I picked up the Horde Collectible Coin Set recently and simply had to share the love of this awesome display of Coin work. I currently have it sat next to my gaming set up, so when I log in to WoW, I feel like I’m right there fighting for control of Azeroth with my chosen faction. I love picking up WoW products whenever I can, it helps me feel like I’m ‘in the zone’ when raiding or PvP, giving me a greater experience of WoW-gaming like never before.

This Horde Coin Set features 3 different coins, each coated in a precious metal and featuring one of the major Horde leaders on one side and their respective home cities on the reverse. I was lucky enough to be one of the first people to touch these coins and it’s been one of my best collectibles to date.

24-Karat Gold Coin

As soon as you set on eyes on the 24-Karat Coin, you feel this strange warmth come over you – almost like you’ve won the lottery (although 24-Karat Gold, somehow I don’t think that it’s as valuable). The almighty Thrall is emblazoned on one side of the Coin, with the design work being simply excellent! I was very impressed with the extreme detail that the makers have included, with Thrall’s City of Orgrimmar on the other side being equally as impressive. I couldn’t help but send a picture of the Coin to my friends to boast.

Sterling Silver Lady Sylvanas

The Queen of the Undercity, Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, sits proudly on this Sterling Silver coin. I can’t take away the glory of the Gold Coin, but this Silver one is definitely impressive. I held the two side by side for a good 10 minutes, spinning them over and checking out the detail of the cities and it’s not like the artists have focused on one more than the other – they really are very impressive Coins.

Cairne Bloodhoof in Copper

I’m sure Cairne won’t really mind being covered in Copper rather than Gold or Silver. The mighty Tauren warrior does look exceedingly impressive on this 1.25” diameter Copper Coin. Lining the three coins up in a row, there’s something about the Copper Coin that doesn’t make it seem any less impressive as the other two – I think it must be the sheer high quality of the design and styling.

In Summary

These coins really are impressive and coupled with the Alliance Set; I really can’t imagine picking up any other fan product that’s better. I have them both sat in a pride of place spot in my gaming area, ready to engross myself in World of Warcraft.

If you’re like me, you simply love collecting World of Warcraft paraphernalia – I trawl the internet looking for some cool collectibles that allows me to fully integrate myself into the World of Warcraft way. This DC Unlimited World of Warcraft: Alliance Collectible Coin Set is my latest guilty pleasure and sends a shiver of warmth through me every time I even look at it.

What Is It?

The Coin Set features a range of coins featuring all the major leaders in Azeroth, with the Alliance leaders on one side and their respective Alliance city on the reverse:

24-Karat Gold Coin

When I first set my eyes on the 24-Karat I nearly fell over – it looks amazing! And when picking it up that feeling of glee was doubled since it feels incredibly solid and beautifully crafted. One side of it is King Varian Wrynn of Stormwind, the Human Alliance leader in Azeroth, in all his glory (not like that!). I flipped the coin over after picking my jaw up from the floor and saw the Stormwind image in all its magnificent glory – what an awesome coin.

Sterling Silver Plated Coin

I then moved on to the Sterling Silver Plated Coin, expecting to be disappointed after basking in the glory of Varian Wynn, but I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised – this coin is smaller than the Gold one, but it is definitely impressive. Magni Bronzebeard lives on this one, with the impregnable Ironforge on the flipside.

Copper-Plated Coin

This is the home to Tyrande Whisperwind, the Night Elf High Priestess of Silvermoon. Although not as solid as the awesome Wrynn Coin, nor the Silver Bronzebeard one, Whisperwind’s coin is still of excellent quality, being 0.125” thick, as with the others.

Something else I love about this awesome WoW Coin Set is the packaging – it could’ve been very easy to just focus on the coins themselves and let the packaging just be something standard, but I LOVE the packaging. The Coins come in a black hinged wooden box featuring a solid glass window and a vacu-formed tray.

Displaying the DC World of Warcraft Coin Set on my desk whilst gaming brings me sheer joy and my friends are very jealous of my purchase, and so they should be!

Blizzard’s newest expansion, Mists of Pandaria, is now in full beta and with the NDA lifted, the web is flooding with info about the future for the biggest MMO on the web. So, let’s take a look at what we can expect from the beta and all the goodies that MoP holds for all Azeroth adventurers.

The Pandaren are here!

Many battle-harden WoW gamers have been feeling somewhat stale with the demand for constant end-game development reaching an all-time high, especially with the MMO market becoming more and more competitive with the latest release of SWTOR and this year seeing the launch of Guild Wars 2 and The Secret World.

The new race in World of Warcraft, the Pandaren, are looking to boost some life back into WoW with gamers being able to play this Panda-like race. They reside in a land that has remained calm and quite for many a year, after defeating their once evil rulers, the Mogu. Using unarmed combat and diplomacy, they managed to overrule the Mogu to establish a lush, fertile and beautiful world that thrived for thousands of years .

Whilst the main lands of Azeroth became swarmed by evil demons, the Emperor of the Pandaren managed to protect the land with a mist for 10,000 years. The Pandarens are a curious race, however, and so some ventured forth to discover the world around them by the use of a giant turtle named Shen-zin Su.

With the NDA lifted, we can reveal that it is on Shen-zin Shu that those looking to play a Pandaren character will start their journey on the back of Shen-zin Shu and fight for survival, encountering the Alliance and Horde races and having to make their choice as to which faction they’ll fight for through thick and thin.

It’s Monk Time!

Through the Mists of Pandaria beta, gamers are experiencing the fun class of the Monk who specialize in the art of bare-hand combat. Many feared that Blizzard would focus on a martial art style DPS character only, however they have declared that  those rolling Monks will be able to choose either a DPS, tank or a healing role, bringing further depth, diversity and balance to Azeroth.

The following are the playable races for those looking to play a Monk:

• Pandaren
• Dwarf
• Human
• Draenei
• Gnome
• Night Elf
• Blood Elf
• Tauren
• Forsaken
• Orc
• Troll

all having the ability to wear cloth and leather armor and use the following weapons:

• Fist Weapons
• One-Handed Axes
• One-Handed Maces
• One-Handed Swords
• Polearms
• Staves

and it’s worth noting that the weapons are used for finishing moves, which use the resource of ‘chi’, with most normal combat done through their fists.

Further Game Development

There are further developments that Blizzard have made to WoW for the release of Mists of Pandaria, which look to bring even further life back into the biggest MMO out there. These include:

• Challenge Modes – put on a level playing field with everyone else in terms of gear, you race through dungeons with your group to get the best time and either a gold, silver or bronze medal, providing further rewards
• Pet Battle System – a twist on pets, being able to level them up, give them abilities and fight other pets – fun times ahead!
• Scenarios – at time of writing, even though the NDA is lifted, Blizzard have yet to provide further information on this
• Talent Calculator – yet another revamp. At level 10, players will pick a specialization and then at the levels of 15, 30, 45, 60, 75 and 90, players can choose a further ability from a choice of 3. Time will tell how this new system will define new players uniqueness but the feedback is positive so far.

If you’re really looking to fully immerse yourself in WoW, then why not pick up the World of Warcraft Scourge T-Shirt? Featuring an emblazoned graphic of the scourge right on the chest area, even your monitor might fear the evil undead as you grind out the dungeons at home.

Whoever does the artwork for Blizzard and their World of Warcraft apparel needs a good old fashioned handshake – the level of detail is incredible and the likeness to the in-game scourge is pretty much perfection. The combination of the brightly colored undead contrasts perfectly with the black background of this T-Shirt.

Your friends will be mucho jealous of you if they catch you wearing this, so feel free to boast over voice comms that whilst they’re sat there in their plain Tees or boring hoodies, you’re perched comfortably on your chair with an awesome beast on your chest, almost ready to leap out and unleash their wrath on Azeroth once more.

Being made of a good quality fabric and available in multiple sizes, whether this World of Warcraft Scourge T-Shirt is for you or a gift for a friend or family member, it’s definitely a good purchase and is currently available at a bargain price, so don’t delay in picking it up!

The period of April 8^th through to April 14^th, for 2012, spells the wonderful time of Noblegarden throughout Azeroth. Achievements, quests and fun galore can be had throughout the lands as players embark on even more fun adventures alone, or with friends.

Traditional Easter Chocolate

Most players will find that their adventure will begin in the usual starter towns, such as Razer Hill, Bloodhoof Village, Brill, Falconwing Square, Kharanos, Goldshire, Dolanaar and Azure Watch. By hunting around these areas, Noblegarden adventurers will be seeking out Easter Eggs, named in-game as “Brightly Colored Eggs”, which will fill their bellies up with “Noblegarden Chocolate”. If you’re really lucky, you might end up on all fours and hopping around the world as a rabbit for an hour or so, thanks to the chance of a buff being applied when you collect the “Brightly Colored Eggs” – that’ll teach you to mock your friends as they hop around.

Noblegarden Questing

These eggs are the pivot to this festive WoW season, since they have a chance to grant you a quest or a quest item, the beginning quests being “Spring Gatherers”(Horde) and “Spring Collectors”(Alliance) – these will then allow you to pick up the daily quest where you’ll have to collect items which are found inside more “Brightly Colored Eggs”. You won’t want to look at any more eggs after this, guaranteed!

The other quest available, “A Tisket, a Tasket, a Noblegarden Basket” will provide you with a quaint little basket so that you can run around picking up even more eggs and hopefully granting you “Noblegarden Chocolate”. Once the quest is turned in, the basket will then be yours for good, giving you a temporary speed boost in the starting areas mentioned above to allow you to pick up even more eggs – aren’t you lucky?! Eurgh, eggs!

More Chievies

As always, Blizzard have laid on an array of Achievements for you to spend hours desperately trying to pick up before Noblegarden runs out and guess what…yes, most of them revolved around the wonderful “Brightly Colored Egg”.

Noble Gardener

This is the main achievement for Noblegarden and is granted upon players completing all but 2 of all the other Noblegarden achievements, which are touched on below. Upon completion of this achievement, you’ll receive a title of “the Noble” and receive a tick in the box for the even bigger achievement to eventually receive the “Violet Proto-Drake”, a very cool flying mount.

Blushing Bride

If you’re feeling a bit fruity, then go for this achievement early to let everyone know how kissable those lips are! You’ll have to kiss another player who is wearing the “Elegant Dress”, whilst you yourself are wearing “Black Tuxedo Pants” and a “White Tuxedo Shirt” – very dapper. And, of course, these clothes can be found in our friends, the eggs, or alternatively they can be purchased by trading in “Noblegarden Chocolate”.

Chocolate Lover & Chocoholic

If you eat 25 or 100 “Noblegarden Chocolate”, not only will you feel incredibly sick but you’ll earn the achievements above. Is it worth the stomach pains? Only you can decide!

Hard Boiled

Yup, this is egg related, obviously and is actually a little tricky to complete. You’ll have to trek all the way over to Un’Goro Crater and lay an egg whilst morphed into a “Noblegarden Bunny”, which can be done by either being zapped by a “Blossoming Branch” or automagically be transformed into one by opening those blasted eggs!

Desert Rose

This one is all about travelling to the desert zones of Badlands, Desolace, Silithus, Tanaris and Thousand Needles and planting a flower whilst you’re there. You’ll need to pick up “Spring Robes” from your favorite eggs or purchasing them from a Noblegarden Vendor.

You won’t get bored with Noblegarden on the calendar, I’ve read of people spending half their time running around laughing at everyone else hopping around as bunnies rather than opening eggs, eating chocolate and wearing silly robes, but whatever you wish to do, make sure you log in and at least experience the fun times to be had with Noblegarden.

So, you’re a horde fan. You embrace the horde, you constantly yell, “For the Horde!” at your friends IRL and hate the Alliance with a passion and would love nothing more than to drag one back to a lumber camp and nail them to a tree. If that really is you, then why not take a look at the World of Warcraft Theme Horde Ring?

It’s incredibly well made and will look great on your finger to really complete your horde experience. Get into the spirit of the Horde with the World of Warcraft Theme Horde Ring during raiding or PvPing – combine it with a range of other World of Warcraft apparel to really feel that you’re part of Thrall’s Warband. Whatever you do, if you live at home with your parents, please don’t try and to their home into Orgrimmar! They might let you change your room, but don’t savage their home!

The World of Warcraft Theme Horde Ring comes with a very handy cloth to keep it clean with and it is notably well designed. The artwork on the ring is beautiful and your WoW friends will definitely be jealous if you flashed it to them.

Alliance Ring

Having a multi-buttoned mouse really should be a standard weapon in any MMO fan’s armory and the SteelSeries World of Warcraft Legendary MMO Gaming Mouse is easily a must-needed tool to really complete your gaming experience, even if you don’t play WoW!

Essentially designed to enhance your in-game experience, having 11 programmable buttons at your finger and thumb tips makes raiding, questing, PvPing or general WoWing a breeze. Whether you’re a hardcore gamer or just a casual guy or gal who logs in now and then to do a quick dungeon run or some 5-man heroics, you’ll definitely benefit from picking up the SteelSeries World of Warcraft Legendary MMO Gaming Mouse.

It’s been designed with the raider in mind and so the shape of the mouse is very ergonomic to accommodate the long raid sessions, preventing any cramping in your hands and ensuring your raid experience is as enjoyable as possible, if even if you do wipe over and over on what appears to be a trivial boss!

What’s more, the in-game SteelSeries makes programming the 11 buttons a breeze, allowing you to choose from a huge range of presets and creating your very own useful and complicated macros for more efficient gaming.

Measuring in at a perfect 24” x 32”, the World of Warcraft Two-Sided World Map is at such a size that referring to it is a breeze. What makes it the perfect companion is that it’s essentially a reference point for flight paths, both the regular ones and those for druids.

One side of the Azeroth map is dedicated entirely to these flight points, allowing you to quickly know exactly which flight to take to reach your target destination. SO, if you have a guildies who desperately needs help with a quest or you’re off to do some gathering or need to get to a zone at lightspeed to farm a rare mob, then simply refer to the World of Warcraft Two-Sided World Map for the fastest route to your destination.

The other side is a rather beautiful map of the whole of Azeroth, and it’s definitely something you could stare at for a fair amount of time! Due to its size, chances are you’ll need to have it as a wall-hanging, but if you’re a WoW fan, what more could you ask for?

Love Is In The Air
Start: February 5th, 2012
End: February 18th, 2012

This is your official invite to the most romantic time of the year in Azeroth! Log in to the game and join in the love festivities as the major cities of Azeroth play host to this once-a-year event. Gifts are being shared around galore and the local townsfolk will just love to receive a gift from you and if you’re really lucky, you could receive a Love Is In The Air reward.

This may not just be a happy time of year, though. Not everyone is finding love in Azeroth and some seem to be cursed with a rather strange love sickness. This is the time to rise up and help those who are acting a little strange and redeem some normality to them.

Running from Feb 5th to the 18th, head straight to your nearest capital city to start the quest chains and receive Love Charm rewards which can be used to create a special Lovely Charm Bracelet to gift your friends with.

The Main Quest Sequence

As you probably already know, Blizzard is a big lover of quests and they’ve developed a special main quest line for Love Is In The Air revolving around the Steamwheedle Cartel faction. They’re alert levels are on a massive high and they’re smelling something fishy afoot with the goblin members of the Crown Chemical Company.

You’re being recruited to investigate these members and to find out exactly what they’re up to, giving you the opportunity to earn some good gold and rewards. The chain will eventually lead you to the daily quest to do battle with the evil Apothecary Hummel. He drops some phat loot and itamz, including the much-sought Big Love Rocket.

Other rewards

If you’re used to WoW, you’ll know that there never seems to be just one thing and one thing only to do in game. I never seem to have time to be able to do it so it’s basically a case of doing whatever is more fun or will get you the latest faction boost or gold or achievements.

The Love Is In The Air event is riddled with such achievements and if you manage to complete all of them during the event period, you’ll receive the title, “The Love Fool.” How romantic! Some of these achievements should be pretty damn easy to do, but be warned, some might require a bit of determination to complete.

Aside from the high level loot from Apothecary Hummel, there are buffs from candy and a range of pets if you’re a collector:

Truesilver Shafted Arrow – this can be picked up by turning in Love Tokens at the local Lovely merchants in each capital city. It summons a cute little goblin who will act as your very own cupid.
Toxic Wasteling – A not so cute pet, but it’ll be very happy sat by your side squelching around after you and eating any critters that come near it. The cool thing about this pet is that it grows in size as it consumes the poor little unsuspecting critters.

Pure Romance

If you’re more of a romantic than most, then you’ll likely be looking for the more relative rewards for the Valentine’s event. You can dress up in Dinner Clothes, put a Forever-Lovely Rose in your mouth if you’re a male character, or in your hair if you’re a female, and crack open the Romantic Picnic Basket to really get in to the spirit of the Love Is In The Air festival.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Quest List

What a cool gimmick from Creative, arguably one of the best creators of Sound Cards on the market. That’s good to know, since you should always be looking for a top quality product. This time, Creative has spotted a gap in the market, in an area which quite honestly I didn’t think existed.

Imagine those annoying times when you have to hit “enter” to start chatting in WoW, or type /g or /t or /p etc. This means taking your hands off your keyboard and mouse for a split second than you need to. If you’re not using Ventrilo or TeamSpeak and need to type during raids or PvP, then this split second could really make a difference, especially if you type the wrong thing! It’s situations like this where the Warcraft Tap Chat USB Foot Pedal comes in to play, allowing you to bind a favorite macro or keybinding to your pedal. I’ve used the chat example, but you could use the “mount” command, stealth, sprint or anything you want!

If you use a multi-button mouse, it might be worth binding your push-to-talk key to the pedal to free up a middle mouse button or something similar.

What’s better is that it has a USB connection and so it won’t clog up your wireless airwaves, giving you less interference on other wireless peripherals. I take my hat off to thee, Creative, you’ve really created a cracker here!