World of Warcraft: Dragonflight has introduced the game’s most ambitious playable race so far, the Dracthyr. These draconic warriors were hidden from Azeroth for millennia, but they’ve finally returned and are ready to fight for their home. Players have dug their teeth into World of Warcraft’s all-new race-class combo, but there’s just one aspect that leaves a lot to be desired.
Dracthyr were released in the Dragonflight pre-patch before players could travel to the Dragon Isles proper and attain their first Dragonriding mounts. For that short time, the Dracthyr were a novelty, using their Soar racial ability which allowed limited flight but still utilized the new Dragonriding physics system. But now that players have been using their drakes to travel around the Dragon Isles, the Dracthyr just can’t keep up.
World of Warcraft’s Dracthyr Should Fly Like Dragonriding Mounts
Soar is a useful ability in old zones, but it falls short in the Dragon Isles. It has a hefty cooldown and, most importantly, does not implement the Vigor mechanic. Vigor allows players to build up energy using momentum from high places to extend their flight and maximize velocity, letting skillful players rocket through the skies at up to 800% of the normal movement speed.
The inability of Dracthyr to use the Vigor mechanic to fly is a major pitfall for the fantasy feel of the race and ruins a real sense of freedom that comes from having wings. There’s no foreseeable way it could break the game or make it less fun for other people, except for some wishing they’d leveled a Dracthyr themselves. Dracthyr players being able to use their own two wings to properly soar through the skies without severe hindrance is a change that would reinvigorate the race and make them truly unforgettable.
Naturally, the typical rules would apply to Dracthyr flying as they do to regular mounts, for example, only being used outdoors. If a player runs completely out of Vigor and can’t maintain the velocity needed to generate more, they will have to land and rest, just as those with drake mounts must. Even Dragonriding races could be adjusted to allow Dracthyr to test their top speed and agility in the air just as mounted players do.
In World PvP, it’s a favored tactic for players to aim at flying enemies and dismount them with a net or by crashing into them with their own drakes. With some small adjustments, these tricks could also work on a flying Dracthyr, although they would still be able to glide to break their fall, just as demon hunters or mages can. Ultimately, there are a number of creative solutions to the few problems that might exist, and they pale in comparison to the benefits of giving Dracthyr full flying capabilities.
There are concerns surrounding how the Dragonriding mounts themselves would go to waste. Since their customization is a huge part of Dragonflight’s appeal, this would be wasting a valuable and engaging part of the gameplay. Collecting the various appearances for the drake mounts is an achievement in itself, as some are difficult to come by. The argument that these mounts would go to waste is a valid one, but the sheer satisfaction players feel in being able to choose how they play the game is one that Blizzard has historically underestimated.
It’s not realistic to imagine that every player would immediately abandon their current characters to play as a Dracthyr forever. Enabling them to fly as the mounts do, however, would add an extra layer of enjoyment to a race that’s already totally unique in a number of ways. It could ensure that an already-enjoyable class becomes perfect, making World of Warcraft: Dragonflight even better than it is now.
World of Warcraft: Dragonflight is available now for PC.