World of Warcraft

From Conservapedia

World of Warcraft, commonly shortened to WoW, (ESRB rating: T) is a highly successful Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG or MMO) by Blizzard Entertainment. It is the fourth game in the Warcraft series, excluding expansion packs and the cancelled Warcraft Adventures: Lord of the Clans. WoW was developed by Blizzard Entertainment and released to the public on November 23, 2004. World of Warcraft is the only MMO developed by Blizzard.

WoW is immensely popular, with 10 million subscribers worldwide, mostly in East Asia. It is the world's most popular MMO. If all of the WoW subscribers were their own nation, it would rank 91st out of 235 in terms of population size. The first expansion pack to World of Warcraft, The Burning Crusade (TBC or BC) was released on January 16, 2007. The second expansion pack, Wrath of the Lich King (WotLK or WLK) is slated for release in the second half of 2008. There is also a World of Warcraft Board Game and a Trading Card Game.

Contents 1 Terminology 2 Setting 2.1 Azeroth 2.2 Draenor 3 Factions 3.1 Alliance 3.2 Horde 4 Classes 4.1 Druids 4.2 Hunters 4.3 Mage 4.4 Paladin 4.5 Priest 4.6 Rogue 4.7 Shaman 4.8 Warlocks 4.9 Warrior 5 Realms 5.1 PvE Realms 5.2 PvP Realms 5.3 RP Realms 5.4 RPPvP Realms 6 Professions 6.1 Alchemy 6.2 Blacksmithing 6.3 Enchanting 6.4 Engineering 6.5 Herbalism 6.6 Jewelcrafting 6.7 Leatherworking 6.8 Mining 6.9 Skinning 6.10 Tailoring 6.11 Cooking 6.12 First Aid 6.13 Fishing 6.14 Riding 6.15 Learning 7 World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade 8 Controversy 9 See Also 10 References

Terminology

The players of the World of Warcraft, like most subcultures, have their own special terms and linguistics that they use, as well as certain lore references that people outside the subculture might not understand.

• Aggro: Short for "Aggression," "aggro" is a dynamic term used by players to refer to when a monster has started attacking, as well as who a monster is attacking. The player with the most "aggro" is the player that the monster will attack. In groups, it is the job of a tank type player to make sure that at all times the monster is attacking him; this is called "holding aggro." If a player in a group does too much damage to the monster or if a player heals another player too much, the monster may start to attack that player instead of the tank, perceiving that player as the bigger threat; this is called "pulling aggro."

• DoT: DoT is an acronym for Damage Over Time. It is used to describe spells that do damage in small increments to a monster over a few seconds, rather than all the damage at once. DoT spells are mostly commonly used by Warlocks in the form of curses and illnesses that they can inflict on the monsters. DoT spells have the advantage of creating less "aggro" for the player than spells that do their damage all at once. This makes it far less likely that the monster will attack the player. The downside is that DoT spells take longer to kill a monster.

• DPS: DPS is an acronym for Damage Per Second. It literally means the damage per second that a player is capable of dealing to a monster with a weapon or spell. It can also used as a term to describe the people in a group who are only there to deal damage to NPC monsters, rather than be a tank or healer.

• Healer: A healer is, like it's namesake, a class of player in the game dedicated to keeping party members alive by restoring their health. Priests, Druids, Shamans, and Paladins can all make effective healers.

• IRL: An acronym for In Real Life.

• Level: Like in all role playing games, a players power is measure in levels, with level one being the lowest. In World of Warcraft, a player gains levels by earning experience points. Experience points are rewarded to players that defeat monsters or complete quests. Defeating a monster that is weaker than the player or completing a quest that is too easy will result in less experience than harder monsters/quests. Players with the Burning Crusade expansion pack can level up to level 70, players without can only reach 60.

• Mana: Mana is the term for the magical energy that a player uses to cast spells. When a player casts a spell, it removes magical energy from the player's supply of mana, called a "Mana pool." If a player does not have enough mana in their mana pool for a spell's "Mana Cost," then they cannot cast that spell. Overtime, a player will slowly replenish their mana when not casting spells. A player may also sit down and drink water to replenish mana at a far faster rate than naturally. Potions can also be created to instantly replenish a certain amount of mana for when a player cannot sit down and drink.

• Party: A party is a group of players that play the game together in order to make quests and dungeons in the game easier. Players in the party share the rewards for playing amongst each other.

• Pet: A pet is a tamed monster or demon that follows around a player and can attack other monsters for the player. A pet can be healed and brought back to life if killed. Hunters can have tamed beasts, like bears and tigers for pets, which they can call with a whistle. Hunters need to feed their pets. Warlocks used enslaved demons as pets, which do not need to eat, however Warlocks need a special item to call their pets, which is destroyed when the pet is called.

• Tank: A tank in World of Warcraft refers to a player type that is designed to take more damage than other classes and still survive, and also generate lots of aggro. Warriors, Paladins, and Druids make the best tanks in World of Warcraft. These classes can wear heavy armor, like plate and chain-mail. They also tend to have more life and can wield big, heavy, slow weapons. It is the job of a tank in a party to make sure the monster is attacking him at all times.

• Gank: Ganking is a term used mainly on PvP realms. When a low level player is attacked by a player so much stronger, that the lower level has virtually no chance of survival, the player has been ganked. This term can also be used to describe a situation where one player is attacked by many, which also leaves him little or no chance of survival.

• NPC: An NPC (Non-Player Character) is any character in WoW not controlled by a player, but the server.

• Mob: A mob is an enemy NPC in WoW. Despite the traditional definition of "mob," a mob in an MMORPG may only be a single enemy.

• Grind: Grinding is repeatedly performing an activity, such as killing mobs, in order to accomplish a task, such as increasing the skill level of a profession or simply accumulating money. When done solely to acquire money, this is sometimes known as farming.

• Soulbound: Soulbound items cannot be traded, auctioned, or mailed. They are bound to the character who possesses them. Particularly special items become soulbound immediately upon coming into the players possession - these are referred to as Bind on Pickup or BoP. Other less valuable items become soulbound only after the player equips the item - these items are Bind on Equip or BoE.

Setting

The action in World of Warcraft takes place on the planet of Azeroth and, since the release of The Burning Crusade, Draenor (also known as Outland).

Azeroth

Azeroth is the main planet of the Warcraft series. The three main landmasses are known as the Eastern Kingdoms, Kalimdor, and Northrend. All of the original World of Warcraft took place on the first two continents, while Northrend will be available for characters to explore when the Wrath of the Lich King expansion is released.

In the Warcraft lore, all of the land on Azeroth was once a single continent known as Kalimdor, which held at its center a magical lake known as the Well of Eternity. However, the Highborne elves, the oldest race on Azeroth, abused the magics of the well and attracted a demonic extraterrestrial force known as the Burning Legion. The resulting war devestated the Highborne population and tore the single great continent into the three landmasses that exist today. It is important not to confuse this pre-modern Kalimdor with the modern continent of Kalimdor, which is the westernmost landmass in modern Azeroth, and a fragment of the old continent.

The Eastern Kingdoms are home to the Human, Dwarf, Gnome, Forsaken, and Blood Elf civilizations. Kalimdor is home to the Night Elf, Draenei, Orc, Tauren, and Troll civilizations.

Draenor

Draenor, also known as the Outland, is the former homeland of the orcs and the longtime homeworld of the draenei. The world existed in a natural state for quite some time, with the orcs and draenei living in relative peace, until the Burning Legion attacked Draenor. The demons of the Legion corrupted the peaceful orcs and sent them via a magical gateway to attack the planet of Azeroth. Due to the reckless use of shadow magic by the newly-corrupted orcs, Draenor was literally torn apart into several fragments. Most of the action of The Burning Crusade expansion pack takes place on Draenor.

Factions

There are two main factions in World of Warcraft, each composed of five races. It is worth noting that while most fantasy stories consist of "good" and "evil" groups, World of Warcraft does not make that distinction. Though the Alliance would classically be seen as "good", they are not without serious flaws. Meanwhile, the Horde is not truly "evil", as most of the member races have fought for righteousness and justice even while corrupted.

Alliance

The Alliance is composed of the Humans, Dwarves, Gnomes, Night Elves, and (with The Burning Crusade) Draenei. The Alliance has its roots in an organization called the Alliance of Lordaeron (made up of Humans, Dwarves, High Elves, and possibly Gnomes), which fought the orcs of the Burning Legion during their invasion of the Eastern Kingdoms. Since "discovering" Kalimdor, the Night Elves and Draenei have joined their ranks. However, after the Scourge devestated Quel'Thalas (the High Elf homeland), the remaining High Elves named themselves Sin'dorei ("children of the blood" in their native language, Thalassian) and joined the Horde.

Horde

The Horde is comprised of Orcs, Trolls, Tauren, Forsaken, and Blood Elves. The Horde has its origins in the evil "Old" Horde made up of orcs under the corruption of the Burning Legion, which invaded Azeroth. However, the "New" Horde is made up of orcs who have broken free of the legions corruption. Due to similarities between their races, the orcs teamed up with the Darkspear tribe of Trolls, the Tauren, the Forsaken, and the Blood Elves to create the "New" Horde.

Classes

Druids

Druids in World of Warcraft act as a versatile support class. Their main feature is the ability to transform into various animals that mimic other character classes, although they lack some of the abilities of the 'parent' class. Also druids have powerful healing and nature spells.

Hunters

Hunters in World of Warcraft act as a pulling class. They are one of the two classes in the game that can have a pet that fights for the hunter. Hunters often do damage with bows from range, but can also dual wield one-handed weapons in combat.

Mage

Mages in World of Warcraft are heavy damage dealing classes. They command powerful fire, ice, and arcane spells to deal heavy damage to the enemy. They can also preform special support abilities, such as conjuring food and water for allies, as well as turning enemies into sheep for a short period of time to prevent them from attacking.

Paladin

Paladins in World of Warcraft act as a support class. They are often used as tanks, and specialize in protecting other players and prevent enemies from harming them. They can also function as healers and have the power to bring dead allies back to life.

Priest

Priests in World of Warcraft are the main healing class. They have the most powerful healing spells of any class in the game and are able to bring dead players back to life. However, priests also have access to a dark form of shadow magic, which they can use to deal damage to the enemy or heal allies.

Rogue

Rogues in World of Warcraft act as a damage dealing and scouting class. They have the ability to become invisible, which they can use to sneak around at a slower pace, but remain undetected. Rogues have many powerful melee abilities that often require the rogue to be invisible or behind the enemy or both to use. Rogues can also build up combo points which can be spent on powerful finishing moves.

Shaman

Shamans in World of Warcraft act as a support class. They are arguably the most versatile class, and can compete with Rogues and Mages for DPS in endgame instances. Shamans can heal and bring allies back to life, as well as dropping powerful totems onto the field that affect anything within their range with powerful affects.

Warlocks

Warlocks in World of Warcraft act as a support and damage class. They are one of the two classes that can have a pet. Unlike Hunters, who use regular beasts as pets, Warlocks used enslaved demons as pets. Most Warlock spells, unlike Mage spells, do damage over time, instead of all at once. Warlocks also can enslave and banish demons, as well as create special stones that will heal and bring allies back to life among other things.

Warrior

Warriors in World of Warcraft act as a tank class. Their primary job is to make sure that at all times the monster is attacking them. They excel at protecting other players as well as using all forms of weapons and armor.

Realms

WoW's subscribers aren't able to communicate with every other subscriber of their faction in game. Like other MMORPGs, the total WoW community is divided into identical servers, which are called realms. A subscriber is allowed to have ten characters created per realm.

Although the landscape of all realms are identical, certain realms have different rules.

PvE Realms

PvE (Player verses Environment) realms, or "Normal" realms, are realms in which players are allowed to play within the game environment without having to role play (like RP realms), worry about being ganked (the only way to fight other players are to challenge them to duels,which they must agree to, or going to an area specifically made for PvP, like an arena), and be restricted to choosing only one faction to play (like PvP realms).

PvP Realms

PvP (Player versus Player) realms function like PvE realms, but, in many areas which character commonly enter, players are vulnerable to assaults from players of the opposing faction.

RP Realms

RP (Role Playing) realms are like Normal realms, but, in RP realms, all players must act the part of the character they are playing. While PvE and PvP realms allow players to traverse the land of Azeroth freely, in RP realms, playes must act as if they were an actual part of Azeroth, not a person at a computer.

RPPvP Realms

RPPvP Realms combine the features of RP realms and PvP realms

RP realms have special rules regarding the behavior of players.

Professions

Professions are tradeskills characters can learn. There are 14 professions in total, which players can learn in WoW. A member of any race, faction, or class may learn any profession, although, only two, "Primary" professions can be practiced by a single character.

The Primary professions are:

Alchemy, Blacksmithing, Enchanting, Engineering, Herbalism, Jewelcrafting (only accessible with the Burning Crusade expansion), Leatherworking, Mining, Skinning, and Tailoring.

The Secondary professions are:

Cooking, First Aid, Fishing, and Riding.

A character can learn as many secondary skills as they please, to go along with their primary professions.

Alchemy

Alchemists mix herbs and other reagents to create potions, elixirs, flasks, oils, and cauldrons. Alchemists can also transmute metals, essences, and with the Burning Crusade expansion pack, gems.

Alchemy is a primary profession. It is also considered a Crafting Profession.

Blacksmithing

Blacksmiths craft items out of metal. They can make metal weapons, mail and plate armor, and special stones.

Blacksmithing is a primary profession. It is also considered a Crafting Profession.

Enchanting

Enchanters disenchant magical objects, extracting magic dusts, shards, and essences. Enchanters can use these to enchant items with various attributes, and make wands and oils.

Enchanting is a primary profession. It is also considered a Service Profession.

Engineering

Engineers craft a variety items using metal and stone. They can make trinkets, guns, bullets, armor, and special gadgets. Engineering is the only profession that produces guns and bullets.

Engineering is a primary profession. It is also considered a Crafting Profession.

Herbalism

Herbalists find and gather herbs found throughout the land, which are essential to Alchemy recipies.

Herbalism is a primary profession. It is also considered a Gathering Profession.

Jewelcrafting

Jewelcrafters craft armor (necklaces, trinkets, rings) and can created special gems which can be inserted into armor for effects similar to Enchanting. Jewelcrafters can also prospect minerals found from raw ore, which are usually obtained through Mining.

Jewelcrafting is a primary profession. It is also considered a Crafting Profession. One must have the Burning Crusade expansion to be a Jewelcrafter.

Leatherworking

Leatherworkers create leather goods and armors from skins. Skins are usually obtained through the Skinning profession.

Leatherworking is a primary profession. It is also considered a Crafting Profession.

Mining

Miners search for and mine veins to obtain stones, ore, and minerals. They also use forges to smelt ore into metal bars.

Mining is a primary profession. It is also considered a Gathering Profession.

Skinning

Skinners skin the corpses of animals to obtain leather, scales, and hides.

Skinning is a primary profession. It is also considered a Gathering Profession.

Tailoring

Tailors craft cloth goods, mostly clothing and cloth armor, but also make bags.

Tailoring is a primary profession. It is also considered a Crafting Profession.

Cooking

Cooks use ingredients along with spices to create food using a cooking fire.

Cooking is a secondary profession. It is also considered a Crafting Profession.

First Aid

First aid is a profession, in which cloth is made into bandages to heal characters.

First Aid is a secondary profession. It is also considered a Service Profession.

Fishing

Fishers use fishing rods to catch fish in bodies of water.

Fishing is a secondary profession. It is also considered a Gathering Profession.

Riding

Riding allows character to ride mounts.

Riding is a secondary profession.

Learning

Players can advance in their professions in several ways. Players can learn how to make new items or use new skills by going to NPCs called Profession Trainers. Profession Trainers will charge for their knowledge.

Players can also find new potion recipes, jewelry designs, etc., throughout Azeroth on their own without Trainers. These recipes, designs, etc., are found in the form of consumable items. They can be used by characters to learn how to make the item or use the skill described by the consumable item.

World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade

On January 16, 2007, Blizzard Entertainment released the first expansion pack for World of Warcraft, titled The Burning Crusade. New features in the expansion pack include 2 new playable races: the Draenei and the Blood Elves; and a new profession: Jewelcrafting.

Controversy

Psychologist, Dr. Maressa Orzack, who claims to have studied computer addiction for 11 years, said if WoW has 6 million players, about 40% are addicted. She later said that she did no actual study to arrive at this number, but even if the percentage is smaller, it's still a very important issue.^[1][2]

People have died playing WoW. A 13 year old boy, according to his parents, committed suicide, allegedly, because of World of Warcraft.^[3]. Another person, a 28 year-old man, died after playing WoW continuously for several days.^[4]

See Also

• The official US World of Warcraft site
• The official EU World of Warcraft site
• A World of Warcraft based wiki

References

1. ↑ http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2006/08/10/expert-40-percent-of-world-of-warcraft-players-addicted/
2. ↑ http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060809-7459.html
3. ↑ http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=27829
4. ↑ http://news.softpedia.com/news/Two-Fanatic-World-of-Warctaft-Gamers-Have-Died-Becouse-Of-WoW-11821.shtml