Proposal: Pet Mog. (Solution for stable slots)

[Teigan]

Every expansion, a Hunter version of Pathfinder that unlocks more slots?

I could get behind that!

[GormanGhaste]

It's easy enough to say don't use them, but if they're there and I have pets that I like well enough, they may as well sit there. I still keep plenty of extra space in my stable, but having the empty room just removes any need or incentive to care what's in there and things pile up, so to speak. It's like having a house that's too large for your needs. Sure you might not need to use all of the rooms, but clutter accumulates anyways just because there's the space for it to. I don't really know if I'm explaining this well but, it's just my personal feelings on the matter.

Haha, this is me IRL and in my stable. Going into this expansion, I had over a page of empty slots in my stable, but over time I've gradually filled up most of them--mostly with Hati transmog pets, so that will be an easy way to clear up space!

[Tomb]

I have used all of my pets during different stages and some you just want to keep due to the memory of seeing that pet. "Oh, this were the pet I used back when blablabla". And some pets were real struggles. "I had to camp this pet for two days until I were able to tame it".

And Blizzard just keep adding more interesting things to tame. So I really hope they add more stable master slots.

[Quiv]

I just can't shake this feeling there is a better solution than more slots or a pet appearance system. I wish I was clever enough to come up with something, but I know my lack of ingenuity doesn't mean it doesn't exist. I just know it does. I only hope whatever solution they arrive to isn't based on the notion that some reasons to keep pets stabled are invalid. Thats infuriating.

[Valnaaros]

I can't think of anything else, either, and I'm not really sure there is much else that can be done within WoW's tech.

[Maizou]

I'd be on board with this if they gave us like 10-20 stable slots for names, if names weren't saved to appearances.

[Täräin13]

Just throwing my 2 cents into this discussion.

Every reset I now swap out my pets so I get to use them all. Everytime I die/wipe or enter a new instance or place I usually swap pets out so I get to use all 54 pets I actually care about about, have named and for 95% I can still mention where I first ran into them. I recently renamed almost all 55 pets with an except of a few. And even with their new names I still have a physical list of all the old names placed in my desk drawer, so if I ever regret my choice/is too senile to recall their names I can find it and give them back their original names. Even their new names have deep meaning to me and I picked them specifically because I think it matched their designs or otherwise. Hard to explain it to people when you have an autistic brain! But yeah the gist of it 54 out of 55 pets actually means equally something to me and so does their names old and new. (The one pet I admit not caring much about is the pink panda crane, still like the skin hence why I am keeping it and not throwing it away)

The point of this is for a person with my mindset I would be sad to see a pet mog tab with only 20 names saved. Make it the current 55 names and though I will be sad about not getting to name new skins I probably would survive. HOWEVER, I much rather prefer to keep my pets "physically" inside the game with all their names, either getting, buying or unlocking eg. 45-50 new stable slots.
So personally I say let's have a total of 100 slots as max. after that I agree it probably gets too much with everything. Whether the stableslots gets moved to a tab in collections or remain the same as now I don't care. I just want the option to keep my "physical" tames and names and add some of all the new looks coming in BFA as well of 2 legion looks I currently can't get without releasing pets which all means something to me.

Besides in the end I have no issue with people wanting 1000 pet skins if that's the case. I just feel that a 100 slots total would accommodate the majority of the playerbase without it being too much or too less and those who don't wanna buy/use the extra space don't have to. And if Blizz came out and said, "hey guys, you having 55 slots is actually already an issue because....." then I would say fair enough, no more tames for my hunter. But so far I haven't seen or read or heard anywhere that extra stable slots would be an issue, so I honestly can't see why not.

But then again I have a different mindset and thought pattern than the majority, so apologies in advance if I come off as rude or something. I don't mean it that way, my brain just runs that way!

[Chya]

They did say, but it's been along time. About time they bring it up again it seems.

[Rozzana]

I dunno about you, but having more pets doesn't make me dislike or disconnect from them more. I tend to only keep unique skins/rare mobs anyhow, because they have the most character. I say if someone wants to collect a bunch of pets, that's just how they want to play the game. Having hundreds of different types of skins and mobs makes picking and choosing very difficult over time, when there is no cap on the creatures added, but a cap on what people can collect.That just won't make sense as time goes on, like it didn't back when we had even fewer slots.

If you feel it's greying on your personal class fantasy, that's more so a mix between a personal issue and how Blizzard has handled the class.
The entire point of stables was to give the player more choice and variety, so I feel that should stay the ultimate goal. Allow people who want more to get more. It doesn't make sense to me to say someone can't have 70 or more pets, because someone else feels '10' pets better fits their version of the class fantasy.

What if someone's version of the class was to be a "zoo keeper"? Or some just want 5 pets with huge backstories, etc. Many people play differently, so adding more slots/revamping it/making it infinite just allows more styles of play--not pushes everyone towards one.

[Rozzana]

Besides, there are way worse RP/fantasy killers for hunters
-Making a hard to get pet suddenly a common mob next patch
-Bland tasteless skins for "unique" types of families (or any family a person feels has been getting shafted)
-Taking away the need to feed your pet
-No longer having to train your pet
-Pets scaling their level to you instantly, taking away the leveling process
-etc
Some of these were obviously much appreciated quality of life changes, but it goes to show that there are far more impacting/troublesome things that cause us to devalue our pets more.

[Krysteena]

Imagine tracking Loque'nahak for days, struggling against achievement hunters and the unmentionables, to finally tame him, and then straight away get rid of him because 'oh, I have his skin now'. I feel it reduces the drive to really 'hunt' if the pet you tame simply becomes a skin that you unlock.

It's not as special as it used to be anyway.. There isn't a tame now that has the feel of Loq/Krush/Aotona. The rares now either have a short respawn time, a common beast with the same skin, or they're part of a quest chain that everyone can follow.

The old days are gone regardless.

That doesn't change the fact that older players who haven't got these rarer pets, or new players for that matter, may very well want these pets - as pets, not as cool skins you can tame. Newer pets can be special for reasons other than 'oh I waited x amount of time for this pet' or 'I was super lucky with this guy when he spawned', and I, for one, like that change. New changes to the pet system don't necessarily tarnish the old system. Loque will be special to obtain for a different reason, which is fine. Making pets simple appearances just doesn't sit right with me, I'm afraid.

I also want to add: I don't believe adding new slots will kill class fantasy. Adding infinite slots might, and adding this transmog system, at least for me, will. Of course, whether or not it kills class fantasy for others depends on their play style, and so I don't speak for every hunter.

[Valnaaros]

I also want to add: I don't believe adding new slots will kill class fantasy. Adding infinite slots might, and adding this transmog system, at least for me, will. Of course, whether or not it kills class fantasy for others depends on their play style, and so I don't speak for every hunter

That's how I feel about it, more or less. I would hate if a Xmog system was implemented or if they just gave us infinite slots. To have the pets I love be reduced to nothing more than skins would be very upsetting, and infinite slots would just make Hunter pets into the faceless mass that mounts and battle pets already are. I know there are some that have 55 pets and strive to be attached to them all, and that is their choice, but I just can't see how that can work -- let alone trying to be attached to another 20-50 of them.

[Inay]

There was in this topic I think the idea of a small instancied zone, like a park? Where you can put your not-active pets, and take them back after. And like, it would be a tiny forest, or something? And you can walk in it and see your pets do their life peacefully, with the same technology as the stables in the garrison. (Except this time you see all the pet, not three random favorites). It's a park so it would have maybe infinite slots? Or more than now. And it's not just an icon in the interface, so you don't loose the characterisation of your pets.

[Qraljar]

There was in this topic I think the idea of a small instancied zone, like a park? Where you can put your not-active pets, and take them back after. And like, it would be a tiny forest, or something? And you can walk in it and see your pets do their life peacefully, with the same technology as the stables in the garrison. (Except this time you see all the pet, not three random favorites). It's a park so it would have maybe infinite slots? Or more than now. And it's not just an icon in the interface, so you don't loose the characterisation of your pets.

Either this, or a huge meadow of some kind if we ever get player housing, would be most preferable.

Just seeing our pets out in the world (even an instanced world) rather than talking to an NPC to switch them in would already be a great help towards making them feel more personal.

[Valnaaros]

It would help deal with the problem that the stable has in nothing feeling very personal, but I'm against it having infinite slots. As has been discussed in this thread, most of us do not want Hunter Pets to be the new Mounts and Battle Pets, where you just keep collecting for no reason other than to collect and only use a handful of them regularly.

I do like the rest of the idea, though. Would just come down to whether Blizz can or would do something like that.

[Inay]

That's not exactly my idea, someone (I'm sorry, I can't remember who ) talked about it already, in reference with the Hunter Hall. (That SHOULD have had that feature, damnit)
And yeah, maybe not infinite, that would lend to the pets going on each others in the meadow. But a bit more than what we have now. I support adding a bit more slots when Blizzard add that many new models. I doubt I will use them myself (I still don't use the full 55) but I understand those that do and don't want to part with their actual pets. (Also, I would love a meadow/forest/maybe we could choose a biome? That would be so cool)

[Valnaaros]

I think Veph mentioned how the Hunter Lodge should've had our pet appear in it, much like how the Garrison could have your favorite battle pets appear and wander around.

Being able to choose the biome would be quite cool!

[Rozzana]

I don't entirely see how having infinite slots would = a collect a thon.
Mounts and battlepets are geared towards the inventive of bragging and achievements. Pets can be for bragging, but nowadays mostly for rp or aesthetics. There aren't any achievements for collecting pets or filling a stable, nor will most players go out of their way to own a ton that aren't even unique or special in any way. Some of you might, but in the end people just want what's cool to them--and that's not going to be everything.

Not saying I vouch purely for infinite slots, but I would just like a way for people who want more slots to get them. I personally don't even have a full stable, but when I see new beasts added over time, I begin to worry about it filling.

I don't think the change for a few more slots or infinite slots will cause a dramatic shift in fantasy, when it can be optional and not as invasive as say 'Hati'. Tbh I don't expect them to give us more slots this expac, but I'm just worried about it down the line. It's an issue that keeps coming up and they should try and figure out a way to fix it. Hell I'd even be willing to do pathfinder level nonsense to earn infinite stables, just bc I don't want to have to worry about stables anymore.

[Rozzana]

Like I dunno, why not have some stupid epic massive quest for stables. Make people track, tame, kill, an endure some beasties. Make part of it a riddle. It can relate to or be part of most of the pet families, or something.
That way people who want it can go get it and people who don't, don't feel it forced upon them. It doesn't have to be as hard as Fenryr, but a bit of difficulty can be fun.

There just has to be a way so everyone can be happy and we never have to talk about archaic stables again

[GormanGhaste]

There just has to be a way so everyone can be happy and we never have to talk about archaic stables again

Right? I support the idea of pet transmog just because I'm tired of hearing people ask for more stable slots.