Project Lore

It's amazing how time flies! With a new dungeon on the horizon and boss testing already underway, I figured I better get my ass in gear on these second looks! It's been a few weeks since the first article, which covered the Siege area of the dungeon, and I feel like I've gotten a lot more experience with the three fights that make up the Antechamber: Iron Council, Kologarn, and Auriaya. Though the Algalon encounter is technically in this area, it cannot be accessed until after Yogg-Saron, so it will be included in a later second look. Let's move right along, shall we? The Iron Council - I won't lie. I wasn't exactly happy when we made a detour from Kologarn in a raid earlier this week to go pick a fight with the Iron Council first. It's not that it's an especially tough encounter, at least not if you follow the prescribed sequence of Steelbreaker -> Molgeim -> Brundir, but there are just so many easy ways for it to spin out of control. Tanks get their face smashed in by a Fusion Punch, or forget to move Steelbreaker out of the Rune of Power quick enough. People forget to remove the debuff from the tank. Or, maybe, the group in the back lacks the means or forgets to interrupt Brundir's Lightning Whirl. The Iron Council - Steelbreaker, Molgeim, and Brundir A second's misjudgement on the part of the tank, or those that are directly supporting him, can lead to sudden and plentiful wipes, quickly wearing down the raid's morale. And so it is, that whenever we attempt this fight, we almost always get through it, but not before racking up a few losses. One-shots of the Iron Council have been rare for my guild, no matter how experienced with the encounter the players involved may be. As a rogue, there's damage to avoid, but not a whole lot to contribute until interrupts are needed for Brundir in the final phase. Typically, at that point, the fight is already won. The hardest part of the Iron Council is the first third, when resources are spread thin and you have to account for all three generals at once. So how does this fight measure up to my expectations? Honestly, they were pretty spot on. Adds are one thing, but any encounter where you have to control several boss characters at once is going to have consistent challenges to meet (see: High King Maulgar or Fathom-Lord Karathress, both from Burning Crusade). Just as well, it seems that very few guilds have completed this encounter on the hardest difficulty (by killing Steelbreaker last). Why don't we move on to something a little more palatable? Kologarn - Oh, man. Kologarn looked so imposing when we first saw him. He's even the guy that Brann Bronzebeard is running away from the Ulduar preview video. A colossal golem, and a gatekeeper mob at that. He's got to be a pain in the rear, right? Nope. Kologarn in all of his massive glory. This. Guy. Is. A. Pushover. He gets points for looking cool, and he can push some heavy, periodic damage with his Shockwave ability, but other than that, Kologarn is a total piece of cake. Especially on 10-man, where you don't really have to rotate tanks, just keep one on the sidelines to pick up the rubble that spawns when you kill his arm. It's been quite awhile since my guild has wiped on Kologarn and its rare that anyone dies during the fight (only when they idle in the eye beams too long or accidentally fall into the gap). It's not really an issue for ranged attackers, but the only problem I've encountered as a melee dps is that the Rubble that spawns from a smashed arm can dish out a really nasty AoE. Avoid the beams, kill the right arm (four times should be enough), keep your healing steady, and this fight is a piece of cake. Auriaya - We've nicknamed her the Crazy Cat Lady. This fight is painfully simple, perhaps even more so than Kologarn, if (and this is a big if) you can handle the pull. It's dependent on having some really skilled tanks, and even though my guild does, we've still had trouble with engagement. The most typical strategy I've seen is to have most of your raid sit around the corner (down the stairs from Kologarn), and let the tanks stand just out of the line of sight until she gets into melee range. It may be prudent to have a Shaman drop a totem further up to actually pull Auriaya and give your meat shields a little bit more time to react. Her panther adds will immediately pounce the closest aggro targets, which (if we do it wrong) seem to be healers most of the time. The Crazy Cat Lady! To reduce this, I've found it a good idea to have the tanks time their damage reduction cooldowns just right so that they can survive the initial assault presumably without the help of healers. If you get past that point, the encounter is terribly facile. Train everyone to stand in front of her (as opposed to far away or behind her) and dish out the damage. If you're doing this fight on 10-man, you may not even kill the Feral Defender that she summons. Should that happen, simply avoid the large (and very obvious) void zone it leaves behind. AoEs are handy for the smaller adds, but they are not a primary concern. Conclusion - The Antechamber is heavy on quick tank kills, but if your guild has the chops to survive those, it's arguably the easiest section of Ulduar. What may slow you down is exhaustion more than anything. By the time we get to Auriaya, it's usually the end of our first night in the dungeon, people are tired and not nearly as focused as they were in the beginning. This makes managing the pull even tougher than normal because people aren't on their "A-game." It makes a good stopping point, though, because even if you have the energy after killing the Cat Lady, this is where things get real. Ulduar up until this point, believe it or not, has been a cakewalk. The four Guardians, and what lay beyond them, require deeper, more pointed strategies, so its better to tackle them after a good night's rest! I'll be covering the Guardians (Hodir, Thorim, Freya, and Mimiron) in the next edition of the Second Look, and I have to admit that it's my favorite part of the dungeon. There's some good eye candy and dynamic fights to look forward to, not to mention it's the most lore-centric section of Ulduar. All four of these bosses you've met or been involved with while leveling up in Northrend! Meanwhile, I want to hear what the rest of you thought about these fights and the Antechamber in general. Too easy, too hard? Has your guild also been thwarted by the tough pulls or is it smooth sailing all the way through? If Ulduar was an epic trilogy, would this be your Empire Strikes Back? Please let me know in the comments section!

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Mythology, folk lore, legends, all words to describe ancient stories.  These tall tales were created to explain the unexplainable, scare children, hail fallen heroes and even to just entertain.  Every civilization has them, from perhaps the best known - of the Western world - stories of Ancient Greece to the Samurai, onto the homegrown tales of Native Americans.  And to me, every single myth is captivating, no matter how similar they may be.

While much of the Warcraft lore is based on more recent, or original, stories, Wrath of the Lich King added an entire race dedicated to a civilization that has been plundered by the video game industry, Norse mythology.  Final Fantasy, Tales of Symphonia, Odin Sphere, Too Human, Viking: Battle for Asgard, and even earlier parts of WoW (World Tree as well) have lifted from stories of the long dead viking culture.  Players can see the Norse influence on WoW all over Northrend, from Howling Fjord, The Storm Peaks and the final zone of Icecrown.  No matter what soil you step on, there is a good chance that the Vrykul, or their Undead version, the Val'kyr, have made it their home. If you want more than mobs based on oversized vikings, then the Sons of Hodir/Thorim quest line is for you.  Without spoiling the experience, allow me to whet your appetite a bit.  The quest line is one of the longest currently in WoW and contains some of the best lore, that has its own twists on the ancient story.  For better or for worse, the lengthy chain is not required for anything too substantial, unlike the exhausting Onyxia chain, meaning many players may have dropped the line, or skipped over it entirely.  Not all of the 40+ quests are worth the time, but the culmination of the events your toon has taken part in are something that should not be missed.  Plus, it gives you a reason to tackle Halls of Lightning, other than helping out a guild mate. I am no Norse expert, but there are many obvious references to their deep tales.  Here is the basic, spoiler free, tip of the iceberg information for the adventure:

• Dun Niffelem - Niflheim is one of two places that existed before the known world.  It is intensely cold and likely the basis for Dun Niffelem's name.
• Thorim - Thorim, the protagonist of our long quest line, is based upon the God of Lightning, Thor.  Lending credence to these claims is that the name of Thorim's wife, Sif, is the same name as Thor's beloved.
• Loken - Loken is based on the tricky bastard known as Loki, and in this telling, happens to be Thorim's brother.  Constantly up to shenanigans in Norse mythology, Loken follows his basis well, upsetting Thorim so much as to send him into a deep depression.  His acts are the start of our quest.

Believe it or not, this is actually the third time I have touched upon this quest line.  I revisited it for my favorite area in all of Northrend, an area that was created by Thorim's butterfingers.  There is plenty more to the quest than what we touched on here, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't tackled the full line.  Anybody who hasn't finished the line should avoid visiting the comments section until they do so - but feel free to leave a comment if you have the willpower to skip reading everyone else's thoughts.  If you enjoy lore in general, then this is one quest chain you should not miss.  It has everything, love, betrayal, deceit and epic battles.  It makes me want to dig up some more books, anyone know a good Norse mythology collection?  Preferably one that isn't incredibly difficult to grasp.  I recently read the Divine Comedy, so I need a break for the difficult stuff!

Probably worth noting that Thorim is actually a Titan, while Loken is a Dark Titan serving the Old God Yogg-Saron.  Not exactly a spoiler, more of a setup for Ulduar.

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Solidsamm Working On His Sons of Hodir Rep

The Sons of Hodir is one of those factions that almost all end game players are in the process of grinding or have already tackled. If your goal in Wrath of the Lich King is to melt faces in end game raids, dominate heroics, or PvP your heart out at level 80, then your only option for a shoulder enchant is this faction of frost giants. Shoulder enchants are not the only reason to get moving on your Sons reputation though. Like other Wrath factions the group offers a wide range of purchasable items, including the multi-person Reins of the Grand Ice Mammoth. Oh, and for those of you struggling with your gold income, the daily quests offered by the Sons of Hodir will fill your coffers quickly and easily.

The faction has money, loot, lore and needed end game enchantments (the Honored version of the enchants are as good as the Exalted Aldor/Scryer enchants), so you may be wondering how to go about the task of grinding to exalted. First things first, you need to get to neutral with them before you can begin any dailies. To do this you must run a series of quest chains, a total of 26 quests, that ends with your character becoming neutral. The first chain starts at K3 in Storm Peaks with the quest They Took Our Men. If you are still leveling fear not, for the initial 16 quest chain is accessible to level 77 and higher.

After becoming fast friends with Lok'lira the Crone and her sisters at Brunnhildar Village, you will be tasked with finding yourself a mount to continue in the Hyldsmeet event. With harness in hand your are set to begin your second quest line. This series is half as long, only comprising of eight rather quick and easy goals and leads you to the mightily depressed Thorim. While performing your last task in the line for Thorim, Mending Fences, you will receive Slag Covered Metal. The shiny blue object will start your third and final chain, comprising of a pair of easy quests that will get you to Neutral with the Sons of Hodir (for all non-Humans).

Now you can begin your long, hard grind to Exalted. The rest of the way will mainly be completed through various daily quests that open up depending on your reputation level. Friendly offers us a total of five quests (although Wrath launched with four):

• Hodir's Tribute (recently added) – Something to do with all those Relics.
• Everfrost/Remember Everfrost! - These chips are hard to spot on the snowy grounds of Storm Peaks.
• Polishing the Helm – An easy collection quest.
• Blowing Hodir's Horn – An easy kill quest (party to make it even faster).
• Hot and Cold – Annoying collection quest due to the spawn rate of the hot metal and ability for other players to ninja loot it from you.

All of the above quests, with the exception of Everfrost turn-ins, net you 250 rep per completion. You need to first locate an Everfrost Chip before you can begin the quest, then the repeatable version opens up. Both quests reward you with some gold and 350 rep. Neither of the turn-ins are marked as daily, so you can turn them in as often as you please. After you work your way to Honored, two new dailies reveal themselves.

• Spy Hunter – A very easy kill quest.
• Thrusting Hodir's Spear – Vehicle-based quest that is quite awesome. Worth getting to Honored to partake in this daily.

Lucky for us, the reputation gains are bumped up on the Honored quests. You now receive 350 and 500 reputation respectively. We have one final quest added upon becoming Revered, Feeding Arngrim. Another collection quest, kinda, but a bit more interesting than Polishing the Helm. However, no rep bump here as it only rewards 350 rep. The good thing is that all of the quests are completable till Exalted, meaning by the time you hit Revered you can earn 2550 rep a day. That calculation assumes you only do the turn-ins once per day. Removing them from the equation, you can go from Revered to Exalted in 11 days.

This guide originally closed with a recap on the lore surrounding the Sons of Hodir and how you become friendly with them. I decided to remove it so I don't spoil anyone's fun. I will just say that the chains introduce you to a lot of Norse mythology, and that the plot continues after you open up the Sons of Hodir faction.

Personally, I think that Blizzard gave the Sons of Hodir the only shoulder enchants in the game for a reason.  The designers probably felt that a quest chain lasting some 40 quests (if you continue the story line) warrants a good amount of attention.  By giving the sought after enchants to them, they ensure that many players will go through more than half of the quests.  At that point I was very interested in where the plot was taking me lorewise and will continue on to its culmination.

How many of you have already completed the rep grind? Did you do it before or after the Relic quest was added. If before, how pissed were you over the extra time spent? Hopefully you didn't vendor all your Relics and made a killing by selling them off!

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