Would you believe…

I haven’t even upgraded my account yet.

No upgrade to Cataclysm

Truth be told… one reason things have been a little quiet around here lately is because I was planning on exiting for awhile. Trying to meet the demands of everyday life, along with the task of maintaining this website, as well as finding time to play the game used to fuel said website… well… it’s been a little too much for me these days.

Ever since about August, I’ve really not had many opportunities to get down with some serious huntering. On the occasions that I have played, the bulk of that time was spent either to develop a new post or guide, or to update and refine my UI compilation for all those eager to try it out.

Apart from some 10-19 WSG fun a few weeks back, most of my in-game time over the past several months has been “work”.

In fact… it’s been a long time since I actually really enjoyed this game. Don’t get me wrong… I still like to get on and kick a little behind now and then or tame a new pet, but I certainly don’t get the same amount of satisfaction from it as I used to.

That’s to be expected though. Especially when you consider I’ve been at it for nearly five years.

Toss in the fact that I have to “force” myself to play at times, just so that I can continue driving this train (i.e., HuntsmansLodge), and WoW begins to become a lot less fun than it should be.

So anyway… my initial reaction to this expansion was to avoid it. I was planning on taking a few months off. I didn’t want to have to deal with guide updates, the race to 85, all of the new PvP and pet temptations awaiting me, and just the Cataclysm and website time investments in general. I simply can’t afford it.

Then I decided… wait a minute… what I should really do is just detach myself from the arduous task of trying to fulfill my perceived obligations.

I’m going to take it easy for awhile, and hopefully rediscover some of that early joy and wonderment that I first experienced back in the start of ’06.

No raiding…

No rated BGs… (well not for awhile anyway) 😉

No arena…

No scheduled play of any kind…

No crafting of theory…

Just me enjoying some relaxing, go-at-my-own-pace, non-obligatory playing time with an all new toon. Hunter, of course. I have to keep it real. 😉

So the only question now is…

Worgen or Goblin Hunter

While I’m tooling around Azeroth on my new hunter youngling, I do hope to bring a few more people into the fold as interim (possibly permanent) writers. I don’t plan on covering much (if anything) in terms of higher level play for awhile, so I’m looking to bring in some adventuring 80-85 hunters to fill that void.

I’m mainly seeking contributors who have been active either in the forums or in the comments, but if you’ve been quiet up ’til now and do want to lend a hand, drop me a note.

Although it’ll be some time before I discuss level 85 PvP builds or how I tamed GhostCrawler, in the meantime… I will be your guy if you are wondering how to go about leveling a new hunter in Cataclysm. I don’t plan to make it a speed run, however.

I’m going to just cruise for awhile…

It should be fun. 🙂

36 thoughts on “Would you believe…”

  1. I just stumbled upon this site through google search after a two year WoW hiatus. I must say, when it becomes a chore you really need to step back and see what you want from the game. I came back under the condition that all of my RL friends would join the same server and play together. That has reinvigorated not only myself but everyone else. Im rerolling from scratch, but am highly anticipating high level play.

    If you find yourself scratching your head saying why am I doing this? Go back to what is fun. Set smaller work oriented goals and figure it out. Nice page. I think I will peep around!

    Reply
  2. Gar, only recently found and utilized your website although been playing for about two years. I have got the best advice from this site imo than any other. I stayed up till the release of Cat and played for 12 hours, argggg! i was waning a little in the last couple of months and started thinking rejuvenation. have not been back on since release, fixing to get on in sec. so i not only support your decision, i am gonna live it. play for fun, and the leave the rat race to others. However……..(lol) i will look forward to your future posts. and thanks for all the help you have given me.

    Reply
  3. Hi Carnage,

    I hear ya. I really want to dive into the higher level stuff, but with all the s**t I have going on right now, I just won’t be able to. Once I can handle 2 or 3 hours a few nights a week, then I’ll re-enlist Garwulf.

    In the meantime, casually enjoying the “new” old world suits me just fine. And yea… the new little enhancements like the skill notification are really cool, as you mentioned.

    As far as the post I deleted… which one? LOL. There have been a few over the years. 😉

    Reply
  4. Hi Gar,

    I haven’t purchased my copy of cataclysm yet either. With the holidays, work and family take up all my free time( as they should ). So I actually have been doing the same and leveling a baby warlock with dreams of pvp, which has been surprisingly fun. (DOT,DOT,DIE!) 😀 With little time invested he is 21 and also I have the opportunity to participate in the new leveling experience blizzard has added (new skill notifications! sweet!)
    As far as worgen/goblin? I will be race changing carnage to worgen
    A.) all my real life buddies are alliance
    B.) HE IS A FREAKING WEREWOLF DUDE!!
    C.) Same method as I choose my pets I really like how the models appears, moves and emotes
    D.) see point B
    E.) goblins look as exciting as the pineapple huts they live in 😀
    F.) see point B

    as far as blogging, take it easy!
    I am appreciative of all the hard work you have put into the lodge, and as always when work is fun its fun but when its a chore its not. Maybe you should try something like a beer and a rant fridays, what does irritate the mighty gar? (not enough to do what ya did in the one post you deleted, yes i saw it :D) More contests are always fun!!
    Take your time and find the fun again. A game like WOW is amazingly deep enough to always take a break and find new things to do.
    Best Regards,
    Carnage

    Reply
    • I will. This is one reason why I decided not to step away entirely for a few months.

      So far, so good. I played a little last night and didn’t notice any issues. If problems arise, or if people have questions, I will be available to help.

      Reply
  5. Hey Gar/Everyone.
    I agree with everyone so far. Just enjoy the game, also why don’t you go the same way as Anj and go for a default UI? it would make things interesting 🙂
    With the Worgen/Goblin thing… I have rolled both and I have to say the Goblin start out is a lot of fun, only because being able to have your own personal hot rod mount at lvl1 is so cool, Worgens are also fun, very interesting storyline.
    If you need extra help with the site I would be happy to help 😀
    Peace.

    Reply
    • I don’t have much interest in using the default UI anymore. Having created a custom configuration for myself, I don’t see the point in not using it. I used the default UI for a few years. Apart from simply enjoying the hobby of tinkering with the UI layout, there are good reasons why abandoned it and went ahead with my own customizations.

      I can definitely understand why other would want to do so, however.

      Thanks for the offer on helping with the site Mick. I appreciate it. 🙂 All I really need help with would be new articles. If you have anything informative, interesting or amusing to share, please hit me up.

      Reply
  6. I really have no interest in rolling a new hunter. Omogon is now in Hyjal in his ICC epics and just hit 81 yesterday…….note to self…lvl 85 Tauren Warriors have a bazillion HP and make quick work of an 80 Dwarf Lol

    Garwulf…you need to have FUN with the game. To me it’s great fun flying around in the old kingdom and questing in the new areas. The thought of leveling from ‘scratch” again is awful. You could, of course, roll a new baby dwarf on Icecrown and join the WHU guild….they have great fun 🙂

    Reply
    • With the whole world torn apart, it’s like a whole new Azeroth. The landscape has changed… the quests are new… I think leveling through it would be cool.

      Maybe not right now, but the baby dwarf hunter idea is a good one. A few months ago I actually created one on Icecrown, but that was it. I never took the time to level him.

      I do look forward to the 80-85 stuff, but I want to wait until I can afford the time to savor it. When I think of all the awesome awaiting Garwulf my head wants to explode. Because I can’t dig in right now like I want to, I’d rather wait.

      Reply
  7. Gar, you have to be alliance you know that! Can’t leave me hanging. On second thought, just give me your bnet realid and we’ll call it even!:) Glad to see you didn’t succumb to the grip of insanity, then again we all have been there. I know I have.:)

    Reply
    • Well… I want to level a hunter so that I at least have something to discuss on here. It’s not like I’m doing it against my will either… I love playing hunters.

      I have an 80 Druid and an 80 DK as well, but hunter is by far my favorite class to play.

      I’m not much into cloth wearing casters, which leaves warrior, shaman, rogue and paladin as the other classes I’d be interested in leveling. I have a lvl 45 warrior who I’ve dabbled with over the years, but never truly fell in love with. I have a 19 twink pally that may be fun to level at some point.

      However… rogue and shaman are probably at the top of my list for new classes I’d like to roll. What I may do is roll a worgen and a goblin – one of them a hunter, and the other..?

      Worgen hunter and Goblin rogue may be pretty sweet. 🙂

      We’ll see… I still have yet to install Cata. Once I do, I’m sure I’ll figure it out once I’m at the creation screen. Of course, the naming process usually takes me half a year. I’m not a generic name guy.

      Reply
  8. Excluding maintaining a website, I agree with you about this whole play at your pace wow thing. I’ve stopped trying long ago. In fact, I didn’t even get my hunter to 80 until last week. I’ve had this hunter for over a year. That’s how hard I’ve been trying lol.

    Take a break, Gar. No one can blame you.

    As far as the Worgen/Goblin debate… Well, seeing as you have the word “Wulf” in your name, I think Worgen is the way to go. I’ve started an Undead hunter myself, I’m tired of being an elf.

    Reply
  9. Gar! I completely agree with this decision. I keep wanting to get a blog started, but on top of all the work I need to do, and just actually playing the game, it’s a battle. I plan to get it started up when my work gets off for Christmas for a while. But I would love to do some entries for HL. I’ve been coming here for about a year now, and I’m done being a freeloader. Time to throw in my two cents! 😀

    Have fun with the game, Garwulf. It’s a cool world out there.

    Reply
    • Huugg, dude… I keep meaning to reply to your comments, but then I put it off, eventually forget, then… uh, well, I suck. Sorry if it looked like I was ignoring you. 🙁

      Good to see you back around. 🙂

      You’re always welcome to chime in around here if you’d like. Which reminds me… it may be time to rev up for another WoW Fan Fiction Contest.

      Reply
      • :'( Your neglect hurts me.

        No, I’m totally kidding. It’s all good. It’s good to be back. 🙂

        BUT, ABSOLUTELY you should get another going. It was so much fun last time (a free mount for all my chars didn’t hurt either 😀 ) and it would put the site-goers on auto-pilot, at least until you need to put up the entries and format them. But your contests are tons of fun, and I love to see all the creative input on this site! If it were up to me, idea entries for the contest would start tomorrow. 🙂

        Reply
        • I’m totally down with some new contests. That would be fun, and it would keep things exciting without requiring me to do all of the writing. 🙂

          But yea… you’re right on the publishing part. Editing, formatting and publishing everything is a chore. It’s always fun though, because it gives me a chance to feature other writers and be entertained by them.

          I’m also very happy to announce that I have some very bitchin prizes to give away. 😀

          Reply
          • Please let one be a Lil’ Rag pet. Ever since I discovered that you can use him as a cooking fire, he has ascended to the top of my list for “must-have” stuff in the game!
            I’d write a thousand stories for a chance at Lil’ Rag!

            (Either that or pay the price myself. =P )

            Reply
  10. I wonder how people like Frost maintain the regimen, but all I can say is, thank goodness they do. Frost has been an invaluable and amazing contributor to the wow hunter community. The guy has a level of passion for the game that I’ve seen only in one other.

    Reply
  11. I don’t blame you one bit! I’m a bit of a lurker around here, but out of all the major hunter blogs you and I seem to share the same characteristics as far as I can tell. I was reading some WHU stuff the other day and wondering how the crap Frost has a life or enjoys the game. Love the guy and his stuff but dang he needs to do exactly what you’re doing I think. Stop pumping out four random “Guide to blah blah blah”‘s a day and just have fun with this masterpiece of a game. Allow me to reccomend WPL and EPL, just finished them both on my shammy. The awesomeness of the new quests there cannot be underestimated. Have fun my friend!

    Reply
  12. Gar! I have been focused on leveling (well Terrorpene’s distracting me, a bit). It’s pure leveling: no raids, no dailies, no professions, no nothing.

    And then after I reach 85, I’ll restart with a worgen hunter — with a default UI too.

    Enjoy Gar… glad to know you’re “back.”

    Reply
  13. IMO, if the game can’t be fun because it becomes a job, then it’s not worth doing those things that make it job like. I like your plan. I’m thinking of doing the same for the next few weeks myself simply to avoid the initial pain in fighting for quest items / mobs with all other 80+ characters.

    I started both a worgen and goblin hunter last night. I thinking of leveling both to around 15 and see which one “feels right” to me, then drop the other. Of course I have people trying to convince me on another class which I might do instead. Already have a baby hunter in Frostheim’s WHU guild. Of course, whatever class I decide on, it will be goblin since said friends are horde.

    Oh decisions, decisions….

    Reply
  14. HELLZ YEAH, DOG!!! HAVE SOME FREAKING FUN WITH THE GAME!!

    Every time I read a post like this from someone who runs a wow blog, I am ashamed of myself for feeling like I’M THE ONE who is trying to cram in playing the game with learning/reading about boss encounters and then coming to the blogs to read about fun stuff a chit chat on the forums.

    This is only my opinion, Gar, but FFS ENJOY THE GAME HOW YOU WANT TO ENJOY IT!
    Gonna level the new hunter? Sweet.
    Gonna just chill and let the mad max-leveling obsessed rush blow past you so you can enjoy the new zones without feeling like you’re in a blender of activity to the point you can barely tell what’s going on around you? Hey, that’s what I do. =P
    Gonna come back someday and write about the fun and impart some of your huntering wisdom upon us? Awesome. I’ll be here to read and enjoy it.

    I learned a long time ago IRL that the more you have to work at having fun, the less fun it is.

    Have fun, brudda!

    Reply
    • Don’t be ashamed lawman. People like me run sites like this for people like you. You’re the reason I settle down at the keyboard to discuss this, that and the other thing.

      I began this site so that I could pay forward a lot of what I knew, along with sharing stories and such from a hunter’s point of view. It makes me all warm and fuzzy to be able to help others enjoy the class a little bit more, and to save people some time and headaches.

      But yea… I need to be able to shrug the responsibility of having to be Garwulf, proprietor of HuntsmansLodge, and just chill for a bit.

      I’ll still be rambling on about stuff – it just may be nothing important. ;-P

      Reply
  15. Hmm I think you’re plan sounds like an awesome one, I’m kinda doing the same with my hunter (starting a new one) and I’m really excited about my worgen hunter, my 80 Tauren hunter will go on hiatus. So having said that, I vote you start a Worgen. Why? Cuz it’s a friggin werewolf (and not the lame Twilight kind).

    Reply
    • I’m definitely leaning that way. Worgen is looking like the choice for me, but damn…

      the goblin rocket belt ad pack hobgoblin are so freakin’ win!

      May have to try both. 🙂

      Reply
      • Goblin 😉 You can blend into the sea plants and tree life. Have fun WoWing, totally agree with the whole blogging thing sometimes feeling like a chore, which is why I stopped blogging years ago – though at times I figure out something geeky and want to share it with others and wish I had a blog…

        Reply

Leave a Reply to Drackmire Cancel reply