The Lich King returns to Northrend, the Scourge plagues the denizens of Azeroth, and old enemies have to unite and defend against a common threat. It seems the life cycle of MMORPGs has come full circle with the impending Wrath of the Lich King expansion for Classic: World of Warcraft.
While Blizzard has struggled with various issues regarding other vintage titles along with trying to be enthusiastic about new ones, World of Warcraft: Classic has been weathering the storm better than most. The gaming population has remained steady despite the loss of some servers and the fierce debates surrounding classic WoW and the "No Changes" movement, which has evolved into "Some Changes" or "A Few Tweaks" in the weeks before the expansion drops.
There are a few things about Old Azeroth that will change forever when players return to Northrend, and once the hype surrounding Death Knights and new dungeons ramps up they'll be forgotten completely. Enjoy them before they're gone.
6 Old Naxxramus
The love that players have for this Classic raid is well-deserved. It's got the best aesthetic, the deadly undead Scourge, which includes gleaming pools of acidic sludge, a wide variety of disgusting insects and gelatinous monsters, and skulls on almost every wall. The "wing" design also allows for splitting up the dungeon, so groups can organize completion in stages rather than take on this massive raid in one shot.
After the expansion, Naxxramus floats to Northrend at the request of Kel'Thuzad's master, the Lich King. It won't float over the wastes of the Eastern Plaguelands again, but players can still travel to Northrend and experience an updated version of the dungeon there, where it's a 10 or 25-player raid instead of 40.
5 Attunements
Most of these were gone with The Burning Crusade expansion and the patches that came with it, but with Wrath of the Lich King, these requirements will disappear entirely. Getting attuned to a dungeon could be as easy as reaching a certain level, or it could be a long string of quests that were just as expensive to complete as they were time-consuming.
The attunement for Onyxia, an infamous example, consists of several quests which include visiting high-level dungeons and raids at the request of an NPC from the lore, Rexxar. This was changed in TBC, and the requirements to enter high-level dungeons like Black Temple and Sunwell will disappear into the nether soon as well.
4 Darkmoon Cards
The Darkmoon Cards, like many of the strange and unique items associated with the Darkmoon Faire, were once only available as random drops throughout the world of Azeroth. They could just as easily drop for a low-level character grinding in the wilderness as for a raider slaying their way through an endgame instance.
With the introduction of Inscription, however, Darkmoon Cards can now be crafted, and their rarity and value is about to drop. They won't be available as often in the open world, but players can find them in the Auction House or make them. Those that have them who want to complete the set will have an advantage, but it won't have the same prestige or benefits.
3 Talent Trees
The Talent Trees have gone through a few adjustments and tweaks in the last couple of expansions and patches, but the change this time will be a lot more dramatic. Some old talents and abilities will stay the same, but often their placement in the tree, the other powers they depend on, or exactly how they work is different.
There are also some entirely new talents that players have to learn, like empowered Corruption for Affliction Warlocks or Fel Synergy for the Demonologist counterparts, and that's a pure DPS class. Dual-spec options will be available for combination classes as soon as the expansion drops this time around instead of waiting for a later patch.
2 Crafted BiS Pieces
Players are always looking for "best in slot" items and will pursue them regardless of what it takes to get them. In The Burning Crusade, almost all of the players hoping to experience endgame content also had to take on specific professions to craft and wear the armor, jewelry, and trinkets to be effective and competitive in raids.
That changes after the WotLK expansion, so players might have to work harder to find their best armor pieces and sets. On the other hand, the process will no longer favor certain professions when it comes to who gets the best patterns and pieces since many crafted items can't be traded or sold.
1 Pre-Patch Events
Of course, there's a lot of hype and in-game lore surrounding the most popular expansion in MMORPG history, and there's a limited time to experience all of it. Blizzard learned from past events that affected the population as a whole and recreated similar crises and disasters to keep players engaged.
The Scourge Invasion, which was loosely based on the Corrupted Blood incident of 2004, is one example. This is followed by a worldwide invasion in which both factions, Horde and Alliance, have to unite and push the malevolent forces back to Northrend, pursuing them all the way to the Throne of the Lich King.
World of Warcraft is available on PC. Wrath of the Lich King Classic launches September 26.