Essential newb info?

[WarLocke]

I'm afraid I'm becoming disaffected with City of Heroes; it's not quite 'EQ in Tights' but it's close - and seemingly getting closer with every update. 6+ months after retail, the Tank class (oops, archetype) still has no real role in the game.

So I'm considering WoW. I've played WC2 for all of maybe 20 minutes, and never touched anything else to do with the setting. Can I get into WoW without knowing the background? How is it similar/dissimilar to other MMORPGs (previous experience: EQ, DAoC, AO, EVE, ToonTown, CoH)?

Taurens seem interesting, and being Undead seems seriously cool, but I have no idea what character type I'd want to play (except, definitely not a 'meatshield' - I'm sick of the way they've been treated in every other MMO I've tried).

So, basically, any info or suggestions at all are welcome...

[Bolty]

WarLocke,

http://www.worldofwarcraft.com has gobs and gobs of info that seems to be exactly what you're looking for - general rundowns of everything, not just of races/classes/etc etc, but a fantastic almost full storyline of Warcraft.

-Bolty

[Dyntheos]

I would also suggest http://www.worldofwar.net/ and of course the WoW Bible http://www.thottbot.com/

[Rinnhart]

I'm afraid I'm becoming disaffected with City of Heroes; it's not quite 'EQ in Tights' but it's close - and seemingly getting closer with every update.  6+ months after retail, the Tank class (oops, archetype) still has no real role in the game.

So I'm considering WoW.  I've played WC2 for all of maybe 20 minutes, and never touched anything else to do with the setting.  Can I get into WoW without knowing the background?  How is it similar/dissimilar to other MMORPGs (previous experience: EQ, DAoC, AO, EVE, ToonTown, CoH)?

Taurens seem interesting, and being Undead seems seriously cool, but I have no idea what character type I'd want to play (except, definitely not a 'meatshield' - I'm sick of the way they've been treated in every other MMO I've tried).

So, basically, any info or suggestions at all are welcome...
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Warriors, as they stand now, are not the usual meatshield.

You don't need to know anything about the previous games to play WoW effectively.

You will miss some of the more entertaining points, though.

[Tal]

Warriors, as they stand now, are not the usual meatshield.
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O.O Warriors are still the best tank in the game and have the best taunt bar none.

[WarLocke]

O.O Warriors are still the best tank in the game and have the best taunt bar none.
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Okay, but if that's all they're there for (to taunt, get aggro, and get beat on) then I'm not interested. That's basically all Tanks in CoH could do because of their pitiful damage - but Scrappers (think EQ Monk or Rogue) did orders of magnitude more damage AND could get to the same defensive levels.

In any case, I'm leaning toward playing a Tauren Shaman (seems like a nice varied set of abilities) or Undead Mage/Priest (blowing stuff up is always fun, and I did enjoy my EQ Cleric...).

Just picked up a copy not 15 minutes ago (thanks to day-after-Thanksgiving 24-unit shipments), so I just need to head home, clear out 4 gigs of space on the ol' 20gig HD, defrag and install (and register, blah blah).

[Lissa]

O.O Warriors are still the best tank in the game and have the best taunt bar none.
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Yes, but they are no where near their former glory when it comes to taunting (remembering prior to Mage/Warrior talent introduction). Even more recently, prior to the patch in OB (not the one just before launch, the one at the start of OB), Warriors were still awesome at holding agro. (When I ran Stratholme with the Envy guild, we had a warrior that was nuts, grabbed like 3 groups at a time and held agro very effectively, the Warlocks and Mages would then kill the groups using AoE spells, this was prior to Blizzard fixing the bug where Rain of Fire proced almost continuously on one of their talents that would stun mobs in the AoE.) That patch they did during OB really, really screwed up the way Warriors hold agro. Now, the Pally has to start off the fight to get the agro really built up (since they have a power that gets them gobs of agro) and then the Warrior needs to step in and do the new taunt to gain the agro and the Pally has to back off for a bit.

[Tal]

Okay, but if that's all they're there for (to taunt, get aggro, and get beat on) then I'm not interested.  That's basically all Tanks in CoH could do because of their pitiful damage - but Scrappers (think EQ Monk or Rogue) did orders of magnitude more damage AND could get to the same defensive levels.
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A warrior who knows their stances and spec's their talents properly can put out outstanding dps while still being able to absorb damage and protect the squishy casters.

[Tal]

Yes, but they are no where near their former glory when it comes to taunting (remembering prior to Mage/Warrior talent introduction).  Even more recently, prior to the patch in OB (not the one just before launch, the one at the start of OB), Warriors were still awesome at holding agro. (When I ran Stratholme with the Envy guild, we had a warrior that was nuts, grabbed like 3 groups at a time and held agro very effectively, the Warlocks and Mages would then kill the groups using AoE spells, this was prior to Blizzard fixing the bug where Rain of Fire proced almost continuously on one of their talents that would stun mobs in the AoE.)  That patch they did during OB really, really screwed up the way Warriors hold agro.  [right][snapback]61284[/snapback][/right]

That was really, really broken in my opinion. A warrior should never be pulling three groups on purpose. Three mobs I could see but not three groups of mobs (I'm thinking this is at least 9 mobs)? As it stands now the warrior has even more options for managing group aggro provided the casters manage their spells than before where they were taunt bots. Get 3 mobs? Use berserker stance and cleave to generate hate on all three. Sure you take more damage but in a group setting you'll have a healer to take care of that. Sunder Armor and heroic strike are great at generating hate if you have good gear. Lets also not forget the judicious use of mocking blow and the aoe shout to gain aggro. Hell even demoralizing shout is useful for getting aggro.

Now, the Pally has to start off the fight to get the agro really built up (since they have a power that gets them gobs of agro) and then the Warrior needs to step in and do the new taunt to gain the agro and the Pally has to back off for a bit.
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Seal of fury is awesome and a great way to make the paladin desired for instances. With the seal the warrior and paladin can take turns with aggro or even allow the paladin to off tank any adds that they warrior cannot maintain control of. That and the instance getoutofjailfree card makes a paladin a shoo-in for a spot in instance groups. Heck this addition allows those who (like myself) who spec to be a tank to do so allowing the warrior in a group to go full dps and not feel like they have to protect everyone.

[Lissa]

That was really, really broken in my opinion. A warrior should never be pulling three groups on purpose. Three mobs I could see but not three groups of mobs (I'm thinking this is at least 9 mobs)? As it stands now the warrior has even more options for managing group aggro provided the casters manage their spells than before where they were taunt bots. Get 3 mobs? Use berserker stance and cleave to generate hate on all three. Sure you take more damage but in a group setting you'll have a healer to take care of that. Sunder Armor and heroic strike are great at generating hate if you have good gear. Lets also not forget the judicious use of mocking blow and the aoe shout to gain aggro. Hell even demoralizing shout is useful for getting aggro.
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The reason he was pulling three groups was because the Warlock talent was broken, not that taunt was broken. He would round up three groups of 5 (15 total mobs) and it was pretty dangerous and difficult to keep his health up until the Warlocks (we had a pair), let loose with Rain of Fire and with their talent, stunned every mob in the AoE. Taunt wasn't the problem, it was the talent that made Rain of Fire proc nearly 100% for stunning the mobs, he just stayed in the middle of it taunting incase one of the mobs broke free (and even that didn't save the Warlocks on occasion).

[Rinnhart]

O.O Warriors are still the best tank in the game and have the best taunt bar none.
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I meant they're actually pretty fun to play while still being damn effective. They do nice damage, tank well, and can hold aggro decently.

It's what EQ warriors have been dreaming about for ages.

[nobbie]

Can I get into WoW without knowing the background?

You can, but WOW (and WarCraft III/The Frozen Throne) definitely makes more fun if you know what the story is and who the characters are. Otrherwise you'd just feel like you're playing in a world with random fantasy elements, like in EverQuest II.

Use Bolty's link to the full story.

[FoxBat]

Otrherwise you'd just feel like you're playing in a world with random fantasy elements, like in EverQuest II.
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That more or less is my impression of the Warcraft universe. :rolleyes:

None of this mattered in the days of "Stop poking meeee!!!"