What's in your Pants (WOTLK Style)? -and- Is that a Giant Bug on your Back?

It's time to revisit one of my favorite posts from last year (and to add to it another shortish topic). With the new expansion we have even more exciting things to put into our pants. Let's talk about the new leg armors and spellthreads we have with Wrath.

Leg Permanent Enchants

Tailoring

In the tailoring arena, we have four new spellthreads. Each of these create items that can be sold or traded and can be applied by anyone (of appropriate level). The first two are taught by any tailoring trainer in Northrend. The others require reputation.

1. Shining Spellthread This requires tailoring of 385 to learn from any tailoring trainer. This looks like the healer (or shadowpriest) variety of spellthread.
2. Azure Spellthread This requires tailoring of 395 to learn from any tailoring trainer. To me, this appears as the offensive caster variety.
3. Brilliant Spellthread This requires tailoring of  430. But that's not the tough part. It also requires exalted faction with the Argent Crusade. Better wear a tabard if you want to make this.
4. Sapphire Spellthread This spellthread also requires tailoring of 430. It's the "grown up" version of the Azure Spellthread. Best yet, it requires exalted faction with the Kirin Tor. Again, a tabard is in order.

Leatherworking

In leatherworking, we also have four new leg armors (actually six if you count the armor kits that can go on legs). Again, these armors can be used by anyone and freely traded and sold. Don't try to use these to "twink" low level characters those. These can only be applied to your own pants. If they are applied by a generous high level character to an non-soulbound item, the item will become bound to the applier.

1. Nerubian Leg Armor This requires 400 leatherworking to make and is available at all Northrend trainers. This is preferable to the tanking types.
2. Jormungar Leg Armor Just five points higher in leatherworking and still available at all trainers. This is the one for melee damage classes (and hunters).
3. Frosthide Leg Armor This is the "grown up" version of the Nerubian Leg Armor. It requires 425 leatherworking and is available at all Northrend Trainers. Unlike the better spellthreads which require faction to obtain the recipe, these do not. However, this (and the next) leg armor requires level 80 to apply. The exalted tailoring spellthreads only require level 70.
4. Icescale Leg Armor This is the better version of the Jormungar Leg Armor. It also requires 425 leatherworking to make with the pattern freely available at Northrend trainers
5. Borean Armor Kit This can be applied to chest, legs, hands or feet slots and so technically is a leg enchant. It takes only 350 leatherworking to make.
6. Heavy Borean Armor Kit This is the better version of the Borean Armor Kit above. It takes 375 leatherworking to make.

Back Permanent Enchants

These enchantments can only be applied to the tailors own cloak. I guess this is the parallel to enchanters being able to enchant their own rings (but no one else's). They each require a tailoring of 420. I'm really feeling like Blizzard missed the boat on at least one of these (potentially all of them). You'll see what I mean as we explore them.

1. Darkglow Embroidery This emboridery has a chance to restore 300 mana on spellcast
2. Lightweave Embroidery This embroidery has a chance to inflict 1000-1200 holy damange when you damage an enemy with a spell.
3. Swordguard Embroidery This embroidery has a chance to increase your attack power by 300 for 15 seconds when you do damage with a melee attack.

First of all, these embroideries do not stack with regular cloak enchants. Applying them will overwrite the enchant you do have on there (spell haste, protection, subtlety, etc.). In my opinion, the regular cloak enchants are superior to these rather lackluster abilities. At least the first two fit with the classes that tend to level tailoring however (clothies). I can't think of many reasons for someone who deals mainly melee damage (warriors, protection and retribution paladins, enhancement shamans, rogues and deathknights) to level tailoring. Granted, a tailor of any class can always make bags and now can craft a flying carpet. The swordguard embroidery seems rather substandard as a tailor-only perk for them.

Enchanting Recipes by Faction

I keep track about where my traffic is coming from. You'd be surprised at the number of searches that got folks to my page based on my enchanting drop recipe article last week. In the interest of providing further information I've compiled some rep based recipes, the rep level needed and what you can get.

I hope this helps.

Honor Hold/Thrallmar
This reputation will come from completing quests in Hellfire Peninsula and running Hellfire Citadel dungeons. Above Honored, you'll either need to run Shattered Halls or the Heroic versions of Ramparts or Blood Furnace.

• Enchant Bracer - Superior Healing (at friendly)
• Enchant Cloak - Subtlety (at exalted)

Cenarion Expedition
This reputation comes from all over the Outland. If you only perform the repeatable Unidentified Plant Parts quests until Honored, you'll definitely have a head start. There are quests in Zangarmarsh, Terrokar and Blade's Edge. Slave Pens and Underbog will also give rep until honored (above that they must be heroic). Steamvaults will give rep in either heroic or normal.

• Enchant Gloves - Spellstrike (at revered)
• Enchant Cloak - Stealth (at exalted)

Lower City
This reputation will come from a few quests in Shattrath city, at the caravan in the Bone Wastes and from Auchindoun dungeons Auchenai Crypts (until honored, then must be heroic), Setthek Halls and Shadow Labyrinth. There is also a repeatable Arakkoa Feather turn in (30 at a time) until honored.

• Enchant Ring - Stats (at honored)
• Enchant Cloak - Dodge (at exalted)

The Consortium
This reputation comes from up to four repeatable quests (ivory tusks, Oshugun fragments, obsidian war beads and Zaxxis insignias), quests in Nagrand (a few), quests in Netherstorm (Area 52, Stormspire and Ethereum Staging Grounds), Mana Tombs (until honored) or Mana Tombs heroic.

• Enchant Cloak - Spell Penetration (at friendly)
• Enchant Weapon - Striking (at honored)
• Enchant Ring - Weapon Might (at revered)

The Sha'Tar
This reputation comes from a few quests in Terrokar (western edge of Bone Wastes), sympathetic reputation from Aldor or Scryers, or running any of the Tempest Keep dungeons (Botanica, Mechanar or Arcatraz).

• Enchant Gloves - Major Healing (at friendly)
• Enchant Ring - Healing Power (at revered)
• Enchant Weapon - Major Healing (at revered)
• Enchant Gloves - Threat (at exalted)

The Violet Eye
This reputation comes from Karazhan quests and killing mobs inside Karazhan.

• Enchant Weapon - Greater Agility (at exalted)

The Keepers of Time
This reputation comes from the few quests in the Caverns of Time in Tanaris or running Old Hillsbrad and Black Morass.

• Enchant Gloves - Major Spellpower (at honored)
• Enchant Ring - Spellpower (at honored)
  
• Enchant Gloves - Superior Agility (at exalted)

Shattered Sun Offensive
This reputation comes from the hundreds of daily quests introduced with 2.4. Running Magister's Terrace at either normal or heroic also gives reputation.

• Enchant Chest - Defense (at honored)
• Voidshatter (at honored)

This should give you some idea which reputation is most important for you to grind. If you're lucky the enchanting drop you're farming is also giving you the reputation you need!

Glyph of the Outcast VERSUS Glyph of Ferocity

I routinely look at what searches are generating hits for my blog. One thing that routinely shows up is the Glyph of the Outcast and the Glyph of Ferocity. As far as I know, I only mentioned this in one place, when talking about enhancements for the helmet.

Also, apparently, I'm one of the only places on the whole wide internet that has written anything about these two glyphs. Otherwise, I shouldn't be getting so many hits on those things. So let's review.

The Glyph of the Outcast (Revered with Lower City) gives the following:

• +17 STR
• +16 INT

The Glyph of Ferocity (Revered with Cenarion Expedition) gives the following:

• +34 AP
• +16 Hit Rating

Of all the classes for which Hit Rating (and not Spell Hit Rating) is the important statistic, two of them do not use mana at all. Thus the importance of intellect on the Outcast Glyph becomes zero and the Glyph of Ferocity is clearly the "better" choice. Congratulations DPS Warriors and Rogues. Your choice is simple. (I don't include Protection Warriors as there are better glyphs for tanking).

This leaves Retribution Paladins, Enhancement Shaman, Hunters and Druids (non-tank). Of these 4, the Attack Power formula for three of them has each point of Strength contribute two points of AP. For the hunter, each point of Strength adds one AP. Hunters, don't use the Outcast Glyph. The Ferocity is better.

Since for the remaining three classes 17 STR = 34 AP, we have only to look at the remaining stats to make the decision. 16 Intellect is equal to 240 Mana. Not insignificant, but not earth-shaking. The important thing is Hit Rating. There is a WowWiki page that talks about hit rating caps. It appears that the only class who cannot reap much greater benefit from hit rating is dual wielding windfury special attack shaman, who are hit rating capped from talents alone.

For all other classes, I'm going out on a limb here and say that the Ferocity glyph is substantially better. This is of course, just my (not-so) humble opinion. I could be wrong. I've not checked with Elitist Jerks.

I hope this clears up the Ferocity/Outcast glyph questions. And I suppose this may generate even MORE search hits in my page. But I can rest easy, knowing that the Outcast/Ferocity question has truly been answered.

Enchanting Drop Recipes

In the interest of continuing the thread from last week about where to find the bind-on-pickup recipes for a trade, I present where to find the enchanting recipes. These are all bind-on-pickup, and sadly, a larger percentage of these seem to come from instances (and raids). Gathering up the missing recipes is not necessarily an activity that a solo player can undertake.

Non-Instance BOP Drops

Netherstorm
Netherstorm is home to three enchanting drops, all from specific mobs.

• Enchant Bracer - Major Defense: This drops from the Ethereum Jailers and Ethereum Nullifiers. These mobs are located in the vicinity of Manaforge Ultris.
• Enchant Cloak - Greater Shadow Resistance: This drops from Voidshriekers also around Manaforge Ultris
• Enchant Weapon - Major Intellect: The Sunfury Researchers control the market on this enchant. They are around one of the manaforges (I think Coruu).

Blade's Edge Mountain
Blade's Edge has a pair of enchanting recipes. Be aware, that for one of these you'll need to be 70 and have a flying mount.

• Enchant Bracer - Spellpower: This drops from the Bloodmaul Geomancers in the Southern part of the zone. If you are already attuned for Ogri'la quests, these mobs will be yellow to you and you'll need to clear less trash.
• Enchant Weapon - Major Spellpower: The Bash'ir Spell Thieves have this recipe. They are in the same area as the stolen mana battery daily, so it may be worth grinding on them at the same time as the battery quest.

Shadow Moon Valley
Shadow Moon only has the Enchant Cloak - Greater Arcane Resistance from the Eclipsion Archmages.

Instances

• Mana Tombs - Etheral Priests drop Enchant Boots - Fortitude.
• Auchenai Crypts - Raging Skeletons drop Enchant Boots - Dexterity.
• Steamvaults - Coilfang Oracles drop Enchant Bracers - Fortitude
• Shattered Halls - Shattered Halls Centurions (there are only 4) drop Enchant 2H Weapon - Savagery
• Arcatraz - Eredar Deathbrings (again, only a few of these mobs) drop Enchant 2H Weapon - Major Agility
• Magister's Terrace - Delrissa (the third boss) drops Enchant Cloak - Steelweave
• Karazhan - Wow FOUR enchanting recipes. Here they are (most from bosses):

1. Phantom Stagehand - Enchant Boots - Surefooted
2. Terrestrian Illhoof - Enchant Weapon - Soulfrost
3. Shade of Aran - Enchant Weapon - Sunfire
4. Moroes - Enchant Weapon - Mongoose

So, that's that. I've not mentioned the BOE world drops, I think this is quite enough of a list for now. Good luck in your farming

Interlude - Now that you've dinged

BBB wrote today about how Mrs. BBB dinged 70 and feels there's nothing left to do solo anymore. Just to give a little insight into what I have done since dinging...

• Grind Consortium Reputation. You can choose to either kill ogres in Nagrand for their war beads which the Consortium guys are happy to take or kill the Ethereal dudes just south of Area 52 in Netherstorm.
• Finish quests. If the ding actually occurred last week, there is probably a whole zone's worth of quests to see to. Many of them will be solo-able. There's good money there until you hit the group quests.
• Grind Scryer (or Aldor) Reputation. There are just a ton of mobs that will drop the Signets or Marks you need not to mention Arcane Tomes and Fel Armaments.
• Work on Tradeskills. Don't forget also your secondaries like cooking, fishing and first aid.
• Primals, Primals, Primals. There's a good market and many will be needed for crafting and enchanting.
• Grind recipes. There are a number of BOP recipes for a number of trades that drop from specific mobs in the wild. Find out where they are and begin committing genocide until they drop what you need.
• Since Mrs. BBB is a rogue, grind lockpicking up until 350 (if it's not already there)

That's just a short list. Hope some of it helped

Buff that Weapon!

I think we're all pretty well aware of weapon enchants. The stuff you pay someone to do and put your weapon in the "Do Not Trade" portion of a trade window. They add a permanent (until overwritten) effect to your weapon. What we all sometimes overlook is other weapon buffs that can be applied.

First off, the folks most familiar with the sorts of weapon buffs I'm speaking of are rogues. Ever since level 20 (or was it 22?) rogues have been able to apply poison to their weapons. And lord do those poisons come in a wide variety of types - instant, deadly, anesthetic, crippling, mind numbing, and wound. All for different purposes.

Shamans are also quite familiar with weapon buffs in the form of spells (and eventually totems). Each shaman weapon buff also does a wide variety of things.

But that's not all. No way.

Next we get into weapon buffs produced by various tradeskills.

• Alchemy produces some oils that go on weapons, like [Frost Oil], [Oil of Immolation], or [Shadow Oil].
  
• Enchanting can make both Mana Oils (for mana regeneration) and Wizard Oil (for spell damage). The earliest versions of these oils are available at under 100 enchanting.
  
• Blacksmiths make both weight stones (for blunt weapons) and sharpening stones (for edged weapons).

Now, if you're not one of these professions, it's not a big deal if you're not leveling with these things on your weapons, I'm not going to come hunt you down. But there's no reason to NOT use them if you do have the skills. Especially since weapon buffs like this persist through death. However, if you're doing raids or are an appropriate level twink, you really need to have this stuff on your weapon. I mean, you need every bit of oomph you can pump out, right?

Rogues, at least, may want to consider swapping out poisons for stones in the event you're fighting a lot of nature based enemies or a lot of elementals. Many nature based mobs are immune to poisons, and I think every elemental is. So, when you're heading to Dire Maul or Zul'Gurub, consider stocking up on stones instead.

ZOMG! What's on your head?!?!?

In this post, item number five, I mention glyphs. This'll be a short post to more fully detail the glyphs I speak of and where to get them. Somehow I should web all these posts together. But that's another thing for another day.

1. Cenarion Expedition
   
   • Glyph of Ferocity (+34 Attack Power, +16 Hit Rating - Revered) Hunters, rogues and DPS warriors this one's for you!
   • Glyph of Nature Warding (+20 Nature Resistance - Honored)
2. Honor Hold/Thrallmar
   
   • Glyph of Renewal (+35 Healing, +7 mana/5 seconds - Revered) Healers, duh.
   • Glyph of Fire Warding (+20 Fire Resistance - Honored)
   
   
3. Keepers of Time
   
   • Glyph of the Defender (+16 Defense, +17 Dodge - Revered) For you protection warriors & paladins and of course feral druids.
   • Glyph of Frost Warding (+20 Frost Resistance - Honored)
   
   
4. Lower City
   
   • Glyph of the Outcast (+17 Strength, +16 Intellect - Revered) Honestly, I'm perplexed. Who would buy this? Retadins? Bad Rogues? Survival Huntards?
   • Glyph of Shadow Warding (+20 Shadow Resistance - Honored)
   
   
5. Sha'Tar
   
   • Glyph of Power (+22 damage/healing, +14 spell hit rating - Revered) DPS Casters - locks, mages, shadow priests, boomkins
   • Glyph of Arcane Warding (+20 Arcane Resistance - Honored)
   
   
   

But Daddy I want it NOW!

I was looking through my list of potential blogging topics to try and get a handle on what this Tuesday-after-a-holiday would bring to the blog. Most of them are requiring the sort of research that can't happen in just a few minutes. So I turned to my backup plans.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I have a topic hiding that Neshura asked me to blog on. I think it might be heavy theory-crafting and thus saved until later in the week when I've had some time to craft the theory.

I know Owaru also wants to see my combat log from Karazhan, but like a total nub, I must've deleted it as I got ready to record the next one. Nothing earth-shattering stands out, but I only spent a few minutes trying to decipher what was in the blasted thing.

So, the topics I want to post on either require too much time right now or have been forgotten/deleted by your humble narrator. Thus...

How come there are enchants for shields (technically an off-hand item) that I can't get on my off-hand item for my freakin' priest...

For instance I think these would be swell.

• [Formula: Enchant Shield - Superior Spirit] : +5 all resistance
• [Formula: Enchant Shield - Intellect] : +12 Intellect
• [Formula: Enchant Shield - Major Stamina] : +18 Stamina
  
• [Formula: Enchant Shield - Superior Spirit] : +9 Spirit

Is this just another example of how Blizzard is giving all the healing love to the paladins and leaving the priests to have no choice but respec Shadow?

What's in your pants?

No. NOT that way.

Enchants and modifications to leg armor can be very important as you begin to raid. Please, please, please have the right "stuff" in your pants. For a quick rundown, let's look at the available BC modifications to pants one by one.

The following are produced by leatherworking. These armor kits can go on chest, hands, legs, or feet so it may make sense to pick up multiples when you get them.

1. [Magister's Armor Kit] - 3 mana/5 sec - Pattern requires revered with Scryers. This is clearly for the caster's in the group.
2. [Vindicator's Armor Kit] - 8 Defense rating - Pattern requires revered with Aldor. Tanks rejoice, this one's for you.
3. [Knothide Armor Kit] - 8 Stamina - Just about anyone can use this.
4. [Arcane Armor Kit] - 8 Arcane Resist - This kit and the next several, might be good for building a specific set of gear for resistances. This pattern drops from Chronolord Deja in Black Morass.
5. [Flame Armor Kit] - 8 Fire Resist - This pattern drops from Gargantuan Abyssals in the Arcatraz.
6. [Frost Armor Kit] - 8 Frost Resist - This pattern drops from Hydromancer Thespia in Steamvault.
7. [Nature Armor Kit] - 8 Nature Resist - This pattern drops from Mennu the Betrayer in Slavepens.
8. [Shadow Armor Kit] - 8 Shadow Resist - This pattern drops from Time-lost Shadowmages in Sethekk Halls.

The following are produced by leatherworking but can only be applied to leg armor.

1. [Clefthide Leg Armor] - 30 Stamina, 10 Agility - Requires Honored Reputation with Cenarion Expedition. Tanks & Twinks rejoice
   
2. [Nethercleft Leg Armor] - 35 Stamina, 12 Agility - Requires Exalted with Cenarion Expedition. Same as above.
   
3. [Cobrahide Leg Armor] - 40 Attack Power, 10 Critical Strike Rating - Requires Honored Reputation with Honor Hold/Thrallmar. This is for the hunters, dps warriors & rogues.
   
4. [Nethercobra Leg Armor] - 45 Attack Power, 12 Critical Strike Rating - Requires Exalted Reputation with Honor Hold/Thrallmar

The following are produced by tailoring and can only be applied to leg armor.

1. [Silver Spellthread] - 46 Healing, 15 Stamina - Pattern requires honored with Aldor. Clearly for the healers.
   
2. [Golden Spellthread] - 66 Healing, 20 Stamina - Pattern requires exalted with Aldor. Even more healing love.
   
3. [Mystic Spellthread] - 25 Spell damage/healing, 15 Stamina - Pattern requires honored with Scryers. Locks, Mages, Shadowpirests. Maybe Paladins.
   
4. [Runic Spellthread] - 35 Spell damage/healing, 20 Stamina - Pattern requires exalted with Scryers