Monday (20 Aug) - Seasons Change for Azeroth

Monday (20 Aug) - Seasons Change for Azeroth

After hours and days of effort, Wild and JB wearily slumped in their chairs within the Wyvern's Tail Inn. Nothing was really decided, but at least most of the possibilities had been defined. Another season was fast approaching it's close. Battles were still being waged, but Wild and JB and had set their gear aside to prepare for the season to come.

The Seasons of Azeroth follow no common pattern, but twist with the moods of the gods. Orcs and humans have been at each others throats in Azeroth since the dawn of civilization, with the inevitable result of the plunge into world-wide conflict. For slightly more than two passes of the sun the great battles raged. Then came the season of the Burning Crusade, which held for just short of two passes. The season of Wrath of the Lich King stretched for almost three passes of the sun, as the great and terrible Lich King fought to make his reign permanent. The Lich King's season was ultimately banished in the upheaval of the world named Cataclysm. This transformation of the world has rocked Azeroth for another two seasons, but it's fate and fall is now all but sealed. The signs are there. A new season will soon be upon the world of Azeroth.

At the end of each great change, Wild and JB have worked to provide for the rest of the family, preparing them for what was to come. Some of that is the necessary housekeeping that is already in progress. A great portion of that work, which Wild and JB take direct charge of, is the delivery of heirloom gear for the family to share. A great deal of heirloom gear of every description is already stocked away for use. However, one of the shortcomings has been weapons. Wild and JB have been counting their coin in every which way they can to provide the best and the most, but any final decision still waits for the moneychangers to decide the exact exchange rates going into the new season. Wild is sitting on 1,674 justice points and 5,200 valor points. JB has 1,413 JPs and 950 VPs. Even Philly wanted to contribute. Philly's 191 JPs won't buy squat, and her 1,187 honor points come very short of buying a pvp weapon, but the gesture was appreciated. PVE Heirloom gear is paid for by JPs, but even though neither Wild nor JB have anything left they want to buy with VPs, there is no conversion available from VPs to JPs.

That is where the seasonal transition comes into play. The moneychangers refuse to say what will happen, which makes things very uncertain. In the past, what has usually been done is that at some point all VPs would be converted to JPs. That would work very well for Wild and JB, as they could then use all those combined JPs and VPs to purchase heirlooms. However, sometimes there is a cap on JPs (4,000 is the most quoted cap), so no matter how many VPs were converted, Wild and JP would be allowed JPs only up to the max cap. The leftovers would be converted to a small amount of gold.

Sometimes there is a two part conversion. This is Wild's and JB's greatest hope. As the season reaches it's close, all VPs would be converted to JPs with no cap (or not enforcing the cap). In the short period of time between the end of the old season and the beginning of the new, all those JPs could be put to good use. Once the new season begins, any excess JPs still above the cap would be converted to gold. 

The moneychangers have strange language which they use for this seasonal process. All Wild can do is repeat it and hope the gods agree: The date of pre-expansion release 5.04 has been announced as 28 August, 2012. The MoP expansion will go live on 25 September, 2012. Maybe ... hopefully ... the cap will not come into play until the MoP release, and Wild/JB will be able to use the expanded pile of JPs to help their family in the days to come. On the pvp side there is more honor/conquest points information that might shed further light on pve. Conquest points with be converted to honor points with patch 5.04. Blue Post: "There will be no cap on Honor until Mists of Pandaria is released on September 25. At that time, any Honor accrued above the 4,000-point cap will be converted into gold at a rate of 35 silver per point." If the same process is applied to pve, then both Wild and JB will be happy!

Having done all they could do, Wild and JB were enjoying a congratulatory keg of something foul - but potent - when a small army of family members pushed Philly into the doorway of the inn. Glad to have all that work behind him, Wild waved Philly in. JB asked what they could do for Philly, glancing in bemusement at the others outside, who quickly darted out of sight.

Philly took a breath, reminding herself that while she was youngest among the family elders (even if she sometimes worried at her adopted status), she still ranked as an equal and a senior of the family. "There have been shouting and arguing between the two of you for days on end. It appears to be over, and as a senior of the family I want to know what that was all about?" She paused, but then added before the other two could respond, "And what the gods is going on with Naithipe?"

Wild and JB looked at each other in some confusion. "We have been working on end of season business. There was much to discuss, some of it hotly discussed, of which we will advise the family at a later time ... but, what is this about Naithipe? Has she been about?"

"Wha ..." Philly sputtered. "You don't know, you haven't ... this hasn't been  about ... um." Philly shut her mouth and stared at the two. Philly knew without looking that the rest of the family had quickly made themselves scarce.

"Sit down, Philly." Wild waved at a chair and reached for the keg. "Naithipe, huh? Tell me everything."