If you’re a dedicated (addicted) WoW player, then you already know that Blizzard has officially announced that World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King will be released on November 13th, 2008.  If you’re not an addict and hadn’t found out yet, you’re welcome.  You now know when to stay away from any Best Buy, Circuit City, or Gamestop two weeks before Thanksgiving.

(Yes, I waited a whole 12 hours or so to post this.  I’m not WoWInsider or MMO-Champion.)

PvE-PvP Transfers

In a move I didn’t expect Blizzard to make (at least not until the actual release of WotlK), players now have the option to transfer from a PvE to a PvP realm.  This could allow some people you know to transfer instead of face the inevitably long haul from 1 to 70. For some, this means they could have multiple max level same class characters on the same server, and others have the option of bringing over a class they don’t have on a particular server. I know poor Moridi/Pantherz/Pantere is already looking at becoming my rival by bringing over a mage, warlock, and hunter.  Anyone else?

Beta Keys

I’m pretty sure most everyone has selected to opt-in for the Wrath of the Lich King Beta.  The Beta started back in July and a few members of Stormwardens (and honorary guildies) were lucky enough to get in.  Evidently they have another wave of invites going out, so check your inboxes.  A couple more Stormwardens managed to get in with this set.

I received my invite this afternoon and my wife was kind enough to start my download so I’ll be able to get moving tonight.  Any bets on me being insane and leveling to 80 in the Beta, only to do it 10 more times after release?

That’s right.  I hit 70 on Hunna, my shaman.  That makes one of every class (currently 9) to level 70.  Most was done prior to The Burning Crusade, and most of what didn’t make it before BC was still done “the hard way”.  No leveling guides were used, but friends were “gently used”.

Thanks to all that helped me along the way and here’s to being the jack-of-all-trades for the guild.

What’s shakin’…

As many WoW players know, people come and go pretty regularly.  Sometimes it’s to a new guild, a new server, or even “the other side”.  Sometimes it’s just life.  You know, that thing that exists when you’re not online playing WoW?  We’ve had several people say goodbye to continue school, some to make sure they don’t keep getting sucked into a game and one lucky guy is taking some paternity leave.  Most likely the rest of us will be here if you want to come visit or just plain come back.  For now, enjoy some non-WoW real life.

New management

Now for some guild business.  Arissaris and Mytheal were promoted to the rank of Officer.  They now have all the privileges and responsibilities that come with trying to manage almost 90 different accounts with over 300 characters.  Give them the kind of harassment and cajoling reserved for officers to make them feel welcome.

It’s already a day old, but I figure it’s interesting news to see, so I’m reposting Eyonix’s post about a pre-Wrath content update.

Eyonix wrote:

With the release of Wrath of the Lich King approaching, we wanted to provide you with some important information. In preparation for the expansion, we will be issuing a new content patch in the coming weeks. Much like the patch made available shortly before The Burning Crusade’s release, this content patch is designed to bridge current game content with that of the expansion and will contain some exciting changes and additions.

We have outlined some of the larger features scheduled to release with the patch below:

New class spells and talents
Stormwind Harbor
Barbershops in capital cities
Zeppelin towers outside of Orgrimmar and Tirisfal Glades
Two brand-new Arenas featuring challenging new layouts, terrain hazards, and moving obstacles
Guild calendar
Hunter pet skill revamp
New profession: Inscription

As mentioned above, this is not a comprehensive list, just some of the major highlights. We’ll post the full patch notes as soon as they’re available. Regarding Inscription, please note that all Burning Crusade players will be able to select Inscription as one of their two professions and level up to a skill level of 375 with it. Upon the release of Wrath of the Lich King, players who purchase and install the expansion will be able to continue leveling in Inscription and the other professions beyond 375.