deathwing
Latest
Patch 4.3: Blizzard's official preview of the Hour of Twilight heroic dungeon
The last of patch 4.3's time-traveling dungeons now has a preview available on the official website. The Hour of Twilight takes place in present-day Azeroth, where the Twilight's Hammer is putting on a full-scale invasion of Dragonblight. Why Dragonblight? Because that is where the ultimate showdown with Deathwing will begin -- and the Dragon Soul plays a key part in taking the former Aspect of Earth down. Included with the preview are some unsettling images of Wyrmrest Temple crawling with the tentacles of Old God minions, as well as some shots of the surrounding areas. There are three bosses mentioned with the preview: Arcurion, a formidable water ascendant who is tasked with killing Thrall; Asria Dawnslayer, a deadly agent of the Twilight's Hammer; and a third face who should be instantly recognizable to Alliance players. If you want to avoid spoiler content, I'd avoid the preview, but the third boss is a shock for those familiar with him in game so far. Did we mention Thrall? That's right, he's there too, and players must escort him and the Dragon Soul safely to Wyrmrest Temple. I'm having flashbacks to CoT: Durnholde Keep, but they are good flashbacks. From the looks of things, these events tie directly into Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects; those who are wanting to know more about the events in Hour of Twilight should check out that novel. All in all, it looks like the three dungeons are similar to the last three dungeons of Wrath of the Lich King. They tie into the final raid encounter in a crucial way, and the story is interlocked between all three dungeons. Check out the official website for the full preview, plenty of images, and more boss information. Brace yourselves for what could be some of most exciting updates to the game recently with patch 4.3. Look at what's ahead: new item storage options, cross-realm raiding, cosmetic armor skinning and your chance to battle the mighty Deathwing -- from astride his back!
Blizzard's Tom Chilton on World of Warcraft's patch 4.3 and beyond
It may be hard to believe, but World of Warcraft's Cataclysm expansion has been out for the better part of a year now. All the while, players have been on a long and arduous adventure to defend the lands of Azeroth from the nefarious Deathwing and his minions. In an interview with Blizzard's Tom Chilton, Joystiq brings to light some details on the dragon's imminent demise as well as a few insights on what players can expect from WoW's patch 4.3: Dragon Soul. Chilton details the upcoming Transmogrification system, which allows players to customize the appearance of their gear by transferring one item's graphic to another. He also discusses the new Void Storage system, which grants increased storage space, with the caveat that any item stored in the void will be stripped of all gems and enchantments. The pièce de résistance of the whole affair is, of course, the final showdown with Deathwing himself. Players will have to traverse three separate five-man instances, which will culminate in a huge battle that doesn't just feature Deathwing as the opponent: He's the battlefield as well. But we don't want to give it all away, so head on over to Joystiq for the full, juicy interview.
Patch 4.3: Epic gems and more on the Deathwing encounter from Ghostcrawler
Plaintively waiting for epic gems? They're on the way in patch 4.3 -- and the mechanic to obtain them is a little different this time around, according to Lead Systems Designer Greg Street, aka Ghostcrawler. In an interview with Tankspot, Ghostcrawler clarified how those epic gems are going to work. "The way we're hoping to set it up, and we kind of have this working but things could change before we go live, is when you kill a boss on normal or heroic mode, each player gets a geode, and when they open the geode there's a chance they may find an epic gem inside. If not, it'll have blue gems or something like that," he said. Along with the scoop on epic gems, Ghostcrawler talked a bit about the upcoming legendary daggers and how they will work, as well as the Deathwing encounter. For those wondering if the Deathwing encounter will be challenging, it certainly appears so -- and Deathwing himself will change from how we've seen him so far in game. Rather than the plate-wearing, mammoth-chinned beast we're accustomed to seeing, Deathwing will be hurt and resemble something Ghostcrawler calls "Cthulhu Deathwing." The entry for the Deathwing raid will be in the Caverns of Time, along with all other 4.3 instances. For more on the Deathwing encounter, epic gems, tank threat and other 4.3 information, check out Tankspot's full interview. Brace yourselves for what could be some of most exciting updates to the game recently with patch 4.3. Look at what's ahead: new item storage options, cross-realm raiding, cosmetic armor skinning and your chance to battle the mighty Deathwing -- from astride his back!
Patch 4.3: Rogue legendaries, Raid Finder, and more
Blizzard's patch 4.3 info drop continues tonight with interviews going up across the blogosphere. Our sister site Joystiq posted a whole bunch of new info about 4.3's dungeons earlier, and now we've learned a few really cool pieces of information from Curse's interview with Greg Street (aka Ghostcrawler) about the new rogue legendary weapon, the Raid Finder, and more. First, the rogue legendary is actually a pair of legendaries -- specifically, a pair of daggers named the Fangs of Father (which may be a mistranslation), according to Taiwanese Gamebase. GC explains across his interviews that rogues have understandably felt left out of this expansion both in terms of numbers and content, so giving them a legendary of their own was a good way to get them into the spotlight. The quest line for these daggers will revolve around the single pure black dragon egg that players helped protect in the Badlands. The dragon will hatch (it's a boy!) and lead rogues on a time- and gold-consuming quest around the world for their well-earned blades.
Patch 4.3: Rogue legendary, new raid difficulty, and other details
The afternoon, The Escapist published an interview with World of Warcraft's Lead Producer J. Allen Brack on all things patch 4.3. Some of the topics discussed are topics we already know quite well: the nature of transmogrification, how void storage works, and so on. However, the interview also includes juicy bits we didn't know. For example, patch 4.3's legendary weapon, which was initially stated to have a "narrow audience" in the tanking edition of the Ask The Devs series, will be a rogue dagger. Brack states that they haven't settled on a name, lore, or any such thing for the weapon, so who knows what its quest chain may bring. That is actually a very interesting detail in itself: If Brack is being truthful and Blizzard doesn't know anything about the dagger's design yet, are we as close to seeing patch 4.3 on the PTR as the armor previews suggest? Or will Blizzard need to cobble it together in a hurry late in the patch's development cycle?
Patch 4.3: Warrior tier 13 armor revealed, looks like Deathwing
Oh, what a wonderful day to be a warrior. Blizzard has just released a preview of the tier 13 warrior set, Colossal Dragonplate, releasing with the raiding content in patch 4.3. Blizzard decided to fashion this warrior set after Deathwing himself, giant metal chin and all, and it looks absolutely fantastic. Included in the blog post is a retrospective on all of the warrior tier sets from the beginning, which hints at retrospectives for each class coming up as patch 4.3 approaches. Check out the Blizzard blog post for the images from all of the previous tiers as well as a great picture of the new warrior tier set coming in the next patch.
Deathwing fight will feature a ride on his back
German site Buffed.de recently posted a rundown on the newest patch 4.3 news from Gamescom in Germany, where Tom Chilton revealed that part of the Deathwing fight will take place on the back of the Aspect of Death. We might actually be fighting Deathwing multiple times, with one of the fights being on his back. The translation is a little fuzzy, but there will definitely be some fighting while in-flight as players try to bring the great dragon down. Gamescom has already brought us huge WoW news in the form of the gear transmogrifiers as well as gear storage NPCs and the fact that we will get to face Deathwing sooner than we thought. Stay tuned for more announcements. Brace yourselves for what could be some of most exciting updates to the game recently with patch 4.3. Look at what's ahead: new item storage options, cross-realm raiding, cosmetic armor skinning and your chance to battle the mighty Deathwing -- from astride his back!
Patch 4.3: Deathwing, cosmetic armor skins, and armor storage
European gaming convention Gamescom is in full swing this week in Cologne, Germany. German entertainment site Gamona.de sat down with both Tom Chilton and Chris Robinson to discuss the details of the upcoming patch 4.3, the patch where your dreams come true. It was revealed that the patch will include: Deathwing's raid and three new 5-man dungeons Cosmetic armor skins (!) An armor closet to store old gear, freeing up bank space As patch 4.3 will include Deathwing's raid, that probably means it will be the final patch in the expansion's overall narrative. If you doubted for a moment that Blizzard will announce the next expansion at this year's BlizzCon, doubt no more. We expect that these new 5-man dungeons will provide a new tier of heroics as well, pushing difficulty about Zul'Aman and Zul'Gurub. Follow us past the cut below for details on cosmetic armor skins and more!
Ragnaros awakened in Minecraft
Last week in The Daily Quest, you may have seen a YouTube video of a recreation of Darnassus in Minecraft. If you thought that was cool, there's more where that came from. In addition to Darnassus, YouTuber kattooMC and his servermates resresres1 and nessy27 have also created a scale model of Deathwing (which has made the rounds once before) and, much more recently, Molten Core's version of Ragnaros. These Minecraft builds do use game mods or third-party tools, and there are blocks incorporated into the designs that cannot be placed by players (such as the blocks of Coal in Deathwing) -- but cool is cool, regardless of how something is made. Many viewers of the Ragnaros video have commented that he looks a bit ... green. However, kattooMC assured everyone it was just a result of video encoding. As a Minecraft player myself, I'll back him up on that. I know what yellow wool blocks look like when I see 'em. According to kattoo via Twitter, Stormwind is next on their Warcraft to-do list. I, for one, can't wait to see it.
Know Your Lore: The Wyrmrest Accord and the order of the world
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. The dragonflights may have been created at the same time, but for the thousands of years they've existed on Azeroth, they've hardly been friendly with one another. It started with the Black Dragonflight and Neltharion's betrayal during the War of the Ancients. In the moment that Neltharion took the name Deathwing, in the moments thereafter during which he destroyed nearly all of the Blue Dragonflight with the Demon Soul -- in those moments, the dragonflights were introduced to a new concept: deception. It was unthinkable that any dragon would deliberately seek to harm another, and yet it happened. The fallout was immediate. Malygos, driven mad by the betrayal of one of his closest friends and the loss of his flight, fled to Northrend. In his madness, he split the Nexus from the rest of the land, separating Coldarra from the rest of the Borean Tundra. And then he stayed there, alone in his despair and insanity, refusing all visitors in his grief. The Blue Dragonflight crumpled, held up only by those who stood and tried their best to hold together the shattered remnants of the flight.
The Queue: The one with a pun
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Get excited, people. Vector asked: Is anybody else super bummed that the new Guild episode released today is only available on XBL? I mean, I can watch it when I get home from work, but what percentage of the MMO community is missing out because of this? It's only a short delay. I believe the episode will be available for all audiences on Thursday (that's tomorrow.) Considering Microsoft sponsors the show and it's the company that allows it to happen, I think it's reasonable for Microsoft to get a little exclusivity out of the deal. In other words, without Microsoft and XBL, we'd all be unGuilded.
Know Your Lore: Lore 101 -- How to fold a Tinfoil Hat
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. Out of all of the lore articles I've written so far for WoW Insider, none seem to garner quite as much commentary as the tinfoil hat series. Whether I'm babbling on about Elune being a naaru, the Lich King being a walking plane of existence, or the possibility that Azeroth is just a giant trap for Sargeras, coming up with theories and tossing them at you guys is an exercise in creative thinking. Rather than go on with another crazy theory, this week I decided to go a different direction entirely. There are a few tricks to trying to predict what's going to happen with a book or an ongoing story like Warcraft. It's not just about coming up with wild ideas; they have to actually be plausible ideas. And it's not about what you think should happen; it's about trying to define what may come to pass. Today, we're going to take a look at the nuts and bolts of what defines a story, what makes up a tinfoil hat theory, and how to apply it not just to Warcraft but to anything you happen to be reading.
WoW Insider reviews Christie Golden's Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects
Just under 10 years ago, on Oct. 1, 2001, a novel was released as a new addition to the Warcraft universe that would change the history and lore of the games forever. Lord of the Clans outlined the history and childhood of a young orc named Thrall. Son of Durotan and Draka, the former slave would break free from his imprisonment at the hands of Aedelas Blackmoore, step forward to unite the shattered and lethargic clans of the orcs, and lead the Horde in a manner that none that had played the original Warcraft games could possibly comprehend at that point in time. Almost a year later, Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos was released, and that orc's journey from the beleaguered, Scourge-ridden lands of the Eastern Kingdoms to the dusty and barren shores of Kalimdor was told in a tale that captured the hearts of players. No longer simply a character in a novel, Thrall's travels and ultimate triumph, united with the night elves and humans at the peaks of Mount Hyjal and working as one to defeat Archimonde, would forever seal his place as true Warchief of the Horde. It is only appropriate then that the latest novel written for the Warcraft franchise, detailing the further journeys of Thrall, be undertaken by the woman who started it all -- Christie Golden. Not just an author with a host of Warcraft novels under her belt, Golden is the voice of the former Warchief, the author who gave him a life of his own. Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects continues the journey that Thrall began nearly 10 years ago -- and what a journey it is.
Know Your Lore, Tinfoil Hat Edition: The "death" of the Old Gods
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. Once upon a time, there was a little planet called Azeroth. A shining jewel of the universe, this little planet was chosen by the Titans, blessed by their presence and organized into a perfect representation of order and beauty. But that order and perfection wasn't to last. At some undefined point in the little planet's future, malevolent proponents of chaos, creatures simply called Old Gods, visited Azeroth's surface and quickly decided to ruin the harmonic vision of the Titans with their own brutal, corrupt, and chaotic one. The Titans realized something had happened and returned to find the world they had so carefully balanced in a state of utter chaos. They immediately launched an assault on the Old Gods, but they discovered something strange. The Old Gods had fully integrated themselves with the matrix of the little planet, placing a strange malaise on the inhabitants. If the Old Gods died, so too would Azeroth -- and so the Titans imprisoned the Old Gods deep beneath the earth where they could do no further damage. They set to work repairing the planet, leaving various safeguards behind to watch over the world. Satisfied, they left -- and they haven't been seen on Azeroth since. Today's Know Your Lore is a Tinfoil Hat edition, meaning the following is a look into what has gone before with pure speculation on why it happened. The events presented are events that happened in Azeroth's history, but the conclusions are merely theories and shouldn't be taken as fact.
Know Your Lore: Azeroth's savior and the Badlands
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. A large portion of the new Elemental Bonds quest line available for players in Hyjal involves ex-Warchief Thrall struggling to come to terms with different facets of himself and his life to date: Uncontrolled, unchecked anger at the circumstances of his youth, worry and fear that no matter what he does in his life, it will never be the right thing. And in the midst of all of this, a strong, overbearing desire to just settle down with his woman, have some kids, and just be a family man -- something for which he feels incredibly guilty. After all, when the weight of a dying world rests on your shoulders, the last thing you should be thinking about is starting a family. He comes to terms with all of this, however, and emerges even stronger than before. It seems as though Thrall is prepared to be the savior of Azeroth, the one who will stand with the Aspects at whatever designated time lies before us in the not too distant future and make certain that the world is restored, whole and complete. The one who can properly fill in as Earthwarder. Except ... being the world's savior doesn't leave much time for raising a family, does it? That deep-down desire to just be a normal orc and raise a normal family doesn't seem to be an option at this point -- after all, the world will need someone to continue to faithfully watch it, after Deathwing is gone. Unless, of course, Thrall isn't the savior of Azeroth at all. Perhaps that fate rests on one tiny, fragile egg.
Know Your Lore: The Warcraft cosmos, Tinfoil Hat edition
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. Last week, we wrapped up the second half of the Warcraft cosmos series and covered the additional planes of existence within the Warcraft universe. These layers of planes and the way they interlock is a tricky topic that, quite frankly, gives most people a headache when they think about it too long -- myself included. However, now that we've got the basic layers and interaction between all these planes of existence, there is an incredible amount of speculation to be done. That's right; today's a Tinfoil Hat edition of Know Your Lore. If you are unfamiliar with the Tinfoil Hat concept, these are columns in which we take existing known lore and place our own spin on it to try and speculate on future events. None of the Tinfoil Hat columns should be taken as actual lore by any stretch of the imagination. However, there is a great deal of fun to be had in picking things apart and trying to predict, so let's see what we can come up with, shall we? But first, let's clear up the matter of demonic death.
Patch 4.2 PTR: New login screen temporary?
Animated and roaring Deathwing has been replaced on the PTR with a static image of the Aspect of Death. We do not know if it is the new login screen or if it only temporarily replaces the animated Deathwing-on-Stormwind motif we've grown to love. Why the change? We have no idea. It could be a temporary change while Blizzard works on an issue with the old login screen -- or perhaps it is the end of roaring, animated dragons when you log in to the game. The particular art used is gorgeous, obviously, and it's one of my favorite shots of Deathwing. The reasoning behind the change will most likely come out soon. Tin foil hat speculation puts it anywhere from people's having issues with the login screen and just not loving roaring dragons (even after the toning down of said roaring) to using a new login screen that reflects the next tier of raiding. We don't know! My guess is that we will know soon, however. The news is already rolling out for the upcoming WoW Patch 4.2! Preview the new Firelands raid, marvel at the new legendary staff, and get the inside scoop on new quest hubs -- plus new Tier 12 armor!
Cryptozoic announces WoW TCG Twilight of the Dragons expansion
WoW Trading Card Game fans are about to get really excited, as Cryptozoic has just released details on the third installment of the Worldbreaker set, Twilight of the Dragons. From the details released, this set will be Deathwing's break into Azeroth, releasing the Twilight dragonflight upon us all. Hit the jump for all the details and an awesome artwork gallery. %Gallery-122227%
Know Your Lore: Sinestra and the Night of the Dragon
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. My master... He continues the work that his progeny began. Though the Black Dragonflight is in the process of dying out, that isn't stopping Deathwing from trying to keep it alive. Sort of. Over the course of Warcraft, Deathwing has been on a very deliberate mission to repopulate the world with dragons of his choosing. During the Second War, Deathwing discovered the location of the Demon Soul, a powerful artifact he created back during the War of the Ancients in order to control the other dragonflights. Deathwing wasn't able to wield the Demon Soul, however -- the other Aspects placed a powerful enchantment on the device so that he would no longer be able to use it. But Deathwing was a very clever dragon and realized this meant he simply had to find someone else to use it in his stead. Through visions, he led a powerful orc from the Dragonmaw clan named Zuluhed the Whacked to the artifact. Zuluhed couldn't decipher how to use the thing, and so he handed it over to his second in command, Nekros Skullcrusher. Nekros then promptly used the thing to enslave Alexstrasza the Dragonqueen.
Know Your Lore: Rhonin, leader of the Kirin Tor
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. This is the story of an extraordinary man, his draconic best friend, and the elf he loved and eventually married. Well ... not exactly. Common thought lends itself to the perception that this is all there is to his story, that there is little more to the flame-tressed hero than a series of events in which he stepped up and played the part of the hero again and again, flawlessly performing astonishing feats of magic, his doe-eyed, winsome elven woman at his side. That he is friend to the dragons, fearless leader of the Kirin Tor, a man of great and shining destiny. Common thought would be entirely wrong. Let's begin again: This is the story of a man who desperately wanted nothing more in the world than to be left alone to practice his magic and attain glory -- not for the good of the world, but the good of himself. Selfish, self-centered, cocky, quick to anger and arrogant, he is drawn inexorably into his destiny not by fate, but by the scaly hands of a meddling dragon. The dragon, however, isn't really concerned with the man at all -- he's merely using the man for his own selfish draconic reasons. And the winsome, doe-eyed elven woman? She may be beautiful, but she's also annoying, stubborn, and just as arrogant as the man, when it comes right down to it. The man's name is Rhonin, his life is largely out of his hands, and he's not particularly happy about it.
