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Patch 3.3 PTR available for download
A quick note to let all you curious beta testers out there know that the Public Test Realm (PTR) for Patch 3.3 is now available for download. As you can see from the picture above, the patch is a big one - just under 1.4 GB. If you don't have a super fast cable modem, you might want to consider downloading it overnight.Patch 3.3 will introduce a new 10 and 25 man raid, as well as new 5 man dungeons. And as promised by Blizzard at BlizzCon this year, we should see cross-server instances as well. You can check out all the changes thus far in the recently released Patch 3.3 PTR Patch Notes.Stay tuned to WoW.com in the coming hours and days as we get all the latest information up for you.
Triple specs appear to be at least possible
Many people have mentioned this before in conversation about Dual Specs – why not just allow triple specs? We've all speculated for a while that the technology is already there and is just a matter of further implementation.Today Bornakk, a blue community poster, said that right now all Blizzard intentionally wants is to have two specs be available, but that they "...want to see how the system works out first," before considering triple specs. I think it's pretty safe to read between the lines here and take it to mean that it's possible and has at least been discussed by Blizzard to some extent if community people (and not a developer like Ghostcrawler) are already talking about it. Remember here that community folks usually don't talk about development related things without running it by or hearing it from a developer first.Triple specs would offer even more flexibility to play the class in whatever way is possible. A druid would be able to switch between a healer, tank, and caster role in a single instance / raid. A paladin would have the same amazing flexibility. While each class right now has at least two specs that can really shine in specific situations, triple specs would allow three-role hybrids to become amazingly powerful characters.
Making flasks in Patch 3.1 to give double the reward
There is a new build out on the Patch 3.1 PTR tonight (Build #9722 for those of you keeping track). MMO-Champion is already data mining the stuff, and fresh from this build comes a rather important change that everyone will need to know about:All flask recipes will now create 2 flasks for the same amount of ingredients, but flasks will only last half the amount of time. This means where you used to make one flask of awesomesauce, you now get two flasks of awesomesauce. That's a lot more awesome for the same amount of sauce.We can speculate that this change is in part to due to the difficulty ramp-up that will occur in Ulduar. We know that Ulduar is going to be harder, and so this change will help soften the time required to come prepared. And as someone who flasks and eats food religiously, this is a welcomed change.Of course the downside to this change is that flask prices will drop on the AH, meaning people will earn less money off them. But at the same time, raw materials will likely go up a bit since folks will be wanting to have their flasks made for them now more often. We'll have to wait and see to be sure, however.Edited on 3/23/09 at 9:40 p.m.: Updated with more recent information. Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Wowhead's 3.1 PTR site
With all this patch 3.1 PTR news and speculation flying around, it's useful to have a place that simply accumulates hard information on spells, items, talents, quests, and so on. Wowhead's new PTR site is that place. This is the first time to my knowledge that they've done a PTR-specific site; there was a site for the WotLK beta as well, which was very handy. On the PTR site you can find a page for basically everything as it is in the latest PTR build. I find the talent calculator especially useful. There is also a nicely formatted page listing everything new in patch 3.1, which some people may find helpful in building their Ulduar wish lists. My Ulduar wish list is something like "Please, oh great RNG, give me something without a ton of Armor Penetration on it for my Unholy DK" (actually, I'll probably just give in and respec Blood+MoG). We've been using the PTR site since it went up to provide tooltips for new and updated spells and items. If you need some 3.1 information, take a look. Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Ulduar testing schedule for Tuesday and Wednesday
There is another Ulduar testing update today. And since there will be testing already schedule for Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, that mean Patch 3.1 will not be coming out tomorrow. So don't ask. /smileFor the North American PTR: Flame Leviathan – Tuesday Night March 24th, starting at 7 p.m. EDT Hodir (Hard Mode) – Wednesday Night March 25th, starting at 7 p.m. EDT For the European PTR: Flame Leviathan – Tuesday Night March 24th, starting at 19:00 CET General Vezax (Hard Mode) – Wednesday Night March 25th, starting at 19:00 CET Also, the Shirt of Uber will be available from Ursula McWeaksauce for hard mode testing. Ursula will be making her appearance near the Ulduar entrance. The Shirt of Uber will give you stats that are equivalent to you having obtained Ulduar gear. We'll have some more information on the Shirt of Uber once we're able to get our unuber hands on it. Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Priest T8 set bonuses clarified
As of the latest PTR build we now have access to most of the set bonuses for the tier 8 gear that's going to drop in Ulduar, including the bonuses for both priest sets, shadow and healing. In case you haven't seen them before, the bonuses are as follows: Healing: Two-piece: Increases the crit chance of your Prayer of Healing by 10% Four-piece: Casting Power Word: Shield also grants you 250 spell power until cancelled. Shadow: Two-piece: Increases the damage done by your Devouring Plague by 15%. Four-piece: Your Mind Blast also grants you 240 haste rating until cancelled. The parts listed in bold up above are new; these numbers are just placeholders in the PTR client right now, but Ghostcrawler has clarified that the intended values are somewhere along those lines. No word yet on what "is cancelled" is supposed to mean, as far as I know.
Updated Ulduar testing schedule
The Ulduar testing is continuing for at least another week, and the blues have posted the testing schedule along with a few other tidbits. And since those tidbits are going to be of more interest to most folks than the testing schedule, let's cover them first: All trash will now be in place – that means we'll get to see the trash we have to deal with when Ulduar goes live. All loot should be in place, except for some trash loot – that means look for updated and complete loot tables soon. Many achievements are active and functional – many placeholder achievements have been removed, but a few are still there. Since things are being finalized, keep an eye out on WoW Insider and around the internet for more Ulduar information.The complete testing schedule for this week is after the break. We'll continue to carry live streams when we can (or when the PTR cooperates with us)
Live on the US Patch 3.1 PTR: XT-002 Deconstructor
Tonight from the Patch 3.1 PTR we bring you the Alliance Area 52 guild Symbolic Logic fighting against the XT-002 Deconstructor, a new Ulduar boss. They are scheduled to attempt it on hard mode, and we'll have to watch and see how it goes. You can watch it on the above stream or head over to their UStream page.For more information on the XT-002 Deconstructor fight, you can check out some great details over at World of Raids.Stream is over for the evening. Thanks for coming out everyone! Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Live on the US Patch 3.1 PTR: Hodir
Tonight on the US Patch 3.1 PTR we bring you Symbolic Logic of Area 52 as they attempt Hodir. You can check them out above and at their UStream page.You can read more about this patch at WoW Insider's Guide to Patch 3.1 (including the latest patch notes), and read some impressions of Ulduar fights. We've also covered the initial release of Hodir.Hodir has been tested a couple other times on the PTR, which means the fight is getting more and more refined now. This does not mean that patch 3.1 is close to being released on the live servers, but just that some of the fights are getting a good workout.Update: The live stream came and went, and the PTR testing is over tonight. Stay tuned for more tomorrow! Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Live Mimiron testing on the Patch 3.1 PTR
Tonight on the US Patch 3.1 PTR Mimiron will be tested, and we're bringing you the live stream of Alliance guild Symbolic Logic on Area 52. You'll be able to watch them (hopefully) down the boss. Mimiron is a mechanical boss with a slew of abilities for players to deal with. He has two phases: one where he's in his Levianthan MKII tank, and one where he's got a VX-001 Anti-personnel Assault Cannon.While in his tank Mimiron will toss napalm out dealing AoE damage, fire a plasma blast, drop some mines, and chuck about rockets all while causing a blast wave. With his cannon he will deal fire damage to players within 80 yards of him, do some frontal cone damage, and charge up his lasers for a big ol' blast that puts the BFG to shame.You can read more about him at WoWWiki.I should be a fun fight to watch!Edit: Comments are disabled for this post. Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Live on the Patch 3.1 PTR: Ulduar's Iron Council
Tonight we're pleased to bring you a live stream of the Iron Council as presented by the Area 52 guild Symbolic Logic. You can just click "play" on the widget above to play the stream, or head over to their UStream page to watch it and participate in the chat.We've covered a lot of the patch information lately, and you can take a look at our comprehensive Guide to Patch 3.1. We've also covered the Iron Council fight in particular when the encounter was available on the PTR last week.There was a new build deployed on the PTR tonight, so stay tuned throughout the evening for the latest.Update 8:40 p.m. EST: PTR servers are having problems tonight. No word from Blizzard, but hopefully they'll be up again soon. Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Patch 3.1 PTR build 9658 Druid changes
As far as druids are concerned, Build 9658 is a Balance build. Sure, there are a few token changes for the other two trees, but Boomkins get by far most of the attention here. I'll get the lesser builds out of the way first: Faerie Fire and Faerie Fire (Feral) now reduces the armor of the target for 5 min. (Up from 40 sec) I am actually really pleased with this. Having my FFF fall off the mobs is simply irritating, and I don't always have space in my rotations to re-apply it. Restoration: Tree of Life mana cost has been changed from 28% of base mana to 13% of base mana. Can't complain about that. On to the main substance of the Druid changes: Balance.
Patch 3.1 PTR build 9658 Death Knight changes
Evidently, this is the build where they noticed that Death Knights could tank competently, and decided to do something about that. Where by "something" I refer to the six seven separate tanking nerfs that have ensued. Oh yeah, and they cut Fallen Crusader in half. Rune of the Fallen Crusader - Affixes your rune weapon with a rune that has a chance to heal you for 3% and increase total Strength by 15% (down from 30%) for 15 sec. I may be too invested in my class - I actually feel physically ill about this. FC was overpowered, yes, but not that overpowered. Frost Howling Blast damage has been doubled (from 259-281 to 518-562 for max rank), cooldown changed from 5 seconds to 10 seconds. So I guess we're meant to obliterate when HB is on cooldown, and just use HB once per rune set? Frost Presence now reduces spell damage taken by 10%. (Down from 15%) This is reasonable on its own. Unfortunately, it gets considerably worse. Guile of Gorefiend now increases damage done by your Blood Strike, Frost Strike, Howling Blast and Obliterate abilities by 5/10/15%. (Old - Critical damage only, 15/30/45%) Simple math: if your crit change is greater than 33%, this is a nerf; otherwise, it's a buff. I'm guessing that means it's a buff for most players. Lichborne doesn't increase the chance of your enemies to miss you anymore. Heyo! Goodbye, defensive cooldown. Update: Ghostcrawler has just posted that Unbreakable Armor is getting the same cooldown doubling that all our other analogous defensive cooldowns got. Awesome.
Watch Ulduar's Hodir live on the Patch 3.1 PTR
Streaming live video by UstreamSymbolic Logic of Area 52 is streaming their live Hodir raid tonight via the Patch 3.1 PTR. You can check them out above and at their UStream page.You can read more about this patch at WoW Insider's Guide to Patch 3.1 (including the latest patch notes), and read some impressions of Ulduar fights. We've also covered the initial release of Hodir last week.
Emblem of Conquest gear up on Patch 3.1 PTR
Emblems of Conquest are the new Emblems of Valor - that is to say, they drop from the 25-man version of Ulduar and enable you to buy ilvl 226 stuff. This much we knew. What we haven't known, until now, is what exactly they'd let you buy. With this latest PTR patch, the gear sold for Emblems of Conquest is now availabe. The names are placeholders ("Emblem of Conquest Healer Neck"), and the stats may also be relatively placeholder-y as well, but it's something to look at, anyway. Currently up are: Runed Orbs for 15 EoC; these are like Frozen Orbs and will be used for crafting. Necklaces for 16 EoC. Belts and gloves for 23 EoC. Legs for 32 EoC. Deadly Gladiator gear (38 EoC for hands and shoulders, 48 EoC for head, legs, and chest). Tier 8.5 chest and head tokens for 48 EoC each. Emblems of Valor for one EoC. You can see the stats on everything over on the inimitable MMO-Champion, although I don't think the tier 8 vendors are implemented yet, so we still don't know the precise numbers on those. What I'm really anxious to have confirmed is that we'll be able to buy tier 8.0 with the Emblems of Valor that drop out of 10-man Ulduar - if that's not the case, I will be one very upset raider. And what's with some of those prices? 38 badges? Really? Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Patch 3.1 PTR build 9637 profession changes
A small patch was pushed to the 3.1 PTR earlier this afternoon, incrementing the build number from 9626 to 9627. Among other things, it contained a few changes for the professionals among us - specifically cooks, tailors, and scribes. These changes were of course data-mined by the MMO-Champion people, so they're not 100% reliable, but usually they work out to be correct. A new recipe, Clamlette Magnifique, has been added, with the modest reagents of one Zesty Clam Meat. This will really help; there's a big hole in the cooking progression around that point, especially if you aren't also doing fishing at the time. Lightweave Embroidery, a tailor-only cloak enchant, has been changed to give a chance to increase your spell power by 250 for 15 seconds when you cast a spell. This makes it much more appealing for healers, among other things, although with the squeeze on mana regeneration I'll probably keep my Darkglow. Two new recipes have been added for Scribe-crafted offhands: Twilight Tome and Rituals of the New Moon. They each require five Ink of the Sea, five Resilient Parchment, and two Eternal Life. You can see a screenshot of the tooltips above (although the percentage breakdowns on those combat ratings are probably based on a level 1 character). They look cool, anyhow. Some good stuff. I love PTRs; it's like Christmas for bloggers. I must say, though, I still find professions a little tedious and overall under-rewarding, considering the time and gold investments. On the other hand, I am really enjoying my very fast rug, so it's a bit of a toss-up. Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Ulduar in-game dungeon maps
We're reported on the new in-game dungeon maps that Blizzard has implemented before, and we've got the Ulduar maps for you tonight. These are coming fresh off the latest Patch 3.1 PTR build (#9637 for those keeping track).Click below through our gallery to see them all.The map seems to indicate there are five floor to Ulduar. There is also a mini-map overview that was complied a few days ago you can also check out.Boss testing is commencing tonight, and we should have some more information and impressions up for you by tomorrow morning. We're also on the PTR now checking out other reported changes, we'll let you know what we dig up!Full gallery of Ulduar maps after the jump!
This week's Ulduar testing schedule
Daelo, our cloth-wrapped lead encounter designer, has just posted the schedule for which bosses will be tested in Ulduar on the 3.1 PTR this week. As you may be aware, they're not opening all bosses for testing at once (at least, not yet), and bosses are up only during certain hours, to let the devs watch players (try to) beat them. This week, here's the schedule for the North American realms: Tonight, Tuesday 3/3, starting at 4 PM PST now: Flame Leviathan, the (in-)famous vehicle boss. Only the 10-man version should be tested, as the 25-man one is "not properly tuned." I'm really curious to see how this fight is going to work out. Wednesday, 3/4, starting at 4 PM PST: Ignis the Furnace Maker. Thursday, 3/5, starting 4 PM PST: Hodir. And for the European realms: Wednesday, 4/3, 1 AM CET: Flame Leviathan, 10-man only. Thursday, 5/3, 7 PM CET: Thorim. Friday, 6/3, 7 PM CET: Freya. Thorim on Thursday, Freya on friday? I think they did that on purpose. Daelo also promises that General Vezax and Razorscale will be soon available for European testers, and XT-002 Deconstructor for US testers. Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
Updates to WoW Insider's Guide to Patch 3.1
Unless you've been living under a rock this past week, you've no doubt heard about this whole "Patch 3.1" thing. Yesterday Blizzard called it their largest content patch to date, and it certainly is shaping up to be that way.The only problem with large content updates like this is that, well, they're large. They're ginormious. Mom! Meatloaf! Now! (Who can resist using two completely unrelated Will Ferrell quotes in the same paragraph?)We've been updating the WoW Insider's Guide to Patch 3.1 quite a bit this past week, and have included all the content we've published concerning patch 3.1. Take a look at it and get all your questions answered. And if you have more questions, be sure to hop on over to The Queue and ask away.Some of the highlight from this past week include: Patch 3.1 PTR patch notes Ulduar previews and the Ulduar map revealed Detailed boss information about Hodir and the Iron Council Tons of Argent Tournament information Lots of pretty pictures Something tells me, however, that the best is yet to come... stay tuned!
GC: Dual spec will not change design decisions
Dual specs have been one of several hot topics while we watch patch 3.1 progress on the PTR. People have waffled about whether they mean to spend the 1,000 gold it's going to cost, we've learned that you'll be able to do it anywhere and at level 40, and players of all ten classes are pondering what to use their second spec slot for. However, according to Ghostcrawler, Blizzard is pretending dual spec does not exist. Maybe I should clarify: with respect to design decisions, they're pretending dual spec does not exist. Raids and talent trees will be balanced without reference to the fact that some players will be able to easily swap out. GC gives some specific examples of things the devs will not be doing, such as "Have a fight that requires 8 tanks, because you know, half the raid can change specs," or "Let Arms be the PvP tree and Fury be the PvE tree, because warriors can just switch out." This is good news to many, including myself. Although if I had been asked to guess, I would probably have predicted they would take this direction, it's good to know that (for instance) raiders won't be effectively required to take spec X and spec Y in order to complete encounter Z. Dual specs are there to offer us more flexibility, not as another way the devs can make us jump through hoops. And I know I'll be taking it on at least a few of my characters. %Gallery-45780% Patch 3.1 brings us Ulduar, dual specs, significant changes to all the classes, and more! We've got you covered from top to bottom with our Guide to Patch 3.1.
