As you can see the responses I got were varied and go from very specific to not caring at all. Let’s take a quick look at each of these responses.
Dragonkin
All creatures descended from, and including, dragons are considered to be Dragonkin. Dragonkin usually have magical abilities and are semi-intelligent to very intelligent. This fact is the reason that these creatures will probably never be able to be tamed by a Hunter. How do you tame an intelligent creature really? I can just imagine the conversation:
Hunter - “I am going to tame you, Dragonkin!”
Dragon - “What?”
Hunter - “I am going to tame you and make you my mindless slave for eternity. So uh, stand still a second, would you?”
Dragon - “I don’t think….”
Hunter - “This won’t hurt a bit…./cast Tame Beast”
Dragon - “/sigh”
Hunter - “Hm, didn’t work. Let me try again, second time’s the charm, right?
Dragon - “Really dude? You can’t be serious.” (Hunter proceeds to cast Tame Beast again)
Dragon - /bites Hunter‘s head off. “Problem solved.”
Not that I wouldn’t enjoy a Dragonkin pet, I just think it would be highly unlikely. Perhaps Blizzard will allow an ability on top of Tame Beast (for Beast Master Hunters?) that will enabled the Hunter to form an alliance with a more intelligent creature thereby allowing them to become our pets/partners. Who knows? It could happen.
Kodo
Kodo are large reptiles with leathery skin, and are most predominant in Mulgore. They are distant relatives of the Rhino which are able to be tamed, which leads me to believe that perhaps eventually the Kodo will be tamable too. The only reason I can see that Kodo may never be tamable is many Kodo have a bond with the Tauren race, and it may be considered somewhat sacrilegious to tame one as a pet. Cairne is carrying something that resembles a tree stump, I would rather not face his wrath. That being said, Tauren already use these giant beasts as mounts, so why not tame them as Hunter pets too?
Arctic Grizzly Cub
A surprising addition to my list, the Arctic Grizzly Cubs, can be found in Dragonblight chasing along after their mothers (who can be tamed). Cute to be sure, but probably not pet material. If these baby animals could be made into pets it’s my opinion that they would probably do small amounts of damage, and have to stop every couple of hours for a nap. There are many other baby animals throughout the World of Warcraft that I’m sure people would love to see become tamable, but I’m afraid these are less likely than Dragonkin.
Giraffes
Neutral animals that can be found in various places around the Barrens these animals are mentioned (along with Talbuks and Zhevra) not only by the people I surveyed, but on various forums as well. I really don’t see why these animals are not already tamable, aside from the fact they are neutral animals. Let’s hope Blizzard takes the same stance and opens them up to us soon.
Blackmaw
The only name specific animal mentioned in my travels was this one. Blackmaw is a spirit beast found in the Storm Peaks. He is the pet of Andurg Slatechest, the Stable Master in Bouldercrag’s Refuge. He is an amazing looking cat and it’s not hard to see why someone would want him as their own. In the next expansion, there is no real reason why Blizzard cannot put this model of cat in the game, unless they really feel that this NPC’s pet has to be unique.
New Animals
Of course with every expansion there are new animals added to the game. A few players I spoke with decided instead of committing themselves to one of the animals already available they would much rather see what new and exciting ones will eventually come along. Depending on what new zones Blizzard introduces the possibilities are endless.
New Skins
A very creative player suggested this to me, and I was impressed because I had never given it a thought myself. Why not allow Hunters to take their pet to the Barbershop with them? Give them the option to change the skin or certain features of their pet making it so they can be more individualized. Blizzard just did this to a certain extent with Druids, so why not extend the gesture to some of the other classes?
From my chart you can see that there were also the players that simply did not care. They were either satisfied with the pets available, or as one Hunter told me it did not matter to him as he would be choosing the highest DPS pet no matter what it was.
No matter what animal you wish to see made tamable, or even if you don’t really have a preference at all, it is still exciting to speculate about what Blizzard will be introducing next. Let’s hope we are not disappointed.
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