WoW Burning Crusade Report: From the front lines
- January 16, 2007 21:12 PM PST
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The Burning Crusade launches and Boba Fatt's reality blurs in a feverish desperation to finally reach Outland. Read the blow-by-blow experience here!
You know you want it.
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**Read the REVIEW!
By Boba Fatt
After days of preparation -- which included real-life concerns like stocking up on easily prepared food, taking out the garbage and kissing my wife goodbye, as well as in-game readiness checks, like cleaning out my bags and finally getting that mage alt to 60 -- I waited with desperate anticipation for the Dark Portal to open. Follow me on a descent into, well, not quite madness, but certainly several steps past the line of sanity.
January 15, 2007
8:30 pm: I live on the West Coast and play on an East Coast server (Lothar), so the Dark Portal would open for me at 9pm. Being the high-rolling swinger that I am, I scored an early copy of The Burning Crusade on Friday. In case you were wondering, begging and bargaining with your computer does not make the Dark Portal open. Like death, you just have to wait for it.
So as several of my real-life friends who also play with me arrived at my house, my main character, Girthier (a full tier 2 priest, mind you) waited with the masses at the Dark Portal in the Blasted Lands.
9:00 pm: As the big moment of entry arrived, the players surged toward the Dark Portal. Most of us still got the message that we had to have the Burning Crusade expansion installed to enter, but a lucky few got in. In general chat, players excitedly declared who was the first. I frantically relogged for a few moments, and then it was finally upon me: Entry.
Although I briefly played the Burning Crusade beta, I knew I wanted to wait for the real thing, so except for 20 minutes or so of exploration, this was all new to me -- just the way I wanted. Finally: more experience, new quests, and a whole new world for Girthier to conquer.
9:02 pm: I'm dead. Fel Reaver. What the hell? I didn't even see that guy coming.
9:14 pm: After a brief struggle, I ganked one of my friends in real life who lost his cool and tried to rip the keyboard from my hands when he saw the Honor Hold honor rewards. In order to save the friendship, I agree to go exploring and stop skilling up.
9:33 pm: Dude, the quest rewards are off the hook! Green stuff that's better than Tier 1!
9:58 pm: I'm the first one on the server to Shattrath City! Apparently I have to choose between two factions. WHAT IF I CHOOSE WRONG??? That's going to have to wait.
10:30 pm: My friends can wait no more -- after another brief struggle, I'm pulled away from the computer to head over to the local EB Games. I had a copy on reserve, which my brother-in-law is taking, and four more gaming friends (fiends?) are meeting us there.
10:55 pm: ZOMG! There are two gigantic lines for Best Buy and EB Games, which are right next to each other. And a camera crew and radio station. It's like a movie premiere!
11:05 pm: And it's cold out here. Under 45 degrees in LA and it might as well be Hoth.
11:34 pm: You know that weird rush you get when people start talking WoW and you realize it's okay, nobody is going to make fun of you? That took me over and I started to talk to the folks around me. Lots of people without reservations, who are hoping to get in. One of my friends, let's call her Missus Cool, acts like she's above it all by throwing around words like "geek" and "nerd" and pretending to be above it all. The next minute she's begging me to help her level up from 36 to 40 so she can get her mount.
11:54 pm: The tension (and the chill) is palpable. Someone just drove by and yelled "My orc will pwn yours!" I always feel sorry for people when they try to say "pwn" in real life.
January 16, 2007
12:00 am: The line has begun moving! Everyone is excited!
12:09 am: My friend Missus Cool just bought a mage icon button for herself. And I've got the game for my wife and the strategy guide for myself!
12:30 am: I'm finally home! There are people all over Hellfire! I have to catch up! Gotta get cozy -- this is going to be a gaming siege...
1:15 am: Man, this place looks a lot like Silithus. Very desolate. There's a warlock here who is level 61 already. I'm about 1/5 of the way there. I wasted time exploring, dammit!
2:30 am: Woo-hoo! Some guildies and I have grouped for Hellfire Ramparts, the first instance. A little tough to find our way in, but we managed. And we decided to go blind, no strategy guide help.
2:45 am: More insanely powerful drops. Outland is going to quickly level the playing field between noobs and experienced players. It's almost like a giant reset. Kinda feels weird, since I put so much time into my character. I don't think I like it.
3:20 am: Hunh. Well, that was easy. We cleared the instance with no deaths. Granted, we're mostly Tier 2, but there wasn't really any challenge.
Let's do it again!
4:10 am: Wow. Kinda anticlimactic, quite honestly. Lots of the same drops the second time around, and we only had one death in both runs combined. I'm almost friendly with Honor Hold, though, which an only lead to goodness. And I'm halfway to level 61!
5:25 am: My back hurts so bad. I mean... so bad. I may be doing permanent damage. But I just got my skinning up to 310!
6:00 am: Nobody else from my guild is still on. I think I wrenched my brain. My back is spasming. I don't want to... but I have to stop. Time for sleep.
8:30 am: I just lunged out of bed and walked over to my computer. I didn't wake up until I was halfway there. Maybe... just maybe I have a problem.
10:45 am: Can't sleep when there's more leveling to do. Must burn Zeth Gor! Wife left for work-no time to talk to her. Thank God she walked the dog.
1:24 pm: I... I forgot I was writing this. I don't think I can feel my back. We're going into the Blood Furnace! More, more, more!
2:45 pm: Well, we tore up the Blood Furnace and I got my first socketed item, Bloody Surgeon's Mitts. Now I just have to score some gems.
3:45 pm: I think I'm starting to hallucinate.
4:00 pm: Ding! 61, baby! What's that you say? Another talent point? Yes, please.
4:25 pm: It's not a hallucination. I'm damn sure there are felbeasts running around in my living room.
5:18 pm: This article is five hours overdue. I'm only able to write in a tabbed-out screen for fear of logging and getting stuck in a queue. The world server keeps crashing, the game is laggy as hell, the dungeons are lame and disappointing, and I just can't stop. I can't stop.
Someone... please help...
Vicious Sid doesn't play WoW
EDITOR'S NOTE: at this point, Boba Fatt's manuscript (some SIX HOURS late, mind you) devolves into an indecipherable mess of rambling, blithering mumbo jumbo. More worrisome is the fact that he's not answering e-mails or phone calls. We're concerned for his safety...if you see him, let him know his pets and friends miss him and want to know he's okay.
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