All We Know About World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

Wrath of the Lich King Classic Release Date

More than a decade after its release, Wrath of the Lich King is still widely considered to be the strongest World of Warcraft expansion of them all. Its class balance, memorable instances, and impressive narrative are fondly remembered as the pinnacle of old WoW. As such, it is only natural that Blizzard would return to this expansion in its WoW Classic series. Starting this fall, WoW players will get to experience WotLK content the way it was in 2008 - with a few notable tweaks. Read on to find out all there is to know about WotLK Classic, including both original features and the changes we will see in this implementation.

WotLK Classic Release Date

WotLK Classic shall commence on September 26, 2022. This date has been leaked accidentally on Battle.net and then confirmed by the developers. However, fans could experience some of its features earlier. The WotLK Classic beta has already started in June. Players can opt in to participate on the official website, though as usual, only a lucky few will actually get in. Also, there will be a pre-patch period before the full launch, which may last for anywhere between two and six weeks. While Northrend will not be accessible during those weeks, many gameplay updates will become available. There may also be a Scourge Invasion event modeled on the one that inaugurated the expansion originally.

The tweaks in the pre-patch and the full release will affect existing Burning Crusade Classic realms. In other words, while most of its content will remain, the Burning Crusade era will be over. Developers have suggested it may be revisited in some way in the future. Additionally, the pre-patch will be accompanied by the creation of Fresh Start realms. As their name implies, those servers are aimed at players who would prefer to approach the expansion from a clean slate, rather than struggling to compete in a universe that is full of high-level heroes from the outset. To maintain this focus, Fresh Start players will not be able to bring over characters from outside realms for at least ninety days after the start.

Just like the previous WoW Classic installments, WotLK Classic could be accessed by any subscribers at no additional charge. However, each player would be able to purchase a single character boost from Blizzard. This boost would elevate their chosen adventurer to level 70, enabling them to start adventuring in Northrend as soon as it becomes available. Death Knights and Fresh Start realm denizens would not be eligible for this boost, at least at first. The price for this service has not yet been disclosed. An earlier player survey indicates there may be purchasable bundles that include level boosts and other collectibles.

Wrath of the Lich King Classic Announce Cinematic Trailer | World of Warcraft

WotLK Classic Changes

The initial WoW Classic was designed to be as close to the original experience as possible, but over time, the developers’ mentality has shifted. They have decided to adjust some parts of WotLK to create a cohesive and enjoyable experience in line with the expansion’s spirit. The most notable difference is that WotLK’s Dungeon Finder instrument, which enabled users to assemble cross-server squads with minimal personal involvement, will not be in WotLK Classic. It has been blamed for disrupting WoW as a social experience. In its place, the team has provided a Group Finder screen that can be used to advertise  all kinds of group activities within a server.

Another WotLK feature that was initially going to be removed is the quest tracker. However, unfavorable feedback during the beta has convinced the developers to restore some version of this feature to the release version. Other player convenience features would include equipment management and calendar tools. The Barber Shop, another WotLK addition, will be more flexible and user-friendly from the start, allowing characters to change faces and genders by paying Gold instead of real money. By popular demand, Team Arena Ratings will be replaced with personal Arena Ratings that can only be raised through direct participation in matches.

Many other WotLK Classic changes stem from the decision to use the expansion’s final patch for things like character abilities and stats. That would have major implications for balance and player options right out of the gate, resulting in a more balanced, less off-kilter meta. For example:

●      All characters will regenerate health and mana much more quickly when not fighting. That should speed up leveling considerably, especially for classes without healing abilities of their own;

●      Basic race and class stat bonuses will be overhauled to make them more homogenous. Racial stats in particular would be more similar;

●      Death Knights will be less overpowered than they were in their actual first appearance, though still very effective in their combat roles;

●      Warriors will receive the Victory Rush ability much earlier in their leveling process;

●      Rogues would have access to Axes as a class weapon right away;

●      Protection Paladins’ Divine Protection ability would operate like the Warriors’ Shield Wall, improving the spec’s overall tanking effectiveness;

●      Warlocks’ Molten Core and Conflagrate spells will start out as their relatively balanced versions;

●      Shamans’ Fire Nova would count as a spell, not a totem, making it easier to deploy quickly;

●      Knockback and PvE area-of-effect attacks would no longer affect pets. They would also have the same resilience as their masters in PvP. This change greatly empowers all pet classes, especially Hunters, who also benefit from a major pet overhaul in this version;

●      The cooldown length for the Forsaken racial power has been made equal to similar debuff-canceling spells;

●      Activating Shadowmeld while fighting allows night elf heroes to automatically disengage;

●      Damage from area of effect attacks has been reworked with a new cap. While attacks that strike ten targets deal their massive damage to each one, attacks against a greater number of targets will deal a correspondingly lower amount of maximum damage.

WotLK Classic Boosting

WotLK Classic Boosting is a controversial topic in the WoW Classic community. While some say using boosting services cheapens the experience, others have found their in-game lives enriched by it. Those in the latter group can point to limited free time and occasionally frustrating game design as factors that keep them from having fun without a little help. Recent tweaks introduced in TBC Classic have made dungeon boosting with higher-level characters harder. However, predictions that boosting will be dead in WotLK Classic as a result are surely inaccurate. On the contrary, help from skillful professional gamers would be even more valuable, as it gets harder for solo users to powerlevel, farm resources, or clear instances. Rocketboost can help with all those problems and more as fans set out on their WotLK Classic journey!