T w e n t y S i d e d

Here’s the current map of my presence in World of Warcraft:

• Selarashari has completed The Burning Crusade. I am currently working on crafting (blacksmithing) and checking for any rare drops I may want to get, like mounts or transmog gear. I have won the battle against trying to get 100% of everything gettable, mainly because class-specific gear makes that impossible for one character. Additionally, having the mutually exclusive factions of Scryer and Aldor means you either have to run two characters JUST FOR THAT, or get everything with one faction and then pay to switch and grind all the way up FROM UNFRIENDLY INSTEAD OF NEUTRAL with the other faction. I actually have an idea for getting this done, though…
• Mystilatre is functionally finished with Warlords of Draenor as well, excepting the ending raid on Hellfire Citadel. I finally went to the final zone, Tanaan Jungle, to run through the last bits of the story and get to the raid, only to find out that Tanaan Jungle isn’t a normal zone. For the record, even the first time I played through Warlords of Draenor I stopped when I reached Tanaan Jungle because I couldn’t find any quests other than bonus missions and repeatable reputation quests. Well, it turns out that’s all there is in this zone. The bonus missions direct you to numerous regional fights around the Jungle which collectively illustrate how you are closing in on Hellfire Citadel. There are a handful of weekly random “Garrison Missions” that contribute to this part of the game as well. Everything else in the expansion is waiting around for rare spawns and drops, just as with Selarashari. I am reaching a point of getting bored with WoD. I have started laying some groundwork for starting Wrath of the Lich King, and I could make an argument for sending either Selarashari or the re-rolled Cinderlynn to Northrend as the Blood Elves and Forsaken both have compelling story reasons to engage in that expansion. Mystilatre not so much, BUT it did occur to me that I could send her back in time to The Burning Crusade to do an Alliance/Aldor run through that story.

Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Moving on in the Burning Crusade: Zangarmarsh”

Paige Francis He/him

Yes. Last week I completed Galactic Seasons 6 in Star Wars: The Old Republic, but that’s not what I’m talking about. A couple of days ago I finished The Burning Crusade expansion of World of Warcraft. I should clarify that I have finished THE STORY; the plot. I have done everything in the game that connects the end of the initial release of World of Warcraft, plus its updates; through to the end of The Burning Crusade and all its updates. As with other expansions, there were originally also some pre-patch events that took place BETWEEN The Burning Crusade and the next expansion, Wrath of the Lich King which can no longer be played. But more discussion on the move onto WotLK later. I should also note I do still have the Draenei Hunter Mystilatre in Warlords of Draenor completing the Garrison before finishing that expansion. I have had some uncertainty over when to call an expansion “done” for reasons I will get into with Selarashari.

Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Wait…I finished one?”

Paige Francis He/him

No post this week. Mostly because I’ve spent the week managing around the work in the bathroom I had previously mentioned; coupled with multiple trips to buy the parts I agreed to do after the builder did the drywall, texturing, and flooring. I’ve had multiple occurrences of mental shutdown when several interactions requiring brainpower all hit at the same time. This requires me to have to withdraw and reset. But since this has happened repeatedly and while things were happening that required my input, my stress levels have just continually increased. I’m at the point where I start to snap at people or otherwise react badly when they try to interact with me, and obviously I don’t want that to happen. So I am focusing on de-stressing and making notes for my next therapy appointment. This is a known issue I’ve been dealing with for a few years that is likely the result of a significant trauma event. A decade and more ago, I would typically get aggressive and loud when stress piled up, but technically I was able to deal with it. Part of my therapy is because I don’t WANT to get loud and aggressive when stressed, but coupled with other inputs…I now just shut down in these situations.

I did finish Galactic Seasons 6 in Star Wars: The Old Republic. I’ve also started outlining the next chapter in the Rix’larril’an of the Ascendancy story. I should have a nice, full post next week.

Paige Francis He/him