Patch 4.3: Druid tier 13 armor revealed
by Mathew McCurley 
Sep 13th 2011 at 1:04PM
We originally surmised that the druid armor would be based on the green dragon aspect Ysera, as the warrior tier was based on an aspect. Looks like we were wrong-ish. Druid tier 13 looks great, somewhat inspired by the world tree Nordrassil, and I'm sure all of the resto druids who actually get to see it most of the time will be very, very happy. I cannot wait to see what it looks like on a Troll, to be honest.
Brace yourselves for what could be some of most exciting updates to the game recently with patch 4.3. Look at what's ahead: new item storage options, cross-realm raiding, cosmetic armor skinning and your chance to battle the mighty Deathwing -- from astride his back! 
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
Luotian Sep 13th 2011 1:08PM
Okay, that is actually *really* cool druid gear. And as I usually laugh myself sick at the Druid tier sets, this seems promising :D. Want to see Hunter/Mage/Shaman now XD.
JCinDE Sep 13th 2011 1:54PM
I agree. I appreciate the relatively conservative design compared to some of the ridiculous, giant, animated shoulders we've seen in recent tiers. I can't wait to see how it looks on Tauren.
Didax Sep 13th 2011 2:10PM
Unfortunately, JCinDE, the helmet piece appears to have something at or below the chin. Every single time a Tauren (and to a slightly lesser extent, Worgen) wears a helmet with something on the lower half of the face, it ends up looking completely ridiculous.
The rest of the set doesn't look too bad, albeit a little...vashj'ir fungi-y.
JCinDE Sep 13th 2011 3:30PM
Yeah I usually turn off helm on my tauren characters. Only headpiece that I like at all for tauren is druid tier 6, the Thunderheart set.
Snuzzle Sep 13th 2011 1:10PM
This is the epic tier 13? It looks like a slightly oomphed up version of the alliance TOC leather armor.
After seeing how full of character and polish the warrior and warlock tiers were, I have to say, I am rather disappointed in this. It's pretty bland and doesn't have any of the trademark "druid" trimmings we've come to expect (flowers, leaves, feathers, fur, etc).
I dunno. It seems kind of bland :(
Luotian Sep 13th 2011 1:22PM
You do realize that those blue things on their shoulders are mushrooms and every green thing is a sown together leaf, don't you?
Scunosi Sep 13th 2011 9:35PM
I don't know, I gotta agree. While it is certainly detailed and naturey it almost has the exact silhouette of the ToC leather, and the first time I saw the shoulders I thought "Hey aren't those the t11 Hunter shoulders?" The dangling rope didn't help.
Still, you can't knock it for detail at least.
Shinae Sep 13th 2011 1:11PM
I was also hoping for a Ysera-inspired tier, but this is much better that the current tier!
I can see some Ulduar weapons going well with it.
HappyTreeDance Sep 13th 2011 2:07PM
That was my first thought too, Shin. "OMG I can use Staff of Endless Winter again!"
Anyway, I think this is a very pretty set. I like how they're using the green and blue together and I very much like the non-clunky gloves. The helm will look awful on my tauren, but that just means I have an excuse to find the perfect helm that looks good on her but also "matches." I like this much better than t12. Can't wait to see it all animated too! I wonder if those mushrooms on the shoulders will do anything interesting.
My only complaint is....is that a WWE belt? :( Please just stop with those, Blizz. They look okay on some plate wearers, but I hate the way they look on most females and how it looks with robes. I understand your artists want more room to work with, but you could just make the belt flat rather than making everyone look like the have pot bellies.
The Dewd Sep 13th 2011 4:16PM
I suspect that, unless Blizz has non-set pieces they're demoing with it, there's no belt there. If it IS a non-set piece, at least it looks like it fits in with the set.
As a Druid since Vanilla, I have to say I really like this set. Most of them have been either overly exaggerated (T1/T2) or silly (D1/D2). I didn't really care for T7 and T8 was nice once I got used to it. This is the first set I'm actually looking forward to since T4.
xvkarbear Sep 13th 2011 1:12PM
I'm just glad we're back to dresses. I'm holding onto my tier 11 chest piece for dear life so I don't have to run around in pants.
I can't make out some of the blue details, so here's hoping it looks good zoomed in.
It reminds me of Tier 9. (which is my favorite)
Draelan Sep 13th 2011 1:37PM
It's kind of funny, I'm sort of the opposite. "Aw, man, it's going back to dresses!" lol. I just prefer the non-dressy look on my druid. Probably because my druid is a bear, and I can't escape the idea of tanking in a dress, even if I don't actually wear the dress in bear form. *shrug*
But overall, this new tier set isn't bad.
ravyncat Sep 13th 2011 1:47PM
Kar is a healer. So I can see why she likes it.
I do too. The colors are pretty.
And yay no weird tentacle duck face. >.>;;
Felix_NZ Sep 13th 2011 2:08PM
I think it's kinda more a T5 (my personal fav druid set) redux, 'cept with glowy blue mushrooms instead of glowy purple flowers!
Eddy Sep 13th 2011 3:34PM
I think it makes sense that the druid gear sets have a more Restoration visual flair, and are better suited to healers, seeing as they're the only ones that actually see the gear these days.
B1ue Sep 13th 2011 3:48PM
@Draelan
I play a troll druid. Wearing pants instead of a skirt draws attention to his skinny little legs, which makes me crack up whenever I look at him on the log-in screen.
So, I welcome our leather skirt overlords!
Ves Sep 13th 2011 1:14PM
Wow. It's just so dull. It feels more like the sort of armor you'd pick up while levelling than the final tier of an expansion.
Lemons Sep 13th 2011 2:15PM
*reee ohhh reee ohhh*
Uh oh. It's the hyperbole police coming to arrest you. Quick! Out the back window!
Jabadabadana Sep 13th 2011 3:28PM
I think some of it has to do with how much the helmet resembles the blue quality cata headpiece.
vocenoctum Sep 13th 2011 3:53PM
I see what you're saying, but I'd phrase it as "nicely understated". No huge shoulders, the mask does look like the 346 helm, but I like that helm and the way it interacts with my night elves ears, so I'm all for it.
So yeah, dull/ understated, depends on whether you like it or not. :)