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What Blizzard did right (and wrong) with the world event
I've been waiting to do some breakdown analysis of the Wrath world event until it actually ended, and since we're now swarming over Northrend and exploring Arthas' domain, I think the time has come to determine a verdict on whether or not Blizzard's world event delivered.The short answer? I think it did, but not without a few bumps along the way. This was certainly the most ambitious world event Blizzard has attempted yet, both reusing some of their old techniques (the Scourge invasion), some newer tricks (a special boss with extra loot, which they learned from the Horseman last year), and even some tricks they picked up from players. But there were certain issues -- the timing was just plain bad, and the event really fizzled out rather than finished with a bang.After the break, we run through what Blizzard did right and wrong with the world event, and what we can expect in the future.
One Shots: Orgrimmar under attack
World of Warcraft players have known that Blizzard was building up the Wrath pre-launch scourge event to a crescendo. After all, precedent was set with the buildup of the Dark Portal opening for Burning Crusade, and even with the server-crashing events for the launch of Ahn'Quiraj. Last night those questions were laid to rest as both Orgrimmar and Stormwind were invaded by abominations and giant flying Frost Wyrms like you see above. This blogger was on-hand to see the battle between Thrall and Garrosh, and the ensuing invasion madness. The event then repeated approximately every 20 minutes until the servers went down for maintenance, giving people who had missed the first appearance a chance to particpate in the event. As the servers are just now coming back up, we'll have to wait and see if it continues until launch - or if there's something even larger in store. If you've been part of a large pre-launch story event in your favorite MMO, we want to see it! Whether old or recent, those are still interesting and cool postcards that say "I was there." Just gather those server event pictures up and send them to us here at oneshots AT massively DOT com along with your name and a quick description of the event. Yours could be the next one showcased here on One Shots! %Gallery-9798%
Battle for Orgrimmar and Stormwind videos
The battles against the Scourge in Stormwind and Orgrimmar continue to rage (once every 20 minutes), but if you're not in a position where you can see the event firsthand, some fantastic readers have contributed some videos for us, and for all of you.You can see the Orgrimmar version above, and the Stormwind version past the cut below. Neither video does the chaos of the event justice, but no video ever will. It's something you need to be there for, I think. No video gives you the "holy crap, did that just happen!?" feel of Varian Wrynn leaping through the air and tearing an abomination asunder. The fight between Thrall and Garrosh is ridiculously cool, too. I highly recommend trying to see these events before they go away, but these videos will do for now, and our thanks go out to Chrono of Silvermoon-EU and Ben H. for them.
Lich King begins assault on Azeroth, starting with Orgrimmar
World of Warcraft players are experiencing a world event leading up to the launch of Wrath of the Lich King. No, it's not another invasion of flesh-craving zombies -- but it's just as cool. You see, the Lich King is currently launching attacks on Orgrimmar via Frostwyrms and Aboms. The event restarts every 20 minutes and is specifically located in the Valley of Honor. We're unsure how many servers the event has begun on, so if you run into yours and find it peaceful and serene don't feel discouraged as you may only need to wait a little bit before the frost bolts start raining down. Gallery: Orgrimmar is under attack! One of Azeroth's millions of citizens? Check out our ongoing coverage of the World of Warcraft, and be sure to touch base with our sister site WoW Insider for all your Lich King needs!
Wrath World Event continues: Lich King attacking Orgrimmar and Stormwind [Updated]
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/The_Lich_King_is_attacking_the_World_of_Warcraft'; The Wrath of the Lich King opening event continues tonight. Orgrimmar is under attack. If it hasn't happened yet on your server it will soon. The major points of the attack are as follows: Thrall is fighting Garrosh Hellscream in the Ring of Valor. Hellscream wins. Frost Wyrms and Aboms are attacking the Valley of Honor in Orgrimmar. Sylvanas can be seen marching around the Valley of Honor with a contingent of skeleton soldiers. The event appears to repeat itself every 20 minutes The Horde leaders are all talking to each other about the war with Arthas in-between Thrall fighting Hellscream. There are many reports that the necropolises have left the major cities. In Stormwind, Varian Wynn, Bolvarr, and a few other nobles are standing under a tent in the Harbor. They are offering quite a bit of new flavor text when you talk to them. Stormwind Harbor is being attacked with Frost Wyrms and Aboms. The King and his company of nobles are defending the Harbor the best they can. Continue reading on after the break for the full record of events! The events of the evening appear to be over, however if anything else develops we'll update this post. %Gallery-36583%%Gallery-36584%
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.
Blizzard previews new Arenas
Old news if you paid attention to our liveblog of the PvP panel at BlizzCon (or if you read through Zach's great analysis of the news we got there), but Blizzard is adding two new Arena spaces to the game, and they've created an official page to show off the new designs and mechanics in each.The Ring of Valor is a new space in Orgrimmar -- it features an elevator that rises up to a starting position that leaves players in close proximity, and then there is a set of fire obstacles and two moving pillars that can be used to as many tactical advantages that you can come up with. The other space, the Dalaran Sewers, also mixes in a few line-of-sight tricks, including a periodic waterfall that blocks LoS and a raised platform in the middle that can only be reached via two sets of stairs on diagonal sides.Personally, I think the new mechanics are exciting, but then again I've played maybe four Arena matches in my life -- word I'm getting from most of the Arena players I know is that these changes add a little too much RNG to the maps (considering the all the obstacles are timed, they're not really random, but that's just what I think). What say you, Arena players?
Thrall missing from Orgrimmar [UPDATED]
The WoW Insider tipline is lighting up like crazy with shocking reports from Orgrimmar: Thrall is gone. At least, missing from Orgrimmar. Maybe he has a beach house in Stranglethorn Vale, but we haven't seen or heard anything about that yet. A new Apothecary can be seen to the right of the throne (left if you're sitting in the chair.) The apothecary, Apothecary Karlov, has no quest dialogue to speak of but he's tied to The Hand of Vengeance, a faction in Northrend.What happened to Thrall? We have no idea. It's very likely tied to the Wrath of the Lich King prologue, perhaps part of a soon-to-come new stage of the Scourge Invasion? We don't really know yet, but we're definitely going to be watching this. Thrall is kind of a big deal![Updated behind the cut]
WotLK world event going underway
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/Zombies_invade_WoW_in_pre_expansion_world_event'; And thus it begins. Midnight just rang out across the EU's servers, and with it brings the Argent Dawn, appearing in capital cities all over Azeroth warning of the coming of the Lich King. "The plagued tendrils of the Lich King," they say, "lurk close."We knew it was coming (heavy spoilers on that link!), though we still don't know for sure exactly what form the Lich King's re-arrival into Azeroth will take. Will it be a simple replay of the Scourge Invasion that brought Naxxramas to our shores for the first time? Or will it be something even more sinister, a world event that shakes the very foundations of the World of Warcraft as we know it?Call us destructive, but we're kind of hoping for the second. Stay tuned for more news of the world event leading up to Wrath of the Lich King as we hear it.Thanks to everyone who sent this in!%Gallery-35140%Zombies have entered the World of Warcraft in the Wrath of the Lich King world event! Check out our tips for eating brains, our zombie night gallery, or see Blizzard's official zombie infestation guide. They live! Braaiiiiinnnssss!
Breakfast Topic: The not-so-easy achievements
If you're like many of us, you've probably looked at the Achievement system coming to the game in patch 3.02, picked a few favorites, and considered getting some of them done before Wrath hits and all hell breaks loose. The last few weeks before an expansion tend to be relatively relaxed and quiet, leaving you with plenty of time to, say, Explore Kalimdor, visit zones you may have missed for 1500 Quests, or just convince more factions that you're really not so bad.Some Achievements, however, are a little tougher, particularly those that will reward your character with a special title or mount. While I'm not sure I want to think about what something like For the Alliance! is going to be like, the one that I'm most concerned about is the Fishing Diplomat one. It's an an achievement needed for Accomplished Angler, and requires you to fish something up in both Orgrimmar and Stormwind. My main is a Tauren Druid, so fishing anything in Orgrimmar is a piece of cake. Stormwind, less so. While I can stealth into the city easily enough, fishing necessarily leaves you exposed for a period of 15-20 seconds. I don't think it'd bother me as much as it does if it weren't for the team of bored Alliance on my realm who typically camp quest objectives during holiday events. While I somehow doubt they've got the numbers or inclination to cover every inch of the Stormwind canals, I'm equally doubtful that my eight-foot cow's presence in the city will go unnoticed.I don't really have that much to worry about compared to the Hordies going after Old Ironjaw (in Ironforge) or Alliance going after Old Crafty (in Orgrimmar) for the Old Ironjaw and Old Crafty achievements respectively (what sadist came up with the idea of having you fish for a 0.1% drop in an enemy city?), but one thing's certain: some achievements are going to be more taxing than others.
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Warriors of Time on Moon Guard hosts Bare Naked Boxing
Hagiel, the guild leader of Warriors of Time on the Moon Guard server, is having a birthday this week (happy birthday!), and to celebrate, they're hosting something that sounds awesome: bare naked boxing duels. This Thursday, October 9th, at 6:30pm server (which I believe will leave you enough time to still come out to our meetup later in the evening if you're in Anaheim), they're all meeting in front of Orgrimmar, and it's fight club time. To fuel the festivities, we hear there will be beer and treats also -- let me tell you, if you've never gotten drunk in game, taken off all of your clothes and weapons, and gotten in the ring with just your fists, you're missing out.Seems like it's always the Moon Guard folks holding all of these fun player-run events, seems like. If you're running an event or you know about one going down on your server, feel free to drop us a tip, and let us know also if you make it to these things. We're always interested in seeing pictures or videos of player-made events going down. And good luck to the fighters on Moon Guard Thursday night, because you know what they say: If this is your first time to bare naked boxing, you have to get naked and box.
Ask a Beta Tester: Attunements, achievements, more low level quests
Welcome to another edition of Ask a Beta Tester, wherein we all sit around, drink ale, smoke cigars, talk about our awesome hogs and then tear up the road of Dalaran, risking our lives with extreme stunts just for the thrill and the feeling of adrenaline flowing through our veins....Wait, that's not what we do at all. Swiss asked...I'm interested in the Low Level Quest Tracker. Does this replace other trackers such as Find Herbs or Find Minerals? Or does it stack with other tracking as well?It does not stack with other tracking, but you generally wouldn't need both at once. Turn it on in town, grab your quests, turn your other tracking back on when you leave. That'll be problematic for finding low level quests out in the wilds, but does your level 80 Death Knight need that Peacebloom while you're off looking for quests?Read on for more of your Wrath of the Lich King Beta questions!
Harvest Festival ends today
Just a friendly reminder for everyone: Today is the last day of the Harvest Festival, the annual event honoring the fallen heroes of the Horde and the Alliance. That means you have one more day to head to the front entrance of Ironforge and Orgrimmar to hang with some ghosts, buy some cheap fireworks (those Midsummer Ground Flowers are awesome, and I am totally stocking up), and go pay your respects to Grom or Uther. Yeah, it's a small holiday, and a weird one at that. I mean, you either honor Uther, who was a jerk to Tirion Fordring, ineffective against the Scourge and was betrayed and killed by his protege, or Grom, who betrayed the Orcish race to the Burning Legion at least twice, and whose clan is still one of the major sources of strife and bad Horde-Alliance relations on Azeroth today. And what about hanging out with all those ghosts? I mean, isn't anyone concerned that they could be scourge? And what about those Forsaken ancestors? Shouldn't they look like humans as ghosts, since they were humans in the first place? And wouldn't a good portion of those Orc and Troll ancestors come from the tradition of savagery and cannibalism and demon worship that the Horde is supposedly trying to break free from? Oh well, at least it's free fireworks and free food. Enjoy it while you can! Brewfest is a scant week away too, so be sure to review the new Coren Direbrew loot and plan your trip to the Grim Guzzler now.
Blood Elves and Draenei can run the Harvest Festival
As a few of our readers have noticed, Blizzard has fixed the old problems with the Harvest Festival this year -- the new races of Blood Elves and Draenei can now do the quests that start outside of Orgrimmar and Ironforge. Last year was the first time the races had a chance to run them, and Blizzard hadn't implemented the quests for them yet. But this year, things are A-OK.Unfortunately, there's no acknowledgement that they're new to the game -- while the quests do mention the character's class, they just see BEs and Draenei as just other members of their faction. It was a little weird running to honor Grom Hellscream with my Blood Elf, but if you want to be a good member of the Horde or Alliance (and pick up that nice food dispenser in the mail), have at it.
One Shots: Orgrimmar by moonlight
Having just come back from Dragon*Con, we can say we met a huge number of World of Warcraft players, and we had a blast getting to know the overall MMO community out there. While there are several posts coming (and yes, even the D*C Blizzard "serenade" video) we thought we'd kick it off with this gorgeous World of Warcraft screenshot that was sent in to us here by Khaldun from Maelstrom. He added that he hoped his shot would... finish on the front page of [our] amazing blog, which [he] reads daily! As you wish, Khaldun! Thanks for sending in such a great night shot of the Horde's capital city. Do you play WoW and love to show it off? Do you hate WoW and would like to show us just why the game you play rules? Are you largely indifferent to WoW, but have lots of cool screenshots? Whatever your reason, we want your screens! Just send those in to us here at oneshots AT massively.com along with a quick description and your name. Easy, no?%Gallery-9798%
Blizzard announces Pre-Wrath content patch
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/Blizzard_announces_Pre_Wrath_content_patch'; Hold on to your hats, ladies and gentlemen. In a sign that Wrath of the Lich King is quickly moving toward release, Eyonix officially announced today that we will see a new content patch "in the coming weeks." This patch will introduce a good portion of the old world Wrath-related content and UI improvements, and will probably start the pre-Wrath opening event (If you don't mind spoilers, you can get some info on what that event may entail from us). Check out Eyonix's list of what is being implemented and what it may mean after the break.
All the World's a Stage: So you want to be an orc
This installment of All the World's a Stage is the second in a series of roleplaying guides in which we find out all the background information you need to roleplay a particular race or class well, without embarrassing yourself.If you've seen Lord of the Rings, or read any other fantasy story in which orcs are portrayed, you probably think orcs are hideous humanoid monsters charging mindlessly forward to slaughter helpless innocents. Azerothian orcs are significantly different, however, with a shamanistic culture that prides honor above all other virtues.But unless you've played World of Warcraft or Warcraft 3, you probably wouldn't know that. The orcs of Warcraft 1 and 2 were pretty squarely in "bad guy" territory, and it is only with the story of Thrall's rise to power and return to shamanism that we find out what the orcs' true history is.Ironically, the story of the orcs is a bit like that of the horrors of modern Nazis and the lore of the ancient Jews mixed together. Imagine that the vast majority of your species came under the sway of a terrible and evil leader, utterly determined to commit genocide against your peaceful neighbors. After carrying out this deplorable task, your people sought a new enemy, and found a new world to destroy. In the midst of this conquest, however, your people's political leadership failed, the way back home was cut off, and you all ended up as slaves in exile, lethargic and utterly without hope. Suddenly, a hero appeared to unite your people, overcome your former masters, restore your ancient faith, reclaim your dignity, and establish a new homeland. What follows is a brief account of the events most orcs know about or lived through, and a glimpse of the effects they would have had on your character.
Wrath sound files point to world event
Spoiler Alert! The guys over at the WotLK Information Wiki have uncovered what appears to be sound files related to the world event that will open up Northrend. There are three separate monologues that have Arthas talking in villanous tones and creepy background music. Spoiler-heavy details after the jump! You have been warned!
Around Azeroth: Death to the Warchief
There are few sights more chilling than finding the throne room in Thrallmar empty... or worse, with the remains of what might be the mighty Thrall. Since Around Azeroth mistress Elizabeth Wachowski's computer is misbehaving today, I pulled this screenshot from my own coffers, taken after a massive Alliance raid on Orgrimmar that left plenty dead -- most notably the Horde's own Warchief. Now, will Achievements like Death to the Warchief! result in more scenes like this around Azeroth? Wait until Wrath and see...Do you have any interesting World of Warcraft images hidden away in your computer somewhere? Share it with us on Around Azeroth! This should be as simple as e-mailing aroundazeroth@wow.com with your screenshot and a few words about what we're looking at. Remember to keep those screenshots clean! That means without the UI (you can click alt-Z to remove it). Include your player name and guild if you want a shout-out. If you have Beta screenshots, send those in, too! We at WoW Insider are always yearning for Beta news. %Gallery-1816%
Gamers on the Street: The Beta beat
This week I headed off to Bleeding Hollow's Horde side to talk with players about the biggest story of the past week: the opening up of the opt-in for the Wrath of the Lich King beta. The server was really busy, and in fact, someone's been busy in Orgrimmar there -- there are quite a few bits of corpse graffiti around, with names like "Pvpfails" and "Blizzsucks."But nevertheless, I did find two willing victims interviewees for the column this week. See what we talked about after the jump.
