Liebster Love part 4

Here are the answers to my next 22 questions.

Mon of Mon Plays WoW:

• Why do you play WoW? This is actually a question I’ve been putting a lot of thought into recently. I’m not even sure I’d call my current WoWing “playing” as it mostly consists of tiny snapshots these days. I log and talk to my cooking apprentice on Dulca. I might do the odd spot of PvP on Snowflower. Sprout might get an outing to make cloth for another bag. Random alt number 17 might gain a level or two but I have no real purpose. I don’t raid (too anxious and if I’m being honest, I feel raiding without being willing to get gear from other sources plus cloak is lazy and unfair to the rest of the team), random battlegrounds show you the worst of humanity more often that not and there are only so many pet battles I can stomach. Mr Harpy thinks I’m an optimist desperate to the see the best in things and personally I suspect it’s stubbornness. In my head I’m not ready to quit, I want to play through Warlords.
• If you had to play one class, and one only, what would you pick? Priest. I’ve deviated away from this on many occasions only to find myself running back to the comfort of the one class I’ve always been happy playing.
• How long have you played WoW for? February 2005… although there have been breaks along the way.
• What is your favourite meal or delicacy? (Gaming related or not) What I’m cooking right now, whole chicken roasting slowly in the oven. It’s buttered skin sprinkled with paprika, oregano and with slices of fresh lemon tucked up beside it. I’ll be serving it with flat breads, red wine and a spicy tomato salad. 
• What got you in to gaming? I got my first computer when I was quite small but then as a teenager I decided it wasn’t cool and abandoned gaming completely. It was only when I met Mr Harpy that I got sucked back in, primarily playing first person shooters over a lan with him and his friends. Turns out I had a shed load of aggression and loved shooting his mates repeatedly in the head. From there I graduated to Age of Empires and Dungeon Keeper I and II and haven’t really looked back since.
• Why do you blog? I’ve always loved to write. I won my first ever short story competition as a rather precocious six or seven year old (for the record it was terrible) and was always encouraged to write by my mother. She with a tiny bit of imput from me created scrapbooks for me starting when I was two or three, which I still have and blogging is a continuation of that.
• What is a strange habit you have when playing WoW? To completely lose track of time.
• What is your ideal next expansion? One with strong characters, both male and female, compelling and interesting quest lines and stunning scenery. 
• If you could create a mount, what would it be? A giant bug a la Princess Huhuran. 
• What is your favourite raid or instance? Hmm a toss up between Karazhan or Ulduar.
• What could you never live without? Books, bacon and and long hot baths. (I’ve love to say Mr Harpy but I know life is not like that).

Chatmay of the WoW Debutante:

1. How long have you been blogging?  Why did you decide to start a WOW blog? Scarily enough, I’ve been blogging since the end of May/start of June 2008 which surprisingly enough means this year is my 6th anniversary.  I must admit when I started, I never thought I’d last this long. It took me another year to force myself onto Blog Azeroth and another year and a half before I managed to make a twitter account.
2. What has been the highlight of your blogging career? Discovering that people do actually choose to read my ramblings.
3. What games do you play besides WOW? At the moment I’m playing Dragon Age: Origins and trying not to fall for Alistair, Candy Crush because I have a disturbing need to get three stars on every level and Harmony Isle just because…I’m also fond of Transport Tycoon. 
4. What hobby do you spend the most time on besides gaming? Reading, crafting, sewing, gardening and cooking all divide my time fairly equally at the moment.
5. What kinds of foods do you like and when do you snack the most? I prefer savoury over sweet although I found a fascinating sounding recipe in an old cook book the other day for a mashed potato chocolate cake and I’m definitely going to try that.
6. What period of time/expansion have you enjoyed the most in WOW and why? Probably Wrath. I loved the bad guy, the zones and the quest chains leading up the Icecrown Citadel. Also it played host to some of my favourite five man dungeons in Halls of Reflection and the Culling of Stratholme.
7.  What is your favorite profession in WOW?  What is the rarest pattern you have made in a profession? Herbalism so no rare patterns just that peace of mind which comes from wandering around picking flowers and taking screenshots.
8.  How often do you twitter about WOW?  In one day? I’m not the most prolific tweeter out there, in fact I probably on average tweet less than once a day.
9.  Do you attend any conventions for comics, anime, WOW, gaming, etc.? No. If Blizzcon was closer, I might be tempted but in reality I’m awfully shy.
10. Tell about a close friend you have had in WOW and whether you are still in touch. Because of the above, I wouldn’t say I’ve ever had that many close friends in WoW. None of my real life friends play or at least they’ve never admitted it to me and whilst I’ve always got on with most of my guildmates, I wouldn’t say we were particularly close. 
11. Random WOW fact or adventure you have been on. I couldn’t think of a WoW adventure I’ve been on that I haven’t already described at some point or another so instead I thought I’d show you some photos of a real life adventure I went on.

The view from the roof of the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary of Mexico City (and yes, I was up there legally).

A Mayan Ruin

The only surviving monument to a town laid to waste by a volcano

Distracted

My leisure time is decidedly lacking at the moment and what few moments I do have are somewhat divided.

Reading

My current reading list looks something like this. I’d definitely recommend Heavenly Bodies to anyone else fascinated by the skull beneath the skin, the illustrations alone are worth the price and from what I’ve read so far, it’s the left me with the nagging desire to go wandering across Europe visiting Catacombs.

Gaming

I am still playing WoW albeit with that numbness which comes with the doldrums before an expansion. It’s hard to focus on any one activity when you know that a massive change is en route, so I do a spot of pet battling or play an alt but there is no driving force behind my gaming at the moment. I want to tick more items off my to do list and of course level my little Warlock by wandering around exploring and questing but that’s an hour here and there.

Thanks to Ironyca, perhaps too much of my time is currently being taken by an evil little browser game.

I’m also still playing Candy Crush although my rules are still the same. No cash will be spent on the app and if I run out of lives, then I just have to wait. So far I’m at level 123 and it’s a great way of killing time whilst commuting.

Hearthstone

I got my Hearthsteed but I’m still dabbling.

Although I have to admit I haven’t gone back to playing actual people since I won the mount, instead I’m having fun taking on the computer. That said though, I didn’t actually mind the “pvp” games either, it’s when people feel the need to emote that I get nervous. I love the art work, the cards themselves and their descriptions are amazing.

Dragon Age

Yep, I’m back playing my 10th Mage through her Harrowing and hopefully beyond. There is something addictive about that Mage Tower! This time the plan is seduce Leliana and make Anora marry Alistair but then that’s been the plan before. Usually one of two things happens, I either get distracted writing fan fiction and before I know it, my Mage has fallen head over heels for Alistair which never ends well or even worse, I get into a rut around Ostager and just make a new Mage. I could actually do the Harrowing in my sleep and I’ve been yelled at by the Knight Commander so many times, I’ve explored all the possible dialogue options without having to go back to previous saves. I’m not a hundred percent sure what this says about me, but I suspect it’s not particularly positive.

I’d also forgotten just how pretty Dragon Age is, even Ostager looks beautiful.

Possible Temptation – Games I’m fighting the urge to purchase or play

Wildstar

I haven’t pre-ordered but I’m definitely tempted to try the game. After all it has “tree-huggers”, which sounds close enough to Elves to work for me. I’ve read quite a few reviews and whilst I’m not sure it would hold my attention for long, it’s definitely struck a cord or two.

Windborne

I found this whilst browsing Steam and there is just something about it which draws me in. I’ve always loved sandbox games where you can just wander around building and exploring.

Crafting

At the moment I’m sewing together a cat cushion but have so many ideas of things I wish to try dotted around the house. Matty introduced me to this and I can’t resist to the temptation to turn it into a little lavender pillow or similar.

I also found a book on salt dough when I visited the library last which brought back a lot of childhood memories so I’d like to give that ago sometime soon. Then of course, there is my Warcraft tarot cards to be finished, with the Worgen Harvest witch as the Hermit and of course Tyrande as the High Priestess.

I also need to assemble and find a place to put my Edward Gorey “Dracula” theatre. I picked this up years ago and it’s been sitting in a box just waiting for a home every since.

Finally I’m in the process of  re-organising my button shelf as I think it’s getting a bit out of control.

Essentially as with everything, there are far more things to do than there are hours in the day. That said, I’m always on the look out for new and shiny distractions, so feel free to make suggestions.

My latest Distraction

Inspired by a comment left by the Dancing Hare, I thought I’d dabble in SW:TOR and much to my surprise I am actually enjoying the story so far. It’s weird because I hated the gated fixed leveling zones in WoW but yet here I find myself sinking into the story telling rather than focusing on the fact that everyone playing my class experiences the same beginning. The fact that I’m playing solo probably helps, wanting to play say a Worgen and then being stuck for 14 levels when you want to quest with someone who refuses to play a Worgen got frustrating fast. Not sure how long the “ooh” factor will last but then since I really really really want to kill the guy who keeps giving me quests, I suspect I’ll be enthralled at least to the point where I either get to slaughter him or the game designers disappoint me by making him turn out to be okay after all.

I’m also playing through Dragon Age: Origins as a Mage yet again. I could pretty much do my harrowing in my sleep by this stage. Although what normally happens is I burn out by Ostagar and run off and make a new character but this time, I’m determined. I have goals in fact. I will actually finish the damn game, seduce Leliana and make Alistair marry Anora.

On the flip (WoW) side, I’ve found myself missing Sprout to the point of starting to sketch gnome faces, trying to decide whether a plushie would work best with a painted felt face or one built out of embroidery and fabric. Not convinced I actually miss playing the game though.

Miscellaneous Monday

To borrow from the estimable Godmother, right now I’m mostly faffing.

In WoW

I’m mainly pvping and achievement chasing, with a side order of trade chat discussion. My Hunter has progressed a bit as well, spurred on by the idea of shared realm spaces and lots of other Hunters chasing “her” rare spawn pets and spirit beasts so the idea of me finishing 2012 in 2012 is still possible.

I’m also working on both my entries into JD’s Mogolympics and Neri’s “The Skills to Pay the Bills” July transmogrification competitions. If you haven’t already signed up/started thinking about your entries, what are you waiting for?

Gaming in General

I started a new game of Dragon Age: Origins, running my fifth mage through her Harrowing and yes, I am a total Harrowing expert by now but since “true tests never end”.. you never know.

This time the plan is to seduce Leliana but that’s been the plan before and Alistair with his goofy smile and Templar armour usually gets in the way.

I’m also probably the only person with a copy of Diablo III who still hasn’t finished it on any setting at all. My Monk is still working her way through Act 1 and whilst I found myself enjoying it for a period, I don’t have any great desire to pick it up and finish it.

I’d love fluttering moth shoulders as transmogrification option.

Books

This week I’m reading Kate Atkinson “Started Early, Took My Dog“, any book which uses Emily Dickinson to provide it’s title has to be worth reading right?

As well as “Das Leben der HochGräfin Gritta von Rattenzuhausbeiuns” mostly because I couldn’t resist the title. In English it translates to “The Life of High Countess Gritta von Ratsinourhouse” and so far I’m loving it.

Finally I’m reading “Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters” because my Mother told me not to, also I rather like sea monsters. So far Jane Austen has not risen from the grave to haunt me for this sin but never fear, the second it happens, I’ll blog about it assuming I don’t just die of fright.

Random Stuff off the Internet

I fell in love with this kitten creator a week or so ago and have spent many a happy hour “faffing” with it since. This is Mr Harpy’s Gnome Rogue reimagined as a kitten.

I also spend far too much time browsing The Graphics Fairy and the OBI Scrapbook Blog looking at old bookplates, labels and photographs.

My other favourite place has to be Project Gutenberg where you can lose yourself in things like this and this. I think it works a bit like my brain, I search for something completely random and then end up somewhere else, miles away. As  a plus point, some of the illustrations, especially in the children’s books are amazing. There are so many things out there that I never knew I wanted to read.

Back to the faffing!