Last week the Firelord of Molten Core, Ragnaros entered the Arena to face down the Archlich of the Plagueland, Kel'Thuzad. Did Ragnaros' Magma Blast burn the competition into a crisp or did the lethal combination of Shadow Fissure and frost attacks send the Elemental Lord to Blackrock Mountain in defeat?
This was a close one, but Kel'Thuzad's dark and cold arsenal overwhelms Ragnaros' fiery bag of tricks. The lieutenant of the Old Gods could not escape Kel's Shadow Fissure. And even if he could, Kel's multiple shadow and frost attacks would overwhelm Rag's limited fire abilities.
The Archlich moves on to the Final Four to face off against Sapphiron in the battle of the Undead Shadow/Frost bosses. Tomorrow, the infamous Illidan Stormrage goes head-to-head with The Twin Emperors of Ahn'Qiraj. And the winner of that epic battle will face off the winner of next week's Princess Huhuran/C'thun deathmatch. With only a few weeks left, we will soon see who will be the winner of Two Bosses Enter.
Two bosses enter... but only one will get to leave in WoW Insider's series of fantasy deathmatches. We've scoured the instances of Azeroth and Outland looking for the most interesting bosses Blizzard has to offer us and picked out a group of 32 to pit against one another until we come out with a single winner in the end. And the best part -- you get to tell us who wins.
Today we're continuing our showdown between the final eight with a fight between Kel'Thuzad, the final boss in Naxxramas, and Ragnaros, the fiery raid target of Molten Core. Want to learn more about these two bosses and voice your opinion on who would win in a fight? Keep reading!
Another week is over -- leaving us with another winner and another loser in our weekly series of fantasy deathmatches. Last week we tossed the Firelord Ragnaros into our theoretical arena along with Ossirian the Unscarred. Despite quite a few comments suggesting Ossirian's Supreme Mode would make him completely unkillable, the final results turned out in Ragnaros' favor:
Thanks to the commenters who are enjoying our game in the spirit it was intended, especially mortalbound, whose recreation of the fight is too lengthy to reprint here, and Vaylix, who accurately noted, "This isn't about your data, or in game logic. This is about who is more awesome." Check back later for our next match, complete with more awesome, just for you.
Two bosses may enter... but only one will get to leave in WoW Insider's fantasy deathmatch series. Every week we pit two of Azeroth's raid bosses against one another in a battle that your votes get to decide. This week we present Ragnaros the Firelord, coming all the way from the heart of Molten Core in Blackrock Mountain, and Ossirian the Unscarred, who's traveled from Ahn'Qiraj in the Silithus desert to participate in this match. Who wins and who loses? Ultimately, that's for you to decide -- so read on!
As I've said a few times on the site before, I love seeing Archmage Vargoth in the weirdest of places. Wherever players can go, I love seeing that little purple guy show up, too. And so reader Horns has made my day-- he's started a blog completely dedicated to seeing Archmage Vargoth all over Azeroth. Vargoth in the Undercity, Vargoth in Feralas, Vargoth in that little cave above WC, and Vargoth under the hammer of Rag in MC.
Awesome. And Horns needs your help-- if you've got a pic of Vargoth in a funny or interesting place (or even a boring place-- would be awesome to see a hundred Vargoths standing in Ironforge's AH), get it to Horns and he'll post it for you. I'd really like to see Vargoth in places that he shouldn't go-- since he actually summons a little bit off center of the player, it should be possible to stick him in place players can't go, shouldn't it? Like on the roofs of buildings in Stormwind? I'll try messing around with it when I get a chance, but if you guys pull it off, send the pic to Horns.
Reader Titcouette of Suramar (EU) sends in this hard to catch shot of Ragnaros. Sure, we've all seen the ubiquitous kill shots with the giant hammer sticking out of the lava, but before you get to that point Ragnaros throws up his arms and implodes in a shower of sparks -- and it's that precise moment you're seeing here. Says Titcouette:
...[This shot is] one I've tried to shoot for some time, and never been able to do when I was 60, dead more often than alive at the end of Molten Core... Some people still like to play and enjoy the old content, even though we've already done it so many times. It's much more fun and relaxed pace now, finishing a MC in one evening, even with only about 20 people up in the guild, is really something enjoyable.
Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth.
Two bosses enter... but only one of them will get to leave in our series of fantasy deathmatches. Here at WoW Insider we're pitting some of the game's most fascinating bosses against each other until we come up with a final victor in the end. And the best part? Every week, you get to decide who wins.
This week we're going to consider a fight between Instructor Razuvious in Naxxramas and Ragnaros in Molten Core. Who will win and who will lose? Read up on the abilities of each and then let us know what you think!
Unlike boring trash mobs, bosses in World of Warcraft all have their interesting catchphrases, some more memorable than others. And over on the EU forums, poster Lindey is looking to figure out what other players think is the best boss quote in the game. At the top, so far? Molten Core's Ragnaros and Blackwing Lair's Vaelazstraz with their classic introductions:
Ragnaros: Too soon, you have awakened me to soon Executus! What is the meaning of this intrusion? Vaelastraz: Too late... friends. Nefarius' corruption has taken hold. I cannot... control myself. I beg you Mortals, flee! Flee before I lose all sense of control. The Black Fire rages within my heart. I must release it! FLAME! DEATH! DESTRUCTION! COWER MORTALS BEFORE THE WRATH OF LORD....NO! I MUST FIGHT THIS! But beyond Lindey's list of player favorites, the thread itself is a collection of some of the most entertaining dialog tidbits Blizzard's thrown into the game. Take a look for yourself!
This shot is very old Azeroth, but while I've died a great many times to Ragnaros in the past, I can't say I've seen him from quite this angle before. From reader Shmoobedoobe of Kilrogg comes this screenshot of Ragnaros' oddly hollow interior, which you get a glimpse of if you die in just the wrong spot. Look at that -- you can even see his name floating above his head (obviously equipped with sunroof!).
Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth.
Upper Deck Entertainment has announced this new deck has shipped to retail outlets. What's cool about it is you can either play the heroes fighting Ragnaros or, get this, you can play Ragnaros himself. He has his own deck and comes with ten loot cards to unseal when defeated. There are also many other Molten Core bosses to face down including Lucifron and Majordomo Executus.
And let's not forget the randomly inserted cards that give players access to in-game items. Anyone looking to learn more can head to the WoW TCG official site for demos, instructions and previews of different cards. They also have an online walkthrough of the new deck inthreeparts.
So who among the WoW Insider faithful enjoy the Trading Card Game? Let's hear from you!
Yesterday, I suggested a few ways that Blizzard could make the "old" instances (Scholo, Strat, UBRS, MC, and on up) relevant to players again, and from that conversation came a few good points that I figured were worth mentioning. The problem isn't that the old instances aren't fun (they are still fun, and I've heard that some guilds are still planning to run them, even if they don't need the equipment from them). But the problem is that if you want your character to have the best gear in the least time, the "old" instances are a waste of time. At 58 you should be in Outland, doing 15 minute quests for better-than-tier 1 items.
Tobold agrees with me-- it's very likely that players who reach 60 after expansion release will never run Molten Core or the other instances the way they've been run in the past. Either Blizzard will change the levels on them, or players will go back to them for fun with a mix of 60s and 70s. Both of those are very different experiences than the one of learning as a guild, week after week, how to run MC. I don't mean to be depressing (the idea is a little bit softened by the fact that the same thing will be happening at 70 now, only in smaller, easier to manage groups), but it's true. Goodbye, MC.
There is one more idea, however, that came out of yesterday's thread that I thought was pretty good. Reader Skew came up with an idea that seems so ingenious, I wish I'd thought of it. What if Blizzard turned all the pre-Outland instance gear into BOE? That would create a demand for someone to constantly run them, not just for the gear, but for the enchanting mats and so on. Yes, it means that with enough money, you could come by a set of tier 2 without ever going to BWL, but also remember that tier 2 isn't that valuable anymore-- the stuff in Outland is what we really want. I doubt Blizzard will go for such a "giving" solution, but you gotta admit: it solves a lot of problems with a pretty simple change to the code.
I remember my first trips to Molten Core, those very first attempts at downing Ragnaros, the thrill of a first kill, and the cheers on Ventrillo when we managed to down him pre-Sons (a feat for which we were promised extra DKP at the time). But before any of us reach raiding success, there's an endless stream of frustrating wipes (practice does make perfect, after all), such as this one, sent in by Brixie of Prelude to Chaos on Guldan. Not that I miss the wipes, but I do feel sort of sorry for people leveling to 60 after the release of the Burning Crusade. Will they ever run Molten Core and challenge Ragnaros?
Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! You can attach a picture file or send us a link to one -- and don't worry about formatting, we'll take care of that part.
Digg is linking to this blog post (who knows how long it will last) about "the Top 10 WoW Exploits of All Time." Like most Digg stuff, it's a few things you've probably seen before, compiled and hyped up to be much cooler than it is. But of the exploits-- Old Ironforge, falling under Stormwind, the airport, and the top of Ogrimmar-- the last one is the most interesting (and not really an exploit). It's video of someone setting up a private server and showing off just how much control a GM has over the game.
The comments in Digg point out that these "commands" are probably not what the actual Blizzard GMs use to control the game-- they're placeholder commands created by whoever hacked the server code. And while all of this stuff is pretty cool, we're guessing that if you're actually a GM, the chance to use it is rare-- usually you're fixing tickets, not spawning legendary weapons or Rag in the middle of Stormwind. Still, it's a fun little watch.
The latest news from the front, both Horde and Alliance, is that there's another planet on the other side of the Dark Portal! It's called "Azeroth," and it's supposed to be two continents full of instances and dragons and quests! I don't ever remember visiting the place myself, but it's supposed to be pretty cool.
From that distant realm comes this conversation from the forums, about what all the bosses "back home" are up to.
{Drakkisath} dammit i'm bored. where are all the mobs? {Ragnaros has come online} {Nefarian} hey rag. {Ragnaros} TASTE THE FLAMES OF SULFURON {MajordomoExecutus} wtf caps {BaronRivendare} o_O {Nefarian} you dont have to put on your show, there arent any mobs around {Ragnaros} where the hell is everyone {Level 64 human warrior has come online} {Nefarian} niiiiiice {Nefarian} Im not even gonna use my skellies {BaronRivendare} same {Level 64 human warrior has killed Drakkisath} {Nefarian} .... {BaronRivendare} wt... {Level 64 human warrior has killed BaronRivendare} {Nefarian} jesus {MajordomoExecutus} /inspect {MajordomoExecutus} wtf he's wearing greens!
Funny. Wherever this "Azeroth" place is, I'll have to check it out sometime.
I have seen reports of druids winning the Hand of Ragnaros before. I seem to recall one raidleader handing off the Eye of Sulfuras to his druid girlfriend, but I could be wrong. Hey, it isn't like I committed the brilliant forum thread to memory.
Well, now we have another report of a druid snagging the HoR, this time it's Napier, a druid from the Greymane server. As you can imagine, this thread is dominated by folks either calling Napier the most selfish player in the history of MMORPGs or defending his right to spend his DKP as he sees fit. And yes, Napier has a long-winded response to the haters, which contains his rationale for spending his DKP on the mace. All in all, a typical forum thread, but there are aspects to it which raise some interesting questions...
Shouldn't any DKP system have some kind of priority list or mechanism which prevents warriors from bidding on a caster staff or a druid from, I don't know, snagging a legendary mace which serves him no purpose whatsoever? I have never been in a guild that employed a straight DKP system which didn't make allowances for class needs. There is no way, for example, a hunter could bid on leather, simply because he could wear it.
Is a druid with the HoR the absolute worst example of misguided DKP use? Or have you seen worse? Does your guild restrict rolling on certain items to particular classes? Or is it a free-for-all? And at this point, so close to the expansion release, does it matter who gets what? I mean, we will be upgrading everything very, very soon.
The constant expansion of the Warcraft universe never ceases to amaze me. We've seen novels, 
Yesterday, 
The latest news from the front, both Horde and Alliance, is that there's another planet on the other side of the Dark Portal! It's called "Azeroth," and it's supposed to be two continents full of instances and dragons and quests! I don't ever remember visiting the place myself, but it's supposed to be pretty cool..jpg)
I have seen reports of druids winning the Hand of Ragnaros before. I seem to recall one raidleader handing off the Eye of Sulfuras to his druid girlfriend, but I could be wrong. Hey, it isn't like I committed the brilliant forum thread to memory. 
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