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Blood Sport: No scrubs allowed in Season 4
Zach Yonzon takes over Blood Sport this week while new columnist Amanda Dean recuperates from a fever. Former columnist Vims decided he'll take his ominous laughter over to the Warlock columns exclusively.The writing is on the wall. Welfare epics are on the way out. With the new changes to the personal rating requirements -- which now includes gear purchasable by Honor -- it will no longer be possible to completely gear up through PvP without stepping into Arenas. The moment the announcement was made, everything changed for PvP and gear distribution to the player base. With the introduction of the new requirements, Arena and Honor-bought gear has become more restrictive than ever.How does this change the playing field? In two words? A lot. The good will get better, the bad will get worse, and the mediocre won't be getting anywhere. It is no longer possible to participate in Arenas casually. In fact, World of Warcraft PvP as we know it has changed completely. Clearly meant to address point selling teams, the personal rating requirement affects legitimate contenders -- or at least challengers (no pun intended) -- who play Arenas. There is no question that gear is a differentiator in Warcraft PvP. Certainly it's not the only differentiator, but the impact of gear disparity in Arenas is such that it creates an artificial barrier of entry for players who are only beginning to play it. Players who have been playing since Season 1 or 2 will have garnered enough Arena points for at least 4/5 Season 3 gear. Players who have just hit Level 70 or decided to do Arenas late are at a disadvantage. With the changes to the PvP gear system, the gear gap will grow even wider.
The Art of War(craft): Planning for Season 4
Vims has already speculated on when Arena Season 4 will arrive, pegging it somewhere around early to mid-June. I tend to agree with that statement as Blizzard has noted on several occasions that Season 4 isn't coming anytime soon. Considering that none of servers worldwide have even opened the second gate in Sunwell Plateau, it means that equivalent level PvE items won't be cascading into the player base for quite some time. This gives players roughly around a month and two weeks to prepare for the next Arena season, if not longer.Banking aheadBecause Arena points are capped at 5,000, players with enough Arena gear can start banking points in preparation for the new season. If gear prices remain the same (which is likely as prices have been constant through Seasons 1-3), players can open the Arena week with 3/5 Brutal Gladiator pieces: the gloves, which are priced at 1,125 Arena points during the current season; and any two of the chestpiece, headpiece, or leg piece, which go for 1,875 points. It is also possible to purchase the 1,500 points worth shoulder piece on the first week if players manage to raise their personal rating to a highly restrictive 2200 if the speculated changes make it live. Because personal ratings are calculated directly after each game, it is possible to purchase the personal ratings-limited shoulder pieces or weapons provided the player has enough points during the first week.
Brutal ratings requirement for Brutal Gladiator items?
MMO-Champion was able to take a sneak peek at some items released on the official WoW Armory and discovered some truly brutal news: if the items go live as they appeared on the armory, the new personal rating requirement to wear Season 4 shoulder pieces will now be 2200. This is a steep ratings increase from Season 3, where shoulder pieces required a personal rating of 2000. As of this writing, the two items that MMO-Champion was able to scope out cannot be searched for on the official WoW Armory -- either hidden from searches or removed from the database entirely. The Brutal Gladiator's Mooncloth Mantle and Brutal Gladiator's Ornamented Spaulders no longer appear in the item database although MMO-Champion was quick to take screenshots. [EDIT: Apparently, the items are viewable in the EU Armory, you can view the Mooncloth shoulders and healing plate shoulders. - Thanks, BaboonNL!]There is no guarantee that these item changes will make it live or if the weapon requirements -- currently 1850 for Season 3 -- have also been raised. Although Tharfor has gone on record to state that it's likely that Season 3 items' ratings requirements will be lowered in Season 4, Blizzard didn't mention raising the rating requirements for Brutal Gladiator pieces. According to Realm History, this means that roughly 12% of players rated 2000 and above in 5v5 teams will qualify for the shoulder pieces; 11% of the 3v3 bracket; and about 9% of the 2v2 bracket. That means an even smaller percentage of the general population. As much as Patch 2.4 catered to casual content, if these details make it live, it seems as though Arena play has become even more hardcore than ever.
Personal ratings required for S3 gear in Season 4
Arena enthusiasts might be elated to hear that the personal ratings required to purchase weapons and shoulder pieces will remain for the current Season 3 items even as Season 4 will introduce new items into the game. According to Tharfor on the European PvP forums, in response to a question as to whether the ratings will be removed from items as soon as the new season starts, the ratings requirement will still exist (to purchase but not to use) the item but will likely be lowered. It's highly likely that Season 4 weapons and shoulder pieces will retain the 1850 and 2000 personal rating requirements. Exactly how much of a ratings reduction Season 3 will see remains to be seen.This means that players saving up Arena points in the hopes of obtaining a Season 3 weapon or shoulder piece will still need to have competitive personal ratings in order to purchase the items. This is bad news for those hoping to obtain easy welfare epics, but good news for some players who might feel that their item values would diminish greatly if the rating requirements were removed completely. At any rate, it looks like Season 3 will last for a while, so there's still time to jack those ratings up. Good luck, everyone!
Breakfast Topic: Skill or +resilience gear?
The calls go out through trade chat, "Premade AB, must have 250 resil." "Warlock looking for 5v5, have 400 resil, pst." It takes some doing but with Season 1 (soon to be Season 2) Arena gear available as PvP honor rewards, this is not outrageous. Changes on the public test realm that allow the purchase of Gladiator gear with Badges of Justice would make it still easier to acquire gear that is loaded with resilience. Resilience was introduced along with the Burning Cruasde, and has had a massive impact on PvP gear. This combat statistic was designed to reduce the chance of being struck with a critical hit. It also reduces the damage caused by a critical strike. This stat was implemented in order to extend PvP combat.The presence of resilience is the main feature of PvP gear that sets it apart from PvE gear.
WTS: Merciless Nether Drake 3,000g PST
A while back, WoW Insider covered a story about selling Arena titles. Blizzard has acknowledged the little loophole in the Arena system which has been used and abused, which led to the implementation of a few changes such as personal ratings and a rating requirement for Arena item purchases. While a lot of teams have openly admitted to selling ratings and titles, a recent post on the Stormscale forums indicated a price tag on the Armored Nether Drake, pegging it at 3,000g. The buyer, a dwarf Paladin named Madawk, admitted that he only wanted the 310% flying mount, and would never wear the Gladiator title. His guildmates quickly jump to his defense, saying that the mount was pretty much the only thing he couldn't farm and compared the cost to the Cenarion War Hippogryph.What do you guys think? Is the Merciless Nether Drake worth the three grand? Does the buyer make things right by vowing to never display the Gladiator title?
Patch 2.3: Let's play Gladiator Mix-n-match!
Tom Chilton is pretty busy this weekend talking with players about all the updated PvP items in Patch 2.3, and he's revealed another interesting new tidbit of information about coming changes to the Gladiator PvP sets earned from fighting in the arenas:As of patch 2.3 all items in the gladiator season 1, 2, and 3 sets will be part of the same set, so you can use those items interchangeably and keep the set bonuses (ie: you can wear the season 2 shoulders along with the season 3 helm, chest, legs) and retain the 4 piece set bonus.The separate sets for separate specs are going to stay the same, but now the set bonuses for each spec will be upgraded to work the same as the new 2 and 4-piece bonuses that are coming out, regardless of season. So for example, your class and spec's dps set bonus will work no matter which season your arena dps gear comes from. If I were an arena gladiator, I would be jumping up and down for joy right now. As it is, I still think that's pretty neat.[edited for clarity -- the set bonuses will work between seasons, but not between different specs, so healing sets and dps sets won't combine together. Also, the arena season 1 gear will still be moved into the honor system once season 3 comes out]
Resto PvP Druid FTW!
Mookysolo of the Ner'zhul server has written a PVP guide for Restoration druids. And by "guide" I mean eight enormous posts that take up almost an entire forum page. In that marathon listing, you'll find the three best pieces of equipment per slot, recommended enchants, jewels by color, different talent builds, recommended strategies, theorycraft, mathcraft and a FAQ. To say that it's thorough would be an understatement. He also provides two movies of his PvP exploits for your enjoyment.For another perspective on the same subject, be sure to check out another Resto PvP Guide on the European forums. Many interesting strategies listed and more movies at the end of that post.EDIT: I've rewritten the tone of the post to reflect the lack of surprise on behalf of PvP players of the dominance of Resto Druids. Clearly I don't PvP, but my intent here was to pass on an excellent guide I came across. I've altered the tone of the post to be more informational and in the future, I'll put my reaction in context.That being said, I'm always impressed when players manage to excel with a "gimped" spec. I'll see if I can find such a case for PvP and post it for you guys.Thanks for the feedback..
Raiding gear vs. Arena gear
With the advent of Arena season 2, a lot of people are looking forward to the new arena sets. But others are wondering if gear gained from the arenas should be better, worse, or equal to gear from raiding. Two forum topics -- "ARENA GEAR should NOT = RAIDING GEAR" and "Raiding gear should NOT = Arena gear" purport to pit PVEers against PVPers, even though most people seem to do a mix of both. Basically, the argument goes like this: Raider: Anyone can get arena epics fairly easily just by PVPing a few matches a week, so why should they be as good as the drops I spent hours raiding for? Arena player: Any brainless monkey can mash a keyboard against programmed opponents. Facing other people is the real test of skill in WoW, so we should get the best gear. Everyone else: Hey, aren't the PVP sets better for PVP and the PVE sets better for PVE? What's wrong with that? It's not like that stamina and resilience are gonna do most people tons of good against Kael'thas. Personally, as one of those elusive casual raiders, I like having the arena sets equal to raiding sets. It gets all the people who just want to gear up through raiding, then /gquit and PVP all the time out of raiding guilds. PVP gear should be best at killing other players, and PVE gear should be best at killing bosses. And when did doing Arena for a month to get ONE epic item become "easy epics"? It's only easy if you compare it to the old PVP honor system, which was life-destroying. Drysc puts it pretty well in one of the threads: "You're not actually concerned that someone else is getting something easier than you, because you would go do it and wouldn't look back. You're either unable or unwilling to switch to what you perceive is the easier route, and want what you're invested in or willing to do made easier based on what you perceive matches the effort invested in the other." Basically, if you're raiding for gear and complain that Arena is easier, go do Arena, and vice versa. Are you okay with the gear from raiding and from Arenas, or would you like to see one part of the game buffed? Is "PVEing to PVP" still a viable way of winning in PVP?
A few details on Arena Season 2
It was recently announced that the second Arena season would be starting on June 12th, and now we have a few details about the new Gladiator items that will come along with the new season (courtesy of Drysc):Yes, new Arena weapons are included. All of the current items will see new versions for season 2, with some new additions. The new honor rewards will be new versions of the epic items (boot, belt, bracer). A new back-slot item won't be added, but a new ring will be available. The arena set items are always intended to match their equivalent tier sets in appearance to easily link them through visual recognition to their PvE counterparts. Arena season 1 item cost reduction will be about 15%. There are more healing-centric items planned for season 2. I honestly hadn't noticed the similarity between arena items and tier items, but it makes sense. That's not a very big cost reduction: gloves, for instance, will go from 1125 to 956 arena points or so. I was expecting a much bigger discount. With prices like that I don't predict many people will opt to buy the season one items, unless it's to get set bonuses.One more tidbit that's come to light about arena seasons is that it is currently planned to keep two seasons' worth of items available at all times. That is to say, when Season 3 comes out, Season 1 items will no longer be available (though Season 2 items will be). [via World of Ming]
Selling arena titles for fun and profit
Death and Taxes has made WoW headlines for many things, mostly due to their raiding achievements. But today on the forums another aspect of the guild's performance made heads turn: their PvP arena teams. In the PvP arena 3v3 bracket Death and Taxes guild members have been using the current rule system to their benefit. What exactly does this entail? Well, to be specific, members of the top ranked teams are sharing their skill with lower ranked PvP players in order to raise their standings and get them the coveted Armored Netherdrake and an easy title. Seeing the success of one D&T arena team after another is frustrating their opponents, and therefore the vocal forum protest. Members of D&T have naturally spoken up in their own defense, and fairly eloquently I might add. One of the accusations leveled at the guild was that they are using top crafted items to gain an edge in PvP, essentially using their power as a PvE guild to dominate the PvP domain.
Breakfast Topic: How did you learn to PvP?
I fell in love with the Gladiator's War Staff as soon as I saw it, in all its shiny, spinning glory. And thus with a hopeful heart I joined a 2v2 arena team, eager to get my PvP on. Only, what I thought was PvP, that limited experience I had getting to the rank of Knight mostly in Alterac Valley, turns out not to be enough. I don't want to put my partner out, especially since they are so patient with me. Plus I really, really want that staff. And so I put it to you readers, to the great PvP masters out there. How did you learn to PvP?
Beep, beep! I'm a Jeep!
I woke up this morning, started reading through the LJ World of Warcraft community, and there was a post there that made me stop and stare. I just couldn't believe my eyes. After all, I have a druid, and I enjoy playing her -- but if my eyes were working correctly, things were about to get very interesting! True, it wasn't quite as good as the suggested Octopus on a Motorcycle form, but it at least had the potential to be really interesting! As Taishokao pointed out, when you go to the WoW Europe forums here, select druid, and then check out the Gladiator set, you can verify the above screen shot. The druid set 4-piece bonus does indeed currently list a car form. (I don't know how long that's going to take Blizzard to fix, but for now, it still says "car." hehe) For all the potential funny in that, we know it's a typo. (There again, it's probably just as well, because if we had car forms, I'm relatively sure my noob-feral-druid-self would probably wind up as a Geo Metro. :P ) But that led me to thinking about typos in game. I know I've seen them here and there on quest givers, but I think by far the worst ones I've seen have been from other players. I know I'm guilty of accidentally mis-typing "1 sec" wrong while in the middle of instances which has gotten me picked on a lot. (No, I'm not saying what I typo it as -- this is a family blog!) Personally, I think the one that gets me irked the most is "rouge" for "rogue." Of course, I suspect that's because my main is a rogue, and I can never get the image of the "Moulin" Dark Legacy strip out of my head when someone says that, but I digress... Are there any typos that have gotten you harassed, picked on, or just irked you when they were repeated over and over? I know I can't be the only one who has messed that kind of thing up. The fact that someone made a comic strip about the rouge/rogue typo tells me I'm not also the only one who's been somewhat amused yet frustrated by it, either. So share yours with the rest of the Insider crew! Have you ever noticed a hilarious typo on an NPC? How about personal typos? Any that get you in trouble with your guilds or that you make you crazy? Vent to the rest of us, or share with us your own personal moment of lol. [via the WoW LJ]
