Rockstar and Karazhan Part 1
Through an amazing series of events, Rockstar has found himself in the position of being the main tank for Karazhan Group 3 of the Ysera guild Eternal Force. And tasked in the off tank position is friend feral Druid Predictys, also of Eternal Force. Rockstar’s tanking experience is pretty limited…I’ve done about a dozen regular instances, about three heroics, and this would be my first raid. There’s a lot to know in tanking Karazhan, and hopefully the pieces of gear I’ve been collecting over the previous weeks wouldn’t let me (or the group) down too badly.
The first night was Wednesday night. Most first-night Karazhan runs clear through Curator as a goal, plus or minus one boss as the night progresses. Four members of the group had never been in Karazhan before at all. I think everyone was cautiously optimistic, and we would all have to wait and see. Trivia, rogues officer of Eternal Force, would be leading the raid. Predictys and I were promoted to help play with the marks.
It took forever to get the group assembled and ready to roll. Once we got started, the trash clearing to Attumen was pretty smooth. The shackles were good, the trapping was good, and I was able to rotate targets pretty effectively. I felt I was able to build threat pretty effectively.
The Attumen fight was terrific. We one-shotted him in 3 minutes, 44 seconds with no deaths occurring. Predictys of course tanked Midnight, and I picked up Attumen effectively (meaning I intercepted him and took aggro before he could get a shot off on our healers). Using a Disarm and then a Shield Slam against him is pretty satisfying. Rockstar actually attained Friendly status with the Violet Eye as Attumen was slain. Attumen dropped the Harbinger Bands (needed by Lofkalar) and the Spectral Band of Innervation.
We began clearing trash towards Moroes. Trivia put marks on all of the patrolling undead, and Rockstar got a chance to begin the pulls. Between myself, Predictys, and a couple of rogues, no one was dying on the AoE pulls on the stairway…this is a spot for frequent caster deaths. Eternal Force skips the groups composed of all elites, and lets them despawn after Moroes is dead.
Tanking the Moroes fight is great…there’s not too much to do. This fight emphasizes DPS (for dropping the first pair of adds and burning Moroes) but showcases the healers (who have to keep re-shackling, remove Blind effects, heal the tanks, and keep heals up on whoever receives a Garrote). Predictys and I simply have to bash and smash Moroes to keep his attention between Vanishes. We used Calithis, a second Druid, to tank the first couple of adds while DPS burned them down. The group then shifted to Moroes. Rather than exit the room after killing Moroes, Eternal Force chooses to down the remaining adds.
We one-shotted Moroes in 3 minutes, 55 seconds. At the end of the fight, both of our healers Seraphyne and Pithicus were down. Moroes dropped Edgewalker Longboots (needed by Calithis) and the Crimson Girdle of the Indomitable (needed by Rockstar). That belt marks the first loot for my Warrior in Karazhan. The group was doing very well.
Clearing towards the Maiden of Virtue ran smoothly. We didn’t have a Warlock to help with banishing the demons, but that was okay. We shackled the undead and brought the demons forward in the kill order. We got to Maiden, and talked through the fight. It was pretty awkward, because we didn’t have a Paladin in the group to help with Blessing of Sacrifice. A few healing responsibilities were discussed, the option of me bringing Maiden to a healer was discussed, and we decided to give it a single try to see what happened. The result was a quick wipe, with Rockstar down at the end of the second Repentance. Trivia called for a tactical withdrawal, and we would re-visit the Maiden when we had a Paladin in the group the next time.
So, we went to Opera. Clearing to the Opera Event is always pretty fun (at least for me). I love fighting Spectral Performers, especially when they use their Spotlight ability. I was able to experiment with some chain pulls, as the coming and going of patrols in this area allows that to some extent. I’m already looking for ways the tank can chain pull to keep the pace of the group moving right along.
We drew Big Bad Wolf for the Opera Event…this is the simplest in terms of what needs to happen, although it might be the most difficult event to execute properly. But the group was pretty good…we dropped the Big Bad Wolf in one shot (3 minutes, 18 seconds). Sure, several people died (including myself), but this is one of those events where it doesn’t matter so much, as long as there is at least one healer still alive. The Big Bad Wolf dropped Big Bad Wolf’s Paw (needed by Amrys) and the Earthsoul Leggings (needed by Calithis).
Because of time constraints, this is where the raid was called. We didn’t get to Curator, but that’s okay. We were able to one-shot three bosses, which was excellent. We were also able to concede defeat on Maiden of Virtue without a Paladin, but at least the group was able to see how the fight works. All in all, the group did extremely well. With a little more attention to punctuality and a lot less talk between trash pulls, this group was moving as smoothly as any of the others I’ve ever been in.
For now, I’ll have to get a couple of stamina gems for my new belt.
Kruenor Versus The Razza
Today Kruenor and Stryker (his pet Ravager) attempted The Razza in the Dire Maul arena. They emerged victorious. The Razza dropped Lazy Alizabeth’s Pendant and the Lordly Armguards.
Frost Resistance Tanking Gear Checklist
As it happens, the pieces of equipment used to build out a frost resistance tanking set could be used by either protection Paladins or protection Warriors. As a guild approaches tackling 25-man content, having tanks decked out in resistance gear is a necessity. As you would expect, building out a full set is going to take quite a bit of time (if you’re doing it all yourself) or quite a bit of money (if you’re going to pay crafters to help you out).
In order to prepare a full set for a magic resistance fight, the tank should aim for the 365 (buffed) resistance cap versus level 73 mobs. With 365 frost resistance, the average damage reduction should be about 75%. Hydross the Unstable hits for about 8000 damage; with a full frost resistance set, he should hit for about 2000 damage on average.
Head
- Iceguard Helm is a crafted item. The plans can be learned by a Blacksmith who has reached honored reputation level with The Violet Eye. The helm should be adorned with a Glyph of Frost Warding, which can be purchased for 100g from the Keepers of Time quartermaster when the tank has reached honored reputation level with the Keepers of Time. Between the helm and and the helm enchant, this item accounts for 70 frost resistance.
Neck
- Pendant of Thawing is a crafted item. The design can be learned by a Jewelcrafter who has reached revered reputation level with the Lower City. This item accounts for 30 frost resistance.
Shoulder
- The shoulder should be adorned with the Inscription of Endurance, which can be purchased for 30g from The Violet Eye quartermaster when the tank has reached honored reputation level with The Violet Eye. This item accounts for 7 frost resistance.
Chest
- Iceguard Breastplate is a crafted item. The plans can be learned by a Blacksmith who has reached honored reputation level with The Violet Eye. This item accounts for 60 frost resistance.
Legs
- Iceguard Leggings is a crafted item. The plans can be learned by a Blacksmith who has reached revered reputation level with The Violet Eye. This item accounts for 60 frost resistance.
Finger
- The Frozen Eye is a crafted item. The plans can be learned by a Jewelcrafter who has reached honored reputation level with The Violet Eye. This item accounts for 35 frost resistance.
Other
- A Frost Armor Kit should be applied to the equipment in the chest, legs, hands, and feet slots. If all four pieces are augmented this way, this can account for 32 frost resistance.
- Frost Resistance Aura from Paladins can account for 70 frost resistance.
- Frost Resistance Totem from Shamans can account for 60 frost resistance.
- Gift of the Wild can account for 25 frost resistance.
- Flask of Chromatic Wonder can account for 35 frost resistance.
- Flask of Chromatic Resistance can account for 25 frost resistance.
LF1M Heroic Mechanar, Lock Needed
Ah, heroic Mechanar…the bread and butter instance for Warlocks. This is how Warlocks farm for Badges of Justice out of heroic instances. They simply log on for the day, and wait until some would-be Mechanar party of four calls out for a Warlock. Illustra got a chance to PUG tonight with a new group of people.
The group was composed of myself (70 affliction Warlock), Hkilla (70 protection Warrior) and Penical (70 feral Druid) of Epic, Quantus (70 frost Mage) of Spiritus Mortis, and Arterus (70 holy Priest) of Endless. I don’t believe I’ve ever run with any of these folks before.
The group seemed skilled as we moved through the first few pulls. I was in a mood for getting things done, and was glad to see the tank pulling almost right away. I created and applied a soulstone mid-fight, and before the second pull was finished, was able to get my food buff. As we fought Gatewatcher Gyro-Kill, I noticed that my threat was rapidly rising on the threat table. The tank wasn’t capable of generating enough threat for me to go all out in the fight. I wasn’t paying attention to the others because I was studying the threat table…Penical ended up dying during this fight. For what reason, I cannot say. But I noted that I was probably going to have to watch my threat for the duration of this run.
As we approached the stairway leading down, Hkilla studied the three mobs and called for the succubus. I was wondering if he might. I’ve mentioned before how I don’t really like using the succubus, as I consider it a weaker form of crowd control. My real concern here is he depended on the succubus now for a three-pull, how was he planning to deal with the four-pulls that lay ahead? We cleared the stairway and below. I put on the usual Warlock show, by enslaving and banishing demons, using demons to smite other demons, and causing mayhem among our foes in general.
We were able to one-shot Mechano-Lord Capacitus. We were all standing on the edge of the staircase until the first polarity shift. The tank shifted negative, and I shifted negative, so I immediately moved to stand on the tank. The mage (whose polarity I did not notice) yells “move Ill, you’re negative” and then again “MOVE ILL”. Um, no. Someone was causing some explosions, but it wasn’t me. This annoyed me enough to break my concentration so during the second polarity shift I retreated to max range and stood on the other side of the staircase, against the wall. I was away from everyone, and had better opportunity to study the polarities. The mage and I ended being positive on the third polarity shift, and stood together in my spot. We had good healing, and no one ended up dying. Mechano-Lord Capacitus dropped the Hammer of the Penitent (needed by Arterus).
We were able to easily drop Gatewatcher Iron-Hand. I had to Soulshatter early in the fight, between the tank having to run out of melee range early in the fight, and his being unable to generate huge amounts of threat. We were are careful to not aggro the boss. I was tempted more than once to ask the Mage if he was finding he needed to throttle his DPS, but I restrained myself. I’m not sure what technique the tank was using…I had a quick look at his gear and everything seemed good enough for heroics. He might have to re-visit his sequence of threat-generating moves.
The Cache of the Legion yielded the Bloodfyre Robes of Annihilation (Illustra won the shard). We took the elevator up and began clearing the room. There was some succubus work…the druid ended up with off-tank duty on the fourth add. In my opinion, that’s how we should have handled the three-pulls earlier. The group elected to skip the second boss and pursue the third boss first.
We ended up having to run to the elevator between each of the six waves of mobs (even so, there were still several deaths). I didn’t really like this strategy, as it indicates to me that the group has weak technique. The tank wanted to be able to mark all of the mobs before we fought them. I suppose this might work in a group without voice communication. It just means it takes a lot more time than necessary is all.
In fighting Pathaleon the Calculator, we would wipe three times before finally bringing him down. During the first two attempts, we were having a lot of problems with the adds, despite the use of fear. The Mage was consistently being the one receiving the mind-control from the boss. Really, we weren’t even close on these attempts…when the tank went down, the boss was still at 30%-35% of his health. On the third attempt, I spent too much time using Seed of Corruption and the Mage spent too much time and mana trying to DPS down the adds. The fourth attempt was more successful…we agreed the tank would Thunderclap when the adds first appeared, and concentrate on DPSing down the boss. The high DPS approach worked. Pathaleon the Calculator dropped Baba’s Cloak of Arcanistry, the Beast Lord Helm, Handguards of the Steady, and a Primal Nether (won by Hkilla). All of the items were sharded.
With a bit of time left, we backtracked to attempt the second boss. This was encouraging. Most groups that wipe several times on the final boss elect to cut their losses and skip the second boss. Our first attempt against Nethermancer Sepethrea resulted in a wipe. On the second attempt, things went a lot smoother. I had fire elementals on me early, and didn’t have much time to get DoTs onto the boss. I think this helped with the threat, because I didn’t aggro the boss at all. At 5% health the tank was killed, and only the healer and I remained. Sepethrea charged me, and my final Shadowbolt finished her off. Dramatic finish. Nethermancer Sepethrea dropped the Nethershrike (disenchanted).
For a PUG, it was a good run. As today’s daily heroic quest, it gave me 6 Badges of Justice in all.
Black Is Still King
One of my staple money-making tips, at least for low-level characters, revolves around a simple article of clothing. This works great when you first create a toon on a new server, and you have no money to your name.
The item in question is the Stylish Black Shirt. Everyone wants to be stylish, and in the World of Warcraft (just as in life), a black shirt is the way to go. Just think of all the Rogues and shadow Priests who want to blend into the shadows. Many classes are known for having purple or green PvE gear, so it’s nice to have an option that has a chance of matching the rest of the outfit.
The shirt has the distinction of being sold in only one place…Stormwind City. Specifically, Lisbeth Schneider in the Canal Tailor Shop sells this shirt for only 60 silver. The tailor shop is a quick run from the auction house…which makes this process even more convenient.
The first 60 silver I make on a new server goes into purchasing the shirt and then auctioning it for between 4 gold and 6 gold. Assuming no one else is already selling them or undercutting you, they sell like hotcakes. This is one of the few items that is worth putting up at a neutral auction house every once in a while, because the Horde has no equivalent for this item in their own cities.
Before long, your level 5 toon on a brand new server could be sitting with 20-30 gold. Not bad for such a simple strategy.
Karazhan-Clearing Protection Warrior Gear Checklist
So, you gathered all of your tanking gear before entering Karazhan…and you’ve gotten some (or a lot) of experience tanking through the halls of Karazhan, perhaps all the way to Prince Malchezaar himself. The question is, have you gotten your tanking drops from Karazhan? Are you ready to move beyond?
Let’s review which Karazhan drops are good pieces for protection Warriors.
Attumen the Huntsman & Midnight
- Vambraces of Courage armor is an excellent upgrade for most of the pieces you might be wearing in the wrist slot. In Rockstar’s case, these have more armor, stamina, and defense than the Sha’tari Wrought Armguards. In addition, this item offers block value.
Moroes
- Crimson Girdle of the Indomitable is an excellent upgrade at the waist slot.
- Moroes’ Lucky Pocket Watch is probably one of the most (if not the most) coveted trinkets in Karazhan. It has an incredible amount of dodge value and should be one of the more reliable “panic trinkets” you could have for quite some time.
Maiden of Virtue
- Barbed Choker of Discipline is a terrific piece for the neck, and is loaded with stamina, defense, and dodge rating.
- Iron Gauntlets of the Maiden has opportunity for loads of stamina, defense, and a lot of block.
Opera Event
- Eternium Greathelm is a drop shared by all Opera events, so most tanks will be able to get this helm fairly quickly. This is a good placeholder until you can get your hands on your T4 helm from Prince Malchezaar.
Curator
- Warbringer Handguards (from Gloves of the Fallen Defender) offer more defense and probably much higher parry rating than whatever you’ve currently got. Make sure you get the right ones from your set vendor.
- Wrynn Dynasty Greaves is a nice upgrade to the Timewarden’s Leggings. Both pieces have three gem slots, but most Warriors will be stacking three heavy stamina gems. These greaves have nice increases in armor, defense, and dodge.
Terestian Illhoof
- Gilded Thorium Cloak is big in armor, stamina, and defense. Prior to Karazhan there are many different tanking cloaks, specializing in armor or defense or block rating. This cloak has an excellent mix of attributes.
Shade of Aran
- Shermanar Great-Ring is pure stamina, armor, and dodge rating. This is a ring that all manner of tanks will likely be seeking.
Chess Event
- Battlescar Boots is another big upgrade…more armor, some parry rating, and socket potential.
- King’s Defender is the sword that replaces The Sun Eater or the Crystalline Kopesh. The weapon has armor on it, and the dodge rating is replaced with hit rating.
Netherspite
- Mantle of Abrahmis is a solid upgrade at the shoulder position. It’s got a bit more stamina and defense over the Shoulderguards of the Bold, which I think is the leading contender of pre-Karazhan shoulder pieces.
Prince Malchezaar
- Warbringer Greathelm (from Helm of the Fallen Defender) is not only really cool-looking, it’s a huge helmet stats-wise. Helm of the Stalwart Defender has more armor and resilience, but this T4 helm for tanks has agility, a lot of block stats, and the opportunity to socket a meta-gem…and plus the upshot of set bonuses down the road. I think hands-down this is a better helm than anything pre-Karazhan. I also think it’s better than the Eternium Greathelm from the Opera event. Make sure you get the right one from your set vendor.
Nightbane
- Panzar’Thar Breastplate seems to have it all. More armor, more stamina, more defense, more shield block rating and shield block value, and three gem slots to boot. I’m not sure how this compares to items that might be crafted (assuming you’re an armorsmith), but this chest piece seems to be much better than any of the pre-Karazhan pieces I’ve listed before.
- Shield of Impenetrable Darkness has upgrades across all categories over Crest of the Sha’tar. The downside is no gem slots, so no customization. In all likelihood this means a bit less stamina, but still a great shield nonetheless.
These items pretty much comprise all of the plate-based Warrior gear with any combination of high armor, defense, or stamina attributes. There are many other pieces designed for protection Paladins or DPS-type Warriors that are not included in this list.
Karazhan With Eternal Force
Illustra used GEM to sign up with one of the Eternal Force teams running Karazhan. They allow her to come along (despite her Fury guild tag)…I don’t know if it’s because they recognize Illustra as an ex-External Force member, or if it’s because she kicked ass in Gruul’s lair, or if it’s because they know she has some sort of relation with Rockstar, who is now a member of Eternal Force. Whatever the reason, I got a chance to run last night.
The previous team had cleared through the Opera Event, so we entered through the side entrance and cleared towards the Curator. The team was veteran, and the DPS was good…there were 2 Rogues and 2 Shamans in the group, so I figured they would use more of a “cluster” strategy with Curator. That turned out to be the case. The Astral Flare were lights out, we downed them so fast through the first two Evocations. I ended up mis-timing a Curse of Doom…will have to work on that. The Hunter was afk taking care of some business for 90% of the fight, so we were essentially 9-manning this fight. The Curator was dropped in 5 minutes, 7 seconds, and dropped the Dragon-Quake Shoulderguards and the Gloves of the Fallen Champion.
We cleared further, and to my surprise, this group stopped to do Illhoof. Most groups that I’ve run with skip him and save him for later, or at least until after killing the Shade of Aran. In any event, this was my first time doing Illhoof on my Warlock…my role would be relatively simple…spam Seed of Corruption on Terestian Illhoof himself, allowing the detonations to burn down the imps. We had 2 Paladins in the groups…I was in the main tank’s group (Amaraa, a protection Paladin), and she was using the Fire Resistance Aura. That was the only FR I was using (outside of my imp’s Fire Shield buff), and did not have the benefit of Concentration Aura. I did have a shadow Priest in my group, so I’m sure that helped a great deal with the healing. I got sacrificed one time, but the group was able to rescue me with relative ease (yay!). Terestian Illhoof dropped The Lightning Capacitor (taken by Sango) and the Cincture of Will (taken by Sango). The fight lasted 4 minutes, 39 seconds.
We cleared the last little bit towards the Shade of Aran. This would be another one-shot fight, as we dropped him in 4 minutes, 55 seconds. I love being able to not worry about threat in this fight, and just unload on Shade. Personally I was able to banish an elemental, fear an elemental, and even burn down a third elemental during a Flame Wreath phase. That’s Warlock power. The Shade of Aran dropped the Mantle of the Mind Flayer and the Drape of Dark Reavers (taken by Trivia).
We then cleared to the Chess Event. I took a pawn starting in front of a rook, moved straight forward, and was able to kill (or help kill) an opposing pawn and rook. Just as I was killed, the game was won, so I didn’t have a chance to control a second piece. I didn’t really even get a chance to watch the rest of the action on the board. The chest yielded the Heart-Flame Leggings (taken by Delynn) and the Bladed Shoulderpads of the Merciless (taken by Osbourne).
The group wanted to skip Netherspite, as we had only a single tank. So we moved forward to make an attempt on Prince Malchezaar. We would end up wiping twice and defeating him on the third try. The first attempt was ended early when most of the melee died very early on due to an inferal landing just behind them and wiping them out. The second attempt was ended early when the main tank when down very suddenly. Now I was second in threat, and someone was suggesting I passed the tank in threat, causing the tank to die during Enfeeblement. It’s possible, but I’m not 100% sure. My Grim Reaper shows 5 hits of 2500 or more in rapid succession over the space of 1 second. But it’s also possible my Curse of Doom ticked and lofted me over the tank in threat (I had to burn Soulshatter earlier in the fight). The third attempt lasted 5 minutes, 58 seconds (with me throttling back quite a bit)…Prince Malchezaar dropped the Stainless Cloak of the Pure Hearted (taken by Seraphyne), Malchazeen (taken by Dronos), and the Helm of the Fallen Champion (taken by Osbourne).
So many successes under our belts tonight…we retraced our steps and went out to the terrace to summon Nightbane. This group uses the technique where everyone is on a single side (versus two groups on opposite sides). We would end up wiping once, returning, and be victorious on the second attempt, which lasted 11 minutes, 17 seconds. Nightbane dropped the Ironstriders of Urgency and the Robe of Elder Scribes (taken by Sango).
For Illustra, Nightbane also dropped the Blazing Signet. With the Earthen Signet in the bank, Illustra must now go back to heroic Slave Pens and complete The Cudgel of Kar’desh. Illustra will then be allowed to enter Serpentshrine Cavern (officially).
Watch The Guild
I’ve recently become aware of an ongoing series of webisodes about a group of World of Warcraft gamers. The whole thing is the brainchild of Felicia Day, the popular actress who is also known for her involvement with the World of Warcraft.
The short movies follow the lives of the characters inside and outside of the game. Maybe I should preface this…everyone should know the people portrayed in the webisodes are fictional, but we know people like do exist in the real world.
You can check out the episodes at http://www.watchtheguild.com.
At the time of this writing there are 5 in the public domain, and a 6th is scheduled to be released this week).