Revenge of the Jiyas: Coldridge Valley

Revenge of the Jiyas  returns today with an article on Coldridge Valley, the dwarf starting zone. As usual, I'm documenting my speed testing of the WoW-Pro Leveling addon.This time our intrepid adventurer was Jiyadwarf, a dwarf warrior.

Note: The 1-5 starter zones are very quick, with levels flying by so quickly it's hard to get an accurate measurement. Additionally,  the pacing of some starting zones is vastly different than others. It will be nice to have a comparison of how long each takes, but not too much should be read into these tests. The higher level tests will be much more accurate and indicative of zone and guide quality.

Total /played at level 5.5: 33min 
Coldridge Valley (1-5.5): 33min

7.3 min/lvl

Previous Chapters:

• Project Overview
• 1-5: Valley of Trials | Echo Isles | Red Cloud Mesa | Kezan | Deathknell | Sunstrider Isle
          Northshire Valley

I rather like dwarves, and there were a lot of charming things about this zone that worked well. However, there were lots of things that did NOT work, as well. You'll notice right away that the time for this zone is very long compared to other speed throughs. Yes, I ended at a slightly higher level, but I felt like this zone simply didn't want to let you leave.

But first, the good things. I enjoyed that it looked like an actual battle was taking place. There were NPCs helping you fight the troggs. You were gathering supplies the civilians needed (though this had us killing boars and wolves forever to get less than 100% drop items. I guess that's just a thing with dwarves). Your quests had purpose and seemed natural, and at first, weren't ridiculously long. Then, all of a sudden, you are sent by yourself to the caves swarming with trolls and told to kill 10 of them, then 10 more. Bleck. The troll quests seemed to take forever. Finally, when it's time to leave, you find your way blocked. But do you immediately hop onto the gyrocopter offered to help you continue on? No, you have to go back inside and gather a bunch of your stuff (why didn't we have it with us to begin with?). It felt very arbitrary. That said, the gyrocopter ride was awesome, and a good way to introduce the rest of the zone.

The guide for this zone was very good, aside from a couple auto-complete issues. I liked the use of single objective steps as well as a hearthstone use to get you back to town quickly.

I've updated the guide page for this section on WoW-Pro.com, and the changes will be included in the next addon update. I wouldn't recommend trying to update the file on your own unless you are experienced working with addons. If you do decide to update early:

1. Go to the Coldridge Valley page and copy the contents of the guide. 
2. Open up your WoW folder and go to Interface > Addons > WoWPro_Leveling > Horde 
3. Open up 01_05_Gylin_Dwarf_Starter.lua
4. Copy the guide contents there.

Next Up: ALLIANCE - Shadowglen!

Revenge of the Jiyas: Northshire Valley

 We're back to speed testing today with a new Revenge of the Jiyas article! In this series, I document my speed testing of the WoW-Pro Leveling addon. This time through I was in Northshire Valley, on Humanhiya, the human warrior! Sadly I forgot to take screenshots. Oh well, there's always next time!

Note: The 1-5 starter zones are very quick, with levels flying by so quickly it's hard to get an accurate measurement. Additionally,  the pacing of some starting zones is vastly different than others. It will be nice to have a comparison of how long each takes, but not too much should be read into these tests. The higher level tests will be much more accurate and indicative of zone and guide quality.

Total /played at level 5: 18min 
Northshire Valley (1-5): 18min

4.5 min/lvl

Previous Chapters:

• Project Overview
• 1-5: Valley of Trials | Echo Isles | Red Cloud Mesa | Kezan | Deathknell | Sunstrider Isle

This zone was FAST. I have to confess I stopped paying attention occasionally and killed too many creatures for the kills quests, and I still got through it faster than any starter zone so far. That said, it was also incredibly boring. The kill quests were only a small step above the originals for this zone, and they seemed longer for some reason. It also felt like there was a lot of pointless running back and forth, that had nothing to do with the guide and everything to do with bad quest design.

One thing I noticed for this zone, that makes a LOT of sense to me, is that quests are class specific and so are rewards. This makes it impossible for a newbie to accidentally chose the wrong type of gear.

The guide itself was pretty good, but there were definitely some occasions that it needed to say a little more. In particular, it was difficult to know what quest givers where inside the abbey and which were outside, so I'll be adding notes to that effect. I did appreciate the use of hearthstone to return from the final quest objective!

I've updated the guide page for this section on WoW-Pro.com, and the changes will be included in the next addon update. I wouldn't recommend trying to update the file on your own unless you are experienced working with addons. If you do decide to update early:

1. Go to the Northsire Valley page and copy the contents of the guide. 
2. Open up your WoW folder and go to Interface > Addons > WoWPro_Leveling > Horde 
3. Open up 01_11_Kurich_Elwynn_Forest.lua
4. Copy the guide contents there.

Next Up: ALLIANCE - Coldridge Valley!

Revenge of the Jiyas: Sunstrider Isle

 Welcome to another Revenge of the Jiyas article! In this series, I document my speed testing of the WoW-Pro Leveling addon. This time I was testing Sunstrider Isle, the starting zone for blood elves. Join me as I share the beginning of the journey of Jiyelf, the blood elf warrior!

Look at that mocking salute.
She looks like she's going to kick somebody's butt.

Note: The 1-5 starter zones are very quick, with levels flying by so quickly it's hard to get an accurate measurement. Additionally,  the pacing of some starting zones is vastly different than others. It will be nice to have a comparison of how long each takes, but not too much should be read into these tests. The higher level tests will be much more accurate and indicative of zone and guide quality.

Total /played at level 5: 29min 
Sunstrider Isle (1-5): 29min

7.4 min/lvl

Previous Chapters:

• Project Overview
• 1-5: Valley of Trials | Echo Isles | Red Cloud Mesa | Kezan | Deathknell

Overall, I was pretty disappointed with this zone. It's not a bad zone, and it's still better than Valley of Trials, but they simply didn't bother updating it at all with Cataclysm. You still do the same old quests, with very little story involved, killing creatures and looting them. And, as the time above shows, it's not particularly fast.

Despite their datedness, the Eversong Woods are still pretty nice looking.

The guide for this zone was in good shape. There was one note that was a bit out of date, describing  a method for pulling mobs that used to be hostile. One step could also be moved forward. Overall the guide was really good, though, and incorporated use of the hearthstone, which I approve of.

I've updated the guide page for this section on WoW-Pro.com, and the changes will be included in the next addon update. I wouldn't recommend trying to update the file on your own unless you are experienced working with addons. If you do decide to update early:

1. Go to the Sunstrider Isle page and copy the contents of the guide. 
2. Open up your WoW folder and go to Interface > Addons > WoWPro_Leveling > Horde 
3. Open up 01_12_Snowflake_Eversong_Woods.lua
4. Copy the guide contents there.

Next Up: ALLIANCE - Northshire Valley!

Revenge of the Jiyas: Deathknell

Revenge of the Jiyas is back again, and this time in Deathknell, starting area for the Undead. In case you've forgotten, this is a series of articles in which I speed test the  WoW-Pro Leveling addon.Today I'll be sharing the adventures of Deadjiya, the undead warrior.

Deadjiya embraces her new
life as one of the Forsaken.

Note: The 1-5 starter zones are very quick, with levels flying by so quickly it's hard to get an accurate measurement. Additionally,  the pacing of some starting zones is vastly different than others. It will be nice to have a comparison of how long each takes, but not too much should be read into these tests. The higher level tests will be much more accurate and indicative of zone and guide quality.

Total /played at level 5: 22min 
Deathknell (1-5): 22min

5.5 min/lvl

Previous Chapters:

• Project Overview
• 1-5: Valley of Trials | Echo Isles | Red Cloud Mesa | Kezan

I love what they've done with Deathknell and the rest of the undead starting area in Cataclysm. I had the privilege of recording this area's guide the night before the Cataclysm release, and despite the rush, I really enjoyed it, and that definitely hasn't changed. I was also pleasantly surprised by the speed at which I went through the zone. It was the second fastest time so far, losing out to Red Cloud Mesa by only 2 minutes.

Ah, the cheery Tirisfal Glades...

The guide for this zone didn't seem to have any issues that I could see - but as I recorded it, it's unlikely I'll find anything I dislike. Testing your own work is always a bit dangerous, as you don't always see the bugs that may be obvious to others. That said, I mindlessly followed the arrows and did what the guide said, and completed everything with ease.

I do have to say that one of the quests was extremely difficult, and could probably use some tips in the guide. The final quest in which you are sent to kill Marshall Redpath nearly did me in, and I seem to recall dying to it during my first run through of the zone. Not only is Marshall himself pretty tough, but the other mobs are also quite deadly. I could easily see a newbie having trouble with the quest. So, my only change to the guide file was to add a cautionary note for this quest.

Bye for now!

I've updated the guide page for this section on WoW-Pro.com, and the changes will be included in the next addon update. I wouldn't recommend trying to update the file on your own unless you are experienced working with addons. If you do decide to update early:

1. Go to the Deathknell page and copy the contents of the guide. 
2. Open up your WoW folder and go to Interface > Addons > WoWPro_Leveling > Horde 
3. Open up 01_12_Jiyambi_Tirisfal_Glades.lua
4. Copy the guide contents there.

Next Up: Sunstrider Isle!

Revenge of the Jiyas: Kezan

 After a long wait, chapter four of the Revenge of the Jiyas series is here! In case you've forgotten, this is a series of articles in which I speed test the  WoW-Pro Leveling addon. This time, I was testing the goblin starting area, the island of Kezan. I forgot to take screenies this time through, so you're sadly left without that entertainment. 

Note: The 1-5 starter zones are very quick, with levels flying by so quickly it's hard to get an accurate measurement. Additionally,  the pacing of some starting zones is vastly different than others. It will be nice to have a comparison of how long each takes, but not too much should be read into these tests. The higher level tests will be much more accurate and indicative of zone and guide quality.

Total /played at level 5: 35min 
Kezan (1-5): 35min

8.75 min/lvl

Previous Chapters:

• Project Overview
• 1-5: Valley of Trials | Echo Isles | Red Cloud Mesa

Sadly, this was the longest run so far. While a small part of this is because I was out of practice, I feel it's mostly due to the zone design. Kezan is a lot of fun, but it's very spread out and not particularly fast.

The guide played through wonderfully, aside from one coordinate issue, but there were definitely some stylistic problems that I'll be fixing for the next release. Level benchmarks were also unrealistic for a character with no heirlooms, and that will be fixed in the next release.

I've run through Kezan several times before, as I wrote the original paper guide for the zone, but I still love it. Despite it's slightly longer play time, it's one of my favorite starting zones!

I've updated the guide page for this section on WoW-Pro.com, and the changes will be included in the next addon update. I wouldn't recommend trying to update the file on your own unless you are experienced working with addons. If you do decide to update early:

1. Go to the Kezan page and copy the contents of the guide. 
2. Open up your WoW folder and go to Interface > Addons > WoWPro_Leveling > Horde 
3. Open up 01_05_Malorajan_Kezan.lua
4. Copy the guide contents there.

Next Up: Deathknell!

Revenge of the Jiyas: Red Cloud Mesa

Chapter three has arrived for the Revenge of the Jiyas series of articles, in which I speed test the  WoW-Pro Leveling addon! Today we begin our journey in the tauren starting zone, Red Cloud Mesa, located in Mulgore. We follow Jiyacow, the mighty tauren warrior, as she sets out to make a name for herself.

Is that supposed to be a salute?

Note: The 1-5 starter zones are very quick, with levels flying by so quickly it's hard to get an accurate measurement. Additionally,  the pacing of some starting zones is vastly different than others. It will be nice to have a comparison of how long each takes, but not too much should be read into these tests. The higher level tests will be much more accurate and indicative of zone and guide quality.

Total /played at level 5: 20min 
Red Cloud Mesa (1-5): 20min

4.8 min/lvl

Previous Chapters:

• Project Overview
• 1-5: Valley of Trials | Echo Isles

The run time for this zone was definitely shorter than the last two starters. Whether I'm just getting faster at setting up my UI or this zone is simply better designed, I'm not certain. It did seem pretty efficient, especially compared to the drugery of Valley of Trials. The quests weren't as fun as those in the Echo Isles, but they weren't awful, and setting pigs on fire was kinda cool. The flow was very nice, sending you in a circular pattern around the mesa rather than having you return to the central hub every time.

They added a very stylin' and fast way to get to the next town, too!

For the most part, the guide was very well done for this zone. However I did find a couple issues. First, one of the quests didn't show the quest tracking due to a spelling error. Second, the step where you hearth to Camp Narache and get your skills was both incorrectly coded so it did not auto-complete, and also should have been moved one step later to minimize running around. These issues are now fixed and will appear in the next update for the addon.

Overall I really enjoyed this starter. They kept a lot of the flavor of the original zone, but revamped it to improve flow and make quests more interesting. If only they had done the same for the Valley of Trials!

Bye now, brown cow!

I've updated the guide page for this section on WoW-Pro.com, and the changes will be included in the next addon update. I wouldn't recommend trying to update the file on your own unless you are experienced working with addons. If you do decide to update early:

1. Go to the Red Cloud Mesa page and copy the contents of the guide. 
2. Open up your WoW folder and go to Interface > Addons > WoWPro_Leveling > Horde 
3. Open up 01_12_Gylin_Mulgore.lua. 
4. Copy the guide contents there.

Next Up: Kezan!

Revenge of the Jiyas: Echo Isles

Chapter two is here for my new series of articles in which I speed test the  WoW-Pro Leveling addon! Today we're testing the troll starting zone, the Echo Isles. Jiyatroll, the wise and powerful warrior, is just starting her days as an adventurer.

She doesn't look too excited...

Note: The 1-5 starter zones are very quick, with levels flying by so quickly it's hard to get an accurate measurement. Additionally,  the pacing of some starting zones is vastly different than others. It will be nice to have a comparison of how long each takes, but not too much should be read into these tests. The higher level tests will be much more accurate and indicative of zone and guide quality.

Total /played at level 5.5: 28min 
Echo Isles (1-5): 28min

6 min/lvl

Previous Chapters:

• Project Overview
• 1-5: Valley of Trials

I love trolls. And the new starting area is just awesome. But I need to disclose something - it actually took me almost 45 minutes to do this. FORTY FIVE MINUTES. You know why? Because there is a nasty bugged quest. Sometimes, during the quest Young and Vicious, the raptor Swiftclaw will simply not spawn. I spent almost 20 minutes sitting around, assuming other people were just getting to him before I did, waiting for him to appear. Finally I went and looked it up - apparently he just doesn't show up sometimes, and you have to abandon and re-acquire the quest. Soooo.... that's something I'm adding as a note, so no one else has to waste 20 minutes on it! Because of this, I didn't include those 20 minutes in the guide time.

Chillin with my homie Vol'jin.

Aside from that little hiccup, I felt like this zone breezed by. It has so many fun and endearing quests, it simply destroys Valley of Trials in the fun factor. I felt like it went a lot faster than Valley of Trials, too, but the /played seems to think otherwise - they came out the same. Well, at least time will seem to go faster!

Stepping onto the mainland, and to more adventures!

I've updated the guide page for this section on WoW-Pro.com, and the changes will be included in the next addon update. I wouldn't recommend trying to update the file on your own unless you are experienced working with addons. If you do decide to update early:

1. Go to the Echo Isles page and copy the contents of the guide. 
2. Open up your WoW folder and go to Interface > Addons > WoWPro_Leveling > Horde 
3. Open up 01_05_Bitsem_Echo_Isles.lua. 
4. Copy the guide contents there.

Next Up: Red Cloud Mesa!

Revenge of the Jiyas: Valley of Trials

Here it is: The first installment of my new series of articles in which I speed test the  WoW-Pro Leveling addon! Today we take a look at the orc starting zone, the Valley of Trials. Our intrepid orc warrior, Jiya, is ready to begin her journey!

She sure thinks she's special.

Note: The 1-5 starter zones are very quick, with levels flying by so quickly it's hard to get an accurate measurement. Additionally,  the pacing of some starting zones is vastly different than others. It will be nice to have a comparison of how long each takes, but not too much should be read into these tests. The higher level tests will be much more accurate and indicative of zone and guide quality.

Total /played at level 5.5: 28min 
Valley of Trials (1-5): 28min

6 min/lvl

Previous Chapters:

• Project Overview

 The time for this might be a little deceiving, because I spent roughly 5 minutes setting up my UI at the beginning of the test. However, I'll need to do that for every new character I start, so I decided not to try to correct for that time - it would simply make the /played calculations more complicated. Additionally, the starter zones measurements and calculations are extremely rough at best, since the levels go by so quickly, that I doubt it's worth it.

I wouldn't recommend much changed in this guide. This makes sense considering I created it in the first place - I should hope I would be satisfied with it! However, I would recommend having the user use their hearthstone to get back to The Den quickly at the end of the cave quest circuit. That cooldown is not being utilized and it can definitely save some time. It's nice that I have timing information now so I can tell easily exactly how often the hearthstone can be used in a guide!

Now let's talk about the zone. Bleh. With all the awesome work Blizz did to improve other starting zones, it's really disappointing that they  didn't bother improving this one. It's sad that this will be the first thing some players see of the game, because the game play is extremely dated (as in, not changed since the beginning of WoW). Oh well, at least they kept the peon-smacking quest in there!

I've updated the guide page for this section on WoW-Pro.com, and the changes will be included in the next addon update. I wouldn't recommend trying to update the file on your own unless you are experienced working with addons. If you do decide to update early:

1. Go to the Valley of Trials page and copy the contents of the guide. 
2. Open up your WoW folder and go to Interface > Addons > WoWPro_Leveling > Horde 
3. Open up 01_05_Jiyambi_Valley_of_Trials.lua. 
4. Copy the guide contents there.

Next Up: The Echo Isles!

Revenge of the Jiyas: WoW-Pro Speed Testing

I was reading through some of my old posts and I cam across my Adventures of Mokrana series from back in 2009. In case you weren't reading the blog back then, this was a series of articles where I documented speed and efficiency testing runs for the WoW-Pro Leveling addon. I remembered how fun that was, and how interesting it was to see how the different chapters of the guide matched up.

So I've decided to start a new series: The Revenge of the Jiyas. In this series I'll be running a small army of alts (all with various versions of "Jiya" as their names) through every guide in the WoW-Pro addon. I've decided to do this test using all warriors, since it will be the best way to compare between guides - every race can be a warrior, after all! Warriors aren't ridiculously good at soloing, like hunters are, but they aren't too shabby at it either, having a lot of health, good defenses, and the ability to move quickly via charging. Overall I think it will be a good average experience.


The Rules

• NO rested XP! I'll be logging out OUTSIDE of inns and major cities.
• NO heirlooms! I'll only wear what gear I find, get from questing, or can legitimately afford on the auction house.
• NO help from high level characters, in money or runs! I'm starting on a brand new server where I don't know anyone, and since I'm speed leveling, I won't be socializing. So I'm on my own!
• NO dungeons, PvP, etc. This is a test of the questing guides, specifically.

Caveats

• NO professions. I'm already handicapping myself enough, and I'm also documenting my progress via notes and screenshots as I go, which will slow me a small amount. I won't be taking extra time out for professions, even gathering ones.
• YES - I have an auctioneer. I'll be mailing all my marketable items to her, and she'll sell them. I won't be playing the auction house in any other way, though.

The Process

I will be recording how long each quest circuit takes and measuring that in hr/lvl. That means, how many hours it would take to gain one level at that experience rate. I think measuring this way will make more sense than levels/hr, as most people want to know how long it takes to get to the next level, NOT how much of a level an hour's play will get them.

I'll be covering one zone at a time, starting with ALL of the starter zones. Doing it in this way will allow us to get a clear idea of how similar zones compare in speed.

Along the way I'll be making notes of things that worked well and things that didn't, both in terms of the actual quests from Blizzard, as well as the guide. In my write up, I'll include these notes, as well as an updated version of the guide with these issues fixed. These updates will be available in the next version of the WoW-Pro addon, but you can get them early from my blog!

My final write up will have a spreadsheet showing the quest circuits, start and end times and levels, and the hr/lvl rate for each. I'll  have a write up in prose accompanying this, as well as screenshots. I'll compare the guide and zone to the others in that bracket which I've completed so far. Finally, I'll include a download link for the updated guide.

When I complete a "bracket" of zones (all zones of a particular level range), I'll write up a summary comparing all the zones and recommending the best for leveling.

I've already completed the Durotar guide, and you should expect to see it posted here sometime tomorrow!