Highlights

  • World of Warcraft Classic requires players to rest between fights to regain health, mana, and energy, making it more difficult than Retail World of Warcraft.
  • New players in World of Warcraft Classic should be cautious when facing enemies and avoid pulling multiple mobs at once, as it often leads to death.
  • The social aspect of World of Warcraft Classic is important, as players will need to make friends and form groups to venture into dungeons and have a better experience.

World of Warcraft comes in a variety of flavors these days. The most well-known, of course, is Retail World of Warcraft, which is the latest version of the video game that sees most of the updates. Besides that is World of Warcraft Classic, a series of rereleases of the game in its earlier forms. Right now, World of Warcraft Wrath of the Lich King Classic is the latest of the Classic releases. Before that was The Burning Crusade, which is no longer available, and before that it was simply Classic itself, which is still available to play.

World of Warcraft Classic and World of Warcraft Retail are wildly different games. For instance, World of Warcraft Classic is known for being difficult, arduous, yet, at the same time, incredibly fun. It's also known for being much deadlier — there are many easy ways to die while leveling in Classic. There are also plenty of things Classic doesn't tell new players when they first venture into the world, and many of these things can be hard to learn on their own. Regardless, once players wrap their heads around some simple things that aren't made apparent when starting the game, the Classic journey is unlike anything else.

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The Unwritten Rules of World of Warcraft Classic

An elf and an orc in a campsite in World of Warcraft Classic

Pack A Lunch

Downtime is important. Unlike Retail, players can't run from mob to mob nonstop without taking some time in between to regain health, mana, and energy. Enemies in Classic are much stronger, and players need to rest between fights. This is especially true for mana-dependent classes like Mages and Warlocks. Bringing food and water to eat between pulling mobs will make players much more efficient and ensure they're always ready for their next fight. Picking up the Cooking profession in World of Warcraft Classic can help players stay on top of their in-game diet.

Know Thy Enemy

There are a lot of strong enemies in World of Warcraft Classic. Pulling more than a few mobs at once will surely lead to death for the new Azeroth adventurer. Even experienced players fall victim to underestimating the power of typical monsters in Classic. It's safe to say that if there are multiple mobs blocking one's path, it might be best to move around them. This is especially true for elite mobs, which are many times stronger than normal mobs and can be identified by the golden dragon portrait around their target icons.

Make Some Friends

While enemies can swiftly take down the lone adventurer, they hardly stand a chance against well-formed groups. One of the biggest selling points of World of Warcraft Classic is the game's social aspect. Since the journey to max level is a grind, making friends along the way will make it that much better. Plus, players will need groups to venture into the many dungeons available in Classic.

Pinch Those Pennies

Money doesn't come easy in Classic, but there are some simple tips for making money in World of Warcraft Classic. The number one rule to making more money Classic is possibly the simplest: loot everything, sell most of it. Player's will collect a lot of junk during their journeys, and it's worth more than what it would seem at first. Another easy tip for staying ahead of one's finances is with weapon and skill training. In modern MMOs, skill training is free or virtually penniless. This isn't the case in Classic — skills are expensive. That being said, players should only train what they need. If player's won't use heavy two-handed weapons, they shouldn't buy the weapon training. And if they don't need a certain spell, they shouldn't pay to put it on their bars.

Get Some Professions

Professions are a great way to get ahead in World of Warcraft Classic. In particular, the professions that are open to everyone, like fishing, cooking, and first aid can help boost player income. Fishing can especially help reel in some good money — fishing's very profitable in World of Warcraft Classic. Aside from the secondary professions available to everyone, the main professions can also help with cash flow. Whether it's selling bombs from Engineering, equipment from Tailoring, Leatherworking, or Blacksmithing, or raw materials from Mining and Skinning, there are plenty of pennies to pinch with professions. Aside from cash flow, these professions can give players some hefty stat improvements, whether through potions or better gear and weapons.

World of Warcraft Classic is available now on PC.

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World of Warcraft

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.