10 Things I'm Absolutely NOT Going To Do Before/When/Immediately After Forever Launches Tomorrow...

LMAO

1. I have my characters' names reserved. I'll have a couple of more to make and then a bunch of runs to town for the "first to be banking rested experience."

I have never had a bank alt. Characters are fine parked in town for decades between plays. For one thing, it's expensive to mail shit back and forth. So each character manages their own banking and big loots or things crafted that can be sold get sent to a character standing in town gaining rested experience. I'd frankly rather run to town on the character involved so that they get the money directly from anything auctioned anyway.

This was a tip given to me by one of the people who taught me to play. "Why have some low level alt taking up space and spending your gold 60-90 copper at a time selling shit and mailing shit back to you?" He figured it made more sense to have the character you're not playing right now hanging out in town.

2. I know about the Legacy system, how important crafting is and that I'll need 120 gold for mount and training or Exalted Reputation if I want to save money to learn how to ride. I don't need to be told how to get either of these things achieved. The first one will suck and then by virtue of them being ahead, the others will be a little less painful.

The INSANE number of "10 THINGS YOU'LL BE SORRY YOU DIDN'T DO" and "MY FIRST 3 FISHING TIPS" and "DON'T MAKE THESE 18 MISTAKES ON LAUNCH" and "SHIT I'M TOO OLD FOR IN FOREVER" videos and Instagram posts are actually a little worrisome.

3. PvP happens in battlegrounds by entering with the knowledge that there are pre-defined rules. It also happens when you go anywhere your faction isn't supposed to go. I'm not being denied. Faction exists in a game with WAR as the first part of the name. Challenge accepted. *salute*

4. I choose my professions based on class/specialization benefits or alt army needs. I rarely craft my own gear or weapons and I never buy them.

Both factions will need a tailor. That's what I know for sure. "Need" may also include an enchanter as finding wands for casters SUCKS even in Retail/Live. Alchemy is always useful, though you can usually find someone to trade you herbs + vials + extra pieces and a little extra in exchange for crafting you what you need by just asking in /Trade. Same with things that give you buffs on armor etc... Familiarity with the crafting supplies and how to look them up will give you more in a massively multiplayer game than leveling the profession itself, IMO.

5. I earn money and spend very little if I don't have to. I know there are experience gain buffs if you cook and eat your own food, that's great if what I need for that food is clear and where I'm currently playing. If not, I can go without until I find something new. I'm certainly NOT going to go to the AH to BUY the meat/fish/herbalism extras for a +2% higher experience gain, the benefit of which was lost making the trek and spending the gold.

See, if you play smart, don't buy everything all the time and instead just wander, farm and play the game you will have most of the money you need when you get to your big landmarks. If you gamble on an unsettled economy, some guide from YouTube or a link on Instagram or the advice of influencers and twitch gamers then you'll have only your slice of the income possible based directly on the size of their audience.

6. I'm a process specialist. Patterns and how-to stick in my head. I don't want or need someone else to path my actions. My actions and outcomes will naturally path my next journey through the same situations, places and spaces.

7. I'm one of the old timey gamers who HATES it when someone just pops a fucking group invite on you without asking first. ALL of these guides and videos stress the importance of groups but not the importance of communication or protocol or politeness. It's going to be a real pain in the ass playing for awhile with people who see you near a mob and presume you're there for it and don't read their own /party chat when you say, "If you're killing Goldtooth I need the quest shared," before they pull him.

8. The more packed the playing area the less likely I am to do the expected things in that area. I'm weird that way. I've regularly fished, skinned, mined... anything other than doing the quests when there are too many people jammed into a small area. I learned this IN CLASSIC where single tags were the rule. 

See... you have 2 choices if you're going to do the kill quests in a game where only one person gets credit for the first hit... EITHER you race competitively with the determination of a ravenous predator and tag everything, whether you can kill it alone or can't... OR you spend hours trying to get a tag in against the group of predators. I prefer get the random respawns no one saw and keep getting other things I need in the meantime.

WoW makes the rules, we have to play in them. We DON'T have to become the players created by those rules. I prefer to let the asshats asshat and go away. See, I can be that asshat. I've been them. I don't enjoy it. I feel dirty and frustrated and anxious when I have to play that way. I yell at the screen and get so angry that my forehead hurts after just a little bit of time playing. So I don't let Blizzard decide what sort of player I'll be by setting up the environment.

9. I won't be skipping training for things I need just because I'll need more money in the game later because it's been decided that we need gold sinks in the economy of the game. For me the fantasy is based primarily in the class/specialization and faction of the given character. Part of that fantasy is earning the money needed to do the things that make playing that character a 3D experience. Sure I want to ride and not walk by the time I'm level 40. No, I don't give a single fuq if you got there first. I won't queue for a dungeon I can't get to, so my lack of riding skill by the time everyone said I should have had it doesn't mean anything to me OR them.  

10. I'm not the sort of player to camp the flagstones of the local capital city, exchange location or other places where all of the hanging out just talking in /chat happens. Not in Rift, not in Classic and not in Retail/Live or Remix. If I've seen your name too much in those channels I immediately discredit what you say over time because you certainly can't have done all that much all that well if you also spend all of the time I'm playing sitting in town typing. I don't participate and often don't read. I let it scroll past me and watch for the color of text I'm interested in.

Wow that's a long list of crabby crap. Only I don't REALLY feel like it is. There's a real lot of who I am and  testimony to how much I've done this up in that list. 

Truth be told, I'm one of the nicest, weirdest players you'll ever run into in the wild. Quick to share a food, drink or some muscle where it's needed, always ready to help solve a mystery, even if it's not my own quest we're solving and fast to /emote or /say something funny or silly or kind. There's a lot worse than that out there, trust me. That's why 1,000 people are making 10,000 videos telling 7-8 MILLION PLAYERS how to play the game. 

Less than 27 hours remain until login queues, people in Retail/Live complaining and YouTube/Twitch blowing up with videos of streams of people flooding the chat with Blizz hate and recriminations. 

mmm... the good old days... I love the smell of sweaty asses, cool ranch doritos and mountain dew in the morning... The next few weeks are going to be hilarious to complain about later. LOL

Remembering... A Walk Through Stormwind Before Forever Launches

My baby warlock (of the hijinx the other day, in fact) took on the heavy job of strolling through Stormwind and reminding me just how the hell different it is from the one I know best! LOL 

Quick back story. First character was Julienne. She didn't go to Stormwind until she was about level 11 because a friend offered to give me money and then had me run to him. LOL He suggested it was good to get there and look around. I did. I got 10 gold OMFG and a confusing and a little scary (I fell into the canals and freaked out because the breath bar appeared and I thought was going to be stuck or die in there and he had to get me to chill my tits and look around for a dock or a ramp because I was certainly not even the 1,000th player to fall into the canals and feel like I might die there so the developers gave us a way out.) Anyway... It was July 2008. Burning Crusades was almost done. And changes had already apparently taken place in Stormwind before I got there.

So... Mazzikim the Warlock heads off through Stormwind with her Imp on a tour for us all... 

No kidding... the statuary and grand theme still makes my heart thrill. I have a warm fondness for Undercity. I have a full on goosebump sense of pride when I get to Stormwind.

These covered hallways of stone that limit the ability to surge into the city as an invading army remind me of Stratholme and the dungeon in Wrath of the Lich King in the retail game that took us there before it was destroyed. Why did Blizzard decide to open Stormwind up so much in the redesign?

Trade District... there's an inn and many types of general goods vendors as well as your city bank.

Taking selfies in Classic is like taking them in real life. The trolls will troll. LOL I dont' know what spell effects you're seeing, I was just glad the Druid bear stopped tea bagging my head. 

Here is the Auction House, anyway.

And a meeting stone for Stockades, which I don't believe actually works? Like it's here but you can't summon your friends to this dungeon. I've had a sort of love/hate relationship with the Looking For Group feature since it was "perfected" in Cataclysm and beyond for the retail game. I don't like it.

Annnnnd... for a dungeon IN A CAPITAL CITY SURROUNDED BY GUARDS, honestly, Blizz... just add Stocks and Ragefire Chasm to the LFG button or put their summoning stones INSIDE THE INSTANCE. It just feels... crappy on PvE servers to make it such a dangerous run. Isn't Deadmines enough?

Top of the ramp into the Mage Tower in the Mage's Quarter. In view are an inn, the alchemy trainer and a small shop that sells some tailoring supplies but is more just part of a quest chain in another Stormwind. Annnnd...

A little shop where mages (and polite people who ask mages for favors) and other casters get their reagents so that they can do the fantastic tricks they do for everyone in their party or raid. I ALWAYS carry a few Runes of Portals and Teleportation. They're the perfect tip for POOR lowbies to give friendly helpful mages of any level willing to pop a window into another place for you.

I'd forgotten The Park was buried inside of a bunch of stone buildings and contained only 1 actual interactive shop and otherwise a bunch of empty spots where you should perhaps presume the Druids are out flying around being birds or something? LOL It's a lovely and totally Night Elven neighborhood.

The Cathedral shares it's Square with the City Hall, some other official looking buildings and...

the Orphanage. Which was the only other building I remembered actually having anything going on in the whole of the Cathedral Square. I do miss the warmth of the cemetary. 

No, really... the plants and benches and LAKE were a lovely addition to what is otherwise a really austere gray and white stone city with a few tress and plants stuck in stone planters or waving from over the top of really high solid stone walls.

Again, why was the decision made to make the city LESS defensible if not so we can have peace?

From the bridge over the canal between the Cathedral Square area and the Dwarven District where a high wall on the seaward side of Stormwind keeps us safe and secure. I'm not sure anyone in the city knew there was any water or shipping or a dock or anything out there, though. The trees would have suggested an entirely different habitat. *snort*

Standing on the steps of a Dwarven assembly building of some sort.

A building that would be delegated much less important as it becomes a bank soon.

The Stable Master in Dwarven District who is still there to help you find lost pets and to stable your hunter pets... and A WHOLE ASS HUNTER TRAINING CENTER IN THE BUILDING. That's what I get for leveling MY hunter on the Horde side in Eversong. 

VERY IMPORTANT REMINDER: Classic really sold the concept of a hunter and their pet being lifelong partners... you mostly train other pets to get them to teach fun shit to your best friend. This Dwarven lady is REALLY here so you can be forced to park your best friend to get out the pet the raid group wants you to bring for specific raid type buffs and abilities. LOL

The fountain in Old Town square. There's lots of leather and chainmail and weapon shops nearby. The barracks for the Stormwind Guard are also nearby.

Warrior Training, SI:7 (the actual Rogue Trainer is standing to the left of Mazzikim) and off to my unseen Right there's a PvP area for "KNIGHTS ONLY"

Onyxia (whose head was on the front gates, actually) and Fordragon as reagents for our poor abandoned Princeling, Anduin. Overnight he's going to go from being this lovely and very polite little boy, "Hello citizen." To a "real boy" with his father back. And then... well... shit happens. I'm curious to see what lateral story telling we'll get in the new old world that we're told might or might not have the same history as things may happen in different ways. :D I'm really excited about it. That's not sarcasm.

And what you can't really see here because I hate playing with nameplates on because they break my immersion... there are 3 or 4 fully geared level 60's with Marshal and Knight titles just sort of roaming the room... don't know if I missed a local channel "so and such is under attack" message or if it's just common on the weekends to have attacks on the Prince of Stormwind. There were more outside of the throne room and one standing around a corner in the hallway leading in from outside. Nice to know that security wasn't just built in at this level of Stormwind, it was trained into her hero players as well.

I had to look up this grate at the end of the canal here between Old Town and the Trade District next to the little flower shop because it has a swirly instance gate inside it. 

And now I'm actually peeved past the point of speech.

THIS WAS GOING TO BE PLAYER HOUSING. ON LAUNCH. FROM DAY ONE.

(note to those who do not know: we just got player housing in 2026... 20 years later)

This city is my home town. It is my home base. It is the place where Julienne walks the stones every time before I log out and await the new hysteria and mayhem of a new expansion and what launch day brings. This is the space that will be my first home in Forever as well. No meta gaming, no serious spoilers and... a whole lot of hope for some really fabulous new memories to go with the ones that I've been recalling every 2 years for 16 years.

Man I love this game. LOL

Remembering... A Walk Through Undercity Before Forever Launches

each new release comes with a nostalgia and a sense of time gone by...

THIS release is sort of the opposite. It's a return to a time before everything today and yet... also a new beginning. 

Usually Julienne takes a slow walk (or RP walk as some people call it since the vast majority of players are actually pre-set and STAY on the run setting) through Stormwind the night before the new launch. A complete tour of the city and everything it holds while I remember. For me it's a place to cement in my mind the parts of the game that I loved most and a reminder that regardless how stressful or frustrating the next few days or months may be, I have loved this game since my first view of the Abbey or Goldshire and that the gates of Stormwind took my breath away and made my pulse race. It's a reminder that I used to get lost in the streets of the Capital that is now so familiar in all of her faces (it had a HUGE remake that brought my warrior a "new" warrior King when Varian returned.)

Dramatic, I know. I DID say I'm too RP for PvE and PvP and not even close to RP enough for the RP servers. LOL

Well... Julienne can't walk through the OLD spaces, so my Classic toons will have to do it for her.

Dimma the baby Shadow Priest walks through Undercity...

Lots of people get lost in Undercity and complain that it's too confusing to get around in. There are too many "dumb" things in the way of getting inside. Maybe it's just because I've seen old British castles and keeps, or because I've read SO much high fantasy and played so much Dungeons and Dragons... I'm stunned that Stormwind is so easy to get into from BOTH sides. It's a very poorly protected keep and is clearly experiencing an era of peace and prosperity on the home front.

Those twists and turns bottleneck invaders to a keep that is on the border with the wild world outside of the Human Kingdoms. The constantly narrowing or confusing turns are designed to be that way. From the front gate all the way to the Audience Chamber and beyond into the newer additions to the city everything is designed to make invasion too hard to accomplish. This little walk through will give you a clearer vision of what's happening as you enter and perhaps give you a road map.

For those of you planning to pilliage our city and murder our Queen, the front door is NOT the way to do it. There's a better way. It's clear on the map and is how I personally have done it a number of times in pursuit of my For the Alliance! achievement. It won't be easy. Trust me, that Banshee is a bitch with that bow, and she's not alone in that room.

The front gates of the Ruins of Lordaeron

From the courtyard you can glimpse the statuary that protects the main entrance.

Around the first section of wall there's a ruined bell to remind us all that Undercity replaces the magnificent old city of Lordaeron, one of the many Human Kingdoms under Stromgarde in the Arathi Highlands (that also included Stormwind as a member.)

The undead scourge with Prince Arthas Menethil at their head destroyed Lordaeron and surrounding areas and Undercity was built beneath the ruins of that former kingdom.

Until Sylvanas took it upon herself to start "replacing" her undead citizens by using plague wagons perfected in Northrend, all Undead were original Humans who survived the mind breaking and soul bending transition from being murdered and brought back to life by the Lich King's magic.

From the Audience Chamber there are 2 doors to journey deeper into the city.

A jack-o-lantern blocks your view of the throne in this room.

Here it is... just had to get around the Hallow's End decorations.

Around the corner and down to the next chamber. I believe this is a new home for the last King's casket.

This space probably held guards and possibly a steward to advise visitors where to find what they were looking for before Lordaeron was destroyed and had to be "rebuilt."

Here lies Lordaeron's Last King... Terenas Menethil II, father of Calia and Arthas Menethil

From behind the King laid in State you can see one of three entrances down into the Undercity. Big abominations guard the doors to protect the undead citizens and their banshee Queen.

The Upper Ring as you enter Undercity is teaming with vendors for your every need. A lovely inn to rest in if you're weary from your journey up from Deathknell or other local locations awaits visitors.

The bankers fill the center of the room, ready to store or retrieve your goods.

Down and to your right you may be able to glimpse Jer... he's our local cockroach trader and will happily part with one of his friends for a few silver if you promise to care for it properly.

The city is built in a standard reminiscent of most Human capital cities, it is just odd because it is underground and so built in rings rather than squares connected by boulevards the way that the Ruins of Stromgarde Keep still display and that Stormwind still is. 

If you feel lost, ask a guard or open your complimentary map and see which way to go.

Auctioneers are located on rises just outside of the central public hub of the city.

Venturing just a little deeper will bring you to the artisans and crafting experts of the city where you can obtain apprenticeships and special crafted wares from the Masters. Behind me here is the tailor's shop where you can purchase tailoring goods, become an apprentice and even graduate to Master!

To have an Audience with our Queen you must enter the Royal Quarter which is housed under the Apothecarium. There is a sign post, and I find it easier to remember that her Royal Guards stand on either side of the grand entrance leading down to her chambers. There's 14 guards posted between the front door and her chamber! She's VERY well protected!

Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, Queen of Undercity

I know... silly... and still... while traversing the depths of Undercity is a little confusing, you have to remember... it's self contained because it's UNDERGROUND. You'll find what you're looking for.

Is it just me or does Sylvanas look a hell of a lot more like a Night Elf than she will with the next expansion when they introduce Blood Elves? LOL

Just Pre-Forever Hijinx

If you have never played a game like World of Warcraft you may be unfamiliar with the week before launch malaise. You've done it all (I have not... and still) and now are just wandering the same old streets waiting for that new thing to come.

I'm trying to avoid ALL of the spoilers, hints, tips etc... and it's just impossible if you're on Instagram for even 10 minutes a day or YouTube AT ALL... so... I've tried to click on things NOT Forever related and I came across this fabulous video by Spirit called Exploring a Dead Game: World of Warcraft and laughed and laughed and laughed.

And at the same time I thought to myself that while I didn't know his "hack" I am certain the drama of his death runs could have been avoided by just swimming on autorun (press the numlock key on your keyboard while moving) starting at the coast of Westfall and not stopping until you climb the plank out of the water in Booty Bay (or in his case come up onto the rocks at the edge of the jungle that border the back of the Gurubashi Arena.)

My favorite game partner fell into the Stranglethorn side of the mountain range while mining in Westfall and decided, "What the fuck... I'm here... there's a neutral auction house down there somewhere in a town called Booty Bay. That could be useful if there's a flight point." And away he went. And he died. And he died. And he died. And he never stopped healing himself and continuing to run. And he had the damned flight point AND saw the auction house in less time than really should have been possible.

With that as my personal experience (I was in Ventrilo with him the whole time because we'd planned to do Deadmines and I was waiting) I didn't want to die and run and die and run like that so I swam. Being already "at level" for the content on the beach by the Westfall Lighthouse, I didn't even die. Just swam.

Many years later I did the same run with the friend I was playing Classic with because we needed a "fast" way to get to Kalimdor from Eastern Kingdoms and the boat from Booty Bay to Ratchet is really superior to having to travel down into Menethil Harbor for the Theramore boat. We also hiked off the coast of Westfall and swam. We cut too close to shore, though, and I'm thankful she played a priest because OMG it was danger business staying alive.

Today I grabbed the little level 6 warlock I created on Classic when we heard about Forever (I'd made her just to see what I thought of the leveling in certain areas and to remind myself what it's like to play in a world where nothing is about your quality of life and everything is about the player versus the environment they're in. LOL) and away Mazzikim went... her mission? To go from Elwynn Forest to Booty Bay with as few death runs as possible.

Five. I did five death runs. Wolves and *shudder* murlocs.

On the way across Westfall directly to the coast I found out I'd forgotten what the "aggro radius" is on creatures that are double your level (it is VERY big) and a Packleader wolf tried and failed to kill her... then, while recovering from the fight which had required a health potion and a lot of me holding my breath before sitting to eat and drink afterwards I was ganked by another wolf. Another wolf got me right at the lip of the coast where I was trying to figure out level and range from hilltop to avoid murlocs. 

Murlocs are a real issue. I've designed my own very cute plushie after one that WoW released for our houses and insists on giving us over and over and over in different colorations (I have them all. Remember, it's part of the contract with our subs to hate them for giving us what we want.) They're very cute. And NO player who has managed to level all the way from 1-60 (or higher) can avoid murlocs. Fishy guys who have this spine freezing mrglglg sound and come running at you.

in the game

in housing and on my Etsy shop

Anyway... I distract myself. 

Murlocs suck. They're prolific and 99.9% of the time hostile to the player. I died on the edge overlooking the beach to a murloc who aggroed from the bottom of the hill. I died to a pair of murlocs on the coast trying to get to the safety of the water. And I died again to a bastard murloc hiding under the water way out from shore.

And then I was home free. Between the coast and the deadly dark water (in WoW the "dark water" saps life and kills you. it's a preventative at the edge of "known world" that keeps players MOSTLY where they belong. nothing keeps us ENTIRELY where we belong... and dark water does a good job of making it a massive challenge to have oceanic adventures where they don't want us to have them) there's a very clear and VERY LONNNNNNG swim available.

44 minutes from the door of the Lion's Pride Inn in Goldshire, Elwynn Forest to the lovely Dwarven flight master in Booty Bay, Cape of Stranglethorn. 

pictured: Mazzikim with the Lion's Pride Inn to her back, smithy in the foreground.

clock under mini-map in upper right corner

pictured: Mazzakim on a raised section of dock beside the Booty Bay flight master 

with the Ratchet boat at dock below

clock under mini-map in upper right corner

I didn't fly back to Stormwind... it cost 5 silver and I only have 6 on the character. She hearthed home to the Lion's Pride.

So... it doesn't HAVE to be constant death. It can just be very boring and mostly safe.

Mazzakim may or may not survive. I'd parked Gruffudd after moving her up from Classic to Burning Crusade and she was honestly the only Classic character I'd planned to have. I learned what I wanted to learn from these characters.

Pre-Launch Forever Name Reservation

SHOULD have been at 2 p.m. MDT on 10/27

Was a little delayed by problems.

I still had my characters names reserved by 5 p.m. MDT on 10/27, so there can be no real complaining.

There will actually be 4... you can only reserve 3... I'm leaving my 3rd space open for that favorite playmate to screw around with in case he wants to see the appearances and which races can be which classes (he mostly has this memorized, and... LOL)

Julienne Griffith and her brother... I'm not sure if he's a paladin named justis or just Jules or... yeah. at a loss. She'll for sure be joined on the Alliance side by a gnome mage (don't start with the gnome hate... talk to Blizzard about the racials) and right now her name is Kilowatta Bumbleburr because I think I want to try arcane for the first time ever.

And Myrkr Haugan, an undead priest who will shadow all things around her. I've really fallen in love with my shadow priests in Live/Retail and so I'm really hoping to love (and hate?) the squishy horror that is solo leveling a priest from 1-60. Her guildmate Sirius Graves will be born when the most of the undead paladins have moved along and I can play without them everywhere all the time. I'll let Myrkr bask in the joy that is a paladin at every corner to draft on.

And so it begins Wednesday... the level for awhile and park in an inn and move to the next one so that they're all IN an inn and so that they're all gaining rested experience to use when I want to level them.

To sum up... that's a Human Warrior, a Gnome Mage, an Undead Priest and probably a Skyborne Hunter, eventually... like the Undead Paladin, I think a Skyborne will be insanely tight and cramped leveling in a game where first to tag is the only person who gets credit or loot from the mob. I'll wait.

4 p.m. 11/4... a new journey begins. Hopefully. It may be delayed. It's a "thing" that happens with Warcraft launches.

LOL A Psychiatrist's Advice Before You Play WoW Forever

I find it hilarious that this needs to be spelled out.

I was keeping this blog to document my return to solo play and setting boundaries as well as to share Warcraft Forever as I explore it...

Theory Forge's Video

I honestly just have to laugh. Where was this guy 14 years ago when I was desperately trying to figure out why I was having such a lousy time playing. Or 12 years ago? Or even 6 years ago when I tied my FIRST exploration into Classic to a new friend I hardly knew? Or the first time my friend leveled without me all night so I had to catch up or just go without doing things to try to catch up to her fast? LMAO I had to figure it out for myself over this past few months and decide that I'd do it his way before I knew he had a his way.

It Isn't Selfish And I'm Not Sorry

 This isn't going to be nice to "hear" and I'm just 

going to say it anyway.

I don't care if you feel like I've abandoned you. You play for you and I'll play for me and if me being there defined you being there then maybe you need to decide where you'd rather be.

I don't care if you feel like I'm being antisocial. I don't want you in my ears 24/7 while I'm doing my own thing. I don't and have never needed you there to play my game. I particularly don't like and never have liked voice apps that prioritize anything you want to say, grunt or sing aloud to over the game and my experience of it. I'm an auditory person and NEVER turn off the sounds of the game because they inform how I play.

I also don't care if you don't like to read text or follow the in-game chat system and I don't care if you're pissed that I didn't see your message come through and immediately answer you. I'm clearly too busy doing something that I want to do to notice. 

I don't care if you think it's fucking bizarre that I am not in a hurry to get ANYWHERE for ANY REASON that you may think is very important.

When I want to know what you or some asshole on YouTube or some guy writing a guide thinks about the game, my class or spec or the order I'm choosing to level my professions, I'll ask you. This is LITERALLY my first time in a NEW MMO to experience everything for the first time ON MY OWN and I don't want you or anyone else to change that experience.

See...

*sigh*

I've fucking hated this game for 14 years and had to plug in any "group time" or "self competition" or "achievement hound" substitution for having fun that I could find. It's exhasting and self-defeating so I'm not doing it anymore.

I don't want you to define my time in any game. I don't want you to click on, interact with or otherwise take away my experience of anything in this game. I REALLY just want to play for myself and not sense some need to apologize all the fucking time for not making it TOTALLY enjoyable for someone else. I don't have any hurry to get anywhere because I don't have any plans for end-game that will limit my gaming enthusiasm or enjoyment IN ANY WAY. I am, in fact, ever-so-slightly worried that you'll pee on my experience no matter what happens because you'll be in the zones where I am and hurrying your ass off without a thought to your effect on everyone else playing around you.

I'm not co-leveling ANYTHING with ANYONE anymore. I don't enjoy it. (I say this knowing that there is one person for whom this rule has never and will never apply and for him I'll co-level even my main because she was born to play with him in the first place.)

I'm not going to "pre-schedule and be on time for" ANY variant of World of Warcraft like it's a fucking job anymore. I'm just not. Hey, fabulous... you're around... are you available? No? See you next time. HOW FUCKING HARD IS THAT? Hey, fabulous... you're around... are you available? Yes? Wanna go do [whatever thing]? HOLY SHIT. As if people have lives AND play the game as a part of them. *sigh*

I'm not spending the evening of November 4th clicking on the game launcher every 10 seconds and getting frustrated because I can't get in and I won't be there to listen while you do it, either. This is how WoW has been for the ENTIRE time I've played it. There's a love/hate requirement for the fans of this game and I no longer want any part of it. I'm not hating on them because too many of us love it and want to get in to see it. I'm just not.

I'm not going to Live/Retail and whining that I can't get into Forever and I'm not gonna hang out while everyone does this. See reasons above. Y'all are addicted to hating on the thing you're so addicted to. It's part of the compulsion. I don't want any part of it or you when you're being that way.

I'm not time-stamping each level-up with a big star on social media (you know, I say this and perhaps I actually WILL... hmmm... idea forming. Perhaps this blog and my personal Insta will become the time-stamp of each fun achievement that brings me joy regardless of what the big kids think should be achieved. hmmm... ideas.)

Right now my plan is this... 

• inform my regular gaming partners that I'll only be available a few hours a week for awhile in Live/Retail
• make myself available in the Blizz voice app while I'm playing Forever only irregularly and as I want to (it is VERY important that it not become any form of habit or regular pattern so that the "want to join voice" is the question and not "why aren't you in voice" as an expectation.)
• I want to form a guild. I won't do it right away.

I've beat myself up for more than 12 years for just not being able to build a good guild and it's come to me over time that no one can. The big raid guys have bowls of piranhas and are constantly managing and feeding them exactly what they need and culling the ones that cannot be satiated and even THEY mostly don't last. Eventually they eat themselves from the inside out and don't survive. The rest? Define friendship. Define a great gaming experience. Now compare that to everyone you meet until you find someone whose definitions even remotely match yours. There... you're a guild of two searching for more. Have fun. 

See... I mistook being overly accommodating and generous for being a nice person and made myself absolutely miserable in the process. That's on me. This time I'm just playing and finding out if the original magic can strike twice or if there's a new magic waiting just around the corner in a zone I've seen before and never in quite the same way.