Midnight 12.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[Super Dickmann]

New Blizzard actually realized that clinging to "the foundational aspects of WOW" was bullshit and the reason BFA and Shadowlands flopped so hard. Why do you think do we have so many good changes recently?

This is the first time anyone has ever called SL an example of the foundational aspects of WoW. The highest praise the Bald Man has ever gotten. No, BFA and SL fail precisely because one is a scorched earth destruction of the factions and all outstanding plot points and the other is only tangentially related to the setting at all and has to serve as a stitch-job to what the first left behind. Everything since has been memberberry-laden to compensate for how thoroughly they dropped the ball.

[Sondrelk]

only one new class? how disappointing

At launch. The tinker class and fourth Mage spec will show up during the first major patch.

[Marlamin]

Let us have fun birbie!!!!

I have never understood how people enjoy that. Speculating and hype is fun but don't actually set ones speculation as expectation and then get mad when disappointment arrives.

Someone was saying it was just gonna be the HElf and Ethereal fans potentially crashing out

Nope, I predict a lot of crashing out from this one.

I'm gonna be heading off and then work, so by the time I get back I'll only catch the smoldering embers of the day. But its gonna be Interesting no matter what.

Yeah, also expecting some generational crashouts.

[xskarma]

Yawn. The font for “Spring 2026” looks image traced in Illustrator. This gives us nothing.

We’ve also all been pretty solid on a late Winter release.

I did the math somewhere in July, with previous releases and Remix factored in that it would be Spring 2026, likely April 28th or May 5th. I expected Remix to START January 19th though and run all the way to a week or 2 before release, so not sure now with the changed time line of Remix. Late Winter might legit be in the cards.

Much of it depends on if they do a Season 4 like they did in SL and DF. Maybe they have chosen to not do one this time. That would cut down the run time of current content significantly.

[DELUXExSUPREME]

I did the math somewhere in July, with previous releases and Remix factored in that it would be Spring 2026, likely April 28th or May 5th. I expected Remix to START January 19th though and run all the way to a week or 2 before release, so not sure now with the changed time line of Remix. Late Winter might legit be in the cards.

Much of it depends on if they do a Season 4 like they did in SL and DF. Maybe they have chosen to not do one this time. That would cut down the run time of current content significantly.

We've known for a while now there would not be a Season 4 of TWW.

People have also placed Midnight at a late February/early March launch for a while too.

[Wangming]

Let's be frank. The two big flops were Warlords of Draenor and Shadowlands where they fucked up the patch cadence and people ran out of things to do.
The majority of players don't care if it is slop. They don't play WoW to get a gourmet meal. They want their cheesy, pulpy, rule of cool slop. Some are written better than others, some are TWW, but in general as long as people don't run out of things to do, the expansion will land.

And guess what, these two came with neither a class, nor a race.
If there is a race, a class, or both added, people roll new characters. Ergo it takes longer for them to run out of things. Consequently they will demand new stuff later.

[bagina]

Like a specter of death, she hangs above the expansion as the sword of Damocles. Ready to ruin all discussion and steer debate towards her actions once again...

I'm salivating at the thought...

[Scyth]

Ah yes, the penultimate state of the WoW community before a major announcement, unreasonably high expectations leading to eventual disappointment. Classic.

It's amazing isn't it. Wonder how many "more of the same shit, WoW is boring nowadays" type of comments we are going to see in a few hours

[Sondrelk]

I have never understood how people enjoy that. Speculating and hype is fun but don't actually set ones speculation as expectation and then get mad when disappointment arrives.



Yeah, also expecting some generational crashouts.

The generational crashouts is part of the culture around leak and announcement season. It's like complaining about the horrible weight gain after Christmas.

[Chickat]

talking about nonsense. Do people still think Northeron or Lordaeron will happen? that is more delusion than the talk about if the CGI art is AI or not

I think its certainly possible, although not likely. They have a better chance of being patch content if they even happen imo.

[Edlarel]

I have never understood how people enjoy that. Speculating and hype is fun but don't actually set ones speculation as expectation and then get mad when disappointment arrives.

For me, it's all about the thrill of the speculation and seeing how much potential there is. I also temper my expectations to previous releases/announcements. Blizzard has given us race + class a couple times now, so hoping for bard + ethereals isn't stretching too far, assuming the housing team is not drawn directly off the class/race designers.

At the end of the day, I'll be okay with what they offer us, but I'll absolutely love it so much more if they go full bore for the last two expansions in this major story arc. Really draw people in, then at the end of Last Titan, tell us all, "but we're not done on Azeroth yet"

[Dracullus]

I did the math somewhere in July, with previous releases and Remix factored in that it would be Spring 2026, likely April 28th or May 5th. I expected Remix to START January 19th though and run all the way to a week or 2 before release, so not sure now with the changed time line of Remix. Late Winter might legit be in the cards.

Much of it depends on if they do a Season 4 like they did in SL and DF. Maybe they have chosen to not do one this time. That would cut down the run time of current content significantly.

January 20th would be pre-patch date if all 3 patches (11.2,2.5,2.7) will have default 8 weeks schedule, so it fits end of Remix. Last 2 pre-patches lasted 5 weeks, so now most reasonable launch prediction is 24th February (20th February for early access).

[xskarma]

If there is a race, a class, or both added, people roll new characters. Ergo it takes longer for them to run out of things. Consequently they will demand new stuff later.

That is pretty simple and true I think. Sometimes you don't need to overthink things. Even if it's not their main character many people will eventually roll an alt of the new class or race and spend time on it. That might indeed be just the content saver that a good expansion requires.

[Chickat]

Finally, the WoD style nonsensical sounding leak


This is a crazy take, but something will happen to the sunwell, omg


Sexy buglady race confirmed


The ceiling/ isle of dorn, depends how far above we are looking... Wait, if we go further up we reach the sky. The halls of valor return!


The shadowlands, to get a seed for a new home.


Come on now, this is a mechanics question it breaks the feel so much I don't feel like answering


Void-weatherman hero class confirmed.


World of warcraft : The War Without. Sorry Anduin, your world-soul is in another castle.


Classic+ confirmed with extra classes


Lightforged Tuskarr


Hmm, this one is very subtle.... A raid set on planet earth, where we see it is indeed roughly spherical?

I thought the above the city that is under line was under city. Maybe its reclaimed but the upper part is the city now with the under being closed off.

[Samin]

The generational crashouts is part of the culture around leak and announcement season. It's like complaining about the horrible weight gain after Christmas.

I think it's more along the line of the kid who didn't get the pony they were wishing for for Christmas.

[Wildmoon]

How good an expansion is has nothing to do with announcement hype anyway. WoD is the worst xpac of all time and its announcement was incredibly hyped. It's all about content cadence at the end.

[NikolaiShade]

Seems like the HypeTrain made a stop to Icy Veins

https://www.icy-veins.com/wow/news/i...gamescom-2025/

PS: sorry if already posted

[Houle]

Hahahaha.

New Blizzard actually realized that clinging to "the foundational aspects of WOW" was bullshit and the reason BFA and Shadowlands flopped so hard. Why do you think do we have so many good changes recently?

BECAUSE THE FOUNDATIONAL ASPECTS OF WOW ARE SHIT in 2025.

Deal with it.

Saying BfA and SL failed bc they tried to adhere to "the foundational aspects of WoW" is certainly one of the takes of all time.

They gave her an elf form specifically so they could have yet another hot elf chick around. That's all there is to it. The cultist whose corpse she used could have been anything, it could have been a male tauren or a female troll but they chose yet another female elf. EVERYTHING that needs a humanoid form in this game ends up looking like a female elf. I get that it is marketing but what it mostly is, is lazy. You can have an artist make a hot troll female with ease, just give it an hourglass and big naturals.

Well can you really blame them, they somehow had to find a suitable replacement for Sylvanas.

[Fahrad Wagner]

Seems like the HypeTrain made a stop to Icy Veins

https://www.icy-veins.com/wow/news/i...gamescom-2025/

PS: sorry if already posted

One year it made it to Blizzard's presentation slides! Let's hope it happens again

[Hearthfinder]

How good an expansion is has nothing to do with announcement hype anyway. WoD is the worst xpac of all time and its announcement was incredibly hyped. It's all about content cadence at the end.

Plus having a setting that feels rooted in Warcraft/Azeroth. Part of Shadowlands' failure was because it didn't even feel like WoW.

Quel'Thalas is an insta-win in that regard.