A Hunter's Story

For all his elusive capabilities, I have finally found him! Let me relate to you the tale of the great hunt which started roughly 15 months ago…

After honing my abilities for years and reaching the level of 80, I chose to take on the challenge of hunting the rare beast, Loque’nahak. So I set out for Sholazar Basin, having heard rumor that Har’koa’s Mate had chosen to take residence there. I spent hours on end, following trail after trail. Once or twice I spent days on end, just looking for a sign to prove that he did exist, and that he was still in Sholazar. Every once in a while I thought I saw him, but it turned out to be a false being, pretending to look and act just like Loque.

After many months of no sign, I began to get a little discouraged. Instead of spending every waking minute on the hunt, I began to put my energy elsewhere, sparing only time when I could to continue looking. You can imagine my fury when in one of these trips, I managed to find King Krush locked in an epic battle. After spending so much time looking for one rare beast only to come across another! I’d say that I wanted King Krush to lose that battle, but the truth is I wanted him to win. But only so I could have the pleasure myself of flaying him with my arrows. However, the warrior was successful, if only just barely. Thus I continued my in my quest. You can imagine my surprise when months later, I came across a familiar trail. I checked the markers and double checked them… It was King Krush again! I can only surmise that while I previously thought Krush was dead, he was only fooling the warrior into a false sense of security. After I left the scene, he must have torn that warrior limb from limb! I quickly called m’lady, a druid, to my side and we followed the trail to its end. Having seen Krush in battle before, I knew he could be viscous. I crept up, took careful aim, and let the first of many arrows fly. Took all my ability to keep him at range, disengaging at strategic moments, for I feared those teeth. I managed to get grazed once or twice, but I knew the nourish would come from m’lady so long as I kept Krush distracted. When I saw him fall, I took no chances and loaded a few extra arrows into him, and then had m’lady skin him just to be sure!

You can imagine my surprise when months later while out tracking again, I came across something new. I had never seen these tracks before. It was a bird of some kind, but certainly exotic! When I finally saw him through the trees, I was filled with awe. It was Aotona, one of the most beautiful birds I have ever seen. I knew I had to have him as one of mine. On my way to tame, I was still in such shock that a wandering gorilla managed to cross my path. Now alerted to my presence, I had the two after me. It was a close shave, but I managed to take down the gorilla and then tame Aotona. In his rebirth as a companion of mine, he now bears the name Vree. At times he’s a little vain, but mostly mischievous. Now having seen two exotic animals, I knew I had to be close. I was on the right track, and obviously had the ability – now I just had to hone my efforts.

Many more days and weeks passed with no hint of a trail, until one day. I was in the area, hoping to catch some clue or mark, but mostly focused on mining ore to replenish my stock of arrows. I was flying the perimeter on my trusty drake when I saw something flash below. Quickly we went to ground and I saw it was a true track! Heart pumping, I searched around, knowing the importance of both speed and stealth. And suddenly, there he was! Nocked an arrow and let it fly. It struck home – I landed a successful concussive blow! Keeping my wits about me, I knew he would pounce as soon as he could, so I lay down a strategic trap. Lucky for me, in came the pounce, his blood thirst strong enough for him to not expect it! And then he was mine. A few heartpounding moments while I wove the intricate layers that would bind he to I, and I to he. There was a great flash of light! And then he stood by my side. From past experience, I knew he would be hungry so I reached into my pouch and found some chilled meat. From that moment on, he became my loyal friend. With the new relationship, I also gave him a new name – Macavity. For all my searching, he would always disappear by the time I was there, and now that he grows big and red when wrath hits in the heat of battle, I believe it fitting. I returned to town alive, elated, and exhausted. And so ends the tale of the great hunt.

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I must say, I am still in shock. After searching so long, I had just about deemed it a lost cause. Especially with already having two other exotics, Aotona & Arcturis. I basically just cleared my cache & used NPCScan every time I was headed in the general direction of Sholazar and made a few laps on the off chance he might be there. Couldn’t believe I actually found him, after how many times it went off on some other hunter’s pet! But anyway, in case you’re curious where Macavity comes from, here’s a video for you.