gdp's Comments

Dragonsworn : How to apply for a raiding guild

Tue, 8 Nov 2011 20:37:21 +0000

Great advice all around, Aro! It was pointed out to me that I overlooked the grammar/complete sentences/punctuation thing in my own impromptu "guide." I hope you all are able to find the raiders that you need!

Dragonsworn : Transmogrification: a big fancy word for "RP in raids"

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 19:45:30 +0000

Hell yes she does! That is awesome. I really can't wait for Transmogrification. It's going to be so fun to SEE how people imagine their characters to look.

Jaded Alt : Making a Buck While Leveling Alt No. 2349

Fri, 8 Jul 2011 16:04:00 +0000

This is a great article, and it's a fun thing to do as a sort of mindless grind! I leveled a druid this way sometime after Cataclysm launched (originally intended to be a Worgen, she ended up another Night Elf...) I enjoyed zipping around herbing and mining and questing and she didn't cost me any money, she only made it. I read a bit of your discussion with Syl on the linked post! You know you DO have at least one 'known' out of guild server connection. ;) I'm usually pugging anyhow so I'm often game to queue up with someone. I found it took me a long while to make connections on MR (the dungeon finder launched just after we server-transferred there) but I've managed to do it slowly and gradually. It definitely takes a concerted effort now, whereas before LFD it just seemed to kind of happen naturally. :( My recent post Healing Questionnaire: Pally Edition

Jaded Alt : Where Has the Time Gone? A-Musement Party!

Thu, 7 Jul 2011 10:56:24 +0000

Ahh! The last time you did this I didn't feel I could ask for a muse because I'd only just started reading and it would've been too much like, "Hi, oh by the way can you do this thing for me?" Now I feel I'm completely justified in taking advantage of your muse-y skills! ;)

Bubble Hearth : The Ethical Alt

Fri, 12 Nov 2010 19:25:04 +0000

This is a very interesting idea! I think the results will make for some good reading. I'd like to see what happens when you get to the DEHTA quests, for instance. Killing sentient beings to help those who can't defend themselves...? Since it's based on your personal ethics, I suppose I will have to wait and see how that plays out. Good luck, I'm looking forward to it! My recent post Everyday I Wipe The Raid Because Of A Book

Aurdon's World of Warcraft Mage Blog : You Win It, You Wear It

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 18:06:31 +0000

I CAN'T HELP MYSELF, it's a problem. Seriously... Oh well, at least I don't take up too much system memory. :D

Aurdon's World of Warcraft Mage Blog : You Win It, You Wear It

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 07:11:26 +0000

True, I was hyperbolizing quite a bit! I've equipped things on the spot - the first MH weapon upgrade Vid got from ICC was a no-brainer, even unenchanted it was a 251 versus her 232 and the haste alone made it worth it. For BoEs, the rule absolutely makes sense. For BoPs, well, at some point you have to trust that the people in the run wouldn't roll on things that they won't use, just for kicks. (Pally bracers from 10 man Gunship, the Bracers of Pale Illumination. :D)

Aurdon's World of Warcraft Mage Blog : You Win It, You Wear It

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 04:06:26 +0000

I think it's a stupid rule, too. At the end of one of our alt runs last weekend, someone made a remark about a hunter alt's gemming. I inspected him - he'd been equipping "upgrades" as we went, the end result being that he had eight empty sockets, at least six pieces of ungemmed gear, and no meta gem or gem in his helmet. I can appreciate that the gear was "better" than what he'd had before in terms of ilevel, but the end result was poor DPS and a mishmash of unprepared gear that didn't do him any credit... as we were staring down the Lich King. You have to use common sense with these things, and saying "You will wear it" doesn't seem very sensible to me. My recent post Strict Stalemate

Kiss My Alas : Guest Post: Alas, the GM

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 15:11:36 +0000

Haha. I'd like to hear Alas' George Carlin impression. ;) About the rest - Well, what do I know? I have no evidence to the contrary, so it must be true...

Kiss My Alas : On obliviousness

Wed, 14 Jul 2010 18:57:11 +0000

Honestly Alas, I can really relate. Well, I usually err more on the side of snapping back when it's a car situation. But once I had almost the identical thing happen to me - some guy in a truck was turning left and I had the walk signal and he nearly ran me over. He yelled and gave ME the finger. I was shaking the whole rest of the way to my destination, and honestly that time I did nothing, mostly because I was too shaken. I've also grit my teeth through sitting next to someone being rude (uncontrolled kids, extremely loud talkers, cell phones, etcetera). I should speak up but often don't. If you learn the secret, please let me know. And if I was ever being rude and someone called me on it I would be extremely apologetic, but I think many people tend to be more inclined to get defensive/aggressive in return, which is why I often don't speak up myself. I'm usually more inclined to remove myself from the situation if I can. My Mom and I once walked out of a movie (not a great one) because of a loud popcorn eater. My brother, on the other hand, in the same situation, leaned forward and said loudly, "Do you think you could possibly eat that any louder? I can still hear the movie a little bit." I'd like to take him everywhere I need such statements, but I doubt I'll ever be able to utter them myself.

Kiss My Alas : PUGs and screenshots, the disturbing edition

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 17:43:30 +0000

...I have no words.

Kiss My Alas : A mini-rant because I'm still exhasted from my weekend

Mon, 21 Jun 2010 15:09:34 +0000

Hear, hear. Honestly, if I'm looking over a new blog and the spelling and grammar seem poor or there are glaring errors in the first few posts, I won't even add it to my blog roll or read further. I put an enormous amount of time and care into every entry I write - re-reading it usually three times at the minimum, changing a word here and there so it flows better, and ensuring there are no typos or misspellings. If someone couldn't be bothered to take the time to run a post through a simple spelling and grammar check, then why should I spend my time reading it?

Aurdon's World of Warcraft Mage Blog : Girls Gone Geek: Rhii Recommends Books

Sun, 13 Jun 2010 06:40:46 +0000

Thank you for the recommendations! I've been struggling to find something new to read lately, or aimlessly picking up books and reading a bit before growing bored and putting them down. Now I can look for not just your recommendations, but also Alas' and Tam's, which pretty much makes this the best post ever. Have you read any Charles de Lint (my contribution!) Or (going with more fantasy) I really liked Katya Reimann's Tielmaran books, she's not very well-known but I happened upon them a few years ago. My recent post Counting the Reasons

Kiss My Alas : Pinning my hopes on June (and murlocs)

Tue, 1 Jun 2010 15:44:24 +0000

Hey, that's awesome! I love when blogging brings people together in the actual game. I know exactly what you mean about the "your blogger friends" thing. Some folks in my guild were a bit the same way when I have friends who drop by from other places. Lara transferred her bear to my server to pug with me some and I was dismayed when I told a guildie about it and he said, "So you have a stalker." Um...no! I guess if it isn't something you're part of it can be tough to understand, but like you said I'm sure they'll warm to each other in no time. :)

Righteous Orbs : ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn

Wed, 19 May 2010 14:03:56 +0000

The Yogg metaphor is far, far too apt. I always joke that I can't congratulate people who have become officers because I'm not happy about it, in fact I feel guilty. I have just taken what was for them, a game, and made it into a job. It's not that being an officer/GL is without its rewards, and there's a lot of satisfaction in the "working to help your fellow guildie" feeling... But sometimes I'd just like to be off emo fishing, you know? You're also exactly right about the Dorian Gray thing. I ripped the face off someone who'd made a really dumb move not long after I took over the guild and if I could go back in time and change it I definitely would. It wasn't appropriate, even if he DID deserve it; I shouldn't have done it. I hope I've learned better since. In the spirit of not just writing to tell you "I'm sure you're awesome!" I'll say I'm sure you have your failings, I know I sure do, but you're far from blind to them and work to circumvent them so - that's all anybody can really ask of you. I'll just be flailing along here doing the same and hoping my guild is patient with me. My recent post Tuesday Art Day: Dwarves!

Righteous Orbs : the dancers at the end of time

Mon, 17 May 2010 14:12:09 +0000

Happy blogiversary...thingo, Tam and Chas! I'm going to get all sappy and sentimental and say that I am really enjoying reading that you're happy. I know the past few months have been a struggle for you to figure out a bit where you fit; so that makes this post all the more enjoyable to me, anyhow. We just went and did Yogg again yesterday (One Light for people to get Ulduar mounts) and I don't remember seeing all the fancy, pretty brain room things. I remember: "OMG IT'S A SKULL IT'S LOOKING AT ME, face away from the skull, okay Starfaaallllll, run to the brain thing, ah I'm killing myself, Starfall is killing me, whyyy Starfall, I loved you well," lather, rinse, repeat. I've never done Yogg with more than one Keeper, and reading about things that you saw - that I've never had time to see - that makes me a bit sad. I think you're onto something there. Or at least, when you're so focused on progression it's all too possible to miss out on things entirely. My recent post …

Righteous Orbs : The Unnatural Axe

Wed, 12 May 2010 03:36:57 +0000

I like the part of your post about privilege, and acknowledging that we all, in fact, have a bit of loot whore in us. The other day the Sanctified token dropped for Druids/Mages/Rogues/DKs dropped and it's only the second time I've seen it and everyone else in the guild (I thought) has already had one... and I lost the roll to the resto druid who hasn't been raiding for months. I recognize that he had as much right to it as I did, but I still may have made the sound of ultimate loot suffering. I'm over myself now. Our guild keeps it pretty simple; our hybrids all have a spec that is their "main" and it must be declared. I'm a moonkin first, resto second. Sometimes there's overlap in gear anyhow, but I don't take a resto piece if it's good for any mainspec people. Same with our enhancement/elemental shaman. His caster spec gets geared more slowly because he's enhance about 90% of the time. I don't think we've had any problems in that direction. Main is the spec you do most, not what you are at the time. I don't think it's caused problems. We have had problems with some people being generous and passing things and other people grabbing at everything they can get, but that person left the guild. My recent post The ICC Blues

Aurdon's World of Warcraft Mage Blog : Hello From Finals Land!

Sun, 2 May 2010 07:02:03 +0000

Good luck with your finals, Rhii! And I'm sorry to have called it, in this case - I would've liked to do Scholo, Strat, and some other of the later instances myself. I think they should have made them available sooner, or made BRD available for less time or...something. By the time you've suffered through so many hours of BRD, the "Just get me to Outlands for crying out loud" urge is very strong. You leveled INSANELY fast though. Jaw-droppingly so, I don't know what to say. I'm ashamed of my /played time on Vid, haha. My recent post I seem to have misplaced my pants.

Righteous Orbs : ignorance is sadly no hindrance to expression

Fri, 30 Apr 2010 13:30:22 +0000

p.s. Sometimes I try to comment here and nothing ever happens! I was trying to comment about your dorf's mount the other day and it just hangs up and never posts. For the record, talbuk all the way.

Righteous Orbs : ignorance is sadly no hindrance to expression

Fri, 30 Apr 2010 13:29:30 +0000

I'm glad you said something to your guildie about it, Tam, because sometimes that kind of same-faction peer pressure is actually effective. I don't know if it was, in this case, but it's always worth a shot. I never encountered the famous "Alliance smooshing Crossroads" people while leveling my small Hordies (Argent Dawn US before I server transferred them - go figure!) but I encountered the same thing in the Horde version - people clearing out Westfall while I was trying to quest there. I don't mind a bit of PvP, I do mind useless, needless griefing. Usually I would just go out and keep questing until they'd gotten bored and left, which didn't take too long most times.