20 questions with bloggers

20 Questions with Fimlys

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Every week, Matt gets a chance to sit down with a WoW Blogger chosen this week by Wolpertinger in a mug. Find out a little more about your favourite bloggers as he tries to get to know them a little more!

This week, Fimlys of Asleep at the WoW has been forced graciously agreed to be my blogger of choice this week.

Tell us a bit more about the blogger behind the blog:

My "real" name is Michael. I live in Orlando, FL (Mickeyworld). I am a computer programmer by day and a crime-fighter by night… Well, not so much the crime-fighter, but I really am a programmer.

I am over 30, male, married and have 2 "smallish" kids. I like mana coladas, getting caught in the raid.  I’m not much into strength food.. I am into the campaign. I like killing mobs at midnight, in the vaults of SH.

I understand that your alias is Fimlys (which is also the name of your main character). Is there a particular history behind that name?

First off, yes, you can call me Al.  You can also call me Fim. In addition, it is pronounced Fim-liss (maybe with a bit of a lihss sound…).. Ok, that out of the way.  I really don’t care how you pronounce it.
I think I have a post about this too, but for you who are too darn lazy to go find it on my site (hint hint).. I really have no clue. Wait, something is coming to me. You mind if I just make something up?  No? Cool.. Ok.. Here it goes:
In college somehow I was saddled with the nickname Fizz (don’t ask..).  When I started playing WoW, I create a character named Fizz.  He was a human mage. I quickly grew bored of him and wanted to create another character. I had read that Hunters were pretty easy to solo, so I rolled one.  For some reason I got in my head that I should have this shtick that all my characters start with F. I was also trying to come up with a name that fit a night elf.. Not really knowing what that entailed, I came up with Fimlys. I wanted something a little difficult to pronounce so I could correct people all the time and harass them for messing up my name.

In your opinion, how could the Aldor and Scryer forces (once mortal enemies) come to terms with each other AND start cooperating? Would you say that is almost as surprising as US forces working with the Russians on joint exercises after the Cold War?

I can’t believe it! How could they do this to me? They have completely jacked up everything I hold sacred and dear! I’m quitting… /wowquit.   (Seriously… not all that sure I care, but it could be as surprising as that)

How on EARTH did you end up playing a game like this?

1) I have been gaming all my life.. Well, most..
b) I am a HUGE RPG nut (First computer RPG game was Ultima III, I think)
III) I played FFXI for a while since I am also a FF nut (see a pattern here?)
*) I migrated to WoW when it came out because it was just more FUN than FFXI and I was much more into "solo" play than grouping and FFXI has required grouping in the mid game. (I also had played and liked the Warcraft games in the past)
This "solo" pay mindset I had is very interesting because I have recently professed that what KEEPS me in WoW is the social aspects now.  I get bored quickly if I have nobody to chat with.  I love running instances and going on raids

The 2.4 patch has JUST been released. The next thing on the horizon is Wrath of the Lich King. What are you looking forward to the most?

"Noobzone Chat"…  "Where is BLAH?".  "Why can’t I fly?"..  "How do you get the frizzlemadizzle?"…. I LOVE THAT STUFF!!!!

Well, I am really looking forward to the new content. I really got energized by the release of TBC and I can’t wait for the interesting changes that are in store for WotLK. 

Your epic Gryphon is flying over the seas of Azeroth somewhere only to get shot down by Horde insurgents and by sheer luck and skill (you are a hunter, after all), you manage to make it to a deserted island. You lose your possessions and all of your gold in the process. You think to yourself that a stereotypical deserted island HAS to have a lamp of some kind. After hours of searching and digging, you manage to find a rusty old lamp which you activate and out pops a genie who grants you 1 wish. What will it be?

A can of Frobozz Magic Grue Repellent.

How’s your Hunter loaded and specced? Any significant reason as to why that path?

He is a bit different.  He is currently specced BM (which I am sure will make BRK smile) and I am loving it.  However, to be a bit different, I have most of my gear still chosen/gemmed/enchanted for AP from when I was MM.  I have a large amount of AP and a nice wittle shot speed.. My crit isn’t as high as some, and neither is my dodge, but I get by.  Kenny usually is picking up 1/3 of the damage I do at this point, so I don’t think that is so bad.

Your Priest is Holy (and receives an official Matticus seal of approval) and you have a Hunter. Which do you enjoy playing the most?

I’m not really sure.  I think that I actually feel like I have less to worry about as a Priest. It is almost a relief not to have to send in/out the pet of ultimate destruction, trap, kite, misdirect, time the shots, etc… I DO love me my hunter though.  He was my first, and you know how it is with your first…

So why did you level a Priest instead of a Paladin, a Druid, or a Shaman?

The guild had a couple of healing Paladins and a couple of healing Druids and a healing Shaman.  All of our priests had switched specs to SP or Disc and there was need for a Holy Priest. Soooo.. being the oh so good Guild Samaratin that I am (cough, cough), I leveled my priest.
Actually, to buck the trend when TBC came out, I rolled a Draenei Priest.  Everyone was rolling Draenei Shaman and I wanted to be different. He was really just for me to play with and have fun, thus his name, Fhuun…
I am actually leveling a Druid also right now, she is level 61 (yeah.. SHE). Right now she is a Boooooomkin and I’m enjoying it.  Might eventually go Feral tank, might eventually go tree.. Who knows! That is the beauty of da Drood.

How has 2008 been so far for you and your blog? Any upcoming features or highlights that your audience can look forward to?

2008 has been super-dee-duper.  Having joined up with the Blog Azeroth community has been a blast! I have also moved my blog to a "self-hosted" environment and that has sucked all my time down the drain..
I have gotten a lot of new readers from the community and I’ve loved that people (you guys!) have started to leave comments.. It is pretty satisfying when you ask a question and get answers!
Upcoming features?  Well, I really would like to get more into the "Addon Reviews".  I am an Addon Whore..  I don’t have as many as some, but generally I’m the one everyone in my guild comes to with addon questions. I try to keep up with the latest styles and trends and I’d love to share that with my readers.

Speed Questions

Favorite Quote

I’m pretty partial to the double quote ("), but on occasion I use a single quote (‘) when necessary.

Most used spell:

Well, on my Priest it has to be Heal.. Hunter? Does Scatter Shot count? (Hmm.. maybe it is Rez Pet…)

Favourite song:

Serenity by Godsmack (for the moment, I am a fickle pickle)

Warcraft is like ______:

Heroin (but kinda in a good way… maybe.. maybe… can I go back to playing now?  please? please? please? please?… hey! give me back my keyboard! HEY!!!! I can’t play without that! WHAT IS THE !*@$!&@$ VENT INFO????  AAAAAGHAGHGHAGHGHAGHHGAHAG)

Worse class to play against 

Slicka the Wonderdrone… What? That’s not an answer?  Well.. When I HAVE done PvP, I really have come to hate Rogues.  Stupid stunlock… mumble mumble..

Aside from WoW, do you play any sports or engage in any hobbies?

Sports, ok… Watching Football on TV.  Watching Baseball on TV.  Watching my son play Baseball.
Hobbies, well… Other than the obvious computer gaming, I also am into console gaming (SURPRISE!) and I like to read books (which are those big rectangular things that look like a bound stack of paper). But I try to spend most of my free time (well, when I am not playing WoW) with my family

I’m bad at managing my schedule and time. Any ideas to help a poor sap?

Um… Sleep is for the weak?  I went to a school where sleep was considered a nuisance. Make sure you have fun in school!  All nighters are fun!  I didn’t have something like WoW while I was in school, but I did spend most of my time NOT doing my school work. 

Ehhh… I’m really not a good role model when it comes to time management.. 😛

Your 3 favourite shows on TV:

American Idol… uh, no…  Don’t watch too much TV.. Here is what I get to watch:
1) Scooby Doo
2) Ben 10
3) Dora the Explorer

(I also like CSI [NY and Vegas mostly] and Eureka and old episodes of SG1)

One thing you would say to others who have a desire to blog:

Have fun and write for you. You can’t always please everyone, but you SHOULD always be able to please yourself. If people see you enjoy what you write about, you will get an audience. 

But then again, what do I know?

Shout outs to:

I like to give a shout out to my awesome guild.  They keep me in this masochistic game. Also to the Blog Azeroth community, especially the stupendous BAChat peeps.. Too many to name, but you know whom you is. I really must thank you for throwing me under this bus… Don’t think the favor won’t be returned.. MUAHAHA HAHAAHA!  … *cough*.. Ahem… Sorry…

Thanks again to Fimlys for agreeing to do the interview! Don’t forget to subscribe to his blog!

20 Questions with Nightravyn

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Every week, Matt gets a chance to sit down with a WoW Blogger chosen by a rare Manna Biscuit found in Alterac Valley. Find out a little more about your favourite bloggers as he tries to get to know them a little more!

This week, Nightravyn of NE Hunter LF4Mobs was awesome enough to stop mending her pet for a few minutes to answer a few questions.

I know I keep mistaking you as Nightrayne but that’s because I used to play BloodRayne when I was younger. Now I just think of you as a vampiric, dual wielding hunter. What influenced the name Nightravyn?

Nightravyn is a long-standing internet usename for me. I adore ravens, and at the time I created the name, I was spending a lot of time up in the wee hours of the morning. When I went to create a name, I tried "Nightraven" but it was taken, so "Nightravyn" it became. Cheesy, yeah, but it fits me still.

What is your real life alt?

Real Life Alt? But, but, but Nightravyn isn’t my character’s name! Hmm, well there’s my main character in WoW, Siana, who’s my hunter and the one that I write mostly about. And then there’s my real name, Amy. I can’t really consider any of those alts, though. Hmm, I guess if I could pick, I’d have to go with whichever alt of me that exists that has cabana boys waving palm fronds over my head while the IT crew finishes setting up the online gaming facility for me to lounge in. You know, the rich one. ::sighdream::

I’m absolutely hopeless when it comes to dealing damage. A hunter would be the last class I would play because I’d have to manage a pet as well. What three things about Hunters could you tell me about in order to lessen the intimidation of playing them?

I’d never been a "pet class" person before starting WoW but found it horribly easy to handle.

1. Pets make lovely meat shields, increasing your survivability. 

2. Pets increase your DPS letting you plow through mobs even faster.

3. There’s just something heartwarming about seeing a giant animal you’ve named and trained going after a mob, killing it, then coming back to you with this "Moremoremore?!" attitude. Well, heartwarming until you have to feed the twerps every two seconds cos they’re bottomless pits of starvation, or they go pathing off in the wrong direction when the raid’s still buffing. Oh and let’s not forget the… oh, um, ::cough:: "petz r gud."

 

Just for the heck of it, what’s your Hunter’s spec and why is it specced in that way?

1. Right now, Siana’s spec’d Marksman. Yes, I said it. Marks. I’ve been playing with her specs, trying MM/BM and mostly MM, with MM/Survival up next for the testing. I appreciate the DPS that a BM-centric spec has, but it’s just not my play style. I’ve tried, and it doesn’t fit me as well as the MM spec does. I’m thankful that I belong to a guild that doesn’t frown on any spec, as long as you do the job you’re there for.

What did you find most appealing about rolling a hunter instead of another class?

The last game I’d played by Blizzard was Diablo 2. I’d loved playing a Bow-spec’d Amazon, and knew that I would love any class similar to that. Also at that time I was closing out my career as a cleric in EQ and was tired of healing, so "Hunter" was a good fit for me to try out. I promptly fell in love with the class and haven’t looked back.

Which particular class do you find yourself having trouble with killing?

I’m going to have to say the infamous "25-man raid" class. Although "Paladin Guild/Raid Leader" comes close, too (danged bubbles). In all due seriousness, since I don’t PvP or Arena, this is kind of a hard question for me. I haven’t the faintest idea! ^^

What are you going to look forward to the most in 2.4?

New 5 and 10 man instances. Oh and new dailies. Although, I still have a cooking recipe to get and need to finish out my Netherwing rep and… hmm, maybe I don’t want more dailies/rep grinds.

There are hunters in this game that can’t seem to hit the broad side of the barn. Do you think implementing tracers and laser sights would solve that?

Some of them, sure. They just need a little training. Others? Mmm not so much. Although now that you’ve mentioned tracer rounds, that would be kinda cool to see.

Any top secret and classified plans that your readers might be interested in knowing about?

Oh boy! Oh yes, yes I am! It’s going to be this… hey wait a second here. C’mere. I’ll whisper it in your ear. Don’t mind the knife in the hand behind my back. No reason to be worried…

As a Sci Fi person, would I like watching Farscape?

I’d think so! I loved Farscape. Amazing effects, fantastic plots, the Henson Creature Shop behind it which meant the aliens looked alien! It had this wonderful mix of drama, with bits of comedy thrown in at prefect times. The storyline was compelling, and you grew to really care about the characters. And then there was the eyecandy: for the girls, there were guys in leather pants. For the guys, there were girls in leather pants. It was a win/win!

Speed questions

Best pet in the game:

Cat! (but I’m biased – go kitties!)

First thing you do when you see Horde:

Tauren – Wave/hug. Everyone else – ignore.

Favourite raid encounter in the game thus far:

Old School – ZG. TBC – Karazhan.

Most creative use for feign death:

Creative? Don’t know about creative, but /kissing Mojo, turning into a toad, then feigning death sends me into giggles each and every time.

Effective way to deal with troublesome domestic animals:

Swear a lot, Feign death and apologize. Oh, you said "effective". Pets to passive, don’t target the tank’s mob til it really is pull time, and lock your real life cats in another room.

When you’re not playing WoW you are _____:

Reading, playing on the Playstation/PSP, annoying the cats, or at (gag) work. Soon to be adding "harrassing The Boyfriend to help me paint rooms in the house" to that list.

DPSing is like ___ :

Pewpew! Pewpewpewpew! ::boom:: ::giggle:: Pewpew! LEWTZ!

Dual Wielding Guns (yes or no):

Only with silencers attached to both. -.-

Favourite Sci Fi Captain:

Hmm. Captain? Brains: Captain Picard. Guts: Captain Kirk. Insanity: Captain Crais. All other ranks, including Captain and above: Honor Harrington. (David Weber ftw!)

3 things that annoy you most about other hunters:

1. Not feigning death and complaining when "the tank lets you die".

2. Not knowing how to turn the "Growl" button off on your pet.

3. Giving people any chance at all to paint all hunters with the "Huntard" brush.

Special thanks to:

To Kestral for noticing I’d snuck into existence. To Phaelia and Valenna for creating Blog Azeroth. To the Hunter bloggers for proving there are good Hunters out there and helping educate the populace. To my guildmates who are an amazing and determined crew of insane, fun people. To Aerye and Uber Pally, friends and guildmates that said "Sure!" when I poked them and asked if I post some of their tales and information. To The Boyfriend for putting up with this, and to the real life kitties who wait (mostly) patiently while I do "one more thing" on the computer before giving them their pettinz. A shoutout to all the all the people in the Blog Azeroth chat room (there’s a lot of us in there now!), with nods to Big Bear Butt, Anna, Bellwether, Siha, Matticus, Jon, Maerdred and Leafshine (and I know I left someone out! /cry)

Nightravyn’s blog: One hunter, a "teal" cat (looks blue to me) and infinite ammo cheat enabled! While you’re visiting, don’t forget to subscribe to Nightravyn’s blog!

20 Questions with Galadria

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20 Questions with Matticus

Every week, Matt gets a chance to sit down with a WoW Blogger chosen by Highlord Bolvar Fordragon’s mustache. Find out a little more about your favourite bloggers as he tries to get to know them a little more!

This week, Galadria of the Holy Light was awesome enough to stop healing for a few minutes to answer a few questions.

First, for anyone who may not have an idea of who you may be, how about a little introduction?

I play a Holy Priest on the Uldaman US server. Our guild has raided through Kara. I have been playing WoW for about a year with my husband, we started playing together (he’s a Hunter if you’re curious). We’ve been married for five and a half years and live in Austin, TX with our gorgeous English Bulldog Missy. If you can’t tell from the SuperCoolPoints on my Blog we love to watch movies.

How has 2008 treated you so far (both in game and in RL)?

This year has been good for me, though it’s flown by. Personally, I’ve got a lot of goals (haven’t gotten around to any of them, but I will!) and I’m looking forward to working on them. I’m not playing Galadria as much as I’d like, since our guild fell apart so it’s kind of hard to say how the year has treated me. I’m still enjoying it so I guess it’s treated me well!

If you could roll a new class and archtype what would it be and why?

What I’d like to see is coming in the expansion. Batman is one of my favorite comic characters because he is so dark (I LOVE Christian Bale as Batman because you really see the sad and tortured side of him). Wolverine from X-Men for the same reason. I love the “Devil with a Good Heart” archetype. I think the Death Knight will fit that type if character very well. I’m not sure if I’ll be getting one, we’ll have to see if I have an alt up to 70 by then!

Your fictitious cousin Renaldo Geraldo Waldo is in a bind (Yes, I watched Family Matters). He works at Blizzard as one of their developers. The executive developers at Blizzard gave him a 24 hour window to design a new type of healing spell for Priests to compete against the overpoweredness of Shamans, Paladins, and Restoration Druids. He knows of no other Priest to turn to (lets assume I’m incapacitated in some fashion due to too much ale) and by helping him out with this big favor, you know he will owe you big time. What is the one healing spell that you suggest to him that be put in game?

An AOE (or party-wide) HOT would be cool. Something like the T4 set bonus but actually viable. Then improve it with talents and make it castable on other parties.

What was your motivation behind your blog and what inspires you?

I started my blog because I wanted to be better and more knowledgeable about my class. If I was going to be telling others what I think, I’d better be informed! It’s worked too! The game is what really inspires me. Almost every post idea comes from something in game.

If your kid wanted to play WoW, how would you react?

Depends on the age. If I thought s/he was mature enough to handle the people they would likely encounter I wouldn’t have a problem (with some strict time limits)

I could use some new tunes to listen to while raiding. What would you suggest?

I’m a big fan of Bare Naked Ladies so I listen to them a lot. The music is upbeat and I know ALL the words so I jam along. I also like Eminem for raiding. There’s something primal about some of his music and it fits well with killing bosses. Now for one you’ve probably never heard of. Chicane. The genre is called Trance. It’s kind of like Techo, but softer. The music is very ethereal and calming.

If there was one thing different you could have done to your blog, what would it have been?

Self-host from the beginning!

With that in mind, what can we look forward to from you in 2008?

Self-hosting! I’ve got some big ideas that I’ll have to see if I have enough time to accomplish when I get that set up.

You’re traveling on the roads towards Theramore in Dustwallow Marsh. You encounter a badly beaten up Orc warrior with his axe embedded into the ground beside him half broken. Voices startle you and to your amazement, you recognize the language. It sounds like a bunch of drunken Stormwind cadets and they’re getting louder almost as if they’re heading towards you. A quick glance at the peon, and in a flash you realize those cadets are coming back to finish the job they started. A quick Shadow Word: Death would end his misery and prevent the humiliation from a band of kids. On the other hand, Horde forces and the Theramore militia have a certain understanding that has been brokered by Thrall and Jaina. Do you end his life and fulfill your duty or protect him honoring the treaty? Why?

Protect him and honor the treaty. If he did something to deserve the beating he got, he should be brought to justice and can be if he’s still alive. Then the treaty was obviously broken by the other side. If I kill him then the treaty has been broken by us. On top of that I’ve killed another person just because he’s on the other side. Who knows what he was doing there?

Speed Questions

Best 41 point Priest talent:

VT… but I’m not Shadow 🙁

Worse pickup line ever:

“Did you fall from Heaven?”

Biggest pain in the ass encounter in the game?

Sunken Temple as a whole is a huge pain. As for a specific encounter, Kael sounds like a real pain. With what I’ve expirenced I’d have to say Netherspite.

Favourite type of tank:

Warrior

Do you think mages need a new rank of conjured water so us Priests can get more mana back?:

absa-frickin-lutley

Favourite in game holiday:

Halloween

If you could describe healing a raid in exactly 10 words, what would it be?:

I’ll do it in 3, Whack-a-Mole

3 posts you’d love to see other bloggers write:

I wish my Priest would…
HTML/PHP/CSS for dummies (because I’m a total Intarweb n00b)
Epic Fail stories… though someone I know already sorta did that 🙂

Steve Urkel or Samuel “Screech” Powers?

Screech… totally! Though I’m more of a Kelly than a Lisa.

Favourite NPC

Hummm… that’s a tough one… Probably Nat Pagle because I love the back story.

Shout outs to:

I’m going to copy straight from my New Years post because it sums it up nicely!

“I’d espcially like to thank Ego and Kirk for giving me something to aspire to and much inspiration. Matticus and Kestrel for sending many readers my way and helping show me how to be a good blogger. BRK, Rashtag, TJ, and BBB for making me laugh every day.”

Remember, Galadria’s blog has a lot more interesting posts and topics about Holy Priests then I could ever have covered here. While you’re at it, don’t forget to subscribe to her blog!