Friday, May 29, 2009

Question for the Death Knights

We all know about the Death Knights, and we recognize what their defection from the Lich King's control might mean for all of Azeroth as we march toward Icecrown.

While trying to gather information on the Netherweb, I came across a little ditty by Nine Inch Nails. While they are not the Elite Tauren Chieftains, I can't stop listening to this song.

The Hand that Feeds brings up a valid question for those Death Knights who have not yet turned. I wonder if they think about these questions during that moment when they are on the cusp? I may have to track down Koltira Deathweaver and ask him.

The lyrics:

You're keeping in step
In the line
Got your chin held high and you feel just fine
Because you do
What you're told
But inside your heart it is black and it's hollow and it's cold

Just how deep do you believe?
Will you bite the hand that feeds?
Will you chew until it bleeds?
Can you get up off your knees?
Are you brave enough to see?
Do you want to change it?

What if this whole crusade's
A charade
And behind it all there's a price to be paid
For the blood
On which we dine
Justified in the name of the holy and the divine

Just how deep do you believe?
Will you bite the hand that feeds?
Will you chew until it bleeds?
Can you get up off your knees?
Are you brave enough to see?
Do you want to change it?

So naive
I keep holding on to what I want to believe
I can see
But I keep holding on and on and on and on

Will you bite the hand that feeds you?
Will you stay down on your knees? [8X]


For the record, Trent Reznor is one of the few people I will gladly say looks as good in leather pants as I do.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

A Day in the Life...

There's no such thing as a "typical day" when you're leader of the Sin'dorei. But if there was, it would probably go something like this:

6 am-6:30 am: Wake up. Mana tap whoever woke me up. Sleep for 15 more minutes. Finally get up and get ready.
6:30 am-7:30 am: Morning workout. I might be a government pencil-pusher, but I need to stay in shape for when the Alliance come calling.
7:30 am-8 am: Shower, get dressed, get to the "office." Dispatch couriers if there's anything to report to the other leaders.
8 am-8:30 am: Breakfast while getting the latest news from the couriers arriving from the Undercity, Orgrimmar, and Thunder Bluff (usually in that order).
8:30 am-9 am: Respond and dispatch further couriers.
9 am-11 am: Attend to business.
Note: Around 11 am, Halduron usually cracks from his normal calm state and discussions with Rommath begin to accelerate to argument level. We have about a 30-minute enrage timer before he starts throwing fists.
11:30 am-noon: Short break, visit to the priests to attend to bloody noses, time to stretch and calm down.
Noon-1 pm: Lunch, and receiving more couriers from the other Horde cities.
1 pm-3 pm: Receiving citizens and adventurers, checking in on Twitteroth.
3 pm-5 pm: Back to business with Rommath and Halduron.
5 pm-6 pm: Stopping another fight between those two. Receiving and dispatching more couriers to the other cities.
6 pm-8 pm: Paperwork. Dinner is usually taken at my desk. Check in on Twitteroth as I can.
8 pm-9 pm: Clean up from any Alliance raids that might have come through during the day. At this point, they're usually raiding Naxxramas or Ulduar.
9 pm-midnight: This is my "me time." However, it usually involves people running in around 10:30 with documents they need me to review and sign (approval or rejection) before midnight. From time to time I grab Thrall and/or Cairne to escape our duties for a bit. Doesn't always happen. And sometimes I end up crashing out at 8:59, only to wake up at 6:31 the next morning.

The most common topic of debate lately has been the recent influx of Blood Elf Death Knights and where to house them. When the Scourge invaded and Silvermoon was razed, we lost the majority of our people. Rommath did help rebuild the city to house our significantly smaller numbers, with some room for growth. Little did we expect that so many of our people would be raised as Death Knights, and then break free of the Lich King. We probably should have expected it...after all, he was there to turn our people into a meat market for his own purposes. Clearly he didn't understand the will of the Sin'dorei.

Well, now we suddenly have these Death Knights returning home, and we have no place to house them. This is a major contributing factor to Halduron's temper toward Rommath of late...and admittedly, my own.

This all said, again, there's no such thing as a "regular day."

I need a vacation.

Thursday, May 14, 2009

*siiiiiiiiiiiigh*

After a while, you get used to it.

On the plus side, at least people won't remember a name to put my mistakes to either.

Better to be "oh yeah, that guy" than the butchering Liadrin's name goes through.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Top Ten Reasons I Pick on Rommath

For the folks who follow me on Twitter, you might notice I make a lot of snide comments about our Grand Magister. I have my reasons. Time to share a few of them with you:

10. He's a Kael'thas fanboy. (Even after everything the Prince has done.)

9. He procrastinates too much. (He STILL hasn't gotten reinforcements to Tranquillien.)

8. Poor fashion sense. He thinks masks are sexy. (Chicks dig battle scars, dude.)

7. He hasn't finished rebuilding Silvermoon. (Could magically repair most of it in a day. It's been years and he hasn't completed the job.)

6. He still talks about Netherstorm like it's Paradise. (I've been there. Nagrand is where's it's at.)

5. He argues with Halduron. (Thankfully Halduron is a prankster and gets him back.)

4. He whines a lot, especially about being tired of standing. (I have a throne behind me, and do you see me sitting? No sir!)

3. Dude gossips like a stereotypical hair dresser. (No way I'm telling him about Anveena.)

2. To keep him in his place. (He's my Port Bitch.)

1. MELEE MAGE?! (REALLY?!)

Confessions: Of Love, Desire, and Duty.

I lay awake in bed all night, a lovely lady cradled in my arms where I kept her safe and warm, and I wondered, "What the hell am I doing?" Attraction? Desire? Love? These are not foreign concepts, but in some sense they are forbidden to be chased and, by the Well, attained on my own.

These thoughts began after a lively discussion on Twitter about Prince Kael'thas and his poor courtship of Lady Jaina Proudmoore. First, I must say that before he mingled with the wrong crowd and became power hungry (and subservient to a poor choice in Master), I did respect the man. If the Prince had anything going for him, it was that his heart was always in the right place. He was just a complete dumbass when it came to expressing it. Oh, he was eloquent and well-trained in diplomacy. His social graces were impeccable, and he was an intelligent man. But all of that training was for the benefit of the state. Dealing with other governments is easy compared to one-on-one, person-to-person contact. Worse, when it's regarding affairs of the heart.

It's not that the Prince was forbidden to love, but that in the end he'd be forced to court whomever his father or the Convocation of Silvermoon decided was the "right" girl. And even if he was not interested in girls (I know what you all are thinking right now, but it's a moot point!) he had no choice in the matter. His lot in life was to marry for the good of our people and produce an heir.

Well, we all know THAT didn't happen.

In the meantime, I was more or less married to my job. I worked for Lady Sylvanas. My duties kept me constantly on the move. I always thought there would be time to find the right person and settle down "later."

I never imagined that in this sense, I'd end up like the Prince.

I can't begin to explain how deep is my loathing for discussing this subject with others. After Children's Week, I made an off-hand comment about the kids being cute, and maybe when things in Northrend settle down I could explore those paternal feelings that suddenly surfaced. The next thing I knew, I had letters from several nobles describing in exacting detail the fine qualities of their most eligible daughters. When I politely turned them away, I knew rumors would spread, and suddenly I had young courtiers looking to "gain favor," if you know what I mean (and I think you do).

And THEN there are the political issues. Halduron frets about it with me on occasion. Pick a Farstrider, and people will make accusations of favoritism. Pick a Blood Knight, and risk losing the support of the Rangers with whom I've worked all these years. (Despite my best efforts, the Blood Knight-Farstrider feud still runs deep.) Rommath would like to throw one of his apprentice mages at me, possibly to tip the balance of power in his direction. Warlocks and Rogues, while valuable assets to the government at large, would cause tension that would affect our connection to the other Horde races. By process of elimination, a member of the Priest class seems like the ideal potential mate, but even their sway between Shadow and Light is prime for a political snafu.

And what about those who have not taken up arms to join the defenders of our city? There are all types of people out there in the world--even those not of the Sin'dorei race. However, THAT would cause even more problems. We all know that Vereesa Windrunner was one of us. We give her what respect we can as a former Ranger and Lady Sylvanas's sister. I have an inkling of what type of woman she is. But after marrying a human and then attempting to block our membership to Dalaran and the Kirin Tor, I know how a lot of our people consider her a traitor and blame it on the influence of her human husband, Rhonin. I cannot go down that path right now, even for true love.

All of this said, I am still a man who craves companionship and love as any other. Idle flirtation is fun, but perhaps it is the gravity of the pressure from the government itself requiring that I make the "right" choice that is the reason I can make no choice at all. I know what I like, and I know what I seek, but love and country contracts do not always mix.

I know what you're thinking here, too: What's my type, and frankly, which way do I swing. (I get enough gay jokes that I might as well address the topic, even if only to skim the surface.)

I will say this much: I am comfortable enough with myself that I can say I've met as many unattractive women as I have attractive men. To put it in terms other than sexuality, I might state a preference for people with light-colored hair, but I may see many whom I just don't find attractive. I may also see many with dark hair that I find very attractive. My preference still exists, but doesn't preclude attraction. So yes, I can say the same about the genders. I'm just not saying which of the two I prefer.

The foolish thing about the debate over my sexuality is that the main thing that interests me is a compatible personality. I am attracted to a person of wit and intelligence. One who can hold a conversation long into the morning hours. One who can be playful and serious, and know when is the appropriate time for each. I like a person to be charming and graceful. A potential partner must be strong of character, will, and determination. That person must be able to laugh, but also not afraid to cry. I can't stand a damsel in distress, but need to be allowed a "hero" moment every so often. I want a partner with whom I can stand back-to-back, knowing they will protect me as I protect them. That person should have a sense of curiosity and adventure, but tempered with wisdom and common sense.

These traits are the most important things to me before I can consider looks or even gender.

Might I be describing someone I already know? Again, I won't tell...!

Anyway...for now it seems I will indulge in a playboy lifestyle since settling down is not in my near future.

But a man can dream.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Some favorite vacation spots.

Before becoming regent of Silvermoon, I was a ranger. I don't think it's possible to ever shake the feeling of wanderlust that was sated by my former occupation. Now I have to settle for escaping for a few hours when I get the chance. A cooped-up regent is a grumpy regent.

Here's a small list of some of my favorite places to visit when I can spend a few hours away to clear my head:

Mulgore: Perhaps the easiest vacation spot to get to. Convince Rommath to port me to Thunder Bluff, tell Cairne to grab the ingredients for his famous kodo burgers, and head over to Stonebull Lake. We invite Thrall over, but sometimes he gets a little busy. Sometimes there's a little rain, but that's when we head inside and hit the peace pipe. The weather is a little cooler than Quel'thalas, but the lush plains are beautiful.

Silverpine Forest: Tirisfal is a little dark for my tastes, but there are some spots in Silverpine that are nice when I want to go camping. It's not for the faint of heart, though. The area is better for hunting trips, if that's your idea of relaxation.

Nagrand: Thrall introduced me to his grandmother one time, and she insists that he needs to visit her more. Well, I'm not one to turn down a kind old orc lady's hospitality, and she makes the best gingerbread you've ever tasted. Most of Nagrand is lush and beautiful. If you feel like watching a show, you can hop over to the arena and see the fights. (Careful, they sometimes decide to have audience participation!) The little floating islands are also perfect for sunbathing. It's also the most interesting place to stargaze at night.

Azshara: Thrall can sometimes get out to camp in this area. It's probably the location with weather that has the closest match to Quel'thalas. However, there are some traitors that have an established camp out there. Makes for some diplomacy issues for simple vacations. But if anyone feels like dealing with them, be my guest. I can think of at least one orc who would thank you for your efforts. *cough*

Moonglade: This isn't the most ideal place for me to visit. I can always feel the Night Elves staring. They're not entirely hostile, but it makes me a bit paranoid. But as long as I stay away from Nighthaven, it's a nice place to go and relax.

Stranglethorn Vale: There are a few neat spots to visit. My favorite is an overlook by a waterfall. Travel north from Booty Bay, and look for a path on your left that's marked with a torch. You'll have to avoid some gorillas, but that's not difficult. The beach by Grom'gol and the riverside by the Nesingwary camp site are good locations to visit too. Good fishing is to be had all over the zone, and if you feel competitive, enter the fishing contest on Sunday afternoon. Stranglethorn is a bit on the humid side, and be sure to bring your sunblock. When you're done, go back to Booty Bay for some of their rum concoctions.

Feralas: Again, a good escape for a hunting trip. It's humid like Stranglethorn, but not oppressively so. Be sure to check out the Twin Colossals, but make sure you have a way to get down. There's a guy who sells parachute cloaks, but they're a little sketchy and he overcharges for them. All in all, a good place for a picnic, and the Tauren in Camp Mojache are good people.

Storm Peaks: I'm not a huge fan of the cold, if the list so far is any indication. But this is the best location for a ski trip. Mmmm... Snow bunnies....

Sholazar Basin: Fishing at River's heart is the best. The water is surprisingly warm for Northrend if you care to go swimming. Just watch out for the threshers.

Grizzly Hills: Again, decent hunting grounds. This is the kind of place where I like to get a small group together and play paintball. The only downside is that the terrain can be tricky in places. Many trips had to be called off due to someone tripping and getting a sprained ankle shortly after starting out.

There are a few other places, and this is just a short list. But all of this said, Quel'thalas is still home, and I couldn't imagine anywhere more beautiful.

Deeper musings to follow.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Drinks for all your adventuring needs

I've been pretty good at mixing recipes for the "Alchemy" line of drinks, but while browsing Webtender I've found some new ones for your $Raid Drinking Games.

Screaming Blue Viking:
Got Vrykul to slay? This is the drink for you. It's a shot, but mix enough for a full drinking horn if you think you're brave enough.

Snow Snake:
Fit for doing that Hodir daily called "Feeding Arngrim."


The Classes:

BearCat Special:
To pacify the Ferals.

Demon Drop:
Like Powerthirst for Warlocks.

Headhunter:
Hey man, nice shot.

Mage's Fire:
The Blue Curacao makes me think it should be renamed "Frostfire Bolt."

Pure White Evil:
Is that priest holy or shadow?

Purple Helmeted Warrior:
Could also be the Mighty Morphin Pally Ranger.

Serial Killer:
Maybe I should worry that we have a shady alley named "Murder Row"...

Sir Knight:
A Paladin drink. Unless you drink too much and get alcohol poisoning, then it's a Death Knight drink.

Unknown Warrior:
Did someone get the name of that Bovine Wrecking Ball that just came through here?

Wolf (Howlin'):
Probably because he turned himself into a ghost.

Horde:

Brave Bull Shooter:
I like to think of this one as the Tauren Hunter suffering the Chuck Norris jokes in the Barrens. Think you're up to the challenge?

Jamaican Zombie:
What happens when a Forsaken pisses off a Troll witchdoctor.

The Drunken Elf:
This is not a reference to me. Sadly, I can't say it's a reference to @fandralstaghelm either. He's too much of a prude.

Alliance:

Well Greased Dwarf:
"Yar yar, hump hump."

Flaming Goat:
Okay, notice that the "Elf" drink describes one as being drunken. You can all stop with the gay jokes now, and go back to the Exodar. People who live in crystal ships shouldn't throw rocks. (While you're at it, do a search on "Goat" at webtender and see the other options. Be glad I didn't choose to post one of the other two.)


Naxxramas:

Plague Wing:

Green Poison:
This has many uses in Naxx, not just the Plague Wing. Get the bomb on Grobbulus? Drink. Stand in the tunnel before Gluth? Drink. Die because you failed the Heigan dance? Chug.

Spider Wing:

Spider's Web:
The name is appropriate for Maexxna, but it's a bit girly. Try it for the Grand Widow.

White Spider #1
White Spider #2:
All-purpose cocktails for the entire wing.

Green Spider:
Be sure you have a poison cleansing totem handy.

Military Wing:

Four Horsemen #1
Four Horsemen #2:
Two options for celebrating when you get to dig into that big chest in the center of the room. Or for calming the nerves of the people stuck in the back.

Constuct Wing:

Dressed Up Like a Dog's Dinner:
For the poor sap(s) stuck tanking Gluth or kiting his puppy chow.


Vault of Archavon:

Devastating Body Rocker:
Your raid leader TOLD you to get OUT of the rock showers on the trash but DON'T MOVE when Archavon throws his rock spikes on you!


The Dragon drinks:

Dragon's Breath:
And while you're at it, keep away from the tail.

Black Dragon:
So many opportunities to use this shot. Try it on a roflstomp of Onyxia, or one per drake on Sartharion.

Blue Dragon:
You have ten minutes to take down Malygos. If you die, chug.

Green Dragon:
Maybe when they bring out the Emerald Dream...

Red Dragon's Breath:
The secret weapon of the Red Flight. Another to use in Eye of Eternity.


Expect more later....

Saturday, May 2, 2009

Children's Week

Thrall and I decided that a state outing would be a good way to get some vacation time and get the kids together for a little well-deserved fun. I spent a good portion of yesterday making arrangements, and this morning overseeing the clearing of the mana beasts from the path to the beach. Right now I'm just awaiting the Warchief and his charges to arrive for a day of food, fun, and games.

While they gave me a headache yesterday from running all through the Sunfury Spire after finding a stash of leftover Noblegarden candy, the kids have been pretty endearing. Maybe it's my paternal instincts kicking in, but I want to do more for them. I don't have kids of my own, and due to my line of work, all relationships have been stopping at flirtation. (Believe it or not!) This is the perfect opportunity to reach out where I normally can't.

Beyond giving some of the kids a fun day at the beach, there's also the Child's Play Charity Auction from The Hunting Lodge. I know my readership is low right now, but I figure the more mentions the better. I'm considering bidding on the CoreHound shirt from BigRedkitty. I could really use some guard dogs for Silvermoon. And then there's the WoW, Eh? print by the lovely Cadistra. If I had kids, it would go on their bedroom wall.

There have been reports of Horde and Alliance getting along in some of the Battlegrounds, working together in front of the kids to get achievements, and then letting each other part ways without a bloody slaughter. Some of my people reported that they were in Alterac Valley giving the kids lessons on taking turns, sharing, and being polite at the Stonehearth Bunker. People without kids yelled at them (in language not appropriate for the kids' ears) about capturing the tower and killing the Alliance. But kids are smart...I think they saw that being a warrior is not just about killing and death. It's about doing what it takes to get the job done.

That's the point of this whole day: to give the kids a chance to get together, learn to get along, honor, and respect each other despite their differences.

Word has it that Thrall's beginning the journey here. Rommath has been keeping the kids we have here occupied with stories while Halduron and I have been making arrangements. I think even Lady Liadrin is going to come down for a bit. Perhaps we'll have some friendly duels/demonstrations for the kids, all ending with "dogpile on the big green orc!"