Mists of Pandaria Beta: The Dread Wastes

Taking a marked departure from every other zone in Mists of Pandaria, the Dread Wastes presents an alien, twisted, unnerving landscape that is more than a little disconcerting. Stir in a giant helping of mantid, and you've got an entomophobe's worst nightmare. The Dread Wastes is home to the mantid, who generally stay behind the great wall built between the Dread Wastes and the rest of Pandaria. However, the wall doesn't really bar the mantid from flying over.

Each mantid generation results in a massive swarm that assaults the rest of Pandaria, devouring everything in its path. Only the strongest mantid return from the journey. In Mists of Pandaria, the mantid are swarming a full 100 years too early, and it's up to the pandaren and players to fight off the swarm while trying to puzzle out exactly what caused the change in the mantid routine. In addition, players will get to interact with the Klaxxi, the elders and keepers of mantid culture. The Klaxxi are oddly enough just as unhappy with recent mantid events as the rest of Pandaria, and they're determined to identify the problem and eliminate it, with player help.

Players will likely still be working through this zone at level 90, and frankly it's well worth the time involved. Between the alien landscape and off-putting residents is a zone with a bizarre and fascinating story to tell. Take a look at our gallery for a sneak peek of what the Dread Wastes has to offer.

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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!