Perhaps you’ve been there before…standing on the edge of a cliff looking down at two of your party members who had just fallen over the side, landing on the ledge below. Both are in need of reviving, leaving you and your fellow adventurer, who happens to be a Druid, pondering how to resurrect the incapacitated players now surrounded by eight NPCs. In that moment of seriousness and strategic contemplation you think to yourself, “I wonder if I can hit one of those NPCs with my fireball from here?” And before you know it you perform a typical newbie blunder…acting before you think.
Though I have only played World of Warcraft for a short time, I am nonetheless a veteran MMO player having spent several years playing other online games like Lord of the Rings Online and Eve Online. As such, I knew that pulling an NPC from my current position was not a good idea, because he would only find me and tell every other NPC on his journey what I did to him. Unfortunately on this particular occasion I didn’t think that far ahead. Before I knew it I had clicked the toolbar icon to release the spell. Flames began to form in my character’s hands only to be followed by a beautifully thrown ball of fire that soared through the air hitting its target perfectly. For a brief moment I was proud of my accomplishment. Then the realization of the chain reaction I had started hit me. Ironically, at the same time that I realized what I had done my fellow companion also realized the situation and typed in the chat window, “Why did you do that? You’ve killed us both!“
The NPC I had just ‘lit up’, and still burning by the way, left his post in search of his attacker. My hope was that he would keep the misunderstanding that existed between him and I to himself and not gossip about it to every NPC he passed, but this was not to be the case. He rounded the corner with five more of his friends who quickly communicated their anger regarding my action. The result…the two remaining party members (my companion and myself) died at the hands of these angry thugs. An act of retribution that was totally uncalled for I believe. I felt like such a noob. I knew better, but I did it anyway. What made the situation even more embarrassing was that my fellow companion had just commuincated less than five minutes previous that he had made it to level fifteen without dying once. Because of my lack of discernment his winning streak came to an abrupt end that night. (Again, I’m very sorry Aught!)
