Dkati shows off her funny gear...

Here's a quick look at what I look like when I'm summoning elementals in Silithus! Woot fun!

Dkati feels better...

After being on a tirade about the state of the battlegrounds, I discovered that Dkato, my magey friend, found the secret.

Dkato is level 28. The 20-29 Battleground have little wait during prime-time. Furthermore, in a guild dedicated to 20-29 PvP (Saga), there is excellent team play.

So, the secret is: play only to have fun -- and at level 29, everyone is on a pretty even field! Woot!

Dkati thinks about the Honor System...

In its current state, the honor system of the World of Warcraft is awfully anti-casual and is often tauted as being terribly demanding and detrimental to high-ranking power-gamers.

What I was thinking, was the the current honor system should be scrapped for something that is more win/loss.

However, to make it work, the following items would have to be addressed:

(A) Coorindated Guild versus PUGs
(B) How many matches you play effecting your ranking. -- Playing the numbers game.

More on this later, as I get time to flesh it out...

Dkati finds the funniest... link... evah!

Roleplaying at it's finest!

Dkati finds a great armor list...

As I've hit the upper end of my career, I've started a hankering for new gear. I ran across a link that shows where all the nifty rogue stuff comes from. Woot!

http://www.fragstat.com/wow/instancedrops.html

Dkati, a big blade, and a black mask....

Sweeeeetness. Little gnome, big blade!

Dkati finds the best quote ever...

I found this on the World of Warcraft General Forums. It made me giggle a lot, especially the part about being paid in imaginary magic uniforms.

And thus, Kaganfindel of the Sanguis Sodalitas guild, said:

"What's the point in topping out a character in a game you don't enjoy, anyway? You'll spend every night working the same instance over for treasure and ignoring that big, beautiful game world because you've turned the game into an office job that pays in imaginary magic uniforms for you to wear to work. "

Simply fantastic. The rest of the post can be found here, assuming it hasn't fallen off the forums.

Dkati didn't Fall off Azeroth

Actually, I must say I'm quite pleased. A good friend, Katinka (consequently, another gnome) passed along a mighty fine weapon to me: The Krol Blade.

I'm quite ecstatic! I'll try to get some picture up soon. A gnome with an enormous butcher's knife is scary indeed!

Dkati Dreams...

... of a Barman Shanker. It's almost time to start trying to get this bad boy of a dagger. Sure, it'll look like a broken bottle -- but that's half the appeal!

Dkati is an Author....

Warsong Gulch Tactics 101

1. Introduction
This is intended to be a tactics guide for the Warsong Gulch (WG) BG. Primarily, it will deal with basic concepts and tactics for you average pickup group. I play alliance, so, I write with a bias hand with alliance as my team, and the horde as the bad guys. Feel free to replace your own faction liberally :)

2. Raid Coordination: Communication is KEY to success.
In almost every WG fight I've been a part of, it is typical to split into two 5 man groups. One group will be offense, the other defense. People seem to like this -- as it is simply. Any more groups will, in general, fail due to lack of communication and numbers.

3. The Defense
Being a part of a good defense take a LOT of patience. The best defense is to stay out of the line-of-sight of the tunnels and ALL 5 defensive members in the room. Scouts, while I've seen it happen, are rarely very useful and tend to get picked off while yelling "incoming!" It is best for the offense to shout out the incoming horde as they see them.

As alliance, you won't have earthbound totems to throw down, but those hunter freeze traps are excellent at the flag and entrances to the room. In fact, I'll argue that hunters are one of the largest assets to a defensive team you can have.

If they get the boots, they'll most likely go down the tunnel. If they get those boots and aren't snared, it's a foot race. Expect them to be followed (if played well) by at least one healer and probably a shaman that will spam earth totems. If you can, don't follow the main group of horde out, hop on your mount and head out the top entrance and cut them off. They almost always (99%) of the time go UP their tunnel looking for boots of speed and defense help.

4. The Offense
The offense is the hardest team to manage. You MUST have a strong leader in your group. He must call out where to meet. Usually, meeting middle map is good as it lets you see the field and warn your defense of who's incoming. However, do NOT get bogged down in chasing down EVERY last horde. Let me repeat this: If you are on OFFENSE, LET THE DEFENSE DO THEIR JOB. If you chase, your group will get disorganized. Concentrate on attacking instead.

I find that the upper way is mostly a waste of time. Dropping down is often disorienting to a pickup group. Better to run right up the gut. However, it is VERY important to go together. If the boots are up, don't be shy about grabbing them to run in and get flag. However, first one in will die. The third or fourth should get the flag. I suggest warrior or paladin first, but rogue can work if you have sprint up. Priests are ok as well, but have no HP or speed advantage and should instead play the heal role.

Once you get the flag, the fun starts. The guy with the flag has one goal -- RUN home. Everyone else has one other, but much more important role: distract and disable.

5. The Capture
A good balanced offense will have at least a single priest for shields -- and I prefer a druid to come along. The priest and druid will heal and shield the runner. Everyone else should snare/root/poly/etc the followers. There is no real set order of picking off the horde --- I always prefer to pick the person who is currently snaring or damaging the flag carrier.

Usually, unless you have the flag, and you're in a flag convoy, you won't get targeted very much. So concentrate not on KILLING or FINISHING off any single horde, but demobilizing and incapacitating the largest threat and continue to the next. For rogues, poison up those daggers, and snare, then keep on running to the next one who's attacking your flag carrier.

In the end, it's a game of seconds. All you're trying to do is buy a few more for the carrier. The team that defends the best and gives their team's flag carriers the most seconds, wins.

Summary:
(1) Snare, of any sort, is king. Both on offense and defense.

(2) Fear, snare, and polymorh are HUGE tools in stopping runners on defense and stopping pursuers in offense.

(3) If you're a rogue, avoid the arcanite reaper warriors! (*wink*)

(4) Priests will make your defensive life hell. You have two choices, try to kill them and let the flag go, or go after the flag carrier.

(5) When a flag is in route home, CLICK the mini-map to give your position and request backup. This is especially helpful when you get near your tunnel and within range of your defense.

{6} Make Two Groups in your Raid. Team #1 = offense, Team #2 = defense.

(7) Avoid spamming AOE spells and skills when supporting a flag carrier (except the mage AoE freeze). Most disorients and demobilizing skills will break on damage.

>
And most important -- LISTEN to whoever is in charge, COMMUNICATE impotant facts, offsense MOVES together, defense STAYS together -- and the alliance will win 3/0 each time.

Dkati becomes a Corporal...

After just a little horde slaying, I gained my first military rank in the Alliance -- Corporal!

Corporal Dkati -- doesn't that just... sound good?

Dkati and her glowing, pointy, thing-a-ma-jigs...

Here's my latest garb. Feather headress and pointy weapons. And, the complete lack of shirt and legs on my pants! What a harlet!

Dkati finds a beta gem...

During my spring cleaning, I came across an old picture I snapped in my beta incarnation. Basically, this giant elemental was destroying all who ventured toward the Stormwind city gates. This picture was, of course, taken while I was dead.

Dkati took a picture...

So this is my NFL style helm. Luckily, it's alrady been retired from active duty. However, since I talked about it, I thought I should get a picture up!

Dkati loves fashion...

Since the leather skull-cap / NFL style wasn't quite doing it for me --- and I've ALWAYS wanted a pointy wizard hat --- I've developed a fetish for different hats.

The best part is, that nasty NFL one has gone away -- as my new style is both functional and stunningly cute. The item in question has pretty feathers that jut out from each side. And, the most excellent part is: my hair isn't all wrapped up. Woot!

Of course, I still have the wizard hat --- it's just too --- cute.

Dkati hates when the world goes away...

See, I have a job. During lunch, I like to read about the world of Azeroth, rogue talents and trickery, and other things of a fanciful nature.

However, sometimes the world just goes poof... and I can't read.

Hmm... I might have to add a new entry --- "Hi, my name is Dkati, I am an WoW Addict."

Dkati feels like a pro football player...

Why in the world must the leather headwear look so... 50's NFL style.

I mean, really, sure I'm in the shadows a lot, and shouldn't need to worry about my appearance, but lately all of my targets are laughing hysterically at the sight of my poor, ugly helmet.

Gah.

Dkati dives into the deep blue...

Today I randomly ran into a kind druid looking to shatter this big stone down in Stranglethorn. The thing was, it was deep in the ocean. As a druid, he had no problem with the great depths, for he has no worries of running out of breath, with his sea-form and all.

However, I was a different matter all together!

Dive deep, dive hard. Shatter some stone, summon some nasty bugger. That was the order of the day. What I didn't realize is that the summoned guy stuns. And, he stunned me right as we killed him! I quickly raced to the surface to get air, and began to drown! It was horrible! In the last second, I made it to the surface -- my life held on by but a sliver.

Boy, gnome legs just aren't long enough to swim with any speed!

Dkati Lives in the Shadows...

... and I like it that way.

See, I began my profession as a rogue because, simply put, I like stabbing thing with pointy instruments of death.

Oddly, though no other profession has ever kept its appeal (I'm afflicted with a terrible disease known as GADD [gnome attention deficit disorder]) for more than, say, 2 days.

I've been a rogue since Azeroth was first born -- in fact, I existed in the days before Azeroth was open to one and all (some call it beta, but that's a word shrouded in mystery!).

And, I'm loving every minute of it. Besides the pointy-stabby fetish, I simply love the shadows. If they are ever taken away, my life wil have been for naught, and I will have to pick up a new profession!