Mini Update

Things have been a little quiet here, haven't they? xD

My apologies, I went on vacation for over 2 weeks, so in that time I wasn't writing any posts. This blog definitely isn't dead, I just need some time to get back into the usual routine and then more pet entries will be on the way. ^_^

EDIT: Also...Pokemon...I may be distracted longer than first expected. ;)

Toxicity

This year the Love is in the Air holiday has been good to me!

Not only did I finally get my Toxic Wasteling minipet, but I was floored to find the Vile Fumigator's Mask when I opened my Heart-Shaped Box the other day.

It is honestly one of the most badass accessories anyone could hope to own in game! :D I've been after it for a long time, and now I have the perfect outfit to match Igor.

 

 

Banter

A perplexing thing occurred last night.

It all started in Azshara, where two guildies (Aro and Kalli) were hanging out waiting for The Evalcharr to spawn. I joined the camping party enthusiastically, and for the next 6 hours or so we went through the usual silly escapades...dancing, joking, laughing at our pet emotes, killing nearby mobs. The typical Petopian camp. xD (sanity not included)

We fell into a routine of killing any mob that was within our viewing range, usually sending a pet around to clear them off. The native wildlife were stags, hippogryphs, chimaeras, and a rock giant every now and then. Our camping spot was on a little rocky cliff overlooking The Evalcharr's spawn area, and to the right of us was a taller cliff which always had a mob spawned on top. It was a stag most of the time, though occasionally it would spawn as a hippogryph instead. Then it surprised us by becoming a chimaera at one respawn. It was the first we'd seen for that exact spawn point, and we thought it could be a sign, so we threw a star raid icon on the beast and refrained from killing it.

Now, I've never been too fond of the original chimaera models. I have a slight OCD about symmetry, and they have so many opposing details on each side that it's always bothered me. Despite all that, however, I found myself surprisingly drawn to the new beige model that was being implemented in patch 4.0.6. The colours were so eye-catching and complementary that I couldn't help admiring it, even if I didn't want it as a pet

With that interest lurking in the back of my mind, I seemed to be bringing about the inevitable. I stared at our cliff dwelling friend, painfully aware that by singling him out and giving him a unique presence I'd already begun falling for him.

The hours went by, Aro eventually went to sleep, and I went to take care of some other things at some point. Kalli remained in Azshara, and later on I rejoined her. The chimaera was still there on the cliff, and still had his star. That's when I made the decision.

Without pausing to over-think the situation or allow myself to second guess things, I released Mentos the blue demon hound and tamed the freaking chimaera. Mentos had not yet developed a personality or a strong bond really, so I was able to let him go easily with the thought of retaming him after I satisfied my urge to give the chimaera a test run.

 The perfect name jumped into my head as I stood there staring at my new pet. With two heads this creature was bound to argue with itself, so he was then known as Banter.

 

So here I am with a pet I never planned on taming, a model I've never liked, and a colour scheme that is not usually to my tastes.

What have I got myself into... >_>

The 4.0.6 Additions!

I had meant to write this post earlier, but after taking forever to find a name for my wasp and then recuperating after a busy birthday weekend it completely slipped my mind!

Patch 4.0.6 was every bit as exciting as I had hoped. :D Visiting both the new additions and familiar faces of returning rares was a thrill, and Vephriel picked up the two pets I had been looking forward to the most.

First is Satak, one of the new grey wind serpents. I actually had him waiting for me in my stables as I had gone to Netherstorm prior to tame one of the changing ones. I am absolutely in love with this model! I knew I liked it from the previews, but seeing it in person is on a completely different level.

Features such as the spikes and wing membranes have an amazing blend of colours ranging from peach to orange to lavender. I find the vein details especially prominent on this model, the flesh-like hue of the wings lends itself to a very realistic appearance that the other Outland wind serpents don't seem to have. The body colour is almost a faded purple-black, and then the bright green eyes stand out vividly.

I seem to associate the Outland wind serpents with vampires (perhaps it's their fangs xD) ... not only does Shiki posess a vampiric personality and attributes, but I found myself seeing this grey model as yet another vampire. I settled on the name Satak by going through a translator tool and finding the words for 'vampire' in alternate languages. I seem to have lost my little note on which language satak comes from, but at least I'm certain of its meaning.

I took a bunch of screenshots in Silithus, a zone that Satak just happened to match perfectly, while waiting on my next pet. ^^

The camping paid off, after a few hours my NPC scan joyously blared that Rex Ashil had spawned. I rushed to locate and tame him, thus securing the final addition to my stables (for now).

I'm pleased to introduce you to Syntax, the beautiful blue wasp.

For some reason I had a heck of a time settling on a name for this bug, but luckily Syntax finally clicked for him. I was amused to notice afterwards that Satak and Syntax sound very similar by complete coincidence. xD

In any case, I'm so happy to have a wasp once more. I used to be very fond of my giant Sapphire Hive Wasp, Hypnotik, but at some point the bond just started to evaporate and I found myself struggling to stay attached. I knew I loved the concept of a wasp pet, but the faces always bothered me a bit on the large Boss models, and the smaller silithid types had no colours that interested me. (White came close, but was altogether too similar to Shiki). This dark, obsidian blue was love at first sight. ^^

Though I told myself I would keep this blog strictly related to Vephriel, I have to cheat and mention a very important tame that took place on my undead hunter. :D

After years of searching and developing a growing love (obsession?) for Rekk'tilac, he's finally come home to his proper place at Spiders' side. It was indescribably awesome to see him at his new gigantic size, traipsing proudly amidst his smaller brethren. Rekk is a special tarantula to me, I can't even tell you why exactly, but it's good to know I finally have the real him. :)

Pet Spotlight: Reznor

Since the realms are currently down for Tuesday maintenance (along with applying patch 4.0.6! *glee*), I thought I'd stave off some of the anticipation by writing a blog entry. So, here's a special 'spotlight' on a pet that I felt like talking about. This is Reznor, my long-awaited purple warp stalker.

Let's go back in time for a bit. During the Burning Crusade expansion we were introduced to the wonderful creatures known as warp stalkers. I was, of course, completely in love with them. They seemed to combine my obsession with dragons, crocodiles, snakes, and reptiles in general...all in one amazing looking beast. Needless to say they were a dream species for me. I would have fallen for them no matter what sort of colour scheme they came in, they were just that awesome looking...and then I saw a particular model.

Purple and green, a beautiful dark tone with toxic stripes. I had to pick my jaw up off the ground the first time I laid eyes on it. One of my favourite colour combinations, on possibly the coolest fictional creature I've ever seen. It was meant to be!

Then I found out.

My purple dragon, the first pet that I had ever experienced such an intense longing for, was only used on one mob. Gezzarak the Huntress, a level 72 who was summoned during a quest. Level 72. We could reach a level cap of 70.

I clearly remember that horrid feeling as my dream shattered. Yes, there were other warp stalkers (well, only 2 other colours at the time), but none of their colours even began to compare to the compelling beauty of purple and green. I was heartbroken that Blizzard didn't utilize the model on some other, tameable creature.

Years went by and Gezzarak remained but a wishful thought until Wrath of the Lich King was announced. Level cap increasing to 80. Sure enough, during the beta some intrepid hunters discovered that she was flagged as tameable. The dream pet I had almost given up hope for suddenly gleamed on the horizon once more.

The expansion was released, there was much fun to be had, and I began to work my way through the content. Eventually I reached level 72. By this time there had been reports that people who had tamed Gezzarak were experiencing glitches with her. She didn't attack, she couldn't be fed or talented...she was essentially a vanity pet. I was intensely disappointed in finding this out, but I still aimed to tame the warp stalker.

I managed to prepare for my first attempt, having no idea that it would also be my last. I summoned her, hit Tame Beast...and was brutally slaughtered. Not only did she hit like a truck, I couldn't even manage to keep my tame casting due to her interrupts and warping. It was a shock to the system. I had no idea at the time that taming Gezzarak was a difficult process requiring the help of others in order to stun her and somehow get your taming speed as low as possible to pull it off. I wasn't really in a guild at this point, nor did I know people on my server. I didn't have any help to call upon, so glumly I walked away and thought I would try again later. Perhaps in a few more levels I could manage it.

Then a patch is released. Boom. Out of the blue, Gezzarak is no longer tameable. The total time was about 2 months that people were able to grab her in.

What followed was possibly one of the greatest periods of regret I've ever had towards the game. If I had any inclination that she was going to be removed like that I would have tried harder to tame her or find help. Oh, and just to rub salt in the wound? An orc hunter NPC in Dalaran walked around with a purple warp stalker named Backbiter. Yeah, that was wonderful. A fresh wave of regret and pain each time she walked by. Just terrific.

I made a vow to myself that I would never own a warp stalker after that. I could not bring myself to tame a different colour, even with how much I loved the creatures themselves. It was the purple one or nothing for me. I tried making threads requesting for her to be made tameable again, along with many other crushed hunters. The pleas seemed to be ignored, however, and I could not bring myself to hope again that I'd ever have that warpie.

This is turning in to quite the saga, isn't it? Luckily it gets better from here. Cataclysm is announced, and this time someone finally shines through (looking at you Noah). The beta for the expansion goes on for a while, and each patch I'm beside myself for any news of Gezz. Then the glorious announcement is made. She's tameable again. Omfg she's tameable!

My boyfriend had received a beta invite which he handed over to me since he didn't care about it much. As soon as I was able to I copied a character over, logged in, and tamed the purple warp stalker I had dreamed about since the early days of BC.

This is the first picture of us together, even if it is from the beta:

My feelings of seeing that warpie by my side for the first time ever, well, were indescribable. I couldn't help but have a nagging paranoia that something would go wrong, or that Blizzard would change their mind, or that it was all just a dream. I relished my time in the beta with my warp stalker, unsure if it would truly become a reality.

On the night before the Cataclysm patch, I headed to Skettis armed with the scrolls to summon Gezzarak, and waited until the servers shut down for the last time on Azeroth as we'd known it.

Somehow, it wasn't a dream, and the next day when I logged in I summoned Gezzarak, hit tame...and there was the purple warpie beside me.

Seeing this on my Character Select screen was mind blowing for me:

I had thought that it would take an eternity to find the perfect name for this dream pet that had eluded me for so long, but I was pleasantly surprised when the name came to me all on its own. Reznor, originating from the singer of Nine Inch Nails: Trent Reznor. A man who has been so influential in my life, and whose music is a part of me. The name was just perfect somehow, and it clicked immediately.

So here I am, after all those years of hope and heartbreak, with Reznor the purple warp stalker at my side. Reminiscing on all that happened up until this point really cements the bond I have with this incredible pet and how much he means to me. I know this was a long winded post, but it felt great to go back and remember all of that knowing how it turned out in the end.

The Vorpal Blade Went Snicker-Snack

...and a lonely nether ray came wandering back. :)

In what probably comes as no surprise to anyone, I caved in and had to get Vorpal again. He turned out to be one of those pets that I never knew how much I cared for him until he was gone.

The excruciatingly difficult decision in which pet to release in place of him was one that took me all night. If it weren't for Kalli's company and input I probably would still be waffling over that.

I released Burton in the beautiful Undercity Courtyard area. That's his new haunt, and if I need him again in the future I always know I can get him back. It still wasn't easy to do, but...somehow I was able to.

Kalli found a new colour for her raptor Pacane as well, and in celebration of our reacquired pets we had a coordinated dance-off in Orgrimmar, complete with matching outfits and minipets. :)

Missing my Nether Ray...

 
Lately I've been having pangs over one of my old pets, Vorpal.

He was the beautiful purple nether ray, and Count Ungula specifically. Though I'm not fond of Outland as a whole, I did enjoy the aesthetics of Zangarmarsh. I've always been a Lewis Carroll fan, and who could look at a zone of giant mushrooms and not think about Alice in Wonderland? The word 'vorpal' of course comes from the Jabberwocky poem, and is in reference to a sword. Nether rays are sharp and angular, so the allusion to a blade made it a perfect match.

Anyways, I eventually finished my rep grind with the Skyguard to obtain the nether ray mounts and minipet. When stable slots started to get tight I gave up Vorpal since I could still have him in both a mount and a miniature form.

It's not the same though. :(

I've tried to go through my current pets and see if there's anyone I'm not quite clicking with and could let go, but so far I haven't had any luck.

For now I'll wait and reminisce until something works out.