Blog Azeroth

An Ombudsman is basically an individual who brings forward concerns, complaints, and issues to and from one group to another. Historically speaking, an Ombudsman acts as an objective voice between a private group of individuals and an organization. The best example of a current Ombudsman is Le Anne Schreiber at Espn. If you take the time to read her archives, which I recommend, you will see she does not takes sides. She gives Espn and their viewers a voice and her writing ability along with keen investigative techniques keeps everyone in check. Yes, there are actually jobs out there that allow you to get paid to absolutely bash your employer at times.

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So where does this all fit with myself and World of Warcraft (WoW)? I may never truly find this answer however I embrace the work ahead needed to qualify why I am taking on this task. I want to provide a voice and a venue between the players of the game and all the organizational parts that create, design, maintain, affect, effect and foresee operations in and out of WoW. To be honest, I will be "winging" this as I go and mistakes will be made but I also hope to open some eyes. Admitting to myself and to the public that I will not please every reader will allow me to write effectively to my audience but also challenge me to put all I can into my writing.

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I was introduced to MMORPGs during the launch of Everquest. While occasionally fun, the first few months of Everquest were a painfully numbing experience. I eventually moved on to Star Wars Galaxies where I was one of the first Jedi (holo-grinding). While I won't say Star Wars Galaxies was a disaster I will say it did not come close to reaching its potential. I eventually quit playing MMORPGs to focus on other opportunities outside of a virtual world.

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My experience in WoW begins in 2003. Unexpectedly, I was able to get into an early beta (maybe even alpha) version of the game via a friend of the family. No auction house, no mail system, no mounts, no hunters, rogues could use bucklers, SM was endgame, and the list goes on and on. Even in those early stages you could tell quality players and thoughtful design were creating a foundation for what the game is today. Once WoW came out in 2004 I was curious to see what other MMORPGs had to offer. I was involved with Everquest 2 for a short period of time and while it was a fun, eye-opening experience it could not compare to WoW in terms of overall design and potential. I picked up 2 copies of WoW shortly after my Everquest 2 experience and haven’t looked back. While there have been a few short breaks here and there, I've played WoW nightly since 2004. I've had varying levels of gameplay in WoW (hardcore raiding, pvp for titles and gear, multi-boxing) as well as many political\immoral experiences (guild leadership, casuals vs. raiders, pugs, gold buying, power leveling services).

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While I do not feel the need to thoroughly prove myself to the WoW community, there are other assets I have acquired over the years to give an opinionated but objective view of WoW. My day job consists of simplifying technical details and presenting it to people with MBAs and fancy titles so they can understand and make solid decisions. Other parts of my day are usually spent in design and architecture mode eyeballing a command prompt. I do have some graduate school under my belt, taught MS Office in a maximum security prison, spent my late teenage years absorbing European culture, survived POW school, and played Rugby for the Army. While all those bells and whistles of my life makes me smile, nothing brings me more joy than my family. Husband and a father of 2 girls, I know the remainder of my life will be filled with teenage boys, PMS, and menopause.

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So why take on the title of WoW Ombudsman? Call it an overwhelming desire to write passionately about something I am passionate about. Having been through most of what WoW can offer I feel it is time to offer something back to WoW and its community. Whether or not the powers at be and the readers actually find this information useful is out of my control. All I can do is investigate, learn, write about my findings, and let the copper pieces fall where they may. There really is no goal or end to in this adventure, just the journey which I anticipate to be harder than I imagined but eagerly welcome with open arms.