WICBT: How long have you been playing World of Warcraft and what life changes have you gone through?

I have been playing WoW since January 2007. My college room mate (all 4.5 years) asked me if I wanted to try it out with him since he had friends at work who played it. So we went in to the BB he worked at and picked up 2 each of Vanilla, TBC and Time Cards. Over the last almost 7 years my life has changed so much. At the time my girlfriend and room mate all lived together, That same year we found a stray dog that is still with us today. In the December of 2008 my girlfriend and I got engaged. The Summer of 2009 we bought our 2nd dog and in December all three of us graduated from Arizona State, 2 days later my fiance and I packed up all of our stuff and moved back to California. My fiance and I got married in July of 2010. Since then my wife and have bought a car, had a wonderful baby girl, bought a house, and now I am General Manager of a dealership.

I have met many great people in game, and the game has helped me with my social anxiety. Some of my favorite people that I have met in game no longer play even my room mate stopped playing at the beginning of Wrath. I would love to get my wife playing a little bit. I hope to play with my daughter, she seem interested in and loves to sit in my lap and watch me play. I think WoW and a lot of gaming in general if properly handled can be used to develop bonds with our kids and also teach them critical thinking skills.

Finally over with all the changes in my life above I have had those changes effect me in game. I no longer play 6 hours a day 6-7 days a week. Most weeks its 2 days for 3-5 hours, some weekends I get in more play time if I'm not watching football or going out with the family. Also I with the limited play time to put into improving my character every chance I get I have been dabbling in the other aspects of the game beyond Raiding. I have joined an RP server, dabbled in pet battles, leveled a 3rd alt to 90, started to random PvP more, and any of the newer features Blizzard has given us.

WICBT: What's your most and least favorite expansions?

Image Courtesy of  TheDDGuides

Favorite Expansion is a hard one I could say TBC but then again that is when I started, so it'd be like a  Vanilla vet or Wrath child saying those were their favorite expansions, because it was new and newness and and nostalgia are powerful emotions. I loved Wrath's story if not because I loved Warcraft 3's story so much. Cataclysm was good because well Arms DPS was amazing. Pandaria has been pretty awesome from game play changes and lore plots. But if I had to really sit down an pick a favortie expansion I think I would have to go with TBC the wonder that I felt along with Sunwell was amazing, I think if they hadn't (even if hastily) released Sunwell I think my answer may be different.

As far as least favorite expansion, even if Arms DPS was godlike Cataclysm earns this (dis)honor. Not wrapping up Neptulaons story, or how disappointed I was in Thrall stepping down when the Horde needed him most are just a few of the things that rubbed me the wrong way.  The fact that we killed potentially the biggest threat to Azeroth well before his time, unless Sargeras will finally not fail at coming to Azeroth in his full power and glory.

To sum it up I think all of the expansions have had their bright sports as far as game play, quality of life changes and lore.

WICBT: What do you think of persistent changes to Azeroth?

This weeks installment of WoW Insider's Community Blog Topic deals with persistent changes like the one we are witnessing currently with the destruction of the Vale of Eternal Blossoms. I am going to take a slightly different direction on this one and talk about how somethings that Blizzard has decided to do (not do) greatly affects the effectiveness of persistent changes.

Warning Tangents Ahead!!!

More After The Jump!

WICBT: What is your spoiler policy?

In this weeks Community Blog Topic the WoW Insider crew takes a look at spoiler policy. My opinion has changed recently over the last couple years. Pre-LFR I would have been fine with end of content spoilers, especially knowing that I may never personally see them with my guilds slow progression (they are good people though). However with the advent of LFR I think the safe time period to discuss major lore spoilers is once the last LFR wing is released, because at that point it is safe to assume that everyone who wants to see it for themselves has.

My personal policy in avoiding trolls wanting to spoil things for me, /leave 2 and I avoid the comment sections of The Queue.

WICBT: Would you play on an expansion specific server?

Over the last few weeks the good 'ole topic of Expansion based servers has popped back up like that annoying soul stoned lock in battlegrounds. I am torn on this one, although I do think it would be awesome especially for players who never got to experience certain expansions as they were. Myself having started at the launch of the Burning Crusade would love to go back and experience the original the way it was before TBC.

However it wouldn't work. People would begin to complain about the absence of many of the quality of life changes since TBC. They would be unhappy with the lack of support and new content. I think the raid scaling if implemented will do some to curb the need for expansion based servers and I actually look forward to that feature when it does finally come.

All that being said I think when WoW is finally a finished product (i.e. no more content releases) I could see Blizzard having specific expansion servers available and sell them separate from WoW in a Pay for game but free to play type system like GW2.