Most powerful WOW character/class for solo-play?

[nobbie]

Now that the game is going final, and a lot things have been changed and rebalanced, here's again a question I've been asking about a half year ago:

What is the most powerful character/class if you intend to play WOW just occasionally and mostly solo? Is, for example, the melee-centered Orc Warrior ín WOW the same power-house as the Barbarian is in Dibalo II, who was perfect for solo-games? Or should one better choose a Mage, Druid, Shaman or Warlock? Or a Hunter?

And another question:

It has been mentioned that WOW players are allowed to create up to 50 different characters. Are all these characters possible only under one account name, or can you create multiple accounts as in the Diablo II Battle.net?

[Rinnhart]

Now that the game is going final, and a lot things have been changed and rebalanced, here's again a question I've been asking about a half year ago:

What is the most powerful character/class if you intend to play WOW just occasionally and mostly solo? Is, for example, the melee-centered Orc Warrior ín WOW the same power-house as the Barbarian is in Dibalo II, who was perfect for solo-games? Or should one better choose a Mage, Druid, Shaman or Warlock? Or a Hunter?

And another question:

It has been mentioned that WOW players are allowed to create up to 50 different characters. Are all these characters possible only under one account name, or can you create multiple accounts as in the Diablo II Battle.net?
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As in Diablo2, all character classes can solo. Which is best is a matter of opinion and style (I can't solo a spellcaster to save my life).

Race matters little. Play what you like.

You pay for an account. You can have as many accounts as you like so long as you're willing to shell out the cash. I don't know how many characters you can have per account, though usually you can have only so many chacters per server.

[Thecla]

What is the most powerful character/class if you intend to play WOW just occasionally and mostly solo? Is, for example, the melee-centered Orc Warrior ín WOW the same power-house as the Barbarian is in Dibalo II, who was perfect for solo-games? Or should one better choose a Mage, Druid, Shaman or Warlock? Or a Hunter?
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I can't answer your question, having only played a couple of characters up to the low 20s in the open stress/beta tests, but I'm sure some classes will be more effective than others, though which ones they are may well change if Bliz should start wielding the good old nerf bat post release. Still I think the choice may depend much more on what play style you like than which is the toughest.

Pllaying an orc warrior in the open beta, my impression was that it's a very viable solo class that can take a fair beating, but I wouldn't describe it as a power-house. Hunters, rogues and many other classes seemed to outdamage my warrior, even when they were a few levels lower,at least judging by the amount of running around after monsters I had to do as the other classes grabbed aggro from me. Shamans also seemed to do as much (or more?) melee damage as me, and have all kinds of other stuff (perhaps they will be prime nerf candidates).

I also played a hunter before their talents went in, and they were ok even then at lower lvls as a solo class, and they seem a lot stronger now -- they just involved more pet management than I care for, and I wish there was more of a pure archer class in the game.

[Jini]

Now that the game is going final, and a lot things have been changed and rebalanced, here's again a question I've been asking about a half year ago:

What is the most powerful character/class if you intend to play WOW just occasionally and mostly solo? Is, for example, the melee-centered Orc Warrior ín WOW the same power-house as the Barbarian is in Dibalo II, who was perfect for solo-games? Or should one better choose a Mage, Druid, Shaman or Warlock? Or a Hunter?

And another question:

It has been mentioned that WOW players are allowed to create up to 50 different characters. Are all these characters possible only under one account name, or can you create multiple accounts as in the Diablo II Battle.net?
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Shaman make a great soloing class as they can do nearly everything only slightly less effectively than the other classes which specialze in the various areas. Mages have been known to have very high XP/hour rates.

Each account may have up to 50 characters with 10 per server max. You can have one account per game key.

[Bolty]

Now that the game is going final, and a lot things have been changed and rebalanced, here's again a question I've been asking about a half year ago:

What is the most powerful character/class if you intend to play WOW just occasionally and mostly solo? Is, for example, the melee-centered Orc Warrior ín WOW the same power-house as the Barbarian is in Dibalo II, who was perfect for solo-games? Or should one better choose a Mage, Druid, Shaman or Warlock? Or a Hunter?

And another question:

It has been mentioned that WOW players are allowed to create up to 50 different characters. Are all these characters possible only under one account name, or can you create multiple accounts as in the Diablo II Battle.net?
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I've played Warriors, Priests, Mages, and Warlocks. Of those four classes, the Warlock was the best soloist for me - once it gets its Voidwalker at level 10. Not the fastest killer, but a Warlock with a Voidwalker does not fear fighting 3 mobs at once - with expert pet management, the Warlock can manipulate the flow of battle and take down all 3 without hardly getting a scratch.

The tradeoff of course is killing speed - Warlocks kill slowly and the tedium can get to people.

-Bolty

[LochnarITB]

the Warlock was the best soloist for me
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As a soloist by nature, I was very interested in the soloability of the characters. From my very limited exposure to the mage, rogue, hunter and warlock, I would agree on the warlock. Much like the amazon's valkyrie in D2, it is easy to put the critter in harms way while you stand back and dish it out. The warlock's minion felt to me like a souped up, more controllable, valkyrie.

if Bliz should start wielding the good old nerf bat post release
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This brings up a question for me. Having never dealt with subscription gaming, how does such a community deal with nerfage? It is a slight difference but, in D2, you are not paying for the software but not the server time. It can be said that your investment is in the software, which is being "fixed", so you are getting a "benefit". In WoW, you are now paying for server time. You are therefore making an monetary investment in each character. If Bliz nerfs your character to the point it is no longer playable (which would be judged by each person as to their own skills), have they now taken something you have "paid" for? I can see myself much more irate in the subscription case.

[Guest]

Whats the best "farmer" is my question.


Theres 2 kinds of farming.
Killing a lot of modest mobs to get loot by volume. Ussually the highest damage class does this well.
And killing the biggest mobs anyone can solo for higer quality loot in lesser quanities. Ussually the hardest kill class does this well(you can be hard to kill because of hit points or special skill/pets)


My impression is that rogues might be good at volume farming? Maybe Warlocks are best suited to quality farming?
Is my impression on, or way off?

[Swiss Mercenary]

What is the most powerful character/class if you intend to play WOW just occasionally and mostly solo? Is, for example, the melee-centered Orc Warrior ín WOW the same power-house as the Barbarian is in Dibalo II, who was perfect for solo-games? Or should one better choose a Mage, Druid, Shaman or Warlock? Or a Hunter?

My advice is: Don't be a mage. Unless you like to drink. A lot.

Higher level, lower level enemy - none of that mattered. The only constant was drinking after every 3 fights (3 fights against lower level monsters), at best.

[Rinnhart]

AOEs > lots of damage to a single target when it comes to farming lots of weak crap.

[Rinnhart]

This brings up a question for me.  Having never dealt with subscription gaming, how does such a community deal with nerfage?  It is a slight difference but, in D2, you are not paying for the software but not the server time.  It can be said that your investment is in the software, which is being "fixed", so you are getting a "benefit".  In WoW, you are now paying for server time.  You are therefore making an monetary investment in each character.  If Bliz nerfs your character to the point it is no longer playable (which would be judged by each person as to their own skills), have they now taken something you have "paid" for?  I can see myself much more irate in the subscription case.
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Most of the outcry when a skill is nerfed/retuned/changed comes from the people playing that class as a flavor of the week. Suddenly their WW barb/CE necro isn't almighty. It's still certainly playable - and powerful - if you actually take the time to learn the class.

This isn't to say there haven't been instances where classes have been truly broken by nerfs/changes, but usually drastic changes come only in response to exploitation. Generally, this is the minority ruining the party for the majority, and no one leaves happy. People do cancel accounts over changes. But, in general, classes become stronger, not weaker, over time.

The worst part is when you have communities like those for EverQuest that have existed for half a decade with very, very dedicated players. These are games where only the few have the motivation to play multiple characters to the max level, so people hang around in their class' circles and ferment the idea that they're getting shafted and everyone around them is "Über".

In the long run, you can't view your efforts on a game like this as an investment. The game itself isn't going to be around forever. Look at it as an alternative form of entertainment. Instead of spending $100 on drinks at a bar one Friday night, you're spending $15 to bash a dragon or two a couple days a week. It's a couple of movies cost for many more hours of amusement.

Have fun today, for tomorrow you're getting rolled back fifty levels.

[nobbie]

Thanks for the tips so far. The following is a classes overview from WorldOfWarcraft.com. Under "Comments" is a summary for each class, incl. if they're (well) suited for solo gaming:

DRUIDS

Druids are the keepers of the world. Locked in slumber for generations, they awoke to meet the threat of the Burning Legion during its recent invasion. After Archimonde's defeat, the Druids chose to remain in the waking world and help to rebuild their shattered lands. The Legion's attack left a terrible scar on the natural order, and the Druids seek to heal it.

Available to: Night Elves, Tauren
Type: Hybrid, Primary Healer
Standard Bars:  Health/Mana (Druid form/Aquatic form),  Health/Rage (Bear form),  Health/Energy (Cat form)
Available Armor: Cloth, Leather
Available Weapons:  Staves,  Maces,  Daggers,  Polearms,  Fist Weapons
Comments: Excellent soloing class; excellent healers 

 
HUNTERS

Azeroth is home to a wide variety of beasts. From the new world of Lordaeron to the old world of Kalimdor, all manner of creatures can be found. Some are friendly, some are ferocious and aggressive - yet they all have one thing in common. Each creature shares a special connection with Hunters. Hunters track, tame and slay all manner of animals and beasts found in the wilds. Whether they rely on bows or firearms, Hunters consider their weapons and pets to be their only true friends. 
 
Available to: Night Elves, Dwarves, Orcs, Tauren, Trolls
Type: Ranged Physical Damage Dealer
Standard Bars: Health/Mana
Pet Bars: Health/Focus
Available Armor: Cloth, Leather, Mail (level 40)
Available Weapons:  Axes,  Daggers,  Guns,  Bows,  Crossbows,  Fist Weapons,  Polearms,  Staves,  Swords,  Thrown,  Two-Handed Axes,  Two-Handed Swords
Comments: Excellent for those who like to solo with pets 


MAGES

The Mages of Warcraft once centered their powers within the mageocracy of Dalaran. After that kingdom's destruction by the Burning Legion, however, the arcane arts spread to the far corners of the world. 

Available to: Humans, Gnomes, Undead, Trolls
Type: Primary Ranged Magic Damage Dealer
Standard Bars: Health/Mana
Available Armor: Cloth
Available Weapons:  Staves,  Wands,  Daggers,  Swords
Comments: Excellent primary ranged damage dealers 

 
PALADINS

Upholders of the Holy Light and defenders of the Alliance, the Paladins can be found from the northern forests of the Tirisfal Glades, fighting back the advance of the Forsaken, to the southern reaches of the Blasted Lands, ceaselessly upholding their vigil against demonic forces from beyond the Dark Portal. Wielding their mighty hammers and the strength of the Light, these holy warriors command forces in battle, all the while throwing themselves to where the fighting is the thickest.
 
Available to: Humans, Dwarves
Type: Hybrid, Secondary Healer
Standard Bars: Health/Mana
Available Armor: Cloth, Leather, Mail, Plate (level 40), Shields
Available Weapons:  One and Two-handed Maces,  One and Two-handed Swords,  Two-handed Axes
Comments: A more melee oriented hybrid
   

PRIESTS

Priests lead the many faiths spread throughout the disparate lands of the world of Azeroth. In Kalimdor, Night Elf Priestesses revere the moon goddess Elune, while Dwarven priests in Khaz Modan deliver the message of the Light to their people. In the ruins of Lordaeron, the undead priests of the Forsaken, their faith twisted and tainted by their tortured existences, spread a dark interpretation of the Holy Light. Regardless of their faith, however, all Priests share in their ability to manipulate the minds of those who turn to them for spiritual guidance.
 
Available to: Humans, Dwarves, Night Elves, Undead, Trolls
Type: Primary Healer
Standard Bars: Health/Mana
Available Armor: Cloth
Available Weapons:  One-Handed Maces,  Daggers,  Staves,  Wands
Comments: The most sought after class for any group 
 

ROGUES

At home in the shadows and skilled at disappearing from sight, the Rogues of Azeroth are most comfortable when acting in the background. Twisting events to their favor, striking only when advantage is greatest: this is where a Rogue excels. With their cunning tricks, physical abilities, and mastery of concealment and disguise, Rogues have no trouble finding employment as thieves, cutthroats, spies, and assassins. 
 
Available to:  Gnomes, Humans, Dwarves, Night Elves,  Orcs, Undead, Trolls
Type: Primary Melee Damage Dealer
Standard Bars: Health/Energy
Available Armor: Cloth, Leather
Available Weapons:  Dagger,  Thrown,  Swords,  Bows,  Crossbows,  Maces,  Fist Weapons
Comments: Favorite among those who like to deal damage 
 

SHAMANS

Shaman are the spiritual leaders of their tribes and clans. They communicate with spirits, have visions of the future, and guide their people through the darkest of times. Many mistake their wisdom and serenity for a pacifist nature. When challenged, though, shaman have a range of powers available for dealing with threats to the natural order. 

Available to: Orcs, Tauren, Trolls
Type: Hybrid, Secondary Healer
Standard Bars: Health/Mana
Available Armor: Cloth, Leather, Mail (level 40), Shields
Available Weapons:  One-Handed Maces,  Two-Handed Maces (w/ talents),  Staves,  One-Handed Axes,  Two-Handed Axes (w/ talents),  Daggers
Comments: A more magic oriented hybrid
 

WARLOCKS

Warlocks were mages that delved too deeply into the roots of demonic power. Consumed by a lust for dark knowledge, they've tapped into chaotic magics from beyond the world. The Burning Legion now feeds them their powers, allowing them to channel destructive energies and call upon the powerful emissaries of their demon masters.
 
Available to: Gnomes, Humans, Orcs, Undead
Type: Debuffer and Cool Guy/Girl
Standard Bars: Health/Mana
Pet Bars: Health/Mana
Available Armor: Cloth
Available Weapons:  Daggers,  Wands,  Swords
Comments: Excellent solo class 
   

WARRIORS

Warriors are the melee-centered class. These characters are as tough as nails and masters of weaponry and tactics. The special abilities of the warrior are naturally combat-oriented. 
 
Available to: All Races
Type: Primary Tank
Standard Bars: Health/Rage
Available Armor: Cloth, Leather, Mail, Plate (level 40), Shields
Available Weapons:  All (excluding wands)
Comments: Excellent for those who like to take damage

A couple of questions here:

- Is the above list (and the following "Warlock Basics" list) complete and up-to-date with the final release/latest Beta?

- Do you agree with the tips/comments listed here, or are some things incorrect according to your own personal gaming experiences (in the Beta)?

- According to the list, we have the following classes that are marked as "Excellent solo class": Druids (also good Healers), Hunters (with Pets), and Warlocks. It seems, by the comments, that Druids and Hunters are also very good solo-classes that have additional qualities (Healing, Ranged Attacks). Do these additional qualities make Druids and Hunters an even better solo-class than Warlocks, or are Warlocks the strongest solo-class because they are non-hybrids with good debuffing qualities (similar to the Necromancer class in Diablo II)?

- If one chooses to play a Warlock, does the Race matter in any way, or do they all have the same minions and spells?


Following is a WorldOfWarcraft.com list of the Strengths and Weaknesses for the Warlock class:

WARLOCK Basics

Strengths:

- Can use pets for fun and to attract enemy aggression

- Can create healing potions in the form of Healthstones

- Can summon other players using Ritual of Summoning

- Can breathe underwater using Unending Breath

- Can summon its own Felsteed horse rather than buying one for a lot of gold

- Can use Eye of Kilrogg to scout

- Can take control of a Demon for a short amount of time

- Can heal itself using Drain Life

- Can solo very well by using a pet to act as a group of two characters complementing each others' skills


Weaknesses:

- Can only wear cloth armor

- Very fragile and easily killed in certain situations

- Soul Shards take up inventory space

Any comments about this "official" strategy list?

[LochnarITB]

In the long run, you can't view your efforts on a game like this as an investment. The game itself isn't going to be around forever. Look at it as an alternative form of entertainment. Instead of spending $100 on drinks at a bar one Friday night, you're spending $15 to bash a dragon or two a couple days a week. It's a couple of movies cost for many more hours of amusement.
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I guess the gist of my question was, for those of you with experience with subscription gaming, do members of these communities view their investment in their characters as having a monetary component? I very much agree with your assessment of the way to view the subscription fee. In fact, that is how I justified my now taking the plunge. I know that I am suffering a terrible jones for some WoW as a result of my all too brief experience in the stress and open beta test. I am sure my $15 will equate to mere pennies per hour. However, we all know that the online community as a whole is not always so logical. If a character is built up over many hours and then nerfed to the point that it no longer serves the play style of that person, they then have to invest more hours, for which they are paying, to build another to suit their needs. Maybe the fact that it is not pay-per-play softens the blow. I can see this as being even more of a problem for many if they were paying by the hour. There would then be a very definable cost for each character.

[MongoJerry]

What is the most powerful character/class if you intend to play WOW just occasionally and mostly solo? Is, for example, the melee-centered Orc Warrior ín WOW the same power-house as the Barbarian is in Dibalo II, who was perfect for solo-games? Or should one better choose a Mage, Druid, Shaman or Warlock? Or a Hunter?

The first question I have is, "Why do you want to solo?" One *can* solo outdoors all the way through level 60 with all classes of characters, but there are some classes that are faster at it than others. So, which class you pick depends on *why* you want to solo. The answer I think Nobbie is looking for is very different from the one I think Ghostinger is looking for.

Reason #1: I'm only going to play sporadically and don't have time to organize or play in groups. I'm willing to play in the occational group if an opportunity arises, but I expect a lot of solo play, because I'll only be playing an hour here and an hour there and won't be able to play in a lot of instance groups. Since I won't be playing a lot, I'd like to play a character who can solo well and make progress on his or her own quickly.

In this case, I can immediately eliminate priests from the table. I loved playing priests and despite what others think, because of their survivability, they are quite solo capable and I've killed mobs that other classes think are impossible at the same level. But at the same time, the time per kill of those or any mobs was much longer than it would be for other characters.

For opposite reasons, I'd eliminate mages from the table. In their case, you can kill mobs very quickly, but you can also get killed very quickly. If you're soloing as a mage a lot, you have to take into account all the time you'll spend running from the graveyard and drinking after draining your mana pool in every fight into your time/kill ratio. You'll find that the ratio for a solo mage isn't all that great. Mages really shine when they have someone else tanking for them, so as soon as a mage gets into a 3+ person party, they start cleaning house. But that's not what you want, so let's eliminate mages for now.

If I had to pick one "best" soloable character, I would say the shaman. Shamans have decent dps, can wear mail armor (after level 40), can heal themselves, and use earthbind and other totems to run away if too many mobs show up. Rogues can do quite well with their combination of excellent dps and their sap/stunning/blinding abilities. They can also wear leather armor so they aren't as squishy as mages. Hunters are excellent soloers now that they have talents and now that there are more bows and guns in the game. Their dps is excellent and after you get the hang of how to use your pet, you'll find their surviveability to be very good. Bolty already mentioned warlocks. If you like spellcasters, they're a good choice. Like hunters, a lot of pet management is required. Warriors and paladins are have great surviveablilty potential, but their dps isn't terrific. An offensive spec'd (both armor and talent-wise) warrior can do reasonably well. Unfortunately, groups will want you defensive spec'd, so you're caught in a situation of having to be spec'd one way for solo play and another way for group play. I'm not 100% sure on druids, because I haven't played them enough, but it doesn't seem like they could be classified in the "best" soloing group. Like all classes, they are solo capable, but they don't have the overall dps that other classes have.

Bottom line, my candidates for "best" soloers are: shamans, hunters, rogues, and warlocks.

Whats the best "farmer" is my question.

Theres 2 kinds of farming.
Killing a lot of modest mobs to get loot by volume. Ussually the highest damage class does this well.
And killing the biggest mobs anyone can solo for higer quality loot in lesser quanities. Ussually the hardest kill class does this well(you can be hard to kill because of hit points or special skill/pets)

On the other hand, the situation shifts dramatically for the situation Ghostinger is looking at: item farming. I'm concerned by Ghostinger's post, actually, and similar ones posted by others in this forum. I fear that people who haven't played WoW much may still be thinking in terms of Diablo II farming, where the "best" farmer was the one who could get to and solo kill cows, Pindleskin, and/or Baal (depending on what patch we're talking about) the fastest. This was because these mobs dropped the best items in the game, were easily soloable, and one could trade many of the uber l33t items one found for the ones you really wanted.

This model doesn't work in WoW. Simply put, the best items in the game cannot be found solo. The best items in the game are found in instance dungeons, usually off of instance bosses or via quests involving instances, and these instances and bosses cannot be done solo. In fact, as the game has evolved, more people than ever are required to kill the newer bosses. At the extreme, the very best items right now are likely to drop off Onyxia and the boss in the Molden Core, but no one has managed to kill either of them with groups of 40!

An outdoor solo farmer just doesn't work. You can see the remarkable difference in the quality of the items between those who instance farm a lot and those who spend most of their time outdoors. On occation, a solo outdoor farmer who is killing mob after mob might find an elite item, but most of the time that elite item will be useless to the character who found it and that item will end up being sold in the auction house for cash.

OK, then, what about a cash farmer? Surely, that can be done effectively with a solo outdoor farmer? Yes, absolutely! Probably the best way to hoard cash is to farm outdoors. So, couldn't a soloer hoard lots of cash and then buy all the best items? Nope. Most of the best items are bind-on-pickup, so they can't be sold at the Auction House. The AH is a good source of second-tier equipment, but farming cash isn't a good way to obtain the best equipment.

No, if you want the best items in the game, you want to give up the idea of the solo farmer and instead think of instance farming. What are the best instance farmers?

Priest: No group ever has too many priests, no group ever wants to go anywhere without one, and too few people want to play them. The result is that if you are a priest, you're golden in any instance party. My priests have always been spammed with requests to join instance parties, and I could always pick and choose which instance group I wanted to join. Within days of the introduction of any new instance, I could be found to be covered in the latest items from the new instance, because within 15 minutes of finishing up one run, I could go on another.

Mage: Groups always want the firepower mages provide, and since most of the higher level instances have areas where lots of little mobs attack the group, groups always want to have classes with effective area-of-effect dps on them. No class has better AoE dps than mages, so both 5-man and raid-level groups like to have plenty of mages around. The only problem with mages as instance farmers is that mages are one of the most popular classes around, so there's lot of competition, and several other classes can be effectively substituted for a mage slot in a party -- warlocks, hunters, and to some extent rogues.

Warlocks/hunters: Currently, warlocks and hunters are not especially popular in general parties, but I believe that this is mostly due to social inertia. Both classes spent so long being underpowered that the general population of players haven't caught on to the idea of just how powerful both of these classes have recently become. I know that in the more adaptable elite instance parties that I traveled around in, warlocks were very popular, but this popularity hadn't yet trickled down into the lower-level circles with newer players. Similarly, hunters were just starting to see some respectability in the last couple of weeks of the beta, but this respectability hadn't yet trickled down to the general player population. In my opinion, warlocks and hunters over time will see their respectibility rise to the level of mages in instance parties.

Warriors: The warrior is a tough one. A good well-equipped warrior can be extremely popular for instance parties. Like priests, no party is going to go anywhere without a warrior, so there's enormous demand for their services. However, more people play warriors than priests, so there's more competition and there are fewer slots for warriors to play in. At an extreme level, a 40-person raid party "needs" 8 priests (one to cover each 5-man party) and prefers to have around 12 priests. On the other hand, a 40-person raid party only "needs" 1 warrior and prefers to have about 3 warriors so that it can have some "backup." Once a instance party has its tank, the desire for additional warriors drops to the level of rogues. Actually, probably less than rogues, because at least rogues can stun enemies and deal more damage.

Paladins/shamans/druids: The proverbial "backup" healers. They are desired for instance groups, but they are always considered secondary characters. As in "it'd be nice to have one to backup the priest, but if we have to, we can go without one" kind of thing. Paladins and shamans have their auras and totems, so they can be nice to have along, but most paladins I've talked to usually complain about how they hardly ever get invited to instance groups. I haven't played horde since the cap was level 39, so I don't know if it's the same way for shamans. Druids are usually asked along only if the group can't find enough priests. (Note: In the most recent patch, paladins had some popularity, because they were able to hold aggro better than warriors with the new taunt system. However, I suspect that this situation won't hold and that warriors will return to being the real party tanks at release or soon after release).

Rogues: The pariah of instance parties. Seriously, the words "instance" and "rogues" shouldn't be used in the same sentence. Yes, rogues can get into parties in a dps role, but that's usually because either someone knows you or because the party couldn't find a mage first. Rogues simply aren't instance farmers.

Incidentally, if you really really for some God knows what reason want to have an solo item farmer, I recommend playing a rogue, because roques can stealth by most of the annoying mobs and get to the target mob/chest/mining node faster than everyone else can. But back to my original point: if you're looking to farm the best items in the game, think in terms of group instance farming.

[Rinnhart]

I guess the gist of my question was, for those of you with experience with subscription gaming, do members of these communities view their investment in their characters as having a monetary component?  I very much agree with your assessment of the way to view the subscription fee.  In fact, that is how I justified my now taking the plunge.  I know that I am suffering a terrible jones for some WoW as a result of my all too brief experience in the stress and open beta test.  I am sure my $15 will equate to mere pennies per hour.  However, we all know that the online community as a whole is not always so logical.  If a character is built up over many hours and then nerfed to the point that it no longer serves the play style of that person, they then have to invest more hours, for which they are paying, to build another to suit their needs.  Maybe the fact that it is not pay-per-play softens the blow.  I can see this as being even more of a problem for many if they were paying by the hour.  There would then be a very definable cost for each character.
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If ever there is a game change that would be significant enough to render a class so broken that you would feel cheated out of the money you've spent during your time playing it, the change usually doesn't last due to the violent objections of the community.

But MMO companies rarely implement such vast changes. They recognize the problems associated with alienating customers.

[Raven Vale]

MongoJerry

Nice post post and one that people will refer to for a while methinks , thanks for the info . Personally I was going to play rogue on release for farming , that still holds true but now after reading your post I can probably pick my next character a lot easier . Cheers .

[nobbie]

The first question I have is, "Why do you want to solo?" ...

That's a nice, detailed report, MongoJerry. Thanks :)

So, we have the following options for "Farmers":

- Gold Farmer (for auctions and second-tier, but not elite equipment because it's usually bind-on-pickup)
- Outdoor Item Farmer (for second-tier equipment, and some elite equipment that may not fit your class)
- Instance Farmer* (for first-class, elite equipment)

* A question here: Does instance farming always yield (elite) equipment that fits your character class, and most important, how is loot distributed in an instance group? Does everyone get his fair share of the loot right into his inventory, or will there be the awful, greedy item grabbing we know from Diablo II?

I'm only going to play sporadically and don't have time to organize or play in groups. I'm willing to play in the occational group if an opportunity arises, but I expect a lot of solo play, because I'll only be playing an hour here and an hour there and won't be able to play in a lot of instance groups.

Well, like MongoJerry, I'm going to play just sporadically. My time frame will be rather limited by the 60-hour "mini flat-rate" over my 56K dial-up modem, because a DSL-flat is still way too expensive here in Germany. This brings me to a slightly off-topic side-question: Does anyone here know how many Megabytes/Gigabytes are flowing through the modem cable if you play WOW for say 1 hour? I'm asking because we have "volume" flat rates (for DSL) here that are not limited by connection time and that are much cheaper than an unlimited DSL-flat. Do you think that a 5 GB or 10 GB volume flat rate will cut it when you want to play WOW for say 20+ hours per week (80+ hours/month)?

Back to my idea of sporadical solo-gaming: Well, first of all, it must be fun. I don't care much about the best stuff - although good stuff is always nice to have and to look at - and I don't see my character as financial investment (that is sold in an online-auction when I have grown tired of the game). On the other hand, as much as I prefer solo-gaming, I'm not quite sure what will be more fun in WOw: Endless outdoor soloing, or outdoor soloing in combination with instance party games. I think that the latter will be more fun, even if you have to wait for the right parties often. A healing "Priest" - the party guy/girl #1 - seems to be too weak for extensive outdoor soloing (generally quite weak, slow killing times), which would leave for me the "Warlock" (a Necromancer type), the "Shaman" (a more magic oriented hybrid, and also secondary healer), and the "Druid" (a good soloing class and a good healer).
What I like about the "Warlock" is his excellent defensive quality through pets/minions. What I don't like are his limited armor and weapon options and that his killing speed and playing style (with lots of pet management) might get boring over time (just like you can't always play a Necromancer in Diablo II for the same reasons). The "Shaman" looks a bit more interesting: a more magic oriented hybrid, and also secondary healer, who has great armor and weapon options for interesting gaming over a long time. The "Druid" would be worth it alone for the "coolness" factor - like in Diablo II, where the Druid can be a Werewolf or Werebear, I found the Druids always to be the coolest looking character. Unfortunately, Blizzard never managed to make them well balanced - a shame. From the descriptions, I like the weapon options of "Shamans" better, though: One-Handed Maces, Two-Handed Maces (w/ talents), Staves, One-Handed Axes, Two-Handed Axes (w/ talents), and Daggers. Especially the Two-Handed (with talents) Maces and Axes sound very interesting because they were also my preferred weapons for the Diablo II Druid and Barbarian. Last, but not least, I already "know" the Druid class from Diablo II, but I don't know the "Shaman".

I think it will be the Orc or Tauren "Shaman" for occasional WOW solo-gaming for both outdoor farming and instance farming. Does anyone have any arguments, or a beta-report, that could prevent me from playing a "Shaman"? :) How well is the "Shaman" class currently balanced, and does it make a difference which race you pick for the "Shaman": Orc, Tauren or Troll?

[MongoJerry]

So, we have the following options for "Farmers":

- Gold Farmer (for auctions and second-tier, but not elite equipment because it's usually bind-on-pickup)
- Outdoor Item Farmer (for second-tier equipment, and some elite equipment that may not fit your class)
- Instance Farmer* (for first-class, elite equipment)

Basically, I'd combine the Gold Farmer and Outdoor Farmer like this:

• 
  <>
  
• Outdoor gold and resource node farmer (a cash, mining, and herbal node farmer)
  
  <>
  
• Instance farmer (for the best equipment)
  <>
  [st]
  
  Basically, my point was the pure "Outdoor Item Farmer" isn't a viable option at all.
  
  

  A question here: Does instance farming always yield (elite) equipment that fits your character class, and most important, how is loot distributed in an instance group? Does everyone get his fair share of the loot right into his inventory, or will there be the awful, greedy item grabbing we know from Diablo II?

  
  Ah, whew, this issue is worth a whole guide in itself. Maybe that should be my next writeup. There are several settings like "round-robin," "group loot," and "master loot." I'll skip the details of those settings here for brevity sake and say that in well functioning parties, the loot is divided by the principle of "need before greed." That is, if an item is good for one of the characters in the party and that character will use the item, then he or she gets the item. If more than one character can use the item, they roll for it via the command "/random 100" which rolls a random number between 1-100 that the whole party can see. If no one in the party needs the item, then people roll for "greed" -- or the right to sell it to a vendor for cash or to disenchant the item.
  
  There are of course jerks in WoW, but there are reasons why the situation tends to be better in WoW than in Diablo II. First, instance runs are typically on the order of three hours as opposed to the usual 30 second Baal run, and there are usually several minibosses in any instance run who drop decent loot. This means that if someone "ninja-loots" an item, they know they're going to get kicked out of the group and lose any chance of getting any further and possibly better loot down the line. Second, the individual WoW server community is smaller than that of DII. In D2, you were always mixed in with the huge D2 community at large and could remain largely anonymous. The WoW population, by contrast, will be broken down into smaller chunks. In this case, it is possible for black-listing to have a serious effect on someone's chances of getting into high level instance groups. There is a default "ignore" list where you can place people like that, and I understand that some UI mods like Cosmos are coming up with even stronger black-listing schemes. Word does spread and if you ninja loot too many times, you will find it almost impossible to group up in high level instance parties. Consider how raid parties make this even harder than before. If you ninja loot a couple of times, chances are that when you join a 40-man raid party, someone who saw you ninja loot will also be there and report it. Result: Immediate banning from the raid. I saw that happen to several people -- some of whom deleted their characters in frustration.
  
  

  Well, like MongoJerry, I'm going to play just sporadically.

  
  Whoops! I'm sorry, that was just a rhetorical thing I was doing that I gave up later. I should've edited that paragraph before posting. I was just saying that if the reason you want to solo was because of Reason #1, then... blah blah. I'm too addicted to the game to play for a small amount of time.
  
  

  I think it will be the Orc or Tauren "Shaman" for occasional WOW solo-gaming for both outdoor farming and instance farming. Does anyone have any arguments, or a beta-report, that could prevent me from playing a "Shaman"? :) How well is the "Shaman" class currently balanced, and does it make a difference which race you pick for the "Shaman": Orc, Tauren or Troll?

  
  I think it's a good choice. I've only played a shaman to the mid-20's, but I enjoyed it very much and that was before talents came along. They seem to be pretty popular, at least as far as I can tell from looking at the enemy. They make good PvPers as well, by the way. I haven't played horde in a long time, though, so I can't give you much more than that. I'll be playing Horde on release as well, though.

[Treesh]

I think it will be the Orc or Tauren "Shaman" for occasional WOW solo-gaming for both outdoor farming and instance farming. Does anyone have any arguments, or a beta-report, that could prevent me from playing a "Shaman"? :) How well is the "Shaman" class currently balanced, and does it make a difference which race you pick for the "Shaman": Orc, Tauren or Troll?
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FWIW, I absolutely loved playing my Tauren Shaman. The reason I picked Tauren over the others was that I liked the grasslands of the Taurens much better than the nasty red, desert-like scenery of the Orcs and Trolls. The quest for the fire totem for my Tauren Shaman was rather annoying due to poor directions in the quest log, but that was the only thing I really disliked with my shaman. It's a very well-rounded class and once you learn how to control the amount of aggro you create, they're quite easy to play.

[Artega]

FWIW, I absolutely loved playing my Tauren Shaman.&nbsp; The reason I picked Tauren over the others was that&nbsp; I liked the grasslands of the Taurens much better than the nasty red, desert-like scenery of the Orcs and Trolls.&nbsp; The quest for the fire totem for my Tauren Shaman was rather annoying due to poor directions in the quest log, but that was the only thing I really disliked with my shaman.&nbsp; It's a very well-rounded class and once you learn how to control the amount of aggro you create, they're quite easy to play.
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Indeed. Tauren Shaman also have a much higher survival capability because of superior Strength and Stamina scores, their racial HP+5% bonus, and War Stomp if you get too many adds for Stoneclaw/Earthbind to take care of. Orcs get a higher Spirit score and a nifty Strength-boosting ability, but I'd still pick a Tauren over an Orc any day.

As for my favorite character, I had a lot of fun with a DPS-oriented Warrior - while I couldn't take as many hits as defensive warriors (because I was using a two-handed axe, and I had zero points in the defensive talents), they can deal out obscene DPS - on the level of Rogues - and because of their Mail (and later Plate) armor, can take more hits than a Rogue ever can. It's a great solo profession if you pick up First Aid and Cooking for secondaries. If you're Tauren, I'd go with Herbalism/Alchemy (+15 Herbalism racial bonus, make your own buff and healing potions, and pawn off extra roots to Enchanters), but otherwise go with the typical Mining/Blacksmithing combo and make some wicked weaponry.

A basic outline of this build:

Deflection - 5 (5% better Parrying)
Cruelty - 5 (5% better chance of Crit)
Improved Charge - 2 (+15 Rage on Charge)
Improved Rend - 3 (+35% bleeding damage)
Deep Wounds - 3 (Free Rend on a crit, essentially)
Improved Overpower - (+50% chance of critting when using Overpower)
Two-Handed Weapon Specialization - 5 (+5% Bonus Damage when using two-handed melee weapons)
Impale - 2 (+20% better criticals - i.e., they do 20% more damage)
Axe Specialization - 5 (+5% chance to crit, for a total of +10% combined with Cruelty - can be swapped for Polearm Specialization, but you'll have to find a place to spend 5 more points in Arms skills)
Sweeping Strikes - 1 (30 Rage 30sec cooldown, essentially Cleave for Battle Stance)
Improved Hamstring - 2 (Increases slow effect by an additional 10%)
Mortal Strike - 1 (30 Rage 6sec cooldown, deals doubled weapon damage and reduces the effectiveness of all healing anything by half for 10 seconds)
Improved Demoralzing Shout - 5 (Increases Power reduction by an additional 25%)
Improved Battle Shout - 5 (Increases Power boost by an additional 25%)
Enrage - 5 (Your next four melee attacks deal an additional 40% damage every time you're the victim of a critical strike)

I was only able to get to LV18 (enough for a Ragefire Chasm run) before the Beta ended, but I had quite a bit of fun with this guy, and he pretty much killed the Felguard in Ragefire by himself (with Priest support, of course - the other three party members were busily running around and drawing adds for us, because apparently the giant Felguard wasn't hard enough.) When WoW is released tomorrow, I'll start him up again and start writing a guide (complete with quest advice) for him, assuming the servers are playable :)

[nobbie]

Well, my Astrology Sign is TAURUS (born in April), so I guess it's the Tauren Shaman for me anyway :)

A guide would be very nice!