Scenario Hunter Epics

If you haven't tried scenarios they're pretty decent content and a good way to get an easy 40 valor.  I got all my transmog gear from them.  (It's the red colored version of the standard yellow gold 440/450/463 gear.)

With the release of patch 5.1, you are awarded a different box with potential for much better goodies.  Specifically, 476 epics and 463 blues.  It's too early to know what percentage this stuff will return and Blizzard isn't saying.  But there's a bunch.  All with those random "of the" enchantment flavors.

A ring!

Another ring!

A red helm!

Another red helm!

Some gloves!

A chest piece!

A neck piece!

Another neck piece!

And a cloak!

Will half of these have int on them and the rest have strength?  Probably not, but I wouldn't expect them to be ideal or rain down on you in buckets.

My Raiding Guild May Be Turning a Corner

With the beginning or MoP, we had our main tank and one of our excellent healing-only healers take a break from raiding.   One isn't even level 90 yet.  We have tried to replace them a few times but it's been difficult.

This week we brought into MV a new off-tank with 3-4 greens and trialed a few healers (one a dps who re-rolled a pally just to help out).  It was pretty rough.  It's unclear if we've turned a corner on the healing; Across the board we seem to have connection issues or lag issues or skill issues or a combination.  The off-tank is learning quite quickly which is great.

It still took us 1.5 days to get to Elegon and then we wiped there a bit.  We had been doing 4 orbs the first time around and 4 orbs the second time around.  We had one of those crushing single-digit health percentage wipes during the healing-intensive part.  So then we decided to try and get to 5 orbs the first time and 4 the second to buy a bit more killing power.  That did the trick.  We killed him a good 15 seconds quicker than the previous attempts had been tracking.

I still need to get our off-tank to count better before pulling bosses so I can pre-pot like I do with the other tanks, but a kill is a kill.

I'm concerned that we out-geared this boss from a DPS standpoint and still don't have the tank to take less damage and the healers to handle even a well-geared tank.

Hot Hunter Hotfix on Patch Day

The same day that 5.1 is coming out with a Lynx Rush burst nerf, Hunters are getting a +5% AP buff.

Aspect of the Hawk and Aspect of the Iron Hawk now increase ranged attack power by 15% (was 10%).  (Source)

What this means: We used to get a +10% attack power boost in either regular AotH or AotIH.  Now it's +15%.  You still have to choose if you want the blanket 15% damage reduction AotIH gives you, the pocket healthstone Exhilaration gives you, or the constant +2% health restore that Spirit Bond grants.  For raiding where you do have healers for a reason, the damage reduction path is almost universally the way to go.

Bringing the Hammer

It was a four day auction.  I generally consider myself not lucky.  So I fully expect I will get a Sha-Touched weapon to drop within the next week.  In my mind, the result wouldn't be that I'd have two great weapons;  I'd beat myself up for wasting a few months of gold.

Good Hunter Question

Go on over to the Warcraft Hunters Union to participate in the "Are Hunters Doing the Wrong Type of Damage" discussion.

Your Valor Grind and Patch 5.1

Hunters rejoice!  Or if you were looking forward to getting off the valor treadmill, drown your tears in a dark ale.  Or three.  You're going to want a lot more valor -- and soon.

With 5.1 we have the ability to upgrade existing equipment.  Some equipment can be upgraded two levels and some only one.  If you're still stuck with some blue gear, you can get away with just spending 1,500 justice points to upgrade one i463 item to a i471 piece of gear.  You don't get to choose which stats get upgraded.  This will keep everyone on the treadmill for a lot longer.

If you scoff at the minor upgrades you can achieve with that valor expenditure, don't fret.  Blizz has you covered with more dailies and another faction grind.  I'll be happy for the variety myself.  For 6,500 valor and appropriate faction rep, you can outfit yourself with some lovely epic i496 gear; a nice ring, an on-use trinket, some decent shit-kickers, and a non-bullet oriented belt.

Of course all of that gear is upgradable twice as well.   Spend 750 valor and bump up a piece of i496 to i500.  Spend another 750 valor and it and its stats are that of a i504 piece.

Aww hell.  My ptr links are pointing to the wrong places somehow.  I had them all gathered up nicely and it's been changed somehow.  Ahh!  wow.Joystick.com has something corroborative.   They're buried in a large screenshot gallery otherwise I'd just link to the story.