave at launch has long since passed, the crowd in Northshire and Elwynn Forest has diminished, but there was little trouble in grouping up when necessary, such as with those @#$&-ing Murlocs east of Crystal Lake's more tame version. I re-discovered that without a Voidwalker, I was a bit of a sitting duck if more than one Murloc decided to attack me, so grouping up became imperative if I didn't want an endless series of corpse runs.***
Still, for me the main attraction was to see the Warlock class quests, and they did not disappoint.
Yes, there are spoilers, even after all this time, because it's been since --2011, maybe?-- that we saw these class quests in all their glory?
***
After you ding a level (or two, I was out questing and went from L1 to L3 pretty fast), the initial quest giver hands you a letter and tells you to talk to Drusilla, one of the trainers, around the side of the Abbey. In the Graveyard (naturally).
 |
| Ah yes, the dreaded Tainted Letter. |
Drusilla herself, while she seems to radiate that default Human cheery "Have a good one!" vocal, is more interested in having you do her dirty work in exchange for a little forbidden knowledge.
 | ||
| Oh, hey, I didn't know Red was in. And, as I was to discover, sexy outfits (in this case, a low cut dress) are a thing with Warlocks. |
Turns out, a Defias recruit had stolen a book --written by Khadgar, no less-- that Drusilla wants. Oh, not to give back, but the Defias recuit spared her the need to actually steal it herself.
A simple fetch and carry, except that the book is surrounded by Defias, so that's a bit of a challenge. Still, I persevered, and gave Drusilla the book. In return, she let me learn how to summon an Imp.
***
The next set of Warlock trainers are hiding out in Goldshire. Unlike the Rogue trainer in Dolanaar, who happens to be hanging out right near the bar at the Inn, the Warlock trainers are a bit harder to find. I first thought "hey, another graveyard", but I guess that was too bourgeois, as I found them in the basement of the Lion's Pride Inn. Given the reputation that Moon Guard's version of the Inn had, I kind of expected them to be surrounded by toons into BDSM or something.
 |
| Nobody told me that red was no longer a thing. I guess this group is into the Goth look. |
They were staying out of view of everybody else, who I presume would disapprove of their tinkering with "Creatures from Beyond" who make up a decent portion of the Burning Legion. And somebody had to guard those casks of ale, I guess.
Once I reached L10, one of them gives me the next class quest:
 |
| I'm trying to decide whether it's a good or a bad thing to be noticed by this bunch. |
I made it to The Slaughtered Lamb**** and found my way down into the basement.
 | |
| Now both Red and Black? Come on, just pick a color scheme. |
Compared to the basement of The Lion's Pride, this looks rather pleasant. Until you realize there are levels below this, and you're into the catacombs down there.*****
Apparently, the leader of this little group of Warlocks, Gakin the Darkbinder, had a certain affection for an apprentice named Surena Caledon. And to nobody's surprise, she ran off with the Defias. I guess the Defias have a certain allure, or Surena wasn't interested in bald guys, but Gakin had given her a choker to wear and he wanted it back.
A choker? My my my.
It was when I turned to leave that I realized that this is a pretty fashion forward bunch:
 |
| "Warlocks are into Sexy Fashion", Exhibit B. |
I guess The Slaughtered Lamb is some sort of hot secret club, like the sort that you'd hear Stefon talk about on Saturday Night Live.#
Surena is found at one of the farms in Elwynn, with her supposed new beau and another named Defias. Add two regular Defias operatives on either side of the house they're in, and you'll need assistance in taking her out. Luckily for me, another group had just cleared the area and Surena was the first to respawn. I quickly downed her and handled the others as they respawned one by one. Easily, this was my finest moment as a Lock so far, but I'm not gonna gloat.##
I booked it back to the basement of The Slaughtered Lamb, and my reward was to be told that they'll teach me how to summon a Voidwalker, but only if I could down one in battle first using the choker I just recovered.
So.... My reward is to fight another thing from the Nameless Beyond that can kill me? I got that choker back to you! Doesn't that count for something? What about a real reward? What about us? I guess you're going to throw it at whomever bats their eyes at you, aren't you? Well.....
(Sorry, got carried away there for a moment.)
I was to find the summoning circle in the catacombs of The Slaughtered Lamb, summon the Voidwalker, and defeat it. Then, Gakin would presumably let my training wheels off of my bike so I could summon a real tank companion.
Got it.
I descended into the bowels of the Lamb, made a wrong turn, and ended up nowhere. I backtracked, took another route, and found the summoning circle. And there, watching over the circle to presumably confirm that I did kill said Voidwalker, was Acolyte Porena.
 |
| Also known as "Warlocks are into Sexy Fashion", Exhibit C. |
One thing I've learned about Warlocks is that while they may have rules handed to them, they're allowed to manipulate the rules to their liking. While Gakin may have said I had to defeat the Voidwalker, he didn't say I had to face the Voidwalker alone.
So I summoned my Imp, and then proceeded to summon the Voidwalker.
Between my Imp and myself, the Voidwalker soon was returned to the Void, and I ran back upstairs to obtain my new ability to summon Voidwalkers.
***
Okay, the answer may be pretty self evident from the story above, but the question needs to be asked: am I enjoying life as a Warlock?
Yes. I don't like the squishy, because Rogues are less squishy than this, but I am enjoying this Classic edition of a Warlock.
After my experiences in Cata, I was ready to give that all up and simply focus solely on The Rogue Life. Now, I've got another toon competing for Az's time. A "mini-main", as it were.
Except Dominius is not a Gnome. He's much too respectable for that.
*Some people thrive on that sort of thing, but not me. Little surprise that I switched to a stealthie, the original Azshandra, after that experience.
**Named after the "bad guy" faction in Wildstar, the Dominion. Nothing says "I want to subjugate people and reach for forbidden power" quite like a name modeled after the word "dominate".
***It took a lot of corpse runs to figure this out. At times I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer.
****Sounds like a place for racks of lamb, but maybe I'm just hungry.
*****I'm pretty sure I don't want to know who the catacombs were for.
#Part of the reason why Bill Hader frequently breaks character and starts laughing is because he doesn't know what is written on the cue cards until he sees them right at that moment.
##Okay, maybe a little.
You forgot to mention the most important thing: what are the names of your imp and voidwalker? After all, these guys will be your companions for the rest of your virtual life... I've known of people who rerolled the entire character if they didn't like their starter demons' names.
ReplyDeleteThe Slaughtered Lamb is a pop culture reference as far as I'm aware...
I wondered about whether you could rename them, but Lazyap and whatever the Voidwalker's name is aren't that bad. I think it kind of funny that despite all of the "True Power" and "Domination" speak that Warlock trainers have, they still let the Demons keep their own names.
DeleteYes, I discovered that, but I decided to simply roll with it from the perspective of a baby Warlock. Still, I was amused that the Pop Culture references for which WoW became known for in later expacs were still there at the beginning. I've found more SF&F references than normal Pop Culture ones so far, but they all count.
The difference between pop culture references in Vanilla/Classic vs. the modern game is - IMO that is - that in the former they are mostly limited to things like NPC or place names that still fit the setting even if you don't recognise the reference. In the modern game you get things like the Redridge story, which is nothing but one Rambo joke after another and just seems odd in the context of Azeroth.
DeleteTHANK YOU! You articulated exactly what I've been considering is wrong with the Expacs vs. Vanilla/Classic.
DeleteThe Rambo/Redridge story is one of the best examples of the expac variety, and the town of Brill in Tirisfal Glades is an example of the Vanilla/Classic variety (Brill is the name of a character in David Eddings' Belgariad series). If you haven't read The Belgariad, you'd never notice because it sounds fine. But the Rambo story in Redridge is complete with the guy with the hair tied back like Rambo himself; you can't miss it.
Or Toshley's Station in Blade's Edge Mountains in BC; an obvious reference to Star Wars when Luke says "But I was going to go to Toshi's Station to pick up some power converters!" There's even a quest entitled "Picking Up Some Power Converters", if people didn't catch the drift.
Yeah, I'm thinking I was looking back through rose colored glasses when I remembered getting a mount at around 48. That would have been impossible as I was way more clueless then. I'll be lucky to be half way there by forty.
ReplyDeleteI've been hoping to sell fish but the fish I think will be valuable aren't and the ones that sell are always a surprise.
I can tell you that Firefin Snapper, Oily Blackmouth, and Stonescale Eel are valuable to Alchemists because they convert them to oils used in Alchemy recipes, but beyond that I'm not sure.
DeleteI think that you can sell leather armor that usable in the L20s and L30s, because once you get beyond Deadmines most of the 5-mans I've run don't give you much of anything, leather-wise. At least through Scarlet Monastery, anyway.
The point of fishing is really the Mithril Crates. While firefin and oily is all well and good -- bolts of runecloth and mageweave are the sellers.
ReplyDeleteI speak with the sole authority of being level 42 with a mount and 125g still in my pocket.