A Question of Strategy...

[Illahren]

So, I am a tamer. I likes me the rares. For the past four years or so this has all been well and good. I have been a long time forum stalker, but recent addition to the petopia active posting group and so I do not come before you with a noobish question on spawn timers or "where can I find THIS one or THAT one?" I know them all, I have withstood the boredom of each, I can spout spawn locations like I'm sort of secret hunter's traveler's almanac.

Here's my question though from another noobish angle and one I'm hoping the lot of you can somehow help me out with an answer on:

I recently rolled a hunter on a new server to play with a few old guildies who have become good friends of mine through WoW. They even made me roll horde with them and after much hand scrubbing and fretting, I relented to rock the tusks of a troll.

I immediately started power-leveling, and forcing my friend to side-car drive me to get my various rares as I flew up the charts. I went and got Gorefang, then I went and got Echyakee (yes I know he's not a rare but I needs to have my Lannister Lion), and then we found Takk's dead body and I, crying, went and tamed Snort instead. Yay for me.

This morning I jumped on and jumped up to 23 through LFG, then went and stood where Humar should spawn, and deicded one good lion deserves another. So I wait, he spawns and I do my dance and move to kite the black pridelord into my wonderfully placed freeze trap.

It's about to end the tame, yay for me, here it comes, yay for me, I have two li-.....why am I dead?

WHO THE HELL IS THIS ALLIANCE GUY?!? HE SHOT ME IN THE BACK MID-TAME?!? HE CAN DO THAT?!!!? OMG, IT'S A HUNTER!! HE'S TAMING MY HUMAR!!!!! YOU MOTHER-...

(insert various trucker-inspired language here)

(...and again here...)

(...keep em coming...)

(...gettin kind of winded...)

...-SON OF AN IMMORTAL AND DISEASED SUCCUBUS OF THE NIGHT!!!

Here then is my question: How do you camp spawns on a pvp realm? Without the fear of being shot in the back by dirty violet elves? I keep thinking back to all my PvE realm tames of the spirit beasts and how many horde rolled by me with nothing but a wave and a bow. I have no doubt most of them would have shot me if they could have... and now I'm freaked because I have no idea how to compete for rares when it has less to do with time-invested and more to do with getting the jump on the person who has invested the time.

Someone help meh!

[Vephriel]

Here then is my question: How do you camp spawns on a pvp realm? Without the fear of being shot in the back by dirty violet elves? I keep thinking back to all my PvE realm tames of the spirit beasts and how many horde rolled by me with nothing but a wave and a bow.

It's really all luck and timing. You just have to hope to be there when no one else is, and if someone else is there then you have to hope they're nice enough not to interrupt. Try camping in the early hours of the morning and such with less activity. That's really all you can do.

[Adam-Savage]

One thing you can do is a make an alliance toon and do a /who on the basin to see who is there. I'm not sure if it would work the way you want it to being a low lvl toon.

[Foru21dr]

It's a pvp server.. You have a much higher chance of getting killed even if they don't want the tame. You are a target. I would say, the best thing to do is get up early in the morning (or very late at night) to check to see if your rare is up. Most likely there will be no others in the area at that time to take/kill you.

[Golden]

Hm, the question is, why were you flagged at the time? Barrens is a Horde area and as such doesn't flag Horde players even on a PVP server.

Sadly the only thing you CAN do while camping a rare is to not be flagged if possible. Unless you're at the same level or higher as the other campers, you will get trampled if they decide to act like an ass and ruin your tame. :(

Usually if I'm camping for a rare, I keep an eye on players nearby, especially if I'm attackable. I never attack another camper, unless they've done so multiple times to me in the past. I always throw a /luck when I see them, and /grats if they find what they're looking for - even if I was looking for the same rare at the time too.

[Sarayana]

You don't flag in Barrens on a pvp server? I thought you flagged once you left Durotar/Mulgore level zones.

[Sochi]

Unless you flag yourself while in the Barrens on a PvP server, you should remain unflagged. Contested Zones, like Ashenvale, Stonetalon and Thousand Needles, are a free for all. It seems to be that the third zone over in the progression of zones, is contested. Stepping over the boundary will auto-flag you and you cannot take that flag down. I know. I started on a PvP server.

But by all mean, if you aren't flagged in the Barrens and camping Humar, you should be fine.

[Sarayana]

Oh. I thought you were just always flagged outside starting zones on pvp servers. Goes to show what I know.

Well then, there's your answer, Illahren. Unflag and let it wear off, then recamp.

I'm really sorry that hunter was a jerk, but at least now you won't have him killing you next time Humar pops. Good luck.

[Kalliope]

It's starting areas and the next level up of areas. So alliance-side, zones like Westfall, Loch Modan, Darkshore, and Bloodmyst are protected. Horde-side, the Barrens, Silverpine, and Ghostlands are protected. (I never realized that because three horde races dump into the Barrens, they actually have fewer options for safe areas than alliance do - interesting!)

Oh, as for camping on a PvP server, getting attacked during a tame is just one extra option for griefers. I lost King Krush the first two times because FELLOW ALLIANCE killed him. They didn't need to be able to attack me to ruin my tame. Basically, just carry on as usual and try to keep an ear out, even if you're not watching the screen directly, in case you start getting attacked. If they outlevel you that much, then there's nothing you can do about them anyway. It's just the luck of the draw. :/