WoW - Patch 3.0.2 arrives October 14th

[Arilin]

Looks like we finally have a date for the big change.

It'll be coming out obviously with the end of Season 4 Arena as well.

So, we have 2 weeks until talents, and the game changes, repeatedly until release in November.

Courtesy of WowInsider (www.wowinsider.com)

[iHap]

And I'm still not convinced to continue playing WoW.

[Troggles]

I'm going to continue the small hiatus I have been on until WotLK comes out. The patch is just going to be a major headache as raids fail because everyone is just trying the new stuff and not really doing any good builds. Also, new patch add-on fun is not fun.

[mightbe]

FUCK.

Two weeks left to score a bear mount.

[roboninja]

14th, huh? I had assumed next week, so I was off by a bit. Looking forward to it. Mutilate daggers, ho!

[Crowe]

I will be getting back into WoW very very soon : ). I can't wait to get in WOTLK, just the setting makes me a lot happier, outland was just a little to 'out' there.

[Blue]

I still haven't managed to get the 3.0 patch downloaded. For whatever reason it takes absolutely forever when none of the others did. Maybe this will fix that, who knows.

Mostly I'm concerned with getting my Hunter a haircut. He needs one.

[digitalErich]

And I'm still not convinced to continue playing WoW.
Same here, but we'll have to see. If WAR can hold me for at least two weeks after Litch is released, I think that will be the siren song for my WoW career.

[Arilin]

2 Weeks to free respecs for everyone!

I just want to take the warrior prot. It looks quite lovely currently.

[Goronmon]

2 weeks until I can finally train my Devilsaur!

[fishbang]

2 Weeks to free respecs for everyone!

I just want to take the warrior prot. It looks quite lovely currently.


What I wish they'd do in this case is offer the 1 copper respecs from beta on the live realms for the time between the launch of 3.0.2 and Lich King.

The pre-xpack patches already result in a holiday atmosphere as people cast off the raid game so they can finish their alts, grind the last of their pvp gear or just horse around while they relearn their class.

But even for people who choose to stick with progression (maybe even especially for these people) the game is going to be a bit of a mess, and the freedom to bounce between specs as easily as possible would really limit the frustration those players are going to feel.

It would also be super fun. At full cost I doubt I'll play with deep arcane, boomkin or the survival tree any time soon.

[Blue]

I heard a possible rumor that Blizz is going to allow for two specc's to be saved that you can toggle between (so that I don't have to try and farm on my Resto Druid). Is that true or was it just wishful thinking? I'm thinking I'd like to make the Druid my main but I having tried to farm on him in the past has really turned me off from that idea in any capacity.

[iHap]

I heard a possible rumor that Blizz is going to allow for two specc's to be saved that you can toggle between (so that I don't have to try and farm on my Resto Druid). Is that true or was it just wishful thinking? I'm thinking I'd like to make the Druid my main but I having tried to farm on him in the past has really turned me off from that idea in any capacity.
It's a neat idea, but also adds to the ridiculous OP of the game has gotten. My warrior shouldn't be able to Prot spec PvP and do well...I've played around with it too in PvP. LK is so...annoyingly stupid I uninstalled the beta client.

[digitalErich]

They did say this, but any sort of system or details isn't in the beta and hasn't really been talked about since they announced it.

[digitalErich]

It's a neat idea, but also adds to the ridiculous OP of the game has gotten. My warrior shouldn't be able to Prot spec PvP and do well...
It won't be a toggle-on-the-fly. It will most likely be similar to the DK's Runeforging...you'll have to travel to a certain location or NPC to switch, it just won't cost gold to switch between the two specs you've defined.

[mightbe]

Multiple saved specs has been a feature on the ITR (internal test realm) for a long while from what I hear.

This and the long rumored 40 slot soulbound gear bags would be an amazing help.

[Blue]

It's a neat idea, but also adds to the ridiculous OP of the game has gotten. My warrior shouldn't be able to Prot spec PvP and do well...I've played around with it too in PvP. LK is so...annoyingly stupid I uninstalled the beta client.

I don't mean dual-specc's like FFXI has (to where you would, say, have something like a sub-specc) if that's how it came out. What I would like to see would be on my Druid able to store a Feral tree so that I can go somewhere and switch without cost so that I can go out and farm rep, mats, whatever without having to have my Hunter at 80 to do those things for me (easier) and then when raid time comes I go somewhere to put my Druid into the resto specc that I had saved. Does that make sense? Could be wording it awkwardly.

I'm not saying I think you should be able to swap at the drop of a hat like Warriors can change stances but I would like to see some sort of system where I at 0 / 0 / 61 resto don't pull my hair out trying to accomplish something as simple as farming.

[fishbang]

It won't be a toggle-on-the-fly. It will most likely be similar to the DK's Runeforging...you'll have to travel to a certain location or NPC to switch, it just won't cost gold to switch between the two specs you've defined.

I like the idea of having a couple of pocket-specs, and it should no doubt be controlled by making you travel to a trainer or to a specified NPC in a capitol city.

However, even if this doesn't come to pass, Blizzard has done the next best thing by maintaining the current max cost for respecs. 50g as a capped respec cost was prohibitive as hell in the classic game. It can still be a hassle, but right now it's manageable even for the solo-grinding impaired. Word from beta is that at 80 the dailies are paying out an average of just under 30 gold, which could cover the cost with 2 turn-ins. For my money that's a fairly acceptable system.

[digitalErich]

Still, a person that specs heal or prot heavy for the good of their group shouldn't have to waste any gold to farm or solo effectively when other specs can raid and farm without any trouble at all.

[Blue]

Still, a person that specs heal or prot heavy for the good of their group shouldn't have to waste any gold to farm or solo effectively when other specs can raid and farm without any trouble at all.

That's where I'm coming from. I understand that gold tends to fall like candy these days compared to when I'd farm forever to get a drop just to sell on the AH, but I still hate having to jump on my Hunter, hike all the way out to do my dailies to get gold to then respec on my Druid so he can do his dailies and then I have to use that gold to again respec resto when I want to run something.

Rinse, repeat. I understand why it's there in part, but that doesn't make me dislike it any less.

[TrackZero]

Can't wait for the changes to hit mainline WoW. I've been enjoying tons of them in the WotLK beta. Even the achievements...they haunt me. So good.

And the new Shadow Priest talents are so fantastic. ;)

Now, I wonder if the patch also upgrades the video engine, because the beta certainly has a new one and I love it. Even the ! quest markers are now 3D with shadowing (which surprisingly looks great).

[digitalErich]

It's there to differentiate play styles within a class and removing the penalty for changing it doesn't break that system. You can still only have one spec at a time.

I fail to see any good reason to incite any penalty (other than travel time to a certain location) for respeccing. What does it matter that people change specs 3 times a day? It breaks nothing in the game.

[fishbang]

Still, a person that specs heal or prot heavy for the good of their group shouldn't have to waste any gold to farm or solo effectively when other specs can raid and farm without any trouble at all.

I really do agree. I just look to the bonus income of dailies as something that made a manageable situation out of something that used to be wholly untenable.

Of course, it's been 4 years now and tanks and healers are still at a premium. Streamlining their ability to be farmers and earners as well as the backbone of the raidgame would ease their pain. It's an old argument, but it feels like Blizz is close to seeing it our way.

[fishbang]

Now, I wonder if the patch also upgrades the video engine, because the beta certainly has a new one and I love it. Even the ! quest markers are now 3D with shadowing (which surprisingly looks great).

I'm pretty sure the new shader engine is active on the PTR, so I'd imagine this to be the case.

I'm personally looking forward to the increased draw distance.

[Crowe]

It doesn't do any damage to have people respecting with relative ease. Not only does it mean one character can do all the things you need it to do, it will make the game a lot more interesting for a lot of players. A groups looking for a tank or heals...but your Shadow or Fury, this way you get to fill the roles with ease making the game much more enjoyable for people. Because it's not fun sitting around waiting for heals or tank when no one is specc'd.

And it's not fun having to repay to respec just to run something once, only to get a failed group which leaves you bitter and angry and no longer playing for the night lol.

[Karmakin]

Actually they've made changes in mechanics to help tanks and healers be effective outside of groups. Tank damage has been increased considerably, and the new spellpower mechanic is a boost to healer DPS as well.

I'm not really convinced about the patch, namely because my bread and butter spell (Lifebloom) got hit with the nerf stick, hard. Hopefully the buffs to other classes won't make it that difficult.

I'm talking a wait and see approach, and that said, I have no intentions of stopping WoW anytime soon.

[Crowe]

I still think people take their spells a little too seriously. The forums are funny as too read, a 2% reduction can send those nutjobs into an absolute frenzy. It's the one thing that annoyed me about WoW, I wish there was more skill involved.

[sparkfizt]

I'm not really convinced about the patch, namely because my bread and butter spell (Lifebloom) got hit with the nerf stick, hard. Hopefully the buffs to other classes won't make it that difficult.

You had to know this was coming, lifebloom was horrifically overpowered. Extremely mana efficient, uninterruptable(instant), pseudo-undispellable. There's a reason the top 15 2v2 arena teams in every battle group were composed of druid-something. Blizzard held off on nerfing it until they gave druids more options for healing. I'm now very curious to see how 2v2 will turn out post expansion.

I'm fairly stoked about 3.0.2, I'm ready for the game to get turned on it's head again :)

[mightbe]

Also, in case you haven't figured it out yet, the money making in wow is all about the AH.