Sort It Out, Blizzard! I Needs My Off hand!

Still can't connect to WoW *sadface*. And  I NEED to pew pew on a Saturday night for stress relief!  I expect this to be fixed by the time I finish work. Or I send SqueeGnomie. That's right, Blizzard. I will send SqueeGnomie to your offices and instruct her to throw snowballs at everyone there. She may even bite. I don't know. She's unpredictable when she's mad. You have been warned...

Happy New Gear!

Last night I spent the evening nude, save for a Winter Veil Sweater, singing Christmas Carols in Horde cities. I decided to take a little break from my mission to get my PvP off-hand by doing tons of BGs. The BGs were not going so well and my hopes of getting it by today dropped to zero. So, I decided to give myself a little break from it before I threw my keyboard at the screen out of frustration.

Usually I don't bother with the World Event achievements, unless there's a mount or something pretty, because I'm super lazy and there are too many Hordies that need to die. But these ones looked like a little bit of fun. I decided that the first I would do is 'A-Caroling We Will Go'. Yes, not the easiest one but having portals makes the journey a little shorter. And I like visiting Horde cities. Even if the guards don't like me. I went to Silvermoon first, thinking it would be the nicest (since I do love the belfs). I thought they might welcome me in...how wrong I was!

For a start, it's been a long time since I've been to Silvermoon. Years in fact, and I totally lost my way. Gnomish GPS wasn't working so I had to consult the wisdom of Google to get me there. When I finally made it (after an Isle of Quel'Danas fail. You can't get to it from there), I though I'd just fly in and Boom, sing a nice song. Wrong again. No flying there. Which meant I had to run in from Fairbreeze Village, avoid the guards and Hordies dueling (I was PvP flagged). By accident I ran into some lvl95 guards and they pummeled me into the floor in seconds. Rezzed and started again, only with red gear. Consulting the great and wise Google again, I read a guide that said to go in naked to prevent my gear taking a hit and costing me a small fortune to repair. And this totally sounded like a great idea anyway! Nude carol singing? I'm in! Using my Mage Invisibility I stealthed past the guards this time. But I forgot about the guards at the entrance. So I had to wait at the gates while it cooled down. Now, I'm not scared of Hordies but I must admit I was hoping no lvl90's decided to pick a fight! Instead a belf disguised as a Gnome (Winter Wondervault Machine) came and stood next to me. We had a little emote chat, that gave me the giggles at the confused belf. 'Yes, I'm a real gnome...you are not. But you are much cuter this way' etc. I just wish I'd remembered to use my Orb of the Sin'dorei to really confuse them. As if talking to a naked gnome wasn't confusing enough! By the time I was ready to stealth in I had a little crowd with me that followed me in to watch me sing to the guards while they killed me to death. It was a lot of fun!

The rest of the cities were easy. I could fly in all and get the song out in a safe spot just inside the walls. Though I did get licked by an Undead, which I'm still trying to wash off now.

I had so much fun in Silvermoon that I was thinking of trying to get some guildies together for a screenie there. Maybe a fun little event? Anyone still needing the achie would get it and maybe a prize for whoever gets the furthest in? Also, feel free to throw a handful of snowflakes at me. A) I love snow and B) Gnome Mage is on the list, yay! So, do it!

Power Naps Are Bad!

After a really busy day I made the epic mistake of having a power nap at 6pm. I'm getting old now so I need a nap sometime in the day. But unfortunately, it's 3am and I'm all Super Saiyan *cue flashing colours and air punches*. I'm considering some BG's but I think this will have me up until the birds are singing. So, what to do...?


Christmas day was great. Lots of fun, gifts and merriment with family and friends. I showed my little one I'm not so untrendy by buying her a dress that she looks beautiful and all grown up in *cry* and everything else she asked for. I have a super new onesie (I look like a giant baby), and a very pretty new bracelet in my favourite colour. Which were the best gifts ever! In game, we had a party for our guild Christmas baby and my favourite dwarf! Which was lovely and fun and an extra special Christmas day treat. Celebrating happy times with my favourite people was awesomely brilliant! Though it was brief, I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I did! And Happy Birthday again, Santa Dwarf! I hope it was a super special day for you :)


The end of the night did not go so well. One of my favourite people left the guild and this made me very sad. If you ever read this, come back any time. We miss you already. Who is going to encourage us to slay Orcs so much! Or melt faces so well? Or RAGGGGE in PvP as much as me? I understand why but don't stay away forever. Until you come back I'll kill as many Orcs as I can find. Taurens will be safe for now. I'll throw a flag or tower just to kill an Orc as I see it pass. I will pop a Frost Bomb in their pocket then kick it as hard as my lil killer gnomie legs can manage! I'll use blink purely for a good run up! I won't even penguin again for fun...it's full on WAR. Maybe even a macro to remind them who sent me ;). And the little Shadow Priest in training will receive all I remember of what a priest needs to InstaB00M. We're gonna pew pew really well!


Until soon /hugs to all!

Merry Christmas from Happy, Happy SqueeGnomie!

Well, the world didn't end and it's almost Christmas. Almost. I thought I'd do a quick blog post while taking a break from the epic task of wrapping gifts while the little one is out at a pantomime. I have so far wrapped 5 gifts. And only one of them looks like a well wrapped gift. The rest look like someone with hooks for hands wrapped them! Blessed with gift wrapping talent I am not! I have cellotape stuck everywhere. Even in my hair! Though how that got there I don't know...

My most favourite thing in WoW at the moment is my happy little Squee Gnomie (the sound I make every time I summon her. To a tune). Seeing lots of little gnomies about makes me a giddy little gnomie. And my Winter's Little Helper mini me gets me in such a state of excitement that I just squeal at the screen. Cuteness overload!

Don't get too close. Squeegnomie bites.

Going into a BG like this is my biggest in game pleasure at the moment. I just wish Squeegnomie could attack instead of Water Elemental. That would make my Christmas extra awesome. Imagine her jumping on a Tauren or savaging an Orc. She might look super cute and squuueeey but she's evil inside. A cold blooded killer just waiting for the opportunity to strike, if only Blizzard would allow her to. For now though, she'll just have to be content watching me do the killing...

I won't be blogging much over the Christmas period because I'll be waaaay to busy. So I would just like to wish all a very Merry Christmas and a Super Happy New Year. For those who have plans, I hope they are fun and 2013 be the start of an epic year! 

/hugs and /love

AnyaRose and Squeegnomie

Spider Gnomie, Spider Gnomie!

Look, no hands!

The End of the World As We Know It?

So, 3 minutes until the end of the world... Or 3 minutes until we get to the point where some poor Mayan Scholar chalked f**k on writing any more dates on the calendar. Or 3 mins til a Zombie apocalypse. Or 3 minutes until...wait, I only have 2 left now! The suspense is just too much! I can't take it. 1 minute left now. But if I'm gonna experience any of these it will be listening to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Musical. Don't judge me. I named my daughter after my favourite character. Ok, feel free to /sigh.

It's 12.01am now. Guess the Mayan guy just couldn't be bothered to write any more after all. *Loads shotgun just in case*. Trade chat was wonderful tonight. If I had 1 gold for every theory or shout, I'd have, like 4 million bajillion (actual number *hopes*) gold by the first 10 mins after midnight server time. It made my brain hurt. Trying to keep chat going, whispers and then the deafening chat from Trade...I should switch Trade chat off (can I btw?), but then I'd miss out on all the action and I'm far too nosy for that!

And oh! Some bloody Nelf was wearing my frost mog! I must be one trendy little gnomie! Or picked a common set. Let's just pretend it's the first to make me feel better about it. So, now I'm going to have a huge overhaul on my kit. I am thinking of something to match my wonderfully dumb looking Water Elemental, but maybe I'll just make something ridiculous instead... Like my Slave Leia dress. Which is awesome but totally ridiculous on such a tiny, fat, barrel shaped gnomie XD. Trol-lol-lol-lol

Not the best screenie ever (slow fingers) with Jabba, erm I mean Patchwerk...but you get the picture! And check out my awesome editing skills. Who needs photoshop when you have paint! /faceplants keyboard

But for now it's bedtime. My head feels like it's filled with cotton wool and I'm attractively sweating like a fat man's butt. Thrice drenched in 2 days in almost 0 degrees = uber cold. Tomorrow I will be so drugged up for my 14 hour day at work that I will just mumble or giggle, or both, at customers. I hope no one actually needs any advice. Or words even. Just giggles. Ask me tomorrow night how it went and I'm sure there will just be plenty of sweary grumbling. Still, big smiles while I'm there and all will be ok. I'm sure I'll find some mischief to get me through the day. And then when I get home I'm going to pew pew *B00M* (for a change). I will bring frosty death anything that comes near me...or die a lot (definitely). Maybe start questing again too in Krasarang Wilds...who knows!

Well, the end of the world wasn't so bad after all, was it?

Only in WoW

Totally failed at sleeping tonight/today. Sugar filled gnomie is hyperactive! I drink way too many sugary drinks at the restaurant and maybe eating dinner at 11.30pm is not the best idea...

So, after attempting to sleep at 2.30am and failing miserably I pop back into WoW for a little while. Did a few bg's. Died a lot but also sneaked in some wicked awesome frostbombs. Pop in back pocket of low health hordie...casually walk away whistling...BOOM. Still funny, even if I die immediately after! Chilled in SW and got asked for a portal to 'Brocade Valley'. Cute name for Pandaria (I hope!) but also the 3rd novella in a series of erotic Chinese Fiction. I almost choked on my drink! The people of WoW never fail to amuse me.

Even more fun though was the backwards Jedi race from Mage Tower to the Cathedral. My gnomie Jedi brother and I walked the entire way backwards for shiggles. And it was funny! So, if you are ever in Argent Dawn SW and see two Jedi Gnomes walking round, or watching our droids fight, say hi!

Another gnomie fascination is Meng Meng the panda! Multiple tiny pandas in Shrine of the Seven Stars with guildie friends almost knocked me out! The sheer cuteness of multiple levitating pandas almost made me cry, I was so giddy! If you've seen Kristen Bell with the Sloth on Youtube, times that by 1,000,000 and you have me at that moment. It's so cute I can't even process it fully. I want to be a tiny panda all the time! And then tiny, tiny potion panda....ahhhh I can't even talk about it. It makes me all squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. And mini pandas holding Lightsabers. OMG epicness!

And I think I must be a trend setter! I saw my exact pink mog on a space goat in SW tonight. It looked very pretty but not nearly as cute as my gnomie! Almost made me go mog my current kit back into it! But, for the moment I'm gonna stay in the red mog. It feels more Pandaria than the pink, so they can keep it for now :)

A last big thanks to my guildie friends this week for keeping me all giddy happy. I've laughed so hard this week my ribs feel busted. Which is exactly how I like things to be. If the aches are from laughter then things can't be bad!

Night night!

Friends Are For Life, Not Just In Game

I had an interesting conversation yesterday about whether the friends we make online are 'real' friends. In the past I've probably been a little dismissive of this. You know, the old 'how can they be friends, you've never even met them!' I may have thrown this out in conversation to the Lock in the old days before I played and even when I did play in the past, I never really made any friends. I was a shy Belf back in those days...

But how wrong could I have been. The past year has been a complete mind changer. The friends I've made in the guild I'm in have been as important to me as people who I work with, or know in RL. We've shared lots of fun, and some not so fun times. And I can honestly say that it's not the game that keeps me coming back, it's them. Sometimes I just log in to chat and end up staying in Halfhill the entire time (Blizzard need to put a statue of me there for when I'm not in game, so no one misses me). And I really feel like I can be myself there. My little bad, gnomie self. I think probably the last few weeks have really kicked that feeling in. Especially since I lost one of them. And I may not have dealt with it so well. That little ball of gnomie frustration built up and I may have been a little unfeeling or seemed unkind towards them. That was wrong of me. While we can't play any more I think it's important to say that I still consider them a friend and will miss them looooads. And am grateful for them having to carry a nublet gnomie around for so long. I wish them a shit ton of happy times in everything they do, both in and out of game.

And to those of you who read this, you've all brightened my life up lately. In your own little ways, you've been the best friends a gnomie could ever ask for. When I've been sad or angry, you've been there at one time or another to cheer me up with hugs, chats and trolling fun. But I'm really gonna have to think up some magic to repay it. So, to start off with, a big hug to:

The Dwarf/ My troll gnome Jedi brother
The Nelf who hammered my Lock's DPS (which was hilarious, because he's so competetive!)
The Warrior Party Tank (who is much tougher than she believes)
My Little Mage Sister
The Face Melting Priest
The Dwarf Hunter with the wicked DPS

There are many others too but these guys and girls are my closest friends. Honorable mention goes out to the Shaman Who Falls Off Cliffs. I cannot even begin to tell you how much that makes me chuckle when I see it in Gchat. And my Lock is back with us now, so he can take over going on raids. Because, lets face it, I'm better left punching cows in BG. His DPS blows mine out of the water and he doesn't stand in bad stuff constantly ;)

I love, love, love my Jedi kit too. But if my Jedi Brother thinks I'm finished there, well, get ready for it. Troll-lol-lol...

I Frost Bombed a Cow and I Liked It...

After getting trolled in guild today by my arch nemesis, the dwarf, I spent a shift at work with 'I'm So Excited' stuck in my head and every time I apologised for a late delivery got 'Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word'... Well played, dwarf, well played. How many is that I owe you now? Gchat Karaoke is a good laugh and Vent Karaoke will be even better! But from now on, you won't get such easy victories. Every word you say, every game you play, every night you stay, I'll be watching you...

After my shift I indulged in some Spotify PvP. It's a real treat when every one is in bed and I can just blast the headphones at ear bleeding volume levels. It worked well at first. I was pew pewing  hard until I got totally absorbed in the head bobbing and drag queen miming to the music I allowed a rogue to take Dranei Ruins from me. I didn't even see the little bastard til it was too late. Thanks for 'Don't Stop Me Now', Queen. Turns out I can be stopped...

Also, while looking through my playlists I noticed one called 'Banging Dance Tunes'. Now, I know I'm 'down with the kids', obviously. Mainly because I'm roughly the same height as 9-13 year olds and have the mentality of a 5 year old on Red Bull. But would I ever call a playlist that? And would anyone who is actually 'down with the kids' ever claim that? I think you'll find the answer is No. So I take a look and find more Skrillex than should be legal. It was a cacophony of shite. My daughter has terrible, terrible taste in music. And that's coming from me. I wanted to jump on my iPhone to make it stop. And then all of a sudden I'm my mother. But seriously, Justin Beiber?? I'm considering adoption.

I'm testing songs by performance for my playlists. So far I've found the best performance comes from these: Little Mix, 'Wings', Train, '50 Ways To Say Goodbye', P!nk, 'Blow Me (One Last Kiss) and 'So What', Joy Division, 'Love Will Tear Us Apart', Of Monsters and Men ' Little Talks', Florence and the Machine, 'Dog Days Are Over', Simple Minds, 'Don't You (Forget About Me)', Maroon 5, 'Moves Like Jagger', Anything by Amy Winehouse or Kelly Clarkson and REM, 'At My Most Beautiful' (just because it really does make me smile). Honourable mention goes out to Aerosmith, Queen and Eurythmics (for making me rock out and pay no attention to the bg whatsoever). I'm quite proud to have started to compile possibly the oddest playlist ever. And it will only grow with suggestions. So keep them coming!

Potato Flowers

Totally not WoW related, but totally awesome. Tonight one of our chefs left our restaurant for a new job. He carves the most amazing tiny flowers out of vegetables to put on plates. I'm a little obsessed with them! We had a little joke that before he left he had to cut me one as big as my hand or I'd cry. This was mainly done by mime, as he speaks little English and my Chinese is, ummmm, 'special'. And I did not expect to get one. Instead I got two! Which made me a happy lil gnomie. They're getting dyed tonight so I have some pretty red roses tomorrow! Though what I'm going to do with them after, I have no idea. Don't care though, because they're sooo pwetty! The last one looks kinda like a cabbage. Which makes it double cute in my opinion :). Work gifts are the best!

 

Gnome Wars!

Last night the first round of gnome wars began with a fellow guild member. He is trying to steal my throne as the guild's most awesomely cute gnomie! So we decided to settle this, Highlander style. We had our first battle outside Mogushan Palace. The battle was long and tense and unfortunately I came ill prepared. His fighting was better and his outfit was amazing. Victory was his on this occasion. But next time, I'll be fighting fit and ready to beat him into submission! There can be only one!

The gnome jokes in guild have been veeery funny. My poor ribs have taken a battering from the banter. There's nothing that cheers me up more than a good laugh. Even if it's at the expense of gnomes. We're built for comedy anyway. There's no way you can be serious when you have a gnome. It's impossible! But the dwarf making these jokes claims he does it because he hates gnomes (it's in his guild notes. Or it was, at least...) but I know differently. Secretly he loves, loves, loves gnomes. I know, I've seen it. When he thinks no one is paying attention he hugs them. A lot. More than is right, really. Pats them, blows kisses. I think he wishes he was a gnome. He's a bit of a smelly dwarf and I think the smell of candyfloss and sweet things that gnomes smell of give his poor nostrils a break from his own ripe stench. Sometimes I even hear him shout 'For Gnomeregan' when he charges, by mistake. And don't even get me started on how much he loves Darkmoon Tigers. He just can't wait to pop one out a have a ride. He's a bit silly (being a dwarf and all) and he seems to think they're a mount. He hasn't realised yet that it only rocks backwards and forwards. It kinda puzzles him when he's still in the same spot when he gets off. And that's when we can pry him off it. The dwarf just wants to stay on them all day! I have screenies for anyone that wants to see...

Finally, this is a call out to my competitor. This week I will be farming dungeons for a ridiculously large sword and the best fighting outfit a gnome could have. I'll meet you next week. Same place, same time. All guild members are welcome to come and see me beat this gnome into submission. Put him in his place once and for all! Bring popcorn to watch the gnome explosion!

Did I Say No Drama??

I kinda feel like I'm starting to become the Bad News Bear but I need to vent some of my rage. Really hard. That Shit Storm Scale went up to a full 10 today. All RL. I am a librarian by trade and I'm sure some of my UK readers (are there any? If yes, *wave*) will know all about the austerity measures our government has brought in. And well, to cut a long story short, services are getting cut left, right and center. We in libraries have been under threat of closure for 18 months now. Today, I got an impromptu visit from one of our managers and taken to a private area for a 'chat'. In a nutshell, my job is gone in 2 weeks. 2 weeks!!! And before Christmas?? I have to say, my response was not polite and I got so angry that mid rant I burst into tears. In fact I would hazard a guess that I won't be working from tomorrow. My employers have behaved badly throughout to all front line members of staff. And I have been told I cannot tell anyone! Not even the person I work with. When exactly did I start to work for MI6?? Absolutely ridiculous! Really though, it's just been the last straw in an epic run of bad luck. My health had taken a bit of a fall over the last few weeks, which I'm kinda sad about. But I managed the condition once, I can do it again! And I have my pinkie finger strapped up. I think I did something bad to it at my other job today, so it's currently strapped to it's buddy. So glad it wasn't the middle one. I'd really not be able to get through the day without flipping someone the middle finger at least once.

And I think I got my lock kicked from his guild. After finally getting into one raid with them, with the assurance that he would be able to stay he left the raid mid boss after being faced with his teary, panda faced gnomie upon my return from work. Bless him for supplying me with hugs, chocolate and not being bothered that they'll probably not let him raid with them again.

So tonight I will mainly be trying to regain the weight I misplaced last week with mega, super huge chinese takeaway (my favourite and I can eat more of it than most grown men I know), chocolate and a few beers. From approximately 11pm server time I shall be merry and pew pewing in BG's. Watch out taurens. I don't want to win the games, I just want to kill. Just you and maybe orcs. I'll feel better then. Maybe hungover tomorrow but better.

Music to PvP By

I need inspiration, people. Through the day I like to pop my headphones in and blast music while I get my ass kicked in BG's. I also sing loudly, in the most horrific, tone deaf voice you ever heard. Musical, I ain't. But I'm pretty sure my neighbours are sick of hearing the same songs over and over. So I need your help to populate my Spotify playlists.

To give you a clue about the type of music I like, I can tell you this. I am unashamedly, a pop lover. If it's cheesy, naff or you could dance to it in a club, then that'll do. Or 70's Glam rock, or show tunes, or anything except screaming death metal. Classical will chill me out too much and I need to be alert for PvP.

My current favourite for terrible karaoke is 'Little Talks' by Of Monsters and Men. Or 'Shake It Out' by Florence and the Machine, or anything by P!nk. Not all pop, I know by totally singable. If I'm not on vent, I'm singing away to myself.

So please feel free to add some favourites to my list. I promise I will sing each one loud as thanks. And if it helps, imagine how pissed my neighbours and family will be...

SW Invasion

SW invasion at ridiculous o'clock in the morning happened. And it was hilarious. 5 Horde managed to stay holed up in the AH, seemingly indestructible. I would have liked to have killed them but sadly, it only happened once (and took a lot of us) and then they mass rezzed on the AH roof. So, I just went to play. Alter Time on the steps, blink in, Frost Orb, silence a healer, throw out mini mages, then back to where I started from Alter Time. Rinse and repeat, just to stave off my own boredom. Only RP'ers seemed to be in SW at that time, so it was kinda pointless even trying to stop them.

Well played, horde. Well played.

/Sigh

Well, if I were to measure tonight on the Shitstorm scale of 1-10, it would probably be a strong 7. Why, I hear you ask? Well some of it is gnomie secrets and if I told you I'd have to kill you immediately. And the rest involves the horde football championship using me as their ball in Gilneas. My mojo is soooo far off you would not believe. I silenced a f**king elemental instead of it's master... I left my final battle and took the Deserter debuff (which I neeeever do) because I was that tired of getting my ass kicked and having no focus whatsoever.


On the rage scale, I'm well over a 10. Tonight, I managed to keep it in. Barely. For the sake of not offending a friend and because all my words were sweary, nonsensical ones. And my gnomie is far too cute for that shit.


Needless to say, I can't raid much (and I'm pretty crap at it) or do Sha of Anger again because Blizzard sometimes suck (not all the time, but sometimes), and now I won't be doing arena. Which I was really looking forward to. I could find another arena partner but I don't really want to. I enjoyed our pvp'ing a lot, so I'd rather just go BG alone from now. Daily's are dull. So I guess I'm really becoming your bog standard garden gnome. Sat with my fishing rod, catching fishies. There should be achievement for gnomes who do that. With a toadstool to sit on being the prize. I'm being serious! Do it Blizzard, you owe me! I fought Elegon to the end once and threw myself to my death another time, with no loot other than some measly gold, so give now.


Just like in RL, there's always something that will come along to piss on your parade. So, ummm, thanks for that. But just as in RL, I'm going to give myself 10 more minutes of being grumpy and sweary, then I'm going to give my head a shake and leave the problem here. It's not big in the grand scheme of things, just somewhat annoying. Tomorrow is another day... and one where I intend to Ice Lance the first Tauren I see right in the balls (I'd to the face but I'm, you know, at a lower height level so it would mean me having to sit on a tall buddy's shoulders). No more /drama for me please, just hugs and puppies for all, ok? So I can stay at that happy medium where I don't implode from pent up rage.


Omg, just realised I forgot to plant my crops too.../facepalm. No dinner for us tomorrow!

Temple of Kotmogu

Temple of Kotmogu is my current favourite place to be. I have enormous amount of pent up aggression at the moment and this place is just fabulous for unleashing the raaaaaaaaaage! I love to stand right in the middle and just pew pew everything in sight. Awesome AOE win! Blizzard did a wonderful thing by introducing this bg.

It's a bg where I don't struggle. Especially with healers nearby. My favourite thing to do is to just run into the middle (orbs where available) when horde gather there, pop Alter Time, then just place a sneaky Frostbomb on the centre target, Pet Freeze to keep them all together for maximum damage, run straight at them and Frost Orb, Nova, Ice Lance to my heart's content. Then just before they smash me into the floor, I return to my start place to go all over again! So funny when a group of them are on me and *poof* I'm gone back the other side! Now, I'm not saying this happens all the time. But when it does, it really makes me very happy. More than it probably should. The best one so far was a pretty even match up healer wise. I basically just ended up stood in the middle, repeating this cycle. Killed a few orb carriers, silenced a ton of healers and unleashed a total of 13m damage for the bg. The next below me on our team, damage wise, put out 7m total. I know it's not the sole aim of the bg but it was a pretty good feeling to get that much damage out. It was a long and intense battle, but a shit ton of fun!

Sometimes it doesn't go so well. But when those times happen I tend to go a little 'This is Sparta!!' (to the point where my lock wants a picture of me doing it, with that caption. He finds it veeery amusing). I lose all focus and just run in, arms flailing, popping every CD, trying to take out more than I am actually able to do. But, if you're going to lose, you might as well go down fighting! Also tons of fun and a better end to a losing bg than, say, being ganked at WSG graveyard...

As a final note, to the shithead Orc DK who jumped me in the Golden Pagoda as I came out of the bg and took half my health before I even knew what was happening. It must have really stung to get your arse kicked good and proper by a Gnome Mage at half health. Learn to time your Death Grip better. It could save your life.

Little Pictures

I love my new staff so much! Especially as it looks like a hobby horse for my gnomie! I wish I could use it as a mount. But that's because mentally, I'm 5.

Charrrrrge!!!!

Flying Mushan?? I tried to screenshot it for underneath but that must have really pissed it off because it landed right on my head...

Arena Win!

Last night I went arena properly for the first time. And, by God, was it fun! I was utterly convinced that I would do a terrible job and really let the team down. But you know what? I didn't. At all. At least I don't think! And I didn't cry or faceplant my keyboard. Which is always a bonus when in vent!

The Shadow Priest/Frost Mage combination works extremely well. Between us we can put out enough CC and Instab00m that we didn't struggle too badly. We didn't win them all. We ran at about 50/50. But the wins were pretty fast and the losses were acceptable. On those, it was easy to see our mistakes and learn fast from them. Our kit was often not near as good as the other team but we still managed to beat them. The best match of the night was a loss but it was such a long and intense battle and soooo close that we had a lot of fun. The least fun match for me was Rogue/Rogue. I should have had those little b*****ds pinned down but I really struggled. Maybe not next time though...

Vent was a great help, though we did have a massive delay, so sometimes I didn't shout fast enough for heals, or I didn't get to my Priest fast enough to peel off melee but we still did okay. And it's always a relief when no one minds my cursing! The only things you will hear in vent when I play PvP are constant curses at no one in particular or spam clicks (yes, I am a clicker). No CD's exist in my world. Don't judge me.

I am still very much looking forward to 3v3. Joining an already established team of Shadow Priest/BM Hunter sounds like a great idea, full of win! And maybe one day, I'll manage to persuade my favourite Lock (still not as good as Mage!) to join us with another player for 5v5 too. But for now, it's time to get that rating up and get geared up for my arena fun!

Gone Fishin'

Though probably a guide already exists for this, I'm compiling a little list of my favourite places to fish in Pandaria.  Eveeeryone is cooking now and these spots will provide the fish you need to level your cooking, to create those super duper banquets, to cash in for Ironpaw Tokens/AH or if you're nice, to make food for your Halfhill friends!

Emperor Salmon and Krasarang Paddlefish

• Guilded Fan - Lots of Salmon pools in the lake here. Heavily fished though.
• New Cifera, Pools of Purity - My favourite spot for a fast few stacks.
• Yan Zhe River - Lots of spots here and handy for picking up turtle meat or wildfowl breast from the little beasts around the shores.
• Krasarang Wilds - The big lake here has tons of spots.

Reef Octopus and Giant Mantis Shrimp

• Cradle Of Chi Ji - Lots of unfished Reef Octopus spots all around here. A few Giant Mantis Shrimp but great for the Octopus. Always quiet and easy to get a good few stacks.
• Nayeli Lagoon: Same as above.

These two locations should provide you with more than enough of these fish, without having to travel too far!

Jewel Danio and Redbelly Mandarin

• Mistvale Village - Follow the stream from Whitepetal lake down to Mistvale Village for these. Mainly Jewel Danio in my experience but still quite a few Redbelly Mandarin pools.
• Mogushan Palace - In the ponds around here there are quite a few pools of Redbelly Mandarin.

Sometimes you will also find Emperor Salmon here.

Tiger Gourami

• The Ancient Passage - The only place I've been where I can successfully fish a few stack. There's never anyone here and the mobs scattered around are nice for Windwool Cloth etc.

Not to forget Darkmoon!

Always remember to fish the crates here. I have had lots of motes from these crates, so it's a nice way to get them without fighting.

I'll update more spots as I go but if anyone can think of anymore, please put them in the comments and I'll add them to it!

*hic*

I usually do not drink much, due to work etc. But tonight I thought, s**t to it, I work hard (tomorrow, double shift. Eeeek!!). So, I have consumed copious amounts of alcohol. I decided not to vent, lest I forever regret drunken chats. I PvP'ed and got my ass squarely kicked. Although, the tail of horde following me was fairly amusing. I penguined a few early on and threw in a quick pat for good measure. It's a sign of affection! Aaaand I'm pretty sure I spammed gchat a little more than I would normally. Being naturally gnome sized, I would hope my guildies will understand my tolerance for alcohol is weak and forget, instantly, all my tmi chat!

But I must have bored my little elemental, because he decided to play shop! So, presumably he wasn't the only one ;)

No, I want Embersilk! Not Ice Cubes! Bad Elemental!

It's Time To Play the Music

Well, thanks to the wonders of modern technology, I now have the ability to talk to guildies. I know, I know, it's been there a while but due to not having the correct set up (mic, headphones that actually work, etc), plus the fact that my PC is located in my living room where my lil family sit most of the evening, I had not done it.

This changed when my partner was told that to raid with his guild, TeamSpeak was a requirement. So we set about figuring this out. I found that there was a fancy, sparkly TeamSpeak app for iPhone! I downloaded and watched him raid. I decided he was not going to have all the fun, so I downloaded Ventrilo onto my iPhone so I could do the same.

And what a fantastic decision! I imagine this is how cavemen felt when they made fire. Though, it is somewhat addictive. I want to talk, like, all the time now. But I get so easily distracted that I all I can manage to do is fish while I talk. And that's when I can manage to talk. Today ended up in a complete giggle fit that I could not bring myself out of. Largely due to some Muppets, a Swedish Chef and some very funny guildmates! My ribs have only just recovered! And I can't promise that next time I'm on I won't giggle that hard again. Once I start, that's it! Though I will try to actually speak next time!

Here is a mini guide to my odd regional accent for those who may need it. I will try to speak standard English as much as I can but occasionally I may break into 'full Yorkshire', especially if I am playing/swearing/doing anything more difficult than cooking. So here goes:

Daarn = Down
Gooin = Going
Nar    = Now (sometimes I switch between the two in the same conversation. Usually when I realise I have said 'nar')
wunt   = Wouldn't
Bin     = Been
Mi      = My
Ome   = Home

We do not say 'h' at the beginning of words. Though I try my best to, sometimes I may forget. So 'Hearthstone would become 'Arthstone'.

I'll add more to when I think of them!

Thanks for the giggles :)

A Gilnean Fairytale

During my travels in Azeroth, I came across an area in the Eastern Kingdoms. It looked to be a once beautiful place but was now derelict. I was intrigued. I hopped off my broomstick so I could take a closer look around. The town was empty. All that could be heard was the wind howling through the empty buildings. This seemed not to be the best place to be around Halloween, even my Water Elemental friend was afraid to come with me. Still, my gnomie curiosity would not let me leave. I came across a church. Though the rest of the town was half destroyed, this building remained intact. I followed it's lavish red carpet to the front of the church. All of a sudden, the wind rushed through and window and blew open a book that was resting at the altar. It's golden pages shone brightly and I could not resist the urge to read. It was almost as if the book was calling to me.

The book told of a child born during the mass infection of humans in Gilneas by Worgens. It was then I realised I was in the Ruins of Gilneas. I had heard tales of this place. And none of them were good. Yet, this book spoke of hope. The child, born to a human princess, who had been living in Gilneas at the time of the curse spreading. Bitten by a worgen whilst pregnant, she bore a child days later. This child had none of the madness that other worgens possessed. The book told of this child's early years. Her great love of animals and her ability to calm even the wildest of worgens. It was clear that this child would grow to be the saviour of Gilneas. To create peace and harmony within a race that had previously only known violence and insanity. This made her important and a target for those who wished to keep worgens savage. So, a group of travelling priests took away the child to keep her safe until the time was right for her to return and rebuild Gilneas.

I felt it was my destiny to find this child. I began my search at Stormwind Cathedral. Surely the priests there would know of this story.

The priest I spoke to knew of this girl immediately. I assured him that I wished her no harm, only to help. He told me that she had once lived in the Cathedral, under the safe watch of the priests of Stormwind. She was to stay in her human form at all times, so as not to raise any suspicions and draw those to her who may wish to do her harm. She attended school every day. Until one day that changed it all. Sensing that this girl was different, the other children teased her. Almost relentlessly. Until she could take it no more. She burst into her worgen form and chased the worst of her tormentors out of the gates of Stormwind.

See the blond one at the front? Don't let his looks deceive you. He's a massive jerk.

It became clear that she could stay here no longer now that people were talking of a worgen in Stormwind. So, the priests sent her to a place they hoped she would be unseen. Knowing her affinity for animals (and the fact that the Night Elves were somehow to blame for worgens), they sent her to Darnassus, to be under the careful watch of the Cenarion Circle.

Again, because I'm too lazy to fly, I took a portal there straight away.

I spoke with Malfurion and Tyrande of what I had learned so far. Knowing that I was only here to find and help to protect her they told me of the things that had come to pass since she was brought to Darnassus. She was now a teenager, who's growing powers were only surpassed by her beauty. She spent her days training as a druid and her free time tending to sick animals. A modest girl, she does not realise the true healing power she possesses. Her strength of character was clear to all who had met her. There was no hiding the fact that this girl would be powerful when she comes of age.

They spoke with great joy at how she was progressing. It was easy to see that these Night Elves had grown to love her very much. But they also told me about the Great Battle that was raging for Gilneas. The Horde were attacking in waves to try and take Gilneas as their own and use the power of the worgens for their own gain. Malfurion asked that if I wanted to help, I fight here. Knowing the importance of a new Gilneas for the Eastern Kingdoms I agreed to fight until the very end.

And here I am

At the gates of Gilneas, waiting for the battle to commence. Every Orc I Ice Lance to the face will be for Princess Sami. Every Tauren that I turn into a teeny penguin will be for her. So that one day she can return to a safe Gilneas to restore it to it's former glory and live happily ever after with her exteeeemely handsome Prince (I cannot speak of the secret betrothal just yet). Legends will tell of these battles and of the restoration of Gilneas. The drums grew louder, the gates flew open and the battle shouts began 'For Princess Sami, For Gilneas!!!'

One for the Photosensitives!

I started doing Raid Finder last night. I only did the first part but I kinda enjoyed it. I was able to play in Frost. Not the best dps ever but manageable. My gear is only just 460, so it'll get better. Also, the trash mobs are freezable, which = giant ice cubes! So, today my friend and I went to do it again, post reset. The first half went great. Although I was uber jealous of the Fire Mage pushing out epic dps. I almost went all Showgirls on him and wanted to throw some marbles for him to fall over!

Then we went to do the second part. Aside from me throwing out all my AoE's at the same time, arms flailing, when I wasn't supposed to (you live and learn), it was ok on the first boss. Then that big starry dragon happened. And for that I would like to send Blizzard a big middle finger! And here is why...

I am a photosensitive epileptic. I also have problems with fast moving geometric shapes and tightly spaced lines. I enjoy gaming and i know my triggers. But I am in a position now where any sort of progression in Raids has come to an end. Yes, in past raids there have been bosses with lots of seizuretastic flashes. But provided we down it fast and have no wipes, all is good. I've only had a bad problem once. In DS, our group wiped a few times on the Ultraxion fight. Because that fight requires you to concentrate and time the Hour of Twilight and everyone is stacked, throwing out lightning bolts, arcane barrages etc, the risk becomes greater. By the end I was twitching (myoclonic jerks) and it put me in bed for a day. So, that ended that little journey. I love my gaming but I know when to call some of it quits.

On the new raids the fights are longer, the screen bounces a lot on all bosses and everything moves so fast. But the shiny dragon...he is something else. Pretty though he is, he is an instant downer for someone sensitive to flashing lights. He was like a little Easter egg of bad. I know the game has to be fun and visually exciting and that it isn't only aimed at me but did it really have to be so god damned flashy? I will not be trying that fight again, ever. I played most of it blind (one eye covered helps disrupt the flashes. but I also only have 20% vision in the eye uncovered. which means lesser chance but more blind). Apologies to anyone in this Raid group. If you saw a FM running around like a headless chicken, that was me.

This means I'm out of raiding, even as a spare on a guild run. It means I can't try for the epic drops either. Looks like its back to fishing and growing crops for me! I'll carry on working towards Arena but until my partner is back, I'll just have to amuse myself with other things.

Anyway, more QQ later. For now I'm going to nap and feel better.

Something's Missing...

I went to see Agee today. Something has been troubling me and this wise little old guy is where I go for comfort...

We sat in front of a roaring fire, just pondering life. The silence was a comfortable one. One that can only be shared between close friends. Agee knew I was troubled but asked no questions. That's the great thing about Agee.

 Soon I found myself falling into a deep, peaceful sleep. One that I had needed for so long..

The bright sun shone down on my face. I rolled over to see a small animal running towards me. His eyes red, as though he had been crying for days. He said to me, 'My name is Socks and I need your help. Seek out the Short Bearded Paladin who shines like the sun to avenge Gizmo's death!'. Then he vanished. It was then I knew I was dreaming. I had met Socks before but he was turned into Jade by the Jade Witch, so this could not be real life! I, erm, might have abandoned the quest that released him from the Jade so I could go farm windwool and fish. So, because of my guilt at letting him become a lawn decoration (don't even go there readers...I'm sitting in no gardens), I decided to seek out the Paladin of which he spoke.

I woke up, bleary eyed but dedicated to fulfilling Socks' request. But where would I find such a Paladin? I thought of my dream. Socks had told me the Paladin was short and bearded. This can only mean one thing. Dwarf! My search would begin at Ironforge. I transported myself immediately by portal, because I'm too damn lazy to fly.

I went straight to the top. The mission was of utmost importance. To the High Seat I went. I stormed past the guards and looked Muradin Bronzebeard in the eye. I told him of my quest. He responded with, 'sod off, y'er little bastard' in his Scottish drawl before the guards manhandled me and threw me into the corridor. I get the feeling dwarfs don't like gnomes very much...

Dusting myself off, I decided to ask a kindly looking Blacksmith. By this point I did not care if dwarves hated me or not. Gizmo needed to be avenged. Fortunately, this particular dwarf looked upon my cute face and took pity on me. But he requested a price for this information. I had to do a /train for him and his friends. I took a deep breath, knowing the scorn my high pitched 'chugga chugga choo choo' would cause. I did it and the whole place erupted with belly laughs and 'wtf's'. When he eventually composed himself and changed his pants (dwarves have bladder control 'issues'), he told me a Paladin fitting my description had passed through not long ago to use his forge. He did not know where he had gone but he said his armour was the finest he had ever seen! On I went, disappointed with my venture...

I went to Karanos next but they had not seen nor heard of the Paladin I was looking for. My search seemed futile. On a hunch I decided to go to Tinker Town to ask there. I had a feeling in my gut that this dwarf had a soft spot for gnomes but couldn't express it due to his races' prejudice towards us, lest he be mocked for being a 'gnome sympathiser'.

I asked all around town until someone pointed me here. They told me they had seen a dwarf fitting my description 'chilling' in the coolest house in town. So cool, in fact, that they all wore sunglasses...inside. I walked in, in my garish red outfit, like a boss. They sat, staring at me behind their expensive branded sunglasses. I demanded they tell me of this dwarf immediately. In a slightly drunk sounding voice, one of them said, 'yeah dude, we partied with him. Dwarf can drink!'. Ok, we were getting somewhere. I calmly asked what he had said and that the killers of Gizmo must be avenged. The gnome on the bunk looked up and replied, 'chill dude...!'. I stopped him right there...'chill dude?? I will Ice Lance you to the face if you don't tell me where he went. This dwarf is the only one who can stop Socks haunting my dreams!'. The gnome shook so hard, he almost fell off his trendy modular bunk. 'Ok, Ok, he said he was going to find an epic Golden Axe to go with his perfect Golden Armor. He said he would farm that dungeon until the bloody thing dropped and transmog the axe he had with better stats into something more awesome looking because Cataclysm gear is ugly'. I knew then that this was the dwarf I was looking for. Socks said he shined like the sun...golden armor. It all fits. So, I went the only place I knew I would find him. Stormwind City.

And here I waited. I know that one day he will return. When the time is right, he will be here. And then I will give him his task. Rubedeus, Socks needs you. Put on your Golden Armor, hunt down Gizmo's murderers and slay them all. Then drinks and cake, ok? :)

They're Following Me, I'm Sure!

New books arrived at work today and this was my favourite, of course!

Pandas in pants, running wild! What's not to love! In my mind, this is the story of what will happen should I ever roll a panda...

Kodak Moments!

I was taking a look through my screenshots this morning and found a few that I forgot about! So, here is my blog photo album. Enjoy!

Here we have the last day of Cataclysm, Just before the reset. If anyone has been present during a normal reset, you will know what happens in SW. But this one was different. A shout appeared in Trade Chat for everyone to go to the Cathedral. I'm nosy, so I went, to find this. Looks innocent enough, so I joined in...

And then more came...

Still fairly sensible...

Party Time! Let the dancing begin!

Awkward moment when some tall dude dances right in your face *blushes*

Almost time...

The End Is Here! Bye Bye Cataclysm, it was fun.

*Apologies for the swears. But it's, well, Trade Chat*

When WoW tries to give you a hint...

Thanks for the confidence boost Blizzard!

Suffering some lag in SW when I tried to mount up. Nothing happened. Then 5 mins later when I was minding my own business, this...

Flying Gnomie!

Randoms:

Check the recount...Mage Raaaage!

Quality response to some BG rage! This made me chuckle...more than it should have!

When Illusion goes horribly, horribly wrong. 

More to follow :)

Time To Enter the Arena...Almost!

Apologies to anyone who regularly reads this blog for the lack of posts lately. It's just, well, sexy new expansion grabbing my attention. And sexy it is. By far and away my favourite area of the game, Pandaria has given me tons of new things to do, with stunning looking areas and fun quests. Though I'm enjoying quests, dungeons and pottering about, my main goal is to be arena ready now the season has opened.

Last season I only did a couple of arena matches but this season my arena partner and I are gonna go hard! I'm back to being a full on Frost Mage now (because it's awesome) and I have a wonderful Shadow Priest partner who is a) Far more skilled than I, b) Capable of putting out wicked amounts of damage AND keep me healed and c) Lots of fun to play with! The combination is loaded with win. Our Frosty/Face Melty power has been tested in BG's and has yielded great success. We've held towers and bases alone, without too much hassle from the opposition. Though we've had some defeats, the majority of our adventures have been very satisfying. With better gear and more training we shall soon be a team to reckon with! And with my partner's wife hopefully joining us for 3v3 as a skilled, pvp Hunter, we will soon be racking up the body count! As you all know, the biggest enjoyment of the game for me is splatting horde, so to find like minded guildies, willing to let me join them (even though sometimes my brain leaks and I get us all killed) is an excellent bonus!

So, soon I will be posting tales of our exploits. The wins, the losses and most of all, the fun times!

A Shammy Stole My Dinner Money!

I have my sad face on right now. If you saw it, you would cry. It's that sad. Tonight I duelled with a Shammy from our guild. He has much lower level gear than me but he did indeed beat the living daylights out of me. More than once! 

Jokes aside, he's a great player. I unfortunately am not the best. I've never duelled a Shammy before and in BG's they always, always, beat the living crap out of me. Before 5.04 it was Ferals and Rogues, but I've just about mastered those. Shammy's however never fail to make me feel like I've just started playing. They run rings around me. I can't keep them silent for long enough, my damage they can heal back easily and those bloody totems...

But enough of the QQ. He did a brilliant job of explaining to me what I can do to help myself when faced with my arch nemesis'. Now I just have to put it into practice, so I can walk away from a duel with my head held high. At least once...

Who Are You?

So, I was thinking about how we choose our characters on WoW. And which of our characters we choose to be our main. I know the Role Players like to become their characters but even the most seasoned raider must choose according to their personality type. I spoke to a RL colleague the other day about the fact that I play WoW (we share similar nerdy passions). He said he has a lot of friends that play and asked whether I do PvP or PvE. When I said PvP, he laughed and said I must be aggressive. I think he is very wrong. PvP is aggressive but it also offers constant variety. I'm easily bored and this does not happen in PvP. It's always different. One game I might smash a boomkin into a pile of feathers. The next game a boomkin might stomp me under his giant chicken feet.

But as for my choice of Frost Mage, here is where I believe my personality shows through in my choice. Frost Mage spec is all about control. If I don't want you to move, most of the time you won't. Try and run away and I will make you stand still. Want to cast without my permission? I have counterspell to shut you up (and Frostjaw now, which makes horde sit down AND shut up. Thanks Blizzard!). I have epic control issues in RL. Which doesn't always work out. Where's my darned CS when I need it? Many of the jobs I have had require me to deal with problematic and sometimes aggressive people. Sometimes the crowd needs controlling. And you always need to go for the player who will do the most damage. As far as the ranged aspect goes, this is also true. As a child when arguments occurred, I never fought but I was always the one hurling the fast insults from a distance while someone much bigger than me did the fighting. I'm small and squishy and got picked on quite a bit so I always had to hide behind my bigger friends and try and break bullies down with words. Didn't always work out. Sometimes I took a sound beating for not being able to control my mouth. As I've got older I have learned to control my DPS, to prevent instant wipes. The annoyance factor of the penguin appeals to me very much. Make someone arrogant and cocky feel small. Sometimes those people need it. And my play style is similar to RL. I like to help people. In game, with the flag, in RL with anything that will help them attain their goals. If something doesn't work first time, then try a different approach. But never, ever give up, even if it is the RL equivalent of a horde gankswarm coming your way.

The gnome character is one that I love. I intend to play every gnome class available. They're the underdog. The little ankle biters. They're also of similar proportion to me. Except for the giant hands, which are the complete opposite to mine. My hands are sideshow freak tiny. I had to have my engagement ring sent away to be resized to a child's size. I still don't wear it now because it slips but the jewellers said to cut it any smaller would distort it beyond repair. But height wise, yes we are alike. My friends are almost all 5'6" and above (up to 6ft for the females), where I measure in at a measly 5'2". And they all like high heels. And that's just the men...

Seeing as you know my life story, you might as well see my face. Just so you can visualise me sat swearing at a big Tauren moo cow on my screen:

In my Halloween disguise as Alex from 'A Clockwork Orange'

In my WoW disguise as an annoying little gnome.

I would love to know whether other people agree with me on this or can identify with the role they play in game. I would very much like to hear why. I think my comments are fixed now, so please feel free to share your thoughts! :)

  

Naughty Gnome!

I tried to access my this blog today from a public access PC at work. It did not go well. Our filters blocked it due to *ahem* unsuitable content. Of the sexy kind!! I think it was the Deathwing screenshot. I admit, I did look rather fetching in our line dance, so really I should have expected it. The sheer amount of gnome sexy in that screenshot would probably have blown minds and caused sexy riots all over Azeroth had it not been stopped by those pesky filters. Lesson learned. From now on I will post only sensible screenshots...

Add caption

What? I needed a shower after my pew pew session, ok! Don't you judge me, internet filters!

I'm Switzerland

Well, my dearest other half left our guild tonight. But I stayed. A little awkward but whatever. I like where I am. I'm still an angry little teddy bear because we will lose a good part of our shared gaming but it's probably for the best. I'll carry on being smashed into even smaller pieces by Orcs in BG's (big smelly Orcs, I might add) and he'll probably raid like a demon...

I'm sure some people have already chosen sides. But that's not my style. My opinions on anything are based on facts. Anyone who knows me should know this. If I choose not to speak to someone it's because I have made the decision based on what I know, not what anyone else tells me. Even my favourite Lock cannot (nor would he try) sway me.

But there is a message to my post. Our GM tried his hardest to resolve the problem and I know he still feels bad. And he shouldn't. I would have gone too were it not for the sheer effort he put in. A game should not stress anyone out so much. He chose a great quote for our guild message and I know it was not well received but I appreciated it very much.

"There is magic in sincere forgiveness; in the forgiveness you give, but more so in the forgiveness you receive."

A great choice. Hopefully, at some point I'll be able to pay his work back. Not every effort results in a win but that does not mean you lose faith in yourself. Get right back on your feet and keep doing your thing.

 To Arikka: /bow

PS: You're safe from being a penguin... For now ;)

Gankswarms!

The inspiration for this post came from a comment made in an Alterac Valley BG. It's something that has been bothering me for the last few days but I haven't been able to verbalise it as well as this guy could. The comment was:

"ffs...I hate coming in here late and getting griefed to f**k by a gankswarm!"

My thoughts exactly. Not just about AV but  virtually every single BG I've played this week. Battle for Gilneas. Horde took Lighthouse and stood at the graveyard smashing our faces in. Arathi Basin, took the Stables and pounded my gnome into dust. Warsong Gulch, attempted but not this time, pedro. What the hell is going off with Horde lately? Is this the only way they play now? I mean, usually they travel in packs much better than Alliance (which for me is often the reason for their success) but not to this extent. Though this may look like a massive QQ, it's really not. I appreciate a horde who plays well and takes me to pieces but to have rogues, fire mages, huntards and priests gank the graveyard? This has happened sometimes but these last few days it's been the main play style. And it's dull. Still, always the chance to mega penguin and pat prior to my death. Which never stops being fun!

I did have one major win this week with a new talent though. Lets call it a 'Disney talent'. Illusion provided me with the biggest giggle I've had in a while. I was in Twin Peaks and we were trying to get the flag. I was defending but was seeing my team mates frustration at the fact that 2 rogues were guarding the horde flag so I thought I'd take a chance at grabbing it. I popped into invisible mode and made my way to the flag, grabbed it and unfortunately got kicked to death by the rogues. Ok, try again. This time I swam in blinked to the flag, managed to get out of the room but again succumbed to the rogues. Last try. Previously I had tried Illusion and turned into trolls, so I wondered if they might not notice me sneak in. By this time there was a lot of horde stood outside their flagroom. Clicked Illusion and turned into a goblin...of all horde races! So I started running towards them... and they ignored me. I had a wtf moment but carried on regardless. Ice Barrier up, I grabbed the flag. This set the rabbid rogues after me plus a bonus loladin. Counter Spelled the loladin, plus a quick spell steal and Frost Nova'd the rogues. Blinked out and started running. Had a DK put me in Shackles of Ice but the Escape Artist gnome racial sorted that. I got half way down the field before I had a gathering of horde running towards me. Waited until they got close, the BAM, Frost Nova and blink again. I had 1 (yes, just 1) ally run at the side of me from here when I saw a shadow of a little b*****d rogue sap him. He shouted sap and I got a lovely pet freeze ready for him. Popped it on plus Deep Freeze and carried on. Dropped the flag to win the game! During this run, I cursed more than ever I had done. But it was FUN!

Though my mage has lost a lot of her damage until I figure my stuff out, she has not lost the awesome CC abilities and most importantly the fun factor. Though I may not have the DPS of a fire mage or even an Arcane mage, I do have the ability to get either myself or another player carrying the flag up the field. I like nothing better than to help a fellow Ally through a big group of horde with my Frost Nova's and Pet Freezes, while they run on to victory. Or even myself. Seeing multiple horde stuck to the floor while I cycle through my freeze rotation is a joy to behold. Until, of course, I run out and they pummel me into the floor. By that time though, out FC is usually clear. I'm not nicknamed the suicide gnome, by my favourite Lock, for nothing...