Covenant Cavorting Continues

Kateleina and Kaelyra reached Renown 80 with the Necrolords and the Kyrian, respectively, from “Replenish the Reservoir” last week. Time to do those 9.0 Covenant Campaigns…

Then I had a thought: Why waste opportunities for gaining Renown? I could start gaining Renown with another Covenant. I can just switch back when I’m really ready to begin doing these Campaigns…

And so Kaelyla (as Khrysanthemina) is now hanging out with the Venthyr in Sinfall, and Kaelinda (as herself) is chumming around with the Night Fae in the Heart of the Forest.

Kaelyla will activate the Venthyr Anima Conductor, upgrade it to level 2, and reinforce the Treasure Box and World Quest streams. She won’t bother with any of the other features — not even the Travel Network. I’ve already got all the Venthyr cosmetics that I want, so after she’s finished with the Anima Conductor, all of the rest of the Anima that she collects while working her Renown up to 80 will get turned into Traveler’s Anima Caches to be used for Night Fae and Kyrian cosmetics.

Kaelinda will do the same with the Night Fae Anima Conductor, so that she can use its activities to get her the Court of Night rep she needs to use some of the Night Fae backpieces. She’ll also fully upgrade the Night Fae Travel Network, not just because I find it to be useful but also because she needs the Marasmius rep to use some of the Night Fae backpieces and because I enjoy doing most of the Marasmius dailies.

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WoW 10.0 needs to be spectacular… but I’m afraid that it won’t be

Between the loss of reputation due to the reveals of Blizzard’s internal culture woes and the glowing reviews that the latest FFXIV expansion is receiving, WoW 10.0 needs to be spectacular.

Furthermore, three out of WoW’s past four expansions (including the current Shadowlands) have been, well, misses — expansions where I’ve said to myself, ” meh, I’ll wait to see what comes next…” To be sure, there have been things that I enjoyed more than I expected about Warlords of Draenor, Battle for Azeroth, and Shadowlands — but the overarching grand story plots certainly weren’t it.

And then there is this… and this… and I’m losing hope that WoW 10.0 will be something that I’ll be able to be really and truly excited about right from the initial announcement.

I’ll probably play it anyway just to say that I played WoW all the way to 10.0, but then I might drift away from Azeroth.

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Renowned! Covenant cavorting ensues

Kaelinda and Kaelyla both reached Renown 80 last week.

I ran them both through setting their Renown to 40 with each of the other three Covenants using Broker Marks of Distinction. Much to my disappointment, I discovered that the Renown 40 Covenant titles require you to be currently a member of that Covenant to use them. I also sent Broker Marks of Distinction to Kalaneia and Kamalia. Kalaneia is thrilled to now be able to style herself Baroness Kalaneia; Kamalia prefers to remain Farseer Kamalia.

Everyone who is at least level 50 — I checked with my Paladin and Priest, who are level 50 but haven’t been to the Shadowlands yet — now has access to all armor-type-appropriate Venthyr and Night Fae cosmetics that I have collected thus far. To get the rest, Kaelinda (as Kateleina) will need to get to Renown 80 with the Necrolords, and Kaelyla (as Kaelyra) will need to get to Renown 80 with the Kyrian.

In the process of getting to Renown 80, Kaelyla completed the 9.0 Night Fae Campaign. Although there were a couple of times when I kept dying, I quite enjoyed it — it was nicely very different from the Venthyr Campaign, and I liked the visits back to Azeroth locations (the visits to the Maw, not so much!). Getting that goal completed left me feeling energized to jump into the remaining two 9.0 Covenant Campaigns. So with this week’s reset, before I did anything in the Shadowlands, I took Kaelinda and Kaelyla to the Hall of Curiosities in Oribos, and Kateleina

and Kaelyra

emerged to begin gathering Anima, Souls, and Renown for the Necrolords and the Kyrian, respectively. I intend to build up those Sanctums to level 3 Travel Network, level 2 Anima Conductor with treasure box and extra world quest reinforced, and the other features activated but left at level 1.

Meanwhile, WoW’s Anniversary is on. Kasheena is once again camping out in the Caverns of Time for easy XP from Historian Ju’pa’s daily trivia quiz; for the last couple of years, Kaelyla was her companion in that endeavor, but this year it is Kamalia.

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it’s like the Sparkle Pony all over again, only more serious this time

Darn it if that Celestial Observer’s set that just got added to the cash shop isn’t pretty. It might even be just the thing to encourage Kerisa to get her feathery Boomkin bum back into Horrific Visions of Orgrimmar to get Ashjra’kamas upgraded to its final appearance — that set and that cape look like they’d go together quite beautifully. If the ghastly news about Blizzard’s internal culture hadn’t broken open over the summer, I’d have bought the Celestial Observer’s set and be showing off new Mogs with it in this post already. Now, though, it seems like a money grab and an attempt to distract (or something) from the increasingly bad PR, and I feel rather conflicted about giving Blizzard anything more than my sub.

The “Baby Murloc Satch-Shells” that have also just been released seem like an attempt to ride the coattails of the popularity of The Child from The Mandalorian. Apparently they’re tied to a 6-month sub, so I’ll be getting them by default. I’d rather have the Celestial Observer’s set by default.

Wowhead has some early datamining of the Mythic Progenitor Tier set models. The Mage set looks really bland to me; I think I might be more interested in collecting the lookalike items for the Priest and Warlock sets (from the LFR colorations, of course). The Warlock robe I think looks especially nifty with the ribboned panel with the design that goes across all the ribbons on the front of the skirt.

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a tepid reception for the “End of Eternity”

Like the bloggers I read, I was not particularly impressed or excited by the Patch 9.2 preview announcement.

The realms of Death should be otherworldly, and the existing zones of Shadowlands are suitably otherworldly while still retaining some familiarity (at least the leveling zones are)… but Zereth Mortis is waaaay out there in strangeness. Pretty, yes, but also uncomfortably wierd.

Although I feel engaged enough by the Covenants and their stories, the grand story of this expansion lost me a long time ago. Thus, I’m not feeling motivated to explore Zereth Mortis for the story progression because it’s leaving the Covenants behind (or so it seems from what we know so far).

In another set of RL circumstances, I might be excited by the return of class-specific Tier sets and by the sets that were previewed. I am very checked-out of raiding right now, though. Even with a sort-of goal of having either the shoulders or the chestpiece of at least one of the recolors of every Mage Tier set (including PvP recolors, for Black Temple and most of the Legion sets, yay for being able to get Marks of Honor from PvE content during that expansion!), after I finally got the chestpiece for the Castle Nathria set back in late June/early July, I haven’t managed to drag myself into Sanctum of Domination LFR to get the chestpiece for that set.

And with no new non-raid PvE Mog stuff to chase after — except maybe a questing/zone drop set which might show up from datamining/testing by Wowhead folks on the PTR? — I just am not feeling a great need to be ready to go running off to Zereth Mortis as soon as it becomes available.

I dunno, maybe the puzzle aspect of the Cipher of the First Ones will be an intriguing enough game to play? If I don’t let myself get spoilt by the datamining, etc, from the PTR?

I think the most interesting thing to come out of the Patch 9.2 news is the idea that the end of the Shadowlands story “closes a book” on the overall story of Warcraft/Azeroth. This makes me quite curious to find out how 10.0 will change what we know about Warcraft/Azeroth to “open a new book”, so to speak, of its story.

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in which Kamalia goes to the Shadowlands at last

The first thing I did on Tuesday was bring Kamalia to Oribos and then to the Heart of the Forest. At level 50 and 1 Renown, I am delighted that she can wear her covenant’s Renown 60 cosmetic armor! She had been wearing her Eternal Traveler outfit for almost a year, so she was very ready for a new outfit!

Next, Kasheena visited the Barbershop in New Dalaran to check out the new customizations for Highmountain Tauren.

She came out with some super cute beaded braids in her hair and a fun tail decoration. She decided it was about time for a new outfit, too.

Then it was time to visit the Barbershop with Kaelinda and Kaelyla to establish some new Alter Ego appearances.

When my Blood Elf Mage is Necrolord, she will be Kateleina:

When my Void Elf Mage is Kyrian, she will be Kaelyra, a High Elf who never left the Allliance:

I am very pleased with the tentacles in some Void Elf hairstyles now being an optional toggle! I’ll have to remember to think about changing up Kaelyla’s hairstyle in addition to her outfit from time to time 😀

I can now also do this “Kaelyla AU Alliance” look with my Void Elf Mage —

— what she looked like while she was still Quel’dorei, before the Fall of Quel’thalas.

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pushing through the Shadowlands, one little goal at a time

In the past few weeks, I’ve really been pushing questing with my Warlock to get through Maldraxxus — Threads of Fate’d into the Necrolords — to Level 60 — formally inducted into the Necrolords — through Chapter 1 and past the Chapter 2 skip of the Necrolords Campaign, ready to begin Chapter 3. I finished that up on Monday — easy XP from Hallow’s End helped a lot!

On the one hand, I’m glad to have gotten the last of my original five Shadowlands Crew characters to level 60 at last. On the other hand, it feels kind of superfluous to have done so, with Patch 9.1.5 arriving tomorrow and my plan for doing everything from here on out with only Kaelinda and Kaelyla.

Getting Kaelinda and Kaelyla both to Renown 80 was the first thing I wrote on that list. However, Kaelinda, starting last week at Renown 73, and Kaelyla, starting last week at Renown 66, both only got 1 Renown from Replenish the Reservoir — although they did Return Lost Souls and a few Callings, they didn’t get any Renown from those activities. Thus, getting to Renown 80 will still be several weeks out unless I get them to Korthia sometime soon-ish. Furthermore, although I had been fine with still being ground-bound, lately I’ve been starting to really want Flying (oh yeah, and Riding in the Maw, too). That means doing at least the first three chapters of the 9.1 Campaign. So I guess my next push goal should be to get Kaelyla through the 9.0 Night Fae Campaign because of how the very first chapter of the 9.1 Campaign takes place in Ardenweald.

After Kaelinda and Kaelyla do the first three chapters of the 9.1 Campaign and get to Renown 80, then they’ll want to Covenant hop and do the 9.0 Necrolords and Kyrian Campaigns, respectively. Then, the next steps will end up being more nuanced than the Plan I laid out a week or so ago. I recall reading during the 9.1 PTR that there’s special stuff in the 9.1 Campaign chapters focused on the progression of each Covenant’s story for the members of that specific Covenant, so instead of doing the 9.1 Campaign as the same Covenant all the way through, I’ll be wanting to doing some Covenant swapping in the middle. Kaelinda will want do the “Army of Bone and Steel” chapter as a Necrolord — and then she’ll want to switch back to Venthyr for the “Unseen Guests” chapter. Kaelyla will want to be Night Fae for the “Power of the Night” chapter — and then she’ll want to be Kyrian for the “A New Path” chapter. Then they’ll want to be in their Home Covenants for pushing to Exalted with Death’s Advance. I will have plenty to do in the Shadowlands for plenty of time!

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Kalaneia and the Blade of the Primus

For all that she detested the physical environment of Maldraxxus, by the time she had completed the restoration of the Blade of the Primus and opened the door to the Seat of the Primus, Kalaneia knew that the Necrolords were the Covenant where she belonged.
Also, WTB cosmetic Blade of the Primus that can be Mogged over any and all weapon types.

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Considering Covenant Hopping, Again

The implications of unrestricted Covenant swapping once at least one alt has reached Renown 80, combined with RL factors that are pushing me toward focusing on fewer alts, and how very far behind the content consumption curve I am, are leading me to contemplate some rather dramatic changes to my plans for which characters will do what for the remainder of Shadowlands.

Specifically, I am thinking about proceeding through the rest of the expansion with only Kaelinda and Kaelyla, and setting aside all other alts until the end-of-expansion doldrums (though I’ll still bring Kamalia through to the Heart of the Forest).

Kaelinda is at Renown 68 and could get to Renown 80 soon enough if I start doing Return Lost Souls and/or Callings again in addition to Replenish the Reservoir. Kaelyla is at Renown 62 and could also reach Renown 80 fairly soon if I put more effort into obtaining Renown.

Kaelinda is Venthyr, and from having done the Venthyr Campaign, I know that it intersects with/shares a climactic cinematic with the Necrolords Campaign. Kaelyla is Night Fae, and I’ve been spoiled enough to know that the Night Fae Campaign intersects with/shares a climactic cinematic with the Kyrian Campaign.

Kaelinda is Exalted with all of the 9.0 leveling zone factions. The Undying Army have cosmetic backpieces available for Exalted+Necrolords; the Ascended do not have any cosmetics for Exalted+Kyrian.

So, my thoughts are running thusly —
1) Get both Kaelinda and Kaelyla to Renown 80
2) Do Night Fae Campaign with Kaelyla
3a) Covenant swap Kaelinda to Necrolords and do Necrolords Campaign, perhaps as Kaelydia or as a yet-to-be-discovered new Alter Ego
3b) Covenant swap Kaelyla to Kyrian and do Kyrian Campaign as a new Alter Ego who is a never-left-the-Alliance High Elf, using one of the new natural hair color customization options for Void Elves that are coming in Patch 9.1.5
4) Covenant swap Kaelinda and Kaelyla back to their “home” Covenants
5) Do Korthia Campaign with both Kaelinda and Kaelyla
6a) Collect Venthyr and Night Fae sets from Korthia dailies
6b) Get to Exalted with Death’s Advance with both Kaelinda and Kaelyla and obtain the Venthyr and Night Fae sets from that source
7) Covenant swap Kaelinda and Kaelyla to their secondary Covenants
8a) Collect Necrolords and Kyrian sets from Korthia dailies and Death’s Advance
8b) Obtain any 9.0 Necrolords and Kyrian cosmetic items that I am interested in acquiring
9) Covenant swap Kaelinda and Kaelyla back to their home Covenants
10a) Do Ember Court and Broken Mirrors with Kaelinda until shoulders of the associated Venthyr Campaign set recolors have been obtained
10b) Do Queen’s Conservatory with Kaelyla until the associated recolor of the Night Fae Campaign set and the pink/purple version of the moths backpiece have been obtained
11) Round-robin Kaelinda and Kaelyla through the Covenants they haven’t been in yet so as to get access to all Covenant cosmetics
12) Return Kaelinda and Kaelyla to their home Covenants
13) Repeat this process as necessary to collect all Covenant cosmetics from 9.2, etc, until the end of the expansion

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considering Covenant hopping

Like my four year-old who is so excited for Halloween, I “can’t wait” for Patch 9.1.5 because I’m so excited to be able to bring Kamalia to the Shadowlands without having to go through that introductory Maw experience one more time. As I’ve played with my Mages, Druid, Priest, and Warlock, I’ve found myself missing slinging Flame Shocks and Lava Bursts and Chain Lightnings and Earthquakes as an Elemental Shaman. I also just miss being Kamalia because she’s my oldest and “flagship” character.

With Kamalia in the Shadowlands, I’ll have three of the four armor classes there. That makes it tempting to also bring out my Paladin, Karelia. Then I’d want to bring my Tauren Priest, Kaohana, so that I’ll have all four armor classes as Tauren, and because the twins don’t like to be separated. But I know that that’s more alts than I can really manage, so I am telling myself quite firmly that I am only going to advance Kamalia.

I plan to matriculate Kamalia with the Night Fae and then slowly level her with my favorite no or minimal combat World Quests. After Kamalia has acquired all of the Night Fae stuff I’d like her to have, I’ll covenant swap her to the Kyrian to get their gorgeous set — at least the Campaign coloration; I may or may not also go for the Renown coloration — then swap back to the Night Fae.

In thinking about what kind of Covenant hopping I might want to do with my other characters, I began to think about which characters I might want to bring ahead to 10.0. Which characters will need to cycle through all the Covenants so that they’ll have access to all the things to Mog with in the future? Over the past few expansions (Shadowlands included), I’ve figured out that I can handle about four active characters at a time. The four characters I want to keep actively playing for as long as I keep playing WoW are Kamalia, Kerisa, Kaelinda, and Kaelyla. Kamalia only wants Night Fae and Kyrian stuff, and Kerisa only wants Night Fae stuff. It’s just the Mages who really want stuff from all four of the Covenants. So, after Kaelinda has reached 80 Renown and unlocked unlimited Covenant hopping, and after I’ve completed all of the 9.0 Covenant Campaigns with the designated characters, I’ll want Kaelinda and Kaelyla to each take turns with all of the Covenants. I’m imagining having them work together to collect the sets from the Korthia daily quests…

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