Interview with Lexipanda – 5 year WoW Veteran
As a player who started after Burning Crusade was released, I’ve always had respect for those who started back in the days of Vanilla WoW. Those were the days of 40 man raids that could take all day, no dungeon finder and no easy emblem gear. It was basically a different game and it was a lot harder than what people are used to these days.
Well I luckily know an awesome girl who’s been playing since the days of Vanilla WoW and she has even been a guild leader since those days. I’m also lucky enough to have her in my guild, and Lexi was kind enough to answer some questions regarding the “old days,” her feelings on current WoW and thoughts on the future with Cataclysm.
GA: What first got you into playing WoW?
Lexi: The first time I saw the original WoW trailer, I was absolutely blown away. Having been a gamer for the majority of my life, my ex showed me the trailer to see if it was something I would be interested in playing. Around this time, I tried Guild Wars beta as well as the WoW beta and there was no comparison for me, WoW won out. Needless to say, I jumped in and have played ever since. It has taken over my love of console games completely, I hardly have time to play anything else these days.
GA: Which faction did you start playing as? Has that changed?
Lexi: I started as an Alliance because of the trailer that I saw. Seeing the Night Elf turn into a panther in mid air just blew my mind. I had always played console games until I tried WoW. After about a year and a half, I went to a different server and started over as Horde. I wanted to play something completely different, so I chose an Undead Warlock. Ultimately though, I had to roll a Druid again, I missed my Alliance druid too much.
GA: Now the game has definitely changed a lot since it’s beginnings, has there been
anything you wish Blizzard hadn’t changed?
Lexi: I miss 40 man raids. I miss the times before Gear Score and mods that told you everything you needed to know about an boss encounter. There was such a sense of accomplishment back in the early days of WoW. In those days, gear was important but as a leader bringing people into raids, you had to have a clue about what stats meant and how it mixed with the group. There was no WowWiki, expertise was based on personal experience and the experiences of your guild members and paying attention to your surroundings. There were no raid announcements of YOU ARE STANDING IN FIRE, MOVE. Common sense was immeasurably important. PUGs were few and far between. It was polarizing because of the importance of being a part of a guild, but the feeling of camaraderie was like having an extended family. At least that is how my guild was.
GA: What is something that you think they should change?
Lexi: GET RID OF ARENA. Sorry, but adding arena to a game like WoW has completely changed the dynamic. Now, changes are made across the game only due to creating a more “fair” arena environment. I don’t agree with that at all, because I don’t think that raiders should be penalized because of PVP. Conversely, I don’t think that arena gear should be viable for PVE, I think they should be two separate things. I think that the Arena tournaments that they had, where they were on different servers with vendors for gear, those were the right idea. It would make the differences between the classes interesting again in PVE.
GA: I’m sure you’ve had the chance to play many different race/class combinations, so what is your favorite?
Lexi: I have a special place in my heart for both my Blood Elf Death Knight and my Night Elf Druid. It isn’t so much about them being “pretty”, I just find that the armor looks better on them. Love my Tauren Druid to death, she is my achievement queen, but not ever being able to see actual shoes is kind of a bummer.
GA: Who is your current main?
Lexi: My current main is Lexipanda, my (newly) Night Elf druid. For the last year or so I’ve been tanking on a Death Knight, but got burned out tanking in Icecrown. I’m looking forward to being a healer/dps again, and then we’ll see where it goes from there. I will probably miss the gratification of being a tank but for now, I’m happy with the druid.
GA: When did you first decide to run a guild?
Lexi: The first guild I was in was on Ner’Zhul and I was playing with a lot of friends. They all joined a guild so my boyfriend at the time and I followed suit. Our guild leader was a complete tool. He was caught up in the “glow” of being the leader and was completely worthless as a person. I wasn’t 60 yet but I knew that I could do a better job than this douchebag, so while he took a 2 week vacation without telling anyone I decided to break off and make my own guild called ShadowMoon. Most of his guild ended up joining mine but he was NOT pleased, to say the least.
GA: How would you describe being a first time guild leader? Would you do anything different?
Lexi: It was really difficult, but extremely rewarding. After a few guilds merged with ours and we became Eternal Flame, the guild really took off. But it wasn’t so much because of amazing gear or overwhelming ability, it was because we had 40 people who knew how to work together. We weren’t always successful, but as guild leader I was kind of the cheerleader, so even if we didn’t always succeed, we still had fun. That, I think, is why people who played back then still remember our guild, and that is what I would want it to be remembered for. I had to learn a lot, and there were some hard lessons. I let the ex take the lead too many times because I was somehow convinced he knew better than I, so he eventually drove the guild into the ground and our officers split off, made another guild, and took the guild with them. I’ve run several guilds since then, both Horde and Alliance, and each time I have learned more from it.
GA: Do you still run a guild these days? Why or why not?
Lexi: I recently closed the doors on my last guild unfortunately, and at the moment am not running my own. These days, raiding has become so fragmented. It is mind boggling to remember a time when I was able to coordinate 40 people to show up at the same time to raid. Now it is hard to even get 10 if you aren’t a “hard core” guild. Most of the guild had lives outside of WoW and raiding together on a consistent basis was just becoming more and more difficult. There are no hard feelings really, I’m bummed that it didn’t work out but it was time to move on. I go through cycles of wanting to lead and not wanting to lead, and right now I’m content not to be a leader. It used to be the driving force behind my desire to play WoW, but now that I have a real job and have to live like a grown up, I’m okay with not having to coordinate a guild on top of that.
GA: If not, do you think you’d ever go back to leading or do you think you’re just going to sit back and relax?
Lexi: I think I could see myself leading again. It really is a rush, it is something to be proud of when you amass a strong group of people together who know how to work and conquer content. I don’t do it for any kind of glory, though, I do it because I like to see people succeed and have fun doing it. If people stop having fun, then I have failed.
GA: What are your thoughts on Cataclysm?
Lexi: I have mixed emotions. Having played this game since its inception, I am sad to see the old world go. People are saying, “Yay, I’ll be able to use my flying mount in Azeroth!” but for me, Azeroth was always a grounding place for me. Azeroth has always been the same. To know that everything is going to change as I have known it for the past 5 years is tragic to me. I have to commend Blizzard, though, for taking the game in a completely different direction. I think it will matter less to those people who started playing post BC because you spend so little time in the old world, it is a tool to get to a higher level, that’s all it is. But for those of us who played at the beginning, Azeroth is all we had.
GA: Which of the new races do you like more: Worgen or Goblin?
Lexi: I had the opportunity to play a Goblin at Blizzcon and it was a blast. I am not completely in love with Worgen, but that’s not to say I don’t like them. I think the transformation aspect is a novelty, but some people want that. I would be more sold on a Worgen if the transformation actually did something to benefit you. I love the Goblin because their “racials” (if you can call them that) are awesome. My DK is an engineer so I was predisposed to goblins at the beginning.
GA: Who’s worse, Varian or Garrosh?
Lexi: The way I see it, Varian is a stuck up jerk, but Garrosh is dangerous. His hatred runs much too deep for it to be able to be constructive. I fear for the Horde when Thrall leaves because he has always been the voice of reason. I am worried about the fate of Cairne Bloodhoof, especially without Thrall around to quell the storm. But I am looking forward to what the next chapter of WoW: Cataclysm will bring.
GA: Any advice for those just starting out in WoW?
Lexi: My advice to first time WoW players would be to learn everything you can about the Warcraft universe. I have found that the more I have discovered about the lore and the origins of what has now become World of Warcraft, the more I enjoy the game. Being able to connect the dots between characters, quests, bosses and encounters has made playing the game a more rich experience. And for goodness sake, have fun, don’t look at this game as a job. Feel accomplished not only by the bosses you have conquered but also by the friends that you make.