1/12/2007
During the week before the expansion Ilterendi stayed very busy. We finished clearing another wing in Naxxramas and did some Ahn’Qiraj. In Naxxramas we had been working on Loatheb, the last boss in the Plague Wing. Mostly the fight is a lot of consumables preparation. The week before we had done some dry runs but this time everyone brought their shadow protection potions. We got all buffed up went in and got him on the first try!
In Ahn’Qiraj the mood was one of anticipation and a little sadness. This was probably one of the last Ahn’qiraj runs we would do before the expansion, possibly the last. On one hand everyone was looking forward to the new content, but saying goodbye to the old is hard. On Skeram I was polymorphed into a pig and had a nice laugh.
Everyone was on their best behavior (or not) since we wanted the last run before the expansion to go well (or maybe just fast). What do you do when the raid leader says jump? You ask how high. What do you do when the raid leader says stand on one spot? You stand all in a line. I will miss Ahn’Qiraj but at the same time I won’t while enjoying new content, and the reality is we will be back for one more piece of the Atiesh, Greatstaff of the Guardian.
1/10/2007
The week before the expansion the Dark Portal came alive. Packs of elementals and demons were pouring out while Alliance and Horde once again came together to fend them off. The Burning Crusade had not begun, but it was here nonetheless. The pinnacle of the week was when Ironforge itself was invaded by a minion of the Demon Lord Kazzak. His shadow bolt volleys mowed down anyone in his path and his rampage cleared to the feet of the Dwarf King himself.
Ironforge had not seen such death since the great plague. The fighting went on for hours until I assume the demon got bored and left. There was really nothing anyone could do but sit there and watch the skeletons pile up throughout the city. The demon had its fun, and our turn was coming!
1/4/2007
Part of getting ready for the expansion is tying up all the loose ends; grinding that last bit of reputation, clearing junk from your bank, and finishing random quests. I have had the Bottom Half of Advanced Armorsmithing: Volume III in my bank for as long as I can remember and I finally got a chance to get the top half. Urok Doomhowl drops the Top Half of Advanced Armorsmithing: Volume III in Lower Blackrock Spire, not only is it tough to get a good group for that instance but the quest to summon Urok is almost always skipped because of the difficulty. When Lornath’s Night Elf Priest alt Arassa asked for a LBRS tank I immediately jumped at the opportunity. Our group was composed of another Night Elf Priest named Melanineva, along with two Night Elf Hunters, Aceinturkeye and Linndoren.
We cleared to the Ogres guarding a pile of skulls. To summon Urok you place the head of Omokk on a pike received earlier in the instance. Once active the pike can be used to kill Ogres as they spawn in waves, and after a few waves Urok will spawn. With two priests, two hunters, and a good tank the event was pretty easy. There were a few close calls but everyone did a great job and luckily Urok dropped the top half of the book I needed. After we finished LBRS I returned the book to Lorekeeper Lydros in the Dire Maul Athenaeum and he rewarded me with Plans: Enchanted Thorium Helm! It felt good to finally finish that quest and one of the more difficult recipes to acquire.
