Nov. 8, 2005
One lion alone does not make a pride
For a change of pace, in this update, I’ll answer some reader e-mail. I do my best to answer each one I get, but even I get busy sometimes!
From Burning Legion:
Hey, a friend of mine showed me your site and I just want to say wow! Nice job. The fact then you went around and took screeenshots of all the animals you can tame. I hope you had some help.
Actually, with the exception of a very few beasts, all the screenshots on the site (excluding the guides which I didn’t write) were taken by me, starting back during Closed Beta, when the Hunter class was made available. It’s an ongoing project because I’m constantly reviewing the pages and making sure things are up to date.
From Cenarius:
What is the UI being used in the Hunter Epic Quest videos?
I get this question a lot. Airex of Mal’Ganis uses Nymbia’s Perl Unitframes for her UI and Enrage Announce, part of CTRaidAssist.
From Medivh:
I have something I would like to report on the Ancient Leaf quest. I dunno if you mentioned this or not recently. Currently Fear Ward is pwning Solenor. It is bugged and lasting the entire fight, instead of, as we all know, lasting one blast of fear. I have talked to several GMs about it and they say it’s glitched and not to use it.
Enclosed was the e-mail received when this player submitted their ticket which said:
Hello,
Thank you for contacting the World of Warcraft Game Master Department.
Issue Reported: “Fear ward and the hunter epic quest. I did the hunter epic quest. have my bow and all. and the other hunters have seen people using fear ward. I talked to a GM earlier about this issue and was told it’s an exploit and not to do it. As that fear ward doesn’t go away after one hit of fear. but stays the whole fight.”
Now they are saying a GM told them it was okay to do it. I don’t want anybody in our guild to exploit anything I want to know if it is okay.”
We are aware of the situation you reported, and we are currently working on a solution. Please refrain from using these tactics for this Hunter fight. Please check the World of Warcraft website (http://www.worldofwarcraft.com) for future updates and corrections. We appreciate your patience.
I believe this has been fixed, so back to using Shadow Protection potions.
From Zelf of Silvermoon:
I’d like to show you my hunter ranged dps calculator, based on your formulas. I just would like you to have a look at it and, if you want, write me any consideration about. I consider it beta, I’m still testing it with my guild mates. Have a nice day, and many greeting from Italy.
Well, it didn’t need much testing! Thanks Zelf for your great contribution to the site!
Attack Speeds – (Beasts) added
Zelf’s “Math Made Easy” Damage Calculator – (Guides) added
Oct. 28, 2005
Should I even bother to remind you of the odds?
So, do I start with the bad or the good? I think this time, I’ll start with some sugar to help the bitter pill that follows.
After closer research, it has been discovered that some Turtles may in fact eat fish. We are still performing research on the Turtles, but it does look promising. We will be sure to let you know as more discoveries are made!
There will be happy turtles and even happier pet owners, although I think all hunters are happier with the addition of the new Smoked Desert Dumplings recipe available from Cenarion Hold in Silithus. Yet another reason why cooking is a hunter staple.
The other big news this week is regarding Lupos. Unless you’re completely cut off from the Hunter community, you’ve probably heard by now that this beast is special (and unique) because he currently deals shadow damage instead of straight physical, making him a powerhouse against classes like warriors. But, according to Caydiem:
To my knowledge, he is NOT working as intended and will be fixed.
This has sparked off quite a few furious debates on the Blizzard Hunter forums, regarding the current lack of diversity in pets. There currently seem to be two schools of thought – one, that pets should be left alone and any with special attributes (attack speed, special damage type) shouldn’t be changed and two, those supporting a general standardization of pets with customizable options (like lowering attack speed, or special damage types).
What I don’t like about these arguments is the fact that people who have pets like Lupos feel that they are entitled to something special. I can understand why changes to your pet would make a player upset. Believe me, as a former Snarler owner, I understand that frustration. But don’t stand there and tell people they are lazy just because their choice is different from your own, because they didn’t spend time waiting for that specific NPC. Do you realize that in the spider family alone, there are 15 different 'named’? What makes waiting for Lupos so much more of an effort than waiting for Naraxis? Rather than saying: Don’t change my pet, because I spent X amount of time on it, say: We want more special pets LIKE Lupos. We want lots of pets with different attack speeds, and maybe different types of attacks. Don’t turn on each other and put people down because they’re not just like you – different choices is what defines diversity! Sometimes hunters remind me of a bad battleground PUG. Everyone going in different directions and each person yelling for help.
Lazy Hunter Macros – (Guides) updated
Oct. 14, 2005
I swallowed a bug
The latest patch (1.8) went live Tuesday, and there were a few things I missed in the previous patch notes that were on the Test server that apply to hunters:
- Guardians and pets in aggressive mode no longer attack civilians.
- Pets no longer break off attacks when their target is affected by Warlock Fear.
- Hunter traps no longer affect opposing players when the hunter is not flagged for PvP.
- The Silithus area map has been modified and its scale has changed.
- Fixed bug where your pet would be both in and out of combat simultaneously when you were dismounted by pursuing creatures.
- The effect of the Admiral’s Hat has been changed. You can now click the Admiral’s Hat to provide yourself with an aura that gives you and your nearby party members a stamina increase. Taking the hat off will remove the effect. The Headmaster’s Charge item has also been changed in a similar manner.
Another change, not noted in the patch notes is that Beast Lore now will indicate if a beast that you are taming has a specific skill, rather than just if the beast is tameable and what its diet is. The format is: Tamed Abilities: Ability (Rank). If Beast Lore shows nothing… that means your beast will have no special abilities once tamed (although it can still learn them down the line!)
Beast Training, The Sequel: Skills has been updated to show the new locations for the Wind Serpent ability, Lightning Breath (remember, click the + sign to expand the lists, and – to retract!). As yet, no source for Lightning Breath 1 or Lightning Breath 6 have been found, although Rank 6 showed up on the Sons of Hakkar from Zul’Gurub with Beast Lore… except they’re not tameable.
Silithus has also been revamped, including a change to the Stonelash Pincer model. Nelson the Nice’s path for the Hunter Epic quest is also a bit more… busy, and I’m not just talking about swarms of new players questing there. The Solenor fight just got a bit more interesting.
Silithus – (Habitat) updated
Beast Training, The Sequel: Skills – (Skills) updated
The Hunt for Rhok’delar – (Guides) updated
Sept. 29, 2005
The status quo has changed, son
Normally, I post patch notes the day they’re released. But, I felt 1.7 already had generated enough conversation, and everyone knew just about everything there was to know about what was going to happen to hunters, so I skipped it. Just as well, because 1.8 is around the corner with some tantalizing additions to hunters. But first, this message from Blizzard:
Items which provide +hit chance will now be allowed to counteract the increased miss chance penalty of dual wielding. This is great news for dual wielders, as you can now go above the 5% chance to hit cap.
Now, 1.8 is on Test, and here’s the latest:
- Counterattack – Now properly sets its cooldown.
- Throw – Use of this ability will no longer cause a global cooldown with all other abilities.
- Auto-shot is now canceled when you die.
- Added Lightning Breath pet ability for Wind Serpents. This ability instantly hits a single target for Nature damage at medium range.
- The ability to transform Rhok’delar and Lok’delar has been removed, but you can talk to Vartrus the Ancient to receive the item you currently don’t possess. The ability to transform Rhok’delar and Lok’delar has been removed, but you can talk to Vartrus the Ancient to receive the item you currently don’t possess.
Someone asked for a clarification about if you get either Rhok’delar or Lok’delar and Caydiem replied:
I believe you get both, though I’m not positive.
Word from the Test server is that you CAN equip both at the same time (both the bow and the staff – there was speculation you’d be able to equip one or the other but not both).
It’s good to see Wind Serpents getting some love – I have a feeling their popularity is going to jump (although this will depend on what “medium” range is considered). I’ll keep you posted.
Also, I’m looking for people fluent in… well, every language but English to provide text translations for the epic walkthrough. If you’re willing and able, please contact me at fritti@tkasomething.com.
Desktop Wallpaper – (Guides) updated
Pets in the Molten Core – (Guides) added
FAQ: Attack Power, Weapon Speed, Damage – (Guides) added
Sept. 12, 2005
When life gives you lemons... make apple juice
Things have been quiet (too quiet…) on the Hunter boards, although Blizzard has released their new World of Warcraft Battleplan II which touches on the upcoming plans for WoW, including an expansion (which I’m guessing will hit shelves during the holiday season), new events, dungeons and a character transfer service.
However, things are never quiet at TKA, or at least I never feel like I haven’t got some project or other to work on. To that end, I’ve added two new dungeons this week (Razorfen Kraul and Uldaman). Airex of Mal’Ganis has made some excellent movies which now accompany The Hunt for Rhok’delar guide so you can see the epic strategies in action. I’ve been holding off on updating the Pet Skills list with the new skills for pets in 1.7, but… it’ll be updated tomorrow. Just remember that the list/costs are subject to change because all the data is from the Test server (in other words, don’t blame me if it changes once it hits Live!)
Also new is a section of themed wallpapers, dedicated to our favorite counterpart – our pets. This week unveils new desktops featuring the Black Carrion Bird and the Cougar. Right now, you can find them under the Guides section, but eventually (a new menu is in the works, after I finish the Pet Name generator) they’ll have their own section. I mean, if Blizzard can have a Battleplan II, I certainly should be able to overhaul the site some as the TKA one year (!) anniversary approaches.
Oh, and I’ve finally updated the Small Pet guide to include the Cluck! quest (as well as a few others). So, no more e-mails about the Prairie Chicken, I beg you. Maybe our next tameable family SHOULD be chickens, since the volume of mail I received about Cluck! shows that chickens are on the mind of many Warcraft subscribers.
Desktop Wallpaper – (Guides) added
Razorfen Kraul – (Habitat) added
Uldaman – (Habitat) added
Zalla’s Guide to Non-Com/Small Pets – (Guides) updated
The Hunt for Rhok’delar – (Guides) updated