Okay so I know what you are all thinking… “A guide about Hearthstones? Are you serious?...” well yeah, in fact there are several things people might not know or at least find slightly entertaining or informative about hearthstones and hearthstone related “things” in the game. To get all the resource hogwash out the way I got a lot of my information from WoWWikki and WoWHead, however most of I already knew.

Kudu’s Guide to Fun with Hearthstones

To start off I would like to mention several different methods of getting to your home location. Some characters, such as the Shaman or Mage, can have several different ways of “Getting Home.”

For Example:

Method One:
The Hearthstone – Arguably the most used item in the game, it has been around since the day wow was released and is one of the few things still so frequently used from vanilla wow. On April 14th, 2009 the Hearthstone had one of only two changes made to it ever, and that was a reduced cooldown of 30 minutes instead of the old 60 minute cooldown.


Method Two:
Scrolls of Recall – With the release of Wrath of the Lich King came the Inscriptions profession, and with it came the Scroll of Recall. The scroll is a once off cast hearthstone which is destroyed once used, the upside is you can make as many as you like.


Method Three:
The Ruby Slippers – Dropped off Romulus and Juliet in Karazhan, the Ruby Slippers are a pair of epic cloth boots which have a “built in” Hearthstone. Unfortunately they do share the cooldown with your hearthstone however; I like to think of them as an Epic Hearthstone!


Method Four (Shaman):
Astral Recall – This is a shaman spell which mimics the hearthstone however has a faster cooldown of 15 minutes instead of the 30 minute cooldown offered by a regular hearthstone. Astral Recall does not share a cool down with normal hearthstones making it an extremely valuable commodity especailly when combined with the "Glyph of Astral Recall."


Method Four (Mages):
Portals – We have all asked for one, we have all taken one. Mages can teleport to any major city in the game as well as some smaller ones. On top of that, they can open portals to the same locations and move entire groups to cities.

Achievements with Hearthstones:
Believe it or not, there is actually an achievement involving hearthing away in a rather funny way. If any of you took part in this years childrens week you might know which achievement I am talking about. The achievement in question is called “Home Alone”. It awards 10 achievement points and requires you to hearthstone while your orphan is with you… so evil.


A Few-Few-Facts:
Where ever you set your hearthstone within an inn, is where you will appear when you hearth home. If, for example, you were to stand on a table then set the inn as your home, next time you use your hearthstone, you will arrive on the table. Due to the way the game is coded, you can use your hearthstone while using the SIT or LAY DOWN commands. This can make for some quick getaways in a potential gank situation. For Example, say you are questing at level 55, and an over-geared, over-powered death knight is heading in your direction. You see him, but he has yet to see you… lay down in a puddle or bush and hearthstone. With some luck you might get away unscathed.

Location Pointers:
If you are a fisherman, and you decide to take on the Saturday Booty Bay Fishing Extravaganza, a good way of saving time is to set your hearthstone at the Booty Bay Inn before the contest begins. The time saved hearthing to Booty Bay instead of running there can be exactly
what you need in order to beat your competitors’ home and win the extravaganza.

Currently, Dalaran is definitely the place to be when it comes to setting a permanent home. It is the metaphorical “Center of the World” as it grants the player access to all parts of the game via portals to all major cities in the game.

This post has been edited by xxwizardxx: Oct 27 2009, 07:59 PM