Bolded words are mine.
Time - Nothing they have done so far is increasing their /timeplayed metrics apparently. Despite being told over and over and over and over AND OVER AGAIN that the majority of players would like to see QUANTITY as well as quality of CONTENT, they have continued to create only for the elite few who participate in their tournaments. I’ve said it before and I will say it again (and again until either we get a new team or it gets through SOMEONE’S thick skull), ESports was the WORST THING THAT HAPPENED TO WOW. It’s a ROLE PLAYING GAME, not a competitive game and it has been since launch. At best, PvP could be argued as competitive, but that’s about it. Newsflash: Most people who pay to play this type of game, do so TO HAVE FUN - to enjoy the content, relax, spend time with friends/family, etc. Most people who pay to play this type of game do NOT do so in order to spend their off-work hours WORKING. **Please note the use of “MOST” and not the use of “ALL” when referencing players.
Secondly gold - seriously, are there THAT many players with millions of gold on EACH of their active characters? Billions of gold on their accounts? Do we REALLY need ANOTHER gold sink in addition to the half-million gold/million plus gold mounts that are on the vendors? (Please don’t shoot me if I’m wrong about the million plus one, I recall that amount of gold being tossed about during Alpha/Beta & don’t know if it went live with that price tag.) Not to mention, why is it SO important for you to take our gold away? Perhaps some players ENJOY being Galliwix in-game, perhaps others enjoy grinding mats/patterns/armors/rare items to sell for gold, I know that there are some who really enjoy “playing the AH” to make gold - My point is, if we’re working for gold because we want to, WHY do you want to take it away???
Um no, please re-read the post. “The Strider’s innate ability to walk on water is being removed. Because of the dominance of Water Strider, they are removing its ability to walk on water according to T&E.” Copy-pastaed directly from WoWHead.
Say what? The Water Strider has a specific purpose and does not “lock” me into using it, unless I wish to traverse water. I have my favorite “really cool mounts” tagged as such & use the mount button to randomly choose one for me. My Strider has its own slot in the toolbar, for when I need to walk on water. I actually HATE using it on land, to be honest. I change mounts when I’m done crossing the water and while you can now point this out to me & say “Now you won’t have to!” I will simply respond that I DO like how the Strider moves on the water. I thought it was awesome when I first saw it & I still like it now. That’s why I spent so much time grinding for it.
Don’t give them any ideas!!!
Here’s the thing though, if they give us the slot for mounts without special innate abilities (the Strider has a special innate ability) and leave the Strider ALONE, you still get what you want! You can put water-walking on any mount you choose (or ALL of them if you have the gold!) and those who don’t mind using the “ugly bug” for traversing water can still do so. It’s a win-win for everyone!
Not that I am in any way, shape or form defending Pathfinder because I am NOT, but no I don’t think they did that. They seriously wanted to remove flight altogether from WoD forward but gave in due to the massive outrage of the players BUT that “giving in” was in the form of Pathfinder which the playerbase hates as much as the thought of having flight removed. They are punishing us for wanting to keep flight in the game.
Actually, from the way it’s written, the Water Walking Shoes will NOT be crafted but will need to be purchased from the Anglers’ vendor. The Parachute & Daze Protection items will be crafted, likely by Engineers & Blacksmiths.
In theory, that’s EXACTLY what’s supposed to happen. By and large however, especially during the last 3 expansions, we test, we provide feedback and NOTHING changes. Incidentally, that’s ALSO how Alpha/Beta have worked for a VERY long time so every time you feel like ranting that the Beta testers didn’t do their job, please refer back to this comment. The developers decide how or what they are going to do, give it to us to test, (apparently) only read feedback relating to what was broken when the new code was implemented, (apparently) decide to fix only what THEY decide is game-breaking prior to release & then release the content. As far as this particular WoWHead article though, they are summarizing the video they linked in their article.
And for those who keep insisting that we won’t have to pay for the shoes because we get a freebie - We get ONE free pair. After that, we must purchase them for alts who do not have the rep to purchase them or are too low level to safely get to the vendor. The equipment slot unlock is account-wide, not the actual equipment.
Finally, because we apparently also have people here who do not understand the word “choice” : “an act of selecting or making a decision when faced with two or more possibilities. See also option, alternative, possibility”. You DO have a choice as to whether or not you use the Strider mount right now - You can swim, you can use a Potion of Water Walking, you can bribe/beg/pay/or just nicely ask a shaman for a buff, you can farm on a Shaman or DK. You may feel as if you are forced because you choose not to entertain other options, but you are in no way forced to use that mount. Each of you that has responded in a manner that says, “I’m glad they’re removing that mount’s special ability because now I can CHOOSE which mount to ride on water!” appears to be failing to realize that KEEPING the Strider’s special ability while ALSO adding the equipment slot to the non-special mounts gives EVERY PLAYER choice, rather than the select few who do not like the Strider mount’s appearance. A mount with special innate abilities (such as the Strider) should remain unchanged & unaffected by the special mount equipment. Win-Win for ALL players.
Also, I think it’s unfair to claim that the players who are angry over the removal of the Striders’ special ability are angry because they worked hard to obtain the mount. While I’m sure that is actually the case for some people, it’s not the case for all. I’m upset because I grinded Anglers rep during MoP SPECIFICALLY TO PURCHASE A MOUNT THAT COULD WALK ON WATER - I’d have grinded that rep at some point anyway because (with the exception of PvP and competitive raiding) I’m a little bit of a completionist & I want all my reps to Exalted. Except for that one, y’all know who I’m talking about 
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Finally (for real this time 
) , I do think it’s important for everyone to take a step back from the “I won’t be forced to use a mount I hate! vs. Why remove the functionality, just make it so the equipment won’t work like the other mounts” battle to look at the REAL issue here. This equipment will no longer work after B4A - while this IS an assumption, it does have a very strong past experience to support it. When all is said and done, once the next expansion launches, we will no longer have options other than potion, Shaman buff or grouping with a DK to walk on water. THIS is why we need to push the devs NOT to take the innate water-walking ability from the Striders.
Apologies for the wall of text & thank you to all who actually read it. I probably shouldn’t respond to threads I have strong feelings about when I’m tired.