proving-grounds
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Complete Bronze Proving Grounds, get your weapon
Of course the first thing we want to do upon hitting level 100 is to start gearing up. And we want to run heroics, which means getting a silver in proving grounds. Well, while you're at it, don't miss this quest, given in your Garrison by Lieutenant Thorn if you're Alliance, and Warmaster Zog if you're Horde. It's a good way to get your hands on a solid 610 weapon (almost as good as an heirloom at level 100) and, if you get lucky and get an epic instead of a blue, it's actually ilevel 630 and better than the heirloom weapons from Garrosh. I did Bronze as DPS first, and found it to be pretty easy. It's basically a free weapon as good as a dungeon drop, with a chance to be as good as a heroic dungeon drop. Since you're going to want to be able to queue for heroics anyway, there's no reason not to get it done.
Wowhead interviews Warlords developers at PAX East
Our friends over at Wowhead are attending PAX East this weekend, and Perculia had a chance to sit down and interview Lead Class Designer Kris Zierhut and Game Designer Steve Burke about Warlords of Draenor. A variety of topics were discussed -- Garrisons were discussed in detail, as well as raid cooldowns, the strengths and weaknesses of the Timeless Isle, professions and the removal of damage bonuses, and much more. One of the more exciting discussions addressed the issue of storage space. Mentioned in the interview was the new toy box tab that will rid your bags of all the interesting gadgets and toys you find while questing. But that's not all -- most profession materials will stack to 100 in the new expansion, and gathered quest items from kill and carry quests will be tracked, but not actually take up space in your bags. And perhaps the most exciting news from the interview (for me, anyway) is that at long last, transmogrification fanatics will be getting a second tab of Void Storage in which to squirrel away their favorite fashions. You can listen to the full audio from the interview above -- it's well worth checking out.
Proving Grounds will not solve the real problem
Olivia Grace wrote an excellent post last week about the upcoming change that will link a silver performance in Proving Grounds to the ability to queue for heroic dungeons. You should definitely go read it, because I cheerfully cede to her points. It's not hard to get silver in proving grounds. Linking a silver performance to heroic dungeons will allow them to make heroics more challenging. These are all good things. Now I'm going to say something - the biggest problem in heroics isn't players who don't know what they're doing. It's players who do. Specifically, it's skilled and geared players who massively, massively out-gear said heroics and want to ignore the mechanics and chain pull every mob in the place, players who are completely inconsiderate of the other players in their group. Players who are skilled, but who let their fevered egocentric natures run wild, hurling insults at lesser geared players for 'not keeping up.' Players who make the dungeon an unpleasant festival of wipes because they refuse to understand that some of the people in the dungeon are only just geared enough to be there, and can't heal through thirty mobs hitting them at once or kill those thirty mobs fast enough. It's players who have a really well geared main, but come to the Scarlet Monastery Cathedral on their brand new monk and refuse to understand that they're not nearly as powerful now. It's not skill, it's attitude.
Blizzard "Investigating the possibility" of Proving Grounds scaling changes
Right now, the way Proving Grounds work is simple - you go in, and your gear is scaled down to ilevel 463, with certain specific gear abilities like set bonuses, the legendary sha-touched gems, legendary meta-gems or the legendary cape proc not functional. If you have any of those items, it is as if you do not -- in some ways (such as your meta gem) it's worse than if you were using a lesser meta in an actual ilevel 463 helm, because you're literally getting nothing at all out of your meta. Now Celestalon has tweeted that this might not be the case forever. @InValensName We're investigating the potential of scaling PGs up to your ilvl. Not a guarantee, just an investigation. Has Pros/Cons. - Celestalon (@Celestalon) February 24, 2014 Words to my ears. When I was doing proving grounds, I remember being heartily annoyed by the loss of my meta in particular. I'd much rather have the content get suitably harder but that I face it with my gear all working as I understand it than it stay the same and I lose everything I've grown used to -- set bonuses that change my rage generation, my meta gem, and so on -- because it feels like I should have a special set of gear for PGs or just reforge and regem. With reforging gone and gems less common in Warlords, I think an investigation of this option is definitely welcome. I get why it could be very hard to do, and in some ways boosting the difficulty has down sides in that it means it's not the same content for everybody, but I still like the idea. It could be interesting if the idea was also used in Challenge Modes, but I'm not sure it would work there.
Warlords of Draenor: Proving Grounds will be required for Heroic Dungeon random queues
Ion "Watcher" Hazzikostas, the Lead Encounter Designer for World of Warcraft, has already told us that proving grounds will be updated for Warlords of Draenor. In a move that helps explain why, he dropped some late night news yesterday in the form of dungeon progression information. In short, if you want to join the dungeon finder queue for level 100 heroic dungeons, you will need to get a silver medal in the proving grounds for the role you want to queue for. That means if you want to heal, your DPS silver medal isn't good enough. You'll need to go back and get it for healing as well. This applies only to the random queue. If you're going straight in with friends, no medal is required. Normal dungeons will not require any proving grounds experience at all, and normal dungeon and scenario gear should be enough to let you queue for the raid finder.
Warlords of Draenor: Proving grounds will be updated
As we heard today that Mists challenge modes will be ending at the Warlords of Draenor pre-patch, I wondered what the fate of Proving Grounds might be, as they share the scaling methodology of Challenge Modes, as well as rewarding players with titles, although not mounts or the like. So I asked Lead Encounter Designer Ion "Watcher" Hazzikostas: @oliviadgrace Proving Grounds serve a different purpose and will be updated for WoD. We think of CMs as a PvE analogue to arena seasons. - Watcher (@WatcherDev) February 13, 2014 To first address Watcher's point on Challenge Modes as analogous to Arena, it makes a lot of sense. The focus and structure of the reward and rank system is similar to that of arena, as Watcher points out in a subsequent tweet. Both arena and Challenge Modes reward high-end play on a specific class, and as a result the rewards, rankings and titles for Gladiator or Gold are similarly not account wide. Certainly, the number of rewards given out are markedly different, but the principles are comparable. Proving Grounds, conversely, do not work the same. While there are titles available, there is no ranking, and they do not offer similar rewards. While Challenge Modes are designed to be challenging content that is for players at their best, Proving Grounds are for learning. This may well make them easier to update for the new systems, as well as the fact that they focus on one spec at a time.
Do Battlegrounds need tutorials?
When I first starting doing Battlegrounds way back in vanilla, it was pretty easy to learn exactly what the rules were. Not because I went and researched the individual Battlegrounds, but because I had a team of guildmates that were happily running the new feature over and over for a fun break from raiding. In later years, I joined a guild that was by and large devoted to PvP content over PvE. With the original honor grind being as ruthlessly difficult as it was, I was happy to help heal those in the guild working on that arduous trek to High Warlord -- and I never had to ask what to do in a Battleground. I was well informed from the get-go. But at some point after Burning Crusade, I simply lost interest in PvP. I think it was after the introduction of arenas. Most of my PvP-oriented friends became absolutely enthralled with the idea of doing arenas, gaining ranks, and more importantly earning those hard-won season's end mount rewards. It wasn't that I didn't have an interest in the mounts, or that I didn't like PvP anymore. It was more that I knew, logistically speaking, that I wasn't particularly good at PvP. It didn't matter so much when the games were just a matter of win or lose, but when it came to arenas, I really didn't want to ruin the carefully-earned rankings my friends had obtained. I came from an era of the original honor grind. Rankings were sacred back then. Consequentially, I don't really do PvP anymore. Not because I don't enjoy a good Battleground, but because at this stage in the game, I haven't the faintest idea what to do in any of them.
Breakfast Topic: How do you relax in WoW?
Many, if not most, of us have certainly at one point or another taken breaks from playing WoW, in which we stop playing for a few weeks, or months, or even years, before coming back. But what do we do when we need a break, but don't want to stop playing the game? Maybe you just can't stomach going back to that one raid yet again, or the thought of setting foot in one more battleground makes you want to put your face on your keyboard and moan. Yet the call of the login screen still remains, just not for whatever you had been doing. The great thing about WoW is the variety of play options, so there's nearly always something enjoyable to pick up. You could farm for those rare mounts you never got, go back for a questing or archaeology achievement. There's pets to collect and battle, recipe lists to complete, achievements to finish up, proving grounds to master, and even your Tiller's farm to manage. In Warlords of Draenor, we're going to get a whole garrison to ourselves to deck out, as well. Personally, I find mountains of giant vegetables to be my zen in World of Warcraft. What about you? What relaxes you in this game?
Lichborne: Things to do until Warlords of Draenor drops
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. While some of us are still trying to kill Garrosh or grinding rep on Timeless Isle, it's probably safe to say that the expansion is winding down. With that in mind, how do you spend that time, especially if you're already tired of the latest raid? You can always dig into all those games you bought during the last Steam Sale, of course, but if you're planning to stick to WoW, this week we'll cover some stuff you can do to bide your time until you get that Warlords of Draenor beta invite.
Totem Talk: Restoration between now and Warlords of Draenor
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Totem talk for the shaman. Want to be a sultan of swing healing? A champion of Chain Heal? Totem Talk: Restoration, brought to you by Joe Perez (otherwise known as Lodur from World of Matticus and InternetDragons.TV), shows you how. Well, I don't know about you but I'm still very excited about the announcement of Warlords of Draenor. I mean, it was honestly the big news from BlizzCon 2013 and the feeling is still quite electric from almost everyone in regards to it. For some, The Burning Crusade and going to Outlands was one of the greatest things to ever happen in the World of Wacraft. For restoration shaman in particular, BC was that point in time where everything was awesome and shaman were the top of the food chain for healing. This week though, I'm not here to talk about the glory days of shaman healing. No, that will be an article for another week. This week I wanted to talk about the time between now and the next expansion. It is always a topic to think about what to do in that time where you're waiting for the next expansion to even enter beta phase. The good news is Mists of Pandaria offers so many more options than any other expansion before. I thought I would share how I'm spending my time between now and Warlords of Draenor.
Should Proving Grounds be an entry requirement for LFG content?
There's been an interesting discussion taking place lately regarding Proving Grounds, and their use as a barrier to entry for LFG content. Lead Systems Designer Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street tweeted to clarify Blizzard's potential intent, in response to the forum thread. @Meerkatx It would probably be more like LFR requires ilevel 500 OR a Proving Ground Silver Medal, or maybe Silver + ilevel 450 or whatever. - Greg Street (@Ghostcrawler) October 1, 2013 I thought this was an interesting idea, and clearly something Blizzard has taken into consideration, so let's explore the good and bad sides of it. In each section, I'm going to try my best to steadfastly ignore the opposite position. Think of it as a debate I'm having. With myself. Good Sides Proving grounds are at least a way to show skill. The current system bases itself purely off item level, so if you have the gear on your character, or the gear in your bags, you can get into a LFR raid. This is really really easy to manipulate, particularly for classes who can equip anything, and this in itself is an issue. It's far, far harder to manipulate Proving Ground achievements, particularly given how item level is scaled to 463 in Proving Grounds.
Check your scaling for Challenge Modes and Proving Grounds with Wowhead
Challenge modes have been in the game for some time now, but patch 5.4 added another type of content where gear is scaled down, and that's proving grounds. Proving grounds, unlike challenge modes, are already being used to gauge the quality of players, with groups asking for certain ranks or achievements in order to join them. So how best do you arm yourself for this content? Gear scaling is certainly one hurdle to overcome, and it's a tricky one, as it's not easy for the average player to work out just how their stats are going to be scaled with the reduction to ilvl 463. And you can't always carry every potentially viable piece of gear with you to the Temple of the White Tiger to see what works. And that's where Wowhead's gear scaling checkbox comes into play. While it's far from perfect, it's certainly helpful. As you can see above, we're looking at a tank trinket that drops off Garrosh. It's not ilvl 463. In fact it's ilvl 553, in this example at least, but by checking the "Challenge Mode" box, it's downscaled to 463, as it would be in-game. You can see what works, what the numbers will be, what the procs will look like and so on. Go forth and prove yourself!
Getting out of your comfort zone
Have you been to the proving grounds yet to try a role you normally don't play? Trial Master Rotun seems awfully lonely in his little corner of the Temple of the White Tiger with everyone so busy collecting Timeless Coins or sieging Orgrimmar. What about flexible raiding? Have you tried taking the step up from raid finder? Blizzard has sent a clear message with patch 5.4: they really want you to get out of your comfort zone.
The Light and How to Swing It: Proving yourself at the gold-level tank Proving Grounds
Every week, WoW Insider brings you The Light and How to Swing It for holy, protection and retribution paladins. Protection specialist Matt Walsh spends most of his time receiving concussions for the benefit of 9 other people, obsessing over his hair, and maintaining the tankadin-focused blog Righteous Defense. As soon as 5.4 launched, one of my biggest goals (aside from the obvious one of getting the legendary cloak) was to go out and grab gold in the tank Proving Grounds before my co-tank could. I'm sure all of you can appreciate the impulse. While I wouldn't say gold is hugely difficult (especially now that I've taken some furtive steps into Endless, it feels like a walk in the park in contrast), it's become obvious in hindsight that I made some errors in my first few gold attempts and made finally overcoming that particular challenge more difficult than it needed to be. Thankfully I think I've learned from my mistakes here, and now, like an Afterschool Special, I can impart some useful knowledge on how best to approach Proving Grounds and go for the gold.
Video: 6 things you need to know about patch 5.4
In this Geek Week special, there's so much going on in World of Warcraft Patch 5.4 that we thought we would put together a brief summary of all the new features we know about so far. We've got the in-game store, virtual realms, the timeless isle, cross-realm arenas, flexible raiding and the proving grounds... and we haven't even talked about the new raid! If you want more information on any of the content discussed in the video, WoW Insider has a ton of material for you to peruse, just check out the links below: In-Game Store Virtual Realms Timeless Isle Cross-realm Arenas Flexible Raiding Proving Grounds
Lichborne: Proving grounds, proc rate bugs, and more patch 5.4 news
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. Patch 5.4 continues on the test server, introducing new class changes, new features, and more. Today, we'll keep looking at what the latest changes are, both those specific to death knights and those that affect death knights. Do proving grounds prove useful to death knights? What's the latest one weird bug that does weird things for death knights? Read on for the answers to these and other questions. A ghoulish energy While most of the major death knight class changes appeared done a few weeks ago, Blizzard just dropped another one that should be a nice game changer for unholy death knights. Gnaw and Leap, as well as their Dark Transformation equivalents, no longer have an energy cost. This means more energy available for Claw, and the ability for death knights to use those two skills freely without having to worry that they won't have the energy.
Will Proving Grounds be the new litmus test for players?
A few days ago there was a thread on the official forums where a player expressed concerns that the new Proving Grounds feature would be used by PUG leaders to filter invites for groups, raids, or any other group content. Because Proving Grounds essentially grades any participants, the fear is that trade chat will be flooded by folks looking only to invite players with, for example, a gold medal/completion. Bronze and silver need not apply. It's a pattern that has repeated itself many times whenever a new way of evaluating players was added to the game. In the past we've seen PUG leaders demand armory links, gearscore/average iLevels, and even achievements proving completion of the raids that they were organizing for (which often created Catch-22 situations for many players).
Patch 5.4 build 17227 highlights and more
The latest goodies and PTR build changes are up on Wowhead, and there are some very fine things there indeed. My personal favorite? The new achievement from the Proving Grounds: You're Doing It Wrong. You earn this achievement for successfully completing a Silver level proving grounds trial while in a spec not meant for it. I'm already planning my Balance druid spec for the healing challenge, just you all wait. Other important items of note include the ongoing discussion surrounding the nerfs to Mana Tea for Mistweaver monks, as well as the Frost mage mechanic Mastery: Icicles. These threads are very much of interest to those who play the classes involved, and if you have missed some of the news on these topics it is certainly worth getting up to speed. There are also further notes on class changes and tweaks, the most extensive of which are occurring to monks, as well as a whole host of new vanity items, trinkets, consumables, and pets presumably related to the Timeless Isle.
WoW Insider Round Table: Testing out the Proving Grounds
The proof of the proving grounds is in the, um, proving? That poorly constructed phrase is what the WoW Insider Round table set out to explore this week, with Matt Low, Dawn Moore, Sarah Pine and Olivia Grace sitting down to discuss the new feature coming in patch 5.4 which just recently went live on the PTR. Between the panel we'd tried out all the different roles within the Proving Grounds system, to varying degrees, and had quite some differing opinions on the ease and difficulty of the systems, as well as whether or not gear should be scaled, and how hard they should really be. We discuss the endless mode, the achievements that come from it, and class balance within the proving grounds system. We also chat about the NPC artificial intelligence, and their rather patronising flavor text! We hope you enjoyed this Round Table, and if you have any suggestions for future discussions, do let us know!
Blood Pact: Dark Soul, glyphs, and more PTR fun
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Blood Pact for affliction, demonology, and destruction warlocks. This week, Megan O'Neill attempts many experiments both on live and PTR realms. Last week, I had this whole thing planned to talk about the Thunderstruck scenario of damage with the olde Glyphe of Lyfe Tapp style Archimonde's Vengeance. But literally before the deadline, the PTR builds finally caught up with the PTR patch notes and Archimonde's Vengeance was completely replaced by the new Archimonde's Darkness. Unfortunately, I didn't feel like I could spend at least 1000 words on a double cooldown; today, I can't even break 150. But before we get seriously into settled number-tweaking things like the datamined loot, let's talk about some other changes on the PTR.
