The War Within 11.X Patches & World Soul Saga Speculation Thread

[Jastall]

So with the special ground mount in Undermine, does that mean they won't allow flying mounts?

Not at release at least. It would be pretty foolish to spend all that dev time on a new ground locomotion system then have most players ignore it after the first couple times because flying will always be faster.

[Cheezits]

Oh 100%. I just want them to take advantage of the car system, ya know?

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Does seem like we'll get more info on the car system once the patch enters PTR or so.

Maybe we'll get info on how the system works, maybe we'll see confirmation on race tracks, potential highway showcases, etc.

On one hand I don't want them to fuck up a world revamp by making the world dependent on race tracks. On the other hand I'm excited about them making a new map where ground travel could actually matter again.

[Joshuaj]

On one hand I don't want them to fuck up a world revamp by making the world dependent on race tracks. On the other hand I'm excited about them making a new map where ground travel could actually matter again.

Tbf here, the other goblin cities in game have above ground roads, no reason Undermine or Kezan shouldn't.

Also, this is a rough preview of Undermine, so anything can happen tbh. Heck, the car system wasn't at all expanded upon, which implies there's a lot to be talked about still.

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Regardless, if we get Undermine race tracks...

I'm doing this in 11.1

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Warcraft Fan Event: Undermine Piston Cup!

[Cheezits]

Undermine would be a very good setting to return to in future expansions for additional racetracks, while not disturbing the outside setting of Azeroth.

[Joshuaj]

Hm...

From the early previews, it is likely we'll maybe get Kezan as well

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Undermine would be a very good setting to return to in future expansions for additional racetracks, while not disturbing the outside setting of Azeroth.

Agreed. Really hoping Undermine doesn't have just 1 big road. Hoping for multiple roads and a race track

[Nightshade711]

The "car system" seems fairly obvious to be a prototype for dynamic groundriding that will be extended to other ground mounts in time.

Inb4 a return to the old pathfinder system where you’re stuck with dynamic ground mounts until you get the achievement to unlock dynamic flying mounts

[Joshuaj]

Blizzard Entertainment! Give me Highways and Racetracks across the Undermine, and my life is yours!!!

[Eldryth]

No new class reveal during the Direct when they showed Midnight housing content means they don't have anything impressive in store for us anymore. Unless they think housing is bigger for them than a new class but I have some doubts about that. But let's be honest, I was the first to think that Classic Roadmap was bullshit and it was real so I wouldn't bet a cent on what I have to say myself lol.

It was a quick tease of what has always been one of the most highly requested features- possibly the most requested features- for WoW. It is absolutely a bigger selling point than a new class.

I mean, I'd be more interested in a new class myself, but that would just be a normal expansion feature that doesn't warrant a super-early tease. Showing us that we're finally getting the big thing that lots of players have been asking for for 20 years fits much better for the big, special anniversary announcement. If a class does come (something I'm still very optimistic about), it'll be shown at Midnight's proper reveal next summer.

[Joshuaj]

It's also a bit too early to say whether or not player housing is the only new feature to come with Midnight. They'll likely save any other notable elements to accompany the expansion's cinematic reveal.

That being said, assuming player housing is treated like dragonriding and delves it is going to be a feature updated for every major patch and expansion which only adds to its appeal.

Agreed! And since Blizzard wants features to be Evergreen content, I cannot wait!

[Foolicious]

Inb4 a return to the old pathfinder system where you’re stuck with dynamic ground mounts until you get the achievement to unlock dynamic flying mounts

I mean they are doing something similar on the siren isle which locks flying behind a six week progression/quest. I wouldn't be suprised if there is a pathfinder-esque thing in undermine.

[Golden Yak]

Flying is too dangerous in Undermine with all the rockets and explosives going off overhead. Ground-mounts only.

From what we've seen of Undermine, it looks a lot like everything is underground - there's a few shots of a dingy green sky, but I can't tell if that's a polluted open sky or just a haze in an underground area.

There's a few shots of what looks like just walls and domes of scrap-metal panels. The whole region might be enclosed.

[huth]

Flying is too dangerous in Undermine with all the rockets and explosives going off overhead. Ground-mounts only.

From what we've seen of Undermine, it looks a lot like everything is underground - there's a few shots of a dingy green sky, but I can't tell if that's a polluted open sky or just a haze in an underground area.

There's a few shots of what looks like just walls and domes of scrap-metal panels. The whole region might be enclosed.

Well, that's the lore of the place, i'd be more surprised if it wasn't.

[Viridiel]

It would be quite the twist if it turns out the Black Blood is actually from the Undermine, escaped from a nearby titan facility. Maybe a bit too similar to the Uldir plot, but interesting nonetheless. Maybe the Old God it's the blood of isn't even from Azeroth, but was brought here for observation.

[Golden Yak]

I'm glad, though there was always elements of Undermine above ground - Bilgewater Port, the Motherlode, etc. Presumably we won't be visiting those regions from the Undermine zone itself.

[Nibelheimy]

It should be WoW's golden saucer. Put mount/transmog competitions there. Have the Brawlers guild there. It can have its own storyline as patch content to be introduced. But Undermine is one of the few places in wow that has the possibility to be neutral, varied enough in districts, yet light-hearted enough to be a zone you can jump back into for fun if they can somehow make an area like this that people actually want to go to occasionally. Give it its own seasonal renown I don't know. I'd even go for it having a cartel system where you pick a cartel every season. Purely cosmetic, push your cartel into popularity for the season. One could even be led by Gallywix to let players pick the 'Evil' option. Have four or five of those and let players fight it out in the world, and maybe even a revamped duellers style guild.

I'd truly make this place sandbox island irrelevant from the main story and gearing progression. Go wacky. Have taxi's that can take players to other districts. Let players view cinematics they've seen in a cinema in the pleasure district. Have a separate currency that can be earned on the island. Have a casino, racing, trial of style, mount offs, brawlers guild, renowns with cartels. They could even do a precursor/test for housing with your own personal pleasure pad? Most importantly. You have to spawn on Kezan and take a very impressive lift down into undermine that shows it off. Undermine should really be done in style. It has a lot of potential.

Damn, I was so close to predicting this.

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Also, finally got home and watched the direct. Pleasantly surprised. Anxious about housing, but optimistic, it will surely start small and only grow in time. They know they can't afford to get housing wrong.

Also anxious about horrific visions, gameplay wise they were fine but I didn't love going back to old zones with a new coat of purple paint for the world quests and mount drops.

I am disappointed it seems they're going back on having multiple delve companions, was excited for Gazlowe.

I agree that the new yellow plunderstorm like banner is probably related to housing, but as the bar does turn fel green it does seem plausible that remix Legion is on the way. Not a bad thing, although I was expecting it to go in order from Pandaria onwards, this does mean they can jump to whichever expansion they like however. Its not like we started from BC.

Slightly disappointed on no new mega dungeon, as my group of friends get together to give those a shot every time they come out.

Litttttle bit worried that 11.2 doesn't specify a new zone, I can't imagine a major patch without one and I can't see this expansion ending on undermine as the final zone. If rootlands is cancelled, it lessens our chances at Harronir, but maybe they've realised putting Allied races that are neutral with no shown faction identity is a mistake in the long run. Despite how the story has evolved, it is important for the playable race to be involved with the chosen faction. At least Pandaren let you meet both factions, quest with them, and choose which one you identify with more. Part of me believes Earthern in production were Alliance only, and Harronir Horde with the scrapped rootlands on release.

D.R.I.V.E seems hilarious, I'm so glad they've allowed themselves to go Zany with this new patch. Still hoping for a really impressive vehicular entrance into Undermine and not a portal, I did notice the drill machine is on little tracks, so hopefully we ride that there and get an impressive view on arrival. Its something so so simple, but really shows off the feel of the zone. Dragonriding is great, but entering a zone on your ground mount back in the old days let you live and breath the scale and flavour of the world around you. I remember the wonder of riding the Howling Fjord lifts, wondering what was on the top of the cliff. Taking the elevator down into Undercity for the first time. Riding my ground mount over the bridges of Jade Forest wondering how high it really went. Seriously, Dragonriding is great, but portals are over utilised. (The WoD train would of been beautiful)

[Joshuaj]

Damn, I was so close to predicting this.

-
Also, finally got home and watched the direct. Pleasantly surprised. Anxious about housing, but optimistic, it will surely start small and only grow in time. They know they can't afford to get housing wrong.

Also anxious about horrific visions, gameplay wise they were fine but I didn't love going back to old zones with a new coat of purple paint for the world quests and mount drops.

I am disappointed it seems they're going back on having multiple delve companions, was excited for Gazlowe.

I agree that the new yellow plunderstorm like banner is probably related to housing, but as the bar does turn fel green it does seem plausible that remix Legion is on the way. Not a bad thing, although I was expecting it to go in order from Pandaria onwards, this does mean they can jump to whichever expansion they like however. Its not like we started from BC.

Undermine looks great so far, slightly disappointed on no new mega dungeon, as my group of friends get together to give those a shot every time they come out.

Litttttle bit worried that 11.2 doesn't specify a new zone, I can't imagine a major patch without one and I can't see this expansion ending on undermine as the final zone. If rootlands is cancelled, it lessens our chances at Harronir, but maybe they've realised putting Allied races that are neutral with no shown faction identity is a mistake in the long run. Despite how the story has evolved, it is important for the playable race to be involved with the chosen faction. At least Pandaren let you meet both factions, quest with them, and choose which one you identify with more. Part of me believes Earthern in production were Alliance only, and Harronir Horde with the scrapped rootlands on release.

D.R.I.V.E seems hilarious, I'm so glad they've allowed themselves to go Zany with this new patch. Still hoping for a really impressive vehicular entrance into Undermine and not a portal, I did notice the drill machine is on little tracks, so hopefully we ride that there and get an impressive view on arrival. Its something so so simple, but really shows off the feel of the zone. Dragonriding is great, but entering a zone on your ground mount back in the old days let you live and breath the scale and flavour of the world around you. I remember the wonder of riding the Howling Fjord lifts, wondering what was on the top of the cliff. Taking the elevator down into Undercity for the first time. Riding my ground mount over the bridges of Jade Forest wondering how high it really went. Seriously, Dragonriding is great, but portals are over utilised. (The WoD train would of been beautiful)

You were partially right with the Golden Saucer which is cool. Hope the Gallagio has actual playable Casino games! That would be cool.

Also, I do hope we see some Highway stuff or Racetracks with the D.R.I.V.E system! Based off what I've seen in pictures, it seems like we could be getting a Gas system as well, namely with there being gas stations and whatnot.

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And if you're wondering, no, the things above the buildings are not roadways above ground. Those are Sewage Pipelines, which makes sense considering it's underground.

[Holdodlig]

Damn, I was so close to predicting this.

-
Also, finally got home and watched the direct. Pleasantly surprised. Anxious about housing, but optimistic, it will surely start small and only grow in time. They know they can't afford to get housing wrong.

Also anxious about horrific visions, gameplay wise they were fine but I didn't love going back to old zones with a new coat of purple paint for the world quests and mount drops.

I am disappointed it seems they're going back on having multiple delve companions, was excited for Gazlowe.

I agree that the new yellow plunderstorm like banner is probably related to housing, but as the bar does turn fel green it does seem plausible that remix Legion is on the way. Not a bad thing, although I was expecting it to go in order from Pandaria onwards, this does mean they can jump to whichever expansion they like however. Its not like we started from BC.

Slightly disappointed on no new mega dungeon, as my group of friends get together to give those a shot every time they come out.

Litttttle bit worried that 11.2 doesn't specify a new zone, I can't imagine a major patch without one and I can't see this expansion ending on undermine as the final zone. If rootlands is cancelled, it lessens our chances at Harronir, but maybe they've realised putting Allied races that are neutral with no shown faction identity is a mistake in the long run. Despite how the story has evolved, it is important for the playable race to be involved with the chosen faction. At least Pandaren let you meet both factions, quest with them, and choose which one you identify with more. Part of me believes Earthern in production were Alliance only, and Harronir Horde with the scrapped rootlands on release.

D.R.I.V.E seems hilarious, I'm so glad they've allowed themselves to go Zany with this new patch. Still hoping for a really impressive vehicular entrance into Undermine and not a portal, I did notice the drill machine is on little tracks, so hopefully we ride that there and get an impressive view on arrival. Its something so so simple, but really shows off the feel of the zone. Dragonriding is great, but entering a zone on your ground mount back in the old days let you live and breath the scale and flavour of the world around you. I remember the wonder of riding the Howling Fjord lifts, wondering what was on the top of the cliff. Taking the elevator down into Undercity for the first time. Riding my ground mount over the bridges of Jade Forest wondering how high it really went. Seriously, Dragonriding is great, but portals are over utilised. (The WoD train would of been beautiful)

Since they're bringing back vision, we can assume that either Renilash is falling upon us so we get void vs light influence everywhere (and maybe we go back to some BFA zones like Boralus and Zandalar like we did with Uldum and Vale) or they'll extend the outdoor experience of Khaz'Algar with Legion Invasion-like events.

[Joshuaj]

Since they're adding in Cars and we're getting a House and whatnot, another thing I'd love to see Blizzard do is update the Darkmoon Faire again, but this time in a much greater extent.

Like make the island bigger, add in more things like a Ferris Wheel, a drop ride, Bumper Cars, more fun cosmetic rewards for participating, updates to the racing stuff (like adding a D.R.I.V.E Track and a Skyriding race area), another bigger Rollercoaster. and provide updates to the older activities as well (Like the Merry Go Round, the rock areas VIA making the stages cooler or something like that, etc).

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Blizzard definitely has the tech to make all of this happen. Heck, I'd love to see them do Casino mini games like BlackJack or Poker or slots (But with WoW instead), however you can only do limited games (like 3 rounds a game per day or so, and with limited bet options I.E max bet being 50 gold a game, to avoid gambling addictions), and you need an invitation for these Casinos (So like, say these things are available for the non-raid version of the Galagio, you'd need to earn an invitation by your respective cartel, or steal someone else's invitation in order to get it). Doing bets for race courses would also be cool (but it'd have to work like the casino stuff).

[Joshuaj]

Serious question for people excited for the cars in Undermine: do you feel this fits an online fantasy world like WoW, or is there a line that they could cross for you where something like this would start to ruin the immersion?

We literally have Spaceships in WoW and WC2 had oil. Heck, we recently just got fighter jets in Legion, and Hearthstone (While non canon, it still works within the rules of the Warcraft universe) just recently doubled down on that aspect by giving us spaceships, fighter jets that work both on a planet and in space, etc.

Not to mention WoW's had submarines, robots, demonic robots, mech suits, planes, tanks, crazy ass machine gun artillery, and more.

Cars are not crossing any line.

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Heck, we literally have roads and an example of cars in Cata. If anything, WoW doubling down on this is perfect.

Heck, now I want a customizable Goblin or Gnome Jet mount lol. It's very much possible now, they only need to design the mount.

[Scyth]

Finally watched the whole direct. MoP Classic is the thing I'm most excited for as I never played it when it was current. Really enjoyed questing there during MoP Remix so can't wait to go back!
Roadmap says it releases in Summer but raids won't come until Autumn though, do they always do that for Classic releases? Feels a bit odd not to have any raids for a few months, unless I missread the roadmap.

As for Undermined, I actually quite like it. It's quite different to what we've got so far although I can't help but feel it's a bit of a meme patch lol
Love the casino and the car though, hope they do a good job at it. GTA within WoW sounds promising!

Also, looks like Midnight might release early 2026, unless they are keeping something from us and intentionally did not put it at the end of the roadmap. Interesting.