Summary
In response to player feedback,World of Warcraft: Season of Discoverysenior game producer Josh Greenfield stated that Molten Core would retain its one-week lockout to match its original release. Greenfield added thatWorld of Warcraftplayers will have shorter raid lockouts on Onyxia’s Lair, and the world bosses Azuregos and Lord Kazzak, all of which will unlock twice in a given week.
In Season of Discovery’s fourth phase,World of Warcraftplayers can reach the original level cap of 60 and unlock the final talent points for each class. In addition to accessing high-level zones in the Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor and epic mounts that can be purchased, the Alliance faction will grant a new buff called “Might of Stormwind” to level 60 players as a direct counter to the “Warchief’s Blessing” buff that Horde players already had. While Blizzard has remained tight-lipped on the Runes players can earn in Season of Discovery phase four, anew event called Blackrock Eruptionwill appear in the Searing Gorge and the Burning Steppes as a way to gain reputation points with the Thorium Brotherhood and the Hydraxian Waterlords.
Though the Molten Core and Onyxia’s Lair willgiveWorld of Warcraftplayers more gear to collect, there will be some caveats to the process. According to aBlizzard forum post, Greenfield said a plan to put Molten Core on the same twice-weekly lockout as Onyxia’s Lair and two world bosses was scrapped following player feedback. Ergo, Molten Core will use the same Tuesday weekly raid lockout period thatWorld of Warcraftplayers are used to. Greenfield also confirmed that Onyxia’s Lair, Lord Kazzak, and Azuregos would see unlocks on Tuesdays and Saturdays of each week. The changes will go into effect on separate dates after Season of Discovery phase four launches on Thursday, July 11.
World of Warcraft: Season Of Discovery Raid Lockout Changes
Lord Kazzak and Azuregos can be fought as instanced world bosses starting on July 18, and both the Molten Core and Onyxia’s Lair will go live on July 25. However, accessing the Molten Core and Onyxia’s Lair may be easier in Season of Discovery than in their original incarnations. According to datamined information, anitem to make entering Onyxia’s Lair much easiercould be traded and sold toWorld of Warcraftplayers in some capacity.
Whether that new item will make it to live servers remains to be seen. Between the raid lockout changes andturning some Runes into baseline class skills, the fourth phase ofWorld of Warcraft: Season of Discoverycould be the best time for players to jump in.
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World of Warcraft is an incredibly successful MMORPG that has been going strong for almost two decades. It’s one of the highest-grossing franchises in history and is widely considered the most popular MMORPG ever made.
