Blizzcon online pass/doggie-bag bonus.
I'm really hoping it's a blizzard store mount. I'd like to ride around panda land like a sir.
OMG 13:37 - Then Jesus said to His disciples, "Cleave unto me, and I shall grant to thee the blessing of eternal salvation."
And His disciples said unto Him, "Can we get Kings instead?"
I seriously doubt it's going to be a TCG mount. The TCG mounts haven't had a genuinely unique mount model in literally 4 years, when Fields of Honor was released (the Magic Rooster mount).
Since then, and even largely before then, every mount has either been a reskin, a reskin with ever-so-slight model changes (ie. armour/removed armour, little tiny symbols added, particle effects etc), or just a mob creature with a saddle (like the Rhino mount).
I find it hard to believe given this trend that TCG is going to get a completely original model. Not to mention the very first colour-changing mount.
My bet? Most likely a store mount (ALL of these have had new models, even if the animations haven't been), or the mount for the next Annual Pass. Given that Blizzcon is in November and will announce the new expansion, it's likely they'll have a new Annual Pass for it - this mount would suit it.
We've JUST got a mount from the Blizz-store. The mount before the Bloodwing - the Swift Windsteed - was released on January 8th and first teased in October, 2 and a half months beforehand. The Bloodwing was released (without teaser...I think) on May 30th. That gives a nearly 6 month gap between the releases of new mounts. We've now known of this Faerie Dragon for a good few months...I doubt we'd have to wait until December to see it.
Though that said, we'd only find out about the Annual Pass around 2 weeks before Blizzcon, if the pattern repeats itself. Which would only put this a month and half before December anyway...
I thought so at first too, but then I remembered that it mentioned in it's wording that you'd get Beta access to "the next World of Warcraft expansion", instead of just stating the expansion as Mists of Pandaria. Since we found out all about the expansion at Blizzcon, there'd have been no reason for the vague wording if the Annual Pass had been announced there.
So I checked when it was announced on the old interwebs, and indeed, Blizzard announced it around 2 weeks before Blizzcon.
I could provide a source if you want, but you'll be able to find out from a quick Google search anyway.
I would guess Annual Pass 2.0, announced during Blizzcon, obviously.
This won't be a TCG mount. All TCG mounts (discluding the riding turtle) are all recolors of existing mounts and not new models. I'm also aware that the next set of the WoW TCG will not have this as a loot card. Most likely a mount for the store.
Achievement mounts usually always have multiple colors and from what I've seen, no one colors exist of this mount. So that will scratch TCG mounts as well. They're always recolors of existing mounts. So that leaves a few other options. With a mount so unique, I'd like to think they will give access to lots of people, so it can't be something like Blizzcon. My guess is the annual pass.
It's way too pretty to be acquired in-game. Has to be a store mount. They'd make a killing.
Look! Words!
I'm hoping it's a store mount. So I actually have a chance to get it. I have no interest in TCG nor do I want to spend hundreds of $$$ on ebay or the like to get this mount. It could be a hearthstone related reward or as others have said maybe the new AP mount
Thanks to Shyama for this beautiful signature <3
If it IS the Annual Pass mount, that could really point to the next expansion being Emerald Dream related, since the mount for the previous pass had to do with Diablo III's release.
It being a store mount is also very likely, since we know now what the new TCG rewards are, I believe. That said, we just got the bat.
FFXIV - Maduin (Dynamis DC)
Yes, it related to something we saw in 4.3, but it also didend up being indicative of the models we saw in Mists-- remember that the Cloud Serpents were one of the first things we saw as a finished model-- Blizzard was probably already working on them, which may have colored their design of the Dragon Soul bullet and the mount.
Remember that they plan expansions very far in advance.
How dare Blizzard makes profits! I think you are forgetting that it is a business, yes?
The Cloud Serpents might've been one of the first models we saw ... but the Heart of the Aspects shares no similar model or animations. The only similarity between the two is that they're both long 'eastern-style' dragons. Literally the only relation between the two. If the skeletons were the same, then they would look the same. Cloud Serpent is an entirely new rig from the HotA.
Yes, and I didn't say they shared the same model or skeleton-- I said that the mount ended up being an indication of the primary mount in Mist's launch, stylistically. I'm saying that it's not impossible that the stylistic design choices of the Heart of the Aspects was influenced by Blizzard's knowledge of what the next expansion was going to be, and therefore it's not impossible that the Faerie Dragon is stylistically indicative of the next expansion.