WARHAMMER ONLINE GUIDES: Black Orc Guide Part 1

POST BY SIRROBIN
Remember it's all still Beta so things may change.

Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Supplicium Reference BO3.3C

The Black Orc Guide
AKA
Sir Robin’s BOG

INTRODUCTION

The Black Orc is the Greenskin melee class. It covers both the tanking and melee roles. While the Shaman covers healing slash nuking and the Squig Herder covers ranged slash pet, it is the Black Orc that gets in close and keeps the target’s attention plus, supposed to, take the brunt of the incoming damage. In the following pages we'll go over the specifics of this career, how it works, and get some wisdom from a well known, if I do say so myself, Black Orc: Dagorc.

Dagorc Says:
WAAAGH!!!

Remember, this is an MMORPG that is still in Beta so things will keep changing. Still we are getting near retail so as long as I try to keep it somewhat vague this guide should remain accurate overall. As part of that “vagueness” I’ve tried to keep actual numbers out of it and stick with the feel of things instead.

THOUGHTS

Since the Choppa did not make the final "cut," if you want to melee as a Greenskin then the Black Orc is your only choice. You are a “slow and steady wins the race” career that cannot out-damage your targets, you outlast them instead. This can cause it to have a more “grinding” feel at times compared to other careers but its “chain” mechanic helps combat this to a degree.

You will also have some issues keeping up in the Renown department since you are more of a single-target career than the Squig Herder or Shaman. This makes it even more important to queue for Scenarios as often as possible and take part in any Open-RvR available. Otherwise you will quickly begin to fall behind in Renown Rank and not be able to buy the best RvR Gear. Still, depending on your preferences, there is no other career which captures the “look” of Warhammer better than the Black Orc.

Why did the Choppa get cut? Well we have the official explanation and to Mythic’s credit I think it’s pretty accurate. However, it seems go deeper than that. Pretty much there was no need for the Choppa to be honest. With DPS being covered by both the Shaman and Herder plus with the Black Orc for melee why have an extra just for fluff?

Yes, I was planning to have a Choppa myself. I even thought about making it my main because I enjoyed it so much last year. Always need MDPS I hear you say? Well with the right tactics, when they become available, the Black Orc enters MDPS territory damage-wise and endurance-wise so Choppa was pretty much an extra that wasn’t “really” needed.

MECHANICS

The Black Orc uses a "chain" mechanic for its most frequently used abilities. Chain means that using one ability opens up another set of abilities, and when one of those is used another set becomes available. The three sets are No Plan, Da’ Gud Plan, and Da’ Best Plan. Through different Tactics and Masteries the performance of particular "chains" improves dramatically. The other Black Orc mechanic is the “War Bellow.” These are passive, always on, buffs that can improve certain traits like wounds, resists, etc... The three passives are Da Biggest!, Da Greenest!, and Da Toughest!

SOLOING

When Mythic developed WAR they kept the soloist in mind. Because of this most quests can be completed solo. In the same vein you can usually survive fights with mobs two, three, and even four ranks above you. How well you handle multiple mobs at once though mostly depends on your career more than gear. Some careers are better at multi-target and some are better at single-target. The Black Orc is definitely more the latter than the former. So while you can “chain” mobs pretty quickly taking on more than two at a time, depending on their rank, can turn into a spawn at the nearest Camp pretty quickly.

Soloing is also a good time to break out the Great Weapon if you have one that isn’t too far behind your rank. The increased damage of a Great Weapon allows you to kill mobs faster and help minimize that “grinding” feeling. Using a shield is alright since you tend to take less damage but the fights last longer too. The same applies to RvR as well since you are basically choosing between fast or slow kills. Against softer opponents, like nukers, the increased endurance of using a shield can sometimes outweigh the increased damage of a Great Weapon. It really varies depending on the situation.

GROUPING

Honestly, if you are fighting other players you should be grouped. Staying solo in a Scenario or RvR “Lake” has a lot more disadvantages than advantages. Being grouped makes it easier for any healers in your party or warband to see that you need to be healed. In the same vein you share renown, experience, and loot from kills which really helps a more single-target career like the Black Orc keep up. Once you get “Save Da Runts” grouping makes it easier for you to find someone to place guard on and easier to see when they need your direct intervention.

Note: RvR areas in Tiers are often called “Lakes” because their borders often resemble the outline of a lake. Also there is usually blocking terrain, like cliffs, separating them from the rest of the Tier so it might seem like you are running down into that has since dried up. Smaller or skinnier RvR areas follow the water analogies like “River, Pond, Puddle” etc…

Grouping has a lot of benefits in WAR and to put it bluntly why bother being a tank if you’re not actually tanking for anyone. When you are in a party or warband the Great Weapon takes a backseat to the “sword and board.” While it still has benefits, in RvR or as the off-tank, tanking for a group is all about maximizing your endurance so your healers don’t have to heal as often and everyone else has more time to deal damage. Your main concern would be to keep dealing taunts in PvE and stay in the oppositions’ faces in RvR.

One key thing to remember though, while taunts don’t force enemy players to target you they do have some major plusses like increasing your damage output or decreasing theirs. So whether you are in RvR or PvE you should be using your taunts whenever they’re available.

QUESTS & PUBLIC QUESTS

Now would be a good time to talk about Questing & Public-Questing. Except for Chapter 1, which has only one, every chapter normally has three public quests within its area. These Public Quests usually have three stages with the final one involving one or more boss mobs. The later stages of a Public Quest are usually also timed which gives you a deadline for completing them. You do not need to be in a party to complete a public quest but unless you have a few other players participating, including a healer or two, you will not be able to finish all the stages. Since a number of final stages also have multiple boss mobs there is plenty of opportunity for off tanking too so don’t get discouraged if there is another tank around.

Public Quests have two mechanics for getting rewards. The first is a loot bag award based on contribution, damage and healing, plus a random roll. This occurs after completing the last stage of the Public Quest. These loot bags are bind on pickup and will have rewards specific to your career. The second mechanic is influence awarded as you participate in any of that chapter’s public quests. Your level of influence builds as you contribute and has three levels of rewards. The first level is a potion or talisman while the second and third level is gear.

Because the final influence rewards are some of the best gear in the game it is not unusual to find players grinding the first stage of a Public Quest over and over again until they max their influence for that chapter. While you can max your influence faster with more players participating, if no one else is around and its gear is something you want then grinding Stage 1 is an option. Since there is a timer for Stage 2 and then a reset timer afterwards it is more efficient to cycle through all the Public Quests in the chapter finishing the first stage for each. By the time you’ve done Stage 1 for the second or third Public Quest the first should be available again.

Quests are the same as those found in other mumorpugers and are hub-based. By hub I mean that the majority of quests are picked up from each chapter’s “Camp.” There are some quests picked up from roving or isolated NPC’s but most will begin within the chapter’s camp. Many quests are also of the chain variety where when you complete one it makes the next quest available within that chain. Again most of the chains are within that chapter but a few cross multiple chapters and there is usually one or two leading you to the next chapter’s camp.

Beyond these PvE Quests there are also RvR Quests which involve completing tasks within the RvR Lakes. These are mostly player kill or scout quests where you kill a certain number of enemies or get near certain objectives to complete. They are hub-based and are available from each Tier’s warcamp. Some are repeatable so it is possible grind some over and over again. This encourages players to remain within the RvR Lakes for a while and helps spur PvP encounters. Each Tier’s warcamp usually also has a couple of PvE style quests which take place within the RvR Lake too though these are not repeatable.

There is one more thing to mention about some quests and that’s your inventory. There is a “Quest” tab in you inventory and quest “related” items go in it automatically. While most of the time you don’t need to worry about it, sometimes you will find that you can’t seem to complete a quest. What you may actually need to do at that point is go to your inventory, click on the quest tab, and right-click on the appropriate item.

Below I’m going to try and list all of the Chapters’ Influence Rewards. I may never finish this though because, all told, there are sixty-six chapters each with four or more gear rewards to choose from. Since this is still Beta some gear may move around too. Yeah, it will be a big list and I’m not sure if I want to take up that much room. One way to try and save space will be to just list what type of gear it is.

Greenskin Black Orc Influence Rewards

Chapter 1
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 2
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 3
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 4
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 5
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 6
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 7
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 8
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 9
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 10
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 11
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 12
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 13
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 14
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 15: Red Dust Camp
Advanced: Shoulders, Helm
Elite: Shield, Sword, Gloves
Chapter 16: Da Great Big Food Pot
Advanced: Belt, Back
Elite: Boots, Sword
Chapter 17: Hot Foot Boyz
Advanced: Gloves, Body
Elite: Shield, Great Axe
Chapter 18: Da Scrappin’ Camp
Advanced: Shoulders, Helm
Elite: Body, Great Axe
Chapter 19: Da Big Bones
Advanced: Gloves, Boots
Elite: Helm, Sword
Chapter 20: Naguk’s Cold Camp
Advanced: Gloves, Helm
Elite: Shoulder, Body
Chapter 21: Ug’s Warband
Advanced: Belt, Back
Elite: Helm, Shoulders
Chapter 22: Badrot’s Bashin’ Place
Advanced: Boots, Belt
Elite: Axe, Axe, Sword, Hammer

Chaos Black Orc Influence Rewards

Chapter 1
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 2
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 3
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 4
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 5
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 6
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 7
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 8
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 9
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 10
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 11
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 12
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 13
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 14
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 15:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 16:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 17:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 18:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 19:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 20:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 21:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 22:
Advanced:
Elite:

Dark Elf Black Orc Influence Rewards

Chapter 1
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 2
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 3
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 4
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 5
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 6
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 7
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 8
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 9
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 10
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 11
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 12
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 13
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 14
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 15:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 16:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 17:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 18:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 19:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 20:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 21:
Advanced:
Elite:
Chapter 22:
Advanced:
Elite:

CRAFTING

Well it’s time for me too look guilty. I have not done much with crafting beyond Scavenging. Talismans and Potions have great potential for any career but with my real-life game-time limitations, I’ve just never devoted as much time as I should have too testing them.

PROGRESSION

If you examine the maps of WAR closely you will notice that it has a relatively linear feel. One chapter leads to the next chapter which leads to the next etc… This can cause a bit of a grinding feel at times but WAR is pretty clever about getting around that. The main way WAR helps to stave off the grind is Fronts, Warcamps, RvR Lakes, and Scenarios. You can rank from one to forty without ever leaving your race’s Front. However all the quests for your faction, Destruction or Order, are available to all careers. This means that you can go to the Chaos or Dark Elf Fronts and PvE plus RvR there too.

You can use the Flight Masters, one in each Warcamp, to move to a different Front and do the Quests & Public Quests there as well as take part in its RvR. Any gear rewards will be specific to your career so you really are not losing anything by moving between Fronts. Indeed it is sometimes a good idea to move between fronts for influence rewards since, as an example, Greenskin Chapter 5 may have a great one-hander for its top reward while Chaos Chapter 5 may have a great two-hander for its top reward. Be aware though that influence does not bridge to the same chapter number in other Fronts so you would have to build it up to max from scratch there too.

Each Front’s Tiers also have their own instanced scenarios so, as long as enough people are queuing, you can regularly take a break from Questing, Public Questing, and Open-RvR’ing to bash some other players’ heads in an easier to get to them environment.

Between you and me, as a Greenskin, High Elfs just seem easier to kill than Dwarfs. Not sure if there are any numbers to back me up or if it’s just a perception thing but it is nice to hop over and slaughter some squishier High Elfs sometimes than keep chomping on the more gristlely Dwarfs. Some of those heavily armored Dwarf mobs, the ones with shields, “feel” like they take forever to kill.

Tier 1: Mount Bloodhorn & Ekrund

Mount Bloodhorn Map

Ekrund Map
As a Greenskin you begin your journey in a cave in Mount Bloodhorn. As soon as you leave your cave you will start finding quests to do and stunties to kill. Within a few quests you will also run into Chapter 1’s only Public Quest. This serves as an introduction to PQ’ing so the cost to max influence and the difficulty is not hard. You’ll still need a few fellow Greenskins with you to complete all three stages so this will depend, somewhat, on how many are around at the time.

Dagorc Says:
I still fink ‘bouts me dayz at Stuntie Skull High. I was da’ boss of da’ boyz Stuntie Puntin’ team two yearz ‘n a roh.

Personally, I strongly recommend doing the first few quests even if you are a die hard, “I’ll level through RvR” type. They give you a chance to get used to how WAR and the Black Orc “work” before jumping into the fire. Good to get some frying pan first so you have a better handle on things because enemy players are not going to give you time to get “used” to things. You may even find yourself skipping a chapter or two later on but take some time and smell the roses first before squishing them.

As soon as you cross the bridge you’ll run into Chapter 2 and the first of its three Public Quests. Don’t stop to clobber the sprites and chop the trees, you can come back to it later. Keep following the road and over the hill you’ll run into most memorable Greenskin architecture in DvG (Dwarf versus Greenskin) Tier 1, “Da War Maker!” Its massive spinning blade will no doubt inspire many photo ops for months to come and makes it hard to not feel the call of the WAAAGH!!!

This is the Chapter 2 camp and the reason I told you to go here instead of mucking about with the sprites is that it is also the first place you can pick up your crafting and gathering skills. A gathering skill can make a huge difference in your early cash flow. Some of these skills also have certain rank restrictions based on mob level so getting it now will prevent you from having to grind lower rank mobs later to catch it up. I personally recommend Scavenging since it will let you usually get extra loot off humanoids, like those sprites, which can be sold to Merchants for extra cash. You can even scavenge dead enemy players so it also makes RvR more profitable.

Once you have reached Da War Maker and picked up a gathering and crafting skill you have completed the initial foundation for your character. It is now that you reach your first big crossroads in your journey. Why here? Well you’ve got a few quests under your belt, a Public Quest loot bag or two for gear goodies, a scenario or two, and probably even a nice influence reward. You also should have passed Rank 3 so you can finish your first “chain” Clobber, Trip ‘Em Up, and Skull Thumper.

The reason I consider this “the crossroads” boils down to another career that didn’t make the grade. Not for the Greenskins, nope, we are talking about the Dark Elfs. When the Blackguard was cut the Dark Elfs lost their tank archetype. While this may not be a huge deal in Questing, since most can be done solo, it does make a big difference in Public Questing. Stage III always involves some sort of boss mob and without tanks, and them getting heals, they can be a real pain to beat. It can also make a big difference in Scenarios since the Dark Elfs have no counter to the High Elf Swordmaster.

Since you have completed the initial foundation this would be the natural point where you would decide on whether to stay in DvG or go help your allies in HEvDE (High Elf versus Dark Elf) Tier 1. You don’t need to worry about EvC (Empire versus Chaos) because they have the Chosen for tanking needs. You also don’t need to worry about missing quests or gear because all the quests in HEvDE are available to you too and the Public Quests loot bags and influence levels will have rewards for the Black Orc. All you really need to decide is whether you want to go on the “long run” or not.

The map below will show you the safest and fastest route to get to the Dark Elf Chapter 1 Public Quest. Be warned that you may still die a few times on the way because there are a lot of aggro happy mobs along the way that will consider you to be a yummy meal. You will be using the Flight Master to go from Mount Bloodhorn to The Blighted Isle and the cost may be anywhere from 50 Brass to 5 Silver so have some cash on hand for the trip.

You may be asking why not just wait to get to the Warcamp before deciding to go to the Blighted Isle or not? Well the reason for that is your rank. If you wait to get to the Warcamp before helping the Dark Elfs then “you” won’t get as much out of the Dark Elf Chapters 1 & 2 because you’ll be ready for Chapter 4. By deciding in Greenskin Chapter 2 whether to go or not, you will save yourself from doing Dark Elf quests and public quests that would be mostly worthless for you if you waited until Chapter 4.

Mount Bloodhorn Route Map

The Blighted Isle Route Map
If you decide to remain in the Greenskin territories you’ll soon run into Chapter 3’s “competitive” Public Quest, Komar Gap. This PQ is different from the normal variety in that Stage 1 is actually a competition between Order and Destruction. Whichever side completes Stage 1 first begins Stage 2 for their faction and locks out the other side until the Public Quest resets. It is not uncommon for these competitive Public Quests to turn into mini RvR areas as both sides attack each other. Indeed, if your scenario is not busy that day, Komar Gap may be your introduction to RvR in WAR.

Note: How these “Comp PQ’s” are handled has varied a bit throughout Beta. Some sessions you had to flag yourselves, accidentally or intentionally, and other sessions they seemed to turn into RvR “Puddles.” Not sure which way it will end up yet.

Beyond the Public Quest you’ll find the Chapter 3 Camp and face another decision. You can either head southwest into Ekrund, through the Spider Cave, for Chapter 4 or head north into Tier 1’s Warcamp. The DvG Tier 1 RvR “Lake” straddles both zones so you can still get to it from Chapter 4’s Camp but the Greenskin Tier 1 Warcamp, and its RvR Quest givers, is in the Mount Bloodhorn zone. I suggest heading north first for RvR opportunities and picking up your first Renown Achievements from the Renown Trainers there as well as some RvR gear from special vendors there. You can even use the Flight Masters to do some exploring of the other Front’s Tiers. Once you finish up head west into Ekrund where you find more Dwarfs to kill and finally the entrance to Tier 2’s first zone, Barak Varr.
Tier 2: Barak Varr & Marshes of Madness

Barak Varr Map

Marshes of Madness Map

Well you’ve made it to Tier 2. You are probably around Rank 10 and can begin devoting points to the Mastery Path that interests you most as well as have a couple of additional abilities for your chains. You also have a taunt by now which makes keeping gro much easier than it used to be. Looking at the map though will show you that the Greenskin’s Tier 2 is quite different from Chaos or Dark Elf. The biggest difference is that there are two RvR Lakes! Yep, instead of having a shared “lake” you have two “ponds” instead. While this can make it harder to find RvR action it avoids that pesky zone border skip which can, sometimes, be a pain in RvR.

Another thing to mention is the lack of RvR Gear Vendors and Renown Trainers in the Warcamps. From Tier 2 on these guys are no longer in Warcamps. They are in the Keeps! So, obviously, if you don’t own a keep in that Tier it will be impossible for you to find gear with Renown Rank requirements or put points into Renown buffs or tactics. Of course the Flight Masters are still at the Warcamps so you can travel to other Fronts and head to one of their keeps. With six keeps across all of Tier 2 it would be hard to not find at least one held by your faction. Though this does encourage you to find some mates and start taking keeps.

It’s time for a quick note about keeps. These are not meant to be captured by a single six-man party! Please remember that because it will save you a lot of agony if you ever try to take one with just one party. You’ll need “at least” two parties to have a good chance of taking a keep. Especially if “any” Order are inside helping the guards defend it. This is definitely where Warbands come into play and since you can have up to four parties in one, twenty-four players, they are the best way to go after keeps. Keeps are also a sort of Public Quest. Yep, once the keep lord is dead you have the chance of getting some great loot. However there are no Influence Rewards or Stages for Keeps so only killing the “Keep Lord” will give you a chance for gear rewards.

One more thing… Each Front’s Tier has its own scenario so don’t forget to queue for the new one when you enter Barak Varr. Big however, however, you cannot queue for the scenario if you don’t meet the minimum rank requirement. For Tier 2 that is Rank ten so if you do enter early, eight or nine, you will have to wait until you hit ten before you can queue. You cannot queue for Tier 1’s scenario while physically in Tier 2 so that is another reason to not rush too much when WAAAGH!!!’ing, it’s a Greenskin thing, your trail through WAR.

Greenskin Tier 2 follows the same formula as Tier 1 in having one chapter in one zone and the rest in the other. In this case you will spend most of your time in Barak Varr with only a short stay in Marshes of Madness. They differ though in that the last chapter of Greenskin Tier 1 is in Ekrund while the second chapter of Tier 2 is in Marshes of Madness. You also have competitive PQ’s in both the second and third chapters of Tier 2 but not in the first chapter. In fact these RvR friendly PQ’s are literally right next to the Camps which make them a good way to get some extra Renown along with Influence and Experience.

Besides the pure Greenskin goodness of the keep in Marshes of Madness, worth the trip whether you like RvR or not, the biggest “cool” sight in Greenskin Tier 2 is Barak Varr itself. The Greenskin Chapter 8 Camp is actually in Barak Varr and if you have a thing for stuntie killing then you just died and went to heaven my friend. They are all over the place in there. The massive Dwarf architecture is pretty impressive and having a harbor “within” the mountain has a coolness factor on its own. I’m pretty jaded about it at this point but I still remember my first time there and working my way upstairs, killing tons of stunties, then getting out on the balcony where I saw the whole port spread beneath me. Yeah, it was cool.

One thing to remember, however, that I constantly seem to forget. You run down a long spiraling tunnel to enter the port and you have to run up a long spiraling tunnel to leave it too. The exit tunnel is in the “northeast” corner of the port, not the “northwest” corner. For some damn reason I keep going northwest and end up having to back track a ways. Actually the northwest corner is how you get to that balcony bridge so it’s probably nostalgia that keeps drawing me back there. Also, last time I checked, the northwest corner falls within the RvR Lake but it’s been ages since I ran into an enemy player there.

Well from the port’s Chapter 8 Camp, Chapter 9 is the last camp in Tier 2. Like Chapter 5 it is also a beach camp and has a PQ right next to it. In fact it is so close that you can literally sneeze on it. Even a wimpy Dark Elf sneeze might net you a little influence so don’t be shy and let those nostrils get to work! After Chapter 9 it’s on too Tier 3!
Tier 3: Black Fire Pass & The Badlands

Black Fire Pass Map

The Badlands Map

Still here? Haven’t moved to Chaos or Dark Elf yet? Sorry, couldn’t help it. For an RvR fan like me Greenskin Tier 1 & 2 can get a little tiring because there are far fewer Dwarf players than Empire or High Elf. Of course by Tier 2 you are already starting to get crossover but, maybe it’s just me, it seems like having two ponds instead of one lake discourages many players. There is more traveling involved to get to both keeps and less maneuvering room for Warbands. At least it feels that way to me.

However there is a big plus to Tier 3 that 1 & 2 don’t have, Mount Gunbad! This is the first “Dungeon” available in DvG and there are even Public Quests “inside” it. Yep, you guessed it; there are also Influence rewards too. It is an instanced dungeon so you don’t have to worry about Order messing up your game plan. Now you have probably heard about “Lairs” which are sprinkled throughout the Tiers. While cool I don’t consider them to be “Dungeons” mostly because they are not instanced. Another thing to make sure you’re aware of. All mobs in Dungeons are at least “Champions!”

I’m sure you noticed early on that there are several “levels” of mobs. First is the regular variety, next step up are the Champions who hit harder, last longer, and cannot be soloed unless you out rank them significantly. Above them are the Heroes, royal pains in the hindquarters, who you better have a healer keeping you alive if you plan to survive a fight with. Finally you get to the Lords. Yeah, unless you have a full party with a couple of healers you better run.

I don’t care how tough you think you are, Lords hit hardest and they last forever. Now running into Champions is not all that unusual. They like to hang out in Stage 2 of Public Quests and there are a few that just wander about. Think of the roaming Champions as the Orkin Man, except the pest they were created for is known as “bot.” Now that doesn’t mean they won’t kick your butt if you agro them but they were not put in to make your journey miserable. Nope, they’re meant to make bots miserable.

Now there must be some sort school in these Dungeons because Champions are everywhere. Not solo either, you’ve got packs of them just waiting for some innocent, cute, and cuddly, Black Orc to get a Mount Gunbad quest in the Chapter 11 Camp and think, “Pick some mushrooms? I can solo this easy!” Yeah, right, and I’ve got some ocean front property in The Badlands for sale.

The other big “hot damn” for Tier 3 are mounts, yes, you can finally stop running everywhere and ride in style instead. However you need to be Rank 20 before you can buy one and they don’t come cheap. They are thirty-gold right now and that is a big chunk of change for a Rank 20 to come up with. Of course this reaches way back to picking up Scavenging in Chapter 2 to help your cash flow. This can also have the side effect of making the Public Quests in Chapter 9 & 10 pretty popular. Since those who are short try to grind the rest of the way to that magic thirty-gold so they can buy the mount from the merchant in the Chapter 10 Camp.

Naturally I should now bring up the Black Orc’s mount, the Boar. Honestly this will probably be a divisive subject that will last throughout WAR’s lifespan. It will probably be a hotly debated topic lasting longer than even Mythic’s decision to cut four careers. Some love it and some hate it. Yes it may be pretty accurate to the tabletop game’s mount but many players look at the Goblin’s Wolf mount and turn even “greener” with envy. My opinion on this is between the two. While I would like it to be a little larger what mostly bothers me are the legs. They just look way to skinny for the WAR Boar, let alone one hauling a huge Black Orc around.

Of course once you get your mount you’ve got to show it off so go ahead and waste days running around Tier 1 & 2’s PvE areas making fun of the sorry sods that still have to leg it. Just try not to gro a roaming Champion and get killed in front of an entire Warband grinding a Public Quest in Chapter 7. Not that it ever happened to me mind you. No way, it happened to a… guy and I heard about it from a friend who had it happen to a cousin’s uncle. Yep, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Those screenshots were photoshopped by the way.

Dagorc Says:
Sod off!

What else is there to say about Tier 3? Well not too much actually. Of course the Greenskin Keep looks amazing in The Badlands and there are more PQ’s to frolic through but at this point my eyes tend to not look around nearly as much as they did in Tier 1 or 2. That’s because by Tier 3 you can almost “feel” Tier 4 coming up. I don’t want to stop and smell the roses before I squish them now when I expect the roses in Tier 4 will be much bloodier. Now I’m not saying Tier 3 is lacking, in fact it’s a lot of fun. Yet I now have a mount which lets me get to where I’m going faster and, therefore, speed up the pace a bit.

At this point I’ve gone a long way towards maxing my Mastery Path of choice too so its preferred chain is becoming more and more potent. Of course that doesn’t mean I’m ignoring the other abilities, I’m just getting more and more comfortable with using my preferred one. This is also where tactics begin playing a much bigger role too. You now have enough that you can really start making sets for different situations. Of course you cannot change your Tactic Set in combat but you can start making PvE or RvR friendlier sets so you are even more lethal when you prepare a little ahead of time. As a by the by, if you have not figured it out yet, Focused Offense is a fantastic tactic for any Black Orc who isn’t the Main Tank for his Party or Warband.
Tier 4: Stonewatch, Kadrin Valley, Cinderfall, Thunder Mountain, Death Peak, Black Crag, Butcher’s Pass