Old School MMOs are the harshest games for new players. They don’t have any of the hand holding mechanics modern day games provide. You are dropped into a massive world with no guidance and to top it all off, now you have one life. Sounds challenging? Because it is. However, there is a way to beat the odds. We are here to help you find your way!
These are our five best tips to make sure you break the loop of grey screen and character select to finally lead your hero to Kel’Thuzad!
Battle Only Greens
You know the satisfying feeling of killing that Elite boss solo? Or defying the odds and murdering a bunch of enemies 5 levels above you? This sort of behavior is okay when you have multiple chances. But it is not when you spend hours of time and care into a character, then you see an orange enemy in your path and think, “Oh, why not?”. Well, you are dead.
As a rule of thumb, engage in combat with enemies that are below your level or not more than one level above your character. This will allow you to never die in an accident or lapse of judgment. The green colour is a safer denotation than looking at levels. Elite Mobs can be the same level as you but often have amplified health and damage numbers. Breaking this discipline as you level will never be worth it. You need to win every time, but the mob needs to win just once.
Spend Your Gold
It sounds simple, but parting with your Gold (mostly Silver) in early levels is never easy. Unlike conventional World of Warcraft you cannot run dungeons as often or hoard your Gold, knowing you will hit a higher level and spend it there anyways. Every time you step out, you don’t know if you will come back.
It is highly advised that you keep every piece of your gear up to date if you can afford it.This can mean buying green equipment on the auction house if you have to. Buy all of your spells at trainers at least every two levels and upgrade all your items at least every five levels. You will increase your chances of success dramatically by having an empty wallet but a full health bar.
Do Not Enter Caves
You just created a big strong Human Paladin; you quested and over-geared and over-farmed your XP, battling only mobs of your level and staying safe. You are finally ready; you take the road to Goldshire and take your first quest in the real world. “Fargodeep Mine” you read, and you start walking.
Stop! Have you ever hit a mob, then they get low, run, and pull some friends? Well, imagine that but on a much larger scale, and you can’t back out. It’s over. You never got that ten gold dust, rather ten kobold clubs to the face and an end to your tale.
Caves in World of Warcraft, be they at Level 10 or Level 60 are the most infamous open world areas with the highest number of deaths. This is natural, as they are extremely tight places with a very high spawn rate of enemies. It could be one stray spell from you, a monster fleeing in panic or just another player running all over the place that could spell your doom. There is almost no way to get out of a cave when things go wrong.
Stop When You Are Tired
A beautiful game like WoW can take away countless hours of your day as you lose yourself in its immersion. That’s great, but it is incredibly dangerous. When your reflexes slow down and your decision making becomes less rational. Just stop, it’s not worth it. You can play Cassic or Retail and relax.
The way you die in this game is by making a mistake, and you make mistakes when you have poor judgment. This happens most often as we tire out from endless hours of gameplay. Hardcore mode at its core is survival, and you don’t want to lose that level 30 mage filled with joy to using autorun in Stranglethorn Vale.
Do Not Trust Anyone
You battled only greens on repeat, you never engaged clusters of mobs in caves, you kept your gear up to date and you did not break discipline. Your run is still over. You trusted someone, didn’t you? Was it the warrior who invited you into his party and then pulled half the zone? It’s an MMO at the end of the day. Interacting with other players is unavoidable. But, when you have one life and everyone knows what’s at stake, losing it to someone else’s fault doesn’t feel good.
For most of the game in WoW hardcore, unless you are playing with actual friends, I do not recommend you attempt to assist or gain assistance from other players. Hardcore mode was traditionally done solo and as such, is possible with only solo content. You don’t need the risks other players’ antics can bring.
If you still feel the need to do group content and have seen the terrors brought upon poor people who just tried to help a player or got griefed by their new “Strong friend,” I’ll give you my secret. Go over to WoW boosting and deal with actual professionals at the game who will help you along and be the trustworthy companion you need to get that sweet dungeon blue.
Very helpful, I might even make it past level 13 this time.