I deliberately headed to the 2nd day of the WWI a little late – the doors were to open at 8am but I didn’t get there until 10:15 – and there was still a queue at that point, though thankfully one that was quickly processed. Once inside the venue, there was another queue, this time for goody bags (one queue for English materials, another for French) and going by what was said later in the day, I was quite fortunate – a shortage of supplies meant that even when I left the site at 3:30 (as I have to head out for dinner with friends who live out near Versailles) some people were still queuing.
The venue is substantial, with the event split across two floors; on the lower floor is the “associates” area (ATI, publishers, etc), a retail zone, a tournament/video area and the Starcraft II demo area. On the upper floor is the main stage area, the WOW demo area, a second and tournament zone, a second retail area, and sundry other stands (including a Frozen Throne which I claimed, briefly, for the Shattered Ravens.
The first hour or so was spent wandering round – the Lich King area was dark with, it seems network problems halting participation (more on that anon) – and the main stage area packed in advance of the opening ceremony. Rather than have to stand on tiptoes, I opted to watch the opening on a repeater screen in the tournament areas; Anthony Kavanagh and China Moses were the hosts, swapping back and forth between English and French (and at one point having to share a single mic when China’s headset gave up the ghost). There followed intros with senior Blizzard crew, as well as with the pro gamers for Starcraft, Warcraft 3 and WOW.
There was, as one might expect, a product announcement and this year it was (as widely tipped) Diablo III, of which a demo was shown before the events got under way.
After a visit to the retail concession to pick up a couple of items, I joined the WotLK queue and spent an hour chatting to some of the other attendees and watching the start of the StarCraft tournament. Sadly, Blizzard had still been unable to sort their network problems and so I dashed off to the WotLK presentation on the main stage (having missed the beginning) and then played the Starcraft II demo (at which I sucked as much as I did at the original!)
There were some details of class changes (sorry its incomplete, as I mentioned I missed the start of the presentation) but from what I recall:
Hunters:
Autoshot will not be “clipped” by Steady shot (i.e. though it’ll de delayed by Steady Shot, it won’t be lost)
Priests:
Divine Hymn will provide another form of crowd control (party effect)
vDispersion will provide a new form of healing, combined with a protection effect (self-cast?)
Guardian Spirit will aid another player and, if they die, will die in their stead.
Mages:
Frostfire bolt is part of a strategy to bolster Elemental mages with a cross-school spell.
Druids:
Entangling roots will work indoors!
“Flourish” was mentioned but I didn’t catch what that did …
Shaman:
Will have their totems merged, with some new ones combining multiple effects (e.g. earth and wind)
Will have new weapon enchants
Will gain a form of crown control with “hex”
Rogues:
Will get “Fan of Knives” (based on a War3 ability I think he said)
They will have a much wider range of sap targets
Paladins:
Will have better itemization
Hand of Purity provides a new healing technique
Some “Blessings” will no longer be regarded as such, which’ll impact on how they’re used
Warriors:
Will gain some new War-3 based abilities to aid Fury warriors (Bladestorm?) and Protection-specs (Shockwave).
Titan’s Grip will allow warriors to dual wield … two handed weapons.
Warlocks:
Gain Demonic circle, a short-range teleport (the ability to recall to a predetermined location)
Gain the ability to turn themselves into a demonic form with Metamorphis (they can’t use pets in this form, but can still cast).
All in all, a busy and quite entertaining day despite the technical hitches. The queuing system worked well (but less so for the shop and demos, but hey). The concessions were, as one might expect, grossly overpriced - 3 Euros for a can of coke (which is 50p in the UK) - but there were plenty of other shops/cafes in the vicinity for a cheaper alternative.
As you can see, a lot of swag. In addition to these, there's a token for an unspecified Beta and an exclusive pet, a planner/map detailing the schedule, and of course the badge
The venue is substantial, with the event split across two floors; on the lower floor is the “associates” area (ATI, publishers, etc), a retail zone, a tournament/video area and the Starcraft II demo area. On the upper floor is the main stage area, the WOW demo area, a second and tournament zone, a second retail area, and sundry other stands (including a Frozen Throne which I claimed, briefly, for the Shattered Ravens.
The first hour or so was spent wandering round – the Lich King area was dark with, it seems network problems halting participation (more on that anon) – and the main stage area packed in advance of the opening ceremony. Rather than have to stand on tiptoes, I opted to watch the opening on a repeater screen in the tournament areas; Anthony Kavanagh and China Moses were the hosts, swapping back and forth between English and French (and at one point having to share a single mic when China’s headset gave up the ghost). There followed intros with senior Blizzard crew, as well as with the pro gamers for Starcraft, Warcraft 3 and WOW.
There was, as one might expect, a product announcement and this year it was (as widely tipped) Diablo III, of which a demo was shown before the events got under way.
After a visit to the retail concession to pick up a couple of items, I joined the WotLK queue and spent an hour chatting to some of the other attendees and watching the start of the StarCraft tournament. Sadly, Blizzard had still been unable to sort their network problems and so I dashed off to the WotLK presentation on the main stage (having missed the beginning) and then played the Starcraft II demo (at which I sucked as much as I did at the original!)
There were some details of class changes (sorry its incomplete, as I mentioned I missed the start of the presentation) but from what I recall:
Hunters:
Autoshot will not be “clipped” by Steady shot (i.e. though it’ll de delayed by Steady Shot, it won’t be lost)
Priests:
Divine Hymn will provide another form of crowd control (party effect)
vDispersion will provide a new form of healing, combined with a protection effect (self-cast?)
Guardian Spirit will aid another player and, if they die, will die in their stead.
Mages:
Frostfire bolt is part of a strategy to bolster Elemental mages with a cross-school spell.
Druids:
Entangling roots will work indoors!
“Flourish” was mentioned but I didn’t catch what that did …
Shaman:
Will have their totems merged, with some new ones combining multiple effects (e.g. earth and wind)
Will have new weapon enchants
Will gain a form of crown control with “hex”
Rogues:
Will get “Fan of Knives” (based on a War3 ability I think he said)
They will have a much wider range of sap targets
Paladins:
Will have better itemization
Hand of Purity provides a new healing technique
Some “Blessings” will no longer be regarded as such, which’ll impact on how they’re used
Warriors:
Will gain some new War-3 based abilities to aid Fury warriors (Bladestorm?) and Protection-specs (Shockwave).
Titan’s Grip will allow warriors to dual wield … two handed weapons.
Warlocks:
Gain Demonic circle, a short-range teleport (the ability to recall to a predetermined location)
Gain the ability to turn themselves into a demonic form with Metamorphis (they can’t use pets in this form, but can still cast).
All in all, a busy and quite entertaining day despite the technical hitches. The queuing system worked well (but less so for the shop and demos, but hey). The concessions were, as one might expect, grossly overpriced - 3 Euros for a can of coke (which is 50p in the UK) - but there were plenty of other shops/cafes in the vicinity for a cheaper alternative.
As you can see, a lot of swag. In addition to these, there's a token for an unspecified Beta and an exclusive pet, a planner/map detailing the schedule, and of course the badge
; "Onwards into Ulduar")
; "How to get ahead")
; "Completing the Siege of Ulduar")
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; "Temper Tantrum")
; "Fashion sense")
; "Koralon Downed!")
; "Battling Flame Leviathan")
; "Flame Leviathan Down")
; "Ignis downed")