Curtain Call

It has happened to me. I always knew in the back of my mind there was a chance, but I couldn't imagine why or how it could happen. But it did.

What, you may wonder?

Looking at my Mac's dock and eyeballing that little W icon that launches WoW and just not feeling the slightest desire to login and do anything. I've lost any desire to play World of Warcraft. My subscription, that has been almost 7 years running, will not be renewed when it expires.

This blog started for me to outlet my game playing experiences. Now that I'm not playing, there isn't anything to say -- other than a huge thank you to the readers and 'celebrity' bloggers that were so very encouraging to me as I was starting this site.  Every comment was deeply appreciated - you each touched my life and I'm grateful.

Anyone that's still using the Blogger Gadgets for achievements or pet battle teams, I won't be actively maintaining them but in the event something breaks feel free to ping me on Twitter as @oneCof5. I'm not overly active on Twitter, but send me a DM and I'll get it.

Later,
Chris

Undead Army Invasion: All Death Knight ICC 25(H)

Any US Alliance Death Knights out there want to beat up Arthas (for the first time or again?)

Sunday 5 May at 10:00 pm EDT, I'm hoping to clear ICC with 24 of my newest DK buddies. Interested?  Check out OpenRaid!

Is this thing on?

Hi world. Long time, no post!

According to MerriamWebster,

ap·a·thy
Definition:

1. lack of feeling or emotion : impassiveness
2. lack of interest or concern : indifference

Part of my online hiatus was the dreaded "Real Life" raid boss. I pulled too much aggro -- Work, Volunteer, Family -- at the same time and they combined to wipe me. Another part of it is an annual down-cycle; late February and March are a rough time for me. Some years are easier than others, but this year was rough. But, I can't place all the blame for my sabbatical on Real Life.  A large reason for being AFK has just been plain apathy within the game of Warcraft.  I haven't been doing much in the game, so I don't have much to write about from my game experiences. I've struggled to actually care about anything current (5.2 is totally foreign to me - I'm still digesting 5.0 and 5.1!) in the game.

 Let's quickly break down my WoW status:

1. I'm not on a progression raid team by choice.
2. I'm exalted with all the base MoP (patch 5.0 and 5.1) factions (except for a few Tillers and Nat Pagle, but who has time to fish enough to get chummy with Nat?)
3. I've done more daily quests than I ever want to do again.
4. Pet Battling is an occasional past-time, but no longer as addictive as it was.
5. I don't have a PVP set, and if I want abuse I can queue for heroic 5 mans; I don't need to be the squishy on the BG.
6. I may run an occasional LFR, but I'm not confident in my command of the class mechanics and I'm unwilling to spend the time to min/max with sites like Elitist Jerks to squeeze every last ounce of DPS from my character. As a result, I'm shy to queue for an LFR.
7. I've got one level 90 with an iLevel even high enough for LFR; the prospect of repeating all that rep grind and gear grinds on alt 90s is overwhelming.

I don't mean to be negative, as I still love playing WoW. I'm just doing other stuff than most of the bloggers are writing about.

1. I'm gearing my new 90s via scenarios rather than instances. Less stress, shorter queues and I simply enjoy the scenarios.
2. I'm leveling alts. I had seven 85s in Cataclysm. I'm up to three 90s in MoP. Time to pass some love along to some other toons.
3. I'm experimenting with low-level PVP. Holy hell is the level 10-15 bracket fun!
4. I'm relying on OpenRaid for my older content raiding needs. 

Point 4 there is really quite cool. The achievement junky in me adores OpenRaid, mainly because:

• I have actually completed Firelands (10H and 25H) and I'm closing in on the Meta.
• I got my 10m and 25m ICC meta drakes from OpenRaid events.
• Except for a few bad apples, the folks I've met via OpenRaid are friendly, helpful and just plain cool.
• I'm reminded of JD's Laid Back Raids, which I will sorely miss.

So...
I'm going to attempt to put organize the events I enjoy doing and post 'em up to OpenRaid to see who else may be into the same stuff I'm into.  I've even started a new guild called <Swiss Cheesements>- on Borean Tundra (US) as well as on OpenRaid - with the express purpose of doing 'outdated' achievements. The first event is planned for 5 May and it's an all Death Knight 25m raid on ICC(H).  Can you just imagine 25 Armies of the Dead swarming a boss?  I can't wait!

Some of the excitement is back and I'm looking forward to seeing how this part plays out.