The next workshop in the screenwriting series I’m attending this summer starts this week. I’m eager to be underway again. I’m also looking forward to receiving feedback on the edits I’ve made since the last course. Still multi-boxing my trio in World of Warcraft, I really wanted to reach level 40 before the long evenings of writing begin again and I did.
Two things come with hitting level 40 that I was excited about reaching. First is access to a faster ground mount, which is very beneficial since I’m zigzagging zones a lot more. Three linked characters means that I finish the quests I’m interested in doing in an area very quickly. I can even do more of the collection quests, something you typically skip when multi-boxing, since getting 10 pig ears across three characters can be tedious. However, with higher level Holy Nova x2 and Arcane Explosion, I’m finding that doing them for quests intended for my level is easier. Plus there are some zones that I just like – the view, ambiance and the mobs. After I’ve completed the quests on my list, I sometimes linger and AOE grind. The coastline of Stranglethorn Vale would be one of the places that I find rather soothing in WOW.
I just started messing with using the trio to AOE. Having never played a mid level Mage before, I started by doing what I recall seeing other Mages do – freeze mobs in place then Blizzard them dead with the Priests bubbling and healing. Recently, it dawned on me that just running the trio in together and letting them do Holy Nova and Arcane Explosion was MUCH FASTER. When Holy Nova was a talent in the Holy tree it was very inefficient as a damage spell because the mana consumption was so high. One or two uses and you were dry. Many Priests purchased the spell but down ranked it to level 1, and only used it as a means of breaking rogue stealth in PVP. Now that it’s a purchased spell, it does nice damage and consumes less mana.
The most exciting aspect of hitting level 40 on the Priests is of course, going purple in Shadowform. It’s no longer the face-melting mega pew-pew spec it was back in the day, but it’s still regarded as a great DPS + utility spec for PVE. I have read about Discipline’s recovery from the mundane boost your mana pool and spirit only uses, to being combined with Holy to form a Battle Priest sort of build. I don’t know the particulars but I’d guess talents such as Improved Shield, Reflective Shield, Pain Suppression and Infusion are part of the mix. Those are probably the same talents used in the new Priest AOE spec I’ve seen mentioned in chat. When I have time to try out dual specs and the feature is working as intended, I will do Shadow and Disc/Holy on both Priests until I get serious about 5-mans.
It’s taken 3 weeks of very casual play to hit level 40. I don’t expect to have any more time on my hands to play than I have the past few weeks. It has felt very effortless. With the Recruit-a-Friend XP bonuses and the adjusted leveling speed implemented in the old zones, you can sneeze and level these days in old Azeroth. That being the case, and the fact that I have NO NEW GAMES on my watch list *sad face*, there’s a high probability that this trio will at least make it to Outland.
