/lootdance

Well, after trying to get runs into Utgarde Pinnacle for what seems like ages, I finally got in there twice in the last week and last night it happened, the phat lootz that I've been waiting for dropped:

Red Sword of Courage.

If you run Naxx regularly or are getting drops in Ulduar already, then you are thinking, "Phhht."
For you others I would like to take this opportunity to say ....

"EAT IT!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

That is all.

On a more interesting note, there have been some major changes to encounters in Ulduar. It seems as if it was tuned a little too hard for most players so alot of the encounters are getting nerfed a bit. See this WoWInsider article for more.

Cheers.

Info Regarding Ulduar Fights

Both from maintankadin, but slightly different focus on each.

Very Concise Raid Strats.

In-depth Strats Focusing on Tanking.

That is all for now.

Move Successful and other changes

Well, Knales made his move from Norgannon to Fenris successfully. The move was completed late last Wednesday night and I immediately ran a PUG heroic Violet Hold, and that went well.

That Friday night I ran 25 man Naxx with my new guild and that was a success, however we had to PUG in at least 8 people so that made things a little slow and slightly less organized than I think the leadership would have liked. I picked up 2 tanking pieces in there, which I was very happy about. Gauntlets of the Disobediant, from Noth the Plaguebringer and Bindings of the Hapless Prey from Maexxna.

I have also made some significant changes to my UI in anticipation of more raiding. Normally I run without any changes to my base Blizzard UI, just additions really. Now things are different.

When running 5 mans I use Healbot to keep up on buffs both for my party members and for myself. I currently have 4 self-buffs I need to reapply everytime we wipe.

In a raid however, this can get a little too screen-filling. Plus I would really like to be able to change what I do and do not see on my screen a bit more. So I've made 2 major additions.

X-perl changes the way you see almost everything on your screen, but it does not mess with your action bars. It gives you much more flexibility to deliver more information, in a more precise manner to yourself. I am really liking it alot.

The second change I've made is for my action bars. I have added Dominos. This basically scrubbs away the Blizzard bars and makes way for nearly complete customization of your bars.

Both of these addons will require to play around and experiment extensively before you get what you want, but as you play with them they will help you to define what exactly you are looking for in action bar and unit frames addons.

I am still not sold entirely on either of them. There are still a few things that I want to change, but I think with some more tweaking I can get there with these 2 addons.

I am still using Healbot for my buffs, which is gonna blow when I raid, but I am going to be giving Pallypower a test run this week at some point. The biggest problem with PP is that it does not support Seals or Auras, which is something that I can get healbot to keep track of.

If anyone out there has any suggestions as to where to go with these addons or if I should try something new and exciting, please let me know.

Cheers.

Moving

It's official. I am moving my main, Knales, the paladin tank from Norgannon to Fenris. I have a RL friend there who is in a guild that needs tanks and they raid regularly, so I'm moving.

I've been agonizing over this decision for weeks now, but finally it came down to one question: Where would I have the most fun?

My answer to that had to do with raiding, not being the only tank around and mostly just being able to get stuff that I want to do done. Plus I have spent some time with the guild that I will be moving to, and they are a shit-ton of fun to play with. Even if you're just on guild chat it's good times.

Of course, there are a number of people I will miss on Norgannon. People from my guild and players from our allied guild. I've only been with my still current guild for a little over 3 months, and while I have run up to raid leader and high level officer in that time, I think they'll get by without my tanking skills -- after all there are tanks a plenty out there. Plus I want to just throw an idea out to my guild leader -- throw some tanking leather on your druid and get in there, I bet you'd make a great tank!

So tonight after the scheduled Obsidian Sanctum run (Sarth+0) I will be hitting the transfer button. I have already cleared out my bank character, leaving some gold and items for my 73 hunter who will be remaining behind for the foreseeable future.

I want to end this with a fond farewell to someone else I will miss -- Big Red Kitty. He has decided to re-dedicate himself to his wife and family and while I applaud that decision, I will miss his good cheer and fun posts. Reading his farewell post got me a little misty thinking about my own 7 month old daughter (I hope my play time is balanced with my family time, but only time will tell I suppose).