Paladance's Comments

With a great sorrow I need to tell that Amara Strande, whom this very pet and the surrounding puzzle have been created for, passed away on April 14th this year as the liver cancer plaguing her for almost six years progressed beyond treatments. Her love for music was with her until the end. May she rest in peace and find comfort at last.

 

An article in Minnesota Reformer (CW: the details of her affliction) made an incredible job of disclosing who she was, and what her persistence has led to.

After the new hint, a couple of new people have appeared. Welcome!

It also means there are times a lot of ideas are presented at once, many of them already available in the server documents. It doesn't happen very often but sometimes the discussion is so overwhelming it seems there is no room anymore. Please respect the requests of long-timers, nobody means to let you down. Have fun, and don't let the traces of the Void drive you into despair. ❤︎

While all three extreme breeds might look like a headache starter, I perceive the choice as illusionary. An H/H is still less sturdy than an H/P Slimy Darkhunter  with a humanoid racial to boot, and a P/P falls far behind the 363 record of the Eel/Octopode.

An S/S, though, is actually the fastest member of all the slimy gang (325).

Oooh, a sturdy elemental killer. Much appreciated.

I've been doing the daily every day, skipping no more than three weeks.

A bit ago, I estimated the drop rate to be 1 in 5 and as so far it stays true. :)

A bit of pre-launch hype but this is first critter with an aquatic move that is not a snail. :)

In the Battle for Azeroth prepatch, her base stats as of Battle Pet BreedID have been changed by 0/-1,5/+1,5 – from 8,125/8,375/7,5 to 8,125/6,875/9. 

Such a big discrepancy between baseline power and the other baseline stats has made her a first pet whose stat promoted by pure breed (P/P) is not the highest one.

If you're interested in some numbers, Liung on EU forums has done a quick analysis :)

One of few double counters of humanoids able to use the strong hit all time. With H/H stats, not only it's the toughest of these (HP-wise), but the 2nd of beasts overall (along with H/H maggots and clefthooves), encouraging to play with the racial.

The H/P breed, while not bad, is already provided by its Antoran cousin; you can get more power with a P/P Fossorial Bile Larva, be it for Plagued Blood or just damage.

No need to focus on speed as it's so slow you'd perhaps need to resort to debuffs.

@Syyina the limit has been lifted to 10 million gold at the start of Legion.

A nice choice, after so much moths already in the game it's easy to overlook that one! But it has its charm indeed. With Mechanical Axebeak and Stormwing in can create an anti-Beast trio :)

There are many pets that can double counter flying pets – for example, Nexus Whelpling.

This one pet, however, has Blinkstrike, what not only deals magic damage but ignores flying racial.

 

Bonus point for Consume Magic for all these cyclones, wild winds or shattering falcosaurs.

Though just a recolour of Winterspring Cub, as of present day, she – unlike other cats – doesn't react to /sit emote while targetting her.

You may be slipping into despair as you observe more and more dreadful beasts, twisted images or walking corpses – and your mission seems to last forever despite it having already happened – but after all of that, you can see that not all of your companions are damned or sorrowful beings. Even if your pet journal knows things unspeakable – K'ute stays with you and comforts you.

Yet, your raid leader better not interrupt the holy song by a pompous warning, for he shall wipe.

As with other low-level creatures, sometimes Battle Pet BreedID can show a wrong breed (e.g. a non-existing H/B) while you try to capture one, especially if the faced pet is of poor or common quality.

A miraculous pet for Wailing Caverns. Booby-Trapped Presents and Greench's Gift deal 1059 damage *each* when used against Deviate Smallclaws, what means he can dispatch a couple of them before they can even think about their dirty Primal Cry! Against other trash pets, a combination of both is such effective aswell – even the flappers can't act first as the BTP take their racial bonus away.

 

After all, 1412+ damage can be very handy for any non-elemental occasion.

Watch out of Battle Pet BreedID suggestions on the breed. Due to low level of these creatures, the stat ratio tends to be misinterpreted especially for poor and common quality. It may show for example a P/B, while there is no P/B and it may never show you P/P despite encountering that one.

EDIT: Thanks.

 

Not very much pets but they're pretty unique and you need a long time to get them. Speaking personally, that is surprisingly relieving, because a high quantity of easily available pets would have caused a need to catch-up fast. ;)

 

The only thing concerning me is how the breeds are handled.

Sadly, yet another amazing (and non-linear!) moveset potential was disrupted by horrible stats. One'd say its breed had been as vulnerable to warping as its size.

 

I don't have enough space for details, but you'd go for a parody of Bronze Whelp, a wide spectrum of mitigation, annoying Heal-A-Lot (with Serpent-like loop'n'gap if Devastating) or securing yourself for unpredictable speed status.

But noo!

 

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Regarding the form itself, an idea to deliberately go beyond young offspring is neat!

Considering a mix of speed-liking abilities with H/P breed and Tail Sweep, it looks more like a pet of a flavour than utility. At a first glance Bend Time doesn't seem like something one'd find an opportunity to use either, especially after the change to Haunt.

 

People liking to match their pets and mounts will have a hard time with this one.

Perhaps the Time-Lost Proto-Drake had become so ashamed of being hunted and killed that one day his body simply shrank down to this!