I think some people over-romanticize the old days. Running for 15 minutes to get to an instance, chugging around it on foot, only one spec of Hybrids being itemized for, a complete lack of alternate talent trees, hours farming for high-end gear, praying for super-rare drops, respeccing meaning to run back to IF or Org, ect.

I've been playing since before BC and I gotta say: I enjoy playing now a whole lot more.

The game isn't easier, it's just less annoying and more accessible. Those are very different things. Telling players "You may only see this content if you don't do this this and this" is silly when you're trying to attract as many people as possible. I'm glad that when I'm busy, I can still see Yogg-Sauron and Anub'arak easily, and if I have time, I can crank up the challenge and see the hard version with better loot. When I'm really swamped, I can work on achivements and set goals in that system. If I don't feel like that, I have PVP options, both arena and battleground.

This game is at its best - its most flexible, most varied and most enjoyable for me.

There's things I'd fix - I'd like to see a complete overhaul of crafting, for instance, and I would love to see gathering professions turned into "terticary skills" which you can choose one of 3 and still have two crafting professions (or reverse it: two gathers, one crafting) but generally, I enjoy my game, and my quibbles are secondary, and not worth en-flamed passion I usually save for debates on politics, war and which Star Wars film was the best (Empire and I'll cut your throat if you disagree).

I can't speak for everyone, but as a player of a Shaman and a contributor to the Official Shaman boards, since GC has been around the class has improved like we haven't seen since Beta. Before we had CM Tesric, who belittled our concerns and our class suffered for it. We finally drove him off an edge and we were sure we were dead meat in Wrath, yet with reasonable representation many community ideas have been introduced and refined by the team, making Shaman a very competitive class.

Bless his heart and I'm glad he's around. No class is unplayable in the way Shaman were (sans BL/Hero, which we were stacked for in BC, but for only one single buff) in BC. If he were ever driven off, I don't think it's a stretch to think we would backslide to a time when certain classes and entire facets of classes would be ignored.

I'm stupidly chuckling at this one.

I also appreciate that it's short (Sorry, Dwarven brothers and sisters.)

I had a wierd thing.

We were doing the first of the three new dungeons, 4 guildies plus a tank from the LFG tool. We got to the last boss and at 40% and suddenly the group was disbanded and then DCed.

We lost our instance - we couldn't find a tank to just do the second boss - and we couldn't regroup with our new friend (whom we invited to our vent and found very pleasant). We tried everything we could think of - grouping into a rare instance but it didn't work.

So top to bottom, very very frustrating.

I use the iPhone auth and got it.

I never will understand why people like to go out to eat overpriced fast food in the Khol's Parking Lot.

If you're gonna eat crap, eat cheap crap very fast (ie McDonalds). If you're gonna sit down to a meal, go someplace good.

What I find interesting is that now, with Cataclysm, we're moving fully into Lore not explored in WCIII. Outland and Northrend were well established in WC lore in the previous games. Deathwing's Return and the development of the Twilight Dragonflight are entirely in the game (and that forsakenly bad Kanakk novel).

I think this is a bold and interesting move on Blizz' part and I think it'll give them more freedom to do more creative things.

I dig that. I have about 1200 more AP then the next highest person in my guild .. until last night when we had a new recruit... who's got 600 more the me.

Time to get some Naxx groups running...

Amen. Congrats on your job, I am in the middle of hunting now so I know your pain and the joy when you find that right position.

And kudos for passing on the good fortune. The love we make is greater then the love we take.

I was sitting on 99/100 mounts. I've had a crappy month or two with family problems, so my GL says "Common everyone, we're getting a small group for AQ40, get Wolf his last mount!" 10 people in 5 minutes sign up, we go to AQ40... and...

...

No red mount drops. none at all. One and two are uncommon, to not see one? THat's just crappy luck.

On the bright side, we got Robes of the Guardian Saint and Robes of the Triumverate for two people who like fun clothes, and got about a dozen mounts for people - one ringing the 25 mount achievement.

I eventually get the 100th with a PVP mount that I soloed to.