A VERY interesting post went up over at WoWInsider not too long ago*.

The gist of the post was that hunter pets can be massaged even further with family-abilities than they are now, to make them more flexible and raid-viable. I encourage you to go over and take a gander at it if you’re interested, the details of the various pet abilities are an interesting read even for non-hunters because you can dream about what kind of pet might synergize well with whatever class you play.

Normally I don’t like to dwell too much on entries that have “wouldn’t it be great if…” and “oooh, it’s possible we may get…” type topics. Not only does it accomplish little, it makes me weep to think of how badly I want my priest to have a Holy Form to counter the Shadow Form for shadow priests. It’s not a new idea, it’s not a unique and special snowflake of an idea, but by golly it would be SO FRACKIN COOL. You know it would! Don’t even bother to deny it!

Ahem. Back to the hunter pets.

The reason I decided to go ahead and make a post that is not only just a response to someone else’s post, but also has nothing to do with the reality of huntering at this moment is because I really like the idea, and it got me to thinking.

I love the hunter class. One of the things that MAKES the hunter class is how very customizable it is.

Druids (bless their heart) look exactly the same in bear form and decked out in the most fanTABulous gear available as a brand spanking new level 10 bear druid. I am convinced that this is an oversight that will be fixed in the expansion, but that’s not the point of this post.

A hunter’s pet is a reflection of the hunter himself (or herself. ‘itself’ doesn’t fit, and english has no gender-neutral pronouns, throw me a bone here). The pet chosen by a hunter can not only be a unique creature, it can also be a different skin/color for that type of animal. The combinations are mind-boggling.

When you see a hunter run past, and then a long-legged pink tallstrider weaves its way through the crowd behind them…you know at least a tiny bit about that hunter. They have flair. They wish to be noticed. Maybe they’re even a bit of a jokester or a clown.

A crocolisk? A crab? These are rare breeds indeed, someone who truly craves the unique. (Or maybe they just like gators or crabs, that works too).

But you can express yourself through the pet that you choose. There are SO many skins for cats, SO many skins for raptors and ravagers and owls…

When I’m running through Shattrath or wasting a bit of time in between SSO dailies and I see a bright tiger with white stripes glaring suspiciously at the people walking past…I click to see if it’s BRK and Hobbes. Not because I recognize the faceless hunter…because I recognize the PET.

Pets are more than just an expression of yourself. When you’re soloing as a hunter, you aren’t REALLY soloing. So many hunters become emotionally attached to their pets, they feel like they have a friend with them, even if it is just pixels and code There’s a connection there. Pets are more than just a sword or a mace. They’re more than just a weapon or a mount, or a status symbol.

They MAKE the hunter class, and hunters are proud of their pets.

I love that they added pet abilities that can only be learned by certain pet families. I love that there’s a game-significant reason to choose one pet over another. It saddens me that some pets have no unique abilities, nothing to set them apart.

But if they gave bears an extra aggro-inducing ability, you can bet your sweet buppy I’ll be one of the first hunters trolling the snowy hills of Winterspring. I love those polar bears, with their heart-shaped pawpads. If they can hold aggro over me, I’d happily trade in one of my lions for a soloing pet that truly has a REASON to be called a soling pet.

The hunter with the Tallstrider would be beloved by any mana user they group with - hunters, enhancement shaman, paladins…it’s not just the pure casters who could use the boost and who would be delighted to see one of those unique and much-beloved pets.

I love the idea that hunters can tailor their pets more specifically to the job they need done. I love that hunters who choose “nonstandard” pets might be able to validate their choose and provide buffs to the group. I haven’t heard of people requiring certain hunter pets or banning hunters with crabs, for example. But what if you could tweak and tailor just a little bit more? What if hunter pets provided more group synergy? There’s already a reason to want a wolf, or an owl, or a carrion bird for the buffs they bring. Why not extend that, give every pet just a little more reason to be used?

I love it. I love the idea, I love the implications, and I believe it can be done carefully without upsetting the delicate class balances. Right now, the PET balances are skewed heavily away from certain pets, and I’d love to see that equalized without removing the uniqueness associated with the pets.

Although I do feel obligated to note that if the abilities are implemented as detailed in the original post, the cats are going to be overpowered as choices for dps raiding pets for the hunter who wishes to up his/her own dps. I also notice that my beloved ravagers were not mentioned. /cry

_{* Please note that if I remember it, it was “not too long ago”. If I only vaguely remember it, it’s “a ways back”, and if I’ve forgotten it completely, it “never happened”.}

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 8th, 2008 and is filed under DPSers, ~ Vonya. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.