Dragonflight 10.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[Makabreska]

There are 4 DR mounts.
There are hundreds of non-DR mounts.

Simple logistics that they will favour the more massive count after Dragonflight.

These 4 current mounts are not some super unique models, uniquely fitted DR. We got only four, becasue they have vast customization options. What stops Blizz from easily turning other winged (or not) mounts that they share skeleton with into DR mounts? Nothing. Dragonriding is probably the most well received feature of DF, trying to find imaginary reasons to scrap it is just baffling.

[Raetary]

There are 4 DR mounts.

Indeed, and all them them use very widely used mount rigs.

They can expand the DR animations to every mount that shares their rig.
Literally every Proto-Drake, Proto-Drake adjacent, Drake, Drake adjacent, Wyvern, Wyvern adjacent and Pterrodax, Pterrodax adjacent mount.

[Sondrelk]

Indeed, and all them them use very widely used mount rigs.

They can expand the DR animations to every mount that shares their rig.
Literally every Proto-Drake, Proto-Drake adjacent, Drake, Drake adjacent, Wyvern, Wyvern adjacent and Pterrodax, Pterrodax adjacent mount.

There is also the serpentine mount, so that adds all the cloud drakes and other serpentine mounts. And I wouldnt be shocked if we get a Gryphon adjacent DR mount as well before the expansion is over. That really takes care of the vast majority of mounts in the game.

[Revamp Man]

I'm wondering when neltharion was corrupted and if we are going to see him actually return.

Tinfoil theory:
He's technically still alive which is why the aspects couldn't get their powers back because he still has them. He could have created a failsafe for the possibility of him failing and we find a clone of him

[Zulggun]

Literally nothing is stopping them from making any and all flying mounts into DR mounts, there is no logical reason they would do away with DR instead of just expanding it given how well it was received.

Nothing was stopping them from keep using our class halls for more expansions. Or garrisons, or artifacts, or...

[ChairmanKaga]

But they won't allow it, because dragon riding is an expansion feature that will be buried with Dragonflight.

I Doubt it.

[Sondrelk]

Nothing was stopping them from keep using our class halls for more expansions. Or garrisons, or artifacts, or...

Class Halls are still there, it's just the questlines that would take far too much time. We saw in 7.2 how detrimental to the overall experience it was to just have a single questline for each class.

Garrisons everyone hated, and if you just want player housing then you run into the many issues that need to be sorted before you can really get into it.

Artifacts would require massive rebalancing each expansion, and then only to become either a subpart weapon system, or an extra spec specific talent tree, which we already have.


Dragonriding is a better version of flying that can be used to allow flying without the downsides of removing the actual area traversal mechanics.

[Zulggun]

Class Halls are still there, it's just the questlines that would take far too much time. We saw in 7.2 how detrimental to the overall experience it was to just have a single questline for each class.

They are there, but they are dead content, would ypu respond "dragonflying is still there!" if it was to stay on Dragon Isles only? Sure there is much to do if you want seperate class questlines, but that's what we want, don't we? A lot of good, well made content. Good for alts too. But going forward we don't have to get more separate campaigns for class halls, let them even be a place where you character can gather stuff, your own base of operation.

Garrisons everyone hated, and if you just want player housing then you run into the many issues that need to be sorted before you can really get into it.

Debatable, I know a lot of ppl who enjoyed garrison content. If Blizzard didn't fuck up WoD we could have garrisons in other zones of Draenor, and going further maybe we could relocate it to new continents, transform them to be guild halls, or just habitable with other players. Again, did not have to be abandoned.

Artifacts would require massive rebalancing each expansion, and then only to become either a subpart weapon system, or an extra spec specific talent tree, which we already have.

Do you have same concerns for class trees? Because that what artifact trees were. They could work with that. Add more talents, add more skins, add more cosmetic weapons. There we go.

Dragonriding is a better version of flying that can be used to allow flying without the downsides of removing the actual area traversal mechanics.

Once again, debatable. I like it but for many ppl it's annoying and interrupts their play flow.


In the end, I'm not saying dragonflying won't carry over to next expansion. But we have no rights to claim that it will and that it's easy to work with. Especially looking how many mount we have in game and how it would hurt the mount collectors if they couldnt use them all at will.

[Dracullus]

If you think dragonriding won't carry over next expac, just go to any old continent and do few quests.

[Nathanyel]

Do you have same concerns for class trees? Because that what artifact trees were. They could work with that. Add more talents, add more skins, add more cosmetic weapons. There we go.

The new talent trees are iterations of the Artifact talents and the Covenant talents/conduits.

But that's not what the main issue with Artifacts beyond Legion was.
It was locking a gear slot, subjectively the most important one.
Sure, there were the appearances and transmog, but they also forced some specs into specific weapon combos when the spec supported variations.

The items themselves were discarded to deal with that, with many Artifact main abilities turning into talents.
The AP progression was shifted onto the Heart of Azeroth, a slot that didn't have cosmetic ramifications. I'm not saying BfA systems were better overall, but at least in this context it was an improvement, or more objectively an iteration. In that sense, "Artifacts" stayed until 10.0

[Zulggun]

The new talent trees are iterations of the Artifact talents and the Covenant talents/conduits.

But that's not what the main issue with Artifacts beyond Legion was.
It was locking a gear slot, subjectively the most important one.
Sure, there were the appearances and transmog, but they also forced some specs into specific weapon combos when the spec supported variations.

The items themselves were discarded to deal with that, with many Artifact main abilities turning into talents.
The AP progression was shifted onto the Heart of Azeroth, a slot that didn't have cosmetic ramifications. I'm not saying BfA systems were better overall, but at least in this context it was an improvement, or more objectively an iteration. In that sense, "Artifacts" stayed until 10.0

Sure, artifact trees lived on in HoA somehow, but it was an unnecessary downgrade imo. They should just stay and evolve to something bigger, akin to trees we have now, replacing on talent "trees: from MoP in the end.

Specific weapon combos is not an issue imo, and should only incentivize Blizzard to loosen up with tmog restrictions. Also, another problem is solved then: no more complaining about not getting a weapon for half of the tier.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

Nothing was stopping them from keep using our class halls for more expansions. Or garrisons, or artifacts, or...

Class halls were just hubs they had nothing to do with gameplay, the systems around artifacts were not well received people liked the cool weapons and the story’s but hates grinding relics and farming AP for 3 unlinked weapons making spec swapping a pain which is why they changed how AP worked in BFA, garrisons were also disliked and the they couldn’t even use them properly in Wod limiting them to one zone when they were suppose to be moveable between them all let alone keep brining them forward every expan.

Unlike class halls DR effects gameplay, unlike artifacts it’s liked, unlike garrisons it doesn’t need a ton of work and is liked, all they need to do toggle old mounts to use it add animations if they want and then it’s good to go in any zone that supports flying.

[Zulggun]

Class halls were just hubs they had nothing to do with gameplay, the systems around artifacts were not well received people liked the cool weapons and the story’s but hates grinding relics and farming AP for 3 unlinked weapons making spec swapping a pain which is why they changed how AP worked in BFA, garrisons were also disliked and the they couldn’t even use them properly in Wod limiting them to one zone when they were suppose to be moveable between them all let alone keep brining them forward every expan.

I never claimed any of these features was perfect, but they should have been fixed, upgraded not abandoned.

Unlike class halls DR effects gameplay, unlike artifacts it’s liked, unlike garrisons it doesn’t need a ton of work and is liked, all they need to do toggle old mounts to use it add animations if they want and then it’s good to go in any zone that supports flying.

You sound like everyone disliked everything mentioned above, but dragonflying is universally loved. This is not true, it's dilusional take. There were tons of ppl who loved artifacts, there were tons that enjoyed garrisons and class halls and yet we don't have these anymore.

I will say it again. There is nothing, NOTHING that will stop Blizzard from abandoning any of their features or systems. No matter how much loved or not.

all they need to do toggle old mounts to use it add animations if they want

Ah yes, good old "just flip the switch" coding. Also "add animations to hundrets of mounts", I mean, cmon.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

I never claimed any of these features was perfect, but they should have been fixed, upgraded not abandoned.
You sound like everyone disliked everything mentioned above, but dragonflying is universally loved. This is not true, it's dilusional take. There were tons of ppl who loved artifacts, there were tons that enjoyed garrisons and class halls and yet we don't have these anymore.

I will say it again. There is nothing, NOTHING that will stop Blizzard from abandoning any of their features or systems. No matter how much loved or not.

Ah yes, good old "just flip the switch" coding. Also "add animations to hundrets of mounts", I mean, cmon.

Dragon riding isn’t universally loved, it is how ever far more loved then artifact systems or garrisons.

The systems of artifacts were even upgraded first into the heart of Azeroth then arguably into Convents, these were still hated on mass and done away with for a reason.

Garrisons are likely up there with the most disliked features added to wow and were such a nightmare to make that they gutted them before launch, they were not something they could reasonably carry forward or upgrade as evident of them saying they need a new engine for proper player housing.

And class halls were just quest hubs, nothing to really do with that unless you want story’s around them which they don’t.

And yes it is just flip a switch coding if they wanted to go the easiest route for spreading dragon riding they could just swap in any models they want right now and ignore all animations, the only code they would need to change is not letting DR mounts in areas other then the dragon isle and they already had that in the beta so they would just need to cut out that limiter.

Applying the new animations to mounts that share skeletons and making some new ones for those that don’t would obviously be more work but the easy option is there if they wanted to take it.

[Nathanyel]

Sure, artifact trees lived on in HoA somehow, but it was an unnecessary downgrade imo.

whether the new thing was better or worse (which is of course subjective, but let's say it was even objectively worse) does not matter, it was an iteration on the concept.

They should just stay and evolve to something bigger

Where is the point in that? How would new characters unlock traits, just automatically by level (making older traits trivial and thus unnecessary, at which point they should be folded into baseline passives and occasional actives*) until they're at the new max level, and another endless grind begins?
One way or another, it had to reset with every new expansion.

* PS: which is, again, what the new talent trees do, especially as they weave in popular Covenant abilities and Legendaries = stuff from the just replaced progression system

[Cheezits]

Last build added a tease of a new pirate character and faction, which explains the pirates attacking the Forbidden Reach and may be related to the pirates Jaina was dealing with during the events of the wedding short story.

https://www.mmo-champion.com/threads...1#post54046941

Looks like the "other side of Azeroth" lead-in may be tied to Pirates in the future.

[loras]

Class halls were just hubs they had nothing to do with gameplay, the systems around artifacts were not well received people liked the cool weapons and the story’s but hates grinding relics and farming AP for 3 unlinked weapons making spec swapping a pain which is why they changed how AP worked in BFA, garrisons were also disliked and the they couldn’t even use them properly in Wod limiting them to one zone when they were suppose to be moveable between them all let alone keep brining them forward every expan.

Unlike class halls DR effects gameplay, unlike artifacts it’s liked, unlike garrisons it doesn’t need a ton of work and is liked, all they need to do toggle old mounts to use it add animations if they want and then it’s good to go in any zone that supports flying.

Commenting without context, but:
Good assessment Dragonriding versus earlier expansion additions.

[Nathanyel]

Looks like the "other side of Azeroth" lead-in may be tied to Pirates in the future.

Saw that thread, saw some commenting that this should be an entire expansion. Sorry, pirates are cool, but they can't carry an entire expansion. Be a relevant part of it, though? Sure.

[Le Conceptuel]

Saw that thread, saw some commenting that this should be an entire expansion. Sorry, pirates are cool, but they can't carry an entire expansion. Be a relevant part of it, though? Sure.

They could constitute an initial threat, however, or perhaps a lead-in to the major threat or new location. This is presumably what was planned back in the initial South Seas concept that Blizzard scrapped in favor of TBC.

[Sondrelk]

Saw that thread, saw some commenting that this should be an entire expansion. Sorry, pirates are cool, but they can't carry an entire expansion. Be a relevant part of it, though? Sure.

They would have been part of a South Seas expansion.
Sadly most of that concept was taken by BfA, so pirates are unlikely to be more prevalent than a mega-dungeon, barring revamped Stranglethorn or similar.

- - - Updated - - -

I never claimed any of these features was perfect, but they should have been fixed, upgraded not abandoned.
You sound like everyone disliked everything mentioned above, but dragonflying is universally loved. This is not true, it's dilusional take. There were tons of ppl who loved artifacts, there were tons that enjoyed garrisons and class halls and yet we don't have these anymore.

I will say it again. There is nothing, NOTHING that will stop Blizzard from abandoning any of their features or systems. No matter how much loved or not.

Ah yes, good old "just flip the switch" coding. Also "add animations to hundrets of mounts", I mean, cmon.

The systems are iterated upon. Artifacts became HoA, which became Covenants, which in turn became the revamped Talent trees.
Garrisons became Class halls, which became Covenants halls, before finally being seemingly abandoned when the concept didn't really work.

The issues with Artifacts specifically is that the issues players had with them were easy to fix by just flat out not forcing players to use them. Talent trees being revamped removed the need for AP and talent tree resets. Transmog was fixed by just having weapon drops in content. And the lack of customization with secondary stats and the occasional playstyle change inherent to 2h frost or SMF Warrior, was also fixed by just having weapon drops.

The main benefit to artifacts was a smoother weapon upgrade curve because of the three relic slots, and how cool they looked. Weapon appearances could come from anywhere, which really means that the only thing we lost is the smooth weapon curve, which i imagine many players are willing to accept if it means not having loot tables flooded by relic drops.