Patch 5.3 interview with Ghostcrawler
Mystery of the Unborn Val'kyr
The latest patch 5.3 news
All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsWorld of Warcraft Patch 3.3.5 Patch Notes
by Adam Holisky 
Jun 22nd 2010 at 7:21AM
Some of the highlights of patch 3.3.5:
- The Ruby Sanctum will be released (although not today, sometime in the future).
- Real ID is now in place, you can communicate with real life friends across any Blizzard game, server, and faction.
- Vote to Kick has been changed.
After the break are the release patch notes for patch 3.3.5.
World of Warcraft Client Patch 3.3.5
The latest test realm patch notes can always be found at http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/patchnotes/test-realm-patchnotes.html
The latest patch notes can always be found at http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/patchnotes/
Assault on the Ruby Sanctum
For ages the red dragonflight and its noble matriarch, Alexstrasza the Life-Binder, have dedicated themselves to preserving all life on Azeroth. Recently, the very heart of this virtuous dragonflight has come under threat.
An eerie silence has settled over the Ruby Sanctum, the red dragonflight's sacred lair within the Chamber of the Aspects. This troubling development has led to fears that the sanctum, home to Azeroth's largest clutch of red dragon eggs, has been breached by an unknown, sinister force. If these claims are true and immediate action is not taken, the benevolent red dragonflight might be crippled forever.
Real ID: A New Way to Connect With Your Friends on Battle.net
One of our goals for the new Battle.net is to create the framework for an online gaming experience that is even more accessible, more engaging, and more entertaining than the previous Battle.net. The newly released Real ID feature, available to World of Warcraft players as part of patch 3.3.5, is an integral part of this effort, providing you with advanced ways for forming and maintaining meaningful relationships with your friends on the service.
Real ID is a completely voluntary and optional level of identity that keeps players connected across all of Battle.net. When you and a friend mutually agree to become Real ID friends, you'll have access to a number of additional features that will enrich your social gaming experience in new and exciting ways. Go here for more details.
General
- The Ruby Sanctum, an all-new 10- and 25-player raid dungeon featuring normal and Heroic difficulties, has been added! Players will find the dungeon entrance below Wyrmrest Temple in Dragonblight. Please note due to the way this patch is being applied in all regions, this dungeon will not immediately be available in North America. Stay tuned to our General Discussion forum for an official announcement on the opening of the Ruby Sanctum.
- The functionality of the Vote Kick feature in the Dungeon Finder will now behave differently according to a player's history with the system. Players using the Dungeon Finder who rarely vote to kick players from a group, or rarely abandon groups before a dungeon is complete, will find that the Vote Kick option will have no cooldown. For players who frequently abandon groups or vote to kick other players, the Vote Kick option will be kept on a cooldown. This functionality will adjust itself as a player's behavior while using the Dungeon Finder changes.
User Interface
- Chat Frame
- Players can now right-click on any chat type (Whisper, Trade, General, Party, Raid, etc.) and choose to move conversation types into separate windows. This will move that chat type to a separate tab in the Chat frame which can be undocked and moved anywhere on the screen.
- Using the Move to Whisper Window option on a Whisper will place the conversation with that player in a separate tab.
- Any time a conversation with another player is put into its own tab, the tab will glow when a new message is received.
- Hovering over the Chat Frame and using the mouse wheel will allow players to scroll through chat text.
- Players can select Classic Mode under Interface Options to keep the Chat Frame functionality closer to what it was prior to patch 3.3.5.
- The Simple Chat User Interface option has been removed.
- Players can now right-click on any chat type (Whisper, Trade, General, Party, Raid, etc.) and choose to move conversation types into separate windows. This will move that chat type to a separate tab in the Chat frame which can be undocked and moved anywhere on the screen.
- Friends List
- A new icon has been added to the top left of the Chat Frame which will open up the Friends list.
- In addition to its current functionality, the Friends List will now allow players to add Battle.net accounts (Real ID). Players will have to confirm that they are friends in order for a Real ID to be added. Once Real ID friends, players can communicate cross-game, cross-faction and cross-realm.
- A new Pending tab has been added where players can accept or decline a Real ID friend request, or select the Report Spam or Block Communications buttons.
- Players can now select from three statuses which will be visible to their friends: Available, Away and Busy.
- A Broadcast window has been added to the top of the frame. Players can use this to broadcast a message to all of their Real ID friends online. This message will also be displayed under the broadcaster's Real ID information in each friend's list.
- For additional notes on Lua and XML changes please visit the UI & Macros forum.
Filed under: News items
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 7)
Colin Jun 22nd 2010 1:14PM
@ Lars
Does that honestly happen so often that you're kicking every time? I can count on one finger how many times someone has tried to leech off of my group.
Sinfulle Jun 22nd 2010 8:51AM
Sadly, the LFD tool will always see a need for the vote kick option for random pugs. There are still ways for seemingly innocent tools to be abused. The scenario of four guild members grabbing a pug person who is kicked at final boss, now those four people take turns initiating the vote kick. I realize the history will be tracked, but someone is bound to have vote kick off cool down.
What if a person was extremely unlucky and queued randoms only to encounter the /afk tank or healer time after time. As a mostly dps player, I've come across real frustration in LFD, always knowing that the 20 minute wait looms about me, like the odor of sweat socks not placed in the clothes hamper. It's not as though griefers don't exist in many forms. I have witnessed better behavior from groups of kindergarteners than the *adults* in pugs. Sometimes a person gets into a group with a butthead and no one else will initiate a vote kick because the other people are all pacifists(or masochists).
Perhaps assign a chaperone/nanny for each group, based on a player's past reputation in LFD pugs?
Ok, getting back to patch notes, more delays on content. Cataclysm itself now has push backs on content release(heroic old dungeons). Does this speak to possible delays of the expansion itself? I'm all for just letting them get it done and release it all at once, instead of staggering content. Releasing content bit by bit has historically lead to more server downtime, as live servers reveal bugs and glitches not discovered on the test realm.
jrb Jun 22nd 2010 9:03AM
the idling at dungeon entrance should be an easy fix. no emblems, or loot if you're not on the threat list for the mobs involved.
Garviel Jun 22nd 2010 10:00AM
What would be even nicer is if they implemented it as a stacking debuff that increased with each occurrence of *sshattery.. But this is a good start.
Sky Jun 22nd 2010 10:03AM
"The scenario of four guild members grabbing a pug person who is kicked at final boss, now those four people take turns initiating the vote kick. I realize the history will be tracked, but someone is bound to have vote kick off cool down"
I have used the dungeon finder (sometimes by myself and sometimes with a few guildies) almost everyday since it came out and I never experienced what you are describing here. Why would those 4 people wanna waste time kicking the pub guy when they could just finish the instance, get their badges and be done with it. The whole idea of kicking someone just to grief them out of their badges is irrational.
Anyways all I am saying is that no system is perfect and that the current implementation of the LFD is pretty good. Yes, the cooldown on the LFD gives people an incentive to leech off other people but with majority of the people wearing at least 251's dungeons can easily be 4-manned. Personally, if he's still not moving after 15 mins, I will initiate the vote to kick. Otherwise, I could care less. I still get the same number of badges why should I be concerned.
noel mcleod Jul 2nd 2010 9:51PM
This is why I ONLY tank for guildies now. I have all my gear that can be bought with EoT (there IS a reason why the title is "the Patient"), and now I don't PuG anymore with my tank. On the other hand, if you are a tank and I get in your group with my mage, you will find that my DPS is low but the group rarely wipes (I can't say never, cause there are other people involved, but I play for the team not for the DPS meter).
Wish other people would play the same way.
Sean Jun 22nd 2010 12:40PM
I think the Vote to Kick option should have a longer cooldown for people who GET kicked more often, not the ones who initiate the kicking. I run alts through dungeons a lot, and I get a lot of people who leech off the group, disconnect without leaving the party, or are terrible players trying to get us all killed. It can't get exploited that much when you need a majority vote to actually kick someone.
Hollow Leviathan Jun 22nd 2010 1:25PM
@sky, I've had that happen to me. A group of 4 guildies were running with an alt of mine through UK, sassing me occasionally and dropping hints that they were judging if I was worthy. I don't know what criteria they chose to use, because I was not pulling aggro while second on dps yet they kicked me right before the final boss without warning.
Now that I think about it, I suspect they were trying to grab a guildie for the final boss, who was maybe underleveled or something, so they used a pug dps to take his spot until right before Ingvar. Wow, that's really selfish.
Mike bare Jun 22nd 2010 5:10PM
@Lars Petersson
But as asshats do get kicked, they will think twice about it. Also, you have four people in your group and at least the two others needed for a sucessful kick, to pool from, if you are on CD.
As a Tank that hates leeches or Unauthorized MD Hunter pulls, Pets on Aggressive or Rogues getting spotted for a nice wipe, I appreciate this ability.
One time we had to kick this guy because he was a self proclaimed Lvl 70 Twink, running MT in Sunwell on Heroric .. and decided to keep pulling the entire room when I was OOM, "Not a Twink" with three other, "Not a Twinks" caused two wipes, so we had to let him go. Only to get a hunter, that must have been soloing content or questing, with her pet on Aggressive, join us right when we are going for that big pull in the middle ... ouch!!
Couldn't kick, she wouldn't put her pet on Def or Passive and we had to wait until she left to continue. It was too dangerous otherwise.
Four manned after she left. It's not that the content was hard, it was a distraction fighting nine mobs at a time, when it should have been a steady chain pull.
Wolfdog Jun 22nd 2010 7:34AM
Also, huge note here. battle.net is and will be down for maintenance for awhile, so take this into consideration today. As it is being updated with the new RealID system.
Alanid Jun 22nd 2010 7:41AM
Can't wait for the Real ID!
Rugus Jun 22nd 2010 7:45AM
The new patch includes a kind of "privacy" option. Does it work with non-realID friends too? Will I be finally able to set something like "invisible" to everyone while doing my business?
deweymaverick Jun 22nd 2010 7:52AM
wait - no operation gnomeregan, or is it just not advertised in the patch notes?!
crschmidt Jun 22nd 2010 8:10AM
Operation Gnomeregan and the Retaking of the Echo Isles are both scheduled for the future, as part of the ongoing buildup to Cataclycsm. They have said (and wow.com has published) repeatedly that the events will be 'turned on' at a later date.
dawnseven Jun 22nd 2010 9:27AM
Soooo... the Gnomer/Isles events are done, but not being turned on, and Ruby Sanctum is included, but not being turned on. Since I personally plan on avoiding the Real ID thing, all I have to look forward to today is a new chat interface. *twirls a finger* :D
Lars Petersson Jun 22nd 2010 7:57AM
I love the idea of Real-ID and I'm really looking forwards to it.
I just wish wish wish that I could exclude certain toons from being seen by my 'Real-ID Friends'...
Iirdan Jun 22nd 2010 10:45AM
I do too. I like having toons I can play without being interrupted by annoying requests like "come tank this random for me" and the subsequent "please" "please" "jerk" "please".
Lars Petersson Jun 22nd 2010 10:52AM
I've never really had that.
For me it's more about keeping my AH toons secret ;-)
I'm happy with adding guildies to my Real-ID FL, but I don't want people I don't know IRL and have met to know who my AH toons are...
PeeWee Jun 22nd 2010 11:00AM
They will see YOU online, not necessarily what character you're on. Set yourself to "Busy", problem solved.
BigB Jun 22nd 2010 11:02AM
The real id system is meant for people you don't mind seeing all your toons.
So if you want to hide from people or if they are the type to beg after you say no, then don't add them (or remove them) to your real id list.
It's meant to be for very close friends