New WoW Expansion Ideas are everywhere with BlizzCon 2019 around the corner.
When I imagine the next expansion, I’m seeing a game with vast improvements from Battle for Azeroth (BFA). Blizzard has made comments recently that they are listening to their fanbase. I’m excited to leave Kul Tiras and Zandalar behind and embark on a new adventure.
Fans have speculated about the Old God whispers. One possibly refers to King Anduin Wrynn of Stormwind. There are many more whispers to discuss and I’ll touch on more in another article.
Let me know in the comments what you think about my ideas. What do you want to see in the new WoW expansion?
So, let’s get into the topic.
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New WoW Expansion: The Old Gods
The Old Gods in WoW lore are creepy looking creatures. Old Gods are literally the stuff of nightmares. They were created by the void lords to corrupt the Titans (world souls).
C’Thun, N’Zoth, Y’shaarj, and Yogg-Saron were the four Old Gods who ruled Azeroth during the planet’s early years. These powerful demonic beings created the Black Empire. Years later, the Titans accidentally created the Old God, G’huun, while experimenting with the other Old Gods.
The Pantheon (Titans) sent their titan-forged army to Azeroth to end the Black Empire. But, the Old Gods proved to be too powerful, as they were heavily integrated into Azeroth. So, the Titans created prisons to hold the Old Gods instead.
Old Gods have a habit of whispering half-truths. They are able to view all possible futures and they believe all of them are valid. It’s a challenge to know who or what the Old Gods are referring too at times. They play mind games with the listener. By the time you figure out what they’re talking about, the horror may have reached you already.
In patch 8.2, we fought Queen Azshara in her eternal palace. She was working with the Old God N’Zoth to free him from his prison. When we defeated Azshara, we broke the chains holding N’Zoth in place.
Now there is an Old God on the loose. Let’s just hope our champions are ready to defend Azeroth.
As new WoW expansion ideas, we’re going to first examine the Old Gods. In Legion, we fought Il’gynoth in the Emerald Nightmare. He’s a part of the Old God N’Zoth. He says these random whispers during the raid. Old Gods speak in riddles and half-truths to confuse the heroes. Let me know in the comments, what you believe these may mean or refer to.
The boy-king serves at the master’s table. Three lies will he offer you.
To find him, drown yourself in the circle of stars.
The lord of ravens will turn the key.
Five keys to open our way. Five torches to light our path.
From the earth, he draws strength. Our earth. Our strength.
Her heart is a crater, and we have filled it.
At the hour of her third death, she will usher in our coming.
The Boy-King and his Master
The whisper I’m going to examine is possibly about King Anduin Wrynn. He’s been referred to as ‘the boy king’ since Legion. The whisper references ‘the boy king’ serving a master, and three lies being offered. Here’s the Old God whisper:
“The boy-king serves at the Master’s Table. Three lies he will offer you.”
Now, this is intriguing because Anduin is the last person who would lie. He’s a priest (although he’s having an identity crisis when he fights like a Paladin) and his devotion to the light is strong.
There is a possibility that the whisper is misleading, and the boy-king being referred to is someone else. Popular options are Wrathion (the Black Prince), Moira Tharussian’s son, Thrall’s son, and Arthas. I’ve also considered Baine as he claimed the Horde had defeated the Burning Legion, but as a Tauren, he’s not considered a boy. But, I wanted to throw it out there just in case.
I’m going to assume the whisper is talking about Anduin for now. From what we know, the first lie has already been told. And, it’s possible because of the wording of the whisper, that Anduin isn’t the one lying, but the master is.
What do you believe the first lie was?
So, who is the master?
Could the Lich King be whispering in Anduin’s ear? He was being suspicious in Legion.
There’s also a possibility that Anduin doesn’t know he’s lying. What if Master Mathias Shaw is giving Anduin bad intel? We did have a quest before where Master Shaw was replaced.
I honestly don’t believe it’s any of the previous choices. In Legion, X’era, a powerful naaru and being of light, tried to force Illidan to accept the fate she had foreseen.
Anduin is a priest and he serves the light. I believe the master who’s manipulating him is someone who resides in the light or maybe pretending to. It does seem that WoW is hinting at a future expansion that may explore light, darkness, and void. The game is also hinting at another expansion focused on death.
Wrath of the Lich King focused on the undead scourge, but we’ve never faced ‘death’ itself. There is a quest line in patch 8.1, where we help Vol’jin seek out the Lich King, Bwonsamdi, and Eyir to ask if they told him to make Sylvannas warchief. All of them are connected to the realm of death but denied knowing anything about it. I’m not saying they can’t lie, but I’m suspicious it’s a higher power related to death which has nothing to do with them.
In patch 7.3, many players stumbled upon Ogmots Dream Journal. The ramblings within the journal appear to connect to Il’gynoth’s whispers. This can help us come up with new WoW expansion ideas.
One of these whispers is related to the boy-king and master, and the three lies which will be offered.
On page 5 Ogmot’s journal states:
Dat blade has shiny eye. Always watchin us. Why you no see it?
Three lies. Da first one been told.
Bound by dat throne? No. Free. Free!
Da next gonna come soon. Maybe dey see dis one.
The blade could possibly be talking about Sargeras’s sword. Sargeras isn’t dead but chained to his seat. This whole section could be referencing Anduin’s speech at his father’s funeral. Anduin said we defeated the Burning Legion, but it’s not entirely true.
Have you found Ogmot’s Dream Journal? What do you think his predictions mean?
New WoW Expansion Ideas: Death
As I mentioned briefly in a previous section, the concept of death has been in the WoW spotlight. Light, void, and darkness have also been mentioned a lot lately.
When I think of death in WoW, I think of the Shadowlands. We’ve never officially visited the Shadowlands for an expansion. Every time our characters die, we take a quick trek through there, but we always rez right after.
The Shadowlands is an example of how shadow and void are different. A void is the absence of all things, but a shadow is like darkness. Wherever you find light, you’ll always find darkness, as they must co-exist together.
Death is a fascinating concept to explore. Technically, death shouldn’t be seen as evil as it’s just the natural way of things. In real life, all major religions have beliefs about where we go when we die. It’s not uncommon for angels of death, spirits of death, etc. to exist within religious lore and myths.
I’ve wondered if the master Anduin serves may be related to death. What if Anduin believes he’s serving the light, but he’s actually answering to an agent of ‘death’ itself?
Another new WoW expansion idea is the return of the Black Empire. If N’Zoth is successful in bringing back the Black Empire, I wouldn’t be surprised if Azeroth is reset. We haven’t had a major reset since Cataclysm. It could be exciting to see the old world revamped again.
Blizzard has hinted we have a level-squish coming in the future. Well, a reset on Azeroth would explain why our hero characters have lost so much power. You can find out more about level-squish.
What if our characters have to die to be reset?
If WoW is setting us up to visit the Shadowlands, then it’s possible the Azeroth we know will be destroyed. Which would mean we’d all die in the process.
The Old Gods mention a city called Ny’alotha. What if the Shadowlands, Ny’alotha and the Emerald Nightmare are connected? It’s a popular theory that Ny’alotha is inside of the Emerald Nightmare as the Old Gods’ reference sleep whenever speaking of it.
Old God whispers always give me the impression we’re all missing something. It’s like the answer is right at the tip of our tongues. It’s like N’Zoth said, “All eyes shall be opened.”
I’m ready to find out what we haven’t been seeing.
New WoW Expansion Ideas: What and Where is Ny’alotha?
We’ve received whispers about Ny’alotha from several sources.
Puzzle Box Whispers
In the land of Ny’alotha, there is only sleep…
In the sleeping city of Ny’alotha walk only mad things.
Ny’alotha is a city of old, terrible, unnumbered crimes…
Xal’atath has also given us whispers. She was the dark entity that was imprisoned in a dagger of the same name. The dagger was the shadow priests artifact weapons from Legion.
Whispers from Xal’atath
This city of elves pales in comparison to the sleeping city…
Do not be impressed by tall icons of the titans which stand here. The towers of sacrifice in Ny’alotha dwarf these pathetic temples.
During Warbringers, N’Zoth may have shown Queen Azshara a glimpse of Ny’alotha. It was a majestic city that Azshara’ referred to as ‘magnificent’.
I believe Ny’alotha is connected to the Emerald Nightmare. The Old Gods keep referring to sleep and rest. It’s also why I wondered if the Shadowlands could be near Ny’alotha. Whenever I think of death, I always imagine sleep. I believe our characters will travel to Ny’alotha someday. It might not be in the next expansion, but I don’t believe Blizzard keeps mentioning it by accident.
What do you believe Ny’alotha is? And, where do you think Ny’alotha is located?
Speculating about new WoW expansion ideas is fun. I love reading what the fandom comes up with. Blizzard has given us so many juicy breadcrumbs in the last few expansions, that the story can truly go in any direction.
You can find out moreon the 4chan leak predicting new WoW expansion ideas. This post will talk about a few of the more popular theories flying around. When I think of new WoW expansion ideas, I’m hoping to see a return to class identity. I’m also hoping to see less reputation grinding, especially concerning the pathfinder achievement.
A 4chan leak claims Age of Darkness is WoW’s Next Expansion. The original post came out on July 13th and has since been taken down, but you can view the contents of the message onthis Reddit post.
According to the 4chan leak, our characters will have a level squish to level 50 with the new level cap being raised to 60. The old world zones will be revamped because N’Zoth will usher in a new dark age for Azeroth. The old god may try to bring back the Black Empire.
We may also be getting a new class called Tinker. They could be ranged by using explosives or choose to be a combat medic.
Conquest points would be made account-wide. Which sounds fake to me because I doubt Blizzard would ever do that. The 4chan leak seemed sketchy to me when it said the next expansion would release in Q4 of 2020 but could be delayed. There’s no way Blizzard would delay an expansion like that.
According to the leak, BFA will end with the final patch 8.3 in Mulgore. So all the rumors of Sylvannas burning Thunderbluff (or at least attacking it) could be true.
The leak also stated that the final two allied races would be Mechagnomes and Gilgoblins. Mechagnomes might be true, but Gilgoblins? I’m not sure anyone is asking to play them.
I mean some stuff is plausible, such as playing Mechagnomes, or Sylvannas targeting Thunderbluff. But, the fandom has been talking about all of this for weeks anyway.
It’s almost like the leaker took the most common talking points, and made them the focus of the 4chan leak. Now, I wouldn’t be surprised if the old world does eventually have a revamp coming. It’s been eight years since Cataclysm, so it’s time, but the leak has too much margin for error to be true.
Why would Blizzard make conquest points account-wide? And, why would Blizzard choose to delay an expansion? If that is true, we could go all of 2020 without a new expansion. Blizzard wouldn’t want to do that, not when they already have competition from Final Fantasy XIV.
The leak just doesn’t add up. But, what do you think? Does the 4chan leak seem real to you? What parts of the leak do you believe are true? Let me know in the comments!
Classic WoW is dropping on August 27, 2019. If you’re a beginner to Classic, or if you need a refresher, check out my Classic WoW beginner’s guide.
By the way, BlizzCon 2019 is right around the corner, so share your predictions on the next WoW expansion and future Blizzard Entertainment News.
How is everyone doing today? I want to explain why I don’t like allied races. The WoW fandom has asked for allied races for years. Blizzard has finally answered that call with Battle for Azeroth. But, was it worth it?
I’m also going to cover my feelings about Pathfinder in this article, but you can read my blog post about it. Blizzard isn’t the company it once was.
Instead of focusing on the most important thing which is fun, Blizzard is more focused on the bottom line. So, what does this mean for the average player?
Are we actually getting less for our money now? Especially when comparing Vanilla WoW, the Burning Crusade, and Wrath of the Lich King to Battle for Azeroth.
Let me know in the comments how you feel. I maybe explaining why I don’t like allied races, but I want to know what do you think. Is Blizzard going to make every race (and class) locked behind a time-locked reputation grind in the future?
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What’s an Allied Race?
Before I can explain why I don’t like allied races, you need to understand what allied races are. An allied race is a sub-race. They’re allied with the Horde or Alliance.
An example of an allied race is the Highmountain Tauren. The Horde already has Tauren. Which means the Highmountain Tauren are recolored with different horns. Allied races also have their own lore (story) which can make them interesting.
Allied races can become muddled. I’ve seen fans on the World of Warcraft forums ask to play Vulpera and Sethrak. To me, those two would be ‘new’ races which could potentially join the Horde or Alliance.
If Blizzard tried to lock those two new races behind a reputation grind, it wouldn’t be fair, as they aren’t a reskin or recolor. We never had to unlock new races in the Burning Crusade, Cataclysm, or Mists of Pandaria. Buying the expansion was the only requirement for accessing one of the game’s basic features.
The current allied races for the Alliance are Dark Iron Dwarves, Lightforged Draenei, Void Elf, and Kul Tiran Humans.
For the Horde, the current allied races are Hightmountain Tauren, Magh’har Orc, Nightborne Elf, and Zandalari Troll.
Why I don’t like Allied Races?
Blizzard Entertainment’s main focus is focused on making money. There was a time when the company put player satisfaction first.
The reason why I don’t like allied races is that purchasing the expansion pack is enough. Blizzard has made the sense of elitism in the WoW community worse.
I can’t say the fandom hasn’t always had elitist jerks, but thanks to Blizzard creating problems that didn’t exist until they said os, now the elitist players have a louder voice.
Wanting to get my money’s worth doesn’t make me a lazy player. I played briefly during Vanilla WoW, and I played full-time during Wrath. Anyone who played WoW during its peak already knows the game was much harder back in the day.
We didn’t have to unlock races. Nothing was trapped behind a time-gated reputation grind. But, the game world was more dangerous, leveling was slower, obtaining the coolest mounts and gear could take months of farming, and if you were a rude player your whole server knew about it.
Why I don’t like Allied Races Continued
I’ve seen some players in the fandom talk about Pathfinder as if we’re finally earning our wings. It’s almost as if people forget how long it took to earn gold back in the day.
Unless you were great at playing the Auction House, or was a Mage and made gold from teleporting, gold was harder to come by. Just because someone has the time today to ‘earn the allied races (or Pathfinder) it doesn’t make you a better player.
When Wrath was new, I was a senior in high school. I had all the time in the world back then to play WoW. Now, I’m inching toward my thirties. I’ve got bills, my own business, and a grandparent to care for. I’d love to spend hours in WoW doing what ‘Blizzard told me to do’ but I’d much rather choose how I play and have fun.
Are we getting our Money’s Worth?
Part of the reason why I don’t like allied races is that I’m not sure if the players are benefiting. Blizzard has artificially increased our playtime by adding reputation grinds which aren’t fun to do.
There have been months where all I’ve done is grind rep. As a casual player, it sucks the life out of the game. Instead of the game feeling like ‘fun’, it begins to feel like a ‘chore’.
When I play video games I want to relax. So, even if I’m earning rep, hunting a rare hunter pet, or farming for mounts, I want to feel as if I’m doing what I want.
The feeling is the key here. How does the game make you feel?
World of Warcraft used to feel good. It’s why the game was so addictive during the Vanilla – Wrath years. We were working hard to play the game, but the community wasn’t as toxic, and Blizzard wasn’t Big Brother watching your every move.
What’s interesting is that the Game Masters (GM’s) were more prevalent back then. We had famous Game Master jokes and even knew some of them by name. Blizzard was laid back. GM’s interacted with us in that way. It helped to foster a community of fun and not work although we were working hard.
Everyone has a different play style, and we all have different goals. You’re not a bad player if you don’t do Mythics, nor are you a bad player if you’re only interested in role-playing. So if you don’t unlock the allied races right away you’re not lazy.
WoW was so exciting because the world was vast and had so many things to do. I don’t want busy work when I play, but I want the work I do in the game to be fun, engaging with others, and to have value.
It’s why I don’t agree with Pathfinder achievement. You can check out an in-depth analysis of my thoughts regarding flight, but Blizzard made flying an issue because they wanted to remove the option from the game. The company was worried that flying caused us to miss content.
For example, newer zones such as Highmountain are gorgeous but over-designed. It’s a slog to try and run through such a sprawling mountainous place. There are many caves to get lost in. Cliffs look like pathways until you’re too close.
Blizzard Favors a Certain Play Style Continued
Blizzard has forgotten that Vanilla WoW had simpler zones. They were beautiful but easy to navigate. So even without flying, Vanilla WoW was still enjoyable. You need flying to navigate the newer zones better.
Now, they’ve added the Pathfinder achievement. It’s created a sense of elitism among the players. More laid back or casual players may struggle with the achievement. Not everyone has struggled, but enough have where it’s a problem. Especially because the achievement may force casual players to participate in the content they don’t feel comfortable doing, like PvP or raiding.
Some players are saying just ‘playing the game’ should be enough, and we should stop trying to get out of it. No one wants to get out of playing the game. The average player just wants the game to be fun, rewarding, and social.
Why I don’t like Allied Races: Blizzard should do this Instead
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Blizzard needs to make player satisfaction it’s number one priority again. Flying and allied races have divided the fandom. But, those topics aren’t the only hot button issues. If I was Blizzard I’d take another glance at the drawing board.
The company really needs to consider what the average player wants to do when they play. Not everyone is a hardcore PvP’er, nor does everyone do Mythics, and not every player does raid. Players shouldn’t be punished if they aren’t ‘hardcover enough’ to have certain things.
Let me know in the comments how you feel about all this. Should allied races be locked behind a rep grind? Would you be okay with Blizzard making all-new races (or classes) in future expansions obtainable behind rep? Why or why not?
Classic WoW is dropping on August 27, 2019. If you’re a beginner to Classic, or if you need a refresher, check out my Classic WoW beginners. guide.By the way, BlizzCon 2019 is right around the corner, soshare your predictions on the next WoW expansion and future Blizzard Entertainment News.
Hey guys! I’ve got some sad Blizzard Entertainment news. Frank Pearce, one of the co-founders, is leaving Blizzard Entertainment. He and the current president of Blizzard, J. Allen Brack posted statements on Blizzard’s official website yesterday.
I’m sad to hear another co-founder is leaving. When Frank Pearce, Allen Adham, and Michael Morhaime founded Silicon and Synapse in 1991, which would later be called Blizzard Entertainment, they were hoping to create games for gamers by gamers. These young UCLA graduates had no idea they were going to launch one of the most successful and epic video game companies in the world.
Blizzard Entertainment has created several huge franchises within the last 28 years, including World of Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo, and many others.
It’s clear from the discontent from fans, that Blizzard Entertainment news has changed a lot since it’s a merger with Activision years ago. In the World of Warcraft fandom, it’s difficult because players can feel the company has shifted focus from gamers having fun, to the company meeting the bottom line.
Sometimes we can feel the strain as we play the game. It can be as simple as Blizzard’s stance on Flying in the game, you can see my post about the hot button topic within the WoW community. Other times, it’s how the company handles issues such as Master Loot in groups, or time-gating story-driven content.
Thank You Frank and Everyone at Blizzard Entertainment
I wish Frank Pearce good luck in his retirement. He’s worked at Blizzard Entertainment for 28 years and he’s earned his freedom. In older Blizzard Entertainment news, Mike Morhaime another Blizzard co-founder, also left the company last year.
Despite the sad Blizzard Entertainment news, I’d like to thank Frank Pearce, Allen Adham, and Michael Morhaime for creating Blizzard, and most importantly for creating World of Warcraft. If it wasn’t for this game, I wouldn’t have made so many awesome friends throughout the years.
Games are replaceable, but memories are priceless.
Despite my current issues with the game, I’m grateful the game is still online. I hope Allen Adham won’t be leaving the company any time soon.
By the way, BlizzCon 2019 is right around the corner, so share your predictions on the next WoW expansion and future Blizzard Entertainment News.
Classic WoW stress test has been postponed, guys! I wanted to let you know that Blizzard posted on the forums yesterday. The final Classic WoW stress test will not be taking place on July 25th – 26th, 2019.
Apparently, the game isn’t at the stage they would like it to be for testing. Community leader, Kaivax, let the fans know that Classic WoW is still on schedule to be released on August 27, 2019.
Kaivax said that Blizzard will let the community know when they have a more definite date, but hopefully, it will be soon. I was excited to jump into Classic again and relive WoW’s glory days. (EDIT: Date of the Classic Pre-launch test!)
But, what do you think? Does the Classic WoW stress test being postponed disappoint you? Are you looking forward to Classic? Did you play Vanilla WoW? What are you most excited to do again in the game? Let me know in the comments!
If you’d like to know more about the Classic WoW stress test, you can see my impressions of the Classic beta test from June 2019, which is different from retail.
I’ve also been reviewing the World of Warcraft Official Cookbook. If you’d like to know what Azeroth’s cuisine tastes like check out my review.
Anyway, thanks for hanging out at my hearth.
If I made a mistake on a lore fact or stat, please email me at warcraftlover91@yahoo.com
Happy Hunting!
Spyells
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Hi guys! Welcome to the World of Warcraft Classic Beginners guide. In this post, I’ll be focusing on classes. This is a long post, so you’ve been warned!
As I mentioned previously, you can choose to play on the Horde or the Alliance. You can read the first post in the beginner’s guide series for Classic WoW. After you make the choice of what faction you’d like to play, then you must choose a race and class.
Each race has their own racial abilities. I’ll touch on each one briefly but the purpose of this post is to help you choose a class. The races are mostly a cosmetic choice unless you’re going to participate in PvP (player vs. player) combat and environments. However, you’re unable to change your race in Classic like you can in Retail WoW, so be sure whichever race you choose you’re going to be happy with it.
And, if there’s something you’d like me to cover in my World of Warcraft Classic Beginners guide, let me know in the comments. I’d like to remind you this Classic WoW beginners guide is only meant to get you started. For a complete overview of each faction, race, and class, I’ll list sources in the summary.
World of Warcraft Classic Beginners Guide: An Overview of Races: Horde
If you’re For the Horde! then you may want to know what the differences are between the races. I’m not going to get into the story (lore) in this post, as I’m focused on the gameplay.
All World of Warcraft Classic Beginners should know that there are eight races in total. Four on the Alliance and four on the Horde. To play in the Horde, you can choose to be either an Orc, Troll, Undead, or Tauren.
Orcs are strong and filled with honor. In PvP, they have an ability called Hardiness which makes it harder to stun them. It’s a good ability to have if you’re fighting against a player playing a Rogue.
Also, Orcs have abilities such as Blood Fury, which increases melee attack. They have an ability called Command, which means hunter and warlock pets have a 5% damage increase. Orcs also have Axe Specialization, which means their skill with Axes and Two-Handed Axes are increased by 5.
The Orcs make great hunters in PvP due to the Hardiness ability. Hunters are fast and agile, so it’s a great choice if you learn to master the class. But, hunters take skill to play well, I’ll get into that below.
An Overview of Races: Horde Continued
Next, I’m going to briefly touch on Trolls. The Trolls have many tribes but only the Darkspear Tribe is in the Horde during Classic, and the Trolls shared a starter zone with the Orcs. Trolls have an ability called Berserking which is great in PvE (player vs. environment) encounters.
Berserking increases attack and casting speed. This cooldown is great for caster classes such as mages, priests, or shamans. Trolls also have Beast Slaying which increases their damage against beasts by 5%.
Also, Trolls have Regeneration which increases their health regen by 10%. They also have Bow Specialization, which increases their skills with bows by 5%, and Throwing Specialization which increases their skill with throwing weapons by 5%.
Now, we move on to the Tauren. The noble Tauren are a strong race with shamanistic roots, so they have powerful ties to nature. Tauren has an ability called War Stomp which is great for tanks because it stuns up to 5 enemies within 8 yds.
The Tauren also has Cultivation which increases Herbalism skill by 15%. This racial can help you make money with the Herbalism profession. Tauren also has Endurance which increases their health by 5%, and Nature Resistance which is increased by 10.
The final Horde race is the Undead. In PvP, the Undead have a cool ability called the Will of the Forsaken. This allows the Undead to have immunity from the charm, sleep, and fear effects.
Cannibalize is an ability the Undead have which helps them regen their health faster. They also have increased shadow resistance by 10%, and their Underwater Breathing lasts 300% longer than other races.
Classic WoW Beginners Guide: An Overview of Races: Alliance
Alliance races in Classic are Human, Night Elf, Dwarf, and Gnome. Humans have a racial trait called Diplomacy which increases their reputation gain with factions by 10%. This is a great racial if you’re trying to gain rep quicker.
Humans also have Perception which increases stealth detection for 20 secs. They also have something called the Human Spirit which is good for casters, because it increases spirit by 5%.
Humans also have Mace Specialization and Sword Specialization. These racial traits increase their skills with Maces, Two-Handed Maces, Swords, and Two-handed Swords by 5%.
Next, we’re going to talk about the Gnomes. The Gnomes live in the city of Ironforge with the Dwarfs, so the races share a starter area in Classic.
Gnomes are obsessed with tinkering, so they’re always inventing new technology. This is why they have Engineering Specialization as a racial, which increases their skill in the Engineering profession by 5%.
They also have Expansive Mind which increases their intellect by 5%, which is great for caster classes like Mages and Warlocks. For Gnomes Arcane Resistance is increased, and they have Escape Artist which helps them escape immobilization and stun effects.
Now, we’re going to talk about the Night Elves. The elves are an ancient race from the continent of Kalimdor. Since the Night Elves are close to nature, they have an increased Nature Resistance by 10.
When Night Elves die, they can turn into a Wisp, which grants them a 50% increased movement speed. In Classic, it can take a while to get back to your body when you die. Honestly, no player wants to die, but if you do, at least Night Elves can find their corpse faster.
The Night Elves also have Shadowmeld which helps them slip into the shadows, making it hard to detect them. Night Elves who are rogues and Druids are much harder to detect when using both Shadowmeld and Prowl.
Lastly, the Night Elves have an ability called Quickness which increases their dodge chance by 1%
The final Alliance race is the Dwarfs. In Classic, the Dwarfs from Ironforge (the Kingdom of Khaz Modan) were in the Alliance. Dwarves are strong and sturdy, which makes up for their short stature.
Their best racial is by far Stoneform, because it grants immunity to bleed, poison, and disease effects, while also increasing armor by 10%. Stoneform is a good racial for PvP.
Dwarves love guns, so they have increased skills in Gun Specialization by 5. Since Dwarves come from the snowy lands of Dun Morogh, they have an increase in Frost Resistance by 10.
And their final racial is Find Treasure, which helps the Dwarfs sense nearby treasure by having it appear on the minimap.
World of Warcraft Classic Beginners Guide: Classes
Now, that we’ve covered the eight races, let’s get into the nine available classes in Classic. Each faction had one class restricted to it, so only Horde could be Shamans, and only Alliance could be Paladins.
What you first need to know is that different classes fill different roles in group settings. We have three roles Tank, DPS (damage per second), and Healer.
When you choose a class, try and imagine what type of group role you’d like to fill. Tanks are the strongest members of the party. Their job is to grab the attention of enemy mobs and taunt those mobs to attack the tank.
DPS (damage per second) classes are focused on dealing as much damage as possible in an encounter. If the DPS is too low, sometimes the group may struggle to kill a boss.
The final role is Healer. Healing classes are focused on keeping the party alive. Without Healers a group can’t run a dungeon or a raid.
Classic WoW: Overview of Classes: Tanks
Tanks take on a huge responsibility in group settings. If you’re more of a solo player then maybe being concerned about tanking, healing or DPS doesn’t concern you and you’ll be able to choose whichever class you want. But, I’m going to go over each class type, and which classes fit that type just in case.
Classes that can tank are Warrior, Druid, and Paladin. These classes are strong and take on a protective role in groups. Every race can play a Warrior, but only Night Elves and Tauren can play Druids, and only the Alliance can play Paladins.
A tank may fit your personality if you like to lead. Players who’re good at leading and wish to protect their allies are suited to be tanks.
Tank: Warriors
Warriors are your basic combat warrior class. They’re slow to level. You’ll have to stop and eat to regen your health often as you quest. Warriors don’t wear plate armor until level 40.
It’s a good idea to choose Mail items which fit your class spec, rather than to choose Cloth or Leather because those armor pieces won’t protect you as well.
A Warrior’s base stats are Health and Rage. Warriors need armor which increases these primary stats.
The Warrior is a master at weaponry and wields anything except wands. They have three talent trees called Fury (DPS), Arms (DPS), and Protection (tanking spec). Warriors have stances that make the class interesting to play.
These stances include Battle Stance, Defensive Stance, and Berserker Stance. Battle Stance is available at level 1 and is the primary way the Warrior does damage from a low level.
Defensive Stance provides tanking abilities that increase your threat. To acquire the Defensive Stance, the Warrior must embark on a quest at level 10.
Berserker Stance increases critical hit chance but causes the Warrior to take increased damage. This stance becomes available at level 30.
Tank: Druids
Druids can only be played by Night Elves and Tauren, as they have a close relationship with nature. The Druid is a hybrid class, which means the class can Tank, DPS, or Heal. Cloth and Leather armor are what Druids wear. Leather is stronger than Cloth, so always choose Leather armor if it increases your stats.
The Druids are also shapeshifters. They can change into a Bear Form or Dire Bear Form (tanking form), Aquatic Form (which increases their swim speed), Travel Form (which helps them travel faster), Cat Form (their primary melee form similar to a Rogue), and Moonkin Form (their primary casting form).
To be a tank as a Druid, you have to play in Bear Form. The Bear Form is similar to Warriors because the Druid gains a taunt spell and a stun to interrupt spell casting. But, unlike the Warrior, Druids don’t have different stances.
In Bear Form, Druids gain the abilities Swipe, Growl, Demoralizing Roar, Bash, Maul, Enrage, Frenzied Regeneration, and Challenging Roar. When Druids shapeshift, they may have different abilities depending on which role they’re filling at the time.
The Druid talent trees are Balance (spellcasting), Feral Combat (cat form), and Restoration (healing). Druids are able to use staves, daggers, fist weapons, and one and two-handed maces.
In this World of Warcraft Classic Beginners Guide, we’re now going to talk about Paladins. The Paladins are a class of holy warriors that were only playable by the Alliance in Classic. Humans and Dwarves were the races who could play Paladins.
Paladins are also a hybrid class. They’re able to Tank, Heal, or DPS, but most groups primarily used them as a healer. The holy warriors also gain class mounts at level 40 for free, and level 60 by doing a quest and paying a hefty amount of gold.
These holy warriors learn to wear plate armor at level 40. I would suggest to only wear mail armor to level 40 when you can because mail is stronger than cloth or leather.
A Paladin’s base stats are health and mana. Always make sure the armor they wear increases their stats. Paladin’s have three talent trees to pick from. The talent trees are Retribution (DPS), Protection (tank), and Holy (healing). Weapons available to the Paladin include two-handed swords, two-handed maces, two-handed axes, and polearms
When a Paladin is in a group, they have passive buffs called Aura’s which help the team. Paladins can also cast Blessings on the group, but only one blessing can be active at a time.
Classic Wow Beginners Guide: An Overview of Classes: DPS (Damage Per Second)
DPS classes make up the meat of dungeon and raid groups. A dungeon group has one tank, three DPS, and one healer. Depending on how large the raid group is will determine the amount of each type of player. For example, in Retail WoW, a 25-man raid group has two tanks, about 5 or 6 healers, and about 15 DPS.
When the DPS is too low in a group, some boss encounters will be challenging. There will be encounters a group can’t complete if the DPS isn’t up to par. To increase your DPS output, it’s important to choose good talents, have the appropriate armor and item level, and to make sure you know your rotation.
All DPS classes and talent specializations only focus on putting out damage. Never try and pull aggro (threat) from the tank in a dungeon or raid, or the party may wipe (die). Be careful not to pull aggro, and then have the healer take too much damage. If the tank or healer dies, then the group will most likely wipe.
Some DPS classes have pets or minions. It’s important to keep an eye on your pet and know where it is at all times. Pets and minions can sometimes pull aggro from the tank, causing a wipe. I’m not saying don’t play a hunter, warlock, or mage, but be aware of your class’s common pitfalls so the party will succeed.
Also, both Mages and Hunters can auto-shoot by right-clicking on a target. If a Mage has a wand equipped, be careful not to right-click. Hunters have the same issue with guns and bows. You don’t want to be the player who wiped the group, so be careful.
Pure DPS classes are Mages, Warlocks, Hunters, and Rogues. These classes can’t heal or tank. A well-played Hunter may be able to off-tank or kite with a pet, and so can a well-played Warlock if they’re using a minion. In general, these classes are solely focused on DPS.
Mages can be played by Humans, Trolls, Gnomes, and Undead. They wear cloth armor (like a t-shirt) so they’re veeeeeeery squishy. Remember, Mages are a ranged class. If your spells are red to a target, only step forward slightly until the spell turns white. The distance is far, but that’s what you want because you want to DPS the target down before they catch you.
Whenever I quest with a mage, I normally hug the sides of the map, and I stay close to trees. I try to only pull one mob (one enemy) at a time, and to make sure I always have an escape route behind me in case I need to run.
In a group setting a mage doesn’t need to worry about having an escape route. The tank should be holding aggro, and the healer will keep the group alive. What the mage needs to focus on is dealing as much damage as quickly as possible.
During a dungeon or raid, Mages are useful because they can provide the group with free food and water. Playing a Mage is also a great way to make gold, as Mages can teleport players to any major city. In Retail WoW, we have portals in Stormwind and Orgrimmar, but in Classic it wasn’t like that, so getting around was harder.
Mages’ primary stats are health and mana. Mages can use wands, daggers, staves, and swords. Their three talent trees are Arcane, Frost, and Fire. Classic gave all the classes more freedom to choose their talents. In Retail WoW, a frost mage is only a frost mage, but in Classic, you could also learn fire and arcane spells.
DPS: Rogues
Rogues are the master of stealth. These skilled assassins are hard to catch in PvP because they’re always hiding in the shadows. The class is cunning and knows when the best time is to strike.
Playable races for Rogues are Humans, Orcs, Trolls, Gnomes, Undead, Night Elves, and Dwarves. Their primary stats are health and energy. Rogues wear cloth and leather armor. Leather armor is always stronger than cloth.
If you come across a locked chest, Rogues are excellent at picking locks and picking pockets. They also create and buy poisons. To buy poisons, keep an eye out for Shady Vendors in the game. Rogues can deal with powerful DPS in both PvE and PvP combat.
The class can use Fist Weapons, Swords, Guns, Daggers, Bows, Maces, Crossbows, and Thrown. Rogues can be good in groups if they’re stealth ability is high. They can scout ahead and find mobs to pull, without aggroing a whole instance (dungeon or raid). Their three talent trees are Assassination, Subtlety, and Combat.
DPS: Hunter
Hunters are a unique class. If you prefer to play solo, they’re a great class to choose because they have a pet that can hold aggro. They’re close to nature and understand the beasts in the wilds. As a hunter, you won’t tame your first pet until you’re about level 10. Hunters have to remember to buy ammo for their gun or bow, or they risk not being able to attack from a range.
The races which can play Hunters include Trolls, Dwarves, Night Elves, Orcs, and Tauren. Classic WoW featured a Dwarven Hunter in it’s first cinematic. He was in the snowy mountainous hills of Dun Morogh with Ironforge in the distance. The dwarven hunter was wearing warm furs, and holding his gun, with his animal companion a bear, by his side.
Night Elves are a great choice for hunters because they’re rangers. They can also use shadowmeld to stealth because Hunters are agile, this can make them a formidable opponent in PvP.
All Hunters have to remember to control their pets in a group setting. Pets can hold aggro because they’re like the Hunters personal tank when they quest, but within a group setting, turn off Growl so that the tank doesn’t need to compete with the pet.
Hunters have the ability to auto-shoot and need to remember not to right-click on bosses unless the tank already has aggro. The Hunters primary stats are health and mana in Classic. Hunters can wear cloth, leather, mail (level 40) armor. Until the Hunter is level 40, be sure to wear leather armor when possible.
Their talent trees include Marksmanship, Beast Mastery, and Survival. Hunters are able to use Axes, Guns, Bows, Fist Weapons, Crossbows, Daggers, Swords, Thrown, Two-Handed Axes, Staves, Two-Handed Swords, and Polearms.
Warlocks were once mages. These casters were fascinated by demonic power, and some have chosen to work for the Burning Legion and others against. They have minions which are shackled to them against their will. They use the minion’s demonic power to aid their master (the Warlock) in battle.
Humans, Orcs, Gnomes, and Undead can be Warlocks. The class’s primary stat is health and mana. Warlocks are a great class to solo play with because they have their minion which can hold aggro, and create health stones to heal themselves. Warlocks are also handy in groups because they can cast a Ritual of Summoning, which summons team members to the instance.
They have a class mount that they can obtain through quests at level 40 and level 60. Warlocks wear cloth like Mages and Priests. This means they’re squishy! Their minion can act as a tank when they quest.
Their talent trees are Affliction, Destruction, and Demonology. For weapons, Warlocks can use wands, staves, daggers, and swords.
World of Warcraft Classic Beginners Guide: An Overview of Classes: Healer
Healers provide support in a group. These casters are crucial in order to keep a party alive. Healing classes include Priests, Druids, Paladins, and Shamans. This final section will focus on Shamans and Priests.
Healer: Shaman
In this World of Warcraft Classic Beginners Guide, we’re going to now talk about the Shaman. The Shaman class was exclusive to the Horde in Vanilla WoW. If you’d like to play a Shaman your options are Tauren, Orc, and Troll. These spiritual casters are connected to elements like Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water. A Shaman is always focused on keeping the natural order. If the elements are out of line, a Shaman will try to help.
Mail armor is available to wear at level 40. Always try to wear leather armor until then when you can. Shamans are able to use totems in combat which can aid themselves, allies, or harm enemies. Totems are learned by questing, and you can have four totems active at a time.
Ghost Wolf is a unique ability available to Shamans. It’s similar to a Druid’s travel form so that the Shaman can travel faster through the world. Shamans have an ability called resurrection which allows them to resurrect themselves. They can also grant a group the ability to walk on water, and their Astral Recall ability gives the Shaman an extra hearthstone.
In Classic, Shamans are primarily used to heal within a group. Their talents are Restoration (healer), Elemental (DPS), and Enhancement (DPS).
Healer: Priest
Priests use the power of the holy light to heal their allies. They wear cloth armor only. So they’re squishy just like Mages. When playing a Priest as you level, always remember to cast your spells from a ranged distance. You want to kill the enemy (or at least have them at half health) before they can start chewing you up.
In a group setting, a Priest is protected by the tank. Priests can be played by Dwarves, Undead, Night Elves, Humans, and Trolls. Their primary stats are health and mana. The talent trees are Discipline (healing), Holy (healing), and Shadow (DPS). In combat, Priests can use wands, staves, One-Handed Maces, and Daggers.
A unique trait Priests have are the additional racial talents they add. Dwarves had Fear Ward (a friendly target can’t be feared) and Desperate Prayer which instantly heals the caster.
Night Elven Priests have Starshards (which rains star shards on the enemy and causes arcane damage), and Elune’s Grace (which reduces range damage).
Humans also had Desperate Prayer, and they had Feedback (it surrounded the Priest in a shield which protected them from bad spells).
Undead Priests had Devouring Plague (which placed a disease on the target and healed the Priest). They also had Touch of Weakness (which increased the Priests spell power when attacked by a melee enemy).
Priests don’t have a class mount, but they can obtain a special weapon at level 60 through a questline.
World of Warcraft Classic Beginners Guide: What Next?
Hi guys! I wanted to go into WoW Classic for the next few posts. I’ll be covering a variety of topics, from the lore to gameplay tips.
The ongoing WoW Classic beta is ending on July 12th, with a small end game event. If you’d like to participate in the final stress test, it will take place from July 25th – 26th.
Now, Vanilla (Classic) came out 15 years ago. I only played during Vanilla WoW for a brief period, as I was too young to have the game, so I only played at my godmother’s house. As you know, I began playing WoW during Wrath.
To me, the difficulty of the game felt similar from Vanilla to Wrath, but I was a newbie at the time. Honestly, the game may have been hard because of that.
When I’m playing retail today, I feel nostalgic for the old days. WoW used to have a sense of community which was destroyed thanks to Cross-realm and sharding. Many fans even cite the dungeon queue as another nail in the WoW coffin.
It’ll be refreshing to play World of Warcraft Classic soon and relive those old days.
So, in case you’re new to World of Warcraft Classic, or if you’re new to the WoW period, I’m going to go over a few things to make your transition into Classic easier.
World of Warcraft Classic: Regions, Realms, and Servers
World of Warcraft is a massive game. Millions of players worldwide play the game everyday. So, it makes sense that we’re not all playing the same copy of the game.
One server or realm can only hold so many thousands of players at a time. Remember, before you choose a faction, a race, or a class, you must choose a region and a server.
Always pick the region and server your friends are on, or you can’t play together. In retail, we have sharding and cross-realm now, so even if your friends are on another server, you can play together, but you can’t be in the same guild.
Cross-realm is when you see players from another realm in the game world. You can normally tell because they have a dash beside their name, with the name of their realm after it.
Sharding is like a layer. I’ve used a cinnamon roll analogy before. You and your friend are both playing on the same cinnamon roll, but you aren’t playing on the same layer. Your layer may have less frosting (lower population) than your buddies layer. So, the game shards him to the center spiral, and you to the outer one. Basically, you’re playing on the same server, but you can’t see each other.
Regions, Realms, and Servers Cont.
In Classic WoW, there won’t be any cross-realm. So, be sure to pick the appropriate server.
Servers are separated by regions which include: Americas, Oceanic, and European.
Always choose the region which corresponds to where you live. You’ll find players on those servers, who speak your language, so there will be less confusion in group settings.
After you choose a region you must choose a server. Then, you can focus on choosing a faction, race, and class.
Let me give you an example of what my game looks like in retail:
Region: Americas
Server: Garona
Faction: Alliance
Race: Dwarf
Class: Hunter
You’re not limited to playing one faction, race, or class on a realm. Remember, you’re free to do whatever you like in the game, but I wanted you to have a visual of what type of choices you’ll be making before getting started.
World of Warcraft Classic: Game Play Options: Horde
The first thing any newbie should be aware of is that Classic WoW has two factions. If you’ve never played retail, or if it’s been awhile, maybe you’ve forgotten.
To play with your friends it’s a good idea to play in the same faction, especially if you’d like to be in the same guild and run raids together. Your faction options are Horde and Alliance.
During Classic, the Horde was being led by Thrall, an orc shaman with a calling on his life to lead. During the events of Warcraft III, Thrall formed the new Horde. His Horde was focused on making a home for themselves in Azeroth. So, they settled in the barren lands of Durotar, which Thrall named after his father Durotan, in the continent of Kalimdor.
It was during Warcraft III, while Thrall led his Horde against the Burning Legion, that he met Cairne Bloodhoof and his Tauren. The chieftain was impressed by Thrall, as the Horde had helped the Tauren tribe with the harpy situation.
As Thrall was an orc who upheld honor, which is one of the main factors driving the Horde, Cairne and his Tauren joined the Horde.
If you decide to create a Horde character in Classic, you can choose between these four races: Orc, Tauren, Troll, and Undead.
The Horde races are united in the belief of having the honor and protecting what matters most.
Each race has racial that can benefit them in different situations. Orcs receive an extra boost in Axe Specialization, and Hardiness, which means they’re resistant to stun effects. In a PvP (player vs. player) encounter, Hardiness could be a good move.
All the races on both Horde and Alliance have their own racial specialties. It’s helpful to look into these before you choose a race, but it’s not a terrible thing if you don’t. Really, it comes down to how you play. If you’re mainly interested in PvE (player vs. environment), your interests are going to be different from a player choosing to do PvP.
Game Play Options: Alliance
During World of Warcraft Classic, the Alliance was being led by King Anduin Wrynn. Anduin was only a child at the time, but his father Varian Wrynn had gone missing. As a result, Lady Katrana Prestor (Onyxia, a black dragon in disguise), and Highlord Bolvar Fordragon were leading the Kingdom of Stormwind (aka the Kingdom of Azeroth) as co-regents.
During the events of Warcraft III, the Alliance of Lordaeron was destroyed when Prince Arthas Menethil of Lordaeron, was corrupted by the Undead Scourge. He killed his own father, King Terenas Menethil, and then Arthas journeyed to Northend where he joined with his master, the Lich King, to lead the undead and raise an army.
The Alliance of Lordaeron had previously led the seven human kingdoms to victory during the second war. When the demonic Horde of orcs, who were being controlled by the Blood of Manneroth, descended on Azeroth from the Dark Portal, the humans rose up to save their land. They were victorious and captured some of the orcs, imprisoning them in internment camps.
Thrall, the leader of the new Horde, had been a slave under the humans. With the aid of a friend and adventurers, Thrall was able to escape his prison at Durnholde Keep, form the new Horde, and lead the Horde to victory.
In Warcraft III, once Lordaeron had fallen, many refugees from that kingdom found their way to Stormwind. Stormwind City became the new Alliance headquarters and resides in the Southern part of the Eastern Kingdoms.
If you make an Alliance character you can choose between these four races: Human, Dwarf, Gnome, or Night Elf.
The Alliance races are joined together by a common belief in protecting the light and keeping their homeland safe.
World of Warcraft Classic: More to Come Soon
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As this post is getting long, I’m going to end it here. Let me know down in the comments if you have any questions. What would you like me to cover about the World of Warcraft Classic? Do you understand the different races? Are you confused about the story? Sound off in the comments below and let me know what your thoughts are about WoW Classic.
SPOILER WARNING: This post contains spoilers for Azshara’s Eternal Palace raid. Read at your own risk if you don’t want to be spoiled.
In World of Warcraft, Queen Azshara is going down!
Hey guys! Have our characters screwed up big time? I mean, we did find the Tidestone in Legion and left it unguarded. Now, we’re in a hot mess because Queen Azshara is using it. It’s not like things can get any worse…right? Let me know in the comments down below!
Azshara’s Eternal Palace raid finally opened today July 9, 2019. I was excited to see the content. Streamers such as Asmongold were also racing to the finish, making the run more exciting.
My group only made it to the second boss before we had to stop playing. Gear scores were too low in the group, and many of us didn’t know the mechanics.
Nevertheless, I was able to see some of the raids, and from what I saw, Azshara’s Eternal Palace is a doozy. I did watch Asmongold’s stream as his raid team took down Queen Azshara. It took them a few hours, but they eventually succeeded.
The ending cinematic didn’t live up to my expectations, but I’ll get into that in a bit. So, let’s talk about what I did experience.
Be sure to share your raid experience in Azshara’s Eternal Palace down in the comments. Did you run the raid yet? Have you done it with a guild group or a PUG (pick up group)? What did you think of the raid? Is it too hard or too easy? Which boss fights were your favorites and why?
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Finding the Eternal Palace
For the Alliance, I began my journey at Mezzamere and took the flight path to the Queen’s Gate.
Azshara’s Eternal Palace is located deep below Nazjatar. The entrance to Azshara’s Eternal Palace is underneath a whirlpool of water in the Gate of the Queen. It was a fun way to journey to an instance gate that’s for sure.
When my hunter was sucked down into the water, he eventually leveled out before the gate. You’re swimming underwater, and the view is awesome. Thanks to the buff Guest of the Queen, you’re able to breathe underwater.
While I admired the view, I put the call out for a PUG in group finder. It was exciting to see so many players forming groups in the finder. There were also many players running into the instance gate too.
Once our group was created, we entered the raid to come face to face with Abyssal Commander Sivara.
World of Warcraft Queen Azshara Minion’s: Boss One
The first boss is Abyssal Commander Sivara. At first, the fight was a little confusing until our group realized some of us were marked green (poison debuff) and the others marked blue (frost debuff).
Your color depended on which side of the room you should stand on. We still had to make sure we didn’t stand in anything dangerous or stand too close to group members of the opposite color, especially if we were attacked by our debuff.
Be aware the boss will change the debuff on the raid several times. It was important to pay attention to which debuff was on your character. If you weren’t careful, your character could become inflicted with Unstable Mixture and explode, which would then inflict the raid with nature damage.
Abyssal Commander Sivara wasn’t too difficult. We downed her after two wipes. Once everyone knew what to do, then we were able to move on to the next encounter.
The second and third bosses can be done in any order. We chose to do Blackwater Behemoth.
Boss Two: Blackwater Behemoth
Now, this boss is where our PuG ran into trouble. The mechanics were fairly simple once we got the hang of it, but the problem was our DPS. This boss is timed based because we need to use the pufferfish to be able to heal.
In the raid, there were two pufferfish in each phase, but the green ink the fish emitted only lasted about 40 seconds. Without the green ink, our healers couldn’t heal the group.
The fight was easy to understand. First, kill puffer fish, then DPS boss, now kill second puffer fish, then back to DPS boss, and then swim to another side of the room without hitting the jellyfish. We also had to make sure to stay over the rocks so the sea monster, Tethyr, won’t eat you. Tethyr is the sea monster that used to attack Theramore when the lighthouse was turned on.
Anyway, our DPS was too low to finish the fight before we lost health. Our group gave it a good effort until we called it quits.
If your ilvl (item level) isn’t at least 400, you probably won’t dish out enough DPS to down this boss in time. So, if you’re planning to try this in a group, be prepared to have a high item level, and to do at least 10,000k damage.
World of Warcraft Queen Azshara is Going Down: The Final Boss
My group only made it to Blackwater Behemoth, but I watched Asmongold’s stream while we did our own run. From what I saw, Queen Azshara’s fight is difficult.
Asmongold and his team were all geared in ilvl 415 or higher. So, their DPS wasn’t the problem here. Queen Azshara’s fight had a lot of mechanics to master. They were doing the raid on Normal, but it seemed like a Heroic or Mythic+ because of the difficulty.
Also, I noticed Asmongold’s group got Queen Azshara’s health down to the last 20% several times before they wiped. Only after Asmongold changed group members, were they finally able to claim victory.
Queen Azshara’s fight was a lot more difficult than the other fights in the raid. It felt jarring to see the difficulty spike as I watched Asmongold’s group defeat Za’qul, before facing Queen Azshara.
Apart of me felt a sense of dread because my own group was having trouble with Blackwater Behemoth. I knew for a fact we weren’t going to make it to Queen Azshara, at least not today we weren’t.
I’m determined to try Azshara’s Eternal Palace again on LFR (looking for raid) next week. I’m hoping to have a higher ilvl by then so I can hit the ground running.
We’ve All Been Played
In World of Warcraft, Queen Azshara was playing us.
Asmongold and his group finished the raid, then a cinematic started. Queen Azshara laid down in defeat, as a black band wrapped around her octopus-like form. She opened all five of her eyes in horror, as she was dragged deeper into the sea.
N’Zoth, the old god, had been released from his prison. Our fight with Queen Azshara snapped the chains which were holding the old gold at bay. It was chilling to see him open his large yellow eye, as it gazed from the depths of the ocean.
The old god said, “All eyes shall be opened.”
Despite how epic it was to see N’Zoth drag Queen Azshara into the depths, the cinematic was underwhelming. As hard as Queen Azshara is to defeat, I was expecting more. Asmongold and his friends complained about their stream about the disappointment.
I hope Blizzard has another cutscene for Mythic+ runs. The expansion isn’t over yet, so there’s still hope. What I did notice from the cinematic was Queen Azshara’s look of horror and shock, as she was dragged into the sea.
N’Zoth clearly played her, just like she played us.
World of Warcraft Queen Azshara: Sound Off in Comments
Let me know down below what you thought of Azshara’s Eternal Palace. Most importantly, what do you think of this new story development?
Could Azeroth be heading to disaster because of our characters? We’re the ones who found the Tidestone in Legion and left it unguarded. Is it possible that Blizzard will reshape Azeroth, essentially resetting all of our toons to level one? Check out my post about Blizzard’s upcoming level squish for WoW. Also, BlizzCon 2019 is coming up, so be sure to read this post. for news and discussion on WoW’s new Expansion at BlizzCon 2019.
Flight gives me the power to go anywhere. Its why the airplane was invented in the first place. Human beings have always had this itch flutter in the sky. Soaring through the air makes us free.
But, the flight has been a controversial issue in WoW ever since it’s inception in the Burning Crusade expansion. Back then, players could earn flight if they had reached the level cap, and had enough gold.
WoW was a different game in the early days. Earning enough gold was a lot tougher back then, especially if you were a filthy casual. ;=)
For hardcore players, buying flight was a lot easier though. Well, buying a basic flight was easier, which only increased your speed of about 60%.
Which meant your ground mount was way faster. If you really wanted to fly, you needed epic flying which increased your speed to about 280%, but it cost a whopping 5,000 gold.
Today, 5,000 gold doesn’t mean much, but in the Burning Crusade expansion that was a lot of dough. It could take a player months back then to earn that amount of money.
I still remember having to farm gold so all of my alts could have a flight in Wrath.
So, is paying for flight better, or do you prefer earning it with Pathfinder achievements? Sound off in the comments below.
Flying in World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
When I began playing the game eleven years ago (Back in my day…LOL), I was broke! If it wasn’t for my guildies, I wouldn’t have been able to purchase my first ground mount.
Gold was harder to earn when WoW was newer. I can only imagine how much flight would cost today, but I actually miss paying for the flight. Yes, you read that right. I miss having the freedom to earn my flight.
During Wrath, Cataclysm, and MoP, I had to earn the gold for my main and alts to fly. Not only did they have to train to learn the slowest flight, but they also had to learn the fastest.
You may wonder why do I miss this?
I miss having freedom.
Blizzard is forcing me to earn Pathfinder.
Their motto on fun has changed. No longer is Blizzard putting my needs and wants as a player first. They’re more focused on making me jump through hoops, to force me to play the game the way they believe I should play.
For example, there are world quests and dailies which require me to PvP, and I hugely dislike PvP. During Wrath, I never felt as if I was forced to do PvP.
There are also professions I enjoy doing in my spare time, and I did them often during Wrath. You could even say professions actually mattered back then, but not because I had to do them for Pathfinder. Blizzard has taken away my freedom of choice here.
When WoW Was at its Peak
To me, the early years of the game felt more open. I would log in and spend time camping rare hunter pets, or I would run a random dungeon with friends.
I’ve posted my thoughts on Classic here. On that post, I discuss how I hated the sharding, which placed me on a separate part of the same realm as a different player, ruining social interaction. In Classic, we were free to choose how we leveled, and what our talents were. We also had more freedom on how we played the game, as Blizzard wasn’t guiding your every step.
Retail has taken a lot of our freedoms away. Pathfinder is another example of Blizzard being the authority and artificially forcing me to play longer.
Back in Classic, BC, and Wrath, players would earn epic mounts, rare armor sets, weapons, or pets. These items were so rare and took so much work to earn, it felt like an accomplishment. This was before achievements even existed in the game.
I will admit, I don’t need to camp a rare for months today, but there was something special about having the freedom to make my own fun and feeling proud of my accomplishments, and it had nothing to do with how Blizzard wanted me to play.
But, we’re all paying $15 a month, and should be able to play the game how we want, not the way Blizzard dictates.
I know I’m not alone in feeling like this. It’s not just about the flight. The issue is much larger than this. Retail is broken. Patch 8.2 has implemented necessary changes to the game, but Blizzard has a long way to go before WoW will return to its roots.
Pathfinder Why Blizzard Really Added It to the Game
Flying World of Warcraft is more than an achievement where Pathfinder is concerned. Blizzard wants us on the ground. Before Warlords of Draenor’s release, Blizzard made comments about flight cheapening the player bases experience.
Polygon interviewed World of Warcraft Game Director, Ion Hazzikostas, four years ago before Warlords of Draenor’s release.
Hazzikostas said “The world feels larger, feels more dangerous. There’s more room for exploration, for secrets, for discovery and overall immersion in the world. At this point, we feel that outdoor gameplay in World of Warcraft is ultimately better without flying. We’re not going to be reintroducing the ability to fly in Draenor, and that’s kind of where we’re at going forward.”
Basically, Pathfinder was a comprise. Blizzard doesn’t want us flying, but players enjoy being able to fly. We let Blizzard know what we thought with our subscriber numbers in WoD when they dropped.
But, Pathfinder has given Blizzard a superficial way to keep us playing the game longer. Blizzard shouldn’t punish the fandom. They should design more zones, and complete the ones they have.
Some players choose not to fly, and others are more casual players. Both players are fine and should be allowed to choose how they want to play. Blizzard should give players options on how they want to earn flight. If they allowed us to choose whether we wanted to use gold, or get the achievement, it might solve a lot of problems.
But, casual players, and those who like more freedom, shouldn’t be punished. Pathfinder achievements take forever to earn. By the time the flying World of Warcraft achievement is earned, the expansion is over.
Flying World of Warcraft: Why Choice is The BEST Option
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Blizzard shouldn’t remove Pathfinder from the game. But, they need to add an option that allows players to choose how they wish to earn flight.
Not everyone agrees on how Blizzard is running WoW lately. And, while I was still in college, I was playing WoW casually. I still to this day haven’t earned Pathfinder in WoD or Legion.
It’s a ridiculous achievement that sucks the fun out of the game. Flying is part of what brings the fantasy to World of Warcraft. Blizzard has lost sight of what it means to be immersed in a fantasy world.
I miss being able to just log on and do any number of random things. I would pursue random quest chains, go after pets, mounts, or do just about anything. Now, I feel if I don’t do Blizzard’s time-gated reputation grinds, I won’t learn the main storyline, and I won’t earn flight.
Blizzard has trapped me in a never-ending cycle of dread. I’m playing because I love the lore, my characters, and nostalgia. I hope WoW can be fixed.
The game I used to love so much is a shell of its former self. I don’t want WoW to go offline any time soon. Please, Blizzard, if you read this post, think about what made WoW a glorious game. WoW was at the top of the gaming world. It not only moved mountains, but it also created them. Can we please return to its former glory?
If any WoW fans are reading this blog, please sound off in the comments below. Let Blizzard know not only how you feel about the flight, but about the state of World of Warcraft, especially if you played WoW back in the day. Can the game be improved? Does your heart hurt to see retail now?
As a warning, this post will include spoilers for the Alliance side of the War Campaign for patch 8.2 Rise of Azshara. If you haven’t begun the patch, or if you want to find out things on your own, you may want to avoid this post.
Hey guys! Now that’s it’s been a week, I wanted to post my impressions of Rise of Azshara which is the World of Warcraft new patch. Patch 8.2 dropped last week on June 25, 2019. I posted my initial thoughts on that first day. But, now I’ve had time to play the patch for a week, I want to let you know if my initial impressions were correct or not.
I didn’t play on the PTR (public test realms) because I wanted the experience to be fresh. The PTR is something I normally avoid because I don’t enjoy seeing too many spoilers before the release of major content.
My goblin hunter, Delyshia, hasn’t begun the World of Warcraft new patch. I’ll be sure to create a post about my experience on the Horde side once I’m able.
By the way, Blizzard Entertainment co-founder and former CEO Mike Morhaime did an interview with VentureBeat’s at the Gamelab event in Barcelona. He talked about working for Blizzard for nearly three decades. And he spoke in the early days when he was fresh from college, and he and several friends, Allen Adham and Frank Pierce, video gamers like all of us, set out to start a gaming company.
Concerning the future of Blizzard Entertainment, Mike Morhaime said ‘he hopes the company continues to make games and he wishes them well’. I’m glad his answer was positive. Especially with everyone on edge with the recent layoffs, and with Blizzard struggling to keep their fans happy.
So, let’s get into my weekly impressions of patch 8.2 Rise of Azshara.
World of Warcraft New Patch: Is it Sinking or Swimming?
First, let’s do a quick recap of my first thoughts on Nazjatar.
I was amazed by the opening for the patch. Blizzard really made a statement when they had the Alliance naval fleet, chasing the Horde naval fleet in the ocean. What we didn’t know is that we were racing to our doom.
Queen Azshara used the Tidestone to part the ocean and caused both the Horde and Alliance naval fleets to shipwreck into the watery depths of her kingdom, Nazjatar.
There was even a part where Blizzard had a ship full of Alliance crewmen fall right in front of you. You could hear their screams as they fell to their deaths. It really depicted the horror of the moment. Also, I mentioned in my initial impression, that I felt truly immersed in the zone. I was trapped under the sea.
The music is incredible. At 21:00 it reminds me of the sea. The beginning of the video is music from the Zin-Azshari ruins. It’s hauntingly beautiful, and a real tear-jerker for sure.
Queen Azshara was toying with us, by letting us know she could drop the water wall at any moment, and drown us all to death. The only reason we’re alive is that she needs us for something. And, we all know that’ can’t be good. But, despite all that, the portal Jaina created took me out of the immersion, because I wondered how’re trapped if we could just teleport out?
Okay, I’m done with the quick recap. So, let’s get into it then. Is the World of Warcraft new patch sinking or swimming?
Well, it depends on who you ask. I’ve seen mixed opinions from players in the game.
For me, I do enjoy the zone, but there are major gripes. I’m going to start with what I’ve enjoyed in this patch so far.
What I’ve Enjoyed about Nazjatar
Nazjatar is gorgeous. The zone has a purple and blueish color palette which is pleasing to the eye. Whenever I use a flight path, I feel as if I’m swimming in a sea creature. Especially because we fly over coral reefs, stingrays, and bubbles.
The ruins of Zin-Azshari are heartbreaking. As soon as I stepped foot into this once-majestic city, the music which is hauntingly beautiful compliments the area. It really captures the tragedy of that fateful day, and what befell the Highborne elves who served Queen Azshara, would be once the ruler of the Kaldorei Empire.
When the Great Sundering struck 10,000 years ago, a large tsunami sprang up and washed away the once-mighty elven kingdom. Queen Azshara tried to hold back the waves with her magic, but although she was the most powerful arcanist (witch), all her might wasn’t enough to stop the tsunami from destroying, Zin-Azshari, the empire she built.
So many elves lost their lives that day. Many were innocent and chose not to serve Queen Azshara as a naga. So, those who didn’t serve her died to the crushing ocean water, and now roam the ruins in a restless state of undeath.
Besides the ruins, I also enjoy Mezzamere which is the Alliance base. It has a pretty soundtrack and sounds very oceany (is that a word? LOL). You can hear the music for Mezzamere at 21:00 minutes in the video.
Despite all those positives, Blizzard still has everything time-gated. So, I’ve only seen a fraction of the War Campaign. Blizzard released the cutscene of Thrall and Jaina talking after rescuing Baine Bloodhoof. This scene was a spoiler at the time because the patch had dropped that day.
By the way, there are so many people shipping Thrall and Jaina. I’m not saying it wouldn’t be cute, but Thrall is married guys. We don’t even know where his wife is yet! LOL!
Anyway, because everything is time-gated in this World of Warcraft new patch, that’s as far as I’ve gotten into the story in a week. What I mean by time-gated, is we must earn enough reputation with the Ankoan tribe for Alliance (Kelfin if Horde) to move on with the War Campaign. It’s frustrating because it takes a long time to earn rep.
If you’re a casual gamer, it could take you a few months. Right now, I’m on the quest to raise my followers to 3,000 experience points. I’m doing my best to play each day, but I’ve got a life (gasp) and I also divide my time between Nazjatar, Mechagon, and playing alts with my brothers.
My brothers are new WoW players by the way, and it’s been a real treat to see the World of Warcraft through their eyes. Sometimes the fandom forgets to enjoy the simple parts of WoW. You know, the stuff which amazed all of us when we were new? Like all the cool things that set WoW apart from its competition. And thanks to my brothers I’ve been reminded of some things lately. I plan to write a blog post on a few things eventually. Stuff us veteran WoW players have forgotten to enjoy.
But, back on the topic at hand, is Nazjatar sinking? Well, it shouldn’t take me forever to find rares. And, that Jumping Jellies world quest can go burn in the fire. I can already hear some of you guys doing Teldrassil tree jokes. Ha, ha, ha…
Yet, Nazjatar is one of the most unique zones Blizzard has pushed out lately. Despite the frustrating time-gated nonsense, especially when we don’t have a flight yet which makes getting around Nazjatar a headache, I still would like to know what happens next.
World of Warcraft New Patch: Is Mechagon Building Up to Expectations?
First, a quick recap of my initial thoughts of Mechagon.
Before you could enter Mechagon Island, you had to do a series of quests in Kul Tiras for Tinkmaster Overspark. We had to help him investigate his findings on Mechagon. He then asked us to find several gnomes in Boralus to help us enter Mechagon Island.
One of the gnomes was Sapphronetta “Saffy” Flivvers. She and her ex-husband Grizzek Fizzwrench, were a surprise when I discovered them in Boralus. Apparently, the two survived the explosion of the bomb they were tied to in Tanaris. And, they’ve rekindled their romance. I honestly think they’re so adorable.
Anyway, we all rode to Mechagon on a plane, and when we arrived, we met Prince Erazmin. He’s the son of King Mechagon, and he’s staging the Rustbolt Resistance against his father.
Once we helped Prince Erazmin out, then the quest hub, Rustbolt, became active with dailies. The zone Mechagon Island, then became active with world quests.
So, is Mechagon building up to expectations in the World of Warcraft new patch? Let’s discuss it!
What I Like and What I Don’t about Mechagon
Mechagon island is a junkyard of parts. It’s like the ultimate playground if you’re into building stuff. The Mechnocat mount looks cool, and so does that mechanical spider mount, I’ve been working on.
In this World of Warcraft new patch, I feel like Mechagon is a good break from Nazjatar. Both zones are so different from each other it’s like a breath of fresh air.
The music on Mechagon Island reminds me of Disneyland for some reason. I used to work there back in the day, so maybe that has something to do with it. As a Disney fan, I love anything that reminds me of a theme park. Mechagon feels like land at a theme park to me. It’s basically a virtual playground.
Now, it’s still a daily grind though. But, I’m not as annoyed by the grind on Mechagon Island as I am on Nazjatar.
Also, I was too harsh on the familiar asset thing. Blizzard did use familiar zone design for both Nazjatar and Mechagon, but it makes sense to the lore.
Nazjatar should have old Night Elven structures, and Mechagon Island is off the coast of Kul Tiras. Plus, the remix of the music from Tirigarde Sound is pretty neat.
The World of Warcraft’s new patch isn’t sinking or swimming, it’s stable. I’m not too thrilled with the time-gated problems like usual, but I do enjoy the look, feel, and sound of the new zones.
I’m also enjoying the difficulty of the game. I was incorrect about the game being harder in old zones. It’s only more difficult in Nazjatar and Mechagon. But, I’m enjoying the challenge. I’ve died so many times in Nazjatar I’ve lost count. There are times I’ve cursed at this game in the last week. Especially when trying to complete the Jumping Jellies world quest. Good times! (sarcasm)
What do you think of patch 8.2 Rise of Azshara so far? Now that the patch has been out for a week, has it lived up to your expectations? Are you frustrated with Blizzard? Or did Blizzard rise to the challenge and listen to player concerns? Let me know in the comments section down below.
If you find a typo, or if I committed the cardinal sin of incorrectly stating a lore fact or stat, please send me a message here: warcraftlover91@yahoo.com!
