WoW, Casually: Patch 2.4 preview

Each week, Robin Torres writes WoW, Casually for the player who has 2 hours or less to play at a time. Well, it used to be weekly and it will be again, starting today.

When last I wrote, which was ages ago, I promised to answer some reader mail about getting groups quickly. And then I vanished for a bit. I'm sorry about the interruption in this column and I will get to the reader mail, but not this week. With the new patch getting closer to release, I think I need to talk about some of the changes that will affect those of us with limited playtime.

First of all, our coverage of Patch 2.4 is very extensive and perhaps a bit overwhelming. I do recommend, however, spending some free time that you have access to WoW Insider catching up with the changes for your class, professions and playstyle. You don't want to spend your precious WoW session discovering unexpected changes after the new patch comes out.

Here are just some of the things that may interest casual players:

Professions: Insider Trader has summed up the numerous changes to every profession in Patch 2.4, which are so extensive, it took two columns. So if you are a crafter, check out part 1 and part 2. I think adding Fishing to the selection of Daily Quests will be particularly welcome to those of us slowly funding Epic Flight.

Arena gear: If you are eagerly anticipating the start of Arena Season 4, so that you can better your gear either by Arena play or by purchasing Season 2 gear with honor, don't hold your breath. Season 4 will not start with the new patch, so go ahead and stock up on the gear available now.

Battlegrounds: There are some huge changes coming up in Patch 2.4 for BG players. Getting rid of Diminishing Returns will increase the honor for all of the Battlegrounds. Unfortunately, it will also increase the number of people who won't fight at the objectives, but it was happening anyway, so at least there will be more of a benefit. Also, there are some changes coming to both Alterac Valley and Warsong Gulch, which should improve the gameplay in both -- even if I do think that the Horde are getting the short end of the stick in AV.

Repeatable BG Quest: There will be a repeatable (not Daily) quest in Patch 2.4 that will allow you to turn in marks for honor. Unfortunately, I won't be able to convert my 98 and ever growing AV marks into honor without also turning in an equivalent number from the other three BGs. Currently, the exchange rate is 1 mark from each BG for 319 honor. We'll see what happens when the quest goes live.

There are of course many other changes that will affect you in Patch 2.4, but covering them all would take several pages and both you and I would rather be playing. So, onward to this week's schedule.

The Darkmoon Faire has long since been over, even though it originally was on the schedule for this week. An important thing to remember, regardless of what is on the calendar, is that the Faire begins on the first Monday of each month. The next Faire will be April 7th.

The Call to Arms this weekend is Alterac Valley. For everyone except for those in the Stormstrike battlegroup, that means shorter queues and bonus honor. And this may be the final bonus weekend before the patch, so Hordies should take advantage of that massive map imbalance to get those easy wins (sarcasm intended). If you are short on honor for your welfare epic purchases, this is a good time to acquire it, since losses in AV are usually worth more honor than wins in the other BGs. Maybe I'll see you there.

Robin Torres loves answering reader mails. Please send her questions at Robin.Torres AT weblogsinc DOT com.