Dragonflight 10.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[Lady Atia]

So .... it seems they really plan to swap the Gladiator mount for some reason but keep the armoredon the KSM reward. Now is the time to go to the forums and bring them to change it. Just recolour the s1 gladi mount AS IT SHOULD BE and use the new serpent mount for KSM or KSH.

Wasting gladiator models on 0,1% of players is bad enough already, giving each season an unique gladiator model just makes it so much worse, especially as the season 1 drake would have looked dope with green/purple/infinite effects down the line (basically a fel/shadowflame/infinite version ...).

At this point it just feels that some pvp dev has an hardon for giving pvp the best fomo rewards and being a special snowflake (because you know, now he can use both season 1 and 2 special transformations at the same time without having to go to the lastrum of transformation ...), meanwhile pve always gets the short end of the stick. We still have no elite sets there and the Lava Kodo is just a bad joke compared to both the Viscious mounts (which are also unique each season) and the Gladiator mounts. Atleast in Shadowlands, the Deathswirlies looked on par with the Gladi wyrms ...

[Melorandor]

Any idea what 10.2 might entail?

[Nathanyel]

Yeah an underground expansion following an underground major patch is unlikely haha

Imagine if after Vashj'ir in Cata, 5.0 had been South Seas, with some islands, but the majority of zones being underwater

There are plenty of islands we have not explored properly or even at all in the South Seas: Plunder Isles, Hiji, Tel'abim, Kezan & the Undermine, Darkspear Islands... throw in some naga action and you've got yourself a whole expansion!

And with Dragonflying as a fast, player-controlled method of transportation, and Zaralek being loaded dynamically, both gameplay and technical aspects required for a chain of smaller islands (=expansion zones) dotted across a vast map are there.

https://twitter.com/LeystTv/status/1...110213/photo/3

The RAF mount is customizable?

I am reminded of Necrolord Abomination customization. There's likely some NPC (or something to click on the mount, like on the Animawyrm) to alter the appearance using dialog options.

Wasting gladiator models on 0,1% of players is bad enough already, [...]

At this point it just feels that some pvp dev has an hardon for giving pvp the best fomo rewards [...]

There's a recent thread about PvP-only fomo, but to give my opinion in short, while idgaf about Glad drakes, Elite sets shouldn't be time-limited. Keep the rating requirement, but less us buy older sets.

[Le Conceptuel]

Yeah an underground expansion following an underground major patch is unlikely haha

My personal theory is they could be testing the waters. Obviously, this would mean you are right and it won't come in 11.0, but I do think it's possible that the reason for the underground setting is test the waters and see if it doesn't get too claustrophobic.

[Alanar]

a look at the new Ironforge set with the updated HD tabard

Looks clean, a shame they still do this fake 3d paint, in this case the tabard shows to be a bit loser on top. Which sadly doesnt look great. The helmet is a nice classic update tho, also the fitting is great.

- - - Updated - - -

Any idea what 10.2 might entail?

With what people have said here.. either something green dragon related and maybe confronting the stone primalist?

I sure dont hope they gonna drag this primalist stuff over the duration of the full expansion.

10.2 I hope something of a break, maybe reclaim gilneas here and some other story bits, maybe an allied race.

[Grimbold21]

Looks clean, a shame they still do this fake 3d paint, in this case the tabard shows to be a bit loser on top. Which sadly doesnt look great. The helmet is a nice classic update tho, also the fitting is great.

- - - Updated - - -



With what people have said here.. either something green dragon related and maybe confronting the stone primalist?

I sure dont hope they gonna drag this primalist stuff over the duration of the full expansion.

10.2 I hope something of a break, maybe reclaim gilneas here and some other story bits, maybe an allied race.

What do you mean fake 3 paint?

[Fahrad Wagner]

a look at the new Ironforge set with the updated HD tabard

The textures are so CRISP! 10/10 set

I personally think a K'aresh expansion would be very nice to have—it would make for a markedly different aesthetic than anything we've seen while still having some grounding in preexisting lore. Contrast Shadowlands—it was a terrible effort at a cosmic expansion, when Legion previously demonstrated such a thing could work in theory. A K'aresh expansion pursuing previously foreshadowed plot points and concepts with a strong identity would be a very nice way to redeem the cosmic side of things. I'd also add that a middle eastern aesthetic has rarely been employed in WoW, so an expansion set on the homeworld of a race with inspirations from pre-Islamic Arabia could be a nice change of pace.

I can envision how it would look, and I think it would be very aesthetically-pleasing—I imagine starswept silvery deserts beneath clear night skies full of strikingly visible celestial phenomena, or massive ruins of a civilization which produced technology beyond Azeroth comprehension, yet which flew too close to the sun. Starry splotches dot the landscape, and the mutations of the Void, initially subtle, become all the more overt as you approach the locus of the Void's influence, where the stillborn World-Soul of K'aresh took the name Dimensius, and projected his long shadow across Karkora and Draenor.

I'm also of the mind Ethereals would make for an interesting race that would occupy an as-of-yet vacant aesthetic niche. I could certainly see the appeal of plasmic arcane mummies as something very novel and unique. It'd also be nice to have a greedy and opportunistic race that can be taken a tad more seriously than Goblins

Playable Ethereals would be fantastic, and I'm sure K'aresh aesthetic would be a one of a kind indeed (and heavily influenced by Middle Eastern cultures in general).

[Nymrohd]

My personal theory is they could be testing the waters. Obviously, this would mean you are right and it won't come in 11.0, but I do think it's possible that the reason for the underground setting is test the waters and see if it doesn't get too claustrophobic.

I don't think it is even about testing it thematically with the players. Underground zones/caves and verticality in general seems to be a problem for them as far as the engine is concerned. I think they want to test server performance.

[Fahrad Wagner]

Imagine if after Vashj'ir in Cata, 5.0 had been South Seas, with some islands, but the majority of zones being underwater

And with Dragonflying as a fast, player-controlled method of transportation, and Zaralek being loaded dynamically, both gameplay and technical aspects required for a chain of smaller islands (=expansion zones) dotted across a vast map are there.

I hadn't thought of the last part, it's true it could make islands exploration feel more alive!

My personal theory is they could be testing the waters. Obviously, this would mean you are right and it won't come in 11.0, but I do think it's possible that the reason for the underground setting is test the waters and see if it doesn't get too claustrophobic.

I mean there are lots of possibility when it comes to underground zone, and the Nerubians deserve some love, so I could see it happening in the future.

[Zulggun]

Do we know who was that Zaralek anyway?

[Teriz]

Zaralek Cavern seems to be a great precursor for something like Undermine in 12.0.

[Alanar]

What do you mean fake 3 paint?

There are many examples of bells, chains, holes and now with that tabard that is suppose give you that 3d effect to have these rumples on the side, but are in fact just painted on. The tabard model is still exactly the same. From the side you wouldn't even notice it's there. Look, Wow has increased 3d pieces on armor slowly over last few expansions, but it's still a thing. Trying to paint layers on a robe is another one of those examples, it's showing it's age imo.

Robes and capes is another big thing that comes to mind. We have seen many much better physics on npcs, that it's about time these pieces get a proper player model update. Cone/tube robes since 2004/2023-

[Grimbold21]

There are many examples of bells, chains, holes and now with that tabard that is suppose give you that 3d effect to have these rumples on the side, but are in fact just painted on. The tabard model is still exactly the same. From the side you wouldn't even notice it's there. Look, Wow has increased 3d pieces on armor slowly over last few expansions, but it's still a thing. Trying to paint layers on a robe is another one of those examples, it's showing it's age imo.

Robes and capes is another big thing that comes to mind. We have seen many much better physics on npcs, that it's about time these pieces get a proper player model update. Cone/tube robes since 2004/2023-

As someone with a beginner's knowledge of 3D, I can only say that that is probably related to poly count. You need/have to save polys where you can otherwise it'd get heavy.

If we look at HD Ironforge guard model again, there are other elements that you could say would look better being 3D. The tabard's belt, the thighguards of the legpiece. But at the end of the day, you probably have to go with what's more relevant.

You can also say the same about detail/damage work. You don't go in and 3D model stone cracks, or scratches in metal, or the veins in a tree. You either texture paint them or sculpt and bake them into a normal map.

Blizzard has done this since WoW's inception. Hell, the game industry does it, otherwise their games wouldn't be runnable.

[Throren]

To any who want to see it, this is the 2nd colour variation of the Ironforge guard set. It's a lot more fancy, probably a royal guard or something

Has a similar colour scheme to Magni's armour in official artwork pre-crystalization imho

[Raetary]

What do you mean fake 3 paint?

Probably how the thigh plates are painted on instead of 3d.

[Alanar]

As someone with a beginner's knowledge of 3D, I can only say that that is probably related to poly count. You need/have to save polys where you can otherwise it'd get heavy.

I see some truth in what you are saying, but I think you are overreacting and you don't need to be an expert in seeing that some stuff is just oldschool and yes this tabard example is minor, but there are examples that should have been improved a long time ago. They are finally getting to kilts as it seems like. Getting extra layers on a leg piece or robe isn't going to suddenly break the game. They have been improving this over time and more will come as the PTR shows. I think we can all agree that painted layers or crystals on belts/glove/ or w/e is really not from this time anymore and we have seen they can do better.

I can see them give us some improved hair and cloth physics, examples like Lort'mar is were the game should be headed for players as well imo. But I hope they don't forget about robes.

- - - Updated - - -

Probably how the thigh plates are painted on instead of 3d.

It's even worse when they try to add shadow effects to it as well, but ye I think it's rediculous we still sometimes look like we are wearing yogapants from steel. But I could see why polycount in general could be an issue.

- - - Updated - - -

To any who want to see it, this is the 2nd colour variation of the Ironforge guard set. It's a lot more fancy, probably a royal guard or something

Has a similar colour scheme to Magni's armour in official artwork pre-crystalization imho

Even tho I was slightly complaining, this does looks fresh and I like the gold as it's not overly yellow looking.

[Raetary]

Ebyssian is gonna be the next Earthwarder from the looks of it.

- - - Updated - - -

https://www.wowhead.com/news/partial...0-1-ptr-331862



Also, some sick new Scarlet crusade item appearances.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

Ebyssian is gonna be the next Earthwarder from the looks of it.

- - - Updated - - -

https://www.wowhead.com/news/partial...0-1-ptr-331862

Also, some sick new Scarlet crusade item appearances.

Seems like a super odd choice to pick the cow who spent over 10 thousand years grazing instead of literally any one else like even one of the random names dragons who helped rebuild there numbers in Outland.

Also god I wish they would make an updated mail scarlet set but that seems like a pipe dream.

[Luck4]

Copium: Maybe it'll be a patch zone in an expansion set in Lordaeron?

We can hope...

[Alanar]

Ebyssian is gonna be the next Earthwarder from the looks of it.

- - - Updated - - -

https://www.wowhead.com/news/partial...0-1-ptr-331862



Also, some sick new Scarlet crusade item appearances.

I like the red version more, because it literally screams scarlet crusade. But yes as awesome!

Also helmetless Neltharion looks much better.
https://www.wowhead.com/news/helmetl...al-scar-331901
I wonder if we will get an updated malygos model as well, since It's not that this Neltharion model will be used much.