How can you prepare for tonight's launch?
It's almost here! As your spy across the pond, I'll be keeping you up to date with how the launch rolls out, so that you can know what to expect when it launches in your timezone.
You do, of course, need to know what time it's all going down, so you're not sitting staring at your character creation screen for hours on end, cursing the absence of a monk button.
North and Latin American realms - 12:00 a.m. PDT, September 25
European realms - 12:00 a.m. CEST, September 25
Korean/Taiwan realms - 12:00 a.m. KST, September 27
But what can you be doing right now to get ready for Mists' launch?
Addons
Over at Addon Spotlight, we've been working hard to keep you abreast of addon updating and strategizing going into Mists. A lot of the same advice provided for 5.0.4 bears repeating for Mists, and you can check out how to get your addons ready for Mists. Mists is going to be a really interesting launch as far as your UI goes, given that there's no server shutdown and no logging on or off. Either it's all going to go beautifully, or it's all going to go horribly wrong! Make sure you have a UI setup with no addons that is playable on whatever character you're starting with.
Race Changes and rolling Pandaren or Monks
So you want to race change your main to a pandaren? Or to start a brand new pandaren? Well, that's pretty simple to prepare for. Zarhym has clarified that players who are at the Character Creation screen at midnight will notice the button to create a pandaren character will be enabled, so it makes perfect sense that if you have pre-ordered a race change on your account, you can make the shift to pandaren at the same moment.
This, of course, also applies to rolling new pandaren characters, if you're sitting at the character creation screen when the launch takes place in your region, the pandaren button will emerge, as if by magic, along with the button to create a monk.
If you want to make a new character right away, you will, of course, have to have a free slot on the server you want to create them on.
No need to clear your quest log
If you are online with a level 85 character when the expansion drops, you will automatically be issued with a breadcrumb quest to get yourself over to Pandaria. Many people have wondered exactly what will happen if they have 25 quests ready to hand in, like any well-prepared player. Well, Zarhym's cleared that up, too.
In other words, you won't miss receiving the quest if you have 25.
His instructions to turn in your dailies before you head over to Pandaria might allude to the possibility that it could be a long boat ride back to your home to get those daily quests handed in, or simply that the new content in Pandaria is so engaging that you won't want to leave! Either way, it's good advice.
If you're planning to level straight to 90
If you're planning to level straight to 90, then check out our post on maximising your gaming endurance, and use the time you have to put together some healthy food and drinks, clearing your desk, and getting everything you need nearby.
It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
