There are also the drawbacks to consider. While these heirloom pieces will always be good fits at any level, they also devalue any exciting items that you may find. While running my wife's warlock through Zul'Farrak, for instance, Gut Ripper (a level 40 epic dagger) and the Gloves of Holy Might (level 37 epic leather gloves) both dropped for us, ideal Rogue pieces. Normally, BoE epics for the character that I planned on leveling would be worth cheering about, but I just couldn't get myself psyched about them. It was a foregone conclusion that I'd be cruising past the 40s bracket, so I decided that dropping them in the Auction House would probably be for the best. One of the most exciting moments you could have in WoW, finding random epic loot, had suddenly become uninteresting.
But how much fun is it to only need one button?
I've put myself in this situation, and frankly I'm torn. I love the heirloom gear for its efficiency, but I still feel a slight twinge of regret at having dialed World of Warcraft down to super-easy mode. Questhelper, Wowhead, heirloom items and purchased gold may be depriving gamers of the experience as it was originally intended, even if it is a second or third playthrough. Leveling up a character, for many, is the most fun that WoW has to offer. After all, the content quickly runs dry at level 80, as I've previously explored. So when you consider picking up a full set of heirloom gear, think twice about it, as you may be doing yourself a disservice by racing to 80 at such breakneck speed. Doesn't Azeroth, the undisputed king of virtual worlds, deserve to be experienced at a slower, more challenging pace?
[Gerald has been writing professionally about videogames for nearly a decade, and he still hasn't taken how lucky he is for granted. If you want to know more about him, you can catch up with what's going on in his life through his personal Twitter.]
