Server:Lightninghoof US

From WoWWiki

General History:

Lightninghoof launched in the fall of 2005, about two weeks after the 'big three' RP-PvP realms arrived on the scene in September. LH was not one of the three original RP-PvP servers (Maelstrom and Emerald Dream were the originals, both with morning launches, followed by Twisting Nether later in the day), nor was it the last (both Ravenholdt and The Venture Co. have both come since), making Lightninghoof something of a 'middle child.'

LH launched a few days after the first three RP-PvP servers, thus decreasing the number of disruptive individuals rolling alts to harrass RP-PvPers, at least for a little while. Blizzard's mistake in launching the first RP-PvP servers (and what ultimately doomed all of them with the exception of TVC and RH to having virtually zero RP) was that the servers debuted with no 'regular' PvP servers as escorts. A single 'normal' PvP server might have helped to bleed off a few of the large number of 'reroll no matter what server type this is' players who inevitably flooded Maelstrom, Emerald Dream and Twisting Nether, and eventually -- after a substantial delay -- Lightninghoof.

From a PvP View:

The early days of Lightninghoof consisted of the rush to achieve the vaunted level 60. The horde progression was led by the guild Enshadowed, who were entering Blackwing Lair before most players even dinged level 60. Enshadowed emerged as a major player in Battleground PvP, also being far more advanced gear wise did not hurt. They produced names which became common speak amongst the Alliance battleground brethren, such as Dukie, Kishra and Orcules.

Alliance progression was initially stagnated by the guild Imperial, led by the semi-famous priest 'Tavia.' Imperial would be one of the first guilds into MC (joined in short order by Fury, Awakening and a few others), but quickly collapsed under the dictatorial rule of Tavia. This arguably set Alliance progression back by at least a month, although Awakening would be quick to pick up the fallen torch, soon leading all progression on the server.

Early rank pushes were made. Sakaslan from the Thirteenth was the first horde to achieve rank 14, a warrior. He was followed by Dukie. Alliance side, the infamous Skarzor banded his Juggernaut PvP train together, and with the help of his guild, took the ride to rank 14. Kappah was soon to follow, with Nimmrod rounding out the Juggernaut trio of rank 14's. At any given time, one could view the top 20 ranked alliance PvPers and see a slew of Juggernaut members populating the front page.

Around the same time, the Horde balance of power started to shift, to a guild aptly named Atrayne. This was truely a train of sorts, as it proved with the countless high ranks of PvPers it churned out weekly. The names became legends in the PvP circuits: Tohknee, Babethe, Tinrah, Fellhorn, Zoticx, Grimmer, Kook, Leticia, and so on. With many alliance guilds focusing on gearing up to compete, the competition was not present in the late stages of Atryane's lifespan on Lightninghoof. As a result, the guild transfered, in search of more competition.

To battle the Horde powerhouse known as Atrayne, a couple of alliance teams arose. One, was a Fury team spearheaded by the pushes of Ozzie, Evryth, and eventually Drik. Behind the flag running of Ayya, Fury was able to come close to matching Atrayne step for step in Warsong.

The other team was a melting pot of PvPers. Known as "The Crew", this team was lead by Ayashi, and ended up producing its fair share of rank 14's. Guild tag had no meaning, as at anytime, numerous guilds would be represented in this crew. The Crew pushed, as Ayashi dinged 14 first, followed by Cupcakes, and then Sy and Avalanche in the final week together achieving 14.

RP and Server Climate:

While the roleplaying on Lightinghoof could initially have been descirbed as 'diehard,' l337 kiddies and the like soon began to take their toll. Many of the dedicated RP guilds either disbanded or fled the server, giving rise to the RP rennaisance of Ravenholdt six months later.

RP purists should shy away from Lightninghoof. There is a small but active RP community on the server, particularly hordeside, but this can be somewhat difficult to locate. Lightninghoof horde hosts RP nights on wednesdays in Brill that provide an opportunity for newcomers to connect with the RP community and remove some of the barrier to entry of new players to the server. However, outside on RP night and guild events, players will be pressed to find RP on the server.

A few notable Horde RP guilds include: The Eternal Order, Four Winds, Cult of Luukos, Cult of Nerox, Kalimdorian Patrol. Many of these guilds are trying to rebuild Lightninghoof's RP reputation. They have had some success with organizing many RP events such as RP raids upon cities, celebration of real world events, and the like.

PvE Progression:

PvE progression on Lightninghoof has improved dramatically in past years, but the server as a whole is not intensely competitive. They do tend to lag behind top US servers in terms of progression speed, but the top guilds on the server on both Horde and Alliance sides are composed of dedicated, competent players that push progression and can successfully down content. The only two guilds that were top 100 (by traditional rankings such as WoWJutsu or WowProgress) were Awakening and Enshadowed, both of which no longer exist. Still, the server maintains a very strong core of skilled players spread over multiple organizations. It is a fact that Alliance progression has always been ahead of Horde progression, though there have always been several strong Horde guilds.

The earlier days (though perhaps not the earliest) of PvE progression were dominated by two guilds - Awakening [A] and Enshadowed [H]. Their rivalry came to a head at the opening on the AQ gates, where they battled it out for 5-6 months to see who could open the gates first. This argument was settled when Awakening's Guildmaster, the gnome warlock Porom, opened the gates of Ahn'qiraj and became the Scarab Lord. Awakening dominated PvE progression from that point forward. The most dominant horde guilds of this time were Eminent Reign, Reason, Sublime, and Grievous, with Eminent Reign, Reason, and Grievous eventually going under and Sublime and Fine Young Cannibals leading the pack. A year and a half later, a guild called Cadia [A] transferred to Lightninghoof from Darkspear. Cadia was further along than Awakening was in Naxxramas and maintained that pace through the end of WoW Classic. Neither guild cleared Naxxramas before the start of the Burning Crusade.

Burning Crusade progression was initially dominated by Awakening and Cadia on Alliance side and Fine Young Cannibals and Sublime on Horde. Awakening experienced internal issues in early 2007 and Cadia began to lead server progression by a wide margin. Awakening splintered and ultimately went under in July 2007. Reckoning [A] was the primary guild to emerge from Awakening's ashes and established itself quickly, but was not in competition with Cadia. As of late 2007, Cadia had accomplished server-first clears of Serpentshrine Cavern and Tempest Keep. Horde side saw Sublime and FYC enjoying success in those instances as well. In January 2008, Cadia had the server-first kill of Illidan Stormage and subsequently cleared Black Temple at a time where less than 2% of guilds had managed this, which helped to put Lightninghoof back on the map for Burning Crusade progression. They were followed by Reckoning [A], Sublime [H], Fine Young Cannibals [H], and Praetorian [H].

Several months before the Black Temple clear, Cadia had undergone a reorganization and a change of leadership, as did Sublime. When Sunwell Plateau was released, Cadia had internal issues and was surpassed in the new content by Reckoning, which had server-first kills on all Sunwell Plateau content. They were followed by Cadia [A], Fine Young Cannibals [H], and Sublime [H]. While Reckoning was the only guild on the server to down M'uru before 3.0, they did not clear Sunwell Plateau before the effective end of Burning Crusade with the 3.0 patch, though Reckoning did round out with the server-first clear of Sunwell Plateau two days after patch release. Shortly after, several other guilds on the server quickly cleared Sunwell as well.

The current climate of PvE progression on Lightninghoof has been mixed. While the scene is clearly not dominated by a single guild, it is plainly evident that both Cadia and Reckoning are at the forefront of Lightninghoof PvE progression in Wrath of the Lich King. Reckoning, Cadia, and Prestige [A] cleared Obsidian Sanctum 10 and 25 together, with Cadia and Reckoning joining up for the server-first clear of Naxxramas 25 days later, which put Lightninghoof back on the competitive map again for a short time at the start of the expansion. Cadia and Reckoning have been very close since, with Cadia coming out slightly ahead in 25 man content and slightly behind in 10 man content. Cadia scored the server-first kill of Malygos by 1 hour, followed by Reckoning scoring the server-first kill of Obsidian Sanctum 25 2-Drake by 1 day, which Cadia followed two weeks later with the server-first kill of Obsidian Sanctum 25 3-Drake by 1 day. Both Cadia and Reckoning have been closely followed by Sublime [H]. Reckoning scored the server-first clears of Naxxramas 10, Malygos 10, followed closely by Cadia, Sublime, and Praetorian. Reckoning scored the server-first clear of Obsidian Sanctum 10 3-Drake, followed by Sublime a month later. Many other guilds since have cleared it. As time progressed, the goal became achieving Glory of the Raider (both heroic and non-heroic) with the looming patch date of Ulduar. Reckoning achieved it first, followed by Prestige, Sublime and then Fine Young Cannibals. Going into Ulduar, Lightninghoof for once was not months behind in gearing.

As Ulduar hit, it was apparent that many guilds were ready for the push into Ulduar and ultimately, the hardmode content. Reckoning scored the first Yogg-Saron kill, followed later by Cadia. Sublime managed to kill Yogg-Saron about a month after Ulduar was released. Many other guilds made their way into Ulduar, some new to raiding and some longtime Lightninghoof staples.

Overall PvE progression on Lightninghoof is generally maintained by Moonmaster of Sublime, who has been a patron of a neutral ranking system and is well-known for providing PvE ranking services for several years. He is currently developing a ranking system and it is in a private Beta.

Rare Craftables and Enchants

For a list of crafters for rare craftables and enchants, please visit this page.

Guilds

Alliance

Guild	Leader	Faction	Server	RP	PvP	PvE	Website
Cadia	Rypht		Lightninghoof US	Light	Heavy	Heavy	http://www.cadiaguild.com
Followers Of Puddlefang	Genesia		Lightninghoof US	Medium	Medium	Medium	http://www.puddlefang.com
Nox Oriens	Thorend		Lightninghoof US	Light	Heavy	Heavy	http://www.noxoriens.com
Prestige	Thrrak		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Medium	http://www.prestigeguild.org
Reckoning	Amthua		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Heavy	http://www.reckoningwow.com
Smash Bunny	Xepharious		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Heavy	http://smashbunny.guildportal.com/
Guild	Leader	Faction	Server	RP	PvP	PvE	Website

Horde

Guild	Leader	Faction	Server	RP	PvP	PvE	Website
Amped	Salovard		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Light	Heavy	http://ampedguild.net
Bone Brigade	Versil		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Light	Heavy	http://bone-brigade.com
Brimstone	Remake		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Casual	Heavy	http://www.brimstone-guild.net
Champions of Lordaeron	Mordokk		Lightninghoof US	Light	Light	Medium	http://www.championsoflordaeron.com/HRMain.html
Cult of Luukos	Deicide		Lightninghoof US	Heavy	Heavy	Light	http://www.insanitycity.com/luukos/
Demonic	Kildem		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Medium	Heavy	http://www.demonicguild.org
Eminent Reign	Shield		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Casual	Yes	http://www.eminentreign.com
For The Horde	Aangus		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Heavy	http://www.fthg.info
Four Winds	Kosuteh		Lightninghoof US	Heavy	Casual	Casual	http://four.windshome.org/forum/index.php
Fine Young Cannibals	Tumult		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Heavy	http://fyc.dkpsystem.com/news.php/
How We Roll	Nectavius		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Medium	Medium	http://www.howweroll.net
Kalimdorian Patrol	Tarekan		Lightninghoof US	Heavy	Heavy	Medium	N/A
The Raiders	Vallcore		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Medium	Heavy	http://raiders.darkstargamers.com/phpnuke/
Ravens Fury	Tyrantis		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Medium	Heavy	http://www.rfury.com/
Reason	Noshame		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Medium	Heavy	http://www.reasonwow.com/
Red Band	Xiutin		Lightninghoof US	Medium	Light	Heavy	N/A
Redoubt	Iresaint		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Heavy	http://www.rd.clantournament.net
Reprieve	Themistocles		Lightninghoof US	N/A	N/A	Heavy	http://www.reprieveguild.com/
Blackguard	Soale		Lightninghoof US	Casual	Medium	Medium	http://www.blackguardoutlaw.com/
Cult of Nerox	Direbear		Lightninghoof US	Heavy	Light	Medium	http://www.clangroups.com/Guild
Sin'dorei	Malpeg		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Heavy	http://www.sindoreiguild.net
The Shrouded Blade	N/A		Lightninghoof US	NA	N/A	N/A	N/A
Skorned	N/A		Lightninghoof US	NA	N/A	N/A	N/A
Sublime	Rhowan		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Casual	Heavy	http://www.rhowansmom.com
Tainted Love	Peasea		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Medium	Heavy	http://www.taintedloveguild.com
Tempest	Tigereye		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Heavy	http://tempest-guilds.org
Tombstone	Valtorr		Lightninghoof US	N/A	Heavy	Heavy	http://www.tombstoneclan.net
Torn	Castigar		Lightninghoof US	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Overlords Of Kalimdor	Mushagie		Lightninghoof US	Light	Medium	Medium	http://overlordsofkalimdor.com
House of the Lion	Grotek		Lightninghoof US	Light	Heavy	Medium	N/A
Guild	Leader	Faction	Server	RP	PvP	PvE	Website