WKM

Don't ask me to explain to you how we got there. People have filmed it, explained it, demonstrated it. Not exactly sure what it's supposed to stand for, though there are plenty of rumors. It was all Pally's idea. I was something of an innocent, curious bystander. But I also have absolutely no skill at walking through walls, like both he and Darg always somehow manage. So, hitching rides with them, on various mounts, I made it through to the other side...

Into the Building

Through the Wall

Down on the Ground, Look Around

After the initial shock of seeing Orgrimmar from inside-out, we continued our trek, in flight...

With Pally in the lead, we flew to this vault-like place that looks like some sort of shrine or memorial. Pally and Darg had already been here before, I think. But I never look for the "inside scoops", or the "hacks, loopholes and glitches", so this was all eerily new to me.

Up the Rabbit Hole (Glowing with a creepy green light.)

Moment of Silence

Banana of Honor

Raising Our Glasses in a Toast to WKM

Bubbles of Life

A Touch of Greenery (Well, maybe more than a touch...)

Silly Party Stuff (To lighten the somber mood...)

Darkmoon Gryphon —Pally waits on the Mushroom Chair

Nomi Brings Snacks

Anou's Final Farewell

As I'm not the type to go looking for these things, it really was a final farewell. I'm glad I saw it though. I was amazed at the "back end" of the game, how strange things felt, like looking through a two-way mirror. WKM is likely to remain a mystery, unless someone has concrete proof pointing to who/what it was supposed to honor. Though I feel there's more to just it than what that ticket response had to say. I can't imagine a long tunnel ending in a room with three framed letters on the wall being made by mistake...

Even the Lich King Didn't Want Him

On one of those nights, at the end of an expansion, when friends just get together for no reason and run old content, I was ninja-vited into a Heroic 25-man ICC raid group. We were seven, including myself.

At the very end, you know that part.. you remember... when everyone would accidentally release because the Lich King "took their soul"... the part that Blizz only thought of hot-fixing at the end because they were fed-up of people opening missed-loot-because-of-premature-release tickets?.. yeah, that part. We were at that part. The seven of us. But only six of us died. One man was left standing...

Darger Baits the Devil of Ice (Get it? BAITS?Bwaha!)

My soul belonged to the Lich King. And Taint's, and Pally's, and Kuip's, and Rul's. Tirion was rushing to our aid... He could have tripped on that open clam Darg left lying around. Or fainted at the sight of our rugged Orc warrior/GM/raid leader, standing there in naught but a loin cloth... Alas, he beat Darger to a mass rez, brought us back to life, we slayed the Lich Lord, end of story.

But seriously. That was unexpected.

Speaking of the man with 1198k HP, who literally survived the wrath of the Lich King...

From all of us in SD. <3

Down in the Deep

That transition cinematic after Immerseus in SoO... This image is so evocative of the damp and drafty underbelly of really creepy places. You can almost feel it—when no one is talking in vent and you're not in a rush to hit the next boss, that is.

Firework

Anoukisse, feat. Wrathion

I know he was explaining things, and I'm sorry, but all I heard was "wah-wanh, wah-wanh", and in my head, Wrathion was singing..!

Like a lightning bolt, your heart will glow
And when it's time you'll know

You just gotta ignite the light and let it shine
Just own the night like the 4th of July

Katy Perry, Firework

This, friends, is the first song by Katy Perry that I ever liked. Until this song came out, I thought she was superficial and vain, singing about all sorts of things our society has seen and heard enough of. Watch the video here. :D

What's in a Name

Meanwhile, in LFR...

Poor Taint. For exactly that reason, Blizz has hit him twice for a character re-name. Luckily, he's explained his piece and hasn't needed to change his toon's name, but still. We all just couldn't stop laughing about it!

To Err Is Human

Okay. I'll tell the story. Just be advised: Nothing prepares you for what happens when you innocently click on the Tuft of Yak Fur you find in your bags one day.

We were in vent. A group of us on the Timeless Isle, no doubt farming something that would quickly become irrelevant. I, as usual, was emptying my bags because, you know, "Inventory is full". /makes face

Oh look! Something new! With flavor text!

"It's so fluffy!"

Cool! A mount! Right-click!

Suddenly, there was Octavien, all manliness cast aside, unceremoniously grabbing on to spades of yak fur... (Poor guy. In front of all his friends.) He may or may not have called for his "mommy", but we are not here to judge his virility—or lack thereof. This enormous yak went tearing off like its tailless end was on fire. It barreled through angry elites who all gave chase... Everyone was laughing. In vent.

Ultimately, the story has a happy ending, in that Octavien survived, and that horrible mount was destroyed before its last two charges were used accidentally.

So, a word from the wise... Click with discretion at appropriate times and places.

Shrine of the Jade Forest

Aerial view of the Shrine of Fellowship

Anou waves at me. Aww. :)

A mother and her children go by, in this zen-like retreat.

You can actually see the wind...

How peaceful it is up here.

Everyone is welcome at the Shrine of Fellowship.