Having logged into the game for the first time after patch 3.2.2 was released, I quickly typed into guild chat "LFG Ony 10-man!" and waited excited for the plethora of responses.

About an hour or so later, we were gathering in the tunnel ready to pull our first trash mob and clear a path to the dragon queen.  For me, this was the first time I had any type of grouped instance activity in quite a few weeks, and the first raid I've been on since I the time (and so far only one) that I stepped into Ulduar 10-man on August 2^nd.  It's awesome how the experience, excitement, and energy of being part of a raiding group instantly swarms back to me.  The instinct of self-awareness being put to the test, as other people are relying on me to stay alive and *pew* *pew*. The personal drive I have to fine tune the spell rotation just a little bit more for the encounter so that I can maximize my DPS, while not compromising the safety of the group.

While it did take us 4 or 5 attempts to finally bring the queen down, thanks to some folks learning the fight for the first time and/or forgetful mistakes, we did take her down swingin'.  I feel compelled to note that the toons involved were either Alts or Friends of the guild.  Several folks even reflected on the possible difficulty that this encounter will present when trying to PUG this (never experienced fight, gear, coordination, etc etc).

Some highlights of my experience in this event could be listed as follows: 
          • Kalec pointing out this was a true Horde raid, as there were no Paladins present 
          • Asking Kalec for a Blessing of Kings buff 
          • After getting whelps on accident, hearing the raid leader shout,"Many Whelps!  Handle it!" 
          • Rolling a 100 for the fat 22-slot bag she dropped

Speaking of loot, in true reminiscent fashion of the 40-man Level 60 version of Onyxia, she dropped Judgement gear for the class that we did not have represented.  I can't tell you how many times in MC, Ony or BWL raids that we DE'd loot purely because the class wasn't there, or worse yet, didn't exist for the faction.  Had she also dropped the Hunter helm, we would have DE'd both, but thankfully, we had a DK to take the helm that she happened to be storing.

While she did yield a good hour or so of fun, I am obligated to point out that she definitely does more deep breaths during the encounter....maybe....possibly...