As we slowly move towards the release of Warlords of Draenor there’s still some videos from our youtube channel to take a look at WoD! Next we’ll take a look at the horde outposts in Gorgrond and the Spires of Arak.
As we slowly move towards the release of Warlords of Draenor there’s still some videos from our youtube channel to take a look at WoD! To start off we’ll take a look at the final Garrison Stables quest and the mounts you will receive from them.
Quote from: Blizzard
There are plenty of opportunities in Warlords of Draenor for those who are looking for some new adventures. With four new level-up dungeons and four maximum level dungeons you’re on the fast track to danger, mayhem, and perhaps a bit of shiny new loot.
There’s so much packed into Warlords of Draenor that we’d be remiss if we didn’t take a moment to look at the upcoming dungeons.
Bloodmaul Slag Mines
Location: Frostfire Ridge
Level: 90-92
Bosses: 4Some like it hot and others are simply slaves within it. This level 90-92 dungeon takes you into the sweltering heat of active volcanic caverns wherein Bloodmaul ogres run a brutal mining operation powered by the blood and sweat of slaves acquisitioned from all across Draenor. The Slag Mines produce a bounty of gemstones and ore, but it’s rumored that the true purpose of these mines is to dig for an ancient relic of immense power.
You’ll encounter four new bosses and a lot of fire power as you try to disrupt their machinations. We’re sure you’ve learned that ancient relics in the hands of – well anyone– are probably not going to lead to very good things. You know what to do, heroes.
On the art of minecraft: “The beginning and ending of Bloodmaul Slag Mines were my favorite shots to establish in the dungeon,” says Senior 3D artist Andy Matthews. “You get a sense of how precarious and dangerous every element of the mines will be. We used old wood and rope, not the best materials to use inside a mine that’s filled with lava and fire. Ogres don’t care; they will just grab more and haphazardly place a new one on top of the half burnt one. Not the brightest but they will ’get the job done.’
The ‘look and feel’ of the Mine was inspired by Bladespire Citadel and the surrounding Ogre settlements in the zone. In the Slave Quarters you will notice each hut shows the daily life of living inside an active volcano. Some huts are better off than others.”
“One slave in the dungeon turns a mysterious wheel of pain but why?”
Iron Docks
Location: Gorgrond
Level: 92-94
Bosses: 4Battles can be won and lost by the power of a naval force. To put a stop to the Iron Horde’s naval powerhouse, you’ll need to venture into this level 92-94 dungeon. This port located in the northern coast of Gorgrond houses the Iron Horde’s shipyard, filled with massive warships and artillery forged and assembled within the Blackrock Foundry. In addition to this seafaring arsenal, elite infantry units are joined by trained beasts to comprise the ground troops.
You’ll encounter four new bosses who you’ll need to put a stop to before their ship has sailed. Beware the Cannon Barrage and the Backdraft. This is one shipyard that’s bound to get explosive.
On the shipyard’s origin: “The Iron Docks started off as a PVE quest area,” says Lead Dungeon Artist Wendy Vetter, “but then once it started to take shape we realized it would make a great backdrop and play space for a dungeon. This has given the dungeon a unique visual look that is quite unlike any other dungeon in World of Warcraft. It’s also a great showcase of all the Iron Horde technology and architecture culminating in a showdown with the final boss within the dungeon which takes place on a huge Iron Horde ship.”
“We really tried to give the Iron Docks a sense of being overwhelmed,” adds 3D Artist Patrick Burke. “This is an important strategical location for the Iron Horde to send out their destructive forces. The architecture is threatening and is meant to show that the Iron Horde means business. The Iron Horde has no concern for the environment or cleanliness. The sky is filled with smog. The ground is littered with oil stains, streaks, and all manner of machinery.”
Auchindoun
Location: Talador
Level: 94-97
Bosses: 4
Auchindoun is the holy mausoleum of the draenei, a sanctum of the Light in which the spirits of the dead find respite. It’s also a level 94-97 dungeon found within Talador. The crystalline structure serves to protect and shield draenei souls from their eternal enemies: the Burning Legion, who hunger for draenei spirits. For the Shadow Council, this holy place is an opportunity ripe for the picking, as Gul’dan and his minions work to gain favor with their demonic masters.
You’ll encounter four new bosses with multiple shades of abilities and one of whom may seem just the tiniest bit familiar.
A place of contemplation: “Our intention for Auchindoun was to give it a cathedral like vibe,” says Senior 3D Artist Jonathan Jacobson. “As a mausoleum the hallways and chambers needed to enhance the deep respect and admiration for the heroes that have made Auchindoun their final resting place. It also evokes a certain ethereal quality; the light has a certain glow and opulence as it hits the water and golden surfaces within.”
Skyreach
Location: Spires of Arak
Level: 97-99
Bosses: 4
Last of the four level-up dungeons, this level 97-99 dungeon sits high atop the Spires of Arak amid the clouds. This dungeon holds the seat of power of the Adherents of Rukhmar, high arakkoa who have gathered and harnessed the Apexis technology of their forebears. Now they’re ready to unleash the focused power of the sun upon their enemies. If you want to stop them from unleashing this power, you’re going to have to face your acrophobia, wipe the sweat from your palms, and take the battle directly into their lair.
You’ll encounter four new bosses within this lair and we highly advise staying away from the beams of bright shiny light.
Reach for the sky: “The Spires of Arak Dungeon allowed us an opportunity to explore and fill out the culture of the arakkoa” say 3D Artist Fanny Vergne and Senior Artist Steve Crow. “In the Burning Crusade we only showed some of the remnants of this ancient race, so we essentially had a few puzzle pieces with which to build upon. This is the first time you’ll see the arakkoa in their homeland. The dungeon has a few themes that run throughout the culture, the feeling of height, a sense of grandeur, as well as intricate “bird-like” accents.”
Shadowmoon Burial Grounds
Location: Shadowmoon Valley
Level: 100
Bosses: 4
This level 100 dungeon is located within Shadowmoon Valley. The traditional burial grounds of the Shadowmoon clan are the final resting place for countless of generations of ancestors. All is not as it should be however and Ner’zhul has sacrificed more than his clan can afford as a part of his desperate quest for power. Now the ancestral spirits are restless, tormented and used to fuel dark rituals that will pull all of Draenor into the void if allowed to run their course.
You’ll encounter four new bosses including Shadowmoon chieftain Ner’zhul himself. It’s up to you to put a stop to the chaos he’s set in motion.
On shadows and symbols: “The moon sigil effect done for the Sadana Bloodfury boss fight tells the story of the Shadowmoon clan and their connection to the dark arts,” says Wendy. “Their complicated rituals are mirrored in the intricacy of the chart, as well as by the ominous carvings that riddle the walls throughout the dungeon.
The huge, moss-covered stone blocks give the dungeon a dank and ancient vibe, which becomes even more pronounced in the Bonemaw Caverns portion of the dungeon. Towering monuments can be seen crumbling in the foggy distance as the player progresses through the watery graveyard of souls.”
The Everbloom
Location: Gorgrond
Level: 100
Bosses: 5Plants – they seem so harmless until they try to kill you. This level 100 dungeon is located in Gorgrond, within the very heart of the deadliest forests in Draenor. After the disruption of the Dark Portal, the Kirin Tor, in a bid to establish a supply line to fight the Iron Horde on their own soil, have set up outposts across Draenor with magical links back to Azeroth. Unfortunately, what seemed like a prime strategic location near the Blackrock Foundry is a sacred place to the botani. The outpost was quickly overgrown, but still contains a link to the outskirts of Stormwind…
We’re sure it will all be fine though. What’s the worst that could happen?
You’ll encounter five new bosses all of whom have the power of nature in their hands –literally.
On nature’s deceptive nature: “The botani trees for the Everbloom dungeon were designed to look ‘claimed’, overtaken, and manipulated by the Primals race to suit their needs,” says Associate 3D Artist Jessica Dinh. “The vines and branches shape themselves in a wild, yet purposeful fashion, lending the dungeon a vibrant, sentient atmosphere. The beauty of the botani trees is quite deceiving, and we wanted to distinguish their colors from the other trees in the area.”
Grimrail Depot
Location: Gorgrond
Level: 100
Bosses: 3If you’ve ever wanted to enjoy the sights of Draenor by train, then this isn’t the ride for you. If you want fast paced action on a moving train, then we’ve got you covered. The Grimrail Depot is a level 100 dungeon and a vital hub in the Iron Horde war machine. Allowing for the transport of troops and materials produced in the Blackrock Foundry to the front lines of the war being waged across Draenor, the Depot’s namesake is the Grimrail itself. This massive train can bear entire battalions of troops and artillery. Fitted with a massive railgun powerful enough to shatter the shield protecting Shattrath, the train is about to depart. Do you have your boarding pass? It’s going to be a heck of a ride.
You’ll encounter three new explosive bosses who are packing some serious gadgets and fire power. This train isn’t stopping for anything or anyone.
On engineering exhilaration: In creating the architecture for Grimrail Depot, 3D Artist Ryan Cooper says that one of the goals was to make sure the player could see the world speeding by them as they encountered all manner of obstacles and precarious paths, creating a feeling that you fall off at any time. They designed the train interiors to feel cramped and full of precarious objects that could crush you at any given time. Later, as the action shifts to the Depot, players are taken above the station and into the rafters to give a unique perspective and a sense of the Depot’s enormous scale and a unique perspective—something you wouldn’t necessarily get from just fighting alongside the train on a platform.
Upper Blackrock Spire
Location: Blackrock Mountain (Azeroth)
Level: 100
Bosses: 5This is a mountain that is rife with history. Heroes of Azeroth have long fought and bled through its halls, but now this imposing fortress is under new management. This level 100 dungeon in the upper reaches of Blackrock Spire is now home to the Ironmarch vanguard. As preparations to use the Spire as the staging ground for a full-scale invasion of Azeroth continue, the Iron Horde has set up a terrifying contingency plan: a doomsday weapon within the heart of the Blackrock Mountain.
You’ll encounter five new bosses at level 100 and can experience the first three as a part of the pre-expansion version of the dungeon available to level 90 players for a limited time.
Artist Credits: Bloodmaul Slag Mines- Senior 3D Artist Andy Matthews, 3D Artist Ryan Cooper, Iron Docks – Senior Artist Steve Crow, 3D Artist Jeff Chang, 3D Artist Patrick Burke, Associate 3D Artist Jessica Clarke, Auchindoun- Senior 3D Artist Jonathan Jacobson, Associate Artist Lianna Tai, Skyreach- 3D Artist Fanny Vergne, Senior Artist Steve Crow, 3D Artist Cole Eastburn, The Everbloom- Associate 3D Artist Jessica Dinh, 3D Artist Matt O’Connor, Grimrail Depot- 3D Artist Ryan Cooper, Shadowmoon Burial Grounds- 3D Artist Jeff Chang, Senior Artist Chad Max, and Associate 3D Artist Jessica Dinh.
A Special thank you to Lead Game Designer Ion Hazzikostas and Lead Dungeon Artist Wendy Vetter
To finish off the Lords of War series Blizzard has decided to feature Maraad!
Quote from: Blizzard
We proudly present the epic conclusion to Blizzard Entertainment’s animated lore miniseries Lords of War! Watch the tale of draenei champion Vindicator Maraad, and then catch the entire series to learn about some of the other major players in the upcoming World of Warcraft expansion, Warlords of Draenor.
Vindicator Maraad battled the demonic orcs of the first Horde. He witnessed the slaughter of his people in Shattrath. It was the draenei’s darkest day, and Maraad’s greatest test… and the memory of his actions have haunted him ever since.
Once you’re caught up on Maraad’s tale, visit his character page to read more about this draenei warrior of the Light and his role in the events to come.
Before you can harbor any hope of defeating the Iron Horde, you must first understand what—and whom—you’re up against. Visit our Lords of War page to watch all five episodes and witness the stories of Draenor’s mightiest leaders.
Quote from: Blizzard
In this series of blog posts, we’re giving you a much closer look at how Garrisons are shaping up and how you can expect to interact with them in Warlords of Draenor. This second installment maps out the buildings that make up a fully armed and operational Garrison and how they impact your professions.
As we mentioned in part 1 of this series, we want the process of staking your claim on Draenor to fundamentally shape your gameplay experience. Your Garrison mainly comprises buildings and the Followers who inhabit them. As your Garrison grows, so will your options and opportunities to use these assets to your advantage on Draenor. The Followers that populate your Garrison will grow in number and power, and what they can do for you depends which buildings you choose to construct in your base.
Start Small, Think Big
Even in its fledgling state, your Garrison will contribute to your professional development almost immediately. You’ll have many choices for what to build, and your choices directly impact what your Followers can do and the rewards you’ll get from them.
The space you have available for buildings is determined by your Garrison Tier. At Garrison Tier 1, you’ll have one small and one large plot for buildings of those sizes. Quests will take you through placing a building that matches one of your primary professions in your first small plot and a Barracks in your first large plot.
At Garrison Tier 2, you’ll gain one additional small plot, one medium plot, and room for three of four preset buildings: the Fishing Shack, Herb Garden, Pet Menagerie, and Lunarfall Excavation (Alliance) or Frostwolf Mine (Horde). Everyone can eventually unlock and use all four presets, and each provides a great deal of synergy with its associated activities. For example, the Fishing Shack not only allows you to fish in Garrison waters and take on daily fishing quests—it also makes it possible for you to attract Nat Pagle as a Follower and gives him a place to work with you on Draenor.
Everyone can eventually unlock and use all four presets,…
Quests to gain access to each of the four preset buildings become available as you level up your character. You can obtain the mine at character level 92, the Fishing Shack at level 94, the Herb Garden at level 96, and the Pet Menagerie at level 98.
At Garrison Tier 3, you’ll gain room for one more building of each size (one small, one medium, one large, and the final preset)—but to start, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with your first building and then consider what you’re going to do with the other precious spaces that become available.
Small plots can hold the Engineering Works, Alchemy Lab, Enchanter’s Study, Gem Boutique, Salvage Yard, Scribe’s Quarters, Storehouse, Tailoring Emporium, Forge, or Tannery.
Buildings level up, too, so you’ll want to raise both your Garrison and each building inside your walls to reach their highest potential. You do this by obtaining blueprints for the building and level you want from the blueprint vendor:
- Level 1 blueprints all become available to you when your Garrison reaches Tier 2.
- Level 2 blueprints become available at different times depending on their size:
- Small buildings: Reach level 96 or complete the Talador zone.
- Medium buildings: Reach level 98 or complete the Spires of Arak zone.
- Large buildings: Reach level 100 or complete the Nagrand zone.
- Level 3 blueprints become available as you complete certain achievements across Draenor.
- Level 3 blueprints are account-wide. Once you unlock one on a character, it’s available to all characters on your account.
Do Medium Well
Some of the most impactful decisions you’ll make when planning your Garrison will come when it’s time to choose medium-sized buildings. Medium buildings, unlike the smaller professional workspaces, make use of more real estate to give your Followers room to work on bigger projects with you and interact with each other.
Medium buildings include the Horde’s Frostwall Tavern and the Alliance’s Lunarfall Inn, the Barn, the Lumber Mill, the Gladiator’s Sanctum, and the Trading Post.
If you go with the Inn or Tavern, each day you’ll find a visitor who offers you a dungeon quest with generous rewards. At level 100, you’ll get two such quests per day. As it grows, you’ll have the opportunity to recruit random followers with traits and abilities that you particularly want—and at its grandest, it unlocks Treasure Hunt missions with hefty payouts.
The level 1 Barn grants the ability to capture clefthoof, elekk, wolves, and talbuk for leather and fur that can be used in Leatherworking and Tailoring. To make a capture, you’ll drop a trap and coax low-health creatures over it. At level 2, you’ll learn how to capture boars and riverbeasts for rare meats that are used to cook the most powerful recipes, and at level 3, the Barn will allow you to capture elite beasts and extract their Savage Blood, an ingredient for epic crafted armor and weapons.
…the Barn will allow you to capture elite beasts and extract their Savage Blood, an ingredient for epic crafted armor and weapons.
Meanwhile, over in the Gladiator’s Sanctum, you’ll earn a bonus to your out-of-combat regen in outdoor zones on Draenor, gain the ability to fall safely and breathe underwater outdoors on Draenor, learn a unique damage reduction ability, and at building level 2, gain access to the intense Highmaul Coliseum gladiator tournament that unlocks a special Nemesis PvP quest series.
The Nemesis quest line challenges PvP players to focus on hunting down enemy players of specific races to earn renown and over a dozen character titles such as Draenei Destroyer, Troll Hunter, Orcslayer, and Gnomebane. Truly vigilant players who complete every Nemesis quest will be rewarded with the title Warlord of Draenor.
Large and In Charge
Your Garrison is never intended to be sealed off from the many harsh hazards of Draenor. You and your Followers have work to do out there if you’re going to deal with the Iron Horde . . . and you’re going to deal with the Iron Horde! Maximizing your effectiveness—and your chances of success—requires a couple of large buildings.
Large plots can hold the Alliance’s Mage Tower or its Horde equivalent, the Spirit Lodge; the Barracks; the Dwarven Bunker (Alliance) or War Mill (Horde); the Stables; or the Gnomish Gearworks (Alliance) or Goblin Workshop (Horde).
The Mage Tower is remarkably powerful. From the moment you build one (or its Horde variant, the Spirit Lodge), you’ll start collecting Ogre Waystones from ogres on Draenor. The building then becomes one end of a system of two-way portals via Ogre Waygates you’ll find in every zone on Draenor. You’ll use the Waystones to activate one gate at a time at building level 1, two at level 2, and three at level 3.
With the Stables, you can capture and train special mounts on Draenor. These unique mounts spawn all across the world, and after you find and lasso them, you’ll send them to your Garrison for training. The subsequent training quests will allow you to add the mounts to your collection, learn the ability to remain mounted while interacting with objects in outdoor Draenor zones (at Stables level 2), and ultimately reward you with an increased mounted speed across Draenor at level 3. Achievements associated with this remarkable building unlock even more mounts, as well as the title Stable Master.
With the Stables, you can capture and train special mounts on Draenor.
When you go large, perhaps the Gnomish Gearworks or Goblin Workshop will catch your fancy. It’s a veritable toy store, granting access over the first two levels to unique items such as the Robo-Rooster, Personal Delivery System, Sentry Turret Dispenser, and Micro-Jetpack. Then at building level 3, the real fun begins, as you gain the ability to deploy a siege vehicle to take out for a spin. And by “out,” we mean right out of the Garrison and anywhere on Draenor—yes, that includes Ashran.
No one ever said it’s going to be easy to choose your buildings!
While you’ll certainly have the option to tear down a building and replace it with a different one, knowing your options ahead of time will help you better plan your Garrison to reflect your character’s style and needs.
Plotting Ahead
If you missed it, check out part 1 of our Garrisons preview here. In part 3, we’ll take a closer look at Followers, missions, and how you’ll use them to bring home rewards. Today, you can read more at:
- Polygon – interview with Blizzard Lead Game Designer Cory Stockton.
- Venture Beat – Five Reasons to Build Garrisons
- GamePlanet – Stables in Warlords of Draenor
If you’re beta testing Warlords of Draenor with us and have any Garrison-related questions or experiences to share, head over to our Beta General Discussion forum and post it there. You can also leave a comment below.
Quote from: Blizzard
To help you get prepared for the upcoming Warlords of Draenor Patch 6.0.2 release, we’ve uploaded the patch data to the background downloader. By downloading the patch in advance, you’ll be ready to get in-game and start playing as soon as the expansion goes live!
If you have issues during this process, you can find help to resolve them on the support site here.
You can adjust your download settings within the Battle.net desktop app by clicking on the Battle.net symbol and selecting “Settings” from the menu. Under Game Install/Update you’ll be able to adjust your download options for each of your games and enable or disable the background download, adjust the rate for your download, or pause it if you have a restriction on daily downloads.
Quote from: Blizzard
Countless adventurers continue to brave the most trying versions of Mists of Pandaria dungeons, but the clock is ticking. This “season” of Challenge Modes will be coming to an end with the upcoming release of a patch prior to the expansion’s release.
Challenge Modes are designed to offer as close to a “normalized” difficulty as possible, and they’re tuned to be tough to master. With Warlords of Draenor’s class changes, itemization changes (e.g. the removal of Hit and Expertise), and—of course—increased level cap on the horizon, the difficulty of Mists of Pandaria’s dungeons will no longer be tuned the same as they were. In the spirit of fair play, when the aforementioned patch is released a little while before the new expansion launches, the current slate of Challenge Mode dungeons will no longer be available, and the achievements they award will be converted to Feats of Strength. The reward items will still be available for purchase by those who qualified prior to the end of the season, but it will not be possible for new players to earn those rewards going forward.
If you still need to earn your Undaunted title, Ancestral Phoenix, or class-specific Transmogrification sets, now’s the time to get out there and prove your worth. In Warlords of Draenor, an entirely new set of Challenge Modes will be available . . . and with them an array of new rewards for you to earn. Until then, stay sharp!
* Reward Clarifications
With the upcoming end of the Challenge Mode Season, we wanted to provide some additional clarification on how we plan to handle rewards.
Achievements: All Achievements associated with Mists of Pandaria Challenge Modes will become Feats of Strength.
Rewards
- Bronze: The “Undaunted” title for achieving a full set of Bronze medals will become account-wide.
- Silver: The Pandaren Phoenix mounts awarded for a full set of Silver medals will become account-wide. If any character on an account has earned a full set of Silver medals, all four variants of the Pandaren Phoenix (Crimson, Ashen, Violet, and Emerald) will become available to all characters account-wide.
- Gold: The cosmetic class sets will remain character-specific. Any character that has earned all nine Gold medals will still be able to repurchase the appropriate set, should they misplace theirs, from Challenger Soong or Challenger Wuli in the Vale of Eternal Blossoms. Any characters that have earned one or more “Challenger’s Path” teleport spells by earning Gold medals in Mists Challenge Modes will retain those spells.
- Realm Best Titles: There are extremely limited titles that are held by the players who hold the best clear time for a given dungeon on a given server. Since those Challenge dungeons will no longer be available in Warlords of Draenor, their respective titles are also being permanently removed. There will be new Challenge dungeons in the upcoming Warlords season, and new titles for which to contend, however.
Besides the ingame cinematics for WoD, a new Lords of War episode was also released yesterday!
Quote from: Blizzard
Before you can harbor any hope of defeating the Iron Horde, you must first understand what—and whom—you’re up against. Our five-part series Lords of War introduces you to some of the major players in the campaign on Draenor, continuing today with the tale of Kilrogg Deadeye, powerful chieftan of the Bleeding Hollow clan.
The Bleeding Hollow clan once stood on the verge of extinction. To escape death, Kilrogg Deadeye first had to embrace it.
Visit our Lords of War page to watch earlier installments in the series featuring Kargath, Grommash, and Durotan.
Visit www.worldofwarcraft.com next week for the final episode of Lords of War, and arm yourself with the knowledge you need to survive the battle ahead.