Cataclysm: Guards in starting zones buffed to level 90
by Fox Van Allen 
Nov 5th 2010 at 9:00AM
The change, which guarantees you'll be at least five levels lower than the guards, takes advantage of existing game mechanics to protect lower-level players from mischief. NPCs that are five levels higher than you are exceedingly difficult to hit (spell casters will suffer a 39 percent chance to miss) and frequently wallop you for higher-damage-causing crushing blows far more often. The guards will also have higher health pools as well. This contrasts vividly with guards on the live server, who are prone to dying if a level 80 character accidentally sneezes on them.
Level 90 guards are better suited to protecting newbie players from max-level griefers. Note that only starting areas will see these high-level guards. The guards in major cities are now level 85 -- dangerous, but soloable.
Players who are upset by this change are encouraged to stop being jerks who grief newbies.
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm will destroy Azeroth as we know it; nothing will be the same! In WoW Insider's Guide to Cataclysm, you can find out everything you need to know about WoW's third expansion (available Dec. 7, 2010), from brand new races to revamped quests and zones. Visit our Cataclysm news category for the most recent posts having to do with the Cataclysm expansion.Filed under: News items, Cataclysm
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 9)
yannickjeras Nov 5th 2010 9:05AM
haha awesome :)
Paultab Nov 5th 2010 10:15AM
Hell make them Skull level mobs while you're at it. Griefing lowbees is right up there with standing on top of someones fishing lure.
gg Blizz.
Balgus Nov 5th 2010 11:02AM
skull level mobs are only 3 levels higher than cap. 90 would be 5 levels higher.
Heilig Nov 5th 2010 11:14AM
After watching the live raid streams, I'm pretty sure the guards hit harder than raid bosses. I don't recall any of the raid bosses hitting anyone for 87K.
Although I do love that after 87K you're not dead, you just got the low health warning. VIVA CATACLYSM!
Paultab Nov 5th 2010 11:19AM
Well, if you're going to nitpick there's 2 types of "skull" mobs. You've got your "elite" skull boss types, and your 10-levels-above-you skull types. ie. the ?? Rogue who's been camping you all afternoon.
Either way both will work here. In fact throw in a couple of patrolling Sharks with laser beams in the starter zones to spice things up a little.
tabardsrock Nov 5th 2010 12:09PM
@balgus
paultab is correct about the skull mobs... but i would like to make an addition to further explain things, if i may
when you see a mob that is a 'skull' to you, that mob (or pc) is listed as being at least 10 levels higher than you currently are. that also applies to raid bosses.
however, for the bosses to be playable against, blizz instituted the 3-level difference only for the sake of game mechanics... otherwise, we'd never be able to defeat those lvl 400 dragons (or w/e), at least not for a few more expansions ;)
Bapo Nov 5th 2010 12:13PM
I'm gonna say Paul says it more accurately. There's a couple different types of mobs with skulls. Even at 80, The Beast inside UBRS is treated as a skull boss, BUT you can still tame him, and when you do, he retains his "Lvl ??" status, and the talent tree says he's "Lvl -1" :P
Dreyja Nov 5th 2010 2:41PM
This makes me so HAPPY. I can't wait to see some griefers run into starting zones on day one, not knowing this. MWAHAHAHaaaaaa!
BubblePriest Nov 9th 2010 8:24AM
Not everyone traipsing around in opposite faction lowbie areas is a ganker. I had to go into the dwarven area for the exploration achieve (most newbie areas give you credit for just poking your head in the door, but not the dwarves).
Granted, it's something you'll probably only ever do once on each toon.
Mort Nov 5th 2010 9:05AM
About time. The level 65 guards were laughable at best. Now my lovable Mulgore will be safe again.
Sumadin Nov 5th 2010 9:22AM
Last i checked there weren't many places in the cataclysm that was "Safe".
But yea at least it won't be max-leveled players who kill you.
Sean Nov 5th 2010 9:37AM
Definitely about time. I've been so sick of these guards being effectively useless for such a long time.
vocenoctum Nov 5th 2010 11:02AM
Hopefully they watch the patrol paths though, I'd hate to get corpse camped by a guard while I'm trying to piss in some towns Midsummer bonfire...
well, how do YOU put them out!
Koleckai Nov 5th 2010 11:10AM
There are no bonfires in the level 1-5 starting zones.
cygnus Nov 5th 2010 12:14PM
I believe that instead of keeping the 80's away, these new guards might become a fun challenge during FTA/FTH... :3
edgeblade69 Nov 5th 2010 1:35PM
Seriously. What took them so long to raise their levels? Or do they like the idea of a solo player overrunning an entire town of the opposing faction? Guards are pointless to even have if they have no chance of denting a player's health.
Daedalus Nov 5th 2010 9:06AM
Sweet!
I can't imagine something more likely to turn off new players than watching the guy you were supposed to turn your quest in to being slaughtered by someone many, many levels above you, and then sitting on your hands waiting for them to respond...
Especially since it's not like lowbies can go and do something else while they wait; the starting experience is fairly linear, and it's not like they can just go queue up for a dungeon or BG while they wait...
Personally, though, I hope they keep this quiet. I'd much rather the people who think it's funny to go around griefing newbies for no personal gain find out about this change first hand...
Blacksheep Nov 5th 2010 10:40AM
^This
I didn't play WoW until Dec. 2008 so everyone was 80 and had been playing longer than me and people were always coming in and killing the NPCs in Ashenvale and Darkshore and elsewhere, one time a group was just killing them on respawn, waiting, then doing it again. I got so mad, lvl 28 me shot at them and I was insta killed in response of course. Then I logged off and didn't play for two days out of frustration.
Any chance the flight masters will be buffed to lvl 90? I've got 310 flying these days so no concern to me, but when I relied on the FPs, it sucked having to wait for those to respawn when a jerk decided to camp them and kill them.
Chetti Nov 5th 2010 11:01AM
SO true! Waiting on the FPs to respawn is the worst. The groups that just kill the npcs/fps on respawn do it because they know someone is waiting. There were 2 horde people doing this in gadget one night for a solid HOUR. I can't imagine how much fun it was for them to squash the same fp over and over again, aside from the grief they knew it was causing to people waiting. And they stand right ON the spawn point, so its impossible to get a click in before they start again. Such an annoyance, flights should be buffed as well.
Pat Nov 5th 2010 11:37AM
They could just keep this change a sort of "Secret"
Stay with me! ...Make it appear as though the guards are weak, 75? 80? Whatever works in Cata, And just buff the damage they do and there health pools once engaged.. Have a sort of "Last Stand" Effect proc when they engage in combat! with a nice enrage for the big dps boost. Suprise the players! haha.
Anyway, This is a nice change although I've never heard of anyone griefing newbie starting zones.