Recently, we have seen two very important pieces of information come out on the topic of WoD Raiding Systems. There were essentially two main sub-topics discussed via:
6.0.1 Launch Raiding Systems.
and
6.0 Pre-launch SoO Changes.
6.0.1 Systems Announcements
As the WoD and forward changes ultimately matter more, let’s discuss some things we learned from the interview and discuss potential for each.
Probably the greatest news that we received across both sources is that 30 player flex is confirmed. This is without a doubt the best news that could come out for Raiders like myself, give our guild’s position. Having that flexibility to try out 10 more people than the highest difficulty allows, makes gearing up early a really easy task. Consider the fact that gear amount will scale per player as well, or even the option that you can choose all personal loot, makes this sooo much more approachable, especially if they continue the “Lesser charms of good fortune” concept.
If it remains as such, we have potential to see what 7-8 pieces of loot off a single boss? This makes funneling gear to those who will make the cut to 20 Mythic incredibly simple, as well as gives the other 10 a chance to prove their worth and earn a piece from a token! Not to mention that large group raiding is far more fun! The more the merrier! Either way, being able to take every member of the guild into the first few weeks of raiding and subsequent clearing is an A+ in my book!
The second most intriguing thing to note is that Mythic will not have the tethered requirement from a completion of Heroic to begin progression. I don’t know how I feel about this, especially depending on how gear plays out, but it makes sense, as they are also removing locks across the difficulty spectrum. To prevent mad rushes for world first’s based on leveling exploits, they will release the raid difficulties for 6.0 in a staggered state as well. This means Mythic won’t be unlockable until week 3 of WoD, but any group can go right in!
That does pose me the conundrum of what route to take though! Should we wait until we have fully cleared Heroic anyway just for loot chances? Is it unfair to immediately discard those 10 extra people for the sake of progression? How hard with Mythic actually be in blues? Will it be likely that only cutting edge groups that intend to 2-3 heal will have enough DPS to complete the encounters? Only time shall tell!
There are also subtle reminders of important topics such as the raid key allowing you to skip some bosses, as well as the fact that the second raid with the bulk of the tier bosses wont release until “a number of weeks” have passed. Does this mean that most guilds will have a shot at clearing Highmaul before that, or will it be like MSV where only 3 weeks of the actual difficulty will be attainable before the real content comes out? More ponderous notes!
6.0 Pre WoD Announcements
Despite some really cool news coming out for the expansion’s content, we also learned some really interesting things about SoO’s final month and a half, especially surrounding heirlooms.
First off, we learned that 6.0 will be out for about 4-6 weeks prior to the actual expansions’ release allowing for adequate testing windows. This alone is exciting, as most pre-patches are not nearly this long. After you hear of all the features you will really be exited about this news as well!
Another insane change we are getting is a massive boost to the Garrosh Heirloom chances. Its a bit silly really, and makes me think that they just gave in to the crying children, but realistically its good that they waited. These weapons were actually really good pieces for a very long time, so if everyone was able to get them it could really make an impact. Now, with 6.0 prelaunch patch’s deployment, anyone who has not already gotten an heirloom will immediately get one upon killing Garrosh. Also, the subsequent ones have been dramatically increased as well. But with this, there is a caveat! The winged concept of Flex difficulty as it is now is going away with 6.0 as well! This means, by my assumptions, that in order to get a chance at Garrosh you will need to complete a full clear on the new “Normal” difficulty. Maybe I’m wrong though, we will see.
With that news on the table, its then important to note that these heirlooms as drops will be removed come WoD Launch, making them available at this intense drop rate for between 4-6 weeks as noted earlier. Its important that this happen, but I’m sure many don’t understand why. It is rumored that these weapons may potentially be BIS pre Mythic for any players that have them, making SoO something people would want to do at 100 as well. This is NOT something that needs to transpire, so therefore they are removed.
As you also would expect, the Korkron Juggernaut will also change from a certain drop on Heroic to a small chance, akin to Invincible’s Reins or Pureblood Firehawk.
It too should be noted that the Ahead of the Curve achievements will be gone once 6.0 drops, meaning the Kor’kron War Wolf will be unattainable. Hopefully everyone has that by now who wants it though.
The final big piece of news we received is that the new Group Finder tool will indeed be in and work for anything you wish it to. Unfortunately, Challenge Modes will be gone, but it can be used for organizing groups of all different sorts, including Normal or Heroic SoO… or even Mythic if you have the stomach for that! Of course, since they all now have exclusive lock outs, it will be much tougher for pugs to mix and match boss kills as they used to. Regardless, this will be an AMAZING change for the game, and should work extremely well, especially for when WoD comes out with new Challenge Mode dungeons.
Anyway, that is that. In terms of news, it was a happening weekend, but hopefully it continues along this trend and we get even more shortly! If you keep hoping for Beta it will eventually come true 😀