I have decided to start collecting some of my ideas and leveling information as I strive to re-achieve level 70 on a Tankadin.  At the behest of my RL brother (Ness/Carno) I have re-rolled Alliance on our old server Gorggy after all my RL friends /wowquit for AoC just a few weeks after I finally achieved 70 on Thunderlord.  In the process, I believe I'll use this blog to keep a few notes and tips to myself so that I'll remember them all when I gain level 70 again.  Hopefully prior to WotLK.

My first observation is how badly dissed the Scryers have always been for a newly level 70 Palatank.  I understank that the Vindicator's Hauberk is unavailable, but it is MUCH easier to cram Scryer rep through farming the Demon Hunter Trainee's than trying to slaughter demons.  Not only that, but the def/dodge buff, the near-felsteel gloves, and the availability of +Dodge enchantments are nearly completely ignored for one chest-piece that for most serious players is replaced just as soon as the player can get his first 200 badges (15 for Libram, 30 for this piece, 65 for that, then finally 100 for the Stoic Chestpiece which is nearly T4!!).  So for such a small advantage over the Scryers, most people advise you to roll Aldor.  Yet the shoulder-glyph is used for MUCH longer (and is better) than the Vindicator's Hauberk.  It makes little sense to me.

My second observation is the 'elitism' I saw to the extreme on Thunderlord.  I achieved uncrittable with almost 300 +spell, yet because I was wearing a single green (The Nexus-Guard's Pauldrons.  Good stuff.) I was unacceptable for entry into Heroics.  This from dps/healers that had been whispering me in-game since level 25 because of my ability as a tank.  I understand better than most how hard it is to find a good tank, but when a tank is over 10k health and over 12k armor, I feel it then falls to the Healer's ability, not to the Tank's surviveability.  Especially considering I tanked Heroic UB at 467 Def.  We didn't down the final boss, but the Healer admitted himself it wasn't my armor, it was his being undergeared.  Only Heroic I managed on TL.  Elitism is a sad-sad thing.

My third observation now that I have rolled up my Dranai Paladin is how unbalanced the new zones feel to me.  I leveled four or five Blood Elves through level 30 in my bored moments, yet never did I manage to gather the vast number of 'gathering' items that I have found throughout the Azuremyst and Bloodmyst Isles.  Its crazy.  It is my hope that is more from 2.4 than anything, but it wasn't just how rich the veins were either.  There were just more veins close to areas where I had to quest.  In some spots, the mines (and other gathering items) balanced right on the edge of two areas that different sets of quests were present for.

Continuing my third observation is the quest advancement, but since we are all aware of the unbalancing in that area I will not waste my time or yours dear reader.

I say dear reader because I know some day, some really bored person will have managed to read this far. 

Aside from that however comes my fourth observation, which deals with the Tankadin's viability as an end-game character, and only an 'end-game' character.  On Thunderlord I actually leveled Narcomon from level 9 to level 70 as Prot.  Seriously.  I can't explain why I did it, other than the enjoyment of tanking all of the instances from RFC (Hordie) through to the level 70 5mans.  I enjoyed it.  If tanking is your goal, and you enjoy smashing down 4-6 mobs at a time as you level, then by all means roll Prot.  However, if leveling is your goal, I would recommend against Prot.  With Bandages and 'Gift of the Naaru' or 'Mana Tap' the Retadin's can crush through hours and hours of questing/grinding/crushing without stopping to drink, eat, or repair.  So until level 60, I will be a Retadin.  At 58, I'm going to start gathering my Tankadin plate-set and then decide my direction from there.  So take it from me personally, if this is an alt your running to 70, DON'T go Prot unless you have a healer that's going to run around with you.  Now, if you DO have a healer, give some serious consideration to Prot as you can slaughter your way through 5-12 mobs (as you grow in level, finally being able to solo 35+ mobs at 70).

As of Day 3 (Actually getting online) I have taken my wonderful Pedran to level 19.  I miss 'Mana Tap', but the 'Gift of the Naaru' MORE than makes up for it.  I should be level 20 next time I get online as I have four quests to turn in already so it will be time to make Carno rush me through Deadmines/Blackfathoms Depths/Shadowfang Keep for my level 20 Hammer.  25.6 DPS on a relatively fast-swinging hammer is nothing to spit at for level 20.   The next step from there isn't until level 24, and drops from one of those three instances.  Works out.  After getting my level 20 hammer, I may bully Carno into running me through the SM instances a few times as well.  You know you can start running all four of them at level 20(based on wowwiki.  I'd like to check).

It is amusing to think I'm going to be going through all of this leveling again, but hopefully I'll enjoy the server a little more.  I must admit, I've missed the old crew.  It was a sad day when Exousia collapsed so soon after I left to get married.  NTN, Exousia, and BBQ Empire were rockin the MC.  Good times.   Now I hear Krazyness PO'd a bunch of people, Tylin and Taraja /wowquit, and Carno/Ness thinks most of the hardcore raiders I used to play with don't even remember who Fjork used to be before Carno started playing him for me.  Who knows, maybe now that I'm back on Gorggy I'll take Fjork up to 70, and reclaim my title as the mass-pvp General.  Man, the day we successfully downed Thrall was SO awesome.  Directing over four hundred people through a goofy shared channel rocked.  Most especially when the Hordies started putting up their defenses.  You know I hear my warrior/mage ideas actually stuck on a few other servers?  Warriors run in with invisible mages behind them.  That's how we finally cleared ALL those Hordies out of Ms. Proudmoore' tower if memory serves me correctly.  All of our warriors charged a targeted AOE caster as all of our Mages Blinked in and started the AOE fun.  Four hours of trying to get them outta there and we managed to kill the whole grouped bunch in less than two minutes.

Mass-World-PVP ftw.

Well it appears I've been rambling for half a paragraph now.  I managed to deviate utterly from my original intent on this blog, but I guess I'll leave it.  Maybe somebody will read up and say "Hey, you rememember when Kronicus, you, and Darkalpha...."  Then I'll get to find out what happened to all my old-schoolers.

 Peace ya'll.   Till another day of teduim appears!