Mylune, My Favorite

Warlords of Draenor first introduced garrisons, faction-specific strongholds that over time developed into self-sufficient towns providing every service a player could need (with the glaring exception of a barber). And to fill out our garrisons, Blizzard introduced the followers system, a collection of NPCs of a myriad of races and classes that you could recruit into your service. You could then dispatch these followers onto missions that provided personal benefits including gold, gear, garrison resources, and the occasional vanity item. Unfortunately, this system came to be maligned by players as feeling compulsory but inspiring no feelings of personal involvement. Millhouse Manastorm withstanding, our armies of 20 to 25 followers had little charisma and, in many cases, no backstory.

Fortunately, Blizzard listened to the complaints of players and completely overhauled their follower and mission systems for the release of The Burning Legion. Now followers hail from the same class as the player, conveying an instant sense of relatability. There are fewer of them, and the storylines that end with their offer of service are more compelling. None more so — for me, anyway — than the dryad Mylune.

One of the saddest things about upgrading my gear in Legion was the loss of the Oathclaw Garb two-piece set bonus, one that summoned faerie dragons for 30 seconds. I was ecstatic when I discovered that Mylune summons her own faerie dragons when assigned as your combat ally. And then I noticed a growing number of critters following me everywhere I went. I frantically checked all of my buffs to determine which was responsible (and to ensure that I renewed that buff at every opportunity). I eventually determined that the only thing that had changed was enlisting Mylune as my combat ally and decided to never choose any other follower for forever and ever. This ability is not advertised as part of her tooltip, however, a search for her name on Wowhead reveals a number of abilities that have been data mined:

• Mylune’s Melody – Critter Summon
• Mylune’s Call – Summon Butterflies
• Mylune’s Call – Summon Creature
• Mylune’s Call – Summon Deer
• Mylune’s Call – Summon Bunnies

Clearly, something happened to the algorithm responsible for Mylune’s taste in fuzzy wuzzy companions at some point during the development cycle. Because, in addition to bunnies and deer, I have found myself accompanied by an alarming number of cockroaches, grubs, snakes, and spiders (hint: even 1 is an alarming number). Nonetheless, my critter army brings me great joy and is another reason that Mylune is my favorite.

Who is your favorite follower and why? Are there any followers — or pairs of followers — you simply refuse to deactivate, regardless of whether it’s suboptimal?

And speaking of followers, be sure to check out BigBearButt’s recent post on Hunter Bodyguards, Wild and Untamed.