Beta closes: Legacy points reset, the first raids, camping and name reservations

The beta closes and Legacy starts from zero

On October 20, Kaivax announced that Blizzard planned to close the WoW Forever beta for good at 10 AM PDT on Friday, October 23. That is 1 PM on the US East Coast, 17:00 UTC and 7 PM in Central Europe; in Korea, Japan and eastern Australia it was already early Saturday. A follow-up post from Kaivax on October 23 confirmed the beta had closed.

Launch on November 4 is a fresh start. Beta characters, items and gold do not carry over, and on October 22 a Blizzard developer posting as QuestTheLine answered a player's question by saying that the Legacy points available in testing will be set to zero for launch. The Legacy system itself remains; only the pool players had unlocked during testing resets, so everyone begins Legacy progression at the same point.

Sources: Kaivax, October 20: beta closes at 10 AM PDT on October 23 · Kaivax, October 23: the beta has closed · Blizzard developer (QuestTheLine): Legacy points set to zero for launch

Three raids on December 9, three group sizes

Blizzard's raid overview of October 20 confirmed that all three launch raids open on December 9, about five weeks after release, each built for a different group size. The Barrow Deeps is a 10-player raid with eight bosses in the prison beneath Mount Hyjal that held Illidan for 10,000 years. It has more than one way in, with entrances connected to Mount Hyjal, Winterspring and Blackmaw Hold, the new level 55–60 dungeon in Azshara.

Hyjal Summit is a 20-player raid with 13 bosses near the World Tree. It opens with a fight against an ancient guardian, after which the raid chooses its own route across the mountain through ruins above and below ground until the paths meet at the final encounters. Onyxia's Lair returns as a 40-player raid in Dustwallow Marsh. Blizzard advises building fire resistance first, and every player needs the Drakefire Amulet in their bags; it does not have to be equipped.

All three raids are currently planned to reset weekly. For a small guild, the practical point is that raiding on December 9 does not require 40 people: The Barrow Deeps needs 10.

Sources: Blizzard raid overview, October 20 · Blizzard: explore the new dungeons, October 20

Planning the Drakefire Amulet

The amulet is the part that needs early planning, because both attunement chains are long. Alliance players start in the Burning Steppes, rescue a prisoner from Blackrock Depths and unmask a dragon in Stormwind. Horde players start in Kargath, bring Rend Blackhand's head from Blackrock Spire to Thrall, find Rexxar on the roads of Desolace and hunt four elite dragons for Emberstrife in Dustwallow Marsh.

Both chains go through General Drakkisath in Upper Blackrock Spire. Blizzard's own advice is to start early, bring friends for the elite quests and expect several trips into high-level dungeons. A group aiming for Onyxia shortly after December 9 should treat the chain as a project for the weeks before, not something for raid night.

Sources: Blizzard raid overview, October 20

Three of the nine new dungeons

Forever adds nine new five-player dungeons from level 13 to 60. The Drowned City, for levels 35–40, is an old troll city risen from the sea off Stranglethorn, west of Grom'gol, reached by diving under the water. It is open-air, and the mist turns to rain and then a full storm before the last fight. Shaper's Terrace, for 58–60, is a titan facility in the northern hills of Un'Goro Crater; players gather power crystals around the crater and use them at consoles inside.

The City of Dalaran, for 28–33, requires an attunement picked up in Southshore for the Alliance and Tarren Mill for the Horde. Once the Kirin Tor trust you, the group enters through the sewers and chooses between several paths through the city.

Sources: Blizzard: explore the new dungeons, October 20

How camping works, and the layering problem

The old Cooking Fire becomes a Basic Campfire. Nearby players can each add one crafted object, up to three in total, and anyone who sits or crafts at the camp for one minute receives the buffs. Most professions have their own object, with the first available at skill 20 from starter zone quests or the trainer, and later ones from dungeon and raid drops from skill 140. Examples include a Sharpening Wheel for Strength, a Fishing Bowl for 8% to all stats, an Incense Candle for Intellect and a Camp Tent that grants some rested experience. Cooks can later learn campfires holding five or ten objects.

Two limits apply. The buffs are versions of class buffs, so the Fishing Bowl does not stack with Blessing of Kings and the candle does not stack with Arcane Intellect. All camp objects also share a one-hour cooldown.

That cooldown is why one beta problem hurt. A player in Ratchet reported declining a random group invite and still being moved to a different layer, leaving his camp and its Arcane Salvager behind while the cooldown stayed with him; another reported losing a campsite and a banner. On their October 15 podcast the developers said layering work continues before and after launch, but as of October 22 there was no confirmed fix for this case. Forming the group before building the camp may help, with no guarantee.

Sources: Blizzard camping article, October 21 · Player report: camp left behind after a layer change (unconfirmed) · Official Podcast Episode 4: layering work (14:42–15:39), paraphrased

Name reservation and the last beta checklist

Early name reservation runs from October 27 to November 3 for the account that pre-purchased the Skyborne Heroic Pack, the Skyborne Epic Pack or the Warcraft Forever Collection. The limit is three characters in total across every Ruleset, so two on PvP leaves one for Normal or Role-Play, and names go first come, first served. The limit applies only to the reservation period. The RP-PvP Ruleset announced on October 22 did not add a slot.

To reserve, open the Battle.net app, select World of Warcraft, choose World of Warcraft: Forever in the Game Version menu above the Play button, install, press Play, pick a Ruleset and create characters. Reservation opens on October 27 at 1 PM PDT in North America and 6 PM CET in Europe, and on October 28 at 7 AM in Korea and Taiwan. Our own suggestion before any beta closure is to back up the WTF and Interface folders if you want to try reusing a UI layout, and to keep a backup for every name.

Sources: Claim your WoW Forever character names · Aggrend, October 22: RP-PvP Ruleset coming at launch