88 MPH!! Speed to get to the new War of the Ancients Raid? Maybe.

[chaos5061]

Transmogrification of Heirlooms will work.

From Blizzard:
Transmogrification of Heirlooms
I'd like to provide an update on this statement I made. It turns out that Heirlooms will be eligible targets for Transmogrification. Also (and this applies to all Transmogrified items), trading, mailing, auctioning or depositing an item in a guild bank will remove the Transmogrified art, returning the item in question to its original artwork. So, while you won't have to stare at the same old Heirlooms the whole time you're leveling, you won't be able to send a set of Heirlooms that have been Transmogrified with tier 13 art to your level 10 alt.

[chaos5061]

Mobile Armory Update

From Blizzard:
* Automatic price undercutting: Set the default buyout price of your auctions to match or undercut the current lowest buyout price for an item.
* Aggregated buyout search results: Multiple auctions posted at the same buyout price can now be viewed as a single group.
* Support for the following Guild features: Level, Perks, Rewards, Achievements, News, Events, and MotD.
* Links to items and achievements received in Remote Guild Chat now link to those sections in the app.
* Links to enchants, quests, abilities, talents, and professions received in Remote Guild Chat now display tool tips.
* Improved search technology.
* Search now suggests terms based on previous searches.
* Updated calendar events presentation.
* A character's talents & glyphs now display on the same page.
* Leaderboard has been removed.
* Realm firsts will no longer appear in the activity feed.
* Bookmarks are now saved locally instead of on the server. All old bookmarks will be lost.
* Various bug fixes

[chaos5061]

More info for Mogging.

From Blizzard:

Transmogrification Questions
Q: If you have armor and weapons on you person that are no longer available in the game can you use those skins?
A: Yes, you can -- assuming they fulfill the other criteria for eligibility.

Q: If I have a weapon that equips on the hip and I mog it to one that equips on the back, will it continue to equip on the hip (like the original) or will it switch to the back (like the one I used to mog with)?
A: The way a weapon sheathes is tied to its artwork, so the weapon will appear sheathed in whatever fashion the source item for Transmogrification did. (Blue Tracker / Official Forums)

Q: Will Main Hand only weaponry be 'Mog"ifiable to the offhand slot?
A: Mainhand can only be applied to mainhand, and offhand can only be applied to offhand. This is partially due to the restrictions on certain types of weapon art.

Again, these are our first tentative steps with Transmogrification, and there's room for modifying the rules later on after the system is introduced, and we see how things shake out. Heck, the rules aren't even quite set in stone right now, and might change further before the system is introduced.

Q: If WoW was designed to not be "silly" why have the items in the game in the first place?
A: World of Warcraft has a design aesthetic that limits silliness, not omits it utterly. We all like a laugh now and then. That's why we have so many fun novelty items, easter eggs and humorous quests. Still, with a handful of exceptions, there's been a pretty firm line drawn between what amounts to a novelty item (which we anticipate players showing off occasionally for a laugh, or to enjoy on a temporary basis), and items that we intend players to use in their day to day activities.

It's that handful of exceptions that are the sticking point. It's the items like frying pans, cleavers and rolling pins that we're not sure we want players running around with on a constant basis. The jury is still out on that.

I'm sure that there will be those that still find ways to make the most ridiculous outfits possible despite any precautions we take. We can't possibly anticipate every permutation of gear combinations that people will come up with, but we can strive to design the system so that there are fewer completely ridiculous looking characters running around. Yes, that's partially subjective. Yes, we also have a design aesthetic that, even with the introduction of the Transmogrifier, we still want to adhere to. No, I don't care if you personally think that any given tier set looks "silly"; that's not what's at issue.

Transmogrification of White and Grey Quality Items
We're still discussing exactly what will or won't be available for transmogrification. So far, as others here have said, if it has stats and isn't a "silly" item such as a fish weapon, to my knowledge it will likely be available to transmogrify. However, as I said, nothing is finalized yet and things are subject to change before and after the feature has been released.

So, about that button to disable transmogrification
The Transmogrify feature will allow players to customize the look of their character within reason. We've already stated that it's likely certain items will not be available to transmogrify, including fish as weapons, and other items such as frying pans, for this very reason. As you know, armor types will also be locked, preventing tanks in cloth dresses for example.

The rules will be tweaked as time goes on, but we're keen to keep the outlandish outfits to a minimum. What players wear while socialising in cities is up to them, exactly the same as now.

[chaos5061]

Patch 4.3 Preview: Darkmoon Fair

From Blizzard:
Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! Step right up and prepare to be amazed!

It’s incredible! It’s unbelievable! You’ll be dazzled. You’ll be amazed! You aren’t prepared for the Darkmoon Faire, ‘cause it’s like nothing you’ve seen before! Don’t be shy now, don’t be bashful, step right up for a tantalizing glimpse of what we’ve got in store for you when patch 4.3 arrives!

That old thing?

No, no, no, Clem. The Darkmoon Faire isn’t what it used to be and it isn’t where it used to be. The management hasn’t changed but the Faire certainly has. It’s a whole new animal. Tickets? You don’t need those old tickets, just rip ‘em right up, ‘cause we’ve got new tickets! Out with the old, in with the new -- new quests, that is! Things have changed ‘round here: we’ve got an island all to ourselves now, and what an island it is. Mist-shrouded Darkmoon Island is a conundrum wrapped in an enigma. It’s a place of mystery and wonder, and you wouldn’t believe the deals we made to get it… or who we made ‘em with. But never mind that, just follow me right through here and I’ll show you what the Darkmoon Faire is all about.


All new! All spectacular!

Catch a show at the marvelous main stage or witness a dazzling fireworks display. But don’t stare too long or you might miss the stunning spectacles that surround you. Gaze in awe of our magical menagerie, get your fortune told by the amazing Sayge, go on a pony ride, experience the healthful effects of carnival food, and more!

Of course, there’s more to the Darkmoon Faire than just fantastic shows and culinary delights. You can still turn in your Darkmoon Cards, but you wouldn’t just come here for measly ol’ cards when there’s so much more to see, experience, and win. Yes, win! You like dancing bears, right? Everybody likes dancing bears. Even bears like dancing bears. How about a dancing bear… you can ride!

That’s not all! We have adorable companion pets includin’ a fez-wearing monkey, a plethora of profession recipes, toys, balloons, souvenirs, delectable carnival snacks and beverages, heirlooms for the little ones, and even replicas of long-lost suits of armor that we’re offering for your Transmogrification needs. You can also make your mark with new achievements and titles. All it takes to earn these fabulous rewards is a few Darkmoon Faire Prize Tickets and a good reputation with the carnies. How do ya get your grubby mitts on some tickets? I’m glad you asked!

Step right up! Try your luck! Everyone’s a winner!

Have we got games? You bet we’ve got games, and they’re so easy to play an orc could do it. Just head on over to the midway, buy some Darkmoon Game Tokens, and get ready to play. Easy to learn, difficult to master, anyone can play and everyone can win. Just lay your tokens down for a chance at winning Darkmoon Prize Tickets playing games like Whack-a-Gnoll, the Tonk Battle Royale, the Cannon, Ring Toss, the Shooting Gallery, and more! Five games are there to test your skills at any one time. The better you play, the easier it is to win a bucket of Darkmoon Faire Prize Tickets! Once a month, you’ve got a shot at tickets, and the fun never stops ‘cause you can play as many times as you like. But that’s not the only way to win big!


The Darkmoon Faire Field Guide

It’s your passport to riches, my friend. Y’see, we need a few things -- just some junk, nothing valuable to a big hero like you. We call ‘em Darkmoon Artifacts, and there’s all different kinds to be found all over Azeroth. The Darkmoon Field Guide helps you discover artifacts while you’re explorin’ dungeons, slayin’ monsters, and fightin’ in Battlegrounds. Without a guide, you’d never notice ‘em, and it’ll help keep you focused on the stuff we want. Whether you just reached level 10, or you’ve crushed the biggest baddies in the land, we need somethin’ from nearly everybody. You won’t have to go too far out of your way to get ‘em and each month you’ll get a new opportunity to seek out an Artifact for us. What do you get out of the deal? Don’t you worry, you’ll get your cut. When you bring a Darkmoon Artifact back to us, you’ll get valuable experience (it builds character, you know!), earn a better reputation, and possibly earn precious Darkmoon Faire Prize Tickets too!

Oh, did I mention that you can use the Field Guide to get to Darkmoon Island whenever the Darkmoon Faire’s monthly extravaganza is up and running?

So, you want to work in show business?

Maybe you’d like a little peek behind the scenes, eh? Want to see what it takes to run the greatest show on Azeroth? Well, it’s not all sunshine and cotton candy, my friend. There are beasts to heal, food to cook, and buildings to fix. If you’re willing help keep the show going and put your skills to work, you’ll not only impress us, but you can get experience, Darkmoon Prize Tickets, and even polish up your skills -- up to five skill points per profession, per Faire week, if you’re good at what you do!


Darkmoon Deathmatch!

Like any good carnival, the Darkmoon Faire has a shady side. You can leave the skilled labor to the suckers and go for a faster score instead. If you’ve got the minerals, the Darkmoon Deathmatch offers an experience unparalleled since the Gurubashi Arena. Pitmaster Pei has a big old treasure chest just brimming with goodies and Darkmoon Faire Prize Tickets that he’ll drag out into the Darkmoon Deathmatch Pit every three hours or so. Everybody wants it, so if you want a piece of the action you’ll just have to jump in and prove that you’re the toughest one in the Pit.

Oh, the Faire is perfectly safe, Clem. Just don’t wander into the woods.

Now, now, don’t panic. Darkmoon Isle might be a bit spooky, but except for the Deathmatch Pit, the Faire itself is completely safe, I guarantee it. It’s a sanctuary even, and we won’t let anybody’s beef ruin the fun. The shadowy woods surroundin’ the fair are another thing entirely, though. I wouldn’t say that people have disappeared into those woods never to return, but, well… people disappear into those woods never to return. So watch your step , and your back, when you leave the Faire. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya!


Mark your calendar

Now that you know how amazing the new Darkmoon Faire is, you won’t want to miss it. Just take a look at your in-game calendar, and the Darkmoon Faire dates will show up there on the first week of every month. Darkmoon Faire barkers and displays will also pop up in every capital city to herald the arrival of the Faire. Silas Darkmoon himself has even started up a mailer to make sure that no one misses out!

Hitch a ride

During the first week of each month, convenient Darkmoon Faire outposts with Darkmoon Portals will appear in Elwynn Forest and Mulgore, offering free rides to Darkmoon Island and the Faire!

Darkmoon Mages in capital cities and on Darkmoon Island will also be around to help you get between the Faire and various capital cities. There’s no such thing as a free lunch, so naturally you’re obliged to compensate them for their services.

The all new Darkmoon Faire is coming to Darkmoon Island in patch 4.3. Don’t miss it!

[chaos5061]

Darkmoon Fair Pictures

From Blizzard:

[chaos5061]

From Blizzard:

An ill omen streaks across the sky over Azeroth's Great Sea, heralding the arrival of this year's BlizzCon-exclusive World of Warcraft in-game companion: the fearsome-ish Murkablo, aquatic protégé of Diablo III's eponymous Lord of Terror! Anyone who attends BlizzCon 2011 or purchases this year's BlizzCon Virtual Ticket will receive a Murkablo to call their own, along with a yet-to-be-revealed StarCraft II in-game gift.



BlizzCon 2011 takes place on October 21 and 22 at the Anaheim Convention Center. If you order the Virtual Ticket Internet stream online through Battle.net, Murkablo and the StarCraft II gift will be automatically attached to the Battle.net account you use to make your purchase shortly after BlizzCon begins. DIRECTV customers who order the BlizzCon Pay Per View event will receive a code granting access to the Internet stream and the in-game gifts via email.
For further details or to order the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket, check out the Virtual Ticket web page.

[chaos5061]

Added a picture to Murkablo post.

[chaos5061]

Replica armors from new Darkmoon Faire Q.

From Blizzard:
We haven't fully solidified the list of old items/sets that will make a return via the Darkmoon Faire carnies. We'll let you know once we've locked down what's for sale there in patch 4.3, but yes, we're likely to expand the vendor list in future updates.

"Replica" does mean that these items may very well just be art skins made available specifically for use with Transmogrification, devoid of their original stats. Once you copy those skins onto another item though, I don't know that one would be able to tell the difference between whether you earned the look back in the day, or from the Darkmoon Faire. Only the name of the item from which you're pulling art will be shown in the tooltip of the item you have equipped. So if the names of the items aren't changed when placed on Darkmoon Faire vendors, a player inspecting you wouldn't know the difference once you've mogged your look.


We do understand that concern, which is why we're implementing this feature in a more conservative manner than some would even like. Ultimately, Transmogrification gives folks a wide array of new customization options, but we do want to have some restrictions in place to keep character looks from getting too ridiculous, and to make sure all previous sets in the game aren't absolutely free for all.

I'd still caution you to avoid drawing very distinct and speculative conclusions at this stage about all of the Transmogrification rule sets, features, and limitations. It's great to hear feedback on what players hope this system will (or will not) be, but it's not really worth it for anyone to spend too much time laying out concerns about details that haven't yet been provided in full.

We are in constant discussion with our developers in order that we compile a comprehensive article of the various item rules, features, and restrictions coming with Transmogrification in patch 4.3.

[chaos5061]

From Blizzard:

And one of the problems I personally have with anyone who might state this hypothetical, is that I did earn several cool sets back in the day which I'd love to sport once again. But as we didn't plan for this feature all along, I deleted sets I knew I'd never wear for stat benefits in order to save inventory space. I told myself, "yes, you look cool in this, but don't be a pack rat if you're not going to wander around towns in outmoded sets." I wager a lot of long-time WoW players are in the same boat. And a deleted/sold item is only kept in our database logs for so long before the record of one having owned that item is erased.

The majority of the gear sets in this game are still possible to obtain, so that's awesome. To me it's a cool side effect of this feature to encourage people to return to some old places, filled with nostalgia, to collect gear just for the look -- not the power.

There are, however, some sets or items which can no longer be found in the game. So we're keeping track of some of the items and sets players are really wanting to see make a return in some fashion. The Darkmoon Faire revamp in patch 4.3 provides but one new way players can slip into familiar looks from the past.

[chaos5061]

From Blizzard:
Q: Also, if they return the DK sets, are they going to be for DKs only? Or should I expect to see lots of Paladins and Warriors running around in it?

A: The current plan is to make them available via Acherus, which necessarily precludes non-DKs.

[chaos5061]

From Blizzard:
We'll be decreasing the experience needed for levels 71-80 in patch 4.3. That's all I have for now.

[chaos5061]

4.2 Hotfixes Aug. 29th

From Blizzard:

August 29
Classes
Druid
Starfall should no longer hit enemies with whom the player is not in combat in Grim Batol or the Firelands.
The Feral druid 4-piece tier-12 set bonus should now interact properly with Primal Madness and Euphoria.
The radius of effect of the Restoration druid 4-piece tier-12 set has been increased.

Mage
Fireblast now properly triggers Impact on the primary Fireblast target, even if that target was not yet in combat.

Paladin
The radius of effect of the Holy paladin 4-piece tier-12 set has been increased.

Dungeons & Raids
Firelands
A few of the Molten Surger patrols in the entrance area of Firelands have gone on vacation.
Shannox
The number of enemies that must be killed before Shannox spawns has been reduced.

Battlegrounds
Isle of Conquest
Players should no longer take large amounts of damage when being launched from catapults.

[chaos5061]

The 4.2.2 patch was released. There is no big changes it's just a patch to update tooltips and things is all.

[chaos5061]

From Blizzard:

Dungeons & Raids

Firelands
The visibility of Ragnaros' Dreadflame ability has been increased.
The size of Ragnaros' hit box during the final phase of the Heroic encounter has been increased.
*
User Interface

Raid Frames should now remember whether they were shown or hidden upon subsequent logins
*
Technical

Players using multiple accounts should now be available to be invited to a Real ID Party.
Updating a raid roster while in combat should no longer cause a client crash.
Attempts to purchase Arena Season 10 items should no longer sometimes cause a client crash. (Korea Only)
*

[chaos5061]

Dev Watercooler -- Bloody Mitigation Pt.1

From Blizzard:
What Active Mitigation Actually Means, and the Future of the Blood Death Knight

We recently buffed tank threat significantly and suggested that we would fill in any potential lost gameplay with new gameplay. What I meant by that was that if tanks don’t need to hit their buttons to generate threat, they may realize they don’t need to hit most of their buttons at all, and just stand there waiting until the right time to Shield Wall. Going a GCD or two without using a combat ability is fine with us. Standing around much longer than that gets boring quickly.

What we proposed is that tanks should ideally want to hit their buttons because it keeps them alive. I didn’t elaborate on that too much except to say it would feel more like the Blood DK method of tanking, which prompted some players to state that they didn’t like the DK model, or to point out that the DK model is not just active but reactive. Fair enough.

To better explain what we meant by that we need to define active mitigation. We define it as hitting buttons regularly that have a meaningful impact on your future mitigation. You should occasionally alter your rotation depending on what is going on in the fight, but you should still mitigate regularly and not save everything for the really big, predictable hits. DKs have a little of this, but Death Strike is ultimately a heal, which is a response to damage, not damage prevention. I also think the DK model gets a bad rap because of some other mechanical problems, which aren’t really problems with active mitigation per se. So let me go into a bit more hand-waving about what active mitigation could mean for other tanks, and then I’ll share a little DK info.

Some Active Mitigation Models

Here are three different models for why hitting buttons can matter to tanks. It's easy to come up with alternative models, and none of these are perfect, nor are we ready to announce which is the one we’re going to try first. But these ideas can get some discussions going.

Model One: Tank DPS matters

This one really isn't active mitigation per se, but it is a way to make pushing buttons matter. We have berserk timers or other DPS checks on a lot of our encounters. Typically tank DPS isn’t taken seriously on these fights, which is a little puzzling at first glance. Yes, the tank may not be able to match the Enhance shaman for damage done, but also consider that the Enhance shaman would absolutely love it if she could improve her DPS by a paltry 3K. That 3K may be enough to meet that DPS check. Note that I’m not talking about tanks being able to beat out skilled DPS players; I think most of us agree that would be a little bizarre. But that doesn’t mean tank damage has to be a non-factor either. Sure, the Feral tank may be doing 16K DPS to the shaman’s 30K, but 3K is 3K.

I polled all of the class designers who raid Heroic content (which is all of them, I believe) and only one had ever given his tanks a hard time for low DPS. Sometimes it’s just not possible because of the fight dynamics. In other cases it is, but as a community, we tend to not focus on tank DPS. We sometimes ask healers to Shadow Word: Pain, even though the contribution is trivial. Go figure. Maybe we assume tanks already have enough on their plate. Maybe they really are prima donnas and we don’t want them to /ragequit. (I kid.)

One potential downside of this model is that it's just the old threat rotations but with the emphasis on DPS rather than threat per second. Ultimately, we want tanks to feel like their rotations are related to tanking and that they aren't just doing a DPS rotation with the occasional long cooldown. Another is that it makes not only stats like hit and expertise desirable, but also crit and haste, which aren’t typically on plate tanking gear. We want to make tank itemization more interesting than just “stack mastery,” but we don’t want it to be baffling either.

Model Two: DPS buttons provide mitigation

This is the model that several players in the community have predicted will be our approach, and the idea has some merit. Under this model, imagine that a warrior wants to hit Shield Slam because it makes his next Shield Block larger. Imagine Revenge procs a short parry buff. Devastate and Thunder Clap already have roles applying debuffs. This model we think could feel pretty intuitive. One downside is that each individual button might feel less impactful and make the experience less visceral. Shield Block feels awesome because when you push it, the damage numbers go way down, and you feel “safe” for the duration. If you replace one slice of that pie with Revenge and Shield Slam, then everything gets watered down. If the rotation is very simple, then it feels like passive mitigation; if not then it’s a stressful juggling act. Another potential downside is that keeping up multiple buffs and debuffs can be tedious. Rather than it feeling like a bonus to get those procs, it can feel like a penalty whenever they’re not up. Even if you are hit and expertise capped, sometimes you have to move away from the boss to avoid a fire ring, or you need to leave to pick up an add. If you can’t bank the mitigation benefit, then the risk is you feel like you don’t really have control over your survivability.

Model Three: DPS buttons build up resources

This model lets you bank the benefits. Imagine you have to build up a resource to use on short-term cooldowns. We couldn't include the Shield Walls and their ilk here, because an "oh snap" button needs to be available immediately and not in the future once you've earned some resources. But weaker cooldowns such as Shield Block and Holy Shield could certainly work this way. Imagine the paladin tank needs Crusader Strike to land to generate Holy Power, and can then decide to spend that Holy Power on Holy Shield Block or Word of Glory. Neither of those would have a cooldown in this design, so more hits landing will always be better -- it's not just a matter of hitting enough to have 100% uptime. (You'd probably also need the ability to save Holy Power more than you can today so that there was less pressure to spend a cooldown as soon as it became available.)

The choice can then become whether to use Holy Shield Block or Word of Glory. Holy Shield Block is probably your first choice, but if you screw it up or the damage is magical, or you need a reactive button instead of an active one, then Word of Glory might be a better choice. Either way, there shouldn’t be any simple answers. (As a counterpoint, deciding to spend that Holy Power on threat instead of mitigation is just never going to be interesting -- smart tanks will always use it to survive, as we saw before Protection had a Word of Glory cooldown.)

As an aside, the Feral druid's mitigation is arguably the most passive right now, and we’d want to change things like Savage Defense to be active buttons under this model. One downside of Model Three is the risk that the rotation could be too formulaic: AAAAB, for example. It could also be asking a lot of tanks -- rather than just hitting buttons to generate threat, tanks would need to pay active attention to managing a resource. No more infinite rage just for getting beat on. We want tanking to be fun, and we think that needs to include a certain degree of risk of failure for not playing well, but that doesn't mean it needs to be frustrating. Challenging and frustrating don't need to go together.

Again, these aren't the kind of change we will hotfix in. It's going to take a lot of thought and a lot of feedback from players to get things feeling right. As a comparison, we still stand behind the mana adjustments we made for healers for Cataclysm. We think the healer gameplay is more engaging than it was at the end of Lich King, but that's obviously very subjective and took a lot of getting used to, even for seasoned players. We'd like to introduce the tanking changes more smoothly, but we still want to introduce them.

Bloody Death Knights

The risk of talking about one particular spec in a blog is then everyone will wonder when BM hunters or Disc priests are going to get "their" blog. It's not going to work like that, but since I referenced the DK tanking style so much in the previous tanking blog, I feel like it's appropriate to go into a little more detail about what we don't like about DK tanking (and how we’re going to fix it) so that all tanks have a better idea of what the future might hold for their own character.

Outbreak

One of the fundamental tensions in DK tanking is deciding whether to spend a rune on diseases (which offer necessary tanking debuffs) or save the rune for Death Strike. Our hope was that choosing how to spend the resources would be interesting. A rogue for example has to decide on whether to spend resources on Slice and Dice or Eviscerate (or a number of other things). In reality though, we don’t think this decision has been a fun one. You feel cheated if you refresh diseases and then need to Death Strike a moment later, and you feel like a bad tank if you just neglect diseases. For 4.3, we’re going to give Blood DKs a 30 second Outbreak, so they will never have to manually apply diseases to a single target. Yes, that can lead to even more Death Strikes but we think adding a fun alternative to Death Strike is not the kind of thing we can easily change for 4.3.

I feel the need to point out that we’re not just being lazy here. We understand that many players get really worn down by constant class design change, especially mid-expansion, even if they end up improving the experience overall. Deciding when to make serious changes and when to wait is a major challenge of MMO game design. I’ll try and explore this more in a future blog.