The Best Change To The Game.

This is a shared topic from Blog Azeroth. Inspiration for this post comes from Lath at Hots and Dots. As of the start of this post, Autumnn of Grumble and Autumnn had also put in her two copper. Here are my two copper. Spend them, toss them in a wishing well, give them away, the choice is yours. If the topic makes you want to comment, but are afraid you'll say too much, blog about it!

I cannot give you a specific change that is the best the game ever had. Why? It’s not because I wasn’t paying attention. It’s because I love every change that happens, good or bad. Change is what keeps this game from stagnating. I know, some of you will argue that some class changes were not good, but follow my thoughts for a moment. Maybe the “bad” change decreased your damage output, or increased your mana consumption. What came from that change? Did it cause you to come up with an alternative? Are you using a spell you didn’t use before? Have you had to rethink your rotation to compensate? Maybe you had to re-gem and re-enchant your gear with a new stat to make the difference up. Then there was good from it! Doing the same thing all the time is boring. Using the same old spell all the time would really have me rolling every class in the book looking for something different (wait, I already do!). Different, to me, is good. So, change is good.

They are right now examining the effects of haste on shadow priest spells in the PTR. Now, before this ever happened, a fellow shadow priest reminded me how our talented Shadow Word: Pain worked. When we refresh it with Mind Flay, it keeps whatever buffs it had on it when it refreshes. He reminded me that when I cast it, I should always make sure to use my trinkets, potions, you name it to buff the spell before I cast it. That way, unless it falls off, I don’t have to worry about it again. What was happening in the PTR is that shadow priests, already knowing the mechanics behind the spell, were stacking haste, then doing the same thing they had always done, trading out trinkets and potions to come up with the exact right buffs to make that Shadow Word: Pain the nastiest it could be. Because Mind Flay was refreshing the buffs, it became a monster of a spell. Blizzard found that this made the spell too powerful, and took it from the Shadow Form buff they were planning that would allow haste to work with damage over time spells. I know a lot of shadow priests out there feel as if they were given the world and then told to go live under a bridge in a cardboard box, but I’m happy. I get to rethink Delgada’s gear choices and enhancements, rethink her talent point distribution, rethink her spell rotation (I know, it’s a priority, not a rotation!), rethink the food and potions she consumes, even maybe the color of her hair and what day she gets to come out and play. Am I upset that Shadow Word: Pain got left out of this party? Not really, though I would have liked to cackle maniacally at a test dummy before they took it off in the PTR while I watched it tick. This, for me, is change, and change is welcome. It keeps me interested in the game long after I have completed every “kill ten boars” quest.

Keep the changes coming, Blizzard! I look forward to every nerf, buff, and new item with all the enthusiasm of a blossoming pyromaniac lighting his very first match.

Alright, to be quite honest, I am sure loving the being able to fly right when I hit Northrend change. But don't tell anyone that is my favorite. You all know how flaky I am about who my favorite character is. I am that flaky about my favorite change, too. Forget I said anything. Really. I'm going to go try out the newest change to the game now. I heard something about a mohawk bomb...