Level 10 - The Joys of Petophilia

Reaching level 10 means two major milestones for the hunter: the beginning of talent points, and the Taming the Beast quest line.

My first five talent points are going into Endurance Training which will increase my pet's health by 10% and my own health by 5%. This was a no-brainer, really. I've known from the beginning that I wanted to specialize in Beast Mastery.

Speaking of beasts, the completion of the Taming the Beast quest line has resulted in the Tame Beast ability. This is what being a Horde Hunter is all about! I decided to use a Corrupted Mottled Boar (you can see him in the image above) as my initial pet. Boars are great pets, and can really be used at just about any level. Their core abilities (Charge and Gore) are nice for tanking, they have above average health and armor (though low DPS), and they eat anything. I mean anything. This is great for a low-level hunter that doesn't have the money to cater to the strict dietary needs of pickier pets like cats and raptors.

The biggest downside to boars is cosmetic. Unlike cats, which have tons of unique skins, boars are somewhat... "boring". The best looking skin is the armored look from the elite Agam'ar boars in Razorfen Kraul. If I decide to make a boar my long term pet, I'll definitely have to go for the black armored look.

I also took the opportunity to crush the tyrannical rule of the rare spawn Geolord Mottle, leader of the Quillboar incursion near Razor Hill. For my trouble, I was awarded another Primal Cape. Unfortunately, it wasn't of much use.