Posts with tag baradins-wardens

Tol Barad was promised some changes earlier this month by Cory Stockton, and with the updated patch notes for Jan. 28, 2011, we have our first look at the changes coming to the battle for Tol Barad. Attackers and defenders will be receiving bonuses to their capture speeds based on the number of keeps they currently own. Tol Barad attackers will get a 200% increased cap speed bonus when they control two of the keeps, making taking the final keep easier against a zerging opponent. Tol Barad defenders will be get a 200% increased cap speed bonus when they control all three keeps, in order to force the attackers to try and pry one keep away from the defense and hold it to prevent their bonus.

So far, it's a good start for Tol Barad changes, and I hope that as these new bonuses are tested on the PTR we see a sharp rise in the balance in Tol Barad. Now we're just waiting on the changes that make the towers and siege engines compelling at all.

Also included in the Tol Barad notes was a change to the way the dailies, herbs, and minerals work during the battle. Now, resources will only spawn during the "quest phase" of Tol Barad -- the time when you can do the winner's dailies. There will now be warnings 5 and 1 minutes before the quest phase ends to alert players to turn in quests and get out of the micro-dungeons.

You can view the latest Tol Barad patch notes either past the break below or in our patch notes update post.

Blizzard's Cory Stockton recently posted an intriguing post on the WoW community site called Tol Barad Balance, highlighting the problems that currently exist with Tol Barad, Blizzard's design intentions and philosophy for the island PvP encounter, and some potential fixes that may be in store for Tol Barad in the near future. Tol Barad should be fun, fair, and meaningful.

Tol Barad, the newest contestable PvP experience in Cataclysm, is great fun and provides the winning side with an awesome daily quest hub and a Vault of Archavon-style encounter, Argaloth, that drops the new tier legs and gloves. Using the same style of play as in Wintergrasp, the previous winners defend the island prison of Tol Barad against the invading faction. Tol Barad would be fun if it weren't so horribly broken in its goal and mechanics. The battleground of Tol Barad has only been active for about a week and a half, with most people only having experienced it for the first time within a few days.

There are six distinct problems with Tol Barad at the moment:

1. Defending Tol Barad is too easy.
2. The cap mechanics to secure capture points make it too easy to switch.
3. The towers in Tol Barad that grant extra time to the attackers have no reason to be defended by the defending faction.
4. Tol Barad's victory condition for the attacking faction has created a frustrating environment in light of the mechanics at play in the battleground.
5. The graveyards are skewed in favor of the defenders.
6. The losing side in Tol Barad receives no Tol Barad commendation for participating in the battle, while the winning team receives three.

Every Thursday, The Overachiever shows you how to work toward those sweet achievement points. This week, we find ourselves the designated butt-monkey of several new factions.

Hello again, fellow achievement-hunters. This week we're going to finish up with a look at the new reputation factions available in Cataclysm and a quick look at new world events.

"There aren't any new world events," you point out.

That's what makes it so quick. Although this goes without saying in any article discussing new achievements, there are a few spoilers in here discussing how you meet and work with various Cataclysm factions. If you'd rather stay unspoiled about upcoming quests, don't go past the cut.

45 Exalted Reputations This is now the highest reputation-related achievement in the game. Interestingly, there is not a new title associated with it; you'll still receive The Exalted at 40 Exalted Reputations, although it's possible that it's just a placeholder. Then again, if you already have 40 exalted reputations, getting 45 should be very simple during Cataclysm, as there'll be at least six new reputation factions available. I'm not sure a new title's going to be in the cards as a result.