The World of Azeroth Will Never Be the Same

Yesterday the world of Azeroth as we have known it since World of Warcraft changed with the escape of Deathwing yesterday the 23rd of November 2010. The rage of this massive dragon knew no bounds as he roared throughout the land destroying and changing everything in his path. We have been patiently waiting for this as the world heaved and shuddered while he strained to break the chains that have bound him for so many eons.

For the last couple of weeks we have seen the ground all over Azeroth trembling, now that Deathwing has escaped and the Cataclysm has occurred, you have a few days left until the release date to gather your resources and get ready for the new areas. This is the time to explore the ravaged areas and farm for as much gold as you can so that you have enough to buy your flying skills, train in new abilities and spells and not be left behind when the new day dawns next month.

Beware as you wander through the newly wrought areas as there are several surprises lurking around looking for unsuspecting travelers. If you should happen to run into any of them, you might not live to tell the tale.  We will have more to say as coverage picks up once again on what is happening and what is to come when the expansion goes live on the 7th of December.

Official Cataclysm Release Date Set By Blizzard!!

Dateline 10-07-10:

It’s official for all those of us who have been left in the dark wondering when we would get to finally travel the lands of Azeroth after the Cataclysm; Blizzard has finally given us a release date. That date is 12-07-10. As released directly by the developers in the latest edition of Blizzard Insider.

The long wait is almost over and for those that have not had a chance to see the changes first hand; I think you will be pleasantly surprised. With complete remodeling to many of the old world zones and new zones to journey through, there is plenty to keep you busy for a while. There are several new dungeons that will test your skills, new armor ratings and a complete rework of the talent trees for every class.

We are all going to have to learn how to really play our characters as the changes to the talent trees and the removal of many attributes that we are used to our armor having are going to make everyone work harder to stay alive. I personally am looking forward to the challenge.

Whether you are Alliance or Horde the changes will make game play far more enjoyable for all. Remember to gear up, stockpile gold and crafting materials as you are sure to need them when you get to the new zones. Release are scheduled for Midnight all across the country, if you have not reserved your copy of Cataclysm yet, what are you waiting for?  See you all on the 7th!!!

Digging For Epics – Archeology the New Profession

Digging For Epics – Archeology the New Profession

We have known for quite a while that we are getting archeology as a new profession in Cataclysm, the good news is that the last Beta patch has finally brought it online. While there is no in game support for it as of yet to show you how or what you are supposed to do, there has been a fair amount of information finally released to get you started.

Digging in the Ground

After you have visited the profession trainer you will be able to use your main map (not the mini map) to find each of the digsites. You will notice that each continent has four of them at any one time; this will not change unless you happen to dig one of them out. These sites are yours and yours alone, no more worrying about someone else diving in and “Ninjaing” your site like they do with mines and herbs. I don’t about you, but I really hate ninja looters!!

The sites will be zone specific, for instance if you are only a level 30 you will find sites in the level 30 zones or those that are lower than this. You will not be able to find the digsites in any of the higher level sites until you reach the appropriate level. This means that if you are a level 80 you are going to find four sites in all four current zones and a level 82 will also have access to Uldum.

Sites are also very race specific and generally matched to the location, for example as you wander the Eastern Kingdoms you are going to find a lot of dwarf ruins. You will also find that for some races such as Dranei and Orc will only be available on certain continents; these two will only be found on Outland. Just like mines and herbs, you are going to be able to see the digsites even if you do not have a high enough skill level to use them yet.  This is expected to change once the Beta has progressed and you won’t be able to see the digsites until you reach the appropriate skill level.

Fragments of Time

Each of your digsites can be searched a total of 3 times before it will despawn.  Once it despawns a new site will appear on your map. You will need to use your new Survey ability to search each site which will spawn a survey tool. This tool will point in the general direction of the fragment and works a little like the old game we used play as kids, you know the one that goes “you’re getting warmer, you’re getting cooler.

When the arrow is red you are further away, it will turn yellow as you get closer and finally green when you are within 40 yards of the artifact. Once you uncover your digsite you will get fragments that are race specific. This fragment is all yours, there is no inter player competition for it or for the site where you found it. You can find the site in one of two ways, by following the arrow and digging around the area where it turns green or you can attempt to triangulate the spot by surveying from several spots before digging.

Just the Facts or in this Case the Artifacts

After you have collected a new fragment for one of the races, you will able to start a research project. You can only work on one artifact for each race at a time, once you have the appropriate number of fragments for that race, you can complete your artifact. Any leftover fragments can be saved and used for the next artifact.

You will find that the majority of the artifacts you will “discover” are common that provide you with a little bit of the lore of the game and can be sold for a profit. You can get a reasonable idea of how much you are going to make by the number of fragments it takes to complete the artifact. The bulk of the lower level artifacts in Cataclysm are relatively inexpensive, but as your archeology level progresses so will your ability to find more valuable artifacts.

Rares and Epics

Not all of the artifacts that you are going to find in Cataclysm’s new archeology digsites are common items.  As your skill level increases you will start to find rare artifacts. When you complete one of these it will always reward you with either a blue or a purple item. The majority of these items are just for fun such as special toys and have no real in game value.

However, from time to time you will find armor or weapons; these are all bind to account items that can be passed to other toons on your account. These items are not heirlooms and they do not scale, still you can pass that lower level item to a toon on your account that can use it.  I have not had a chance to try out this new profession, but once I have time to it sounds like it might be a lot of fun and some of the rewards sound pretty cool. I will let you know more as I get a chance to try it out and see what I can find. Happy Digging!!