heroic-scenarios
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How to PuG a heroic scenario with oQueue
One major aspect of heroic scenarios that was causing irritation, the cache issue, was resolved yesterday with a hotfix explained by Blizzard Community Manager Taepsilum. One thing that WoW Insider has been seeing a lot in regard to heroic scenarios is the difficulty players are having in getting groups to run them. As you probably already know, they require a premade group of three players to run, and particularly for those with limited play time, this can be a real palaver. You do get valor for runs after the first one, but the bonus valor is so substantial that it seems most people just want to do one per day. So if you're struggling for people to join you for a heroic scenario, what can you do? Of course, you can spam Trade or General, but there are other steps to take. My preferred method, which I also use to pug rated battlegrounds, is oQueue. There are other options, like OpenRaid US and EU, which is a fantastic resource for pre-planned scenario runs, along with rated battlegrounds and raids. But, for me, scenarios are a spur-of-the-moment thing to do when I have 15 minutes to spare. So oQueue is my preferred method. How does it work?
Heroic Scenario reward system updated
A couple of weeks back, WoW Insider posted an important public service announcement, warning players of a rather counter-intuitive system whereby only the first scenario of the day would award a loot cache, regardless of whether that scenario was normal or heroic. We warned players to avoid them being locked out of a chance at 516 loot, and the palpable frustration that came with it. Now, though, Blizzard Community Manager Taepsilum has posted about a very recent change. It should be noted that this is not in the most recent batch of hotfixes, and that Taepsilum is an EU Community Manager, posting the day after EU servers restart. Therefore, it is possible that this change is currently only live in the EU. Proceed with caution. Taepsilum Quote: Remember that you only get the Heroic Cache of Treasures from the first scenario you do in a day (and only if it's a HC scenario. so if you do a normal scenario first you won't get one at all). The rest of the time you just get Greater Cache of Treasures. This has actually been changed today and the hotfix should already be live. You should be able to get both of these rewards now, as long as you complete one heroic and at least one normal scenario once per day. You shouldn't have to worry about doing a heroic scenario before you do a normal one, the order doesn't matter anymore. source This is a great change to what was a rather counter-intuitive system, but please do be very careful about trying it, especially on US servers. I have tested it on EU servers and can confirm that it does work, I did a normal scenario first, followed by a heroic one, and received the Greater Cache, then the Heroic Cache.
WoW Insider Round Table: Heroic Scenarios
Welcome to the first WoW Insider Round Table. Every week or two we'll give you the inside scoop on the key opinions and facts about a specific area of the World of Warcraft. In today's inaugural video we're talking about what's on everyone's mind: heroic scenarios. They're beasts right now. People are quite divided on how useful they are, and what the best way to go about finding a group for them are. We've even had Ghostcrawler weigh in on the mechanics of the rewards via Twitter. Olivia, Matt, Dawn, and Sally sit down in a Google Hangout and share their thoughts and opinions. And we want to hear yours! What do you think heroic scenarios are doing for the game? Are they everything you wanted them to be ... or can you not even find a group for them? Let us know, and thanks for watching!
Don't lock yourself out of epic Scenario rewards
Blizzard Lead Systems Designer Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street has taken to Twitter to share some important information concerning the epic cache of treasures that drops from your first heroic Scenario of the day @trimbleirl Yes, you only get one first of the day from scenarios. We want heroics as a replacement option not something else to have to do. - Greg Street (@Ghostcrawler) May 24, 2013 So, to restate what Ghostcrawler is saying, if you run a normal scenario and receive the chest, then run a heroic scenario, you will not receive a second chest. You only receive the chest from your first scenario of the day, regardless of whether that scenario is normal or heroic. If you're after the superior chest, therfore, along with the superior rewards, you should ensure that your first scenario of the day is one of the new heroic ones. For clarity, these require a pre-made group of three, as well as an item level of 480 or above. The chest has a chance to contain ilvl 516 loot, so definitely bear this advice in mind when you're making your decisions on what you're doing today. The system seems a little counter-intuitive, so spread the word. Update: This has now been fixed. You will receive both caches on any given day.
Have you done any heroic scenarios?
%Poll-82609% So, the new patch has been out for a few days now, and one of it's more touted features -- heroic scenarios -- has left us here at WoW Insider all scratching our heads a bit. See, surprisingly, there's no Dungeon Finder option to queue for them, meaning that currently the only way to do them is to get a premade group of three and zone into the scenario from its Azerothian starting point. Talk about a blast from the past! Suddenly visions of Shattrath trade chat in 2009 whirl before me, in which never ending whispers from those poor souls trying to get through heroic Shadow Labyrinth filled my chat log. "Will you tank?" they'd ask. "No," I'd respond. "I'm a healer!" (These were the days before dual specs.) Ahem. In any case, trade chat has once more filled with calls of "LFM heroic scenarios," something that hasn't been seen around these parts in a while. We're all relearning how difficult it can be to round up a group without the Dungeon Finder around to grease the wheels. So, have any of you managed to successfully corral your groups and get through a heroic scenario or two?
Lichborne: Final notes on patch 5.3 and a legendary shortcut
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. By the time you read this, patch 5.3 should be on live servers. We've already written a couple columns on what patch 5.3 will mean for death knights, but as always, things change on the PTR. With that in mind, this week we'll take a final look at patch 5.3 for death knights and what you can expect and do once the servers are back up (if they aren't already). I also have a couple notes on completing Wrathion's legendary quest line for death knights.
Blizzard's official look at patch 5.3
Blizzard has been blogging up a storm about patch 5.3, and there have recently been 2 more articles added to their arsenal. The first is a run-down of the new scenarios available, posted by Community Manager Nethaera, which runs players down the four new three-player scenarios coming in patch 5.3. Neth gives us a quick summary of the stories behind the scenarios, while doing a great job of not being too spoiler-heavy. She runs down the background of Blood in the Snow, Dark Heart of Pandaria, Secrets of Ragefire and Battle on the High Seas. You can also check out WoW Insider's own articles on Blood in the Snow and Dark Heart of Pandaria, but beware the light spoilers that lurk within! Nethaera also briefly discusses the new difficulty level that will be added with patch 5.3, heroic scenarios. She clarifies that they are intended for pre-made groups of three players, and will award a hefty 120 valor, as well as bonus valor for completing the objectives. What's more, Blizzard has recently published a guide to getting geared for 5.3, aimed at players with alts, and players who are returning to the game. They've got some great tips in there, even going so far as to acknowledge some neat tricks that'll have you running the Raid Finder in no time.
Lichborne: Patch 5.3 and other news for death knights
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. With patch 5.2 having, if not solved, at least soothed most of our balance problems, patch 5.3 seems like a relatively quiet patch for death knights. Our class changes are a handful of relatively small fixes. That said, there's still a good amount of content coming. Today, we'll look at patch 5.3 content and what it offers for the death knight. Note that what we're discussing today is primarily PTR content, and thus may not make it live, or will make it live in a slightly different format.
Patch 5.3 PTR: Heroic and new scenarios available for testing soon
Players that have been participating in the patch 5.3 PTR testing may have noticed that there's not exactly a lot of new content to test out just yet. That's about to change with the next patch update -- according to CM Vaneras over on the EU forums, all new and heroic scenarios should be available for testing with the next PTR update. This includes all new 5.3 lore scenarios -- and if you're wondering whether you'll be able to test both, you can put your mind at ease. Both factions will be able to participate in all new scenarios, and the disguise mechanic introduced when Dagger in the Dark and A Little Patience were released with patch 5.2 will be implemented. As for heroic scenarios, players will be able to participate in that content as well -- there's a new section in the scenario queuing system that will allow players to queue for heroic rather than regular scenario content. EU players can leave feedback on the official forum thread, and presumably US players will have their own thread for doing so as well. If you've been itching to find out more about upcoming 5.3 content, this is your chance to take a peek and give your feedback on the content. If you're interesting in participating, you can download the PTR client via your account management page on Battle.net, as well as copy an existing character over to the PTR. Blizzard seems to be looking specifically for people's reactions to the relative challenge of the scenarios, as well as feedback regarding the new bonus objective system. Keep your eyes peeled, we'll have more information on all of the new scenarios once they are available and open for play.
What's the purpose of a heroic dungeon?
One of the more volatile announcements that we've heard so far from Blizzard regarding Mists of Pandaria is the fact that Mists will not include any more 5-man dungeons. In an expansion where new content seems to be rolling out on a much faster, tighter basis than any expansion prior this seems a little bizarre to players, particularly those that enjoy dungeon-based content. Yet one of the things Mists has been doing consistently throughout the expansion is delivering a wider array of things to do. In fact, there's such a variety in endgame content that players sometimes feel legitimately overwhelmed by the sheer amount of it. But just because we aren't getting any new dungeons doesn't mean we aren't getting alternate ways to obtain all that sweet, sweet gear we know and love. Patch 5.3 will see the introduction of heroic scenarios, slightly tougher versions of the scenarios we've already seen this expansion. In addition to valor, the heroic scenarios will offer raid-finder level rewards for players that choose to participate in them -- better than any gear you'll find in a heroic dungeon at this point. While this may seem pretty cool for some people, it does make one wonder -- what's the purpose of heroic dungeons?
Patch 5.3 PTR: A first look at Heroic Scenarios
Whilst waiting for my battleground queue to pop on the PTR, it seemed like a good time to check out a heroic scenario or two. These are queued for, solo or in a group, from a drop-down in the scenarios section of the Looking For Group panel. What are they like? Well, in general, rather like anything that's listed as heroic in WoW, things hit harder. Quite a lot harder, frankly: in A Brewing Storm my group actually had to pay attention to the red circles cast by the trash mobs, and try to stand in the green circles which offer healing. In the Crypt of Forgotten Kings, it was much the same, the bad got far badder, but the mechanics remained the same, and despite the regular untimely death of some team-mates, all fights were completable with 2 well-geared players. The same applied for A Brewing Storm and Greenstone Village. The eagle-eyed reader will have noticed that, apart from offering more gold, as well as the standard 50 valor, and the cache of treasures, there's a line for completing bonus objectives, which can earn a massive (for scenarios) 90 additional valor. Subsequent scenarios still award 25 valor, but the 90 valor bonus appears to remain intact.
