Into the Emerald Dream

The same wisdom that guided me this far is now telling me that it's not the time to leave this sacred land. I'm not prepared yet.

My masters have taught me that there's still much to learn from nature and the forests of Teldrassil still hold many a secret, waiting to be discovered, waiting to root themselves in my spirit.

I'll stay here for a longer while, unearthing the wisdom of this mysterious place we call home. I'll stay a while, in meditation, contemplating, losing myself into the Emerald Dream.

***

Greetings fellow readers!

I've decided its time for me to take a break from Alindore. Many people could argue "What? You didn't even reach level 15!". This is not the reason. I think the Blog, while a fun and interesting experience, didn't yield the results I had in mind. Maybe I didn't put enough thought into it? Maybe I didn't advertise it properly? Who knows. Alindore will return, someday, of that I'm sure. But for the time being I'll focus on my main WoW character.

I enjoyed my exploits in the Emerald Dream Realm, and I'm sure I'll enjoy them even more once I return, once Alindore awakes again to continue her studies of the Way of the Druid. Maybe on that time I'll know more about this blogging bussiness? At any rate, safe journeys to everyone who dropped and read my small, humble Blog.

May Elune's light shine upon you!

~Alindore

Alindore = Resto Druid

I'm now a level 12 (almost 13) Druid. That means that I've started to eat my delicious talent points. So far I've placed them on Improved Mark of the Wild and I'm considering going deeper and deeper into the Restoration talent tree. This is not the first time I'd play a healer, my first character in WoW was a holy-specced Paladin (although I must confess I didn't really enjoy healing with my Paladin, and then re-specced myself to a Retribution build).

However, I believe the Druid will be more interesting for me in a healing role, mainly because of the different types of healing abilities available. Heal over time spells (both a HoT, a Burst + HoT spell and a stackable HoT + Burst at the end of time, very sweet imo), an AoE heal, a single-target heal, and a Shapeshift ability to transform into a dedicated healing form, the Tree of Life. Let's see how this goes. I know that this is an RPPvP realm, and I know there's much ganking to be had, but I don't mind that much. That's one of the reasons I choose Emerald Dream as Alindore's home. I'll keep you all posted on the developments of my Resto Druid!

The Crown of the Earth

Now that the time of my departure from my beloved Teldrassil draws close, while I sit in awe here, gazing at the sacred waters of the Moonwell, I think it's a good time to reminisce about the knowledge I've received from my masters in this forest.

Tenaron Stormgrip taught me that "The moonwells hold the waters of the Well of Eternity, the ancient source of magic that has wrought so many horrors upon our world. The druids take advantage of its properties, and the Sentinels revere the wells as shrines to Elune, but sorcery is forbidden to all." He also told me about the aftermath of the Battle of Mount Hyjal: "Much has changed with our people since the Battle of Mount Hyjal. Nordrassil lies a pale shadow of what it once was, its power used to defeat Archimonde and drive back the Burning Legion..."

After giving me his words of wisdom, he adviced me to approach Corithras Moonrage to continue my studies of history, and to learn the meaning of the sacred Moonwells. Corithras told to me that "the druids in Darnassus use the water of the moonwells of Teldrassil, and their moonwell must be replenished from time to time." He explained me the process of collecting the pristine waters in specially crafted phials. After this, he proceeded with the tale, "After the Battle of Mount Hyjal, we were without direction. Nordrassil smoked from the fire it unleashed, and our immortality--the very essence of our beings!--was lost. It was in this trying time that the Betrayer was freed from his prison, and Shan'do Stormrage disappeared. A dark time for all."

While making me perform certain tasks, he continued to offer me insight about the history of our kin. Going deep into the roots of our plight, he told me that "Shan'do Stormrage never returned, and the druids were in disarray, and to this day we still do not know what became of him. With Malfurion missing, Arch Druid Fandral Staghelm took over the leadership of the druids, convincing the Circle of Ancients in Darkshore that it was time for our people to rebuild, and that it was time for our people to regain their immortality.

With the approval of the Circle, Staghelm and the most powerful druids grew Teldrassil, the new World Tree.

All was not well with Teldrassil, however. Staghelm's carefully made plans for the new World Tree had borne out as he had hoped, but there was one small problem, a problem to which many of the troubles on Teldrassil may be attributed.

Along with the druids, the Oracle Tree and the Arch Druid have been carefully monitoring the growth of Teldrassil. But though we have a new home, our immortal lives have not been restored.

To be in the presence of the Oracle Tree... it is almost to feel wisdom take form. Let me continue the telling...

With Teldrassil grown, the Arch Druid approached the dragons for their blessings, as the dragons had placed upon Nordrassil in ancient times. But Nozdormu, Lord of Time, refused to give his blessing, chiding the druid for his arrogance. In agreement with Nozdormu, Alexstrasza also refused Staghelm, and without her blessing, Teldrassil's growth has been flawed and unpredictable..."

Before giving me a final task he gave me these last words of wisdom: "Without the blessings of Alexstrasza the Life-Binder and Nozdormu the Timeless, Teldrassil's growth has not been without flaw. Strange beasts have been reported arising from the very ground of the tree, and crazed furbolgs attack passing travelers. I can only hope that the solution the Arch Druid is looking for will be found quickly." And then I continued my journey into the city of Darnassus.

The Way of the Druid: Level 10 Abilities

Welcome to The Way of the Druid! In this feature we'll discuss the abilities and talents of the Druid class, focusing on their uses and the way I use them in the game. Every 10 levels I'll make a new feature post to discuss the new additions and improvements to the Druid's arsenal of abilities. On certain occasions, a special TWotD post can happen if a topic worthy of discussion arises; any gameplay topic related to playing the Druid to its fullest potential is welcome here. Without further ado, enjoy the feature!

The Druid's abilities and talents: An overview

The Druid is one VERY versatile class. In my opinion, it might take the crown as THE hybrid class in WoW. Each of the three types of abilities and talents, which are Balance, Feral and Restoration, focuses on a different role. Balance is oriented towards the Druid who wants to focus on inflicting damage with spells. Feral is the king for melee DPS and bear tank Druids. Restoration, well, the name says it all: Increased power for the Druid healbot.

At level 10 all classes have few abilities (and only 1 talent point) at their disposal. The Druid is no exception to this. The next part of the feature will describe the different abilites and the selection of talents.

Balance abilities

Entangling Roots (Rank 1) [50 Mana, 1.5 sec cast, 30 yd range]: This ability, well, I just love it. Entangling Roots does just what the name suggests: The Druid commands nature to root a target to the soil by entangling the target with roots. The plus: The roots not only keep the target stuck in the same position for a while; they deal 20 nature damage over the course of 12 seconds. The cons: You can only use this ability outdoors, so no CC inside caverns or dungeons; and they break kind of easily. Still, one of the most useful abilities for a solo Druid. A good pull spell, you can start a fight by casting Entangling Roots first and then spam Wrath / Moonfire to kill mobs.

Moonfire (Rank 2) [50 Mana, instant cast, 30 yd range]: This balance ability is a good way of boosting DPS output while you attack with other abilities or even with the melee auto-attack. Moonfire's damage might seem a bit on the low side, between 13-18 arcane damage, but the nice feature is that Moonfire puts a DoT on the target dealing an additional 32 arcane damage over the course of 12 seconds. A good way of using Moonfire is to use it every 12 seconds just to re-apply the arcade dmg DoT.

Teleport: Moonglade [150 Mana, 10 sec cast]: This is a teleport spell that transports the caster to Moonglade instantly. It works exactly the same way the Mage teleport spells work. The only difference is that this one only requires mana to be cast (the Mage teleport spells require a reagent). This is a nice thing to have, considering that you'll have to visit Moonglade several times for Druid-related class quests (also handy during the Moon Festival).

Thorns (Rank 1) [35 Mana, instant cast, 30 yd range]: Thorny plants hurt right? Well, this buff does the same thing. The buffed target will deal 3 nature damage to the attacking creature for 10 minutes. Not the best damage, but damage nonetheless. Good damage in the long run for dungeons and places where you find lots of melee mobs. Remember to always keep this buff up.

Wrath (Rank 2) [35 Mana, 1.7 sec cast, 30 yd range]: The workhorse DPS ability for Druids at this level. Wrath launches a bolt of nature energy to the targeted creature, dealing 28-32 nature damage. With a moderate casting time and a decent range, Wrath is a very nice ability. Its great in conjunction with Entangling Roots.

Feral abilities

Bear Form (Shapeshift) [57 Mana, instant cast]: The Bear Form shapeshifting ability is, perhaps, the most notable ability available to a level 10 Druid. The benefits of shifting into Bear Form are: +33 melee attack power, a 180% increase in the amount of armor given by armor pieces and +25% stamina increase. Transforming into a Bear allows the Druid to endure more melee damage and allows a Druid to perform the tanking role in groups. While in Bear Form you'll be able to use other Feral abilities. If you want to tank, you need to focus on the Feral talents and learn how to harness the power of your Bear. Roar!

Demoralizing Roar (Rank 1) [10 Rage, instant cast, req. Bear Form]: This debuff lowers the target's melee attack power by 31 and lasts 30 seconds. Not a bad thing to apply to enemies as a good way of lowering the damage you receive (adding this bonus to the increased mitigation you gain as a Bear).

Growl [Melee range, instant cast, 10 sec cooldown, req. Bear Form]: This ability taunts the target creature, thus the target attacks the Druid instantly. This works just like the Warrior's Taunt skill, and it's a great resource at the disposal of aspiring Druid Bear tanks.

Maul [15 rage, next melee attack, req. Bear Form]: The Maul ability is a great DPS boost you can use while attacking targets as a Bear. It works pretty much like the Warrior's Heroic Strike ability, increasing the damage dealt by the next melee attack by 18 points.

Restoration abilities

Healing Touch (Rank 2) [55 Mana, 2 sec cast, 40 yd range]: Healing Touch will heal the target creature for 91 to 116 health points. This is the most basic, single-target Druid healing spell as it heals for a good amount of health points with a nice range at a moderate Mana cost.

Mark of the Wild (Rank 2) [50 Mana, instant cast, 30 yd range]: The Mark of the Wild (or just Mark, as many people call it) it's THE Druid buff ability. It is, in fact, one of the best buffs in the game, scaling VERY well as the ranks increase. This rank of MotW increases the buffed creatures armor by 65 points and ALL attributes by 2. Yeah, it's certainly good. Keep it up at all times.

Rejuvenation (Rank 2) [40 Mana, instant cast, 40 yd range]: Rejuvenation serves as the simplest HoT (Heal over Time) spell of the Druid. This rank of Rejuvenation will heal the target for 56 over the next 12 seconds. It's a good way of pumping additional healing while you cast Healing Touch.

Druid Talents at lvl 10

At level 10 there is certainly not much to discuss as far as Talents go. Considering this, on this TWotD feature I'll do a quick overview of what's available for you to spend your hard-earned Talent Point!

If you decide to go Balance you can place the point on Starlight Wrath and reduce your Wrath's casting time by 0.1 sec, or you can go for Nature's Grasp, an ability that gives you a 35% chance of rooting an enemy with an effect similar to that of Entangling Roots.

If you wish to spend your point in the Feral Combat talent tree you have the choice to put it up on Ferocity (reducing the rage cost of several abilities by 1 point) or Feral Aggression, a talent that increases the attack power reduction of your Demoralizing Roar skill and the damage caused by your Ferocious Bite ability.

If what you'd like is to be an über healer/support Druid and want to go Resto, you can place the point in Improved Mark of the Wild, beefing up this already awesome buff or on Furor, a utility talent that gives you a headstart of Rage/Energy when you shapeshift to Bear or Cat Forms.

***

Well, this is all for this issue of The Way of the Druid. I sincerely hope you find this information useful and insightful. The feature will get more interesting as the wide spectrum of Druid abilities becomes available! See you in the Emerald Dream.

~Alindore

The features of AJ

What is a Blog without regular features? Indeed, one of the coolest things about a Blog is features. This post will explain the various feature posts that you'll find here.

Alindore's Evolution: This feature will show the evolution of the character every 5 levels, focusing on the gear and showcasing her look, talking about the phat loot and comparing the before and the after with an image. Over time this should be pretty interesting, being able to compare how Alindore looked when she was a young Druid, and how will she look when she reaches 70? What will happen when she gets to 70? Well, I'm not really sure. I guess Alindore's Evolution will take a short break, or maybe I could do special editions showcasing her new, shiny armor sets.

The Way of the Druid: This feature which I'm working on will discuss the Druid's class abilities every 10 levels. Now that I've reached the level 10 milestone with Alindore, I'm working on this article. It'll explain how I've played the Druid so far and my thoughts on the class skills. After reaching 70, this feature will focus on gameplay thoughts and theorycrafting with the class, as well as how I'm working with Alindore on the various aspects of WoW gameplay like PvE and PvP.

Lore of the Kaldorei: As the name implies, this feature will focus on the very vast lore of the Night Elf race in the Warcraft Universe. The purpose of this feature will be to help me (and the readers) learn about the deep lore of the Kaldorei and contributing to the content of the Blog. As for frequency, I think a weekly post for Lore of the Kaldorei would suffice. Look for this feature every sunday, starting next week.

Heeding the Call

After leaving the safety of Shadowglen behind me, I ventured into the heart of Teldrassil. First, I made my way to the town of Dolanaar, the main settlement in the area. I had to deliver some herbs to the innkeeper there, and, more importantly, the Phial full with the waters of Shadowglen's Moonwell to Corithras.

What he taught me there is of incalculable worth to me. The tale of Shan'do Stormrage and the Emerald Dream. I presume, and by following his words, that there's still so much to learn, so time is of the essence: The balance of the world is on the verge of crumbling. Corruption has seeped inside the very heart of our home in Teldrassil. Tarindrella's worries were not unnecessary; the taint of the wicked Fel Moss was making the peaceful Furbolgs go on a rampage against our kin. The rampaging man-beasts even attacked our settlement at Starbreeze Village.

Using the gift I have to control nature's power, I gave the denizens of Dolanaar all the help I could, but the state of our home leaves me deeply worried. While venturing around the serene waters of Lake Al'Ameth, on the many glens of the forest and even in the tainted innards of Fel Rock, something awoke inside of me. Heeding this call of nature, I decided to establish contact with the local Druid master, Kal. He was overjoyed to learn that Nature was calling me to her aid. Master Kal told me that it was time for me to approach the Druid Mathrengyl Bearwalker, assistant to none less than Arch Druid Staghelm himself.

I feel that my spirit is ready to embrace nature in ways never before thought. My heart is anxious to venture beyond the relative calm of our beloved, sacred home of Teldrassil. Part of me aches, but part of me is full of excitement. I will heed the call of nature...

Alindore now on The Armory! (and other Blog improvements)

Level 10! Now Alindore is 100% WoW Armory'd for your spying pleasure. You can access her Armory Profile using the link in the Sidebar (under Alindore's Scrolls) or by clicking here. I've made some other improvements to the Blog, mainly adding some more post categories/tags (those will come in handy to keep things sorted as the Blog continues to grow and grow). I've also added some links to other WoW Blogs I like to read. Check them out!

If any of you, my readers, have any suggestions on how I could work on improving Alindore's Journal, please be sure to voice your opinion by leaving a comment. I'll try to keep the Blog fresh and the updates coming. I think that, considering that AJ hasn't been online for long, it's going pretty nice so far, and I have some ideas for new features you'll be seeing soon so stay tuned! See you in the Emerald Dream.

Alindore's Evolution: Lv 5 - 10

Welcome to Alindore's Evolution! This feature will showcase the visual evolution of Alindore every 5 levels, discussing the look and the gear I'm wearing with her.

Not much has changed since level 5, but at least she's got some greenies in her gear slots. Most of the items consist of rewards obtained from quests in Teldrassil, although the [Primal Leggings of the Monkey] (Thott) dropped randomly from a Timberling (lucky me, It's not too common for me to receive a greenie adequate for my class, I mean, like getting cloth with +1 spirit for a Warrior character). The other green piece I have is the [Gritroot Staff] (Thott), which is a reward for the quest [The Relics of Wakening]. Some other pieces got replaced with other poor quality leather pieces, but some pieces stayed, hence the similar look...

Anyway, here's how she looks:

And that's it for this feature. See you in 5 more levels!