Pet Pyramid

Alright, so perhaps it's not quite a pyramid, but I felt like trying to express the different 'tiers' of attachment I have to my pets. :) This is largely for my own benefit, but maybe some of you will find it interesting as well!

I often find myself thinking of my pets on different levels, some definitely mean a bit more to me than others, so I thought it would be neat to try to get that all down in a visual format.

I can't say this is completely, unquestionably accurate or flawless. It can be a bit tricky to pin down those feelings, and sometimes they fluctuate a bit depending on mood, nostalgia, setting, etc. I do think this is a pretty good outline of how I see my bonds though.

Here's a simple layout I put together, and I'll do a breakdown of each tier after the image. They're organized on 6 levels, but don't think of them as going from Hot -> Cold. There isn't that much of an extreme from 1 to 6. Instead think of it more as going Hot -> Warm.

Tier 1
This is solely Skorn's territory, which probably comes as no surprise. He will forever be the pet I consider my main, and he's always in a class of his own.

Tier 2
This level isn't much different than Tier 1, in all honesty, Skorn just naturally comes before everyone else. This tier has my most important pets, the ones I feel closest to, or have the strongest connection with. These are all assuredly permanent.

Tier 3
Once again, there isn't a wide gap between the pets in this level and the previous, Tier 2 just comes out a little bit on top. Tier 3 is comprised of pets that I've had for a long time, ones who have history and personalities and mean a lot to me. None of the pets on this level would ever be released, they're all who I consider permanent as well.

Tier 4
I feel very strongly about the pets on this level, and I wouldn't really consider any of these eligible for release, but they're admittedly slightly less cemented than previous tiers. They all still have personality and connection, it's just not quite at the same depth as Tier 3.

Tier 5
I love all the pets on Tier 5, but they're all a bit fresher than other ones and simply don't have the same bond as others. I wouldn't say I'd release any of these, but a slim chance is there if for some reason one wasn't quite feeling right.

Tier 6
Finally, Tier 6 is mostly my 'newest' pets. Many of these haven't been around for very long, or haven't had a chance to develop a strong history like some of my other pets. That's not to say I don't feel bonded to these ones, they just happen to come out lowest. I am most likely to swap out or release pets on this level. Sometimes it's just for a change of pace, or to satiate a tame craving, and sometimes it's because a pet just isn't working out like I'd hoped.

Special mentions:
Burton and Vorpal, my two 'honorary pets', would probably be somewhere between Tier 3 and Tier 4. They're a bit of an anomaly since I can release them when needed, but both still have quite a bit of history and personality despite that.

Skorn in the Blackwald

Recently I completed the main pieces of my future transmog set and went around taking screenshots.  Skorn and I ended up trekking to The Blackwald in Gilneas. It has to be one of my favourite zones aesthetically, I just love the gnarled black trees, grey ambiance, and blood red grass.

I decided to see if I could edit Skorn's belly colour to match my envisioned grey one, and was surprised how easy it was. I love the result, and I'll probably try to do this for any future Skorn screenies.

He looked especially handsome afterwards, complementing the background perfectly. ^_^

Spelunking

Satak certainly enjoy caves. He reminds me of a vampire bat. We went exploring today randomly, just investigating a few of the caverns around Durotar.

Much like Beast, Satak is also enjoying some additional activity due to his incredibly matching appearance to my gear at the moment.

Is it hot in here, or is it just me?

I've been spending more time with Beast lately, and that's admittedly due to him looking so awesome beside the T12 set.

I remember being a bit uncertain about the Flamewaker gear when we first glimpsed previews of it, but I completely warmed up to it (pun not intended) after seeing it in person and on my character. It has this fantastic demonic look to it. I'm really fond of the helm as well, which is a surprise as I tend to hide helms. The curling horns, eyepatch, and glowing red eye are too cool. :D

Anyways, this is mostly a screenshot post. Beast is so photogenic, and I still love him to pieces. <3

Inexplicable Pet

I have never liked Dragonhawks. When the species was introduced in The Burning Crusade, I had an immediate aversion to them. First of all, the majority of the ones we see are this hideous orange colouration which does not appeal to me in the least. The rest were all rather pinkish and equally unpleasant. Secondly, their bodies completely unnerved me with the lack of legs. It seemed...strange that these creatures had no visible method of landing or resting. Also, they didn't bear any resemblance to either dragons or hawks. They were more like shrimp butterflies. With rooster faces. Shrimperflies, as I've taken to calling them.

Anyways, overall they were just never my cup of tea. Ugly, bizarre animals.

However, I will admit that the colour scheme on the blue ones that eventually became tameable was very pleasant. It didn't change the fact that I didn't like the beasts themselves, but those beautiful purples and blues were just delectable together.

Early in the week I was suffering from a particularly bad case of stable fidgets. Sometimes I just get these random urges to go on taming sprees, and that was one of those nights. I had been recently talking about Dragonhawks with friends and forum-goers, stipulating on how they might be improved with the addition of legs and such. With them fresh on my mind I thought I'd go out for a little challenge and tame one of the Sunwell ones. I figured that those at least had appealing colours that I could get by with.

The tame was fun, and my new pet was certainly beautiful. In fact...perhaps a bit too beautiful, for I found myself being completely entranced by his colours and miraculously distracted from the model itself.

He stayed for a few days, and eventually gained a name - Alatar. I really can't say whether he's a permanent pet at this point, but he's certainly surprised me by sticking this long.

He's just so pretty! ._.