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The math and the money of level 90 boosts
For $60, level 90 boosts definitely seem pricey -- costing more than the expansion itself -- but DisRuptive1 on Reddit has taken the time to break down the math on that $60. To do so, he's taken careful measure of the time it's taken him to get a new character to level 90, plus grinding up professions. And though your leveling speed may be better -- or worse -- than his, if you count up the hours of playtime it takes, you can see how a boosted 90 might be worth the pricetag... at least if you really want another alt. The short of it is that boosting from level 1 to level 90 will save you about 84 hours of playtime, while boosting from 60 to 90 and getting max-level professions will save you about 70 hours of playtime. If we take to the goblin philosophy that time is money, than that many hours certainly add up to a chunk of change -- though we'll leave you to do the math on what your own time is worth. So if you've spent enough time with leveling content that none of it is terribly new to you, then maybe spending $60 instead of spending 70 hours time isn't such a bad idea. For all of the nitty gritty details, head over to read DisRuptive1's full post on Reddit.
Coping with the new raid realities of level 90 boosts
The above image is not remotely a reflection of what raiding in World of Warcraft is like, but wouldn't it be great if it were? The addition of the level 90 boost to WoW means that we're seeing a lot of players leaping to max level where they can jump immediately into raids. Their ilvl of 483 is high enough to let them into LFR raids for anything outside Siege of Orgrimmar -- and let me tell you, it's kind of a nightmare. No, I don't mean that the influx of new 90s in itself is a nightmare: it's the fact that now anything going wrong in LFR results in 10 minutes of bemoaning the boosted characters who are keeping everyone else from progressing. It's drama city out there. It's not that the moaning is entirely off-base: boosted players don't necessarily know how to play their boosted class at 90... but none of us were class experts as soon as we hit 90. And, come on, a random LFR group doesn't need boosted characters to mess things up and wipe. So what's a player to do with this new LFR annoyance?
Our Rookie Guide is here to help your newly boosted level 90
So you've just boosted a new character to level 90 and you're not sure where to go from here. How does this new class work? How should you gear them up? What should you do once you randomly land on the Timeless Isle with a class that you have no idea how to play? Don't worry, because our Rookie Guide is here to help you out, even at level 90. If you're not sure what this boosting rage is all about, check out the level boosting section to figure out how to get started -- and once you've gotten your new character to 90, read through the section on what to do at level 90. Have new-to-90 questions we haven't answered yet? Or maybe you're looking for something you can't find in the guide? Drop us a note and we'll look into covering it for a future WoW Rookie!
New level 90 boost trailer pushes Warlords... with gnomes!
We knew level 90 boosts were coming, but in this new Warlords of Draenor trailer, Blizzard's pushing the boosts as a reason to buy. You can escape the endless leveling desert and finally play with your friends by buying Warlords -- which is all well and good, but it does strike us as a bit odd that Blizzard is promoting the game by suggesting that playing the game up to level 90 is something tedious and awful that you would not want to do. However, the obvious highlight of this trailer is gnomes making their cinematic debut. Finally, we see a gnome taking center-stage... as a level 61 wandering aimlessly through Tanaris. (That's why you haven't hit level 90 yet, Mr. Gnome -- you're in Tanaris. Maybe if you'd gone through Un'Goro and Silithus and then headed to the Dark Portal you'd have made some progress.) But now that this gnome is finally level 90, we can only assume that we'll be seeing more gnomes showing up in future, right Blizzard? [Thanks to many tipsters who sent this in!] Editor's note: Pre-purchase of Warlords is not available at this time -- no official announcements have been made about pre-ordering just yet.
Breakfast Topic: What will you do with your level 90 boost?
While there's been plenty of discussion about whether level boosting is good or bad for the game, we do know that everyone will be getting a free boost to level 90 with Warlords of Draenor. For those of us actively playing the game now -- who already have at least one level 90 and perhaps several -- this raises the question of just what to do with our boost. Should we kick-start a new alt (like a hunter)? Jump into a different faction for a change of gaming perspective? Or maybe take advantage of this to hop to a server to play with friends away from our usual WoW realms. There are plenty of things we could do, but the question remains: when you pick up Warlords, what are you going to do with your level boost?
Arcane Brilliance: Next steps for playing a fire mage at level 90
Every other week, WoW Insider brings you Arcane Brilliance for arcane, fire and frost mages. Stacey Landry is the resident mage here, bender of space and time, conjurer of delicious confectioneries and expert at dressing well while setting things on fire. Congratulations! You've always wanted to play a mage alt but somehow never find the time, or perhaps you're considering a new main for Warlords of Draenor. Either way, you've decided to boost a mage to level 90 or re-spec your mage and you are faced with a decision. What spec would you like to play? We're going to talk eventually about all three excellent specs, but for now we're going to start with fire. Being a fire mage has always represented the somewhat reckless side of wizardry. Fire mages used to take talents that would increase their damage done in exchange for damage taken. (Nothing ventured, nothing gained!) Modern fire maging is a little less risky than that and comes with many advantages. You might enjoy playing a fire mage if you want:
Breakfast Topic: Was the instant level 90 the death of Scrolls of Resurrection?
Chances are you've caught the news that Blizzard's Scroll of Resurrection program, which offered a boost to level 80 and some free gametime for lapsed players, is about to reach its end. But, really, this is a change you might not be feeling: Blizzard hasn't updated the program in a while and it's a little challenging to find players who have been gone long enough -- nearly two years -- to qualify to receive a Scroll so you can reap the rewards. With Warlords offering players a boost to level 90, we have to wonder if the Scroll of Resurrection just doesn't make sense anymore. When you can get a level 90 character to play just by buying the expansion, why bother getting a friend to send you a Scroll for a level boost, even if Blizzard did update the rewards to be at-level to Mists or Warlords. So tell us, readers -- do you think the upcoming expansion's instant level 90 was the end of the Scroll of Resurrection? Or do you think we'll see an updated SoR program at some future date?
How to gear your new windwalker monk for raiding
So you've finally hit level 90 on your windwalker monk and you're trying to decide where to go from here. There are lots of things you can do at level 90, but if you want to keep advancing through PvE content, the first thing you'll need to do is grab better gear that will let you hop into heroics and raids. While the one of the best ways to gear up is by jumping into heroics and, especially, raids to grab item drops, each raid has an item level requirement -- and you definitely won't meet it after initially hitting 90. But that's not to say it's out of reach -- just that you'll need to put a bit of effort in before you're ready to head into heroics (which require an ilvl of 435) or raids (which start with the ilvl 460 Mogu'shan Vaults). For new monks who aren't sure where to start -- or old hat players who just aren't confident of their windwalking skills -- we'll help you through the stats that are important for your gear and point you in the right direction to get ready for raiding.
Breakfast Topic: Where did you hit level 90?
Getting to level 90 may seem like old hat this late in the expansion cycle, but I bet you all remember just when and where you first (or last) hit the level cap. For my part, after skipping out of WoW for all of Cataclysm, I decided to play all the way through each Cataclysm zone with my monk before moving on to Pandaria. The result? I hit level 90 pretty early in Valley of the Four Winds, before even getting around to doing any of Hemet Nessingwary's grind-tastic -- and experience-tastic -- quests. Though after that, I wound up jumping over the wall into the Vale in order to train flying because I'd not yet done the gate opening quests... so it's probably not a leveling experience I'll repeat. Now that I've shared my level 90 story, how about yours? When and where did you hit level 90?
Panser of TradeChat talks free level 90s
It's Tuesday, which means it's time for a new video from TradeChat's Panser. Because it's been a slow news week coming out of the holidays, this week's video is less of a news recap and more of a discussion, focusing on the controversial free boost to level 90 Blizzard will be handing out with Warlords of Draenor. Love it or hate it, it seems to be Blizzard's way of getting players into Warlords content as quickly as possible. We've heard that Blizzard has been sending out polls about what you'd be willing to pay for a level 90 character... and though we're not sure what Blizzard is planning to do with this information, they're clearly weighing their options. So what do you think of instant level 90s? Catch up on the issue and chat with Panser about it. Enjoyed the show? Be sure to subscribe to TradeChat to see more!
WoW Rookie Guide updated with what to do at level 90 section
For the players who have been level 90 for ages, the question of what to do once you reach level 90 may seem like a silly one -- but you'd be surprised at how often we get this question from players new to the game or just coming back to the game. So we've updated our WoW Rookie guide with a new section to help the new-to-90 gear up and figure out what to do next -- and if you're interested in the topic, keep your eyes peeled, because we'll have more content for level 90s coming to WoW Rookie soon. Have new player questions we haven't answered yet? Or maybe you're looking for something you can't find in the rookie guide? Drop us a note and we'll look into covering it for a future WoW Rookie! Just because you're a newbie doesn't mean you can't bring your A-game to World of Warcraft! Visit the WoW Rookie Guide for links to everything you need to get started as a new player, from the seven things every newbie ought to know to how to get started as a healer or as a tank.
10 things to do once you hit level 90
So you've gotten a character to 90. Perhaps it's your first or perhaps it's one alt of many. But now you're left with a conundrum: what do you do now? The trip up to level 90 is fairly guided, with quests and bread crumb trails to lead you to the best places to level up and collect experience. But after you hit max level, you're on your own for what to do -- which is great if you know what you want, but problematic if you don't. So for those of you just hitting level 90, read on for ten suggestions on where you can go from here.
Rolled back druid has World First level 90 reinstated
WoW Insider readers who have been around for a few months may remember the strange story of a druid. On the same day as the expasion released, a druid by the name of Fs hit level 90. He was subsequently rolled back to level 87, as the linked article was updated to reflect, and many cried foul, asserting that he had cheated, that he had somehow made use of an exploit to get through the levels at such speed. Athene sat down with some of the guys who had helped Fs to 90, and chatted with them about how they'd done it. They asserted that it was simply related to a buff that was put onto them by some mobs in Townlong Steppes, shamans to be specific, which they'd used to farm mobs for XP. They said they'd done nothing else, but the fact that Blizzard rolled Fs back didn't really support them. The latest development in the story happened late last night, when Blizzard Community Vaneras posted the following: Vaneras After some lengthy deliberation on this topic and evaluation of all facts, we've decided to overturn our decision on this matter. We will be re-instating Fs's achievements. Our apologies to Fs for any frustration this has caused. source So it seems from this that, actually, the claims were true, there was no exploit, no cheating, and the achievement was legitimate. Fs's achievements have also been reinstated on the armory. Almost 7 months down the line, congratulations!
Who here has the most level 90s -- and why?
Let's talk alts, people. How many 90s are you altaholics running these days? I guess it's pretty interesting to poke around for big, flashy totals -- and yeah, it would be cool to recognize the player with the highest number of 90s -- but I'm really more interested in how and why you pushed all those characters to the cap in the first place. Are you chasing the whole concept of one level-capped character of each race or class? Perhaps you've been building an empire of craftspeople. Or maybe you just really, really, really like the leveling game. What drives you to level 90 again and again? %Poll-81544% Are there any of you out there who've actually leveled an entire character select screen full of characters to level 90? If you have more than a handful of 90s, what's your motivation for level-capping so many characters?
Lichborne: What do I do at level 90? And 2 other burning death knight questions
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Lichborne for blood, frost, and unholy death knights. In the post-Cataclysm era, death knights are no longer the new kids on the block. Let's show the other classes how a hero class gets things done. Reading a guide is all well and good, but sometimes, even after you read, you still have questions or need clarification. This week, I've taken 3 questions I see death knights ask a lot at various places around the web, and provide some advice and clarification. Why don't tanks need so much hit and expertise? If you've been reading the column, you've probably noticed that I have de-emphasized hit and expertise when discussing blood death knight tank gear and strategy. This is for a very good reason. Certainly, active tanking is the rule of the day in Mists, which means in theory that tanks should want hit and expertise so their abilities land. In theory, if your Death Strike doesn't land, you don't get the healing or the blood shield, right?
Encrypted Text: Shuriken Toss' unlikely popularity
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Encrypted Text for assassination, combat and subtlety rogues. Chase Christian will be your guide to the world of shadows every Wednesday. Feel free to email me with any questions or article suggestions you'd like to see covered here. I'm not very happy with how the rogue talents turned out in Mists. Rather than new utility or cool features, we saw our old abilities given back to us, except that they were made mutually exclusive. The level 90 tier was particularly disappointing, as it focused on improving our quality of life instead of adding new functionality. Paladins get Boundless Conviction for free, and yet we're paying for Anticipation. I have yet to meet someone using Versatility. Couldn't we just see Redirect's base CD lowered to 30 seconds and call it even? The worst talent of the bunch seems to be Shuriken Toss. Why would you use an ability that's significantly weaker than Mutilate? The surprise is that assassination rogues don't care about how much damage Mutilate does; mutilate is only their 7th-highest source of damage. Shuriken Toss, on the other hand, generates more combo points per energy than Mutilate. Shuriken Toss still procs Deadly Poison, which makes up 40% of our overall damage. Rogues across a variety of gear levels are reporting Shuriken Toss results that are at or near Mutilate's performance. Update: Due to last night's PTR updates, Shuriken Toss will no longer proc Seal Fate when in melee range. As such, Shuriken Toss will not be viable after patch 5.1 goes live.
Realm First! Level 90 Derevka on his race to the level cap
WoW Insider previously featured Derevka's tips on how he was preparing for his Realm First! Level 90 race, with gaming endurance tips, and having got that coveted achievement, he's returned to answer a few questions about how he did it. Why did you want to get Realm First Level 90? Why? Mainly because I had never done it before and lots of people in my guild were getting really excited about Mists and all the hype... It was hard not to get all wrapped up in the excitement! Besides, it was something I had always wanted to do and just wanted to see if I could do it. And I'll show a little bit of hubris here: its always nice to see your name go across the screen in realm spam. What did you do to prepare in advance? Well, I had leveled to 90 on the beta. That said, I did that leveling very early on in beta so I knew there was going to be a number of changes (as well as bug fixes) that i didn't experience. I was familiar with all my class changes, so I knew I was going to be comfortable with both healing and DPSing in Shadowform. Perhaps the two best things we did to prepare was to formulate a strict strategy with our 5 man team and to plan our dungeon time. Our 5 man leveling team had a rogue, Torima, who had quested a lot on beta and has a phenomenal memory so he somewhat became our de facto guide through the maps and quest chains -- he actually remembered some quests that were dead ends or particularly painful in getting RNG quest drops: if the quest was skippable, and ate up too much time we didn't do it -- such as the Yak quest out in Dread Wastes.
Arena of Annihilation provides a quick and easy blue weapon at level 90
Ever since Nagrand, the latest version of Ring of Blood has been a great rite of passage. Once you're close to max level, you beg, wheedle, or cajole 4 friends, strangers, or even enemies to join you in fighting a series of elite mobs, with the final reward being a blue weapon that will serve you well until you get something better from a heroic dungeon. Luckily, this tradition continues in Mists, and it's even easier to get started. Once you're 90, head to Kun-lai Summit and the Temple of the White Tiger. Gurgthock will be standing next to a gong just outside the temple proper, and he'll give you a quest to enter the Arena of Annihilation, with the reward being the choice of a couple weapons tailor made for your class. Once you get the quest, what you'll want to do is queue for the Arena of Annihilation scenario. Open the Dungeon Finder Interface (The hotkey should be "I" by default) and choose the Scenarios option. Choose Specific Scenarios from the drop down menu, check the box next to Arena of Annihilation, make sure no other boxes are checked, and hit Find Group. Within moments, you'll be in the Scenario and well on your way to your weapon. Once you defeat the final boss, Wodin the Troll-Servant will be waiting right there in the scenario to reward you. The weapon will be a nice, solid rare weapon of ilvl 450. It's not as good as a heroic dungeon drop, but if you just dinged 90, it's bound to be better than the quest green you're likely using, and it'll help boost your item level so you can run heroics that much faster. 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!
Blood Pact: Zone into Pandaria with 85-90 leveling tips
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Blood Pact for affliction, demonology, and destruction warlocks. This week, Megan O'Neill delights in getting off her night-shift work at 3am Eastern -- just in time for Pandaria leveling! There are things I'll do and things I won't do when it comes to playstyle and gear advice. I'm not going to tell you that there's a best spec for leveling. There are many ways to level and Mists of Pandaria is all about doing what you want to do, so following what I do may not be best for you. I'll have you know that I think leveling is far too easy still, so I tend to pick the inefficient or harder ways of doing things on purpose just to keep it interesting. I'm also not going to debate which faction first with people. The gear choices are as varied as the leveling choices, and are meant to be mixed and matched as your drop luck will do for you. I will, however, point out the reputations you'll want to at least reach for reasonable raiding preparations.
Maximising your gaming endurance for that precious realm first
Derevka, of Tales of a Priest fame, is looking to add a string to his bow by joining the race for Realm First level 90. He's already one of the top Discipline priests out there, and will be engaging in the leveling battle along with his guild, Something Wicked. Mists' launch is at 3.00am in Derevka's local time, and anyone who has tried to engage in a Realm First, or even World First race before will know full well that it's a long hard slog. This time around is no different, with a massive 97.5 million XP to get through from 85 to 90. We will be speaking to Derevka after his race attempt to get the low-down on all his innovative tactics and tips, so be sure to check back for that. But today's post concerns you, the player. Staying up for as long as it takes to get from 85 to 90 is not something anyone does every week, and it can be a real endurance test for body and mind. As gamers ourselves, who understand what it's like, we would never tell you not to do it, so we're going to talk instead about ways you can do it better. How can you increase your endurance and mental acuity for the race to 90?
