So clearly, I’ve been hitting the leveling on my Hordie druid pal (61 as of right now). He was 35 when I faction transferred a little less than two weeks ago. Not bad I’d say, but the heirlooms and Hallow’s End candy buckets helped a ton. Seriously, if you’re leveling an alt hit them buckets. Tons of free experience kids, and candy!

Hesston has taken a backseat lately, with the exception of some PvP and dailies to get Crusader badges. The reasons are many and varied, but chief among them is that I just haven’t been having fun on the Alliance side of things or with the guild. Since I can’t raid anymore, I really don’t fit in with Summit anymore. I play to have fun and stressing about jumping into random raids but not getting any direct reward (which is my own doing, not theirs) simply was not fun. So, I’m taking a break–from Hesston, not the game.

Recently I’ve started to date someone in my real life who is not a WoW player. She in fact has only had negative experience with WoW (a roommate who was “addicted”), and asked a valid question when I told her I play: Why?

I’d been wondering this myself after the minor issues with the guild mentioned previously, and when asked directly I didn’t have a really good answer. To me, it’s like reading or watching movies. Sure, you can give the basic answer of enjoying stories or being transported to another world. But when it comes down to it, those who enjoy either reading or watching movies or both, usually just enjoy it. Often the exact reasons can’t be quantified.

I enjoy playing and interacting with the world simply for what it is.

Some people aren’t big into the lore of WoW, and while I’m not a lore junkie, I like the story. This is one reason I decided to check out things from the Horde side with Krakattoa. I’ve played Warcraft since the first, lo-res RTS game. So to me it’s like watching the evolution of a world I’ve been paying attention to for a very long time. Missing raid instances sucks not only because of the loot, but it also feels like I’m missing out a chapter of the larger story. Most likely I will never be able to go through and clear Icecrown Citadel when it hits in 3.3, and that’s a bummer. Again, it’s like missing a part of the story. I’m sure I’ll hear and read about it, but I’d like to be a part of it.

This leads me back to the pressing question that first came up when the loot issue reared its head: Why? What am I trying to get out of paying my $15 a month and what does it matter if I do or do not get a new purple piece of gear? The truth is that it doesn’t matter in the way I am approaching the game right now. For those doing hardcore progression raiding, a new piece of gear for a few raiders can easily swing the pendulum from wiping to winning. However, skill still trumps gear and I know that I’m good at this game. That’s a bit arrogant, but it’s true. So getting more gear right now, though great, doesn’t really matter. I’m sure when 3.3 drops and I go into the new 5-man bits I can do as well as I need to, and I’ll have fun.

I do this because it’s fun. I’m not playing to supplement some empty part of my real life or to substitute any interactions or relationships I am missing. I’m playing to have fun and I’ll do what I need to do in game to continue to get enjoyment out of this thing I like so much. If that means faction transferring characters or leaving a guild I don’t feel I fit in with anymore, so be it. Because the second any of this stops being fun and more like a chore, job or obligation, is exactly when you should cancel your account and find something else more personally fulfilling.

/EndRamble

Categories: alts, guild, ooc
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