Ulduar drakes not being removed anytime soon
by Eliah Hecht 
Jul 22nd 2009 at 1:30PM
Blizzard simply can't make up their minds about this, can they? The Rusted and Ironbound Proto-Drakes, which are rewarded for completing Glory of the Ulduar Raider on Normal and Heroic, were slated for removal at an unspecified time in the future after patch 3.2's launch. The reasoning was that it would be easier to acquire them with Coliseum gear, and they were meant for cutting-edge players only.
However, Eyonix has just announced that they are not planning on removing these proto-drake rewards from the achievement in patch 3.2, and furthermore, they don't plan to do it "in the foreseeable future." In the event that they do change their minds again, you are promised a one-month warning. So get back to those hard-modes!
Patch 3.2 will bring about a new 5, 10, and 25 man instance to WoW, and usher in a new 40-man battleground called the Isle of Conquest. WoW.com will have you covered every step of the way, from extensive PTR coverage through the official live release. Check out WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.2 for all the latest!Filed under: Patches, News items, Raiding, Mounts, Achievements
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Ricky Jul 22nd 2009 1:47PM
yay
Lorsty Jul 22nd 2009 1:44PM
I wonder if it is because they listened to the feedback of the players ("don't remove it plox") or because they don't plan to introduce something for the Colliseum because of the lack of bosses compared with Ulduar and Naxxramas.
Leviathon Jul 22nd 2009 1:59PM
The Coliseum rewards Warhorse mounts that are faction colored.
Manatank Jul 22nd 2009 2:06PM
By feedback, I assume you mean whining. I think this very lame. I don't have a drake. I should never be able to get a drake until I and my guildies improve our play. Unfortunately it now looks like I will be able to gear up even more and have a shot at it if I wanted to.
Here is the worst part... I'm probably going to have to continue to go back to Ulduar with guildies who care about vanity mounts and achievements, just so they can get a mount that they and I don't deserve.
Special exclusive awards like this give people something to strive for. A reason to improve. I hate playing WoW with people who have no interest in self improvement. If the only thing that motivates them are purples and rare mounts then I want Blizzard to make those hard to get so they will share my work ethic and desire for improvement. Sure it's fine we downed that boss even though 3 people died, but next time we should expect to do better. It isn't enough to just win. You need to win well.
Lorsty Jul 22nd 2009 2:07PM
Oh, hehe.
Thanks for the response. ^-^
Jon Do Jul 22nd 2009 4:40PM
I wonder if the Violet Proto-Drake has something to do with this. It seems like last time the excuse for removal of the Naxx drakes was that they wanted to keep 310 drakes rare. But if the VPD goes live at 310 speed then extra-fast drakes will be more common than choppas (on my server at least).
Therresa Jul 22nd 2009 4:44PM
@ Manatank: You do realize some of those achievements (some of the hardest ones for that matter) cannot be achieved if you're wearing gear over a certain level? Yeah, try to know what you're talking about before you start trolling.
jjcoola998 Jul 22nd 2009 5:33PM
Why was manatank voted down for telling the truth?..
The point of the drakes is visible reward for people who do hardmodes/achievements. Going back into Ulduar to get the iron-bound drake in T9 will be a lot easier.. just like getting the rusted drake is now in 25-man gear - I know I got one its stupid easy. Its like going back to the middle-ages with a machine gun and saying you're the best knight out there. I know that until my guild finishes the rest of 25-man glory don't deserve the reward though we will try to get it.
I think a good compromise would be to allow the RUSTED drake to stay in for casual, hard-mode players (lol sounds funny though I guess that's how you would say it =\) and remove the ability to get the iron-bound one after the patch so it still has some e-peen significance in the future.
With that compromise all the casual-oriented players can grab the "easier" drake, and raiders can still show off their iron-bound drake. That way if your job was crazy during 3.1 you could still go back and have a drake to farm up.
Well, looks like im wall of texting again, anyways what do you guys think?
t0xic Jul 22nd 2009 1:44PM
Hardcore vs Casual argument take 9,534,451... and ACTION!
Please no more arguments about Blizz catering to casuals. These mounts will make you a special little snowflake even if everyone else has one, too =)
impurezero Jul 22nd 2009 2:06PM
[1. General] [Sugermamma]: You got your hardcore in my casual!
[1. General] [Ulduarkillah]: No! YOU got your casual in my hardcore!
Announcer samples the resulting combination.
[1. General] [Announcer]: World of Warcraft: Two great playstyles that taste great together!
[2. Trade] [Douchenozz]: Last person to link [Thunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker] gets 1000 gold!
[2. Trade] [Billybob]: [Thunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker]
[2. Trade] [Mxxyplyx]: [Thunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker]
[2. Trade] [Cutaia]: [Thunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker]
[2. Trade] [Nightdolphin]: anal [Thunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker]
You have left the channel Trade.
TobiasX Jul 22nd 2009 3:46PM
It's not Hardcore Vs Casual, it's Good vs Crap. This change gives Crap players more chances to get something they don't deserve.
TobiasX Jul 22nd 2009 3:46PM
To clarify: There are 4 groups. Good Hardcore, Crap Hardcore, Good Casual and Crap Casual.
vmonte200 Jul 22nd 2009 1:45PM
This is probably because unlike the Naxx raid achievements these are significantly harder. Yes the Maly and OS ones were no cake walk but Ulduar is a slightly harder difficulty...I don't see these mounts becoming common except among those that raid heavy anyway and it will still require a lot of work.
Evaline Jul 22nd 2009 1:46PM
I guess they want a certain percentage of raiders to have the drakes before they remove it.
According to wowprogress, only 169 guilds worldwide have the heroic mount (0,32%). Can't see how many guilds completed the normal version. But that doesn't sound like alot.
TheMediator Jul 22nd 2009 2:21PM
This.
Nick S Jul 22nd 2009 3:13PM
That's my assumption, as well.
Evi Jul 22nd 2009 4:12PM
I agree. I think once they reach that magical percentage, we'll see more talk about removing them.
Borled Jul 22nd 2009 1:48PM
I bet it's because their new content is so horrible, they want people to have something to work on so they'll keep playing. Let's face it, 3.2 is a joke.
Shadan Jul 22nd 2009 1:49PM
Anyone know the actual percentage of raiders that got their drakes from Ulduar so far versus Naxx?
It will be interesting to see if Blizzard is waiting until a specific number is reached since this reward is supposed to mirror the gladiator drakes.
Ancro Jul 22nd 2009 2:57PM
Actually, yes, there is a fairly easy way to do that. GuildOx(.com) let's you see the Global, National, and Server %s for each achievement including Glory of the (Ulduar) Raider type achievements.
10-man GotR: 9%
25-man GotR: 2.48%
10-man GotUR: 4.92%
25-man GotUR: .34%