Flying in Stormwind

This week's BA Shared Topic is Initial Thoughts on Cataclysm

What I've been doing has pretty much been the same as other folks: levelling my level 80 towards 85 and/or levelling a newer toon through the changed Azeroth. There are a few things to note.

I almost squeeled with glee doing the dailies in Stormwind. I wanted a break from questing in Hyjal, so I ported into the Mage's Tower, stopped at the top of the spiral ramp and hopped on my mount. I flew over to Robby Flay to pick up King's Cider and hopped back on my mount. I floated across the canal to grab the fishing daily. Flying between apple trees was just plain fun! I got to see things so differently from above those roof tops. No winding run to get to what-her-name's pond for fishing, just up and over! The distances around SW are familiar but shorter compared to say Icecrown.

I'm still frustrated that I can't learn my Feathered Lure! I bought and paid for it and as far as I can tell, I meet the pre-requisites, but apparently it's bugged.

Another change I'm adjusting to is the new laptop. I shouldn't get too used to it since Syylia is taking it away with her soon, but I got the Identity add-on installed. It's just too convenient to use the nice fast new machine. Cataclysm is up and working on both of the other laptops, but I can't resist the shiny new thing. The problem is my fingers can't seem to find some of the keys. I'm spending far too much time in combat hunting for what should be natural. And I've never taken a screenshot because that key sequence is just wrong for the layout.

I'm glad I have the Find Fish ability. As a Mage, Enchanter/Tailor, I'm not tracking anything else and there hasn't been any competition over fishing pools in Hyjal. I'll grab those [Mountain Trout] at every opportunity. Sometimes it's a bit surreal, quietly fishing in a stream while Elemental Fire is raining down on the other side of the creek. There was one bugged pool in a cave. I kept getting flagged as "In Combat" and it wouldn't allow me to switch back to my fighting clothes.

Syylia experimented with Archaeology first and I only started with it last night. I wasn't ready to jump back into questing and thought it'd be a change of pace. My map showed two sites in Stranglethorn and two in Wetlands. I took the opportunity to pick up new flight paths in Wetlands while finding my first few Dwarven pieces. Cleaning out those two sites gave me a new node in southern Hillsbrad, so I grabbed those too. Instead of heading south, I decided I'd give Kalimdor a try. Supposedly, there's a chance for Tol'vir discoveries. My first two sites were in Felwood and Winterspring. My next two were both in Desolace. All four sites yielded Night Elf pieces and my skill is at 22. It'll be a slow grind, but it made for an interesting break.
All those unusable quest greens have already allowed me to start accumulating some disenchantment action. My skill is still a bit short of the old max 450, so I need to work on that sometime.

I've been selling ten [Netherweave Bags] for around 20g each every day this week. That's about all that's moving on the Auction House.

So how's your experience going?

The Portal Business

Martuska is a Mage, so I know I've been spoiled a bit. I've spent some time on non-Mages, but when Hallow's End needed me to zip around a continent to Inns to Trick or Treat for candy, it really underscored how handy teleport can be.

I watched poor Syylia as she had to move from flight path to flight path.

Yes, It's good to be a Mage.

Now the other bloggers rant or apologize for Blizzard, I sympathize and worry, but it bothers only a little. I worry just how painful it will be as I level my newer toons.

Still, I had a thought and was very pleased to see it echoed by Klepsacovic. Why couldn't there be a second hearthstone? It would still require some travel to see the sights, but having one set to your current exploration station and the other set to your preferred capital would be a significant improvement.

Another thought, and less fleshed out, would be Why not make it crafted? I could see Blacksmiths making the initial stone, like they do with Enchanter's Rods. Then an Enchanter is needed to wave their hands over it.

They could even make it multi-level. An Expert BS could craft a stone that only binds to an Azeroth capital city. For most folks, this would be satisfactory, too! A higher level stone binds to any Vanilla Inn while other stones work for Outland or Northrend.

It's a thought.