PTR - Gahz'rooki

Keep in mind everything in this post is at risk of being tweaked into something unrecognisable by comparison before the content goes live.

This pet is loads of fun and even on the ptr I went ahead and put hours of work into getting it. I can even just sit there with my Gahz'rooki out and watch its heads try to eat each other; they snap at each other every few seconds. It's big, too, so the animations can plainly be seen. Unfortunately, it doesn't react to clicking that I've noticed, but with the frequency of its animation, who cares?

How much effort was I willing to invest in a pet I don't get to keep? Well...



My first stop was in Pandaria to visit the explorers in the Vale. While I was there, I queued for two or three new scenarios and then made the trek to the troll newbie area in Durotar. There, I completed a string of quests leading up to one that wanted 600 (150x4) materials, from a nearby zone that was revamped into a major pvp hub, in exchange for a piece of currency that can be used to buy Gahz'rooki and a few other items. Those 600 materials can be looted in small amounts (1 or 2) from objects on the ground or npcs in the designated area or in larger amounts (5-20? of each) from much larger npcs that might one-shot those who aren't light on their feet. They can also be obtained in said larger amounts by participating in a seemingly random event that is eerily similar to a caravan escort quest. Am I being too vague? This is about how great Gahz'rooki is, not the fun-filled new pvp content.

Once I got the 600 materials, you know exactly what I did.

And then I watched its heads try to eat each other for half an hour before even putting it in my lineup. So, here's the skinny...

Gahz'rooki has blue quality and is aquatic. It deals beast and aquatic damage. For the first slot ability, you have a choice between Bite and Tail Slap. In slot two, it's between Devour and Swallow You Whole. The third slot can employ either Whirlpool or Geyser. Good luck deciding!

The first thing I noticed about the list of abilities is both a plus and a minus for this pet. The minus is a lack of variety because each slot has you choosing between two abilities that are rather similar. It's also a plus, though, because it reduces mistakes on my part after switching abilities. Slot one is damage, slot two is finishing moves, and slot three is delayed damage.

So, here's hoping Gahz'rooki goes live and arrives exactly as is. There is fun and frustration to be had in obtaining this pet, a combination that can breed appreciation for its presence in your stuffed-to-the-brim kennels.