Project Lore

Making the trek to Ahune should be a lot easier this year.A new version of Patch 3.3.3 hit the PTR today. To be completely honest, there's not a whole lot in this build that we haven't already tipped you off to. From the new holiday boss mechanics to the class changes hinted on Facebook last night, it's all there. 

But if you still need a quick run-down of what's been modified in 11599, here are some highlights:

• Holiday bosses can now only be fought by queuing up through the Dungeon Finder system or special NPCs (likely to be found in major cities). As a result, the previous requirements for summoning these bosses has been removed.
• Death Knights' Chains of Ice now automatically inflicts Frost Fever.
• Druids' Nature's Grasp spell now has 3 charges.
• Hunters' Ferocious Inspiration is now an aura.
• Warriors' Vitality talent now buffs Stamina by 3/6/9%.

The rest of the details, including more class changes, can be found after the jump!

Click to read more ...

Patch 3.3's addition of the Dungeon Finder has been nothing short of a game changer.  There's been no single feature added to World of Warcraft in its illustrious five year run that has changed the daily lives of so many players.  People are using the tool to gear alts for raiding that would have never of been geared before, creating new characters to experience the early dungeons, reaping achievement after achievement from dungeons that were rarely seen before and soaking in, dissecting and analyzing dungeon participation on a whole new scale.

I've been a part of the revolution, using the Dungeon Finder on three characters (rogue, holy/shadow priest and frost mage) on almost a daily basis and I've noticed a few trends, some nice, some annoying and some design mistakes.

• Queue discrepancy - Everyone who's used the Dungeon Finder knows about the queue discrepancy.  If you're a healer or a tank you'll be placed in a group within five minutes, but more likely within one.  But DPS spots generally take between 10-15 minutes, at least a 200-300% increase even though there are three spots.  It's lopsided because of the population numbers; the ratio of DPS to tanks/healers is greater than 3:1.  This leads us to...
• "I'm special" complex - So you're a hot commodity.  Groups need you to complete their mission.  To some people that means they can abandon their team at a moment's notice.  Actually, it's usually no notice. My rogue has been left sitting in a half completed, DPS-filled run on numerous occasions because the tank or healer had had enough.  Because of their desirable nature they know that the next group is only a few moments away, so their far more likely to abandon the group than the DPS.  Those three are then left waiting in queue for another ten minutes.  For a tank/healer combo that just abandoned some other group.  A vicious cycle.
• Social dynamics - But it's unlikely we'll ever see those people again, or remember their slight against us if we do, so it's okay.  The greater anonymity of cross-faction play tends to promote childish acts at a higher frequency than normal.  But I have meet some fun, entertaining people during my runs.  Too bad there's no (easy) way I can keep up with them after the run is complete.  Despite the highs and lows of the WoW community, occasional clearing of throats and crickets remain the most common form of interaction that precipitates from the Dungeon Finder.
• Being carried dispute - Player X's DPS sucks, player Y went AFK for half the run and player Z is naked.  We've all half-assed it during a run here or there, and as long as the run is completed who the hell cares if someone, be it tank, healer or DPS, is carried?  As long as it isn't the tank and healer, or all the DPS being carried the job will get done.  It might take 3% longer, but the end result will be the same.
• Meters - Whether they are being pasted to complain about above, to extend your e-peen or put someone down, they suck.  And no one hates it more than your tank and healer. Once a meter is displayed all group play goes out the windows.  No more waiting for the tank to grab aggro,CCing or any group mechanics at all.  The DPS will crawl over their dead comrades in an attempt to top that meter, which means next to nothing nothing in a dungeon.
• Heroic to raid gap - Awesome, my alt is decked out in badge gear from head to toe.  I've got enchants and gems out the wazoo.  But I still can't get into most raids because of my non-badge gear.  They seem my mediocre non-welfare gear and realize that I can't link to any achievements forTotC or ICC.  Everyone chuckles at the thought of me starting a full Ulduar or Naxxramas run to fill those gaps.  My alt logs off and hopes theguildies finish their alts for alt night ASAP.
• Min/maxing - The idea that casual players are now min/maxing, not their stats but their time spent in an instance, is awesome to me.  The sheer volume of runs has lead to players of all shapes and sizes teaching each other small tricks to finishing a run as quickly as possible.  It reminds me of my childhood gaming; sitting in the playground sharing tips and tricks for beating The Legend of Zelda and Contra.  And those were the days.

That's three issues brought on by the community, two by design, and a pair of positives.  Can't blame Blizzard for all those problems.



Once the holidays wrapped up I found an incredible amount of time to dedicate to gaming.  Not only were family obligations wrapped up, but Ms. iTZKooPA has been incredibly busy searching for a job, everywhere.  She's basically been out of the house since the new year, giving me an obtuse amount of unimpeded free time.  A sizeable amount has been dedicated to gaming, with the majority of that time going to World of Warcraft.  Apparently so much time that my subconscious has even gotten in on the fun.

Yes, I dreamed about WoW the other night.

It wasn't just a rudimentary dream where I was my character, or some crazy fantasy about putting on my wizard hat and robe.  It wasn't a fantasy at all, or even in game.  It also was not a short dream that I remembered because of some unusual details.  The dream managed to creep out of my subconscious, causing me to be ever so slightly stirred from my sleep.  This ultimately led to a restless night.

/me sips his caffeine-laced beverage.

What was the dream that I remember so vividly, that caused such distress, and is worthy of a blog post?  Why it was about Patch 3.3 and the addition of Dungeon Finder tool.  My subconscious apparently thought it was an excuse for everything I could have done wrong since its release.  The only parts that I can remember clearly of the flowing dream had me late for work (a job I had when I was a teenager no less) and miss a wedding (my brother's, who isn't married).  In both cases I tried to levy the Dungeon Finder, and my attachment to running all my characters on it everyday, as a perfectly acceptable reason for my actions.  I'm sure there were crazier excuses levied, because the tossing and turning went on and on.  It was a surreal pseudo-nightmare experience.

It certainly wasn't my first dream about WoW, let alone a video game, and it probably won't be the last.  But it was the first dream that was about a video game, but set in the real world.  The most ironic thing is that while I was slipping in and out of consciousness, I decided to write a blog about it.  Oh you crazy brain.

Cool story, right bro?  Anyone else dream of WoW lately, or at all?