Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Rusted Proto for Keeps

After further discussion, we decided not to remove the rusted and ironbound proto-drake rewards for the normal and heroic Glory of the Ulduar Raider meta achievements when patch 3.2, Call of the Crusade, launches, and currently have no plans to remove them in the foreseeable future. However, we will continue to evaluate the situation and if a decision is made to remove these rewards at any point in the future, we'll provide a one month warning so players will have time to make some final attempts.- Blue post from Eyonix


This of course is supposed to be great news for me and my 10man crew who have been chasing the clock ever since they dangled the possibility of 3.2 over our heads. With 3.2, the Rusted and Iron Proto Drake were to be taken out of the game. Now, it looks like we not only do we have plenty of time, we have an eternity.


What this means for us is that we can now go back to concentrating on getting gear for the team instead of pushing the Glory of the Ulduar Raider curriculum.


However, this also means, I’m not sure I give a sh1t about the drake anymore either. It’s sort of a double edged, this news. On the one hand, great news we have more time… on the other hand, who cares about the achievement anymore?


Would the Armani War Bear mean much if it was still attainable? Would the Plague or Black Proto Drake mean anything if you could still grind OS, Maly, and Naxx to get it post 3.1? Not really. Sometimes I really don’t understand the motivations behind Blizzard’s actions.

5 comments:

Allecia said...

Those of us not on the cutting edge of content still appreciate the chance to get the proto-drakes. I will be grinding these achievements in the same gear you are in, so I do not see any unfair advantage. The Amani Warbear isn't attainable now due to the whole level cap being increased. They are not doing that, just introducing a slightly higher gear level - which ppl who are that much on the cutting edge will have the drake anyway.

Alachia said...

I totally get that but a Red Proto Drake is still available via Glory of the Hero. http://www.wowhead.com/?achievement=2136. Especially after the 3.1 class changes, Glory of the Hero is now more than realistic for most casual players.

As for the Armani War Bear, they actually took it out of the game before WoTLK was released. It was due to the massive class changes made and further nurfing of the instances. It's the inconsistency of Blizzard's decisions that I think bother me the most.

Igoo said...

I think that many mounts stay unique even when they are still attainable. Does the baron mount mean any less to the people that ground it out just because others can still get it? Most people are not willing to put in the time to get these mounts regardless of gear level. I really see no reason to remove these mounts from the game. I have many unique mounts and I when I see someone else on a mount that I have I feel sort of a kinship to them. I never have the thought of pfft you probably got that post nerf. I agree the inconsistency is frustrating, but saying that leaving them in makes them any less sought after is a bit of an overstatement in my mind.

Ig

Alachia said...

I think I differentiate RNG drops and achievement based drops quite a bit. And that's the thing. There are things you will be able to obtain in the game because of skill and others because of luck. And if they want to make sure all the loot is available to everyone, then they should just do so.

For example, why not make the Gladiator Frost Wrym Mount obtainable through honor points and tokens... because Blizzard was trying to reward people who had reached a certain level of achievement.

If this isn't what they want to do, I wish they'd stop implementing the ideas into the WoW culture. If they don't want to limit achievement based rewards to actual achievements, then they should just stop them all together.

Murchadha said...

Blizzard mentioned that they will not be introducing new 310% speed flying mounts in the patch 3.2. I think this plays into why they're not taking the Rusted Proto Drakes out. It makes sense to keep the 10 and 25 man raiding achievement 310% flying speed mounts in the game if they're not going to replace them.

It's the 310% speed that sets these mounts apart from other mounts in the game. The green, red and rusted proto drakes all look great but only the rusted proto drake is faster than the others.

Here's a list of other 310% air mounts.

Achievement System* 310% in air mount:

[Violet Proto-Drake] 100% on land, 310% in air Reward for completing the What A Long, Strange Trip It's Been achievement.
[Rusted Proto-Drake] 100% on land, 310% in air Reward for completing the Glory of the Ulduar Raider achievement.
[Ironbound Proto-Drake] 100% on land, 310% in air Reward for completing the Heroic: Glory of the Ulduar Raider achievement.

* Note - there were 10 and a 25 man Nax mounts, but they were removed and replaced with the 10 and 25 man Ulduar mounts.

Arena Award 310% in air mount:

[Swift Nether Drake] 100% on land, 310% in air Seasonal Arena reward

Boss Dropped 310% in air mounts:

[Mimiron's Head] 100% on land, 310% in air Yogg-Saron 25-man, Ulduar
[Ashes of Al'ar] 100% on land, 310% in air Kael'thas Sunstrider, The Eye

These mounts are Blizzard's way of rewarding very dedicated players and in some cases very dedicated and very lucky players.

I agree that the achievement will loses some of its luster after patch 3.2. More time, new and better gear will make the task easier. But that's always the case. As time goes on and as new gear becomes available, all achievements in the game become easier. That's why world and server firsts are noted. That's why you'll hear people say, "I downed that boss pre-nerf." I'm sure people will be saying, "I got my Rusted Proto Drake before Patch 3.2."

My guess is that this mount will be removed from the game with Patch 3.3 and replaced by another set of raiding achievements 310% air speed mounts. I'm still hoping to get my hands on one.

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