Stat Inflation

So I’ve been wondering how Blizzard would solve the gear inflation issue – current players have insane gear compared to what future levelers will have. But just glancing at the jewelcrafting info that’s been datamined, it looks like they’re going for the “instantly blow past old epics” method. The new lowest level gems, the common green ones, will be twice as good as our current epic gems! If that follows for all gear – and it looks like it does – you’ll upgrade from your Northrend gear the same way you swap out your rag-tag old world stuff when you first hit BC: do a handful of easy quests in the first zone, get greens, profit.

Northrend ore and jewels are essentially worthless the day Cataclysm drops, until they get scarce enough that you can sell them to profession levelers. I might have to go stock up on some BC and Vanilla ore though to sell when the expansion drops… there’s always folks looking to change professions…

WTB beta invite…

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Is Improved Barkskin Going to be Mandatory?

Just glancing over the newly released Cataclysm talent trees for druids (you can find them at http://www.wow.com or http://www.mmo-champion.com or cata.wowhead.com) and this occurred to me:

Improved Barkskin: Grants 80/160% additional armor contribution from cloth and leather items while in Travel Form or while not shapeshifted, increases the damage reduction granted by your Barkskin spell by 5/10% and reduces the chance your Barkskin is dispelled by 35/70%.

Yeah ok that’s not a change from what it is now, right? Only… we’re not going to be trees in Cataclysm, which means the extra armor we get from tree form goes away. I know, Blizzard is going to make that up somehow – but what if that somehow is “Take two points in Improved Barkskin and call me in the morning”?

I like Improved Barkskin, I specced into it when I could afford to drop Celestial Focus. It gives me a margin of error for Bonestorms, Exhales, Decimates, what have you. Not every PVE resto druid takes it though; it’s more a PVP talent and if your haste is low, you can’t afford it. All the theorycrafting will change in Cataclysm of course and we won’t need CF any more but… just wondering.

Oh, and is the new version of Improved Tranquility useless, or totally useless? Changes the second part of the effect from “Reduces the cooldown by 30/60%” to “Reduces damage taken while casting by 25/50%”. Way to ensure nobody ever, ever takes those points, Blizzard.

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Save the Trees!

Stolen fromTreeBarkJacket with Keeva’s blessing. Just Say No to losing Tree of Life!

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