World of Warcraft News and Raiding Strategies

Classes

• Priest
  
  • Holy
    
    • Resolved an issue causing Lightwell to be able to use its healing charges on allies that are in immunity effects such as Cyclone.
      
    • Resolved an issue causing Lightwell to sometimes despawn the Priest's Shadowfiend when used.
      

World

• Forbidden Reach
  
  • A Forbidden Hoard that was inadvertently inaccessible due to having fallen through the floor has been moved to an accessible spot.
    

Plunderstorm

• Plunder contained in dropped piles of Plunder increased by 50% in Solos matches.
  
• Reviving a teammate now takes 10 seconds (was 15 seconds).
  
• Health Brew cooldown for a revived player reduced to 10 seconds (was 15 seconds).
  
• Adjusted the in-match leveling curve to increase the rate at which you level up to 7. Decreased the rate at which you level to 8, 9, and 10.
  
  • Developers’ notes: Many games have ended with larger player-level differences than we’d prefer. Considering the many playstyles we’ve seen in Plunderstorm, we want to help narrow the gap later in the game.
    
• Earthbreaker now grants the caster immunity to crowd control spells while casting.
  
• Faeform no longer provides any damage reduction.
  
• Hunter’s Chains’ missile now moves significantly faster.
  
• Fire Whirl damage reduced by 20%.
  
  • Developers’ notes: we want to reign in Fire Whirl’s damage a bit more, so that it’s close to the performance of other offensive spells.
    
• Rime Arrow cooldown increased at higher ranks, and now has a cooldown of 10/8.5/7/5.5 seconds (was 10/8/6/4 seconds).
  
  • Developers’ notes: Rime Arrow’s short cooldown made it a too-low-risk poke, often used to deny healing and chase fleeing targets. Increasing the cooldown at higher ranks will give targets more chances to act against Rime Arrow.

SEASON 4 MYTHIC+ DUNGEONS

• Season 4 brings back all eight Dragonflight dungeons to the Mythic+ rotation: Ruby Life Pools, Brackenhide Hollow, The Nokhud Offensive, Uldaman: Legacy of Tyr, Neltharus, The Azure Vault, Halls of Infusion, and Algeth’ar Academy.
• DIFFICULTY CHANGES
  
  • One of the most notable changes players can look forward to is the removal of the timer for Mythic Keystone dungeons for what are currently 0 and 10. Players can run through these dungeons at their own pace without the need to watch the clock while still honing their skills.
  • Heroic difficulty and rewards will move up to roughly the current level of Mythic 0. These dungeons will remain available to queue into via Group Finder (default hotkey: “I”), though the item level requirement to queue will also go up accordingly.
  • Mythic 0 difficulty and rewards will move up to roughly the current level of Mythic 8-10 (this is a bit hand-wavy - numerically it’s close to M10 but not having a timer at all or affixes really offsets that quite a bit).
  • The existing Mythic+ system will pick up where that leaves off, such that a Mythic 5 in Season 4 is roughly equivalent in difficulty, rewards, and M+ Rating awarded, to a Mythic 15 today.
    
    • Normal
      
      • This difficulty is unchanged.
    • Heroic
      
      • The tuning and rewards of this difficulty are increasing to be equivalent to a baseline Mythic (Mythic 0) dungeon in the current system.
      • Mythic difficulty changes and mechanics will not be present in this difficulty.
      • This remains a queueable experience.
    • Mythic
      
      • The tuning and rewards of this difficulty are increasing to the equivalent of a +10 dungeon with affixes in the current system.
      • There are no timers, affixes, or limitations on changing specializations or talents while in the dungeon.
      • The goal is to create a mega-dungeon like difficulty for this experience. This difficulty should present a meaningful challenge and provide commensurate rewards without the pressures of the current Mythic+ system.
      • Mythic 0 is still on a weekly lockout under this model.
    • Mythic+
      
      • The Mythic+ system will have rewards up to level 10, with +2 starting from what would regularly be a +11 in the current Mythic+ system.
        
        • A +5 should be as hard as a +15 and +10 should be as hard as a +20 in the current Mythic+ system etc.
      • Affixes would slot in at +2, +5, and +10
        
        • +2 - Fortified/Tyrannical
        • +5 - Entangling / Incorporeal etc.
        • +10 - Bursting / Bolstering etc.
      • Dungeon ratings should be equivalent to what they represent in the current system.
      • There should be a smaller range of keystone levels to find groups for, and more meaningful progression between each level.
  • It’s important to note that the basic structure of dungeon rewards is not changing significantly, so what you would have earned for completing a Mythic 0 will be earnable in the Heroic difficulty dungeon instead. Here is a basic rundown of what you can expect:
• Crest and Flightstone rewards are changing to match the same difficulty with only some minor adjustments.
  
  • Flightstone earnings for any given Mythic+ will match the equally challenging Mythic+ from previous seasons. This means that a Mythic +2 in Season 4 will give the same number of Flightstones as a Mythic +12 in Season 3 currently does. The rewards will continue to match difficulty, even if what we’re calling those difficulty changes.
  • Bonus Flightstone awards for increasing any party member’s Mythic+ score remain unchanged.
  • Whelpling Crests are no longer available from Mythic+ dungeons, as those difficulties no longer exist. Players can continue to collect Whelpling Crests from many outdoor sources.
  • Players will earn 10 Drake Crests on successful completion of a Mythic 0 dungeon, as there is no timer to beat.
  • Wyrm Crests will be available in Mythic +2 to Mythic +5 dungeons in the same quantities as existing Mythic+ dungeons.
  • Aspect Crests will be available in any Mythic difficulty from +6 and up, also in the same quantities as existing Mythic+ dungeons.

Dungeon Updates
The following are the most notable changes in each dungeon:

HALLS OF INFUSION
General

• Dungeon checkpoint added after defeating Gulping Goliath.
• Normalized the spawn rate of Crashing Tsunami during the gauntlet.
• Containment Apparatus Containment Beam’s damage has been reduced by 42%
• Primalist Galesinger
  
  • Wind Buffet has been removed.
  • Thunderstorm has been removed.
  • Now uses Thunderstrike – Inflicts Nature damage to all players within 7 yards of impact.
• Primalist Earthshaker Rumbling Earth’s rim visual will no longer clip into the terrain.

Encounters

• Watcher Irideus
  
  • Titanic Fist now has a visual during cast.
  • Power Overload now has a rim visual around afflicted player.
  • Power Field now gradually grows to its full size.
• Khajin the Unyielding
  
  • Added rim visuals on Ice Boulders that will trigger Avalanche.
• Primal Tsunami
  
  • Cast Away now occurs at 50% health (was 100% energy).

AZURE VAULT
General

• Increased the timer of Azure Vault by 1 minute.
• Crystal Fury
  
  • Piercing Shard now has a precast visual.
  • Piercing Shard ’s impact area has been reduced.
• Conjured Lasher Mystic Vapors will now be cast less frequently.
• Arcane Tender Erratic Growth’s cast time has been increased to 3.5 seconds (was 2.5 seconds).
• Unstable Curator Heavy Tome will now be cast less frequently.
• Drakonid Breaker
  
  • Shoulder Slam’s knock back has been removed.
  • Shoulder Slam now inflicts Physical damage and increases Physical damage taken by 10%.
  • Shoulder Slam will now be cast less frequently.

Encounters

• Leymore
  
  • Erupting Fissures now follows current target player.
• Azure Blade
  
  • Reduced the frequency of periodic damage from Overwhelming Energy to every 2.5 seconds (was every 2 seconds).
• Umbrelskul
  
  • Oppressive Miasma removed in Mythic difficulty.
  • Crystalize now pulses Arcane damage while the crystal is shielded.
  • Crackling Vortex now has a larger movement radius.

BRACKENHIDE HOLLOW
General

• Rotbow Stalker
  
  • Renamed to Rotbow Ranger
  • Shoot now has a recast of 6 seconds.
  • Diseased Meat renamed to Rotten Meat, and is now a Poison dispel.
• Brackenhide Shaper
  
  • Summon Lashers has been removed.
  • Touch of Decay has been removed.
• Stinkbreath
  
  • Violent Whirlwind ’s radius has been reduced to 6 yards (was 7 yards).
  • Stink Breath now locks facing after targeting a player.
  • Stink Breath now has a visual while casting.
• Gutstabber Withering Poison has been removed.
• Bracken Warscourge Bloody Bite has been removed.
• Claw Fighter Bloody Bite has been removed.
• Decay Speaker Rotchanting Totem has been removed.

Encounters

• Hackclaw’s War-Band
  
  • Predatory Instincts’ Haste bonus has been reduced to 5% (was 10%).
  • Mark for Butchery’s damage frequency has been increased to 1 seconds (was 0.5 seconds).
  • Gash Frenzy’s damage reduced by 21%.
  • Gash Frenzy’s duration reduced to 15 seconds (was 45 seconds).

ALGETH’AR ACADEMY
General

• Spellbound Scepter Arcane Rain has been removed.
• Spectral Invoker Arcane Missiles’s damage has been reduced by 50%.

Encounters

• Crawth
  
  • Firestorm ’s frequency has been reduced.
  • Savage Peck ’s initial and periodic damage has been reduced.
• Echo of Doragosa
  
  • Unleash Energy added as the new Mythic mechanic.

NELTHARUS
General

• Each Burning Chain can only be used once.
• Burning Chain now stuns all enemies in it and increases their damage taken by 50% for 5 seconds.

Encounters

• Chargath
  
  • Fiery Focus’s pulsing damage near the Chargath has been removed.
  • Fiery Focus’s now channels damage on current target.
  • Grounding Chain now persists on defeated player.
  • Grounding Chain now does a small knockback to the player when applied.
• Warlord Sargha
  
  • Curse of the Dragon Hoard now stacks.
  • Curse of the Dragon Hoard duration reduced from to 30 seconds (was 5 minutes).
  • Azure Stone of Might has been removed.

THE NOKHUD OFFENSIVE
General

• Nokhud Longbow
  
  • Multi-Shot has been removed.
  • Rain of Arrows will now be cast less frequently.
• Nokhud Beastmaster Hunt Prey ’s damage bonus has been reduced by 25%.
• Nokhud Thunderfist Storm Shock has been removed.
• Primalist Stormspeaker Storm Bolt has been removed.

Encounters

• Balakar Khan
  
  • Frequency of Stormwinds during intermission has been reduced to every 10 seconds (was every 6 seconds).

RUBY LIFE POOLS
General

• Primal Terrasentry Stone Missiles has been removed.

Encounters

• Kyrakka
  
  • Infernocore’s duration has been increased to 4 seconds (was 3 seconds).
  • Infernocore’s periodic damage has been reduced by 25%.

ULDAMAN: LEGACY OF TYR
Encounters

• The Lost Dwarves
  
  • Fiery Surges’ s damage has been reduced by 50%.

---

DAWN OF THE INFINITE: HARD MODE
Dawn of the Infinite: Hard Mode is available for testing with updated tuning and rewards.
Hard mode does not have a timer and rewards a Hero track item. Hard mode is intended to be more challenging than a standard Mythic difficulty dungeon.

Arm yourself; Dragonflight Season 4 is available on the PTR.

Powerful rewards await in Season 4 to deliver the best of what the Dragonflight expansion offers. Jump into the new Mythic+ dungeon rotation, rally your forces for new challenges in raids, prepare for the new PvP season, and ready yourselves for The War Within.

---

Improved Dungeon Progression and New Rotations


Return to all eight Dragonflight dungeons for a refined and rewarding progression curve for Heroic, Mythic, and Mythic+ with better pacing and meaningful rewards.

• Algeth’ar Academy
  
• Brackenhide Hollow
  
• Halls of Infusion
  
• Neltharus
  
• Ruby Life Pools
  
• The Azure Vault
  
• The Nokhud Offensive
  
• Uldaman: Legacy of Tyr

The baseline Dawn of the Infinite will be more challenging and rewarding; however, it will not be included in the bi-weekly rotation. Additional details on the variety of adjustments to dungeons and their progression can be found in our previously published article.

---

Powerful New Rewards

Earn fresh rewards through PvE and PvP content, purchase them with a new currency—Antique Bronze Bullion, or through the new gear upgrade track—Awakened.

Complete all three Awakened Dragonflight raids on Normal difficulty to receive the Voyaging Wildering dynamic flying mount. Earn the new achievement title, The Awakened, for completing the Dragonriding Awakened raids on Heroic difficulty. Dedicated defenders can obtain the new Keystone Master mount, Infinite Armoredon, once the Dragonflight Keystone Master: Season 4 achievement is attained.


Also, those who complete the Dragonflight Awakened raids on Mythic difficulty are rewarded with Path Portals to the three raids:

• Path of the Primal Prison: Teleport to the Vault of the Incarnates entrance.
  
• Path of the Bitter Legacy: Teleport to the Aberrus, the Shadowed Crucible entrance.
  
• Path of the Scorching Dream: Teleport to the Amirdrassil, the Dream’s Hope entrance.

All three raids will also drop a new tier token to exchange for new tier pieces with the appearance and bonus combination that players voted for.

Legendary items will drop as usual from raids, but players who have previously obtained them can purchase a Scale of Awakening to upgrade their items to the Season 4 ilvls (base is 502 and can be upgraded further through Crests and Flightstones).

---

A New PvP Season

Season 4 arrives with PvP rankings reset, new gear sets, mounts, titles, and more! Earn the Vicious Dreamtalon (Horde or Alliance version) for Rated Arena and Rated Battleground, and the Draconic Gladiator’s Drake for earning the Gladiator: Dragonflight Season 4 achievement.

The following titles and achievement rewards can be attained during Dragonflight Season 4:

• The Draconic
  
  • Dragonflight Keystone Conqueror: Season 4 – Attain a Mythic+ Rating of 1500 during Dragonflight Season 4.
    
• The Draconic Hero
  
  • Draconic Hero: Dragonflight Season 4 – End Dragonflight Mythic+ Season 4 with a Mythic+ Rating in the top 0.1% of all players in your region.
    
• Northrend Racer
  
  • Northrend Racing Completionist: Gold – Obtain gold in all races in Northrend.
    
• Awakened Hero
  
  • Heroic: Awakening the Dragonflight Raids – Complete all three Awakened raids on Heroic difficulty or higher in Dragonflight Season 4.
    
• Draconic Gladiator
  
  • Draconic Gladiator: Dragonflight Season 4 – End Dragonflight PvP Season 4 in the top 0.1% of the 3v3 arena ladder.
    
• Draconic Legend
  
  • Draconic Legend: Dragonflight Season 4 – End Dragonflight PvP Season 4 in the top 0.1% of the Solo Shuffle ladder.
    

---

Ahead of the Curve

For heroes working toward the Amirdrassil Feats of Strength, a reminder that you'll need to obtain Ahead of the Curve: Fyrakk the Blazing before Season 4 begins, and the achievement is no longer available to earn.

---

We look forward to watching our heroes take on the challenge of Dragonflight Season 4.

See you in Azeroth!

Get increased dungeon drops in Wrath of the Lich King Classic and take part in the UPrising of gnomes and trolls as they work to reclaim their homelands. Alliance players will heed the call of High Tinker Mekkatorque in Operation Gnomeregan and members of the Horde will be called to Vol’jin’s side as he set his sights on Zalazane and the Echo Isles.

Join their causes and represent your faction with pride during these events!

---

Get Increased Dungeon Drops

To celebrate the launch of Operation Gnomeregan and Zalazane's Fall and the coming of Cataclysm Classic, we've made several limited-time adjustments to Defense Protocol: Gamma dungeons as well as the acquisition rate of Heroic tier tokens in 25-player Icecrown Citadel. There are also additional limited-time adjustments to the acquisition rates of Fragments of Val'anyr and Shadowfrost Shards in Ulduar and Icecrown Citadel, respectively. All Defense Protocol Gamma bosses now drop 2 Defiler's Scourgestones (up from 1.) Here are the changes players can expect:

• All Icecrown Citadel 25-player Normal and Heroic bosses are now guaranteed to drop 1 Shadowfrost Shard.
  
• All Icecrown Citadel 25-player Normal and Heroic end wing bosses and The Lich King now drop 2 guaranteed Shadowfrost Shards (up from 1.)
  
• All Icecrown Citadel 25-player Heroic end wing bosses now drop one additional Heroic tier token.
  
• The Lich King now drops 2 additional Heroic tier tokens on 25-player Heroic difficulty.
  
• All "Hard Mode" encounters in the 25-player version of Ulduar are now guaranteed to drop 1 Fragment of Val'anyr. Please note that Algalon and "Zero Light" Yogg-Saron are unchanged and drop the same number of Fragments as they did previously as they were already very generous with their Fragment drops. These changes will take effect with each region's regularly occurring maintenance beginning the week of March 26 and will remain in place until the end of the Cataclysm Classic pre-patch period.

---

Alliance: Operation Gnomeregan


With confirmation of the impending attack upon Gnomeregan comes your chance to get involved. Victory begins in Tinker Town! As great citizens of Azeroth and proud members of the Alliance, High Tinker Mekkatorque shall call upon you to serve his gnomes in exile. After all, the best offense is a good... offense! Whether you're a hero of your people and slayer of the most dreadful Burning Legion and Scourge creatures, or an up-and-coming adventurer, you can start by motivating your gnome brethren to unite behind the Gnomeregan banner. All it takes is a bit of finesse with the Motivate-a-Tron to call gnomes to action. The device works flawlessly! After all, what good would it be if such a powerful invention ended up turning Tinker Town citizens into little critters? Almost no good!


With fresh new recruits at your side, Mekkatorque will send you to Steelgrill's Depot, the staging grounds for the Gnomeregan offensive, where you'll meet Captain Sparknozzle. Do as he commands by completing Drill Sergeant Steamcrank's training and testing the operative capabilities of the brand new Mechano-Tanks before they're shipped to the front lines. Seizing Gnomeregan is more important than your fear of heights, which will be put to the test as you're summoned by Pilot Muzzlesprock to neutralize the irradiation vents bruising the Gnomeregan horizon in a critical Radiageigatron bombing run.

Every hero is called to serve! Even if you're just barely getting your bearings on the art of combat in places like Kharanos or Elwynn Forest, you can do your part by helping fuel the war effort. A few dead boars lead to a few more comfortable siege pilot seats, and surely you can handle such a crucial step in the preparation for facing Thermaplugg's poisoned followers. You can even help master wordsmith Toby Zeigear in writing High Tinker Mekkatorque's battle cry. The road to success will be paved by you, and you'll be rewarded as such with a commendation of Gnomeregan Pride, allowing you to temporarily don the uniform of the elite Gnomeregan Infantry.

Thermaplugg is no trifling gnome, though his arrogance will be his undoing! Even still, he is undoubtedly preparing never-before-seen forces to meet this assault. Only the most battle-hardened heroes of the Alliance (levels 75-80) will be called to serve during Operation: Gnomeregan. When Mekkatorque determines the operation is ready to get underway, you must speak with him on the front lines before following him on a full assault of the enemy airfield, surface command post, and into the tunnels of lower Gnomeregan. It is said that Thermaplugg has employed the use of so-called "Brag"-bots to spread his propaganda and hubris. Be not afraid of his words, fellow members of the Alliance. Stick with Mekkatorque and Doc Cogspin to ensure your safety. After all, you wouldn't want to lose the grace of Cogspin's Surgeon General's Warding. Gnomeregan must be cleansed of irradiation and the troggs it was intended to repel. It is time to reclaim this modern marvel and earn your very own Gnomeregan Overcloak, a testament to your historic bravery in the face of madness!


Operation: Gnomeregan is coming, and Gnomeregan needs YOU!


Horde: Zalazane’s Fall

"Zalazane Must Fall!" Cries Vol'jin.


Embedded on the coast of Durotar, the tiny troll Village of Sen'jin is bursting with recent activity. In what some claim is a retort to the overblown assertions of the vertically-challenged High Tinker Mekkatorque, troll chieftain Vol'jin has announced his intention to honor the ancestors and take back the troll homeland. The call has been given, and the scattered Darkspear tribe has begun to gather at the once-sleepy location. Now the primal rhythm of beating drums and strange clouds of acrid smoke drift aloft deep into the night, arguably a sign of celebration and preparation for an impending offensive.


With the full support of Thrall and his counterparts, Vol'jin is calling upon all factions of the Horde to prepare for an assault on Echo Isles and the twisted witch doctor Zalazane. He will pay for his crimes against the Darkspears and the land bestowed upon them by Thrall! As explained by Vol'jin in the demand for Zalazane's fall today, honorable members of the Horde passing through the village proper -- whether they've never slain a boar in their lives or are the subject of every dragon's nightmare -- will be given a chance to help their upstanding troll brothers in what will surely be the most brutal of attacks. But first there must be preparation. With the Echo Isles on the line, no detail is too small, no spoken word too trivial. And for that reason the noted troll shaman, Vanira, will get adventurers started on the monumental tasks ahead.

Using sacred totemic rituals, Vanira needs frogs for her agenda. It is unclear of her exact intentions with these amphibious lurkers of Sen'jin, but there appears to be a bat handler standing by. Could it be that frogs will soon rain down from the heavens upon the Echo Isles? When asked for further comment, Vanira only remarked that she's seeking "da perfect spies." It seems war is sometimes won with even the most unlikely of arsenals. Spying on the enemy, however, is only the beginning. Vol'jin has spoken of a most-trusted trainer of reinforcements, Champion Uru'zin, who will guide new recruits of all ranges of experience into battle-hardened Darkspear warriors. "Trollin' for volunteers," as Vol'jin remarked, will be a key component to building a strike force capable of overthrowing Zalazane's hexed Darkspears.

Vol'jin argues that the spirits are on the side of his Darkspear tribe. Can animistic beliefs truly manifest into proven battle leverage against Zalazane? Perhaps only Vanira and her beguiled spies can answer this. But it is rumored that, long ago, a tribe of troll druids once called the Echo Isles home. If ever there was a time for good omens such as this, it is now. Only if the spirits truly are on the side of the son of Sen'jin, reportedly only a phenomenon that Witch Doctor Hez'tok can decipher, then the assault will commence! Those who assist Hez'tok in his ceremony will be adorned with Darkspear Pride, allowing adventurers the ability to take on the form of an elite Darkspear Warrior during battle. Wearing such battle garb is an honor to the ancestors of a people long persecuted and plagued by war between tribes.


Should the spirits give their blessing to Vol'jin, Champion Uru'zin will call for all seasoned veterans of the Horde levels 75-80 to aid in the attack. If "at last, everythin' be ready," as Vol'jin put it, his plan is to launch a full assault from the shores of Sen'jin village. Vol'jin has also gone so far as to offer a particularly rare Sen'jin Overcloak to those who help bring Zalazane down.

Preparations for Zalazane's fall are underway, but will it be enough to best this witch doctor? It's time, proud members of the Horde, to stand with your disaffected troll brethren and recognize the full might of the Darkspear tribe!

---

Join the uprising and we’ll see you in Azeroth!