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(Update 2) Wrath of the Lich King - New batch of info |
Teza, May 9 2008 10:58 am |
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Wrath of the Lich King - New batch of info
Update2: New info about Arthas, Dragonblight and factions.
Dragonblight
• Players will interact with Arthas for the first time at a relatively low level, around 71-74 in Dragonblight - the final encounter with him won't be until the final patch of the Lich King cycle, some time after release.
• The Chamber of Aspects in Dragonblight will offer a series of different single-encounter short raids with dragon bosses. (not confirmed, but that's the idea)
Factions
• The Argent Dawn faction returns in Zul'Drak.
• In Sholazar Basin, players will take part in a faction-reputation war between the Wolvar (sentient wolves) and Oracles ("the next evolution of the Murlocs"). A much lighter take on reputation gaming is promised here, with players actively encouraged to defect to the other side at will.
Update1: We added new info to the WotLK preview summary and used the patch notes layout for a better readability.
This week, several websites have been invited to Blizzard HQ to have an insight of the upcoming expansion Wrath of the Lich King, we will keep this news updated with every new piece of info released by these sites.
Interviews & Articles
• An Interview With WoW's Lead Designers (Curse)
• Curse visits Blizzard HQ to check out Lich King (Curse)
• Wrath of the Lich King Preview (Gamespy)
• Enter the Death Knight (Gamespy)
• GameSpy Invades Northrend
• Wrath of the Lich King Raid and Dungeon Update (Gamespy)
• Jeff Kaplan Interview (Gamespy)
• A Talk With J. Allen Brack (Gamespy)
WotLK Preview - Info Summary
The following is a compilation of information from Curse and Gamespy using the patch notes layout, for a better readability.
General
• Players will unlock their flying mounts at level 77
• You can use your Outland flying mount, and Blizzard will have new flying mounts for players to get as well
• The Northrend in Wrath of the Lich King is considerably larger than Outland, the area explored by players in Burning Crusade. That means not only are there larger numbers of zones to explore, many of them are so large that they've been divided into "sub-zones," much like Terrokar Forest and the Auchindon Waste in Outland.
• The new "vehicle" system will enable characters to "drive" an object around. One example Blizzard gave them: Players will fly over a human settlement being overrun with the Scourge, lowering a ladder down to pull up and rescue civilians. In one dungeon instance, players will be able to "liberate" some blue dragons that they can mount up and fly around, fighting their way up a massive tower.
Old Azeroth contents used in Northrend
• There are quests and content relating to the Worgen and the sons of Arugal (from Silverpine Forest) and everyone's favorite religious fanatics, the Scarlet Crusade (called the Scarlet Onslaught in Northrend).
• They're also advancing the Forsaken storyline, adding in uniquely Forsaken building architecture and giving the player more chances to help in their Wile E. Coyote-like quest to kill every living thing on Azeroth.
Factions
• The Argent Dawn faction returns in Zul'Drak.
• In Sholazar Basin, players will take part in a faction-reputation war between the Wolvar (sentient wolves) and Oracles ("the next evolution of the Murlocs"). A much lighter take on reputation gaming is promised here, with players actively encouraged to defect to the other side at will.
Dungeons & Raids
• Similar to World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade, all 5-person dungeons will have a Heroic mode, and the loot tables for the 2 modes will be totally separate. Heroic dungeons will have their own "Tier" of armor completely unique to that level dungeon.
• The regular five-man instances take around one hour or less to beat (this probably won't be the case for the heroic versions)
• Zero raid bosses have been designed at this point
New "two-tier" raiding system
• All raid dungeons in Wrath of the Lich King will have both 25-person and 10-person versions
- 25-person raiding progression is not dependent on 10-person raiding; players will not have to obtain keys or attunements in 10-person raids to participate in 25-person raids
- 10- and 25-person raids both have their own, independent progression paths
• Players will receive more, higher level rewards for completing the 25-person raid dungeons over the 10-person version
Dragonblight
• Players will interact with Arthas for the first time at a relatively low level, around 71-74 in Dragonblight - the final encounter with him won't be until the final patch of the Lich King cycle, some time after release.
• The Chamber of Aspects in Dragonblight will offer a series of different single-encounter short raids with dragon bosses.
Coldara
• Coldara (a sub-zone of Borean Tundra) is a three-wing dungeon for 70s, 80s and a short Onyxia-style raid against Malygos himself.
• Coldara is structurally a broken tower with rotating rings surrounding a column of blue energy.
• During some of the boss encounters, players will actually free drakes to fly around the ring. Using the game's new vehicle technology, players will be able to engage in free flight around the dungeon and use some of the drake's abilities to take on some of the dungeon's challenges.
 Death Knights
A quick description of some of the spells:
• Death Coil -- Depletes all Runic Power, dealing 600 damage to a non-Undead target, or healing 900 damage on a friendly target.
• Death Grip -- This is the Death Knight's "taunt" ability. It also pulls the target to the Death Knight, forcing them to attack the Death Knight for a short amount of time. Yes, I said pulls the target; Blizzard is going to allow players to move mobs in the expansion both with Death Grip, and other knockback/pull abilities. This works on players too, so PvP balance ahoy!
• Chains of Ice -- Roots the target in place. When the spell fades, it places a snare on the target that reduces in potency as the duration runs out.
• Raise Dead -- Raises a nearby corpse to fight for the Death Knight for 2 minutes. If used on a player corpse, the player has the option to play as the ghoul for the duration -- gaining access to the ghoul's abilities.
- The ghoul has the ability to do the following:
-- Leap to the target
-- Rend for decent damage-over-time
-- Stun target, and of course more
• Death Pact -- Sacrifices the raised ghouls to heal the Death Knight.
• Death and Decay -- Targeted, AoE Damage-over-time which pulses similar to the Paladin spell Consecration. Anyone affected by Death and Decay has a chance to be feared.
• Frost Presence -- Increases Armor by 45% and allows the Death Knight to generate 25% more threat. Only one presence can be active at any time.
• Unholy Presence -- Increases Attack Speed and Movement speed by 15%. Only one presence can be active at any time. This was described by Tom Chilton as the "PvP" presence.
• Anti-magic Shield -- Reduces the damage of the next magical spell cast on the Death Knight by 75%. It also converts the damage reduced into Runic Power.
• Strangulate -- Depletes all Runic Power, dealing minor damage and silencing the target for up to 5 seconds.
• Summon Deathcharger -- Allows the Death Knight to summon a Deathcharger mount. This mount is acquired through quests, similar to the Paladin and Warlock land mounts.
A quick recap of the information they were told about the Death Knight:
• Death knights will be available to all players with level 55 characters
• Players can create one death knight per realm, per account
• Death knights can be any of the races
• Once created, death knights can undertake a series of quests to introduce the player to the new class and its associated lore
• Death knights utilize a rune system as their resource mechanic
- Three different rune types are available: Unholy, Frost, and Blood
- These runes allow death knights to cast spells and abilities; spells can cost any combination of these runes
- Spent runes automatically refresh after a set period of time, similar to a rogue’s energy bar
- The death knight will have the ability to customize which array of six runes is currently available
• As rune abilities are used, the death knight also generates another resource called Runic Power
- The death knight will have several abilities that cost all available Runic Power, with varying levels of effectiveness based on total Runic Power spent
- Runic Power decays over time if it’s not spent, similar to a warrior’s rage bar
• The death knight has three different presences to use: Blood, Frost, and Unholy; each presence grants the death knight a unique buff that will allow him or her to fulfill different roles in combat
• The death knight can serve either as a tank or as a melee-based damage-dealing class
• Death knights are designed to be highly viable tanking, magic-using characters
• Death knights will have the ability to summon undead guardians to fight by their side
• Death knights will have the ability to summon a Deathcharger mount.
Screenshots
Curse Gallery got multiple new shots of WotLK: Visit
14 new screenshots from Judgehype
Videos
• All zones (Curse)
• Dragonblight (Gamespy)
• Borean Tundra (Gamespy)
• Zul'Drak (Gamespy)
• Sholazar Basin (Gamespy)
• Wrath of the Lich King : Media Event 2008 (Judgehype)
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M'uru Kill Movie, WotLK beta keys, Sitewatch, Win XP SP3 |
Teza, May 8 2008 3:34 pm |
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M'uru Kill Movie, WotLK beta keys, Sitewatch, Windows XP SP3, Daily Blue
M'uru kill movie by SK-Gaming
SK-Gaming just released the footage from their world first M'uru kill with two different point of views,  Valandu and  Morphling. Ventrilo is included from about 6% to 0%, Nerdscreams!
The video is recorded as WMV in 1680x1050 resolution.
(via SK-Gaming)
M'uru loot table updated
Premonition got the world third kill on M'uru (congratulations to them), and they obtained 2 new items which have been added to his loot table. For more info on their achievement, check their kill thread.
* (v): Blizzard implemented "Raid Token Vendors" in 2.4 , allowing players to turn in boss loot, along with a single Sunmote, for certain items which are sold by Yrma on Isle of Quel'Danas.
• Muramasa (Sword - One Hand)
• Gauntlets of the Soothed Soul (Plate)
• Warharness of Reckless Fury (Plate)
• (v) Breastplate of Agony's Aversion (Plate)
• Harness of Carnal Instinct (Leather)
• (v) Bladed Chaos Tunic (Leather)
• Shadowed Gauntlets of Paroxysm (Leather)
• (v) Gloves of the Forest Drifter (Leather)
• Garments of Serene Shores (Mail)
• (v) Garments of Crashing Shores (Mail)
• Robes of Faltered Light (Cloth)
• (v) Robes of Ghostly Hatred (Cloth)
• Sin'dorei Band of Salvation (Ring)
• Sin'dorei Band of Dominance (Ring)
• Sin'dorei Band of Triumph (Ring)
• Ring of Hardened Resolve (Ring)
• Ring of Omnipotence (Ring)
• Shifting Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Steely Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Blackened Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Glimmering Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
 Win A Frostmourne Replica And WotLK Beta Keys
You've seen the icy, menacing eyes, and gleaming metal and heard the ominous names of Arthas holding Frostmourne. Now we are calling all artists to bring these images to life with their vision of Arthas with Frostmourne!
Starting May 7, 2008, Epic Weapons and Blizzard Entertainment will be looking for the best original pieces of artwork that show the Lich King Arthas Menethil wielding his trusted runeblade Frostmourne and the Grand Prize Winner will receive a full sized 47" long replica of the Frostmourne sword courtesy of Epic Weapons and a guaranteed entry into the beta test of Wrath of the Lich King! Two runner up winners will also be selected for entry into the upcoming Wrath of the Lich King beta test.
We'd like to extend our thanks to Epic Weapons for the generous donation of the Frostmourne replica for this event, and for more information about Frostmourne, you can head over to http://www.epicweapons.com/
Visit the contest page to learn more about the contest!: http://www.blizzard.co.uk/frostmourne/
Daily Blue
Blizzard Stance on Multiboxing in WoW (src)
Multiboxing, What is it?
Multiboxing is when someone uses either a program or a "splitter" to allow them to play 5 characters at the same time. For example, the user will press Thunderbolt rank X on the emitter (First character chosen) soon after the 4 other characters will cast the same spell.
We have stated several times that we have nothing against multiboxing. As long as the player controls each of the characters the player may run multiple clients/characters. We're aware of some players not agreeing with us on this - on some topics people simply have to agree to disagree. At the same time, expressing disagreement in a nice way is of course no reason for jumping on someone. Constructive feedback and discussion is always encouraged.
Webby Award Winners Announced (src)
The 12th Annual Webby Award winners have been announced, and the Toyota Tacoma commercial featuring World of Warcraft has been selected as the People’s Voice Winner in the Online Commercials category. The online spot, along with the winners and other nominees, can be viewed on the Webby Awards website. Thanks to everyone who voted, and congratulations to all the winners!
Sitewatch: LFG-Armory
Site: http://www.lfgarmory.com/
What is it?
It's a new site designed to enhance your Armory-browsing. You can check out your:
• Characters
• Guilds
• Arena Teams
What is special about it?
Next to the usual browsing, it offers a system which will find you a new guild, arena team or a player for either one.
It works as following:
• You register an account and login
• Add your characters to the system
• Choose requirements for new guild, team or player, like for example
- minimum HP or MP,
- minimum team rating
- has certain classes in guild or team
- etc
• Start looking for
The system will automatically find any suitable matches if there are any and you will be presented an overview. You can now give your (dis)approval to any match and perhaps meet your new mate online afterwards.
Site description by Sjakil.
Windows XP SP3 available
Yes I know that's a bit off topic but 75% of our Windows users are using the XP version, and Windows XP SP3 is finally available. SP 3 has been added to Windows Update, however there is a filter in place which will stop the download if you happen to be running Microsoft's Dynamic Retail Management System application (RMS), but most of our readers shouldnt be affected since RMS is only used for small to medium size businesses.
You can download it directly from this Microsoft link or run Windows Update.
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Daily Blue, Nihilum live stream, Eye gaze tracking in WoW |
Teza, May 7 2008 3:25 pm |
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Daily Blue, Nihilum live raid stream, Eye gaze tracking in WoW
2008 WoW Arena Tournament Phase 3 Begins
Registration for the 2008 World of Warcraft Arena Tournament's first qualification round is now closed and Phase 3 of the tournament has begun. Participants have been battling it out on the tournament realms for the past two weeks while fine-tuning their team composition and strategies. Phase 3 of the tournament includes a lockdown of the teams that will be jockeying for position to compete in the regional finals. To track the progress of your team and the competition as a whole, please visit the World of Warcraft Armory. For more information on the tournament, please visit our Arena Tournament information page. Good luck to all competitors!
Daily Blue
Arena Tournament: Latency issues (src)
Please post here if you are experiencing this issue or have any further details to share on it. We are continuing to monitor the situation and will provide updates if any new information comes up.
About updating official forums avatars (src)
Before Lich King comes out I'm betting there will be new icons for level 80 and everyone will be in Tier 7. We have no plans to update the icons before that time.
Nihilum live raid stream
Tonight at 19:00 CET Nihilum in conjunction with Xfire and Dyyno will be hosting a live raid streaming event. You will be able to watch them raid the newest instance Sunwell Plateau through the eyes of 4 raiders:
 Kungen
 Buzzkill
 Darmor
 Johnny_R
To access the live video stream, click one of the four classes buttons to the right of the Xfire event page. By doing so, you will get into the action from the point of view of that player. After selecting which player you want to follow your browser will ask you to install the Dyyno browser plug-in - Just hit Accept/Yes and you're set. If you are using Windows Vista, you will need to run the browser as Administrator to install the plug-in, just right-click on your internet explorer or firefox icon and select "Run as administrator" from the pop-up menu.
If you need any more help refer to the Dyyno Broadcast FAQ.
They have a 1,000 viewers cap; so if you want a spot, make sure you show up on time.
Eye gaze tracking in WoW
The TechCrunch crew tested an eye tracking software (a tracking system for your gaze) that has been retrofitted to work with WoW. Basically the cursor goes where you look on the monitor and looking offscreen in several directions will trigger different modes (i.e locomotion, combat, loot). Click on the picture below to watch the demo.
Eye-gaze systems bounce infrared light from LEDs at the bottom of a computer monitor and track a person’s eye movements using stereo infrared cameras. This setup can calculate where on a screen the user is looking with an accuracy of about 5 mm.
This "Snap Clutch" software has been developed at De Montfort University, UK in collaboration with University of Tampere, Finland. The idea behind this project is to help the handicapped (or not), you can do some things as solo/group pve in WoW, but you would have serious troubles in pvp & raids without a keyboard.
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M'uru trinket watch, M'uru US first kill by Exodus |
Teza, May 6 2008 11:43 am |
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M'uru trinket watch, M'uru US first kill by Exodus
Update1: M'uru trinket watch (see below)
M'uru trinket watch: Shifting Naaru Sliver
It's the first time a trinket with an AoE buff appears into the game, thus we though of getting detailed info on it. We kidnapped Caelyn the owner of that trinket for a short description of his new toon.
Caelyn: The trinket effect (the circle) gives anyone who steps in to it a buff at its current stage, but the only one that actually gets a spellgain from the buff is myself (Caelyn, the trinket bearer), and the trinkets group utility is working as intended except the spelldamage gain that has been confirmed as a bug and will be fixed "shortly" by Blizzard.
I hope blizzard keeps developing items like this, with group utilities. This opens the pathways for raid setups, specs and strategies on different encounters and with the upcoming fix on the Shifting Naaru Sliver, its going to be very fun to plan out how to use it for its absolute best effect on different encounters.
M'uru US first kill by Exodus
Exodus from US-Kel'Thuzad server managed to bring M'uru down, they are getting the US first kill, congratulations to them.
Their loot:
• Harness of Carnal Instinct (Leather)
• Garments of Serene Shores (Mail)
• Robes of Faltered Light (Cloth)
• Sin'dorei Band of Dominance (Ring)
Raid Setup:
 Druid: Elips | Tyzs | Cronion
Hunter: None
Mage: Koosha | Thizzelle
Paladin: Ossuary | Lafura
 Priest: Singway | Shin | Implosion
 Rogue: Minerva | Tyngo | Davlncl | Cika
Shaman: Marmee | Littlenemo | Falo | Dominazn | Phalyce
Warlock: Hinosilin | Nitto | Tussin
Warrior: Torpor | Kaywarrior | Robak
We updated M'uru loot table:
* (v): Blizzard implemented "Raid Token Vendors" in 2.4 , allowing players to turn in boss loot, along with a single Sunmote, for certain items which are sold by Yrma on Isle of Quel'Danas.
• Muramasa (Sword - One Hand)
• Gauntlets of the Soothed Soul (Plate)
• Harness of Carnal Instinct (Leather)
• (v) Bladed Chaos Tunic (Leather)
• Garments of Serene Shores (Mail)
• (v) Garments of Crashing Shores (Mail)
• Robes of Faltered Light (Cloth)
• (v) Robes of Ghostly Hatred (Cloth)
• Sin'dorei Band of Salvation (Ring)
• Sin'dorei Band of Dominance (Ring)
• Sin'dorei Band of Triumph (Ring)
• Ring of Hardened Resolve (Ring)
• Ring of Omnipotence (Ring)
• Shifting Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Steely Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Blackened Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Glimmering Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
Current progress on M'uru:
M'uru (LT)
EU servers
1. SK-Gaming, Vek'nilash EU (05/04 - 02:55 am CET) - World First
US servers
1. Exodus, Kel'Thuzad US (05/06 - 11:00 am CET)
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Tanking Achievement, SWP Progress, M'uru loot table, Comics |
Teza, May 5 2008 2:26 pm |
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Tanking Achievement, SWP Progress, M'uru loot table, Comics
Update: We found two new pieces of info regarding Kil'jaeden encounter on Blizzard support page.
Q: Hunter's Mark not shown on Shield Orbs during the Kil'Jaeden encounter
A: The Hunter's Mark is applied correctly, but is not shown as a graphical effect. You can verify the Hunter's Mark is active by looking at the Shield Orbs' debuffs. (src)
Q: We are not able to attack Kil'Jaeden after a failed attempt
A: This can occur when the last player disappears without being killed by Kil'Jaeden, this could be due to deaths by other monsters, suicide spells or spells that remove you from combat. (src)
Rogue tanks Mother Shahraz from 100 to 0
A rogue Gaeowyn from guild Shards of Existence made a rather staggering achievement, he tanked Mother Shahraz (seventh boss in Black Temple) from 100 to 0%. Click on the picture below if you wish to see the movie.
How did he do this? Well he basically stacked loads of agility to max his % dodge.
My stats while raid buffed?
76.31% dodge
12.16% parry
14.16% to be missed
1250 agility
900-1000 TPS (Threat Per Second)
Breaking the cap was the easy part. Fitting as much expertise rating as I possibly could (for tps and dps) while staying above the cap was more tricky, and was ultimately the goal of this project. I would have liked to finish off a 19x delicate crimson spinel set to upgrade a few other slots, but this does alright for now.
FAQ:
Q. No heightened senses or enveloping shadows for reducing spell damage on your armory build?
A. I only have 1 talent point to spare for either enveloping shadows, master of subtlety, or heightened senses. I went with increased damage after breaking stealth for the next boss I'm doing (5-man gruul). Otherwise, I rate heightened senses above enveloping shadows.
Q. Buff/Debuff list?
A. Grilled Mudfish, Scroll of Agility V, Elixir of Major Agility, Imp MOTW, Imp GoA, Blessing of Kings, NE Racial (1% dodge), Scorpid Sting, Insect Swarm, 5% base miss for a boss.
(via Nihilum)
Reminder: M'uru loot table
Edit: Links changed to have item tooltips.
Yesterday, we have been able to discover several new items belonging to M'uru loot table:
• Muramasa (Sword - One Hand)
• Gauntlets of the Soothed Soul (Plate)
• Sin'dorei Band of Salvation (Ring)
• Sin'dorei Band of Dominance (Ring)
• Sin'dorei Band of Triumph (Ring)
• Ring of Hardened Resolve (Ring)
• Ring of Omnipotence (Ring)
• Shifting Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Steely Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Blackened Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
• Glimmering Naaru Sliver (Trinket)
Sunwell Plateau - Guild Progression
One US guild (Exodus) reported a 8% wipe on M'uru phase 2 (9% for Nihilum), so we though it's time to update the Guild progression chart (there will be another incremental update for the next M'uru kills).
M'uru (LT)
EU servers
1. SK-Gaming, Vek'nilash EU (02:55 CET) - World First
US servers
1. TBD
The Eredar Twins (LT)
EU servers
1. Nihilum, Magtheridon EU (17:57 CET) - World First
2. SK Gaming, Vek'nilash EU (21:55 CET)
3. Method, Sylvanas EU
US servers
1. Premonition, Alleria US
2. Deus Vox, Laughing Skull US
3. V A N Q U I S H, Cho'Gall US
Felmyst (LT)
EU servers
1. SK Gaming, Vek'nilash EU (18:10 CET) - World First
2. Inner Sanctum, Silvermoon EU
3. Failure, Magtheridon EU
US servers
1. Premonition, Alleria US
2. V A N Q U I S H, Cho'gall US
3. Vodka, Mannoroth US
Brutallus (LT)
EU servers
1. SK Gaming, Vek'nilash EU (15:31 CET)
2. Inner Sanctum, Silvermoon EU
3. For The Horde, Destromath EU
US servers
1. Blood Legion, Illidan US - World First
2. Premonition, Alleria US
3. V A N Q U I S H, Cho'gall US
Kalecgos (LT)
EU servers
1. SK Gaming, Vek'nilash EU - (14:26 CET)
2. In Harmony, Thrall EU
3. Heist, Stormreaver EU
US servers
1. V A N Q U I S H, Cho'gall US (6:33pm EST) - World First
2. Transcended, Blackhand US
3. Vodka, Mannoroth US
Comics
A new Dark Legacy is out.
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