Pet Idea: Gurubashi Loa Bijous

A "bijou" is a trinket or jewel, and is used in WoW for Troll rituals to certain Loa, or to perform certain powers (specifically Jungle Troll).  The most famous use of a bijou was Min'loth, and players would obtain Hakkari Bijous in vanilla Zul'Gurub for reputation.  But, what if bijous were items that would grant you pets?  Here are some examples of Loa statues that could make perfect pets - Gurubashi edition.

Shirvallah Bijou

Shirvallah is the Gurubashi Loa of Tigers.  More people have become aware of the Tiger God because of the new level 100 talent in WoD: Claws of Shirvallah.  It will grant players the ability to become a cat-man, much like High Priest Thekal used to do in old ZG.  Except, the talent will transform people into Saberon, which is basically an updated version of the old ZG transformation.  The pet, however, could use the old model to still show it off and be relevant.  It is, after all, unique!

The Shirvallah Bijou could be a humanoid pet.  It would be an idol found in the outside version of ZG in the general area where Thekal used to stand.  Looting the bijou would grant you the pet at a 100% drop rate.  The bijou would contain a small essence of Shirvallah's power, making the trinket seem alive.  Even though it could be a humanoid pet, it could have mostly beast moves.  The Panther Cub has many abilities that would fit, and are quite balanced for the typical type of moves pets would have in battle.

Outside of battle, the Shirvallah Bijou could randomly roar, causing nearby critters to flee in fear.

Shadra Bijou

One of my personal favorite characters, ever, in WoW is High Priestess Mar'li, the chosen champion of Shadra, the Spider Loa.  Shadra is revered by most (if not all) Troll tribes and empires.  I hope to see more of Mar'li in the future, perhaps joining the Darkspear after surviving death again due to Shadra's blessing.  But I digress...

The Shadra Bijou could be found in the outside version of ZG, where Shadra's place of worship once was.  Alternatively, it could be found anywhere in the top tier of Jintha'Alor, where they are shown to revere the Venom Queen as well.  The model itself could be the same model as Shadra as shown in the Hinterlands, or Mar'li's model from old ZG when she transforms with Shadra's power.  Either would be perfectly suitable.

The Shadra Bijou could be a critter or humanoid pet (depending on model).  The abilities of the pet could be similar to any spider pet already in-game, such as the Giant Bone Spider from Naxxramas.  Outside of battle, the pet itself could trap nearby critters in webs for a short amount of time, much like the hunter talent Narrow Escape.

Hethiss Bijou

Hethiss is the Gurubashi Snake Loa.  In-game, High Priest Venoxis has been the champion of the Snake Loa since vanilla, and he was resurrected in Cataclysm.  He transforms in the fight into a snake-man, harnessing the power of Hethiss.  Since we have no pet with the snake-man model, it would be much more unique and fun for people than an Emerald Boa, which is presumably what Hethiss would look like in his chosen form.

The Hethiss Bijou could be a beast type, thus having moves like Bite, Hiss, and Vicious Fang like most snake pets.  Other such snake pet moves would be suiting as well.  The bijous itself could be found near Venoxis' area in the outside version of ZG, where you fight in a quest, and defeat him in the instance.

Outside of battle the pet could summon forth a Pool of Acrid Tears on nearby critters, much like Venoxis does in the ZG instance.

Hir'eek Bijou

Hir'eek is the Gurubashi Loa of bats.  Troll druids use his power for their Swift Flight Form, and Hir'eek is called upon in Stranglethorn Vale to help adventurers fly around and observe the happenings in Zul'Gurub.  In vanilla, High Priestess Jeklik was the champion of the Bat God, and used Hir'eek's power to transform into a unique model, which was based off the gargoyle models.  To date, it is still unique, and hasn't been used for anything else.  That model would be perfect (since we also do not have a gargoyle pet).

The Hir'eek Bijou would be looted from the outside version of ZG, in the place where Jek'lik once fought adventurers in the original raid.  In the revamped dungeon, that area is blocked off.  The pet would drop 100% of the time from a small bat totem.

The pet would be a flying type, having mostly bat moves, similar to the Tirisfal Batling.  Outside of battle, the pet could screech periodically, causing nearby players to be startled (like the Darkmoon Whistle).

Bethekk Bijou

Bethekk is the Gurubashi Loa of panthers.  The pet's model could use either a generic panther, or the humanoid transformation used by both Arlokk and Kilnara in ZG (I wanted to post that picture, but it's glitched in WoWhead at the moment).  Fitting with the theme of most other bijous, I'd suggest the female "Tigon" model.  Like the others, as well, the bijou could be looted from a small totem or statue in the Temple of Bethekk in the outside version of ZG.

The pet could be a beast type, using most of the same moves as the Panther Cub, like the Shirvallah Bijou at the top of the post.  Outside of battle, the pet could periodically stealth and pounce on a nearby critter.

Hakkar Bijou

Hakkar the Soulflayer is somewhat questionable as a Loa.  He is a "Blood God" that may be related to the Old Gods, and is related somehow to the Nightmare in the Emerald Dream.  It is because of Hakkar that the Zandalari decided to have adventurers raid Zul'Gurub in vanilla.  Adventurers also put an end to the Atal'ai_tribe in the Temple of Atal'Hakkar, and try to stop Hakkar from being resurrected there.  However, he already has bijous that were obtained in the original Zul'Gurub raid, used for Zandalar reputation.  One such bijou could yield a pet with a small model of him, obtained in a new way of course.

The pet could be looted from a statue of Hakkar, or a totem.  The totem/statue would be located in the outside version of ZG, at the central temple.  Alternatively, it could be looted in or near the Sunken Temple, since there are plenty of places inside and outside the instance for the statue to stand.  

It would be either an undead or magic pet, and could have several abilities related to blood.  Some abilities that come to mind are Plagued Blood, Drain Blood, and Bloodfang.  Other moves that would fit into Hakkar's lore would be acidic or undead moves that leech life.  He could even have a new move based on the famous Corrupted Blood indicent, where other pets in the battle could get the debuff dot as well.  Outside of battle, Hakkar could randomly summon a tiny Son of Hakkar that would fly around for a few minutes and disappear.

I'll cover other Loa in future posts.  Let me know what you think on Twitter!

Pet Idea: Dog Breeds - Part 2

Last time I spoke about racial pets for every playable race, but what about all those neutral NPCs and factions we meet along the way?  Wouldn't all the other wonderful cultures have their own breeds in Azeroth, Draenor, and beyond?  They would be obtainable by various NPCs that would be willing to sell them to the adventurers in WoW.  Here are a few ideas.

Mogu
Krasarang Mastiff (Shar Pei)
Kun-Lai Lion Dog (Chow Chow)
-The Shar Pei could easily work with the Gilnean Mastiff model.  The Lucky Quilen Cub already looks like a Chow Chow - it could be recolored, or be given a more unique model with the same animations.  Both dog breeds are well-known for having iffy temperaments, and would fit the "Mogu" way of life perfectly.

Grummle
Kun-Lai Mastiff (Tibetan Mastiff)
Townlong Spaniel (Tibetan Spaniel)
-While the Grummles are based much more off the Sherpa people of Nepal, both dog breeds fit them perfectly.  The Tibetan Mastiff was also known to be bred in Nepal, which is fitting.  The Tibetan Spaniel could fit well with the lore about Grummles that went to Townlong to find yaks - they could have found the breed and decided to sell them as well.

Vrykul
Fjord Elkhound (Norwegian Elkhound)
Ymirjar Spitz (Samoyed)
-Being a Norwegian dog, it fits well to have them with a race that was based off ancient Norse people.  Likewise, the Samoyed fits well with the rough-and-tumble Vrykul, as well as the surroundings in Northrend.

Tuskarr
Kamagua Spitz (Greenland Dog)
Borean Husky (Siberian Husky)
-The models could simply be recolors of each other, as they do look very similar.  There are also plenty of other Husky breeds with similar coat patterns and slightly different colors.  They fit well into the Tuskarr way of life, and could easily be used as a mount of sled dogs as well.

Shandaral (Northrend Night Elves)
Shandaral Spitz (Korean Jindo)
-Could be a recolor of the racial Night Elf dogs I mentioned before.  Fits well, and would look different enough to warrant an obtainable recolor that anyone could get, regardless of faction.

Tol'vir
Uldum Hound (Pharaoh Hound)
Setesh Hound (Tesem)
-Pharaoh Hounds are not actually from Ancient Egypt, but Malta instead.  They look a lot like the Tesem, the dog of Ancient Egypt which looked much like a Set animal.  Set was the inspiration for the Uldum Watcher Setesh.  Basically, the Setesh Hound would be a stone version of the Uldum Hound.

Gadgetzan
Tanari (Saluki)
-Thought to perhaps be related to the aforementioned Set animal, the Saluki is an iconic Middle Eastern dog.  In-game, the Tanari could be thought to be related to Uldum Hounds.  The Goblins of Gadgetzan could have found these dogs in Tanaris, and started to sell them for their own profit.

Naga
Dog-Fish
-No, not a real dog breed at all.  At least, our characters don't think so, but who would argue with the standards of the ACC (Azeroth Canine Club)?  It would offer a fun and silly dog type, compared to all the true dog breeds that have potential to be added in-game.  Or, it could be terrifying.

Stromgarde
Arathi Wolfhound (Irish Wolfhound)
Stromgarde Shepherd (German Shepherd)
-The kingdom of Stromgarde is known for owning the land/city that belonged to the oldest known human empire - Arathor.  As such, the Irish Wolfhound is quite fitting, considering the setting and all the dangers in the highlands.  Also, the German Shepherd is a very iconic dog breed that would fit well into Arathi's landscape.

Kul Tiras
Tiranese (Maltese)
Boralus Hound (Ibizan Hound)
-I imagine Kul Tiras being a beautiful mixture of Mediterranean, Spanish, and Italian architecture.  Canal-streets in Boralus like Venice, orange and lemon groves in the countryside like Sicily, mosaics similar to the ones found in Malta, and basilicas like the Sagrada Família of Barcelona.  As such, the Maltese and Ibizan Hound fit Kul Tiras very well.  The Maltese could also be a recolor of the Duskhaven Terrier mentioned in my last post (if that was ever implemented as well, of course).

Dalaran
Ambermill Spaniel (Cocker Spaniel)
Dalaran Spaniel (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel)
-I noticed a distinct lack of spaniels in my list, and Dalaran is a good place to put them.  They mix well with other human kingdom dog breeds (mostly chosen from European and American backgrounds).  Plus, spaniels tend to be cute as heck.

Draenor Orc
Talador Spitz (Basenji)
Tanaan Sighthound (Azawakh)
-Both the aforementioned African breeds fit well with the Orcs, and would behave similarly to the Australian breeds mentioned before.  Basenji are very similar to Dingoes in the fact that they are both Pariah dogs.  Both breeds fit well into the Orcish lifestyle we've seen so far in WoD (i.e., #savage).

What do you think?  Any dog breeds you'd like to see that weren't listed?  How would you like to earn dog pets?  Let me know on Twitter!

Pet Idea: Dog Breeds

Over the course of WoW's history, plenty of pets have been implemented.  Plenty of cats, rats, moths, crocs, fish, and everything else under the sun.  However, we've only had two actual dog breeds obtainable in-game: the Perky Pug and Alterac Brew-Pup (St. Bernard).  Lately, it was announced on Twitter that a Molten Corgi would be added in WoD.  The Frostwolf Ghostpup from Archaeology in WoD is *technically* a dog in my eyes, but is more a "canine", along with other wolves, worgs, foxes, etc.

The regular Corgi (pictured above) has been in-game for a long time, outside the Greench's cave during Winter's Veil as a windup toy - never added as a regular pet to obtain.  It may not ever be added at this point, now that there's a fiery version in the works.  There was also a Gilnean Mastiff added in Cataclysm, never made into a battle pet.

The last technical dog pet is the Lucky Quilen Cub, which is based off of a Chinese Foo Dog, which is thought to be the progenitor of the Chow Chow, Pug, Shih Tzu, etc.  Indeed, it does bark like a dog, play like a dog, and look like a Chow Chow.

But, what other dog breeds could there be?  Where would they fit in?  What animations could they have?  That's what I'm here to brainstorm!

First off, there could be several pets for every single playable race.  They could be bought from vendors in several locations, requiring no rep.  Most (if not all) would be battle pets, as well.  Since it has taken so long to add in dogs as pets, I would hope they would be fairly easy to obtain.  Between the Perky Pug, Lucky Quilen Cub, Brew-Pup/Mastiffs, Wolves, Foxes, Hyenas, Darkhounds, and others, there are plenty of animations already in-game that can be applied to other dog breeds in the future, and some can simply be added as a pet as-is.  All the dogs would be usable on either faction, much like the Argent Tournament pets.

Here is the list of real dog breeds that can be renamed in wow, and be applied to different races!

Human
Stormwind Terrier (Boston Terrier)
Stone Cairn Terrier (Cairn Terrier) - Tito could have his model changed to this as well.
-The Cairn Terrier fit well, due to the fact that Stormwind's territory has a literal cairn, which the dog could be named after.  Boston Terriers are cute, and for whatever reason, they just fit with Stormwind in my eyes.  Plus that's my dog in real life.  Someday I'll have my Daisy in-game.

Orc
Nagrand Shepherd (Australian Shepherd)
Gorgrond Dingo (Dingo)
-I thought that Australian breeds would fit the Orcs best.  After all, what's more #savage than a Dingo as a racial pet?  The Nagrand Shepherd fits well into the Mag'har way of life in the main timeline Outland.

Night Elf
Moonglade Spitz (Shiba Inu)
Winterspring Spitz (Akita Inu)
Goldrinn Spitz (Shikoku Inu)
-Since the Night Elves take some inspiration from Japanese and Korean culture, the three "inu" dogs fit perfectly.  The "Goldrinn Spitz" could have the lore that it was a Moonglade Spitz that Goldrinn had blessed, thus the wolf-like appearance!

Forsaken
Tirisfal Retriever (Golden Retriever)
Hearthglen Labrador (Yellow Lab)
Stratholme Retriever (Black Lab)
-Lordaeron always came off to me like a pretty standard fantasy game kingdom...before the plague, of course.  As such, the most generic iconic dogs should go to the now-residents of the broken kingdom.  The lore for all three breeds could be tied to the Scarlet Crusade keeping them pure, and that Darkhounds in Tirisfal and the Plaguelands were once these dogs as well.

Gnome
Gnomeregan Yipper (Chihuahua)
Mechanomutt (Mechanical Chihuahua)
-Gnomes (and Goblins, as seen below) were very simple.  Take iconic, fun dogs, and make a mechanical version of them.  Of course, Gnomeregan is in quite cold conditions compared to where Chihuahuas are from in real life....maybe that's why they shiver all the time?  The lore for the mechanical version could be that they started making the Mechanomutt after Gnomeregan became irradiated when the Yipper population suffered.  Now the Yipper population is fine, and there are also mechanical versions for mess-free pets!

Goblin
Kezatian (Dalmatian)
Electromutt (Mechanical Dalmatian)
-This dog breed was simple to think of.  What are Goblins known for?  Explosions and fires.  How are Dalmatians depicted?  On firetrucks.  The lore's already written for them.  Electromutts (or, Electrohounds - on the fence with that name) could have been built to compete with the Gnomes' Mechanomutt.

Draenei
Great Argus Hound (Great Dane)
-Only one breed for the Draenei, but it fits them.  They're big, noble, loyal, and muscular...both Draenei and Great Danes, that is.

Tauren
Mulgore Plainshound (Native American Indian Dog)
-There are many European and Australian hunting/herding dogs out there, but I wanted to find something much more Native American.  This dog breed looks (and behaves) very much like it would fit into the Tauren lifestyle.

Dwarf
Kharanos Spitz (Pomeranian)
Highland Grasshound (Dachshund)
Shadowforge Hound (Doberman Pinscher)
-I chose to find three German dogs for the Dwarves, one for each clan.  The Pomeranian fits into the Bronzebeard as a pet.  The Dachshund fits extremely well into the Wildhammer way of life, and the style of hunting and land they hunt on.  The Dark Irons needed a tough dog for their tough lifestyle, and the Doberman fits perfectly, due to its reputation.  The Shadowforge Hound could be an uncorrupted version of the Bloodhounds found in Blackrock Depths.

Blood Elf
Eversong Bulldog (French Bulldog)
Silvermoon Poodle (Poodle)
Pink Poodle
-The Blood Elves and French fit together perfectly.  They both enjoy the finer things in life, have some of the most beautiful cities in the world, and speak fancy as hell (...unlike me, apparently).  French dog types fit into Blood Elf society well.  They could have had Asian Spitz-type dogs, to show their connection to Night Elven culture, but Poodles and Frenchies are adorable.

Worgen
Gilnean Bulldog (already in game)
Duskhaven Terrier (Yorkshire Terrier)
Curious Corgi (pictured at the top)
-Gilneans already have a dog breed, Blizzard just needs to add it in.  Yorkies are adorable, and a VERY English dog breed.  They fit in well with Gilneans.  The Corgi is a Welsh dog breed, but would fit well into Gilnean lifestyle as well.  As with the Bullmastiffs of Gilneas, they simply need to add it in as a dog breed.

Troll
Zandalar Hound (Puli)
Amani Hound (Komondor)
Gurubashi Hound (Bergamasco Shepherd)
-Even though both the Komondor and Puli are Hungarian breeds (the Bergamasco is Italian), their appearance couldn't be more perfect for the Trolls of Azeroth.  All three would be common dog breeds among all Trolls on Azeroth, descended from Zandalar.

Pandaren
Black Pug
Pandarese (Pekingese)
-The Black Pug would be perfect for the Pandaren.  There's already a model, sounds, and battle pet abilities... it just needs to be recolored!  The Pekingese is related to the Pug through the Foo Dog, and is basically just a long-haired Pug.  It could use the same sounds and animations.

Next post I'll make will be about more dog breeds from neutral locations.

What do you think?  Let me know on Twitter!

Pet Idea: Hellhound Pups

There are many models of Hellhounds that were datamined for patch 4.2.  Some of them have been used in Firelands, Ragefire Chasm, and even Battlefield: Barrens.  Yet, there has never been one as a pet (or even a rare hunter pet).  Here are a couple of colors that could work as pets, and their possible drops!

Ashen Hellhound Pup

This pet is a darker red variant with red fire.  It could be an elemental pet that drops from Hellhounds in the Firelands, or perhaps drop from Shannox if/when there's a "Raiding With Leashes" for the Firelands.   It could definitely be a fairly high drop rate.  It could be about the size of the Alterac Brew-Pup when used as a pet walking around.

As far as moves, it could have several dog and fire moves already in-game.  Burn, Conflagrate, Magma Wave, Volcano, Bite, and Call the Pack are several very fitting moves.

Fel Hellhound Pup

A green variant of the regular Hellhound, which makes a perfect Burning Legtion version.  Alternatively, it could be called a [Corrupted Hellhound Pup] and drop from Adarogg in Ragefire Chasm.  There's a good possibility it would fit into Warlords of Draenor, as well, considering there is an area with these fel-tainted hellhounds in Talador, as pictured below.  It could definitely drop from one of those, if they stay as permanent mobs after release.

It would be an elemental pet, as well, and have the same moves as the other pup.  It could have Bite replaced with Diseased Bite, however.

What do you think?  Love it?  Hate it?  Let me know on Twitter!
(Models thanks to Wowhead, screenshot thanks to Adriacraft)

Pet Idea: Elune Idol & Pygmy Punk

Even though I only made my first post a little while ago about the revamped purpose of the blog, I might as well get started.  I vowed I'd use this blog, and use it I shall!


Elune Idol

The Elune Idol is a pet I would love to see.  The model itself could be based on the Cover of the Keepers from Ulduar - the druid tier from that raid.  The animations could simply be like the Darkmoon Eye - floating above/behind the player character.

The pet would be looted from a statue in various temples that were once in honor of Elune - Azshara, Desolace, Vashj'ir, etc.  The item it would be looted from would be the statue of Elune's Handmaiden, often seen in places of Elune's worship.  The statue itself could be a random spawn in any of those areas, and award the pet at a 100% drop rate.  I don't think it would matter one way or another if the pet was tradeable or not - it would be fairly easy to get either way in that case.

Of course, it would be a battle pet, as well!  There are already moon-based moves that would fit it, such as Moonlight, Moonfire, Moon Tears, and Moon Dance.  Two other moves that would fit it well are Light and Beam.  Though, I suspect that combination of moves could be slightly overpowered in some cases.  However, it would easily fit as a magic-type pet based on these abilities.


Pygmy Punk

It's absolutely no secret that I want a pygmy pet.  I love the pygmies.  They're just awesome.  They have awesome sounds, awesome models, and their lore actually fits into Goblin lore as it is now - and I do love my Gobbins!

The Pygmy Punk would have a very basic, generic pygmy model, as seen above.  It would be slightly smaller than a regular pygmy, and perhaps a little larger than Clock'em.  I wouldn't complain if it was as large as a regular pygmy, however - large pets are always fun.

The Pygmy Punk could come from a quest added in eastern Uldum or western Tanaris.  The Pygmy himself could offer the quest near the tomb in the entrance of Uldum.  He would be unlike his fellow pygmies, wanting to see outside of the desert and get along with the other races of Azeroth.  On his journey, he would need several coconuts (as noted in this quest) to buy supplies before he leaves.  You go take out nearby pygmies (which are killed anyway for this quest), and loot their coconuts.  Upon returning to the pygmy, he notes he doesn't have any idea where to travel, and how to get anywhere.  He then claims he'll join you.  Your reward will be the [Pygmy Punk] battle pet.

As a battle pet, he could have several humanoid and sand-based moves.  Some moves that come to mind are Punch, Kick, Clobber, Sand Bolt, Quicksand, and Sandstorm.

What do you guys think of the ideas?  Let me know at @PrinceMirage!

Revamping the Blog: Ideas

A while back (like, 2+ years ago) I had created the blog to talk about pets, lore, and random theories in World of Warcraft.  I never used it.  I had a little over a dozen posts, ever, and some of them were simply "I haven't written in a long time!  I'll get better at it!"

...I do realize this is one of those posts.

I've decided that this blog will still be dedicated to lore and battle pets, but in a much more hands-on way.  I'm actually going to use the blog more.  I'm actually going to put in pictures, and demonstrate what I want to do with the blog and my thoughts in the future.

So, what will this blog be used for?  Ideas, and what I'd like to see in the future of WoW.  Dozens upon dozens of pet and lore ideas roll through my head for the future of WoW, and I simply mention them on Twitter to the people that make those decisions, but I can't truly explain myself well enough with Twitter's limited amount of text.  Here, I can truly explain what I'd like to see, and how it could be implemented.

I don't want to come off like my ideas are better than anyone else's - that's not the case at all.  However, I have been a pet collector since my first week in WoW (all the way back in Vanilla), and the lore in very interesting to me.  If I worked for a video game company, I'd love to see what the fans would want to see - especially if they know what they're talking about.

Will I still use the blog for other random personal thoughts?  Yes.  Will I still discuss current things happening in WoW?  Yes.  It'll still be, after all, a blog.

My next post will, in fact, be a pet idea I've been holding onto for a long time, and even suggested on Twitter recently.  I'll probably have another pet idea, as well.

If you read this (and I hope you do!) feel free to follow me on Twitter (@PrinceMirage), and thank you for randomly looking at my World of Warcraft blog.  See you all more in the future!