I really appreciate all the comments and ideas that were left on my blog post where I admitted that I was feeling sort of “lost in WoW” lately. After a bit of thought and a slight break, I’m thinking a major part of my problem is a lack of focus. I feel stretched too thin between my main character and then two level 74 toons– if I’m playing one, I keep thinking “I should be playing one of my others” in the back of my mind. Which is weird because I don’t really have any outside pressure to play any character in particular; I just feel bad when I can’t give them equal attention.
To remedy this, I am going to pick one alt toon to focus on and really concentrate on getting to 80. I think having that as a concrete goal will certainly give me something to do over the next couple of weeks.
And guys… I’ll need your help to pick.
/Announcer Voice On
And in this corner we have… Lunapike the Diplomat, level 74 Tauren Hunter. She was Pike’s second hunter to hit level 70 and is on the fast track to becoming her second level 80 hunter… and perhaps her second level 80, period! She resides on the RP-PvP server The Venture Co. (US) where she has resided since her mid-20s when she transferred there from a normal PvP server, and has a good half a level or so on our second contestant.
Strengths:
– Is a hunter, and Pike likes hunters. And playing another one would possibly give her more blog post ideas.
– Has tamed a Giant Enemy Crab which she named Genji
– Is the highest leveled Hordie of Pike’s, and as such has the drive and motivation to get to 80 so she can start collecting badges and passing out heirloom items, not to mention get sexy gear
– As a Hordie, gets to see the other side of the Northrend storyline which Pike hasn’t seen yet!
– Easier to quest with than the second contestant, in general
– Is a Female Tauren, the best playable model in game
– Pike is actually not allergic to cows
Weaknesses:
– Is dirt poor. Lacks epic flying and dual spec. (Not that dual spec is quite so important for a hunter, but ya know.)
– …is a hunter, and Pike already has one (or three, or four, or…).
– Is going to cause Pike to dissolve into fits of tears when she finds out dailies are a gankfest (sort of a repeat of what happened when she went to the Isle of Quel’danas with this character back in the day)
– Has a heck of a time getting into instances. Tends to get ganked by swarms of 80s at the meeting stone after finally finding a group (though she can take on most players of equal level).
– Has no “connections” to any raid groups
And in this corner we have… Tamaryn, the… Tree! Level 74 Night Elf Druid. Though much “younger” than Lunapike, she has quickly climbed up the levels and currently sits a mere half a level or so behind the tauren, ready to surpass her at a given notice. She lives on the RP server Silver Hand (US) alongside Pike’s main, Tawyn.
Strengths:
– Is not a hunter and is thus an all new experience for Pike
– Has both Swift Flight Form and dual-spec thanks to Tawyn’s obsession with the Argent Tournament
– In Boomkin form, outDPS’s Lunapike, stupid Starfire crits (though to be fair, Lunapike is wearing a leveling spec whereas Tamaryn pretty much snatched something from Elitist Jerks)
– Is invited to instance groups within about thirty seconds
– Has the 10%-extra-XP shoulders
– Already has connections with various raid groups via Tawyn
– Is a Tree, the second best playable model in game
Weaknesses:
– May possibly cause Pike to start blogging about druidy things (on occasion!! Pike will still be playing her main.)
– Will be redo’ing a lot of leveling content Pike has already seen on Tawyn
– No real drive to get to 80 other than wanting to have a max-level healer alt since a.) Tawyn has already passed out heirloom items like candy on Hallow’s End and b.) it’s not like the way gear looks matters in tree form
– Pike has a deep-seated fear that if she gets a healer to level 80, she will never be allowed to play a hunter in a raid ever again
– Pike is allergic to trees
Who will win and become the part of Pike’s Next Big Project, and who will have to sit on the sidelines and be the “Third” (possible bad Ender’s Game joke not intended)?
ONLY YOU WILL DETERMINE THEIR FATE.
/Announcer voice off
Comment and vote today! *nod*
Note: Just to be clear, I really enjoy playing both of these characters and would be quite happy to level either. That’s why I can’t decide! >.>
Druid!
Pike has a deep-seated fear that if she gets a healer to level 80, she will never be allowed to play a hunter in a raid ever again
rofl
I was initially afraid of that when I got Tora up to 80 and started gearing her up, but back then my guild was constantly forgetting that I even HAD another 80, let alone a healer. Now I’m just all “yeah, I can tank dps or heal, I’ll come as whatever is needed because I’m nice like that”
Leyola was a tree from 1-80 for the most part. She geared up until 4/5 t7, and suddenly she started DPS’ing. She loves kicking ass and taking names.
I vote druid too, just for the change of pace. That way if you ever get tired of dpsing, you can go heal something, and vice versa.
FOR THE HORDE! Or at least the Horde in me says level the cow. Everyone loves cows. However, it seems your druid has more going for her and you’ll have a readily wanted toon in case your hunter has problems getting heroic runs and whatnot.
Dailies on VeCo are actually pretty gank-free, with the exception of the Hodir ones. Or have been, at least; I haven’t had much chance to do them since Wintergrasp dailies became weeklies.
I’m gonna vote against everyone else and say Lunapike, mostly because I have a hunter/healer combo at 80 and if I had an Alliance alt at 74, I so would have leveled her instead just to see that epic outhouse quest people talk about, and the other side of the Wrathgate quests.
I’m voting druid as well. Personally, it’s always nice to have something with a totally different playstyle to have as an alt, just for a change.
That is truly a tough choice. On one hand you have the option of seeing things from a whole different perspective on the Horde side, on the other hand you get to play around with a different class.
I think I have to vote for Lunapike on this one, it may be the same class but it is the class you love and if there was ever a reason for me to roll Alliance it would be seeing the Wrathgate and other quest chains from the opposite faction.
I am kind of doing the same thing in a different way. The guild I was in has fractured and people have quit for greener pastures. (That would be a good guild name.) I just quit last night and want to try running as a lone wolf. I’ve never not been in a guild am curious what the game is like with out that. The down side to being in a guild is that there is always the pull for you to play more and be there for raids, etc. I am a well geared Bear tank (pretty mean kitty too) and never have problems finding runs. We’ll see what happens.
My vote is for the druid. I love hunters and currently have an 80 and a 70. (There was even a pre BC 60 raiding hunter that I deleted before going back to the hunter class again. So I am right there with you on the hunter love. The thing is that change is good and we all need a little around here.
By the way…. Favorite hunter weapon EVER is the Wolfslayer Rifle from Kara. It had the bayonet at the end and when that Aimed Shot went off, you knew it was going to hurt.
Tough choice, but go with the druid.
And with all the druid form changes, you never know what they will do to the tree form.. So level it while you still like it 😛
I vote for druid. Choosing between a druid healer or horde hunter already means seeing the game from a different perspective. But since you already know how it is to play a hunter, there is high chance you’ll quickly do quests without even trying so hard (I might be wrong there though 🙂
You are worrying that in endgame you will be healing if ppl know you have a healer alt, but hey, they don’t have to know that. And to your guild you can say your hunter is your main and that you’ll only come to play on that char. There is a chance you become an addict to the healer-virus, but in that case there are many places you can go to and talk about it with fellow healers.
Last point, you might want to switch your dual-spec to feral. Instead of fighting together with the cat, BE the cat
I vote Druid.
Get some new experience with the healer. See raids from a different point of view (unless everyone wiped and you’re being chased by the Big Nasty). I know I do it – makes me appreciate tanks and healers a lot more ^_^
– Aenur of Hydraxis
Use the Tree, Pike~!
As hordie by heart it pains me to say it, but I would also go with the druid. You have the option of healing and DPS available on her, so she shouldn’t get boring for quite some time. As I now have a tank, healer and DPS at 80, I can tell you it plays differently in every role.
I vote hunter. And that’s not because I’m biased because all of my hunters are Taurens :)…. well, maybe just a bit.
But, the real reason you should level the hunter is because we need more good hunters out there playing at top level to try to dispel the ‘huntard’ level for the rest of us.
My top hunters are in their high 40s – I have an alt problem, so I’m a so leveler too.
Good luck with either decision. (whispers: For the Horde! )
I would go with the druid. It is a new role, and being the same faction as your main would make it easier to get support – both financial (can xfr goods between toons) and friends (guildmates or friends of Tawyn could possibly help assist with instances in levelling).
And everyone does love a tree. Plus there’s always the Teldrassil Sproutling tournament reward pet, so the druid could have a Mini-Me. (I still think my pocket resto druid should be able to heal, even if it’s only for a point or three. Just ‘cuz.)
I vote for Lunapike! Here are the reasons I have for my vote:
1) Hunters > Lesser Classes
2) Lunapike is your name sake (Pike). I don’t see you refering to yourself as Tawin…Taywin…Tauwyn…err…whatever! See, if you can’t spell it, you shouldn’t level it! 😉
3) Because of your love of the Tauren female toon model. If it is more playable, then it should be played!
5) There will be both a great adventure (highest lvl Hordie), as well as a great challenge (poorest character/pvp sever).
and most importantly-
4) She represents who you most want to be. Reasoning: her genesis. She was created so that you could play a hunter the way you wanted to play her; without facing peer pressure/ridicule from your guildies. Remember that? When people would give you a hard time if you even peeked at a BM spec? Lunapike gave you the freedom to be whoever you wanted to be, and you found the spec that gave you everything you wanted, especially the synergy between hunter/pet that comes with it.
Z
A cow versus a tree….
No way, I’m staying out of this one!
@the rest of Pikes audience, choose well 🙂
“Pike has a deep-seated fear that if she gets a healer to level 80, she will never be allowed to play a hunter in a raid ever again”
This can be a very real problem for people with healer alts. We have a guildy who leveled is Priest for our Naxx runs (for Razuvious) and he still hasn’t gotten his Hunter raiding yet.
druid, they rock!
Druid definately.
1. You’re not going to give up Lunapike, even if you level the tree hardcore, it just aint happenin.
2. Heals are so much fun and it’s another form of ranged action (yup, I have 2 80’s, Hunter and Priest).
3. Tree Dance!!!
Lunapike! I have high level hunters on both the Alliance and Horde side, and I love seeing the world story from both sides. Plus, she has a crab!
Treeeeeee 😛
I gotta be selfish here. I love your blog, and I wanna see more hunter content. Of course I also just gotta have more…..COWBELL!
Hunter!
1. It would only be appropriate to have both of your faction first 80’s as hunters, because hunters are the best.
2. It’s a tauren.
3. ???
4. Profit?
5. I can’t think of anything else, except HUNTER! 😀
“Pike has a deep-seated fear that if she gets a healer to level 80, she will never be allowed to play a hunter in a raid ever again”
That is a real concern. I was stupid/kind enough to invest in dual-spec for my shadowpriest…she’s not been shadow since that day… both good and bad, and since I have a alt-80-hunter I can get some dps in…some days…if I’m lucky.
Druid.
Clearly the answer is to level Lunapike and transfer to Moon Guard.
I’m all for the Druid!!
I have a hunter main that I love to death and I’ve recently started leveling another hunter. I took this weekend ‘off’ and spent it healing heroics on my Priesty alt and had a blast. Sometimes it’s nice just to be able to spend some time seeing things from the other side of the fence :o)
And it’s ok if you post non-hunterish type things once in a while. If BBB can post hunter stuff you can certainly post druid stuff…
I’m going to go with Lunapike, seeing the other side of the story will give you more drive to level than just repeating the same story with a different class. Plus female taurens do the electric slide!!
Hard choice…
I’d say Lunapike, because a crab called Genji is win, and it would be worth doing just to see the Horde side of Northrend.
Druid, druids rock, and stuff about druids on the blog would be nice too, a bit of diversity breeds innovation
Definitely the Horde hunter, Pike. What a great perspective you’ll have seeing the stories from the other side! Come visit on Quel’dorei–we can start a gang of Heirloom wielding hunters!
And no one needs druid blog content; too many great hunter bloggers have disappeared already.
Completely unrelated, but the title of this post is also (apparently) an inappropriate battlecry for a monk.
My main is an alliance hunter in a progression raiding guild. It has allowed me to see the latest content, and I only have to play 4 hours twice a week with a guranteed spot. My alt is a Horde Druid, what I play the rest of the time. Small guild, easy to pug. I love the utilitarian aspect of being a healer, then a tank during the same runs. I’ve been able to keep runs alive by being able to cover any weaknesses, or take the first PUG available regardless of class. But my favorite part is when I’m a cat in there fighting alongside a hunter’s pet, Its like raiding while in “eyes of the beast”, now what hunter wouldn’t want to do that if they could? But I’m glad I kept my druid in a different realm for the same reason, I love playing my hunter.
Druid, Pike…see the game/lands/raids whatever from a different perspective (even though you’ve been through it with your ally hunter). And while you might need to bring the healer for the good of the raid, a raiding group or guild that doesn’t make the effort, through recruitment or alt-leveling, to get your other 80s into raid, probably isn’t one you’d be happy with anyway.
And this way, you can relax and enjoy leveling your Tauren, too, occasionally, without the pressure of trying to reach 80 and raid with her….you can play her for a fun break.
I will say the Horde side of the Wrathgate quest is > than the Alliance one. I do have a level 80 hunter and I do love the Brothers Brann quest line in Stormpeaks that they have access to. Poor Creteus 🙁
On the one hand, I’m a big fan of leveling something for a role you can’t do normally. It gives you the flexibility your raid group may need (and I’ve yet to find a raid group that doesn’t appreciate that). It would also be a *much* faster trip due to the shoulders. On the other hand… the Horde side of Dragonblight is pretty awesome.
i d could with the tauren hunter ya still could use the booty bay auction house
I’d pick the druid simply because of that tree picture. Her expression made me laugh for a good eight minutes straight, and if you leveled her you would get to see that face ALL THE TIME!
Also, druids are right up there with pallies on the versatility scale. If you grow tired of healing you can try your hand at tanking, or switch to your dps spec right there in the raid! As one of the only two classes in the game that can tank, heal, and dps (and the only one that can choose what KIND of deeps, ranged or melee), high level druids are VERY valuable.
And don’t worry, my mage main still gets into guildie raids all the time despite the fact that I have a holy priest alt. You’ve just gotta be insistent!
Silver Hand is low on raiding healers. If you don’t want to be pigeonholed into healing, my vote is Lunapike. You can always server transfer her if the PvP gets obnoxious. Besides, female tauren are awesome and it’s a lot of fun to see the horde side of the game.
Hunter, please. I have only alliance toons and I’ve always wondered what leveling a hunter on the other side would be like. Especially the Northrend quest lines. Be our eyes and ears!
Hmmm…
The druid has more going for her overall, but getting to see content from the other side is compelling.
I’d say get the druid to 80, but promise yourself that once you get her there, you’ll show Lunapike some serious love (and leveling)
I’d have to vote for Lunapike. Horde side is awesome, and it’ll be something new.
Plus, with me having an 80 hunter horde-side and druid Alli-side, I do find myself healing 9/10ths of the time on the druid.
Thankfully my guildies have been leveling alts and we now have a few more healers in the guild, so Alanon has gotten to bust out his boomkin side more often lately.
Another possible reason is that once Luna is 80, it will be easier to raise money- Boogga didn’t have his epic flying either when he hit 80, and he got it later that same day, all from level 80 questing. So don’t think that being broke is that hard to fix.
Roll a Horde druid. Fish up a Strand Crawler non-combat pet.
Advantage: *both* best playable models in the game.
Advantage: Hypo-allergenic when not in Tree Form.
Advantage: Druids can tank, too, can’t they? (Hum the UM fight song when in Bear Form)
Advantage: For the Horde!
If you want something even “more different”, roll a male Horde druid.
@ Chris – my Horde druid is level 28 actually >.>
And if she wasn’t heals, she’d be in kitty form, especially with the new updated looks. Looks more like a… bobcat >.> <.<
Hmm. I would vote for druid, too, though I think you ought do the Wrathgate chain quest on Lunapike – the Horde side is cool. 😀 (So basically – get Lunapike to Wrathgate, then switch to druid… or just get Lunapike to 80. Hey, I’m biased. I have a girl! Tauren hunter as my main. XD)
Lunapike!
Although I’m a horde-boy-for-life, I’d have to go with the Tree. In my opinion, why would you want a second 80 hunter? I mean despite the faction differences there really isn’t that much play difference then specs, but you could always just re spec your ally to that same spec. Druid would give you a whole new experience so why not?
As for your problem with not playing your hunter because you’ll be asked to play heal bot, I figured I would have that problem when I leveled my Dk figuring that I won’t be tanking, I’ll just stay a healer. Though this is not the case I almost rarely get to play my priest! So all in all, it can work however you want it, it is your game.
To make things short… go druid, you know you WANT to!