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

[Chickat]

They need to buff normal flying speed some imo. Maybe 450 or 500%. Dragon riding is still almost twice as fast at top speed, but having a fastish normal flyer would be beneficial imo.

[Nymrohd]

Yes they do need to change the world. How will you Dragonride if most of the world is flat?

3 vigor is enough to get you anywhere on the map

[Sondrelk]

3 vigor is enough to get you anywhere on the map

Looking at it now I have to think it was a mistake to add so many upgrades to what you can do with dragonriding anywhere. It should have been more restrictive, but with far more stuff like vigor recharges and boosts scattered around the zones.
We have the updraft mechanic, but it's rarely used anywhere.

[Nymrohd]

Looking at it now I have to think it was a mistake to add so many upgrades to what you can do with dragonriding anywhere. It should have been more restrictive, but with far more stuff like vigor recharges and boosts scattered around the zones.
We have the updraft mechanic, but it's rarely used anywhere.

True, we should have had vigor recharges and speed boosts all over the map.

[Mafic]

Dragonriding is just flying with style. They don't need to make any changes on existing maps to allow dragon riding.

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

I agree.

And as the months drag on its popularity is starting to wane.

[Grimbold21]

I think that Dragonriding will be a perma feature, HOWEVER, if there is a revamp of the old world, it will need to accommodate the feature. There isn't as much verticality in current Kalimdor/EK aside from some mountains.

Though I can see them redoing the layouts in general, especially where zones connect, as it looks silly to fly over now (see: Karazhan -> Stranglethorn)

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Yes they do need to change the world. How will you Dragonride if most of the world is flat?

I'm not going to claim they're on equal foot, but to claim the world is flat in comparison to Dragon Isles is quite a stretch. Half - if not more - of the Waking shore layout is paying service to Thousand Needles (the unflooded version).

The Azure Span - if we're toying with the word "flat" here - is flat. The obstacles it poses to flying lie in its hugely tall trees. You have forests elsewhere in the world, the difference lies in verticality.

The Plains, well, they don't require adressing, do they?

And Val'drakken is essentially cliffs and mountains with corridors for flat areas. Hardly anything new.

[Sondrelk]

I'm not going to claim they're on equal foot, but to claim the world is flat in comparison to Dragon Isles is quite a stretch. Half - if not more - of the Waking shore layout is paying service to Thousand Needles (the unflooded version).

The Azure Span - if we're toying with the word "flat" here - is flat. The obstacles it poses to flying lie in its hugely tall trees. You have forests elsewhere in the world, the difference lies in verticality.

The Plains, well, they don't require adressing, do they?

And Val'drakken is essentially cliffs and mountains with corridors for flat areas. Hardly anything new.

I would say the zones are vertical in the more general sense of sloping upwards on all sides. The closest set of zones we have to this is the zones surrounding Mount Hyjal in Kalimdor, which are very flat, even if the zones are clearly tiered apart from each other.
There is however nothing similar in The Eastern Kingdom though. The closest might be Loch Modan being significantly higher up then the Wetlands, and the Twilight Highlands sloping gently upwards.

But yeah, Valdrakken and the Waking Shores are really the only zones that really play to the strengths of Dragonriding. And the Waking Shores does it really just by having various plateus, as well as placing resource nodes on top of the pillars.

Overall EK and Kalimdor could easily accommodate Dragonriding. You would just need to make it slightly more restrictive, as well as ideally nudging players towards predetermined routes with things like pre-placed boosts and vigor recharges. Though really the same is true for the Dragon Isles.

[Grimbold21]

I would say the zones are vertical in the more general sense of sloping upwards on all sides. The closest set of zones we have to this is the zones surrounding Mount Hyjal in Kalimdor, which are very flat, even if the zones are clearly tiered apart from each other.
There is however nothing similar in The Eastern Kingdom though. The closest might be Loch Modan being significantly higher up then the Wetlands, and the Twilight Highlands sloping gently upwards.

But yeah, Valdrakken and the Waking Shores are really the only zones that really play to the strengths of Dragonriding. And the Waking Shores does it really just by having various plateus, as well as placing resource nodes on top of the pillars.

Overall EK and Kalimdor could easily accommodate Dragonriding. You would just need to make it slightly more restrictive, as well as ideally nudging players towards predetermined routes with things like pre-placed boosts and vigor recharges. Though really the same is true for the Dragon Isles.

Then I don't understand what is meant by verticality and flat. Is it just, by your example, some zones being higher than others? Because the only element that needs to be flown up to that I can think of is the capital city. If I'm not mistaken, you have to fly up to it from all the other zones.

I wouldn't be fan of redesigning zones for DR's sake. One doesn't need incentives to fly. The flying is the goal itself. Sure, populate higher areas with resources and treasures if you'd like, but that's about it

[Dracullus]

You are overthinking it. Allowing dragonriding in old zones will be enough, if some are not 100% suited for it then so what, it's optional content anyway. Most likely in 11.0 Dragon Isles will become newbie/default experience for 1-70 (I don't think its accident they have shit ton of side quests like Zandalar/Kul Tiras - and unlike Shadowlands) and 70-80 area will be builded with dragonriding in mind - doesn't matter if it will be new content or revamped part of old world (WoD style revamp, not Cata).

Bigger issue is what to do with ground mounts and flying mounts that can't be be fit into dragonriding model.

[Makorus]

You are overthinking it. Allowing dragonriding in old zones will be enough, if some are not 100% suited for it then so what, it's optional content anyway. Most likely in 11.0 Dragon Isles will become newbie/default experience for 1-70 (I don't think its accident they have shit ton of side quests like Zandalar/Kul Tiras - and unlike Shadowlands) and 70-80 area will be builded with dragonriding in mind - doesn't matter if it will be new content or revamped part of old world (WoD style revamp, not Cata).

Bigger issue is what to do with ground mounts and flying mounts that can't be be fit into dragonriding model.

I mean, every mount can work with Dragonriding. It just won't have the fancy animations. They could absolutely make it work. Would it look weird for a jelly-fish mount to have to do a nosedive to get speed? Yeah. It would still work though mechanically.

[Nathanyel]

I mean, every mount can work with Dragonriding. It just won't have the fancy animations. They could absolutely make it work. Would it look weird for a jelly-fish mount to have to do a nosedive to get speed? Yeah. It would still work though mechanically.

Exactly. Give mounts without wings but that would be "forward-flying" renamed generic versions of Surge Forward and Skyward Ascent, and maybe give mounts like the jellyfish or certain mechanical "helicopters" slightly changed versions that focus more on vertical motion. Maybe "Surge Forward" is weaker or removed, but "Skyward Ascent" is much stronger, and doesn't just lift you "up" from ground PoV, but relative to your orientation, so you tilt forward and push "up" to move forward.

Regarding "Hover" aka Old Flying, my idea is there is an ability to toggle: out of Dragonriding, your mount slows down, and then behaves just like before Dragonflight:

• no input = hover in place
• any directional input = fly in that direction at up to 310% speed

Use the ability again, and your mount swings into Dragonriding mode.

Maybe have some areas, e.g. high peaks or hostile skies, where only Dragonriding mode is allowed.

[Aeluron Lightsong]

Blackrock Mountain being reworked could be interesting.

[Makorus]

I feel like the trade-off between normal flying vs. Dragonflying is already defined enough that you can have both co-exist without much issue.

One is really slow but allows you to hover and be more precise, and one is faster, but harder to make precise landing and just hover up somewhere, plus you are limited by Vigor.

[Lady Atia]

Some interesting bits from the 10.7 PTR:

Transcription of Sending Stone: Protest

My Aspect.
I thought I was doing everything you asked and more. The extraction of black dragonflight essence from the dracthyr has gone smoothly, though I worry it may permanently cripple their abilities. Yet you commanded, and I obey.
You ordered the sealing of the creches, and so I worked with the wyrms of Malygos, as commanded.
Today, I received word that you have ordered my awakened dracthyr to Aberrus, as if they were expendable for some esoteric experiment.

First, this is the reason why Dracthyr have no black abilities. Secondly it namedrops Aberrus which may be either a new zone, raid or the mega dungeon?

[Kiivar86]

Makes me think of a mega dungeon perhaps. Not a nice place from the sounds of it.

[Makorus]

But Evokers do have Black Dragonflight abilities.

[Sondrelk]

Blackrock Mountain being reworked could be interesting.

Really there are tons of mountains and hills in older zones that could be slightly updated to have more stuff on them. An easy way to make zones require dragonriding is to for instance have the mountain areas in the Eastern Plaguelands harder to get to without flying up, or really just generally habe more content on the dividing mountains between zones.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

But Evokers do have Black Dragonflight abilities.

Says cripple not remove so in theory they would have more (say a spec worth)if left as is.

[Lahis]

You still living in denial that DR wont be a perma thing?

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

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

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But Evokers do have Black Dragonflight abilities.

They're just doubling down that they will never have Black flight tank spec with this lore.

[Lorgar Aurelian]

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

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

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.