Death Knight Tier 17, Character Animations, Blue Posts, Connected Realms, Faction Hub

It's an interesting question!

If we stay on a steady course we would be a game with ever increasing complexity. More and more abilities, more systems, and more and more choices, all layered on top of each other--to a point where it would be impossible to realistically develop the game. We have to be constantly mindful not only of what we're implementing that's new, but of allowing systems to grow increasingly complex over time. Expansions are always a good time to take stock of the systems we have, the complexity that exists, and be really critical of ourselves and the choices we've made that got us to where we are. Two of our big design philosophies as a company are "concentrated coolness", and creating compelling gameplay through interesting choices (vs. lots of choices for the sake of having lots of them). These tend to overlap a lot, especially in the case of ability bloat, which we're trying to reign in specifically in Warlords.

To your point about talent trees, they weren't concentrated or cool. There were a bunch of buttons, and most of them were things like 2% increases to stats. They definitely felt more "gamey", like you were smart for figuring out interesting builds, but at the end of the day there was effectively one or two right answers, and figuring out interesting builds for the most part meant you were actually just sub-optimal and didn't know it. Many dozens of insanely smart designers played/worked on/gave feedback on the old talent trees for years and years, and we went through a lot of changes and iterations, and we came to the long-time-coming conclusion that talent trees just don't work for us and the types of systems we present in our games. We keep that learning experience with us.

Anyway, back to the real topic, it's no ones fault but our own that systems become increasingly complex over time, and so it's our job to be mindful of when systems are becoming overly complex and bloated with choices that aren't interesting or fun. It's normal and healthy to stop, take a moment, take a close look at what you're doing, and if those are the right choices. Constantly charging ahead with no self introspection leads to a situation that is less and less manageable, and potentially dangerous or damaging.

Deep and engaging gameplay doesn't need lots of choices to be fun as long as the choices are interesting, and feel rewarding when you make one.

The lush Shadowmoon Valley appears peaceful and idyllic, lulling many would-be adventurers into a false sense of security as they explore its rolling hills and violet forests. But countless hidden perils lie waiting behind the tranquil façade, and only those well-armed with knowledge can hope to survive. What dangers lurk in the shadows?

Riverbeasts
Adventurers are often misled by the seemingly docile riverbeasts. Though slow to anger, once disturbed, a charging riverbeast is a ferocious sight: 4,000 pounds of fat and muscle storming toward its target like a runaway tram. Roaming draenei rangari have long been astounded by how much damage a rampaging riverbeast can take before it’s brought down, and draenei children are taught to keep a wide berth of shallow waters. Riverbeasts are characterized by their rock-like skin, likely developed during the early days of Draenor’s prehistory, when creatures of stone dueled for supremacy against the chaotic flora. Those looking to take a riverbeast as a trophy should take note of their durable armored flesh and tendency to charge unexpectedly.


Podlings
A number of Draenor’s indigenous species blur the line between plant and animal, and the so-called podlings are the most vicious and chaotic of their ilk. Small and seemingly harmless, they work together to capture their prey, attacking only when they have numerical superiority. Explorers who pay attention to the color of podlings’ flowering buds can ascertain whether they favor poison, ensnaring, or physical attacks to incapacitate their victims. Once podlings have overwhelmed their quarry, they will drag the unlucky creature down into the weeds to fertilize a new generation. The clear lesson for adventurers: looks can be deceiving!


Elekk
The majestic elekk graze contentedly across the grassy plains of Draenor, relying on their huge size and the support of the herd to keep predators at bay. Draenei explorers have determined that the animals pose no threat, as long as their young aren’t endangered or their water supply jeopardized. With the endurance to cover great distances and the ability to defend themselves by ramming or stomping attackers, these beasts have emerged as the draenei transport of choice. Explorers should take note of persistent draenei rumors that the Thunderlord Clan orcs torment and twist terrified elekk into vicious weapons of war, covering them in armor plating and inciting them to rampage when turned loose on their foes. Beware!


Draenor Ancients
It was only very recently that draenei rangari managed to communicate with these enormous sentient trees, but wildly different ways of life—not to mention a completely different perception of time—have made further interaction difficult. The ancients get their name from their analogues on Azeroth; they are tied closely to a prehistoric plant lineage that unites much of Draenor’s flora and places them in opposition to the creatures of stone. These enigmatic ancients remain in the same area for hundreds of years and are reluctant to move unless their home is threatened. Adventurers should be cautious when harvesting the valley’s lumber, as they may find the forest fighting back.


Shadowmoon Valley is a dangerous place, but there are many deadly threats still to be discovered across the savage world of Draenor. Until next time, stay alive . . . if you can.

As previously announced, we’ve been working toward connecting realms to increase the number of players on low-population realms. Here's a continuously updated list that contains currently planned connections, future plans, and completed realm connections, all in one convenient location.

*Please note this list does not encompass all potential future connections. Please check back for further updates.

Next Connections
We will be connecting the realms listed below on Thursday, July 24 during a scheduled maintenance beginning at 5 a.m. PDT through approximately 1:00 p.m. PDT. Once maintenance is finished, these realm connections will be complete.

• Deathwing and Executus, Kalecgos, and Shattered Halls
• Gilneas and Elune

We will be connecting the realms listed below on Thursday, July 31 during a scheduled maintenance beginning at 5 a.m. PDT through approximately 1:00 p.m. PDT. Once maintenance is finished, these realm connections will be complete.

• Malfurion and Trollbane
• Ravenholdt and Twisting Nether
• The Venture Co and Maelstrom

Future Connections
We do not have a date for the following realm connections, but will update this post when we do.

• Shadowmoon and Detheroc

*Plans for these connections may change at any time, but we’ll provide additional updates on specific dates for future connections here as we can. Please note that as a part of the connection process realm times may change to match each other.

The following realms are due to be connected on 23 July:

English Realms

• (PvE) Lightbringer and Mazrigos
• (PvP) Dentarg and Tarren Mill

German Realms

• (PvE) Norgannon and Dun Morogh
• (PvP) Nefarian and Nera'thor

Russian Realms

• (PvP) Пиратская бухта and Ткач смерти

The following realms are due to be connected after the realms above:

English Realms

• (PvE) Bronzebeard and Aerie Peak

German Realms

• (PvP) Mannoroth and Nefarian/Nera'thor

Russian Realms

• (PvP) Гром and Термоштепсель

Plans for these connections may change at any time. We’ll provide additional updates for future connections here as soon as we can.

The following is an updated list of diminishing returns categories for crowd control effects in the Warlords of Draenor expansion. For additional details on CC changes in Warlords of Draenor, check out the "Crowd Control and Diminishing Returns" section of the official patch notes.

Classes
Hunter (Forums / Skills / WoD Talent Calculator)
Dislike Sniper Training. Not fun imo. A class that has a dmg-on-the-move niche is now discouraged from moving.
Not "discouraged from moving", but rather "encouraged to move strategically." Big difference. (Celestalon)

Shaman (Forums / Skills / WoD Talent Calculator)
New Elemental mastery, procs on Multi-Strikes? Searing Totem? Fire/Earth/Air elemental attacks? (including melee) Thanks.
It's automatic when you've recently attacked something; doesn't "proc from" anything. (Celestalon)
ah so no proc, just auto applies on damage/100% uptime, so more mastery increases the damage? (sry if bad ?'s, not in beta )
Yes. (Celestalon)

PvP
Please make Conquest cap obtainable in Ashran (if slow). Plenty of us want high-end pvp in the world outside of 2v2-10v10.
There will be ways to get conquest in Ashran but no way to increase your cap. (holinka)

Any plans/intention to stop melee dominance on beta? Do you agree that their mobility and caster lockdown is too good?
Definitely an issue we continue to discuss. Solid feedback is starting to come through. Keep it coming. (holinka)

old pvp battlegrounds getting changed any? i still loathe warsong gulch. would love it as a single building ctf. close quarters.
We wouldn't make such a drastic change. But it could use a visual update and some graveyard fixes. (holinka)

Using seamless transfer tech to run/balance Ashran separately from rest of Draenor. People in your Ashran should be drawn from the same pool of players as your CRZ group. So no crossover between PvP, PvE, RP, and RP PvP realms. What's less clear is exactly how to balance it. Need to cap population per "instance" on some realms. Should say "realm groups". Sorry. What exactly this pop is, and what to do when we exceed is something we're testing on Beta. So play Ashran and give feedback. We'll be watch Ashran server perf to see how to balance pop vs. lag. (kurtismcc)
key takeaway is that the Ashran battle takes place in a completely different instance than the faction city (nite_moogle)
Yeah, I think the cities are just outside. Ashran is convenient, but not integrated. (kurtismcc)

Garrisons
Will Garrisons get holiday decorations like towns and cities do?
Would love to do this, takes a lot of time to set up, we'll see! (Muffinus)

Misc
In other news, today we successfully hotfixed two spawn changes on beta that previously would have required restarts
I am probably in the minority but I find all the tech changes in WoD absolutely fascinating.
You'd be surprised how much tech is refactored quietly in the background. We're constantly trying to improve even the oldest code (SeTec9)