HellfireCitadel
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Around Azeroth: Into the Blood Furnace
Reader Drakid of Arygos sends us this very pastel image of Blood Furnace, one of the wings of Hellfire Citadel in Hellfire Peninsula. With a name like "Blood Furnace," you'd really expect something more ominous than these pastel pinks and blues, though I doubt the choice of colors makes the monsters inside any friendlier.Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
Around Azeroth: Whereami?
This isn't the first shot I've seen of a low level player running around Outland (no, players can't go through the Dark Portal before level 58, but they can be summoned by a warlock or ported by a mage at any level), but I think it may be one of the most amusing. Reader Nirun sends in this shot of an amusingly named level one warrior running around -- not in Shattrath City but outside Hellfire Citadel itself! And to the burning question of, "Is there really any place in Hellfire Peninsula a level one player can stand without aggroing half the zone?" The answer, apparently, is yes!Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! You can attach a picture file or send us a link to one -- and don't worry about formatting, we'll take care of that part. See more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
New Hellfire Citadel gameplay trailer
Maybe it's just me, but I tend to think of "trailers" as previews of something not yet available. But Blizzard has a habit of releasing gameplay trailers long after the content is live -- like this new trailer of the Hellfire Citadel dungeon, which is the first dungeon you'll encounter upon venturing into Outland. But as with all of Blizzard's trailers, it's nicely produced and has the side effect of making me want to log on and play immediately. (Maybe that's just me, though...)
Around Azeroth: The Blood Furnace
Reader Almus of Shadowsong sends in this image of the final boss in the Blood Furnace wing of the Hellfire Citadel, an early dungeon to be found in the Outlands. He claims the whole dungeon is full of amazing views like this -- and with eye candy like this, how can anyone be content waiting these last weeks to the expansion release.Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! You can attach a picture file or send us a link to one -- and don't worry about formatting, we'll take care of that part.
Blizzard releases interactive Outland map
Blizzard has posted an interactive map of Outland, the new lands showing up in the coming soon (we're told) expansion.Lots of groovy interesting stuff on there, including some new instances. The Black Temple and Hellfire Citadel we know about already, but Gruul's Lair sounds exquisitely interesting, and the crypty Auchindoun (centered in the middle of a massive crater) should be amazing. There's also cities for each faction marked in the zones, and more than a few cities marked "Faction," which undoubtedly hints at the locations where lots and lots of World PVP blood will be spilled.But maybe the most interesting thing on the map is a neutral city labeled, mysteriously, "Area 52," up in the southeast of Netherstorm. That lends a flavor I didn't expect to the new world, although it's one that seems likely, if you've been listening to what we've heard of the Draenei lore so far (and I do mean heard). Anyone want to take my 50g bet that we'll see an X-Files cultural reference in the NPCs when the expansion hits?Update: Looks like I was a little too fast on the PVP judgement: Tseric says Faction towns will be new faction homebases like Light's Hope (Argent Dawn) and Timbermaw Hold (TM Hold, obviously), while Neutral towns will be both places like Gadgetzan and World PVP objectives. Basically, don't read too much into the map before you see the game itself.Update2: Two more things-- one, check out the comments for a fun easter egg. And two, Pallysucks points out that the BE paladin is wearing the one set of pally armor in the game without +Str on it... and wielding a 2hander.[ Thanks, Dave! ]
Dungeon Content Updates
Tigole has made a post updating us all on the current status of future dungeon development. Thus far, announced dungeons for the expansion have been smaller-scale, which will hopefully serve to balance out the game when we've been seeing a lot of 40-player raid content released recently. Karazhan: A max-level (70), ten player raid dungeon, to be released in the expansion. Tigole describes it as "non-linear," and I wonder if that implies a winged dungeon (similar to what we've seen in Scarlet Monastery) or if it simply means you can approach the bosses in whatever order you wish (similar to what we've seen in Zul'Gurub). Additionally, there will be shortcuts to allow players to return to their previous location in the dungeon and continue play from where they've left off, if they've had to leave mid-run. Hellfire Citadel: Another expansion dungeon. This one is confirmed as a 4-wing dungeon, with two wings appropriate for level 60-70 players and two wings for level 70 players. One of the max-level wings will be limited to 5 players, and the other will be an Onyxia-like "quick" raid, with a single boss (Magtheridon). Naxxramas: To be released with patch 1.11. This will be a level 60 raid instance that will feature tier 3 gear. We should expect more news on Naxxramas at E3 in a couple of weeks as well as seeing it live on the public test realms in "a few more weeks."
