Basics.

The Left Claw is recruiting for 10-man raiding. We are an Alliance guild on Drenden (US). We are looking for new members of any class, but are particularly interested in another tank and at least one more healer. We plan to raid two nights a week between Thursday and Sunday, from about 9:00 to 12:00 EST. Currently we are running heroic 5-man content for gear.

History.

The Left Claw was founded shortly after the release of The Burning Crusade. We began raiding Karazhan in March of 2008. During TBC our progression was limited to clearing the exisiting 10-man content (i.e., Karazhan and Zul’Aman). During Wrath of the Lich King we cleared all 10-man normal content and 9/12 of heroic Icecrown Citadel. Since we began raiding we have been under the same leadership. About half of our current members date back to TBC while the remaining members joined during WotLK.

Culture.

We are one of those guilds that one might classify as hardcore-casual. We are very interested in progressing through content, but we want to do it with people we enjoy. We are an adult guild — mature but silly. Historically we have had little drama and turnover is low and we plan to keep it that way. For some insight into our guild you might look at the (now retired) blogs of its leaders and founding members at jessikathetank.wordpress.com and keredria.blogspot.com.

Contact.

Please contact Jessika (jessikathetank@gmail.com) or Keredria (keredria@gmail.com) or whisper us online.

Of course if you’ve read my blog and/or K’s, then you’ll maybe have a better idea of what we are like than the average forum reader. If you are interested please contact me or Keredria. Or if you know someone who might be interested then please pass along the information.

I think about it oh, I think about it still.
I think I realize that it will always break.
It’s just a game we love, it’s just a game we love.
What a way to live, it’s not a way to live.

– The Mary Onettes, “Puzzles”

Well that’s a bit darker than I wanted, but that’s how I roll. I’ve decided that I am probably done blogging and with Pretty in Plate. I’ve actually been thinking about this for some time, but it has finally come to an appropriate time to stop. Despite the fact that I don’t post very often, it’s been a bit draining. I know it doesn’t show, but I spend a considerable amount of time thinking about and editing each post, and I have scores of unfinished posts. I’m a bit too meticulous sometimes for my own good. I feel a little overextended. I guess that sounds a little sad, and I suppose the ending of anything you’ve invested yourself in is a bit sad. But blogging for me was always about entertaining and reaching out to some friends I’ve made in game, and now I have other ways to do that.

I had intended to archive and delete the blog, but Keredria convinced me otherwise. She’s probably concerned that I’ll break a bunch of her links. I guess I should leave it up for, uh, posterity? Research purposes? Well someday I suppose it should come down, but not anytime soon.

Thank you to those who read and commented on my posts. I’ll be around, just quieter. Jess is relaxing right now, but is a little concerned about rumors of coming turmoil in Azeroth.

Ande’thoras-ethil.

The Unicorn said “You are a true warrior now, as you always wished. Does it make you happy?”

“Well,” I said, “men don’t always know when they’re happy, but I think so.”

On Sunday, October 3rd, one day before my third blogaversary, Jessika finally downed the Lich King. We’ve been killing him for three months now, but every time I was healing on my shaman. It took two excruciatingly frustrating evenings for us to down him with me on my tank. In the past we’ve downed him after only a few attempts. He was practically on farm. I have a theory that fate didn’t want it to happen.

[Guild] [Kimchee]: anybody else for a quickie?

No response. She queues us up. Immediately we’ve got a full group because I’m a tank.

[Guild] [Nkm]: oh i’ll go.

[Guild] [Kimchee]: too late nkm. it’s always fast with jess

[Guild] [Jessika]: um, it’s not that fast

Asking for Flowers by Kathleen Edwards. I was thinking about making this a song about taking your herbalist/alchemist friend for granted. Asking for flowers is like asking you to be nice. Don’t tell me you’re too tired. Ten years I’ve been herbing nights.

Jessie’s Girl by Rick Springfield. Jessie? Jessika? Jess? I figure I have to.

Just Dance or Telephone by Lady Gaga. Oh yes. I love this instance baby but I can’t see straight anymore. Keep it cool, what’s the name of this boss? I can’t remember but it’s alright, it’s alright…just tank.

My Sharona by The Knack. I sent a draft of this to my mage friend Veloreynn.

Ooh my little clothy one, clothy one
When you gonna give me some time, Veloreynn?
Ooh you take the bosses down, the bosses down
Nukes coming up from behind, Veloreynn.
Never gonna stop, give it up
Such a dirty mind
Always get it up for the buff
of the arcane kind. My my my my…wooo!

One Night in Bangkok by Murry Head. Maybe One Night in Shattrath?

The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald by Gordon Lightfoot. I was thinking The Wreck of the Gunship Skybreaker. This would be epic, but the lyrical structure makes it very difficult to parody.

Same Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogelberg. Met my old lover outside Karazhan… Damn. I had a good bit of this written in my head awhile ago but can’t recall most of it.

The Weakness in Me by Joan Armatrading. Nah. I don’t think I could parody this. I just had to put it up because OMG it’s a good song. Are you so strong or is all the weakness in me? Just epic.

So I guess it wouldn’t be a WoW-marriage without one of us (the man, of course) forgetting an anniversary. Today is Keredria’s 3-year blogging anniversary. Tree of Life started three years ago today with this innocent post. I would have sworn that it was like the 10th or something. Sigh. Damn. Where’s that girl in Darnassus that sells flowers?

Anyway, please wish Keredria a happy 3-year anniversary and encourage her to stick with it for another year. Without Tree of Life who would I link to in 75% of my posts? And who would link to me?

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune guild, must be in want of a wife.

My apologies to Jane Austen.

Keredria wrote some time ago on the topic of our tank and healer relationship, and also our WoW marriage. We’ve touched on these topics before. I wrote before on what makes for a successful tank and healer relationship, and Keredria discussed the signs that you might have a WoW spouse. We even got the attention of WoW.com.

I’ve had a great deal of difficulty coming up with a post in response to hers. I was very much touched by her post, and I am not sure I can do it justice in a reply. I won’t try. The gratitude I have for our friendship I try to communicate with her privately, which is considerably easier since she’s very adept at reading me anyway. But for my and her readers I can make a few points here in response to her posts.

As she mentioned we became friends when she was going through a very difficult time. She put a great deal of trust in me to share with me what she was going through. I was very moved that she did. This was at a time when we were still very private about our real life and so nobody else we met in game including guildies knew much of anything about our real lives. It was hard for me to see her go through what she did. We had already been becoming friends when this went down, so I wasn’t able to distance myself from what was happening to her, and I didn’t want to. I agree that this experience was an important foundation to our relationship. We started early with a great deal of trust in each other.

She raised the question as to if we’d have the relationship we do if we were not tank and healer. I don’t know. I think that those roles and their relationship with each other do mesh well with our personalities and relationship. I do know that I would not be playing Jess (or maybe WoW for that matter) now if it was not for her. This isn’t to say that I play Jess for her. I am quite attached to my first toon and main. I like everything about Jess from her hairstyle to her spec. But my toon’s relationship with hers in the game makes her a bit special. I don’t role play but I do very much like the idea that Jess is a part of something — that she’s somebody’s tank. It’s a bit weird I know. If/when her Keredria is retired, I don’t think Azeroth is going to see my Jessika again.

I don’t remember now when the whole WoW-spouse thing started. For some time it was a private joke between us, but eventually we talked about it in guild and on the blogs. Certain stereotypical gender dynamics are at work in our relationship that are particularly evident in game and manifest in our relationship as tank and healer and as GM/RL and, uh, other GM/RL? Heh. It’s actually quite amusing. Keredria described it well. I do think people may overestimate how much we argue. We’ll bicker yes, and there are times when we might even aggravate each other, but these things pass quickly. And even though there is the perception that Keredria tells me what to do in raids, she’s also respectful of my judgment, and there are times when she’s agreed with it (it’s true!). But I like that she feels comfortable enough with me to question my judgment, and she’s very good at determining when my judgment is in question. And she’s been fantastic at supporting me and backing me up when things get stressful or drama happens.

I am of course very thankful for this relationship. I am thankful because it makes the game what it is for me, and it has helped make our guild and raid what it is too. I realize I am not a fantastic GM/RL, but we’ve done well as a guild by keeping together a good group of folks for a long time and through a lot of content. I think a good deal of the credit for that needs to go to her and her relationship with our little guild’s crazy GM/RL. At a more personal level, I very much realize that folks don’t often make as good a friend as I have, particularly at our age (although we’re not THAT old), and rarely of the opposite sex. It’s something that shouldn’t be taken for granted, and I don’t. Like her I am still astounded that such a relationship could start with a MMO. And like her I know it won’t end there.

So this meet-up was a little different. In Washington we cooked for ourselves while in Chicago we ate out more. In Washington nobody except for Keredria brought a computer while in Chicago everyone except me brought a computer. I was chastised for not bringing my laptop. I had this silly idea that we might be social. Heh. Actually we played for only maybe a couple hours one evening. In Washington we rented a house and so were more or less on “neutral ground” although a few of us have family in the area. In Chicago we all stayed at Keredria’s condo. That was interesting and a little weird for me. I’ve known Keredria for over three years, but now I finally was seeing for the first time where she lives, the desk where she plays WoW, and the kind of coffee creamer she uses! It’s strange but those simple day to day things…they are important. I told her I’d send her some pics of my house so we’d be more even.

So we all had a good time being quasi-touristy in Chicago. It was hot but not as hot as I remember it. I had not been to Chicago since probably 1996. In the mid 90s I would go up to Chicago from time to time when I was in college at UIUC. Driving around downtown and listening to the Goo Goo Dolls on the radio brought back some memories.

The last night after the other folks left it was just Keredria and me. If you and your friend and co-GM of over three years finally got to meet in real life and had some free time together, what would you do? Review logs? Make long-term plans for progression raiding in Cataclysm? Or maybe take it easy and reminisce about the past? Look at old screen shots?

Actually we gorged ourselves on Korean barbecue (with no fewer than 25 different banchan!) and watched Project Runway. Tim Gunn would make a great raid leader. “Make it work.”

I never really knew she could tank like this
She makes a man want to speak Elvish
Elune-adore, fandu-dath-belore
Jessika, Jessika

Oh baby when you chat like that
I get rage but don’t get mad
So be leet, and keep on
Reading the threat on your meter

I’m MT tonight
You know my health is high
And I’m starting to feel it’s right
The mitigation, threat generation
Don’t you see baby, this is perfection

Hey Jess, I can see your body moving
And it’s driving me crazy
And I didn’t have the slightest idea
Until I saw you tanking

And when you charge up to the boss
Nobody can ignore the way you charge your body girl
And everything so unexpected — the way you dodge and block it
So you can keep on tanking it

Heh. That’s all I have but it’s probably enough.