Azzy's New Form

When Azzam first charmed his way into my stables, I knew he had taken up permanent residence. Although I never bonded with cats in WoW, and despite completely disliking his model, that persuasive Dreadsaber somehow formed a bond so strong that I consider him to be one of my closest pets.

There was something different about him. He just exuded character and personality from the start. I knew he was special because he made me look past the yellow cheetah model that I had no fondness for and find a true friend and companion.

He was always the pet I'd pull out if I was having a rough day, or feeling down, and just having him out by my side in game gave me the same comfort that you might get from petting your dog or hugging a teddy bear.

So how is it possible, you might ask, that I am considering letting him go? I realize it sounds absurd at first, and trust me it wasn't easy to convince myself in the beginning.

It's all thanks to the new minipets we're getting in Mists of Pandaria. Not only are there hundreds of new types being added, but we also gain the ability to name our minipets. That alone is a powerful enough feature that I can legitimately think of downsizing some of my pets into a smaller form since they'll keep their identity to me.

This train of thought began when I learned of a Cheetah Cub minipet.

See, as much as I adore Azzy, the fact that his model is not one I would have willingly picked for my stables has always bothered me a bit. Knowing that I would forever be stuck with a pet model I didn't choose taking up one slot...it could sometimes feel exasperating.

I realize it might sound petty, but I truly do take a lot of time selecting my pets, and they've always been ones that I love for both model and personality. Azzam was suave enough to make up for his model, but there would always be that strike against him in a sense.

Khan was also responsible for this. He is the first legitimate cat that has bonded with Veph completely. Not only did I fall in love with him, his model complements her so well. They just suit each other in a way that Azzy never will.

Now, having thought over all this, I came to realize that Azzy didn't necessarily have to be a pet. The part that I loved about him wasn't his model, it was just him. No matter what form he took, he would always be Azzy underneath, because the entire concept of him and his personality is what I'm bonded to.

Once I understood that, I made up my mind. Azzy would morph into the Cheetah Cub, and in a way I think this form will suit him even better than his large one did. He's always been the playful, charming type. As a kitten he can stay out with me as often as I like and still make me smile. I'm looking forward to seeing him as an energetic, adorable cub.

Skorn Appreciation Post

I needed a break between posting about the pets I'm releasing, so here are some Skorn photos. No matter what, he'll always be there. <3

Spring Cleaning

A hunter's stables are never stable. No matter how solid they seem to be, inevitably there will come a time for reevaluation and change.

Over the years the bulk of my pets have developed into a steady core. The majority have reached a status of permanence, but there will always be some that can shift and make room for new additions, or simply bonds that don't forge as strongly.

I never forget a pet once I've had it with me for any length of time. There are many that don't end up sticking around, but I still consider them by their names when I'm browsing the beast list on Petopia. Sometimes I go back and retame one of these past companions to see if my attachment grew, or if I'm just having feelings of nostalgia.

In any case, it's never an easy task, and I've found it upon me once again. Here are the choices I've managed to make so far in preparation for the new expansion.

Almagest was...difficult. This was an extremely hard decision for me, and it took me days to settle on it. I still can't say if it was the right choice.

 I knew I was going to have to let one of my scorpids go. I didn't like having two Madexxes before, when I had Asmodeus, and I had fallen into the same problem again. Though there's nothing wrong with duplicate pets, I've never liked having them if I can help it. I knew I didn't need both of my scorpids, I just had to figure out which one was meant to be with Veph.

That's where it got messy. See, Almagest had the aspect of fate on his side. He was the first Madexx I found while flying in Uldum one night. He seemed destined for me, and I always had trouble letting go of ideas like that. Almagest also had an established personality, history, and the perfect name. I even had a friend roll his lucky dice for me and it chose Almagest over Agamand. I also found green Madexx on my alt hunter and tamed him, almost like it was saying 'You can have the green on this character instead.'. 

Agamand, on the other hand, hadn't really had a chance to grow into his own character yet. In fact, I've been in the midst of picking out new names for him recently since Agamand wasn't quite fitting. I'll refer to him as Agamand in this post though so as not to get confusing.

The funny thing was...despite all signs pointing to keeping Almagest, I would pull out Agamand and there was just this powerful draw towards him. He suited Veph in a way that Almagest never had, and despite the fact that I myself felt more attached to Almagest, Agamand was the scorpid that belonged with Vephriel the character.

So in the end I released Almagest within the ruins in Uldum where he can continue his studies. I know he'll always be out there, and though I miss him sorely at times (like right now as I write this entry), I feel that Agamand was the one who had to stay.

Phew. I was planning on this entry being much longer, but I actually feel exhausted after reliving that decision again, so I'll continue with the other pet releases in a following post.

Pandaria: The First Bond

The Mists of Pandaria beta has been in full swing for a while now, and I've had a chance to explore and try out some of the newly tameable beasts that are coming out.

While I have a decent sized wishlist of potential pets, there's one so far that's a guaranteed tame.

This is the new tiger model, and the black colouration grabbed me from the start. I honestly wasn't sure if I was going to click with it since the model has a few details that irked me, but somehow they all washed away as soon as I had a chance to tame one and see it in person.

So, I'd like you to meet Khan. He's the first Pandarian beast I've formed a bond with.

Now, the one drawback of this is that...Khan is a reserved name, meaning I can't actually use it. :( I was crushed to find this out after spending days pondering over the perfect name for my new feline, only to realize it was an impossibility.

At the moment I'm using a loophole and trying an accented character to get around it: Khân or Khán perhaps. It's not perfect, and I'm still not sure if I'll be able to live with it, but we'll see. I still have plenty of time to get used to it or possibly think of another compromise.

In any case, the name is stuck with him regardless, I just can't see him as anything else now, so one way or another I'll make it work.

Fester Returns

First of all, I'd like to apologize to all of my readers (if I have any of you left) about the deadness of this blog. I think that with the end of an expansion there just isn't as much precedent for me to change my stables around too much, nor to have any particularly exciting pet adventures. Rest assured everything should be back at a good pace once Mists of Pandaria hits, but until then expect a bit of slowness here.

Anyways, I actually do have a new pet to talk about tonight. I had owned an undead eagle when they were first made tameable in...whichever patch that was...but I didn't seem to have room to keep him, and let him go not long after. I thought he'd find a home on my undead hunter, but she had no room to spare with all her spiders.

A few days ago I was struck with pangs of longing for my avian friend, as well as feelings of distance with Feng. For some reason every time I tame and grow attached to a worg, they end up retiring because I always see them as old veteran beasts who eventually outgrow their battle days. Feng just seemed as though he'd been through enough, and I think it was his time to lay down and get some rest. No hard feelings or lack of bond, just...it felt right to let him go.

I traveled to Icecrown and took one of the Carrion Hunters from a Vrykul falconer (I always loved how they walk around with them perched on their arms). I pondered over a name for a couple of days before settling on the name he originally had with me - Fester. I hadn't been sure at first if that's what I wanted to stick with again, but then I realized there was no fighting it, that was his name.

I think since Burton isn't in my stables currently (he's actually found a wonderful foster home with my draenei hunter), it's easier to have another bird. I've really missed Fester, these eagles have such fantastic details. I love the tattered wrappings hanging from their skeletal form, the rumpled feathers, exposed vertebrae...everything is really awesome looking.

Yet Another Whim Tame

 I admit that I tend to be susceptible to outside influences.

Lately I've been rereading the fantastic Song of Ice and Fire series, starting with A Game of Thrones. If you're familiar with the novels (or the recent TV adaptation), you'll know that direwolves are a fairly important motif.

Last night I had a strong urge to go to the Twilight Highlands and look for Karoma, a beast I've never actually seen in the wild myself. I never had interest in taming him, but lo and behold there he was at the first location I checked.

So, I went ahead and tamed him. Belmont was with me at the time, and being a 'bottom tier' pet, I was able to let him go on a vacation while I acquiesce to this whim.

I couldn't help but name him Ghost, as a nod to Jon Snow's wolf in the series. I realize the name is simplistic and a bit uncreative for a Spirit Beast, but it just works so well I think I might keep it like that.

I can't say whether or not Ghost is truly a permanent pet, but I'm certainly in the 'mood' to keep him right now, and I believe he'll be sticking around for a while at the least. It's not as though I need two blue Spirit Beast wolves, but...there you have it. x) Speaking of which, Skoll was out to say hello when I went to take some screenshots in the Storm Peaks.

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.