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Ask A Beta Tester: AABT's greatest hits, part 1
Yep, we've shocked the ol' column back to gasping life. The good kind of reanimation, though, not the kind you're probably killing in Northrend.Wow, this took ages. We got a lot of standout questions while doing Ask A Beta Tester, and I went through all of them trying to pick out the best, funniest, most helpful, or most unintentionally prescient among them. To be perfectly frank, we had so many that I started splitting them into separate articles. I've eliminated the questions that I expect readers will probably have answered for themselves at this point (e.g. Death Knight starting faction reputation) but kept all of the questions that I'm pretty sure are still relevant to the first week of gameplay in Wrath. I've also made a few additions and updates based on what we saw both in the beta and now on the live realms. I hope you guys enjoy reading these as much as we did answering them.I'm going to start off with the earliest series of questions that Elizabeth Harper and Alex Ziebart took in July and August. To round out the rest of AABT's best in the next few days, we'll keep moving through August, September, October, and up to the very end of AABT.
Ask a Wrath Player: From the ashes
Yesterday marked the end of Ask a Beta Tester, and today we begin the rise from the ashes. Like we've been saying the last few days, we're going to continue Ask a Beta Tester under a different name. What name? We don't know yet. Ask a Wrath Player is what I used today, but is that what it will be tomorrow? Who knows! It's a mystery! We're definitely here to stay, though. We're going to continue using the Q&A format for AAWP or AABT or AAGoGS or AASS or whatever bizarre acronym we end up with, so if you have any questions about Wrath or even the game in general, please ask! We have a very diverse crew here at WoW Insider, so if there's something I don't know personally, there's a big team I can ask. We don't have a lot of questions to answer from yesterday because everyone was busy partying hard to celebrate (mourn?) the end of AABT, but we'll answer what we have
Ask a Beta Tester: Come back little walrus, I just want to help!
Welcome to another episode edition of Ask a Beta Tester! Just a few more days until Wrath. Are you excited? I'm excited. I'm so excited that I don't think I'm going to answer any questions today, and instead slam my face on my keyboard in joy and post that to our main page instead.At least that's what I would do if I didn't want to write for WoW Insider anymore. I'll behave, I promise!adoure asked...I want to start on my Kalu'ak rep to get the Mastercraft Kalu'ak Fishing Pole asap, which starting zone will offer more quests from the Kalu'ak?Both the Howling Fjord and the Borean Tundra have a pretty hefty number of quests from the Kalu'ak, but Borean Tundra comes out ahead with 2-3 more quests than the Fjord, and the rep gains are a bit higher because some of the Fjord's Kalu'ak quests are just FedEx quests, taking an item across town or whatever. So you'll want to go Tundra if that Fishing Pole is your top priority.
Ask a Beta Tester: Spectral gryphons, prospecting, and portals
Only six-ish days of Ask a Beta Tester left! Whatever will we do!? Well, we'll go on with our lives probably. I mean, we'll have Wrath of the Lich King. Who cares? ahmed ahmed asked...Have you heard anything about ghosts being able to go through mountains in WotLK, so they can reach their destinations faster? My friend told me that is what is going to happen, and I hope that it will go live!Nope, that's not the case, sorry. However, in some zones (Icecrown, Storm Peaks) you get to ride a ghostly gryphon when you're dead, so you can fly to your corpse. Both of those zones have a huge emphasis on mountainside base camps and tall cliffs and places you can only get by flying, so the gryphon is very nice. No running through mountains though.
Ask a Beta Tester: Zul'Drak and more
Welcome to yet another edition of Ask a Beta Tester. We're coming to you a little later in the day than we usually do, but I think getting the site's redesign up was worth it! It's sparkly, isn't it? We only have a little under a week of Ask a Beta Tester left, so let's make the best of the time we have and get started!Nick S asked... Is there any lore for the Trolls? I've seen very, very little that's not negative. Where's the Troll lovin'?!? Unfortunately, I'm primarily Alliance and didn't see much from the Horde beyond the first couple of zones, so I'm not really sure about the Darkspear. Zul'Drak has a whole load of Troll content, though. It's an entire Troll zone centered on the last Troll Empire, the Drakkari. There's also the return of the Zandalar Trolls, who are much more friendly. You might have met them back when Zul'Gurub was run frequently. They're there to document the fall of the Drakkari and prevent them from doing something really, really bad.
Ask a Beta Tester: More on phasing and starter zones
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester on this Maintenance Day Tuesday. Let's get started right away with webrunner's question... Have you seen any interesting/fun usable gear with cool procs or use abilities, or is it just stats, stats, stats till the Tauren come home?There are plenty of trinkets with this sort of thing, but not weapons or robes or anything like that. Trinkets are much more common as quest rewards in Wrath than they were before, and you get a pretty wide range of effects. On weapons, it's all stats of various flavors.
Ask a Beta Tester: Starter zones and starter epics
Just a little earlier, Allison Robert posted questions we wish we had been asked on Ask a Beta Tester. Me? I'm still going to answer the questions we have been asked, starting with Jay's question... In Warcraft III:The Frozen Throne, the Blood Elves and Naga teamed up to wage a massive battle against Arthas right on the slopes of Icecrown. It's already been mentioned that settlements and Ruins from further back, when Arthas's expedition land are still there. Is there any sign of the Belf and Naga ruins from their assault? In Icecrown it's nothing but Scourge and the Scourge's servants as far as the eye can see. Anything that had been there previously is gone. There are Naga ruins further out, though. Off the coast of the Borean Tundra there are some Naga structures you'll be questing in. For those of you sick of killing Naga like I am, don't worry. There's a twist.
Ask a Beta Tester: Lordaeron, epic quests, and other things
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, where we answer your questions about the Wrath of the Lich King beta! Let's get things started with Chris's question...I really enjoy the Epic quest in Nagrand to bring Thrall to meet his grandmother. Is there anything like that in Wrath where you have to complete all the quests in one zone before you get an epic quest to complete?Well, there are a lot of quest chains. Maybe not that long, but certainly not less epic. That doesn't mean the chains are short, either. They just don't necessarily require completing every other quest in the zone. Some of the stories start the moment you step into a zone and last straight through until you're ready to leave it again, but there are plenty of other quests you do on the way. They're less of a prize for 'beating the zone' and more an everpresent story.
Ask a Beta Tester: Icecrown, quest rewards, and scary monsters
Good news! No corny jokes today! Just pure, delicious Ask a Beta Tester. Let's start with Actuality's question... When I first ran around TBC, the Fel Reaver scared the hell outta me. Ground shaking, crazily running everywhichwhere to get away. And the Draenei spiders still creep me out. But by and large the monsters now have a "ho hum" quality because I'm too used to them. My question is, are there any monsters in LK that will scare me or creep me out for at least a while?There are most certainly a bunch of those. There's a lot of "whoa, cool" mobs and "holy crap what the hell is that" mobs. My favorite is the geist (pictured above), and it sounds like a lot of our other readers adore that one as well. It has a very maniacal laugh when you aggro it. The Revenants are cool as hell, except for the Earth revenants which look like floating poo. I don't mean they look bad, I mean they actually look like poo. Also: Thrym in Zul'Drak. I won't tell you what he is or what he looks like, but you'll know him when you see him. Just remember the name Thrym. There's plenty of other cool/freaky models in Wrath, too many to name, so yes. There are monsters that will scare you and/or creep you out.
Ask a Beta Tester: The mystery of Crystalsong and other things
I showed you the Alliance airship on yesterday's Ask a Beta Tester, now you get to see the Horde version! And now that that's out of the way, let's start with a couple of questions from Aerei... I've got possibly the most important question ever asked in this column! Are we going to see NPCs rocking the new hairstyles now available? I don't think it's fair only PCs should get them. Yep! You'll spot the new hairstyles on NPCs here and there. Not super often yet, but you definitely see them. A lot of the guards in the Argent Crusade camp are rockin' the new styles. They're very progressive! Also, if Dalaran gets mage trainers because it's the mage city, how come Shattrath doesn't have paladin trainers? Huh? Because Shattrath sucks.
Ask a Beta Tester: Heirloom items, class trainers, and more
Another day, another edition of Ask a Beta Tester. Today, as a special treat, I am going to answer your questions while blindfolded. And on fire. And covered in bees....actually, I don't really like that idea so I'm going to answer your questions like I normally do, starting with Naraxus's question...Something I was thinking about was how much of an important stat "Hit" was on endgame gear in BC. A couple of patches ago a lot of the lower level gear was given a hit stat to it and I was wondering if the 70-79 gear in WotLK has "Hit" or is it just basic stats and spell power, attack power etc?There's some Hit on leveling gear, but not enough to keep you capped right to 80 in my experience. I actually didn't really try, I concerned myself more with survival and longevity. In the case of a Priest, that meant stamina, spirit, and spell damage. Leveling gear is a bit more simplified. Raw stats, and some attack power/spell power in most cases.You'll also find some crit, hit, and haste, but your leveling gear isn't going to have as many random stats slapped on it as you see on some raid gear.
Ask a Beta Tester: Tradeskills, training, and rep gains
As the beta winds down, Ask a Beta Tester becomes a little more infrequent, but as long as we have questions, we will answer. Let's start with Rob's question...Are they planning to put in recipes for green items between 350-375 to make it easier to grind up professions? Or should i just suck it up and make (obsolete) blue/purple items to level up.Many professions start with new recipes at 350 skill in Northrend, and some of them at 360. Nobody starts at 375. 360-375 is usually taken up by 'end-game' items so you won't have to grind those out to skill up before Northrend. I recommend checking Wowhead to see where your particular profession starts out.Locke asked...I know there's the Wrath Gate cinematic and so on, have you come across or know any other cinematic events like this, or was this the only one? I'm sure there has to be in game scripted events. Thanks.
Ask a Beta Tester: This and that
You can tell the Wrath beta is winding down, because Ask a Beta Tester has been getting a lot fewer questions lately. Because of that, we're going to be pretty short and sweet today. If you still have questions, though, keep em coming!Let's start today off with dfsnow's question... What's happening with Alchemy and Alchemist's Stones in WotLK? Alchemist's stones have been like enchanting rods where you need the previous one to create the next one. Are new players going to have to grind Sha'tar and then SSO rep to create the reagent they need to create their level 80 Alchemist's Stone? I don't have to tell you how hard it will be to grind Sha'tar rep with no one running BC instances any more. The new Alchemists stones aren't tied to the older ones at all. All the new ones will require to make is the appropriate Alchemy skill, some herbs, some eternals and maybe some oils.
Ask a Beta Tester: Factions and reputation
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, wherein I sigh at names like fungus and then answer their question anyway. Questions such as: Will we be able to do the BC heroics for the achievements after Wrath comes out?Yep! Just like you can still earn achievements for the Classic dungeons in The Burning Crusade, you'll be able to do the BC dungeon achievements in Wrath.Beath asked...Does Culling of Stratholme grant Keepers of Time reputation? If not, is there a new faction associated with this instance?Last time I ran this dungeon, it wasn't awarding any reputation at all. That may have changed since then, but a peek at Wowhead and Wowwiki doesn't show any associated reputations.
Ask a Beta Tester: Exotic weapons, furbolgs, and more
Hi there, and welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester after its little Sunday break! If you're new to the column, then just 'welcome' instead of 'welcome back' and if that's the case allow me to explain! Have a question about the Wrath beta? We have an answer! Probably. Just ask in the comments section below, and we'll try to answer you in a future episode. Now, let's get started!CactusHam asked... I noticed on the Description of the Shaman's Maelstrom Weapon (and maybe its in other places as well, but this is where I saw it) that in addition to requiring axes, maces, staves and daggers it also requires "One handed Exotics, Two Handed Exotics" as well as "miscellaneous". I'm curious about what seems to be a new weapon type? Is this a new weapon type? If so, what classes can use "exotics"? And what exactly is an "exotic?" Exotic weapons are unique NPC items. If you've ever used something like WoW Modelviewer, the Exotic category contains things such as Maiev's huge chakram thingy or whatever it is. It's not something players will ever get their hands on. It's sort of like the armor sets you see on Wowhead and Thottbot that have the listing of which races can wear it, and races such as Fel Orc and Naga are listed. That doesn't mean we'll get playable Fel Orcs and Naga, it means if they're putting together an NPC that uses those racial models they can use that armor to play dress up with. Fel Orc did technically come into play at the Netherwing Ledge, but meh. Yeah, that's right. Meh.
Ask a Beta Tester: More on daily quests and champions
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester! I've plugged in more music for you above, this time from Icecrown Glacier. If you're feeling kind, you should go give some love to the guy that posted them later on. For now, though, we're here to answer your Wrath of the Lich King questions!Sorano asked...While killing mobs in a dungeon that normally gives rep for a faction, for example: The Wyrmrest Accord, if I am wearing the tabard representing the Warsong Offensive, will I gain reputation for both Wyrmrest Accord and Warsong Offensive at the same time?Contrary to the original description of the feature, you only get rep with one faction at a time. Personally, I think that's a better design. If you're working on a particular rep, you can still help friends out in random unrelated Wrath dungeons without feeling punished. If you only received half of the rep gains, you would still want to go to Violet Hold for your Kirin Tor rep instead of Utgarde Pinnacle, just for random examples. Going to Utgarde and getting half of the payoff just feels punishing. Feeling punished for helping friends sucks.
Ask a Beta Tester: Reputation, crowd control, and more
We all know how this goes by now, so let's jump right in. If you don't know how this goes, click back through a few of the previous editions of Ask a Beta Tester. You'll catch on, I'm sure. Xaktsaroth asked...How does reputation work in general in Wrath? Are there turn-in quests? Rep for killing Mobs? Quested Rep? If you just quest, how far along does that reputation take you?It's a little different for every faction, but I can say that I have not yet seen turn-ins like we had to do for the Aldor or Scryer. Most of the rep gains seem to be via quests or dungeons depending on the faction. On beta, I'm nearly Exalted with the Valiance Expedition exclusively from quests. Strangely, I'm Neutral with the Kirin Tor as of a couple of beta patches ago when I had been Friendly. Curious! Either way, I haven't seen much in the way of rep via quests from them. You'll probably need to do dungeons or some other thing.It's going to vary from faction to faction, they're not all the same. Some are quest heavy, some are not. If you prefer dungeons, however, just get to Friendly with someone, pick up their tabard, and you can get rep with them in any dungeon you want.
Ask a Beta Tester: Raid zones, plot, and more on phasing
I decided to do something a little different with the image above for today's Ask a Beta Tester. Instead of beating you over the head with another of my awesome Dalaran screenshots, I've plugged in some music you can listen to while you read, if you'd like. Just hit play, and get in a Wrath kind of mood.Milkgas asked quite a few question, but many of them involve story spoilers that I don't think readers would appreciate seeing in this particular column. What I don't answer, you can truck over to Ask a Lore Nerd and I'll squeeze them in on the bottom behind my usual "spoilers be here, yarrrr" line. We can definitely hit a few of them though.Has there been any hints in the quest text of either the Uldum or the Karazhan Basement as a raid or dungeon in this expansion or the next?Nothing that I've seen! We'll have Ulduar as a raid zone in Northrend, so to me that seems like a definite no on Uldum. I don't think they would put two Titan raids in one expansion, unless Uldum turned out to be a 5 man dungeon. We've seen nothing about the rest of Karazhan.
Ask a Beta Tester: Soundtracks, trinkets, and travel
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester! We'll jump right into things today with Graham's question... What is the music like in Dalaran? Is there a web site where I can hear some/all of it?Dalaran's music is some kind of weird cross between Draenei-style and Human-style music. It's like they picked up Stormwind City and dropped it on Azuremyst Isle. I don't think there's anywhere that you can download the entire Wrath of the Lich King soundtrack yet, but for sample you can stream just about anything on Songza if it's somewhere on the intertubes. And really, nowadays, what isn't?
Ask a Beta Tester: Shaman, Engineers, and Feral Druids
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, where for one glorious day, we don't have any passenger mount questions! But I know, deep down, there are a thousand more on the horizon.Elmo asked...How are Enhancement Shamans shaping up? I heard silly things like Elemental gear is great for them or 2x fast weapons with Flametongue. Are we really gonna make that much of a turn around? In other words, is my hard earned gear all worthless? Not just the epic gems and Strength enchants.Enhancement Shaman did hit a weird point where that was true, but I don't think it was ever intended that the 'final product' would look that way. There were some Windfury bugs and wonky unfinished tuning that caused that, but as another reader mentioned, the devs are working on getting everything fixed and proper. Things will be a little different from Burning Crusade, but not so much so that Enhancement Shaman are wearing Elemental gear to melee.
