Posts with tag realm-maintenance

Happy Tuesday morning everyone. The big news of the week is, of course, the advent of the patch 5.4 PTR, and with that comes the avalanche of sweet, sweet PTR news. There's so much of it we can't even fit it into one category in our roundup. Thus, with no further ado, I'm just going to give it all to you. Realm maintenance this morning is scheduled to last from 5 a.m. to 11 a.m. Pacific time, so you should have time to read at least some of it.

Patch 5.4 PTR news and features

• Check out the official patch 5.4 PTR patch notes.
• Virtual Realms could end the scourge of low population realms forever.
• Proving Grounds, which were initially announced as a feature of Mists, finally make their debut on the patch 5.4 PTR.
• Datamining points to a possible pet battle tournament and new battle pets in patch 5.4.
• Item enhancements will scale to any level of gear in patch 5.4, including heirlooms.
• You'll be able to catch up on legendary quest drops in Throne of Thunder come patch 5.4.
• There's some major world changes coming to patch 5.4. Check out this video for a sneak peek.
• Check out some of the datamined mount, pet, and armor models from the patch 5.4 PTR.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. We're another week into patch 5.3, but alas, no sign of the patch 5.4 PTR just yet. Still, the news has been coming in copious amounts, so we're probably okay. Of course, the big news is Flexible raids. Now, having 12 signups for 10 raid slots may not mean you need to leave 2 people behind. This, of course, has generated a lot of discussion, much of which is summed up in an editorial by our own Matt Rossi.

There's lots more things, big and small, to cover, and we have the usual roundup of the week's news below. As of this writing, there's not been any announced downtime for this morning, but whether there is or not, a little break to get caught up can't hurt.

Hot news and features

• Check out the latest patch 5.3 hotfixes for June 4 and June 10.
• Hunters got some pretty massive changes in the latest round of hotfixes.
• Legendary questers rejoice. Lei Shen will now always drop Titan Runestones.
• We may have a new Battle.net desktop client coming our way.
• Some people are reporting higher-than-usual latency and disconnects in patch 5.3.
• The Heroic Scenario reward system now won't lock you out of loot just because you ran a normal scenario first.
• Elite PvP gear rewards may once again require a minimum rating in patch 5.4.
• The 2013 BlizzCon Art and Movie contests are now open for submissions.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. It's another one of those weird weeks when the biggest stories of the week aren't even about the game itself, but about movies and upcoming games that we aren't technically supposed to know about.

Of course, there's plenty of cool stuff going on in game as we gradually discover those fun little secrets and smaller changes to patch 5.3, and we always have a good assortment of guides to help you get through the game. Downtime this morning is a series of rolling restarts at 7:00 a.m. PDT, but that's a good excuse to take a small break and read on for our usual roundup.

Hot news and features

• Project Titan has seen a developmental shakeup. Adam explains why he's not too worried about it.
• The Warcraft movie will start filming in 2014. This video recaps the history the long-upcoming movie so far.
• Patch 5.3 offers new Cataclysm gear vendors for catching up your ilevel.
• The Armored Bloodwing mount is now available for purchase at the Pet Store.
• PvP vendors are back.
• Blizzard's looking for more feedback on possible upcoming pet battle changes.
• One of the smaller, more mysterious additions in patch 5.3 is the presence of a new red dragon near Ahn'Qiraj.
• Blizzard's coming to the San Diego Comic-Con.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. Patch 5.3 is out, and we have both a written guide and a video guide to the top 5 things you need to know. Beyond that, of course, we have guides to just about aspect of the new patch that'll tell you what to do to get the most out of it. Our usual roundup of those guides and the rest of the week's news can be found below. Maintenance today is 4 hours, starting at 5 a.m. PDT, so you should have some time.

Hot news and features

• Check out the official patch 5.3 patch notes.
• Check out our roundup of the patch 5.3 PvP changes.
• Read up on the latest patch 5.3 hotfixes for May 21, May 22,
• As with all patches, patch 5.3 has some known issues.
• Epic Scenario rewards are here. Don't lock yourself out of them.
• We have a guide to the new battle pets of patch 5.3.
• The random battleground queue system had to be disabled temporarily due to bugs.
• Blizzard's looking for feedback on some proposed pet battle changes.
• With the new battle pets in Karazhan, there's more reason to run the dungeon than ever. Here's a guide to soloing the Chess event.
• We take a look at farming Lesser Charms of Good Fortune in patch 5.3.
• The one-per-realm restriction for death knights is gone.

Patch 5.3 is here. As you read this, the servers should be down to apply the patch. This means you'll want to use this time get caught up on all the latest patch 5.3 news, which, as always, you can find right here. Start off with our patch 5.3 roundup for an overview of everything. You'll also want to check out our exclusive interview with Lead Systems Designer Greg Ghostcrawler Street. Gamebreaker TV also did an interview with Ghostcrawler and Senior PvP Designer Brian Holinka.

You can also check the roundup below for more of this week's WoW news, from patch 5.3 and elsewhere. Realm maintenance begins at 3 a.m. PDT today and is expected to last 8 hours, so you'll have time.

Hot news and features

• Here's what WoW newbies should know about new patches.
• We have a guide to the lore and story of patch 5.3.
• Patch 5.3 will allow you level mining and herbalism exclusively in Pandaria.
• We have a roundup of patch 5.3's battle pet changes.
• We have a preview of some new patch 5.3 scenarios, including The Secrets of Ragefire and Battle on the High Seas.
• Blizzard has posted some patch 5.3 interviews of their with Tom Chilton.
• Check out the final patch 5.3 PTR note updates for March 14.
• Ghostcrawler outlines some Vengeance changes coming to the patch 5.4 PTR.
• Convert to Raid interviews Blizzard's Lead Encounter Designer Ion Hazzikostas.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. We continue to wait for patch 5.3, with official confirmation coming in yesterday that it won't be going live this week. In the meantime, the test server continues to be updated, and the big news stories are often outside the game, from the news that WoW is down to 8.3 million subscribers to the news Diablo III had to shut down the auction house due to massive gold duping bugs. They've since announced that all money from the illegitimate auctions, including their cut, will be donated to charity.

All this news and more awaits you with our usual roundup below. As of this writing, there is no announced downtime, but even if there isn't, you deserve a break right? Relax and read on.

Hot news and guides

• Check out the latest patch 5.3 PTR patch note updates.
• Blizzard's released an official guide to preparing for patch 5.3.
• Check out this preview of the patch 5.3 Battlefield: Barrens event.
• The Unborn Val'kyr battle pet continues to mystify. It's been captured on the PTR, but no-one can quite figure out how and why it spawns.
• Today is the last day to change attendee information on your BlizzCon ticket.
• Ghostcrawler confirms that the developers have no plans for a talent system overhaul any time soon.
• The new Dark Riders graphic novel is out, and we have a review.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. We continue to be in a holding pattern of sorts. Patch 5.3 is still going strong on the PTR, but we have no word on a release date. Luckily, patch 5.2 is still going strong as well, with new secrets being discovered as early as just last week. There's also new stuff outside of WoW, from new short stories, to new merchandise, to some interesting viewpoints on the function of gear in the game.

Our usual roundup, featuring all these stories and more, can be found below. Scheduled maintenance today is expected to begin at 3 a.m. PDT and last for 8 hours, so you have plenty of time to read. Keep it tuned here as well. Whenever the patch lands, we'll be here to report on all the details.

Hot news and features

• The latest patch 5.2 hotfixes include nerfs to the Lei Shen encounter in Raid Finder.
• Firecat form has made a secret return in patch 5.2. We'll show you how to get it.
• Blizzard has published an official preview of patch 5.3.
• Heirloom shields may be coming as soon as patch 5.3.
• Patch 5.3 comes with new achievements for collectors.
• Do you feel pretty? Patch 5.3 brings with it the chance to obtain the Gorgeous title.
• We have a temporary fix to that gold seller calendar invite spam.
• Adam believes gear should be abolished. Rossi argues gear is far too important and useful for it to be removed.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. Today's header is bought to you by the fact that Azure Water Striders have a pretty cool mount special animation. Now, on to the news. The past 7 days have been remarkably busy on a lot of fronts. It's Children's Week, which means you have one more chance to hang out with some cool kids and get some awesome pets in return. We have a guide to doing the achievements as well, of course. Both rounds of BlizzCon tickets sold out pretty quickly, as expected.

The big happenings don't end there, of course. Read on for the usual roundup of all the major news and guides from the past week, including new patch 5.3 PTR news. Realm maintenance starts at 3:00 a.m. Pacific time this morning and is expected to last 8 hours, so you should have time.

Hot news and features

• The developers held a live chat last Thursday. We have a transcript of the questions asked and their juicy, succulent answers.
• The official BlizzCon 2013 contests have been announced.
• Did you miss out on getting a BlizzCon ticket? We have a guide to other ways to experience BlizzCon.
• Check out the latest patch 5.3 PTR notes updates for April 22.
• Check out the latest patch 5.2 live server hotfixes for April 22.
• Patch 5.3 will see a massive nerf to the scaling of PvP power.
• Select pet types may get new passive abilities for pet battling.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. Patch 5.3 continues to be on the PTR, and the changes keep coming. We still have no actual ETA for when the patch will hit live servers, but it's certainly not slowing down. On the other hand, the live servers are hopping too, with Raid Finder finally opening its doors to all comers, allowing us all to take down the notorious Lei Shen. As always, our intrepid team has been out covering it all.

Downtime today is just a series of rolling restarts at 7 a.m. PDT. The process is expected to take about an hour, which is more than enough time to skim our usual roundup of the last week of news. Read on to see what you may have missed.

Hot news and features

• The World of Warcraft community team will be hosting a live Q&A with the developers on April 25.
• Aiming for a BlizzCon ticket? We have a few tips to help you nab yours.
• Check out the latest patch 5.2 hotfixes for April 16 and April 18.
• The Answers to the recent PvP themed Ask the Devs are now up.
• Throne of Thunder Raid Finder is now completely open. We have a quick 5-second guide to each of the new bosses.
• We preview the new patch 5.3 battleground Deepwind Gorge.
• Engineers will be able to make a Bad Robot pet in a future patch.
• Fs, the original world first level 90 who was later rolled back to 87, has had his world first achievement reinstated.
• As of patch 5.3, carrying a flag in battlegrounds will cause a tank to take more damage.
• Legendary metagems are restricted to Throne of Thunder helms only.
• The Shado-Pan Assault trinkets have been hotfixed to be a bit less effective in PvP.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. It's been an undercurrent for a while now, but a pressing question seems to be sweeping the WoW world lately. Is the Alliance getting a bad deal in lore right now? A lot of people think so. Our writers got in on the discussion too. Anne talked about reactive vs. proactive storytelling, while Alex advocates a return of some Alliance heroes and more equality for the Alliance player character, among other things.

I won't lie, I side with those who are disappointed with Alliance lore lately. I've tried to console myself with cinematics of our glory days, including that one at the top of this article. The other option was ice cream, but I'm trying to lose weight.

Luckily, no matter what you think of Alliance lore, the rest of game is still pretty awesome. For proof, read on. We have a roundup of all the latest news, including some of the good stuff coming with patch 5.3. Realm maintenance starts at 5 a.m. Pacific time and lasts 6 hours, so you have time to read up.

Hot news and features

• Read up on the latest PTR changes for April 11 and April 15.
• Check the latest patch 5.2 hotfixes for April 8, April 9, and April 10.
• Bashiok recently clarified the Durumu hotfixes.
• We have a listing of the new Darkspear Rebellion quartermaster rewards.
• We have a preview of two of the patch 5.3 scenarios, Dark Heart of Pandaria and the Blood In The Snow.
• You can now choose which specialization loot you'll get from Raid Finder and bonus rolls in patch 5.3.
• We take a look at the Darkspear Rebellion faction on the patch 5.3 PTR.

Happy Tuesday Morning, everyone. The news keeps on coming fast and hard from the patch 5.3 PTR, and while there's no sign of the patch coming to live servers quite yet, there's plenty of stuff to keep us all salivating.

Downtime is limited to a series of rolling restarts at 7 a.m. Pacific time, but you have time to take a break and read up. You'll want to know what's happening so you can start patch 5.3 off on the right foot.

Hot news and features

• BlizzCon tickets will go on sale April 24 and 27.
• Check out the latest patch 5.3 PTR patch note updates and datamined info for April 2.
• Read up on the latest patch 5.2 hotfixes for April 2 and April 4.
• The developers are taking questions on the upcoming patch 5.3 PvP changes.
• We have data-mined pictures of some new patch 5.3 mounts.
• The new scenarios will be available for testing soon on the PTR.
• Patch 5.3 will let you transmogrify gear straight from your bank or void storage.
• Garrosh's goons are putting the pressure on the trolls in patch 5.3.
• Pet battles are getting some damage and accuracy adjustments in patch 5.3.
• The Halls of Flesh-Shaping are open, and we have a 5 second guide to its bosses in Raid Finder.
• Someone's downed Ra-den, but there's a slight catch.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. It's a busy week in WoW. Not only has Noblegarden begun, but the patch 5.3 news keeps rolling out. Don't worry though. It may April, but we are not fools. We're keeping up with it all and reporting it to you. Downtime this morning is limited to a series of rolling restarts at 7 a.m. PDT, but there's a lot of news to catch up on. Read on for the usual roundup.

Hot news and features

• You still have a week left to win The Art of Blizzard Entertainment from our contest.
• The Overachiever has a guide to Noblegarden 2013.
• Check out the latest patch 5.2 hotfixes for March 27 and March 29.
• There's some new scenarios and some new content with Lorewalker Cho coming in patch 5.3, and we have a rundown for you.
• We have a look at the new Shado-Pan Arena coming in patch 5.3.
• The Barrens and Durotar are undergoing major changes in patch 5.3 as Garrosh's troops take over.
• Even more battle pets have been found on the PTR.
• We take a look at some of the new mount models and achievements in the PTR files.
• We've run some the Heroic Scenarios on the patch 5.3 PTR, and have a report for you.
• These epic cloaks could be part of Wrathion's patch 5.3 legendary storyline.
• Ghostcrawler clarified the meaning of that tri-spec achievement discovery in the patch 5.3 PTR files.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. The past week or so has been one of unexpected announcements, to say the least. First, we heard about Hearthstone, the Warcraft-based online CCG, then we had the first patch notes and build for the patch 5.3 PTR, right before the first guild downed heroic Lei Shen. I am pretty sure Alex is clairvoyant now, because he picked the perfect week to go on vacation.

Downtime today is limited to rolling restarts at 7 a.m. PDT, but trust me, a lot of stuff went down this week and you'll want to read about it all. Our usual roundup awaits you below.

Hot news and features

• Check out the official announcement cinematic for the new Hearthstone online CCG.
• Read the first set of PTR patch notes for patch 5.3.
• Dawn got a chance to play Hearthstone at PAX East, and has some impressions. She also got a chance to sit down with the developers and ask some burning questions about the game.
• We have roundup of all we know so far about Hearthstone.
• Item upgrades will return for PvE gear in patch 5.3, but not for PvP gear.
• Patch 5.3 will have some major PvP gear changes, but don't panic.
• Patch 5.3 features new battle pets and a new pet battle hit rating system.
• A possible third talent spec option has been datamined in the latest PTR files.
• Want some patch 5.3 lore spoilers? Check out the latest datamined sound files.
• Check out the latest patch 5.2 hotfixes for March 19 and March 21.
• Oondasta's health pool has been nerfed by 50%.
• Raiding the Forgotten Depths in the Raid Finder? We have a 5-second guide to the bosses therein.

Happy Tuesday morning, everyone. We're to that period in the new patch where we haven't quite finished the content, and there's still hotfixes every other day, but things have simmered down a bit and a lot of us have our daily routine down again.

That said, there's still plenty of cool stuff going on, and we have the usual roundup of all the news from the past 7 days, along with more guides to help you get the most from Patch 5.2's new content. Scheduled maintenance starts at 5:00 a.m. PDT today and is expected to last for 6 hours, so you should have time to get caught up.

Hot news and features

• Check out the latest patch 5.2 hotfixes for March 11, March 12, March 14, March 15.
• There won't be any more 5-man dungeons in Mists, but they will be back for future expansions.
• PvP season 13 has begun.
• If you're delving into the Raid Finder for the new raid, you'll want these 5-second guides to the bosses of the Last Stand of the Zandalari.
• We have a guide to running the new single-player Troves of the Thunder King scenario.
• Blizzard is offering free server moves for select servers until March 21.
• If you're visiting from a different realm, you won't get loot from an Oondasta or Nalak kill.
• Do you hate the CRZ system? It turns out some realms my be exempt from it.
• Want to keep track of your Isle of Thunder tasks? There's an addon for that.
• The Call to Auction podcast recently got a chance to ask some questions of Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street about the economy and professions.
• WoW Archivist suggests 11 great moments in WoW history that should return as scenarios.
• Rossi speculates on the possibility of scaling old raids to max level players.
• Is WoW too easy? Blue poster Draztal disagrees.
• Blizzard may allow you to get off-spec gear in Raid Finder in the future.

Happy Tuesday morning everyone. We're a week into the new patch, and with a new patch comes new bugs. Among the biggest bugs to crop up in the wake of patch 5.2 so far were a pet leveling XP bug that let you level from 1-89 in a matter of hours, and a monk DPS bug that let them do massive damage. Both have been hotfixed.

Bugs are to be expected of course, and I find it sort of fun to see what crops up. Blizzard, of course, is pretty good about smashing them down, so in the end, I just like to sit back and watch the show. If bugs aren't your thing, there's plenty of other cool things going down with the patch. Downtime this morning starts at 5:00 a.m. PDT and is expected to last 6 hours, so you have time to catch up on the news. Read on for a roundup of patch 5.2 and the guides you'll need to get the most out of all the new content.

Hot news and features

• Check out the official patch 5.2 patch notes.
• With a new patch comes new hotfixes. Check out the latest patch 5.2 hotfixes for March 5, March 7,
• Want to know when you get to kill Lei Shen? Check the Throne of Thunder raid release schedule. While you're it at, review our Throne of Thunder boss guides as well.
• The Isle of Giants isn't as well known as the Isle of Thunder, but you may want to head out there anyway.
• Wondering if patch 5.2 is worth getting back into WoW? Here's 5 reasons why it's worth it to resubscribe (or just log on again).
• If the new patch enticed you resubscribe, Blizzard has a returning players guide.