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BlizzCon Day 2 Class Panel notes and Q&A

Robin Torres
Updated ·5 min read



Because this is a repeat panel from yesterday, we didn't liveblog it. But here are some notes as well as the Q&A session from today.

Senior Vice President of Game Design, Rob Pardo announced that they would be going through the same information as yesterday, but more quickly so that there would be more time for Q&A. The crowd applauded.

Notes of differences or embellishments compared to yesterday's panel:

  • Shamans were witch doctors in Warcraft 3.

  • PvP balancing is done for 2v2 or 3v3, etc. WoW is not a dueling game, so class abilities in team PvP are worked on as opposed to single class vs. single class.

  • Talents were inspired from Diablo 2.

  • Moonkin Itemization in the PvE environment is not supported currently and is being worked on.

  • Mages are the "experimental" class.

  • The three classes of the Paladin put the class in three different roles as opposed to, for example, the Mage who is DPS, regardless of spec.

  • Priest's Lightwell will get some scaling from gear.

  • Warlocks got booed again.

Death Knight notes:

  • Hero Classes are classic Warcraft 3 characters and should have an Epic feel to them.

  • There are class balance concerns, particularly with tanking. But because tanks are hard to find for groups, adding a different tank was considered a good idea.

  • Death Knights will have their own Rune Resource system.

Q&A after the break.


Q: Will damage during threat generation be improved for Protection Warriors?
A: It is more fun to do more damage as a Protection Warrior while generating threat and that is being looked at.

Q: Will the ability to force groupmates to change targets be implemented or something like?
A: They will not be given an ability to force people to change targets when the new target is taunted.

Q: Holy Priests are now an off spec because the Shadow Priest is more valuable in raids and now hybrids are brought in to heal.
A: Holy Priests are still valuable for healing, though the Lightwell and other abilities are being looked at.

Q: CC for Shamans?
A: Evaluating CC options for the Shaman in levels 71 to 80.

Q: Boomkin mana?
A: Looking at mana for Moonkins. Also, Hunters run out of mana too much, too and that is being looked at.

Q: Tactical Mastery in wrong tree?
A: It is there on purpose so that Protection Warriors will have viability in PvP and is early enough on for the other specs.

Q: Priest racials?
A: Fear Ward will be spread around. Otherwise, they are being looked at but not a high priority.

Q: Itemization for Druids is too good so that the talents aren't needed
A: Druids are too powerful? Ok we'll nerf them. (laughter)

Q: The respec cost cap should be increased.
A: Booed off stage so not answered. (deservedly)

Q: Holy Priest: Mana regen is a flawed mechanic for Mages and Shamans and Hunters. Paladins and Warlocks are just cheaters (cheers). People don't have mana and that's why there are so many Shadow Priests. Real mana regen needed (cheers).
A: So you want to cheat too? (laughter) The Spirit stat in general will be improved for WotLK. The mana regen needs another pass. At the same time, the mana bar will not be turned into an energy bar.

Q: PvP Holy Paladins have their bubbles dispelled... (Booed)
A: There should be a counter to all powerful spells and ability. This counter is on purpose. (cheered)

Q: Tauren cat form druid is also broken along with Night Elf cat form.
A: Cat form range must be tuned. The Night Elf cat form's bug has to be fixed but the range will be tuned overall.

Q: Arena popularity of druids?
A: It is being looked at, but it is also improving on its own over time as people improve their skills.

Q: Improved Sap minimum range is broken.
A: Will look into it.

Q: Hunters for 2v2 and 3v3 underrepresentation?
A: Looking into very closely for patch 2.3. Many changes for Hunters will be implemented in 2.3. There are some line of sight issues in Arenas, but they won't be changed. Some more utilities for arena battles and group utility are planned.

Q: Mages are the only class that are subject to the damage tax. (This questioner was very hard to understand.)
A: Shadow Priests are being looked at. Mages should be able to do more damage than the Shadow Priest.

Q: Looking at DPS for mages as compared to other classes in raids?
A: Mages, Warlocks and Rogues are supposed to have similar dps. Sometimes raids will make people favor some classes over others for different encounters and that's ok.

Q: The first thing Mages have to do in a raid is make water. There are Soulwells. Will there be a Muffin factory? (laughter and massive applause)
A: Yes. Water and muffin creation like the Soulwell is incoming.

Q: Will there be dropped spellbooks introduced again like in AQ20?
A: In-game spellbooks were implemented for spells that hadn't been replaced in a long time. Burning Crusade doesn' t have the same kinds of holes and neither will future expansions.

Q: Will Ret Pallies get an ability like Charge to be able to compete with casters?
A: No

Q: Ret Pallies have to rely on too many stats to be effective. Will there be more of a focus on a few stats instead of being watered down on all?
A: Yes, stat distribution will be changed for the Paladin -- totally agree. Reliance on Spell Damage specifically will be lessened.

Q: Shamans are low population and the totem system needs reworking -- inferior to pally auras, cost mana.
A: Blessings, auras and totems are supposed to be different. But the totems are being looked at. The Mana Spring totem will be a lot stronger than it is. Some other totems will also be made stronger.