Five reasons to like Bears

World of Warcraft's portrayals of things are noticeably cartoony when compared to real life equivalents. Bears and druids in Bear Form are no different, being any combination of cute, adorable, cuddly, pitiable and likeable.

This regular will dissect the art of various characters to identify some features that appeal to the inner child.

1. Wide abdomen
A wide figure appeals to the touch when hugging, especially if it is soft and plushy. There is little question to why bear hugs, in particular, feel so nice!

Ulduar Protocol

I have seen worlds bathed in the Makers' flames. Their denizens fading without so much as a whimper. Entire planetary systems born and raised in the time that it takes your mortal hearts to beat once... A million, million lives wasted. Had they all held within them your tenacity? Had they all loved life as you do?

Algalon's dying breath

Considering the tremendous amount of history contained in the Storm Peaks, it might be worth finding out how Ulduar got there. A history of Azeroth's defense mechanisms follows. It all started during the Ordering...

Parasitic, necrophotic symbiotes
Azeroth was not as peaceful and beautifully formed as it currently is. Before the Titans' arrival, the elements would rage across the world in endless conflict, and the Old Gods would exact chaos upon it.

Random Ramblings to 8 August 2009

Archivist
A person who maintains the material in an archive. This can involve collecting, organising and assessing the records. Among their skills, they show expertise in preserving the physical media on which information is contained. In WoW, Auriaya is the archivist for the secrets of Ulduar.

Information asymmetry
A concept in economics which suggests that buyers and sellers in a real-world market cannot find each other easily (lacking information about each others' presence). One needs to search for the other before a trade can occur. However, doing extra searching will come at a cost, so these costs should be balanced against the benefits expected in deciding which to do.

Archavon's Parade

Which better way to Wintergrasp's Titan Relic than a beeline? The Scourge successfully employed this strategy in invading the Sunwell, after all (though their sheer numbers may have had something to do with it). This 160-man raid may now be trying to squeeze through an instance portal to Archavon...


It would be interesting to note Blizzard's use of perspective in this shot (where parallel lines seem to meet at a certain vanishing point). The above annotated image is provided for convenience.

There's Something About Lady RNG

Computerised environments intrinsically lack randomness, so a random number generator (RNG) must be used where an unpredictable result is required. In effect, the RNG works on randomly generated data provided to generate a seemingly random number. Since this piece of programming code decides your fate and destiny in WoW in several cases (just like how Fortuna (Lady Luck) decides your fate and destiny in real life), it helps to know a bit about probability!

The golden rule of probability
Probability is that branch of mathematics that deals with random phenomena to (among other things) determine how likely it will act in a certain way. It is important to know that, for truly random phenomena:

Random does not necessarily mean even or fair!

My Computer and I: Connection Degeneration

My desktop is a 3-year-old Dell Dimension 8400. It was high-end at the time it was bought, but regardless is starting to show its age. I have upgraded some of its parts since then to keep playing World of Warcraft bearable, but of course it will need to be replaced eventually.

I have had my share of computer problems with my current computer (not suggesting that Dell is necessarily a poor computer assembler, mind you). Other than high school computing studies, I have had no formal training in maintaining a computer, so I usually need to end up experimenting when something goes wrong. Without further ado...

The Problem:
World of Warcraft's latency would be satisfactory when first logging on, but would increase over time, eventually causing WoW to disconnect.

Not All Hitpoints are Created Equal

There is always question on whether the output of healing meters (healing charts) can be used in indicating a healer's performance. Unlike points of damage, where heals go matters. While everyone has use for a heal, some players will need it more than others.
 Healing meters (such as the 'Healing done' component of Recount) collect raw figures from the combat log. It becomes easy to assert, from skimming over the healing chart, that all hitpoints (HP) are created equal, with all players appreciating 1 HP of healing equally. However, I would not.

1. Factoring in absorptions
When a player inevitably takes damage, a healer can respond to it in any of two ways:

WoW Mathematics: Your guild bank donation

Aim: To calculate the value of a deposit of gold to a guild bank (gbank) that discounts sales at a given rate.

Summary:

• A donation of G gold to a gbank with a decimal discount rate of r will be worth G/r gold. This means that G is multiplied by 1/r, the reciprocal of the discount rate. Keep in mind that Full price = Discounted price + Discount.
• As long as the discount rate is less than 100%, the donation is worth more than the amount donated (even in pure money terms)!
• A gbank donation's impact will grow according to the sum of a geometric series and approach a limiting value.

The given:

• The discount rate is fixed.
• There is no cost in performing transactions and the full proceeds of a gbank sale are deposited back in.
• All gold is used in buying other resources for resale. No gold is dispensed as a repair allowance (though it can be factored into the discount rate).

The detail:
Consider a gbank deposit of G gold. It is used in buying (for example) enchanting materials worth G gold. They are sold to a guild member at a discount rate of r, so the undiscounted proportion of the price is:

1 - r

The proceeds from that sale are:

G × (1 - r) = G(1 - r) gold

The proceeds are then used for buying potions worth G(1 - r) gold. There potions are sold at a discounted price of:

G(1 - r) × (1 - r) = G(1 - r)² gold

Continuing this process for n terms, we get the following progression of values:

G, G(1 - r), G(1 - r)², G(1 - r)³, ... , G(1 - r)^{n - 1}

The geometric series 1 + 1/2 + 1/4 + ... , with its value represented by area.

This is in fact a geometric progression with common ratio (1 - r) and first term B. Note that, while the amount deposited diminishes, it keeps making an impact with each gbank sale. The total impact for n sales is the following sum of the corresponding geometric series:

S(n) = G(1 - (1 - r)ⁿ) ÷ (1 - (1 - r)) = G(1 - (1 - r)ⁿ)/r gold

As n » ∞ , (1 - r)ⁿ » 0 , and (1 - (1 - r)ⁿ) » 1 . So, the total impact approaches the following limiting value as resales are conducted repeatedly with that amount:

S(∞) = G/r gold

Here is an example. Say 100 gold is donated to a gbank with a discount rate of 25% or 1/4. That donation will be worth:

100 ÷ 1/4 = 100 × 4 = 400 gold

The Spectrum of Classes

This spectrum diagram illustrates the position of WoW's nine playable classes in the class balance. It is two-dimensional: rigour is read along the horizontal axis, while tactic is read along the vertical axis.

Rigour: Any given class uses a certain balance of physical abilities (using a weapon and/or shield) and magical abilities (casting spells) in combat. The classes to the right place an emphasis on the magical, with the priest and mage being magically pure. Classes closer to the centre are hybrids, who appreciate a combination of the magical and physical. The druid enjoys most a balance of the two rigours. The mana line divides the spectrum into those who use mana and those who use other power sources. To the left are the classes who place emphasis on the physical, with the warrior and rogue being physically pure and to the left of the mana line. Hybrid classes near the centre can tweak their respective balances through talent specialisation, though pure classes at the extremes are resolute about their respective masteries.

Tactic: Any given class uses a certain balance of tenacity and ferocity when engaging in combat. Tenacious classes will mitigate the damage taken in an attempt to outlast the opponent. The tenacious warrior will reduce the damage taken initially through heavy armour, while the tenacious priest will heal the damage that is taken. Ferocious classes maximise damage dealt to end combat as soon as possible. The rogue and mage place emphasis on this. Tactic can be tweaked by all classes through talent specialisation. The classes at the junctions (warlock and hunter) enjoy the versatility that class pets bring, so as to exercise a level of control over this balance.

It would be important to note that I cannot find a place for the new death knight class in this spectrum. This may be due to the youth in their class development; Blizzard simply has not yet found a niche that they can fill. It may suggest any of the following:

1. There are no more niches that a death knight (and future hero classes) can fill, and they are doomed to be patchworks of any of the nine original classes. In fact, death knights possess some of the qualities of paladins and warlocks.
2. The domain of the death knight and other hero classes lies outside of this spectrum.

Flagging for PvE

WoW's PvP flag is a game mechanic introduced in its earliest days, where it marks the player for player-versus-player (PvP) activity. While very simple, it also has ramifications on the player's experience of player-versus-environment (PvE) content. Needless to say, the flag does not need to be permanently up for a PvE raid.

In fact, the PvP flag should not be permanently up for a PvE raid. Patch 2.4.3 introduced the following change:

Zoning into an instance on a PvE realm will now drop your PvP flag.

The game approaches flaggable actions conservatively. While targeted attacks towards enemy players or targeted aid towards PvP-flagged friendly players will raise the flag, incidental attacks or aid will not. This means that:

• Area-of-effect (AoE) heals (e.g. Prayer of Healing) cast by an unflagged healer will not affect flagged players, unless the flagged player was targeted on spell cast.
• Raid-wide buffs (e.g. Prayer of Fortitude) cast by an unflagged buffer will not affect flagged players.
• Healing a flagged player flags the healer.
• Buffing a flagged player flags the buffer.

It would be safe to assume that a majority of players disable PvP. It is therefore best that, for a PvE raid on a PvE realm, any permanently raised PvP flag should be lowered! This is done though the player's portrait's drop-down menu shown above.

There is yet another important note for PvP flags. Many PvP quests written into the Quest Log will keep the flag up until completed or abandoned. If the flag stays up 5 minutes after disabling PvP, this may be why.

Random Ramblings to 7 July 2009

Biomolecule
A molecule that can be produced by any organism. As would be expected, they make up much of the mass of organisms. The ones used in building a cell are glycerides (making up lipids (such as fat)), nucleotides (making up DNA and RNA), amino acids (making up proteins) and saccharides (making up carbohydrates).


Sucrose, a disaccharide biomolecule found in table sugar.

Network effect
A concept in economics that describes how certain goods or services become more useful the more consumers there are consuming it. Examples include operating system software (which allow greater compatibility between computer systems) and social networking facilities (where a single consumer can meet more people where more consumers are using it).

Queen's Counsel (QC)
Barristers in Australia are lawyers who specialise in presenting cases to courts. QC is the rank of barrister higher than junior and lower than Senior Counsel (SC). They are well known for their superior expertise in presenting such cases and the exorbitant fees they charge for this privilege.

Random number generator
Program code which allows a random numerical value to be generated. It is commonly used in programs to process instructions in random ways. In WoW, a /roll slash command runs the RNG to produce a random integer between 1 and 100. I use the phrase "Lady RNG" to evoke the concept of Lady Luck.

Scanning system (of a display)
A display's screen consists of a grid of cells (pixels), where each pixel's light output can be individually changed. The display would change each pixel by scanning from left to right on a single line, then from the top line down. An interlaced scan would scan alternating lines over two passes to render a full frame. A progressive scan would scan all lines in one pass. While interlaced scanning requires less information to render a moving picture (since only half of the frame is rendered in a pass), progressive scanning avoids interline twitter (where otherwise still objects seem to jiggle up and down). The i in 1080i implies that the scanning system used is interlace, while the p in 1080p implies that the scanning system used is progressive.

Stare decisis
The doctrine of precedent in as followed by courts. It translates from Latin to "to follow previous decisions". Under this legal principle, courts are normally required to apply the details of previous court cases to the current case if the facts involved are sufficiently similar. This provides for predictability for court rulings, but (by itself) does not allow judge-made law to change in accordance with changing values held by society.

(DSL line) Synchronisation
When a DSL modem is connected to a line, its clock is initially out of sync with the clock of the DSLAM upstream. Line synchronisation is the process through which each offset their clocks so their rhythms coincide with each other. The rhythm is needed for both the modem and AM to send and receive signals properly, since the electrical pulses are to be slotted in between the regular beats. During this process, the quality of the line is also checked. Line sync is the status of when the two are properly synchronised. Line sync can be lost when excessive interference enters the line.


The regime of a DSL internet connection.

Theobromine
An alkaloid substance which is most commonly found in cocoa and chocolate, having the chemical formula C₇H₈N₄O₂. It does not contain any bromine, but rather is named after the scientific name for the cacao plant (Theobroma cacao, of which the genus is Greek for 'food of the gods'). As is can be produced when caffeine is decomposed, it is a stimulant drug (increasing nervous system activity). It is infamous for causing poisoning in animals (in particular dogs) because they cannot digest it as fast as humans can.


A stack of chocolate pieces. The brown ones contain theobromine.

The Clock-cycle Model of Chain Casting

Chain casting is an action where multiple spells are cast in succession with minimal delay between them. This is a crucial skill in raiding, where (provided that the person does not upset a mob's threat table) it improves individual performance, whether tanking, healing or dealing damage.

There are striking similarities between how one chain casts and how a computer's processor works. The following will draw parallels between the two, and may allow the chain casting process to be treated differently to frantic button-mashing. It would be important to know that the central processing unit (CPU) is the component of a computer that follows a series of instructions to produce a series of results. Only spells with cast times of some multiple of the global cooldown will be considered.

Processing an instruction <--> Spell casting
The instruction (in computing) is the atomic unit of a CPU's entire workload. the CPU can only digest one instruction at a time (though if it has n cores, it can process n instructions at the same time), and will do so in sequence.

When casting a spell, the player selects a target, decides which spell to cast and presses the appropriate button (in any order). The player does this repeatedly and sequentially while chain casting.

Clock generator <--> Global cooldown
A crystal oscillator which can provide a clock signal to a computer system.

By itself, the CPU has no concept of time and thus cannot process instructions (which take time). A clock generator provides a rhythm (the clock signal) to the CPU. As a certain amount of time passes between beats (clock cycles), the CPU can use this rhythm to perceive time. It will then process however many needed instructions in a clock cycle (or vice versa). The frequency of the clock generator is measured in hertz (Hz), or cycles per second.

The global cooldown (GCd) is the minimum time that needs to pass between spell casts, which (when not modified by Haste Rating or Bloodlust/Heroism) is 1.5 seconds. This corresponds to a frequency of 2/3 Hz. (As a side note, Haste Rating can reduce the GCd to 1 second and increase the frequency to 1Hz.) This GCd can provide a rhythm which avoids the need for button-mashing. Some long-cast spells (e.g. Greater Heal) take whole multiples of one GCd to cast, which can be spread over several multiples without losing the sense of rhythm (simply miss a few beats).

Clock multiplier <--> Chain casting ability

An interface showing a system's system clock settings.

The clock multiplier multiplies the clock rate by a certain number n, so that the clock signal actually used by the CPU is n times faster than the clock signal from the clock generator.

A novice player may be able to cast 1.5 second spells over 3 GCds (frequency of 2/9 Hz), which, if the GCd was used for the 'clock signal', would cast on a 'clock multiplier' of ~0.33.

Overclocking and resulting overheating <--> Practice and resulting fatigue
Overclocking the CPU involves setting its clock multiplier higher. This hastens the clock signal in use and causes the CPU to work faster. However, by working faster, the CPU also generates more heat. If it cannot withstand the heat, it will start introducing errors in its work.

With practice, the player can chain cast close to the maximum 'clock multiplier' of 1. However, if they keep this up, they will get tired (if done repeatedly, they may suffer burnout). In normal raiding, the practical maximum is not usually needed, and the player can afford to work suboptimally to keep their energy levels up.

Interrupt handling <--> Situational awareness
A (software) interrupt is an instruction for the CPU to stop processing a set of instructions (a process) and start processing another. It allows a single CPU to run several processes at the same time (multitask) by simply switching between them.

Raid encounters rarely involve simply casting spells at fast as possible. There are almost always random events to respond to. The player would chain cast as normal, then interrupt it to respond promptly to events needing attention. For example, a tank healer responsible for two or more tanks would need to switch constantly between them, devoting most of their attention to the target tank. Some attention would be reserved for recognising the healing needs of the other tank(s), as well as responding to the environment.

Something to consider
A Brunel University study found that working to a rhythm reduces fatigue. By casting in time with the GCd (or some other rhythm), less energy will be used and the player will be able to more easily sustain their performance in a raid.

Playing the Blame Game

For many frustrated raiding groups, there are boss NPC encounters that stump them so many times. Those bosses might allow only a small margin of error; no matter how much knowledge and experience those players possess, a simple mistake made by any of them can snowball into a wipe. While still existing in all encounters, it is these ones that causation is most evident.

Simply, causation is the relationship between an event and its effect, such that the event causes the effect. Using this concept while diagnosing a raid wipe, the effect of the wipe can be credited to the event of a particular person's (or persons') misconduct (and therefore can be identified as something to avoid next attempt) if a causal relationship can be established.

Consider the following...
To demonstrate this type of troubleshooting, I will use a theoretic (though still plausible) attempt under the Archimonde encounter in the Battle for Mount Hyjal raid, the encounter in which causation may be the most evident. It would be important to note that, at level 70, the typical nontank health is ~7500. Archimonde has the following abilities:

• Air Burst; Tears of the Goddess. The affected will die from fall damage if the fall is not interrupted.
• Fear
• Doomfire
• Soul Charge/Soul Charge/Soul Charge; Archimonde casts one of these any time after he gains a Soul Charge buff from a player death.
• Grip of the Legion, producing a curse-dispellable debuff.
• Finger of Death and Hand of Death, which Archimonde cast to expedite the wiping process. (I have had my share of crude jokes about these abilities.)

Consider the following plausible scenario, where A is Archimonde, B and C are dps, H is a tank healer and T is the tank:

A casts Air Burst on B. B fails to break their fall (using Tears or otherwise) and dies from fall damage. Archimonde gains a Soul Charge (the silencing sort), which he immediately uses and cuts every nontanks' health by half. A then inflicts H with Grip, which C, who is the only curse dispeller in range, cannot dispel under the silence. A then casts Fear, making H run out of range of C into a Doomfire. H cannot heal through this much damage and dies. T is left vulnerable and A gains another Soul Charge. A uses it and kills both T and all melee dps. A starts spamming Finger of Death, eventually leading to a wipe.

Follies in diagnosing the raid wipe
The raid, diagnosing this wipe, would reasonably ignore all events after the tank's death and attribute the fault to the healer, who caused T's death by insufficient healing. (In the extreme case, T would be blamed for the wipe because they died!) Unfortunately, doing only this will not provide a full picture of the attempt. The insufficent healing was under extenuating circumstances, after all!

Diagnosing the raid wipe by buck passing

A buck and a set of playing cards used in poker.

H is now said to hold the buck. If H can attribute their fault to someone else's fault through causation, they are said to pass the buck, with such an action being called buck passing. Under buck passing between players, the buck will ultimately stop at a single player or group of people, who can be deemed ultimately at fault.

It would important to note that the effect of a preceding event is also the event of the succeeding effect. The following series of events can be constructed from the scenario, ordered according to reverse chronology and linked by causation:

1. There is no one in melee range alive after the second Soul Charge and, after A's spamming Finger of Death, the raid wipes.
2. T fails to receive sufficient healing and dies.
3. H suffers unhealable Grip and Doomfire damage and dies.
4. C is silenced from the Soul Charge and H is Feared out of range, so C cannot dispel H's Grip.
5. B fails to break their fall when A casts Air Burst on them and dies, earning A a Soul Charge.

From this, the following series of causation can be derived:

1. The raid wiped because the T was dead and not reducing A's damage to the raid in general.
2. T was dead and not reducing A's damage to the raid in general because H was dead and not healing.
3. H was dead and not healing because H suffered unhealable damage from Grip and Doomfire, which would have been healable if C dispelled Grip.
4. H suffered unhealable damage from Grip and Doomfire, which would have been healable if C dispelled Grip, because C was silenced by the Soul Charge from B's death, and by the time C could cast spells again, H was feared out of range.
5. C was silenced by the Soul Charge from B's death, and by the time C could cast spells again, H was feared out of range because ...

The series of events and causation can be merged into a chain of fault, which allows for a buck to be passed along it. By the time the diagnosis reaches point 5., the buck would have stopped at B, where B cannot blame anyone else. Here is where the ultimate fault rests, because if it were not for this player's action, the whole chain of events would not have happened! The raid would then consider this something to learn from and maybe would even discipline the player at ultimate fault.

Junctions of preceding causations
Could anyone along the series of events have introduced their own fault along the way, continuing the chain of events? If they did not introduce the fault, could the chain of events have terminated? Certainly (e.g. considering event 4., if C did not notice a 0.5 sec window of opportunity to dispel the curse from a H barely in range), but these can be ignored for any of the following reasons:

• The preceding causation would have made it unreasonable for this person to have acted properly, e.g. if C was too distracted at considering the Soul Charge that they did not notice said window of opportunity.
• A properly established causation can make said fault insignificant, and the chain of events would proceed the same way even if it did not exist.
• For all practical purposes, the possible said fault is unlikely to happen. Whether it actually does is out of the scope of ordinary World of Warcraft raiding and can (depending on disposition) be predicted by divination or actuarial science.

What if a proper causation holds yet the extra fault stays significant, if both (or more) were required for the series of events to continue? For example, considering event 3., there was in fact a second healer nearby (named J) which made the damage unhealable because they were not healing H? 3. then becomes a junction of two preceding causations: had C dispelled H's curse, J's healing would not have been needed, and had J healed H, C's dispel would not have been needed (at least for the meantime). Here, the buck splits into two, and they are passed up two separate branches of series of causation: while the raid figures out why Grip was not dispelled, they are, at the same time, figuring out why J was not healing H. The chain of fault then becomes a tree of fault.

Groups at fault
Consider causation 5. Say that B, while Air Bursted, was whispered to by another player D who was warning them (at the very last minute!) that they were airborne. This whisper distracted B so B ended up not interrupting their fall. There is then this following segment of the chain of events:

1. B fails to break their fall when A casts Air Burst on them and dies, earning A a Soul Charge.
2. D whispers to B about the Air Burst and B becomes distracted.

There is then the following chain of causation:

1. B fails to break their fall when A casts Air Burst on them and dies, earning A a Soul Charge because D whispered B about the Air Burst, distracting B from breaking their fall.
2. D whispered B about the Air Burst, distracting B from breaking their fall because D anticipated B to fail to break their fall when A casts Air Burst on them and die, earning A a Soul Charge.
3. B, as a matter of fact, fails to break their fall when A casts Air Burst on them and dies, earning A a Soul Charge because D whispered B about the Air Burst, distracting B from breaking their fall.
4. D whispered B about the Air Burst, distracting B from breaking their fall because D anticipated B to fail to break their fall when A casts Air Burst on them and die, earning A a Soul Charge.
5. B, as a matter of fact, fails to break their fall when A casts Air Burst on them and dies, earning A a Soul Charge because D whispered B about the Air Burst, distracting B from breaking their fall.
6. etc...

In this case, the buck is endlessly passed between B and D! This signifies that a group of people are at ultimate fault, where the faults of these people (in this case, B's and D's) are mutually dependent on each other. This is despite that the chain of events does have a definite beginning. Inspecting the series of events overall, it can be observed that if this group had not been at fault, the whole series of events would not have occurred! The raid would then consider this something to learn from and maybe would even discipline the group at ultimate fault.

Of course, another person or group could have caused said group to be at fault; the group does not need to be at ultimate fault. This would extend the chain of fault further.

Methodology
The person or group at ultimate fault is the person/group who started the chain of events, and had they not done so, the chain of events as it is known to have occurred would not have existed. To find this person/group under buck passing:

1. Construct a series of events from the wipe backwards. Each event should involve a single player's actions that make them at fault, and should exclude any actions beyond player control (e.g. the boss' behaviour).
2. Construct a series of causation, connecting events together using "because" or "causes". Note where (if at all) the buck seems to pass between the same people and deal with it (no pun intended) accordingly.
3. Merge the series of events and series of causation into a chain of fault. Analyse for any junctions (where an event joins several preceding causations) and groups at fault (where members are blaming on each other) and amend the chain of fault accordingly.
4. Pass the buck up the chain of fault. Where the buck(s) stop(s), the person(s)/group(s) holding it/them are deemed to be at ultimate fault.

The Origin of (Warcraft) Species

No fantasy universe is complete without an evolutionary history of all of its living (and unliving) races. In the case of Warcraft, this is not at all uninteresting. All deviations from common ancestors can be explained in one word: corruption.

I will give a brief account of the player races of Azeroth in three logical sections, grouped according to three unique circumstances. These are:

1. The Seed Races, as created by the Titans;
2. Aliens, which more or less were introduced into the Azerothian environment;
3. The long-eared and bovine races, whose ultimate origins are not recorded by any surviving written sources.

The Seed Races

When the Lord God made the universe, there were no plants on the earth and no seeds had sprouted, because he had not sent any rain, and there was no one to cultivate the land...

Then the Lord God took some soil from the ground and formed a man out of it; he breathed life-giving breath into its nostrils and the man began to live.

Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the East, and there he put the man he had formed. He made all kinds of beautiful trees grow there and produce good fruit.

Genesis 2:7-9, GNT

Azeroth as it (mostly) is today started with the Ordering thereof. During this period, the Titans began shaping the natural features of a then chaotic world. At the same time, they created three so-called "Seed Races" from living stone, to inhabit the world: earthen, vrykul and giant. As they were made of stone, they were (in the Warcraft meaning of the word) immortal. In shaping Azeroth, the Titans encountered the Old Gods, who were innately evil and symbiotically attached to this world. In destroying the Old Gods, the Titans would also destroy Azeroth, so they were forced to imprison them deep below the surface.


The "matrix" of nucleotide building blocks in DNA.

However, the Old Gods were able to propagate the Curse of Flesh, a "matrix destabilisation". In effect, it softened many of the Seed Races, shortening their lifespans dramatically and rendering them mortal. In creating the earthen, the Titans went through three iterations. The Series One experiments were a failure, not only because the resulting form was well short of ideal, it also succumbed to the Curse. This species is currently known as the troggs. The Series Two experiments produced the intended form (that of the dwarves), but the results were still susceptible. The Titans succeeded with their goals with Series Three, giving birth to earthen proper. The earthen were able to withstand the Curse, and stay stone-like to the present.

There was only one iteration of the vrykul, which succumbed to the Curse. They survive to this day.

At some time after the Pantheon (the ruling council of the Titans) left Azeroth, Vrykul mothers gave birth to children who were noticeably smaller and physically weaker than normal. King Ymiron (vrykul society's head of state) ordered them culled, but many mothers opted to abandon them instead. These children were shipped off to the Eastern Kingdoms (they were inhabiting Northrend), where they developed as humans.

Throughout Warcraft history, the Burning Legion (a demonic nation) have been trying to conquer Azeroth. In their third bid, their Supreme Commander Kil'jaeden converted the orc warlock Ner'zhul into the Lich King and tasked him with concocting a Plague of Undeath to (among others) be spread among the citizens of Lordaeron. Ner'zhul was successful, and was able to task Kel'thuzad with transporting it to the Eastern Kingdoms. There, Kel'thuzad formed the Cult of the Damned out of oppressed Lordaeron citizens and tasked them with propagating the Plague. It would kill the infected after a typical three days, then raise them as undead beings. These would do the bidding of the Lich King, as they had lost their free will in the raising process. The playable Forsaken undead regained their free will after a Nathrezim (dreadlord) raid on Lordaeron, which somewhat waned the hold of the Lich King over many of the undead.

The giants were created by the Aesir (storm giant) Titans to help with shaping Azeroth during the Ordering and when the Titans left. The direct creations were the mountain and sea giants, who were respectively tasked with shaping mountains and seas. From the mountain giants developed the frost giants. The giants have mostly resisted the effects from the Curse of Flesh, though Archavon the Stone Watcher reports having felt a soft face on himself.

The origins of the mechagnomes are currently unknown, though most have felt the destabilising effects of the Curse. These mechagnomes developed into the current gnomes. However, Gearmaster Mechazod found a way to cure affected gnomes of this Curse, effectively returning them to their robotic selves. Most gnomes would refuse this cure.

The Aliens

The eredar race originally lived on the planet Argus. However, Sargeras, a formerly Vanir (earth giant) Titan, was seeing a folly in the Pantheon's ways and started forming the Burning Legion to reverse their work. He offered the three eredar leaders (Archimonde, Kil'jaeden and Velen) great power in exchange for their loyalty. The former two accepted, and as a result much of eredar society transformed into the man'ari eredar, who joined the Burning Legion. Archie and KJ became high-ranking officers in it.

Velen, being a prophet, foresaw horrid visions of the Legion's actions, and as a result was inclined against joining. Naturally, for conflict-of-interest reasons, Velen and the uncorrupted eredar under his care were forced to flee Argus and was chased throughout the Twisting Nether, hopping worlds until they managed to find the secluded Draenor. There, they developed into the draenei and coexisted with the native orcs.

The Legion eventually found the draenei in Draenor. They introduced warlock magic to the orcs after appealing to them and their leader the then-shaman Ner'zhul. Orcs originally have brown skin, but exposure to such demonic magics will turn it green. This will occur even in orcs that do not practice such magic but are in regular proximity to practitioners.

The Mag'har section of orc society remained untouched by corrupting fel energy. They lived in Garadar, which was originally intended as isolation from the red pox outbreak pre-dating the arrival of the Legion. Nonetheless, it also isolated these orcs from practising warlocks, and their skin remains brown to the present.

The draenei fled again from Draenor, though some opted to stay behind. These draenei were particularly susceptible to demonic corruption, and many degenerated into the Broken and Lost Ones.

Some orcs have also been drinking the corrupting blood of the pit lord Magtheridon. over time, this turns them into the current fel orcs, characterised by great physical strength, red skin and all manner of protrusions.

The long-eared and bovine races

The Zandalari trolls existed since the beginning of the world, though their creation is unknown. As troll society expanded, trolls started inhabiting different climates, eventually adapting to their respective environments. The ice trolls living in Northrend developed pale blue skin and hardy hair. The sand trolls living in Tanaris developed golden-yellow, coarse skin. The skin of forest trolls living in Lordaeron is able to support plant life. The skin of jungle trolls (of which the playable Darkspear trolls are part) is covered with nice, soft fur (they would be very nice to hug!) which produces a purple appearance.

At the centre of pre-Sundering Azeroth lay a huge inland ocean called the Well of Eternity. It radiated arcane energy from the Twisting Nether and nourished all natural life. The night elves had developed on its shores, and there is a controversial theory that the Well's energies caused them to mutate from trolls. Nevertheless, the high elves are those night elves who utilised the Well's power in arcane magic. Abuse of such led to the Great Sundering, which tore the single continent into Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms and destroyed the Well of Eternity. Arcane magic being addictive, the high elves developed peach-coloured skin. The playable blood elves are those high elves that, instead of fighting the addiction, chose to continue gorging themselves with arcane, demonic and holy satisfaction.

Some high elves were thrusted deep into the ocean during the Great Sundering. While some drowned, Queen Azshara secured an agreement with the Old Gods which allowed many to survive without air. These high elves became the naga.

The tauren and taunka are ancient races existing before recorded history. They are believed to have been created by the Earth Mother. However, there are theories equating the Earth Mother to the night elf god Elune, Therazane the Stonemother, Alexstrasza the Life-Binder (leading the Dragon Aspects), the Vanir Titan Eonar the Lifebinder and the Titans in general.

Succeeding at finding an ice block

FailBot has its uses for troubleshooting a raid wipe. However, due of the wording of its /ra output ("{Player} fails at {boss action}."), I do suspect that this AddOn was devised under a sadistic mentality. However, don't fret, as this series of guides will give help avoid these embarrassments!

Sapphiron's Frost Breath AoEs the entire area for an enormous amount of damage. If you are not careful, you can easily end up a frozen corpse lying on the floor of his cold, cold lair. There are only two ways to avoid this demise:

1. Be frozen in an ice block by Sapphiron's Icebolt.
2. Hide behind someone frozen by Icebolt, breaking line-of-sight of the epicentre.

When doing this encounter, it is a good idea to zoom the camera out, so as to get a wide view of the area. To increase the maximum range of the camera, execute the following slash commands:

/console cameraDistanceMax X
/console cameraDistanceMaxFactor Y

where X and Y are arbitrary numbers. The valid range for X is 0-50 and its default value is 15. The valid range for Y is 0-3.4 and its default value is 1.

You can tell when Frost Breath will soon be cast when Sapphiron flies up into the air (an action conveniently accompanied with a raid warning). When this happens, all players should gather in a common area (though still keeping 10 yds of distance from each other, since Icebolt also AoEs). This will ensure that everyone does not need to run too far to reach an ice block. Also keep in mind the various Chills that may be up; it is a good idea to stay away from these.

With luck, Sapphiron will distribute three ice blocks evenly over the congregation; otherwise, they should still be in technical reach. He will fire them off in succession, so it is best to wait until the second one occurs before running for one. Avoid Chill areas, since they will slow movement speed by half if afflicted.

Once behind an ice block, it is a good idea to check your line-of-sight (or lack thereof). You can do this by attempting to cast a ranged ability at Sapphiron. If you are positioned correctly, you will get an error saying that you are out of line-of-sight; otherwise, adjust your position accordingly. Just wait until the flash of blue, and you will have successfully weathered a frost wyrm's icy breath!

My Computer and I: Errors #134

Computers are only as good as people make them. Since human beings are prone to mistakes, the computer systems they build will likewise contain faults.



My desktop is a 3-year-old Dell Dimension 8400. It was high-end at the time it was bought, but regardless is starting to show its age. I have upgraded some of its parts since then to keep playing World of Warcraft bearable, but of course it will need to be replaced eventually.

I have had my share of computer problems with my current computer (not suggesting that Dell is necessarily a poor computer assembler, mind you). Other than high school computing studies, I have had no formal training in maintaining a computer, so I usually need to end up experimenting when something goes wrong. This regular will document my adventures in rectifying problems my Dimension 8400 experiences. Without further ado...

The Problem:
World of Warcraft would crash due to an Error #134.

Here is an extract from one of the many crash logs that WoW's diagnostic spat out:

World of WarCraft (build 9056)
Exe: C:\Program Files\World of Warcraft\WoW.exe
Time: Oct 23, 2008 8:46:14.671 PM
User: XXXXXXXX
Computer: XXXXXXXX
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This application has encountered a critical error:

ERROR #134 (0x85100086) Fatal Condition
Program: C:\Program Files\World of Warcraft\WoW.exe

Failed to read file DUNGEONS\TEXTURES\WALLS\BM_HFIRE_SEWER01.blp.

Debug Details:

[2] err=0 text=SFileReadFile - DUNGEONS\TEXTURES\WALLS\BM_HFIRE_SEWER01.blp - Data\expansion.MPQ
[1] err=0 text=LoadSectorTable failed
[0] err=5 text=Win32 Read - Data\expansion.MPQ
Storm Error Msg:Reached the end of the file.

Background Information:

• The variant of the Error #134 I experienced involved the system's reading a game file but failing. Unfortunately, this is still rather vague, so I had a difficult time troubleshooting it (it took a good year to resolve it).
• WoW is memory-intensive compared to other computer games in the market. A memory upgrade would likely be more cost-effective than a video card upgrade.
• Data would exist in the hard disk, hard disk controller, chipset (made up of the northbridge, southbridge and internal bus), RAM, memory controller, memory bus and graphics bus before reaching either the CPU or video card for processing. A fault in any of these components would corrupt the data in it and hence cause this error.
• I essentially needed to find out which of the said components was acting up and deal with it accordingly.

The Circumstances:

• The problem only really manifested itself after I installed the Burning Crusade expansion.
• Restarting the computer would lessen its frequency.
• A different file would fail to be read each time.
• Dalaran was a nightmare. I would crash every five minutes within its walls. I ended up binding my Hearthstone elsewhere and missed out on running Violet Hold in the meantime.

The Experience:

• Deleting the WTF, WDB and Interface folders: I will be frank; this did not work.
• Running Blizzard Repair: Unfortunately, this did not work either. However, I ran this utility multiple times and noted that the utility would find something to fix each and every time. Interestingly, this note was not needed to solve the problem.
• Updating the video card driver: This caused WoW to crash sooner. It also made the UI overlay blink at random times. I ended up rolling it back to the original (3-year-old) driver.
• Testing the RAM by running Windows Memory Diagnostic: WMD would test the memory modules to find any physical defects. The entire memory space passed, though borderline modules would act up only when working under a heavy load (like serving models and textures to WoW). WMD did not perform any stress testing, and WoW still kept on crashing.
• Testing the hard drive: To do this, I essentially copied the client onto a USB hard drive and ran it from there. The idea was: a) if WoW did not crash, it was the hard drive's (or possibly the controller's or bus') fault; or b) if WoW kept on crashing, the hard drive was fine). WoW crashed yet again.
• Replacing memory modules: By this stage, I was desperate and relying heavily on the results of the hard drive isolation test above. I was also determined to not miss out on the full Wrath of the Lich King expansion experience. I waltzed over to the nearby computer shop, bought a matched pair of 1GB 800MHz DDR2 memory modules (unfortunately they did not stock any 533MHz ones) and replaced the oldest matched pair on the motherboard (the factory-default 256MB 400MHz ones). To my amazement, WoW did not crash as often as it used to!

Implications:

• The factory-default RAM modules were borderline faulty! Naughty Dell; I never suspected until I started playing WoW.
• Random files would fail to be read because different files would be stored in the faulty cell(s) in different times.
• Restarting the computer empties the RAM (which is good if there is lots of junk in there).
• Dalaran is probably the poorest-designed capital city in WoW to date. Not only does it have multiple levels (note the Sewers), it is also quite cramped and would concentrate so many players in its small area.

Sir, there's a ghoul in my spreadsheet.

Gristlegut tries so hard to feed all his ghouls, but some of them end up being neglected. This poor soul soulless being, in its quest for BRAINS, ends up stumbling upon the tasty cells of a living being spreadsheet. The uni student working on this for their matrices assignment will be very frustrated indeed.

Random Ramblings to 19 June 2009

Body Mass Index (BMI)
A ratio which quickly indicates body mass. It is calculated by dividing the mass of the body (in kilograms) by the square of the height of it (in metres). A body's mass is considered normal under the BMI if it falls between 18.5 and 25; any less and it is considered underweight, while any more is considered either overweight or obese.

Foreign Currency Conversion Fee/International Service Assessment
The fee charged to credit card issuers by MasterCard and Visa respectively when a credit card transaction uses the global payments system to convert currency. For both companies, it is equal to 1% of the value of the transaction. Of course, the credit card issuer can pass this fee on (and add up to 2 extra percentage points onto it) to the cardholder.

Icosahedron
A solid figure with exactly 20 faces. In particular, a regular icosahedron is an icosahedron with faces of equilateral triangles. It belongs to a family of solids called the Platonic solids. A d20 die is in the shape of a regular icosahedron.


A model of a regular icosahedron made of toothpicks and Blu-Tack.

Pyrite
A mineral consisting of iron disulphide (FeS2). It has a lustrous brass-yellow colour and has been mistaken for gold (hence it it also known as fool's gold). Its molecules align to form an isometric crystal system. When struck against steel it creates sparks, hence its name's etymology of the Greek word for fire.

Res judicata
Translates to "something decided" from Latin. It is a principle in civil law stating that a single court case (in governments with a court system) may be heard and decided only once. It emphasises the finality in such litigation and avoids the problem of a defendant's being sued multiple times for the same matter. Criminal law has a similar principle of double jeopardy, where the defendant cannot be tried multiple times for the same crime.

Tragedy of the commons
A theory relating to resources that are freely available but can deplete (or "the commons", the British expression for open pastures). It states that such resources will continue to be exploited until it becomes fully depleted). It is a tragedy because the rational use of private cost-benefit analysis (where every individual has different of costs and benefits of using the resource) will produce such undesirable consequences. Hence support for the concepts of ownership and private property, in such a case cost-benefit analysis will be uniformly applied.

Random Ramblings

Small tidbits of information are always interesting. This regular feature will record much of the trivia I have presented to my guild in World of Warcraft. So far:

32-bit signed integer
A sequence of 32 binary digits which represents a positive or negative whole number. 31 of those digits determine the number, while one digit determines the sign (positive or negative status). A 32-bit signed integer can represent 2^31 = 2 147 483 648 unique positive values. The amount of currency a World of Warcraft character holds is stored on Blizzard's databases as a 32-bit signed integer, leading to the fabled currency limit of 214 748g 36s 48c.

Adverse opinion
An auditor is a person who provides a professional opinion on the quality of a business' financial statements. When they provide an adverse opinion on the financial statements (which is normally unheard of), they are saying that the financial statements are any combination of inaccurate and poorly prepared.

Black hole
All bits of matter are attracted to each other through gravity. The larger a mass is, the more gravity it will generate. A black hole is a mass generating gravity such that the escape velocity (the speed which exactly absorbs the opposing acceleration of the mass' gravity) is greater than the speed of light (299 792 458 m/s). Their namesake comes from the fact that not even light can escape the gravitational pull of a black hole, leading to their black colour.

Carbohydrate
An organic substance which stores energy for metabolism. They are made up of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, which, when a photosynthesising plant produces it, is come from carbon dioxide and water. Respiration breaks the carbohydrate down back to carbon dioxide and water, though some energy is released as well (which was formerly sunlight energy). Carbohydrates are composed of any number of saccharide units chained together. Monosaccharides (glucose, galactose, fructose, etc) are saccharide units in themselves, while disaccharides (sucrose, lactose, etc) are composed of two such units, and complex carbohydrates (starch, glycogen, etc) consist of many.

Diminishing marginal returns
A trend in the relationship between two values where the main value is (say X) increasing. At the same time, the other value (say Y) is also increasing, though its rate of increase is declining. It is possible for X to be large enough that Y can even be decreasing. In calculus terms, d2Y/dX2 is negative.

Fluorescent lamp
A light source that produces light through the fluorescence of phosphors on its discharge tube's surface. When it is operating, an electric current passes through the tube. Molecules of mercury (Hg) gas are excited by the current, which later release ultraviolet light. The phosphors then absorb this ultraviolet light, later releasing visible light. Fluorescent lighting is commonly used as backlighting for LCD monitors, explaining why many laptops are marked as containing mercury.

Induction motor
An electric motor which uses an alternating current to produce motion (namely in a rotating manner). A rotating magnetic field produced by the current pushes a set of magnets attached to a rotor. It is the foundation for all things that spin and use electrical energy to do so (fans are a notable example).

Natural law
Principles that arise from the workings of nature. As nature encompasses the entire universe, such principles are accepted to apply everywhere. Natural law is often used as a benchmark to judge the validity of positive law (law enforced by the authority of government) and is thought to inform a person's conscience.

Prisoner's dilemma
The problem that arises from the cooperation (or lack thereof) between two persons for a reward. If one person chooses to defect from the arrangement, that person will receive a higher reward than if they had cooperated, at the expense of the other person. However, if both defect from the arrangement, both will receive less reward each than if both had cooperated. Under these circumstances, both players are selfish, there is a limited amount of reward and defecting entails a certain cost (which the defecting person hopes that an increased reward from defecting will offset). The namesake arises from the classic scenario involving the silence/confession of two partners in crime.

Guildies, if there are any topic arisen you would like me to cover briefly here, just post a recommendation in the comments.

Succeeding at left and right

The Thaddius encounter involves lots of movement, though its principle is very simple. Reviewing the guild's convention:

• Facing the boss from the entrance, positively charged people go to the right.
• Facing the boss from the entrance, negatively charged people go to the left.
• When changing sides, stick to the left side while you are approaching the other side. This will only be necessary for as long as people react slowly to Polarity Shifts.

My mnemonic for the first 2 points is the mathematical convention for number line graphing. The positive direction is right from the origin, while the negative direction is left from the origin. My mnemonic for the 3rd point is Australian road rules. Keep at the left side of the road!

The hardest part of Phase 2 is figuring out which side you are supposed to go to for the first Polarity Shift. Get ready to change sides if you need to. Facing the wall helps, as this helps orient you according to the left and right directions.

Polarity Shift is then cast. You have 4 possible consequences:
1. If you are at the left, and you are positively charged, you switch sides.
2. If you are at the left, and you are negatively charged, you stay.
3. If you are at the right, and you are positively charged, you stay.
4. If you are at the right, and you are negatively charged, you switch sides.

Provided you take the right course of action, it is smooth sailing until the boss down. Simply change sides when your polarity changes. No more worrying about positives and negatives!

Originally posted here.