Ask a Beta Tester: (Almost) All about Death Knights
by Elizabeth Harper 
Aug 5th 2008 at 11:00AM
Samman asks...
For the last time, is the epic flying mount training the same price as on the live realms?
Yes, the costs look just like they do on the live realms. Wasn't that a boring answer? Epic flying mount training costs 5000g, ordinary flying mount training costs 800g, epic ground training costs 600g, and ordinary ground training costs 35g.
Tsani asks....
When the Death Knights join the Horde and Alliance forces, what is their starting reputation in those cities? Do they start at neutral like the Blood Elves/Forsaken with the rest of the Horde?
I've just tested each different race of Death Knight to confirm this. All Death Knights start out 1000/6000 into Friendly reputation with their racial faction. In addition to this, Tauren, Troll, and Orc Deakth Knights have Friendly reputation with the Darkspear Trolls, Orgrimmar, and Thunder Bluff and neutral with Undercity and Silvermoon City. Undead and Blood Elves are the opposite: friendly with Undercity and Silvermoon City, but neutral with the Darkspear Trolls, Orgrimmar, and Thunder Bluff. On the Alliance side, all races seem to start out with Friendly reputation in all Alliance factions.
Daemon Glidas asks....
One thing I'm extremely curious is how crowded the Death Knight's "Spell Book" is. Honestly, the most daunting part of trying out a class at a higher level is the simply fact that there's such a huge selection of skills, many of which are subpar-to-useless for the casual PvE'er. So, how large does the DK's initial Spell Book begin?
Dightkuz asks....
Any quests in the DK starting area that require group?
Nope! You may blissfully solo your way through the Death Knight starting zone with no need for assistance.
Arras asks....
How long does it take to get a death knight out of the starting area and into Outland? Is it something that can be done in a few hours?
The starting quests can be done in a few dedicated hours of playtime, and your new Death Knight will probably be level 57, with a bit of experience towards level 58, at that point. So the next question is simply how quickly you think you can level up a character from 57 to 58 without any rested XP.
Is the new Caverns Of Time "Old Stratholme" instance implemented yet?
The Wrath of the Lich King beta is in full swing, and the WoW Insider crew is here to sate your curiosity with Ask a Beta Tester! Can't get enough Wrath? Don't forget to check WoW Insider's Wrath Roundup page for anything we haven't answered here!
Filed under: Death Knight, Wrath of the Lich King
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Verodio Aug 5th 2008 11:09AM
How well does healing gear transform into spell power gear? I want to know if my priest would be better served by holding onto epic items with high healing stats or by blue items that are +damage for grinding in Northrend. For example. Would a pair of pants that are +90 to have higher or lower spellpower than a pair of pants with +40 damage?
Nodja Aug 5th 2008 11:24AM
Old epic gear with bonus healing will be converted to the new spellpower stat.
Example: http://wotlk.wowhead.com/?item=21875
Arvenis Aug 5th 2008 11:26AM
To add to what the previous commenter said. Your +heal stat on your character sheet will be lower but your heals will be hitting for roughly the same amount that they are now on the live server. There have even been reports of your heals hitting harder.
Jordrah Aug 5th 2008 11:26AM
i second this question
Mediator Aug 5th 2008 11:48AM
I'm fairly certain that your epic healing gear will be good for leveling, since you'll get the same +damage stat budget from +healing, so if you have sunwell healing items, you'd get sunwell level +Damage out of them, you just will lack a bit of +hit and possibly +Crit depending on your class
Brent Aug 5th 2008 11:20AM
Thank you for posting an in-depth article while the servers are down for maintenance. I appreciate a good fix when I can't play.
Reric Aug 5th 2008 11:21AM
Question about the new shaman talent Tidal Force. Does each crit reset the 20 second timer for the crit reduction? Also does the crit reduction stack only up to three times or can it happen more? Just concerned that it could stack 4 or 5 times completely removing your ability to crit at all.
Angus Aug 5th 2008 3:02PM
If it works the way that makes sense it is like the auto-crit talents, but with a twist.
Pop it and you get +60% crit for your heals.
The moment a crit hits, you now have +40% crit.
Another, +20% crit.
Once again, you no longer have a boost to your crit chance.
It is in effect until it runs out or you crit enough to hit 0% increase, in which case it did it's thing.
I don't think it's that great. An auto-crit is a sure thing, you macro that to a fast heal and you have a panic button. This has the potential of just being a normal heal and letting someone die. All the crit based procs we have aren't helping efficiency, and proc based healing effects are a great way to make sure you kill someone since you can't count on them.
Chucker Aug 5th 2008 11:21AM
Old Strat is a level 80 instance. Since the current level cap in the beta is 77, that would explain why the instance isn't currently open for play.
wowblogger Aug 5th 2008 11:22AM
Had any experience of Death Knights in pvp? Especially arena.
samownall - Wow Blogger
Bourgeoisie Aug 5th 2008 11:23AM
What weapon skills do death knights start out with?
bob Aug 5th 2008 11:26AM
With Death Knights (and alts) still having to go through Outland is Blizzard doing anything to keep the current content relevant, or is it going to be just as hard after Wrath comes out to get Epic Flight as it is to get a Dreadsteed in BC? I've heard there is a port from Dalaran to Shattrah, but will the really be any reason to use it?
Arvenis Aug 6th 2008 10:30AM
To visit your Arakkoa mistress?
toole11 Aug 5th 2008 11:42AM
If a hunter is 51 points in Beast Master and has the exotic pet talent, and they have an exotic pet like a Devilsaur. If they choose to respec to either MM or Survival or whatever else makes them lose the 51 BM talent do they just straight up lose that pet? Or does it get stabled.
Birkeland Aug 6th 2008 1:58AM
I forget where, but the blues have said that if you are 51 BM and respec, you just can't pull your exotic pet out of the stable. Likewise, all your pets would get an automatic respec
Ookami.kun Aug 5th 2008 12:31PM
My understanding, read a blue post somewhere, is that if you drop BM or the Beast Mastery talent you don't loose your exotic pet, you just can not access it till you respec back. If it's in the stable you can't switch your current pet to it, and if it's your "active" pet you can't call it to your side and have to either deal with no pet or return to a stable and switch it out for a normal/non-exotic type pet.
Brent Aug 5th 2008 12:46PM
If a hunter is 51 points in Beast Master and has the exotic pet talent, walks into a bar and sits down next to a lady and a dog, and they have an exotic pet like a Devilsaur. The hunter asks, "Does your dog bite?" The lady answers, "Never!" The hunter reaches out to pet the dog, and the dog bites his hand. If they choose to respec to either MM or Survival or whatever else makes them lose the 51 BM talent do they just straight up lose that pet? The hunter says, "I thought you said your dog doesn't bite!" The woman replies, "He doesn't. That's not my dog." Or does it get stabled.
Lars Aug 5th 2008 5:03PM
Thanks to Pink Panther, I cannot hear/read that joke without imagining it told in a bad French accent.
Deri Aug 5th 2008 11:41AM
How hard is it to get the mechanics of the deathknight (runes and runic power) down at first? Or does the game do it so it's easy?
Robert Aug 5th 2008 12:26PM
Just like any new class, there is a series of quests that show you how to use your new abilities. When you are done with the chain you should have a full understanding of how it all works