Patch 4.1 Content Preview: Rise of the Zandalari
Blizzard finally posted a small preview of the Patch 4.1 content, confirming the updated skin of the Amani War Bear in the process.
Originally Posted by Blizzard (Blue Tracker)
In years past, the Zandalar tribe, encompassing the wise and scholarly progenitors of the trolls, heroically assisted the Horde and the Alliance with thwarting the nefarious activities of their brethren in Zul'Gurub and Zul'Drak. Yet the chaos unleashed by the recent Cataclysm has reshaped the Zandalari's philosophy about the world and the dwindling remnants of their race. Led by a mysterious prophet known only as Zul, the Zandalari have issued a call to Azeroth's embattled troll populations: unite into a single mighty empire and save their race from extinction.

Thus far, the Gurubashi and Amani trolls have answered the summons and received aid from the Zandalari, allowing them to rebuild their respective capitals in Zul'Gurub and Zul'Aman. Not all trolls, however, have so eagerly adopted the Zandalari's grandiose vision of a new troll empire. Vol'jin and his Darkspear tribe are opposed to the warmongering espoused by Zul. To prevent the burgeoning Gurubashi and Amani troll forces from wreaking havoc on Azeroth, Vol'jin has reached out to his Horde comrades and members of the Alliance for assistance. Should the Darkspears' campaign fail, a new troll empire shall rise and bring war to a world already beset by suffering and conflict.



A Threat Fought in Secret

Using a great deal of discretion, Vol’jin has dispatched Darkspear delegates to the capital cities of Stormwind and Orgrimmar calling for all able-bodied adventurers to investigate recent threats that have risen in the jungles of Stranglethorn.

The outlook isn't good. The Gurubashi tribe, their strength renewed, is running rampant throughout Stranglethorn. Players will have a chance to embark on all-new level-85 solo quests in Stranglethorn and will discover exactly what tribulations lie ahead -- Gurubashi leadership is still largely intact and rehabilitated through the new union with the Zandalari. Along the way, players will assist a sassy, headstrong Darkspear spirit-talker named Bwemba, they'll track down the elusive Hemet Nesingwary, and they'll encounter many of the new Zul'Gurub bosses throughout the steaming jungles of Stranglethorn.


Rewards for addressing the issues in Stranglethorn include an adorable panther pet of your own to care for. Players should seek out Vol'jin's representatives in Orgrimmar or Stormwind Harbor to begin their adventure.


Return to Zul'Gurub

This ancient city has once again become the staging grounds for an empowered Gurubashi people to strike against those who they perceive to be invading their ancestral lands. Now backed by the Zandalari, the Gurubashi present all-new challenges for players in this level-85 5-player Heroic dungeon. While players may see some familiar faces in this dungeon, the encounters and fight mechanics have been considerably updated. For allying yourself with the Darkspears, High Priest Venoxis, Broodlord Mandokir, High Priestess Kilnara, Zanzil, and Jin'do the Godbreaker would like to make one thing clear -- your intrusion will cost you. Take their heads and you’ll be presented with a treasure map. You’ll want to seek out its precious booty, including an account-bound ring with a gem so big it’s visible when worn!


Also, for those with a high enough Archaeology skill, an additional boss can be unlocked in Zul’Gurub. Gri'lek, Renataki, Hazza'rah, and Wushoolay will be randomly selected to put an end to those who dig too deep for greater riches. Should your group survive the challenge, you'll unearth a selection of rewards available from any of the four bosses, as well as loot unique to each boss.


The Amani Regrouped

With the aid of the Zandalari, the remaining Amani have reassembled under new, sturdy leadership in Daakara. Zul'Aman has been converted into a challenging level-85 5-player Heroic dungeon. For those who fought Zul'jin back during The Burning Crusade, much of the dungeon will feel similar, but the mechanics have been updated to suit a 5-player group. Akil'zon, Nalorakk, Jan'alai, Halazzi, Hex Lord Malacrass, and Daakara look to bring their tribe out of hiding and into the spotlight as a force to be reckoned with. Challengers beware.


Both Zul'Aman and Zul'Gurub will require players to have a minimum average item level of 346 before they can enter. These two Heroic dungeons will exist in a separate Heroic difficulty tier in the Dungeon Finder, above the current Cataclysm Heroic dungeons. In return, they will offer players item level 353 epic-quality loot. Players can expect to find items for nearly every gear slot available in these two dungeons, though much focus has been placed on offering players itemization for hard-to-fill slots or specializations, such as bracers, helms, shoulders, guns, and wands.


Rare Mounts and More

As with the original iterations of Zul'Gurub and Zul'Aman, players will have a chance to obtain updated rare mounts. The Swift Zulian Panther and Armored Razzashi Raptor are obtained in Zul'Gurub, while the Amani Battle Bear can be earned by killing the first four bosses of Zul'Aman in a limited amount of time.


The interests of the Zandalari no longer align with your own. Vol'jin needs your help to stop this play for power. Will you rise to the challenge?
This article was originally published in forum thread: Patch 4.1 Content Preview: Rise of the Zandalari started by Boubouille View original post
Comments 181 Comments
  1. Dalanos's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Dorfus View Post
    Ahahahahah, look at all the unique and beautiful snowflakes bitching. Priceless. Happened with the Al'ar reskin too.

    Now I'm just waiting for an Anzu reskin.
    They kind of have it with the Firehawks.
  1. booh1992's Avatar
    They better make the dungeon hella hard to finish in the limited amount of time, I mean it was hard to get the bronze drake at the beginning.. wasn't it?
    Plus who rides around on a ground mount these days anyways
    I do love the recoloured bear, the colours remind me of the Amani Dragonhawk which is from the TCG
  1. mmocc0da7240b2's Avatar
    So...

    The Zandalari tribe, which used to basically be the voice of reason of Azeroth's trolls, are now saying "FUCK YOU" to everyone who doesn't want to join them and take over the world?

    ...

    ...

    And we thought 2.4 was a lorelol. Whoa.

    ---------- Post added 2011-03-26 at 11:35 AM ----------

    Quote Originally Posted by det View Post
    Whatever the naysayers write, it does look more like a continuation of the storyline than a re-hash.

    Plus: lv 60 ZG is now 5 years old and a huge chunk of the community will not have experienced it when it was a true challenege (and a raid that mostly dropped blues and not epics). Many people know it just from jumping in and soloing two mounts for bosses.

    Well...to use a movie analogy..from Batman to True Grit, quite old films have always been re-worked to fit a younger and modern audience. So why not the storyline in WoW. The "I pay 15 Euros a month" card doesn't work with me. You pay 10 Euros for 2 hours in the cinema too......
    The continuation isn't the problem. The problem is that it's a huge fucking sudden turnaround from the previous direction of the story with little explanation.
  1. Razuelo's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by bajerman View Post
    It better be really hard to get the bear. Like beat all 4 bosses in 15 minutes. Bronze Drake was too faceroll, I got it without even trying.
    it will all be faceroll after 3 tiers of gear... suck it up.. Bronze Drake was pretty hard until after the ulduar patch.. I know pugs still wiped on the last stretch alot.. sure after uld and totc it was a cakewalk.. as blizz said the biggest nerf of everything is gear.. nothing is going to stay hard aslong as people get new gear and try new raids, its like people don't understand this..
  1. mmocad700ff100's Avatar
    The Swift Zulian Panther is a bad joke. Everyone just had to get a good group to get the old Amani Bear und almost certainly got the bear after 2-3 months, and if this didn't work you can now get nearly the very same bear. But if you went into ZG for years but din't get the Tiger, you can now get a Mount which looks almost exactly like a mount everyone can get in Darnassus for almost free, and which is completely uncomparable with the old Tiger. It did not have to be the old Tiger, but as a Player who visited ZG for Years and got no mount i am very disappointed that Blizzard didn't even try to make a mount that looks at least a bit as awesome as the old Swift Zulian Tiger.
  1. mmoc516e31a976's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Tharaldriel View Post
    The continuation isn't the problem. The problem is that it's a huge fucking sudden turnaround from the previous direction of the story with little explanation.
    The Shattering. Here is your explanation.

    Political and diplomatic map changing is a common thing on our own world, why is so hard to believe it on WoW? Heck, a Tunisian fruit vendor imulated himself and 3 months later the entire Arab region is in massive upveal, with NATO bombing a country. One simple Tunisian fruit vendor.
  1. 420rogue's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by visionu View Post
    They should change the bear model so it look different. Instead of changing the color only. I want my old ZA to be special!
    the recoloring is so minor, you won't even know who has the old one and the new one. Kind of sad really. I don't even have the old one and I would rather a new bear model than a 10 minute photoshop job. Atleast change the armor shit on it to something new.
  1. mmoc3adf0baff2's Avatar
    ooh cmon.. not another bear again.. now i won't be alone with mine, every single guild will have that shit :/ hope this is harder than it was in tbc atleast.
  1. Bugmenot's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by bloodwine77 View Post
    Beat ZA within a certain amount of time. However, it wasn't a trivial task.
    Still it was a travial task compared to the original shattred halls heroic pre-nerf for your t5 attunement or the original ony quest (ubrs 5-man anyone?).
    Though I admit I would bet money on it that it will be a new bronze dragon, you have to admit that it does not need to be.

    ---------- Post added 2011-03-26 at 09:06 PM ----------

    Quote Originally Posted by PavlovGW View Post
    A lot of people didn't get to see Zul'Aman during BC, and a LOT more people didn't get to experience 20-man Zul'Gurub. Just because you've played through it doesn't mean that everyone else has. In fact, I'd be willing to bet my left nipple that the number of people haven't been in those two instances dwarfs the number of those that have. For example, I haven't seen either one of them. I'm happy.
    And why you are happy? Even with the reuse of the instances you still won´t have played zul gurub or zul aman? It´s just the same like nax, some cynic guys say even that nax was a better experience at level 70 than at level 80. It was for sure harder.
    (yes, I am aware that I was first at level 60 in the instance)

    ---------- Post added 2011-03-26 at 09:10 PM ----------

    Quote Originally Posted by zrankfappa View Post
    Did you read the article?



    Trivial? That depends on how long they give you, how good your gear is, and your skill.

    At this point comparing it to a heroic instance (CoT) that was rendered trivial to people running it with gear an order of magnitude above it probably isn't fair. Consider for a moment that these dungeons are going to be "harder" than current heroics, I suspect that geared guild groups and competant pugs will find it trivial. while the masses will fill the forums with QQ that this mount isn't easily obtainable for casuals.
    Oh, sorry about that, I did not know that we were overgeared with t6, questgear und bc-heroic gear on our first run there, I am so sorry that it was only trivial because of our impressiv gear. /sarcasm

    ---------- Post added 2011-03-26 at 09:17 PM ----------

    Quote Originally Posted by Aestu View Post
    And it makes no sense, it's totally disjointed/out of the blue. Even a fantasy world needs to be reasonably internally consistent, the plot needs to be plausible if it is to be consistent.

    Also see: Star Control 3
    They gave consistancy up in this addon. Either that or the quest designers are using way to much crack when doing the goblin quests which lack any consistancy.
  1. Dch48's Avatar
    Nobody in my guild ever got the original bear and I'm sure the same will happen now. I don't care though since I think it's ugly. Without the stupid head piece it would be awesome, but with that shredded wok on it's head, no thanks.
  1. TheyCallMeTarzan's Avatar
    That is a disgrace to the owners of the original War Bear.

    I collect vanity items for vanity!. That means I get a chance to stand out. War Bears were relatively rare. With this Bronze Drake kind of way to obtain it, how special will it be? Please don't give me the usual "Ride it because it looks cool, not because it's rare". I don't care about that. My good old War Bear will not really be recognizable with dungeon newbies flexing their new Battle Bears.
    All it needs is a Feat of Strength, then it's just fantastic.... I'm so disappointed. Can't express it. I feel like saying "f*ck Blizzard" for this. I'm generally fairly happy with them, but not lately. This is just too much. The game is taking a wrong turn.
    I realize it has become a lot friendlier to beginners, and that's not bad, but it's killing it for me and I believe a lot of other players feel the same way. Quests does not involve thinking the slightest or exploring. You open your map and find the shortest way to your desired area. Recipes that require exotic materials have been changed to require more common materials and nothing that would actually have you travel 10 minutes, just to get a few things. I feel that the quality of quests has also decreased. Again, it's simpler, but just less fun. You don't even have to know where north, west, south and east are. Just follow your GPS and autofly. There were absolutely stunning quests before the Burning Crusade. I know they were very difficult to complete, but even at level 80 they were so epic. They were long, time demanding and expensive and even though they did not earn you anything up until recently (the Veteran of the Shifting Sands FoS) you would just feel great after completing the final step. There was a lot of lore, very exciting lore, and there was humor. Today I find that most jokes in quests are reallly not that funny. Kinda cheap. You laugh a little because you know it's supposed to be a funny line, but that's it. It's no where near the jokes in the quests involving Narain Soothfancy as an example. The fat has really been trimmed from this game. You can't even experience an entire zone to its fullest before you have to advance to another. There are no group quests for low levels despite the fact that low level characters are immensely powerful compared to how they were years ago. Even though the game was more difficult once, that didn't seem to stop the customer base to grow massively over the years? Today I see players burn out, and of course I don't see everything. But I am losing interest even though I feel there is so much more to experience in the game to come. When the end game is not more interesting than it is, I don't think it's affordable to make the content before end game so simple.

    If Blizzard is gonna take it down the road where everything comes in an easy-to-go package, I'm taking another road. Enough is enough.

    I know this will get a lot of replies like "We don't care, go play something else". Don't bother. I know you're out there. I know game masters don't read this forum. I know a lot of people disagree, and you're free to do so. But this is how I feel. And I know others do too.

    /vanish to play AC:Brotherhood
  1. Gemazarus's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by TheyCallMeTarzan View Post
    That is a disgrace to the owners of the original War Bear.

    I collect vanity items for vanity!. That means I get a chance to stand out. War Bears were relatively rare. With this Bronze Drake kind of way to obtain it, how special will it be? Please don't give me the usual "Ride it because it looks cool, not because it's rare". I don't care about that. My good old War Bear will not really be recognizable with dungeon newbies flexing their new Battle Bears.
    All it needs is a Feat of Strength, then it's just fantastic.... I'm so disappointed. Can't express it. I feel like saying "f*ck Blizzard" for this. I'm generally fairly happy with them, but not lately. This is just too much. The game is taking a wrong turn.
    I realize it has become a lot friendlier to beginners, and that's not bad, but it's killing it for me and I believe a lot of other players feel the same way. Quests does not involve thinking the slightest or exploring. You open your map and find the shortest way to your desired area. Recipes that require exotic materials have been changed to require more common materials and nothing that would actually have you travel 10 minutes, just to get a few things. I feel that the quality of quests has also decreased. Again, it's simpler, but just less fun. You don't even have to know where north, west, south and east are. Just follow your GPS and autofly. There were absolutely stunning quests before the Burning Crusade. I know they were very difficult to complete, but even at level 80 they were so epic. They were long, time demanding and expensive and even though they did not earn you anything up until recently (the Veteran of the Shifting Sands FoS) you would just feel great after completing the final step. There was a lot of lore, very exciting lore, and there was humor. Today I find that most jokes in quests are reallly not that funny. Kinda cheap. You laugh a little because you know it's supposed to be a funny line, but that's it. It's no where near the jokes in the quests involving Narain Soothfancy as an example. The fat has really been trimmed from this game. You can't even experience an entire zone to its fullest before you have to advance to another. There are no group quests for low levels despite the fact that low level characters are immensely powerful compared to how they were years ago. Even though the game was more difficult once, that didn't seem to stop the customer base to grow massively over the years? Today I see players burn out, and of course I don't see everything. But I am losing interest even though I feel there is so much more to experience in the game to come. When the end game is not more interesting than it is, I don't think it's affordable to make the content before end game so simple.

    If Blizzard is gonna take it down the road where everything comes in an easy-to-go package, I'm taking another road. Enough is enough.

    I know this will get a lot of replies like "We don't care, go play something else". Don't bother. I know you're out there. I know game masters don't read this forum. I know a lot of people disagree, and you're free to do so. But this is how I feel. And I know others do too.

    /vanish to play AC:Brotherhood
    K. See ya.
  1. Deflct's Avatar
    Original Amani Bear is the coolest ground mount in my opinion, this one is still pretty nice though.
  1. question1's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Tauror View Post
    The Shattering. Here is your explanation.

    Political and diplomatic map changing is a common thing on our own world, why is so hard to believe it on WoW? Heck, a Tunisian fruit vendor imulated himself and 3 months later the entire Arab region is in massive upveal, with NATO bombing a country. One simple Tunisian fruit vendor.
    Yea and map changing only happened to trolls in a manner that brought back dead troll bosses. brilliant reasoning.
  1. Azrile's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Dannz View Post
    hey... this is an MMO, the story moves forwards, if you're not here when certain things are being done, to bad for you, that's the nature of MMORPG's, the story moves forward rather then re-doing the same shit over and over again
    And Blizzard is the one telling the story... and they decided the troll story wasn´t over like you thought it was. Naxx was rehashed content. Onyxia was rehashed content. ZA and ZG are continuing the troll story

    And yes, the bear is the bronze drake. No, it will not be trivial... right up until 4.2 launches. Once 4.2 launches, people will be buying 359s with JP and 372s with VP. That is when it will be trivial like the bronze drake was at the end of wotlk.
  1. Emile's Avatar
    Fab news for all those mount and pet collectors out there!
  1. Mandible's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Tharaldriel View Post
    So...

    The Zandalari tribe, which used to basically be the voice of reason of Azeroth's trolls, are now saying "FUCK YOU" to everyone who doesn't want to join them and take over the world?

    ...

    And we thought 2.4 was a lorelol. Whoa.

    ---------- Post added 2011-03-26 at 11:35 AM ----------



    The continuation isn't the problem. The problem is that it's a huge fucking sudden turnaround from the previous direction of the story with little explanation.
    You also see alot of other things having taken a sudden turn with cataclysm, so seeing as we don´t know the full background of this "Zul" character its perfectly reasonable.
  1. Nexxia's Avatar
    ok, I have mentioned this previously. As far as the level of ELITE for the original war bear mount. People were selling runs to get these every week, probably (at least on my home server) 50% of ppl that got them got them buy paying the top ranked guilds to carry them. They arent as elite as you think. Anyways, Im excited across the board, new stuff to obsess on wooooo.
  1. wimbo125's Avatar
    I was too late for the original bear and this one looks awesome too, im soooooo going to farm for it (though i hope it's a quest reward because i've got better things to do)
  1. Joshiboy's Avatar
    UH NEED BATTLE BEAR

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