Day Twenty Seven - 4 Sept 2010

The Darkmoon Faire is one of those things I've never explored, despite it being around for years. I had done some research and knew this weekend was my opportunity to experiment. Aldonza had been buying pieces on the cheap for over a month now, things like small furry paws and vibrant plumes. So Saturday morning found Kallixta gathering up her materials and running to Goldshire. There were some surprises as I turned in items for tickets. At least one tier closed early, opening another tier for an extra turn in. Luckily I had far more vibrant plumes than I needed (and planned to sell for a profit now that this week means they're in demand).

So now I'm sitting at 2575/3000 Neutral with the Darkmoon Faire, but still less than 100 tickets. Grinding for reputation or tickets doesn't seem like much fun. The most obvious thing to follow up on would be cards for decks. One in particular appeals to me, the Mages Deck and the Darkmoon Pendant it yields. I'll just shop the Auction House for a bit. If I get stuck, then I'll ask around for an Inscriptionist and provide the materials.

Later in the afternoon, I decided I was ready to tackle a dungeon and selected random. I got the Scarlet Monastery Library. I was nervous about runners and holding aggro. The group was very good and when I hit "share" on the book quest, I was surprised how many didn't have it! They were appreciative and someone else knew exactly where we needed to go. I guess I was a bit cautious in my pulls, but received encouragement for it. I spent time reading every book we passed for the Well Read achievement.

Arcanist Doan fell soon enough.

The satchel provided a necklace with an uninspiring bonus. Turning in the quest gave me level 35, and then I decided to queue up again. I deliberately selected Library this time and had a rare bad pug. When the queue pops, I start typing a Welcome message in the party chat. I often have it ready before everybody zones in. It's usually "Welcome! Let's take a moment to buff and let me know when you're ready". I don't want to sound dictatorial, but it also reminds folks why I'm not running after the first mob. Not this time. I hadn't buffed ANYBODY yet when someone had already dashed into the hall and started combat.

I carefully said something about waiting for the healer to mana up before moving on. I had handled large pulls in the prior run, but I also knew runners meant adds would arrive while Consecration was on cool down, yet the DPS were demanding "BIGGER PULLZ" in lawl speak. After they pulled deliberately again, I had enough. "Then you can tank. Goodbye." And I left the party.

I felt bad about leaving the healer, but there was no way I'd enjoy finishing that pug. It wasn't worthwhile. I refuse to feel guilty. I requeued soon enough and had a thoroughly enjoyable experience. I experimented with bigger and bigger pulls while checking with the party if that was okay. The communication was supportive and I was happy with the result.

With the bad taste diluted after that, I felt I could end the night in good conscience.

I worry about the state of Azeroth Library Science though