Mists of Pandaria Beta: First look at the new raid instances
by Mathew McCurley 
Mar 27th 2012 at 4:00PM
Blizzard seems to be sticking with the Burning Crusade and Cataclysm model of raiding, offering up multiple raid zones for players to tackle rather than one large fortress of bosses. Also, there seems to be a return to the "large room" design that EverQuest was famous for, as well as the early World of Warcraft expansions. Personally, I enjoyed this type of atmosphere and am eagerly awaiting these new raid zones. Plus, the Mogu look so freaking awesome.
It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!Filed under: Raiding, Mists of Pandaria
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Nate Mar 27th 2012 4:06PM
They look great! And the Mogu one reminds me of The Legend of Zelda. I'm looking forward to these.
guitarchris21 Mar 27th 2012 4:45PM
The Mogu raid seems like it could be Byzantine, combining Greece/Rome with Arab geometric decorations and more far-Eastern elements. I really liked the dome with the oculus, the geometric patterned walls, and the arches set on columns.
Eternauta Mar 27th 2012 10:50PM
The Mogu raid looks mostly Hindu IMO. Although I can see a little Hagia Sofia inspiration in the "last boss" room.
roseclown Mar 27th 2012 4:08PM
Holy frick, it's beautiful.
Domintal Mar 27th 2012 4:09PM
Both look amazing! Reminds me a lot of Kara, and so big! Love it.
devilsei Mar 27th 2012 4:29PM
Question is, will it have a fun diversion like Karazhan?
If we're dealing with a bunch of flesh shapers in an environment reminiscent of Karazhan, I want to see Flesh Chess! Or... something like they chose five fleshy monsters, and we choose five fleshy monsters, then duke it out Voltron style as it goes from 5-on-5 to a massive 1-vs-1 Fleshtron battle!
xvkarbear Mar 27th 2012 4:20PM
TEMP
Knob Mar 27th 2012 4:36PM
I wonder if these raid instances will follow the design philosophy of the 5-man instances and have a real place in the world. It'd be very interesting to explore a to-scale Vaults and the Mantid raid in the outside world.
Saeadame Mar 27th 2012 4:51PM
I think that "real place in the world" thing is for any instanced area that's outside, because AQ20 and 40 both have zones "in the world," and there are quite a few 5-mans that don't (BRC, Throne of the Tides, etc etc). I think since these are inside there'll just be a big structure with a portal somewhere.
Minstrel Mar 27th 2012 4:59PM
The outside view of the Mantid raid suggested that the raids do follow the same philosophy. That tree/ant hill structure looked potentially quite huge. No more "entire Bastion of Twilight contained at the top of a spire." ;)
It would be neat if they made the raid structures have non-instanced entries and archaeology locations within. :D
Ilmyrn Mar 27th 2012 5:11PM
@Minstrel: Just to point out, the Bastion of Twilight was deep underground, as seen in the Halfus, Twin Drakes, and Sinestra fights. The only thing at the top of the spire was a suspiciously unguarded portal into the Bastion proper.
cloudhopper013 Mar 27th 2012 6:39PM
The giant outside-tree of the mantid raid can already been seen on the Pandaria minimap over in the Dread Wastes: http://media.mmo-champion.com/images/news/2012/march/pandariaminimap.jpg
It's surrounded by dead brown and white earth over in the West.
alzeer Mar 27th 2012 4:49PM
looking at this raid make me wish MoP had had new main city :/
even if it will be deserted one expansion later beautiful design like this still worth it
Andrew Mar 27th 2012 5:09PM
This is why my hearth is still set in Dalaran. :)
drewtom6395 Mar 27th 2012 5:29PM
There are going to be two new main hubs in MoP. One for Horde and one for Alliance.
Samuel Mar 27th 2012 5:27PM
I thought it did?
Leviathon Mar 27th 2012 5:40PM
'There are going to be two new main hubs in MoP. One for Horde and one for Alliance.'
Incorrect. MoP has no main hub. The various NPC's are spread around the world so that you actually need to fly around.
riku_eru Mar 27th 2012 6:35PM
@Leviathon:
It seems that Blizzard cancelled this idea - or atleast thought about it again.
Last infos we got from Blizzard is that there will be two main 'hubs' for alliance and horde (one for each faction of course), with Bank/Auctioneer. Don't know about Class Trainers.
But I think all the Pandaren Factions will be spread (Shado-Pan, the Farmers, The Fishermen, The Lore-guys, The Brewmasters... etc) So you will have to travel around each day. Maybe the Profession Trainers, too (Just like in Vanilla, all the teachers for various specialisations were).
I will try to re-read the latest blue posts and see if i can find evidence for or against this and post it here.
Saeadame Mar 27th 2012 4:53PM
Man, these both look very cool, but that first one is jaw-drop amazing. It doesn't even matter how good the raid actually is, if it looks like that? I'm going to love it.
Ilmyrn Mar 27th 2012 5:13PM
The Mogu one was fine, but I liked the (initial) looks of the Mantid one more. I definitely got an insectile vibe from it, which is, I suppose, appropriate. Sort of like if the silithid weren't just big bugs.