Wrath of the Lich King: Ask a Beta Tester

Wrath of the Lich King: Ask a Beta Tester

Though we don't have the persuasive powers required to convince Blizzard to give you all beta keys of your very own, we can answer your beta-related questions. Do you have a burning Wrath question that you just have to have answered? Leave it in the comments, and we'll be back here every day, same time, same place, to answer some of your questions.

Please Note: If you're the sort who wants to avoid spoilers, turn back now! We're aiming to avoid major story spoilers, but this feature is all about beta content and we can't talk about the beta without giving a few things away.

(for more general news on the beta,
check out our page all about Wrath of the Lich King)

Ask a Beta Tester: The past meets the future
We only have one or two days of Ask a Beta Tester left, ladies and gentlemen. Very soon, it will be no more. Who will care about beta questions? We'll have the expansion in our hot little hands! Forget the beta, we'll have the real deal. We've actually had a lot of fun doing this for you guys though, and we're kind of sad to see it go. I like to think you guys have had fun with it, too. You know, beyond drooling over the Wrath screenshots and information.

jared.daniels asked... I won't be getting the WOTLK expansion for a few days after the launch. What do you suggest I do until I can get the DVD?
popeguilty asked... If I want to get in there and start wading through some undead, which zone should I head to?
Batium asked... Can a warrior with Titans Grip dual-weld this fishing pole with another one for extra fishing?
Graham asked... When I go to Northrend, will I feel like I am the only one who hasn't done everything already? How many people really get into the beta?
MikeH asked... I was wondering... which starting area is better for skinning leather and such? I have played Beta and was trying to figure out where I want to take my Skinner for best effect.

Ask a Beta Tester: Come back little walrus, I just want to help!
Welcome to another ~~episode~~ edition of Ask a Beta Tester! Just a few more days until Wrath. Are you excited? I'm excited. I'm so excited that I don't think I'm going to answer any questions today, and instead slam my face on my keyboard in joy and post that to our main page instead. At least that's what I would do if I didn't want to write for WoW Insider anymore. I'll behave, I promise!

adoure asked... I want to start on my Kalu'ak rep to get the Mastercraft Kalu'ak Fishing Pole asap, which starting zone will offer more quests from the Kalu'ak?
Hellscreamy said... Which starting zone in Northrend has the most village's or forests and the least open areas? I don't wanna end up in another Barrens look-a-like.
Tharkis said... Which starting area do you think is the least likely to be overpopulated and not look like the area surrounding the Sunwell Plateau at launch?
YukonPete79 said... Do bosses on heroic mode in WotLK drop badges like the bosses of the heroic BC dungeons?

Ask A Beta Tester: Kalecgos, Wintergrasp, and how much is this going to cost me?
We're going to get right down to business this evening, folks. I was kind of heartened to see Willferal (our first questioner) ask about something that's bugged me for a while.
NOTE: Consider this fair -- if belated -- warning that there's a significant, if general, spoiler in this AABT concerning an important quest chain in Wrath, and if you're trying to avoid spoilers completely, please do NOT read AABT. This column is nothing but a pile of spoilers compressed into a spoiled package and tied with a spoilery bow.

Willferal asks... I know that in Wotlk, the players are fighting Malygos. But in TBC, Kalec/Tyri are blue dragons that help us, and Kalec is especially vital in his help to kill Kiljaeden. What's their role in Wrath?
Carang asks... I love professions. Probably one of the first things I will do is buy grandmaster for all of my toons professions. Do you know how much its going to cost to train grandmaster?
Myshkii writes... Enchanting-wise, are we gonna see something like in TBC where there were items that could only be used on items with ilvls of 35 ?
TheChao writes... Where the hell is that last picture from?
Frostymage asks... After the wrath gate quest horde characters get to retake the undercity with all the horde leaders. My question is what do the alliance players get?
Adamarius asks... I remember reading on Wowinsider a while back that they were testing a new NPC collision system. You showed a video of it on the Tournament test realms. Has there been any news of this being implemented in Wrath, or has this been shelved until its "Ready"?
Jatheak asks... Are there enough incentives for Lake Wintergrasp to constantly have enough players in each battle to be both enjoyable and competitive?
Drall asks... I've seen many of the new armor models, and, while they look pretty epic, can't find more then one or two for them. All the helms look the same, and the shoulders...Am I just not looking hard enough?
Hellscreamy asks... Which starting zone in Northrend has the most village's or forests and the least open area's? I don't wanna end up in another Barrens look-a-like.

Ask A Beta Tester: Spirit, AoE, and raid loot
I'm going to start off this AABT by stealing a question that Alex actually took last time, mostly because I started laughing when I read it yesterday. I have, oh, conservatively, billions of Wrath screenshots on my hard drive at this point, but there's one I remember all too well.

Marathan asks... Some time ago, there was a talk about new player character models for Wrath - and even some bugged pictures. So the question is, are they going live? Are we finally going to get improved graphics on our characters?
Runstadrey asks... When I start WoW after installing the WotLK dvd, will my addons already be there, or will I need to do some manual moving?
Nevermindz asks... I heard that spirit will be more useful for both DPS casters and healers in Wrath that it is now, is it true? How?
Exordius asks... I know that the beta is actually closed, but before it shut down was there any hope at all for us shammies so desperately in need of a ranged AOE?
Azzeron asks... I'm not sure if this has been asked already, but, I've heard rumors that the 10- and 25-man bosses of an instance have the same loot tables. And that the only difference from killing a boss in the 10-man version as opposed to the 25-man version, is that they drop different amounts of loot (2 epics for 25-man, 1 epic for 10). Is this true?
Chris asks... So is tailoring still a "must" for shadow priests? With the change to " spellpower", is there anything THAT worthwhile that is tailor-specific?
Kildon asks... Are you aware of any talk of a graphic overhaul of the classic game?
Azshizzle asks... Will we have different hotbar(s) when we switch to an another spec with the dual-spec system?
Arlendor asks... So what speed do these 'ghostly gryphons' fly at? Is it dependant on your level of flying skill?
Kar on E asks... Do I need to level my Mining to 375 before mining in Northrend or are the nodes available at 350?

Ask a Beta Tester: Spectral gryphons, prospecting, and portals
Only six-ish days of Ask a Beta Tester left! Whatever will we do!? Well, we'll go on with our lives probably. I mean, we'll have Wrath of the Lich King. Who cares?

ahmed ahmed asked... Have you heard anything about ghosts being able to go through mountains in WotLK, so they can reach their destinations faster? My friend told me that is what is going to happen, and I hope that it will go live!
Erika asked... When LK comes out are we going to have to build up the starting areas like we did with the SSO or Can I chill a few days on an alt while I let everybody start their DK and stuff?
Sielanas asked... How easy is it to obtain the new gems? What should we prospect early and are there any mining nodes that have better frequency of getting a freebie?
LordV asked...... I'm not sure if this has been asked or answered yet but here goes! Mages can head to Dalaran at level 71. I was wondering if there are any level restrictions on the Teleport and or Portal spells or can mages learn said spells as soon as they arrive?
Marathan asked... Some time ago, there was a talk about new player character models for Wrath - and even some bugged pictures. So the question is, are they going live? Are we finally going to get improved graphics on our characters?

Ask a Beta Tester: Zul'Drak and more
Welcome to yet another edition of Ask a Beta Tester. We're coming to you a little later in the day than we usually do, but I think getting the site's redesign up was worth it! It's sparkly, isn't it? We only have a little under a week of Ask a Beta Tester left, so let's make the best of the time we have and get started!

Nick S asked... Is there any lore for the Trolls? I've seen very, very little that's not negative. Where's the Troll lovin'?!?
J. asked... As we're winding down on questions, I'm sure this has been covered (and I've missed it): do the 10-man and 25-man instances have separate raid IDs? For example, could I run a 25-man Naxx with the guild and turn right around and run the 10-man? Or, if you run one, are you stuck until they reset?
timmy! asked... If you champion for faction B and after you just championed for faction A, and faction A catches you wearing faction B's tabard, will you lose rep with faction A for "cheating" on them?
Enyad asked... I heard from a friend that Blues went back and said the championing would be allowed for old school reps (Timbermaw, AD, CC etc) in level 80 instances. How true is that, if it is? Or is it just like I've been reading for only Northrend factions?
ithobbit asked... Taking a cue from the starting zone quests questions, I am a lore freak, would it be possible (or feasible) to do the quests on BOTH starting Areas at some point?
Ella asked... Can you give us a short list on what instances there are in northrend, and at what approximately level you should attend to these? I don't want to miss any.

Ask a Beta Tester: A closer look at the starting zones and other things
There's only about a week left of Ask a Beta Tester, so get your questions in while you still can! You can be special like Radiophonic and get your name all bold-like up here! I guess we could actually answer the questions, too...

Radiophonic asked... So I'm hearing that there are tons of quests in all areas, has the allowable number of quests in your quest log expanded or should we all start getting those last 10 or so completed?
JonRowley asked... If you are exalted with Argent Expedition and in a dungeon that typically gives their faction, but wearing a DEHTA tabard will you still get rep with DEHTA?
Mouton asked... For the dungeons in the starter zones, how "buried" are the quests? In HFP, you'd have to do a reasonably long quest chain to get the Ramparts quests, which meant I had run the place twice before actually getting the quest for it. Will this happen again in Northrend?
Schtix asked... I've been looking everywhere, but I've yet to find much information on changes to Naxxramas. So I'm wondering, did you have an opportunity to see any ten-man content? Do you know if the bosses are very different from how they were before?
Jodi asked... Could you possibly tell us more about the starter areas? Everyone says to quest where you like it the best, but I cant find enough on each starter area to really know which one I will like best. What kind of story does each bring, what kind of quests, what kind of playstyle? I'm really interested to know because I want to start leveling as soon as I can so my mage can start porting people to Dalaran.

Ask a Beta Tester: More on phasing and starter zones
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester on this Maintenance Day Tuesday. Let's get started right away with webrunner's question...

webrunner's question... Have you seen any interesting/fun usable gear with cool procs or use abilities, or is it just stats, stats, stats till the Tauren come home?
Rodrigo asked... Are there any mounts summonable like the Magic Broom of the Headless horseman? Instant summon is just too delicious... I'll miss mine in 2 days...
The Hammer asked... As an RPer, I'll be looking forward to hosting events within Northrend, and within the other places in the game. I am worried, however, about this phasing technology. A lot of my events are situational, and rely on everyone being on the same "page", as it were. So, my question is, far from being a gift to the RP community, is the expansion and its phasing going to damage these events? By explanation, will an attack on a Scourge-controlled town fall apart when most attendees have already seen the Scourge off, in their phasing version? Or does it not work like that?
Fojar asked a pair of questions...
If I want to get the maximum awesome-lore experience, would you recommend leveling my Alliance toons or my Horde toons first?
And also, have you noticed any significant bugs or problems with the phasing system?
Joe asked... How should we approach mounts and riding skills as we go into WotLK? If we can afford our epic flyer and training, should we go ahead and do it?
Are there faster mounts in WotLK that require new training?
Omestes asked... Is this like TBC, where I can comfortably level in Northrend at 68?
Nick S asked... Are there quests chains involving trips into Utgarde Keep in both starting zones, i.e. if you want to clear all the Utgarde Keep quests will you need to run quests in both starting zones to get the (Dungeon) quests?

Ask a Beta Tester: Starter zones and starter epics
Just a little earlier, Allison Robert posted questions we wish we had been asked on Ask a Beta Tester. Me? I'm still going to answer the questions we have been asked, starting with Jay's question...

Jay's question... In Warcraft III:The Frozen Throne, the Blood Elves and Naga teamed up to wage a massive battle against Arthas right on the slopes of Icecrown. It's already been mentioned that settlements and Ruins from further back, when Arthas's expedition land are still there. Is there any sign of the Belf and Naga ruins from their assault?
David asked... Do you think there will be lag and problems because all of the influx of people in Northrend once the expansion hits, or will having two starting zones solve that problem?
Sallix asked... Are there any class specific quests in Northrend?
Runstadrey asked... Could the Blessed * of Undead Slaying be the gear that Blizz wants us to wear into Northrend?
Trustee of Lothar asked... Even though we won't be able to champion old factions, will we be able to champion new factions in old dungeons? Does championing require you to earn experience/honor? Can you champion during BGs/arenas?

Ask A Beta Tester: Questions I wish we'd been asked
Here at WoW Insider sometimes we go a little nuts around big news events due to sleep deprivation or sensory overload in conjunction with large hits of caffeine. When that happens while we are writing "Ask A Beta Tester," occasionally we ask ourselves questions ("Why am I not in bed?") that we later realize might actually be useful.

Why are you not in bed?
What's the biggest difference between "Burning Crusade" and "Wrath of the Lich King?"
What else has improved the ingame experience?
Is there any overall trend you've noticed in quests and leveling? How has the game evolved from classic WoW?
They've said they were trying to get Arthas involved in the player's story earlier and more frequently. How did that pan out?
What's the most tempting thing to do as soon as you get Cold Weather Flying?
Enough with the gushing. What didn't work out so well?

Ask a Beta Tester: Lordaeron, epic quests, and other things
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, where we answer your questions about the Wrath of the Lich King beta! Let's get things started with Chris's question...

Chris's question... I really enjoy the Epic quest in Nagrand to bring Thrall to meet his grandmother. Is there anything like that in Wrath where you have to complete all the quests in one zone before you get an epic quest to complete?
Bearkub asked... I am not 100% sure this would fit as a "beta" question, but here goes... I play a 70 Holy Paladin and a 70 BM Hunter, while my partner plays a 70 Destro Warlock and a (soon to be) 70 TG Warrior (we will not be respeccing, so Ret/Demo or the like isn't an option)... What are the 2 "best" 2-man combinations for us to use while leveling in Wrath? By best I mean efficiency and synergy, as well as ease of not being forced to split up in 5 mans.
Debesun asked... Is there any mention of any Lordaeron specific Alliance forces in Northrend? During a certain in-game cinematic there are certain alliance soldiers calling "For Lordaeron!" in a similar way one would say "For the Alliance!"
BiggusGeekus asked... What is WotLK's equivalent of Arakkoa Feathers, Sanguine Hibiscus, Firewing Signet Rings, etc.? What are the dropped items in WotLK that are turned in for reputation, yet are still sellable on the auction house?
Laz asked... Is there a Northrend equivalent to Consortium monthly gems consisting of Northrend gems? Or are we stuck with free Outland gems only?

Ask a Beta Tester: Icecrown, quest rewards, and scary monsters
Good news! No corny jokes today! Just pure, delicious Ask a Beta Tester.

Actuality's question... When I first ran around TBC, the Fel Reaver scared the hell outta me. Ground shaking, crazily running everywhichwhere to get away. And the Draenei spiders still creep me out. But by and large the monsters now have a "ho hum" quality because I'm too used to them. My question is, are there any monsters in LK that will scare me or creep me out for at least a while?
Sorano asked... Is there still reputation gains and factions involved with raids? Does Naxxramas, the first raid, have a faction(s) attached to it?
Strongshield asked... What are the airships for?
Tony asked... I know you covered which starting zones have the most lore for different races. But my question is which classes should go to what zone for the reputation rewards. I have a Lock, pally, and warrior and some factions may have better things for each of these. What zone should each class go to for rep rewards?

Ask a Beta Tester: The mystery of Crystalsong and other things
I showed you the Alliance airship on yesterday's Ask a Beta Tester, now you get to see the Horde version! And now that that's out of the way, let's start with a couple of questions from Aerei...

Aerei... I've got possibly the most important question ever asked in this column! Are we going to see NPCs rocking the new hairstyles now available? I don't think it's fair only PCs should get them.
Also, if Dalaran gets mage trainers because it's the mage city, how come Shattrath doesn't have paladin trainers? Huh?
Roscoe asked... I have a question about the blacksmithing sockets. When a blacksmith adds a socket to an item, is there any rule as to what color the socket is? And does the item get a socket bonus that's randomized, or do they not have a socket bonus at all?
Kolo asked... Do Reputations from TBC instances scale down? For example, doing Scholo at level 70 grants almost no reputation with Argent Dawn. Does this apply to doing level 70 heroics at level 80?
Timothy asked... Regarding the nether drakes now... Will we still be able to complete the questlines and get a nether drake mount after Wrath hits?
Magrresha asked... I've noticed on Wowhead and Wowwiki that there aren't any quests under a Crystalsong Forest Category - nor is there an achievement for completing quests in this zone. Yet there are two camps, one for the Silver Covenant and one for the Sunreavers - if there are no quests here, then what are they for? Or are the quests simply not implemented yet?

Ask a Beta Tester: Heirloom items, class trainers, and more
Another day, another edition of Ask a Beta Tester. Today, as a special treat, I am going to answer your questions while blindfolded. And on fire. And covered in bees. ...actually, I don't really like that idea so I'm going to answer your questions like I normally do...

Naraxus's question... Something I was thinking about was how much of an important stat "Hit" was on endgame gear in BC. A couple of patches ago a lot of the lower level gear was given a hit stat to it and I was wondering if the 70-79 gear in WotLK has "Hit" or is it just basic stats and spell power, attack power etc?
Jeff asked... Regarding Heirloom items... Can you put enchantments/enhancements on them? If so, can you transfer those buffs between characters? Seems a little too good to be true to have my level 1 alt starting out with a pair of shoulders with Aldor inscriptions on them.
Suraci asked... Are there class trainers in Northrend or do we have to go back to our Horde/Alliance cities to train new spells?
ironblade asked... Regarding gear, what sort of HP will a lets say level 80 Naxx epics geared tank have? Because I heard people say the entry level raid in Wrath should get you around 20k-ish, is that true?
wrez asked... Regarding the phasing mechanic, if a Guildie of mine completes Quest X, which, through Phasing, alters the way in which he sees the game world and I have not yet completed this Quest, will we be unable to do anything together anywhere in the game, because the way in which we're seeing the world is different, or will we be able to interact as normal? And if our interaction is limited, how so? Game-wide, Zone-wide, etc.?

Ask a Beta Tester: Tradeskills, training, and rep gains
As the beta winds down, Ask a Beta Tester becomes a little more infrequent, but as long as we have questions, we will answer.

Rob asked.... Are they planning to put in recipes for green items between 350-375 to make it easier to grind up professions? Or should i just suck it up and make (obsolete) blue/purple items to level up.
Locke asked... I know there's the Wrath Gate cinematic and so on, have you come across or know any other cinematic events like this, or was this the only one?
Chris asked... In the Classic world, we got new spells and abilities every even level. In the Outlands, we got them at every level after 60. Is it the same for Northrend? Will we get new spells and abilities ever level after 70?
barbarion asked... I really enjoyed The Ring Of Blood in Nagrand. Have they got anymore quests like that in northrend and is there any information about it yet?
Fuster asked... Will there be any inscription recipe drops or will we only be able train and discover glyphs and books?
ermansup asked... Are there any reputation grinds that make completing quests linked to said reputations unoptimal before a stage such as honored is reached by other means. Like it is in TBC with the Cenarion Expedition and the Unidentified Plant Parts.
Jeger asked... For most players, the rewards you got from the first couple of TBC quests were good upgrades to the epic gear we already had. Just wondering how long will tier 4,5,6 last us in Wrath? Will I still use my current gear at level 75?

Ask a Beta Tester: This and that
You can tell the Wrath beta is winding down, because Ask a Beta Tester has been getting a lot fewer questions lately. Because of that, we're going to be pretty short and sweet today. If you still have questions, though, keep em coming!

dfsnow asked... What's happening with Alchemy and Alchemist's Stones in WotLK?
Johan asked... Have you seen any Wrath quests that grant home city faction rep?
svenhoek asked... What happens if a Death Knight leaves the starting area before coming back to the side of the Horde/Alliance? Are they hostile to all factions?
roa asked... What's with the limited talent points upon creating a new DK? How can you get hold of all talent points up to level 55?
szander asked... Will you get XP for dailies in the expansion?

Ask a Beta Tester: Factions and reputation
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, wherein I sigh at names like fungus and then answer their question anyway.

fungus asked... Will we be able to do the BC heroics for the achievements after Wrath comes out?
Beath asked... Does Culling of Stratholme grant Keepers of Time reputation? If not, is there a new faction associated with this instance?
Carney00 asked... Are the pvp items for the different factions (Horde, Alliance) going to look different again or are we all going to be wearing the same duds?
Kiukiu asked... How soon into Northrend can we start getting rep for the endgame factions such as the Knights of the Ebon Blade or the Argent Crusade?
Scarcheek asked... Will Outland and Shattrath become obsolete for level 70 once the expansion is released?
Andrew asked... Are endgame raids/instances in Wrath really that easy? I've been hearing from numerous beta testers and other bloggers that everything is just so darn easy. Any testers have any input on this? If this is the direction Blizzard is going with WoW, I'm not seeing any reason to stick around.

Ask a Beta Tester: More on leveling, Alliance lore, and starting zone RP
"Ask a Beta Tester" took a short break during patch 3.02 madness, but we're back!

DM7000 asks... What happened with the glyphs that turned (Druids) into a polar bear or a lynx?
Alpen asks... Will there be a new "Fel Reaver" type mob in Northrend which will make us all cry when we have to go afk while questing?
Littlepins asks... Will BC dailies still be level 70 or will they be upped to level 80 in the expansion?
RedBearon asks... With Warth's 2 entry zones, I'm trying to decide where each of my characters should start. Now I understand that it is a matter of personal preference, but is there a "preferred" zone for RP/lore reason for each race?
CRE asks... I might have missed this, but do I need to make the highest lvl alchemy stone in order to create the stone which will be available in WotLK?
Amaxe asks... We've been hearing a lot about the epic storylines for the Horde in the coming expansion. Do the alliance get similar ones, or do we get hosed on it?
Gridwerk asks... Do I even bother to run the (mostly for the purpose of lore at this point) "end-game" dungeons knowing that in two weeks "leet" will be dramatically redefined or do I push to level my 60 alt?
Sprocket asks... Would it be better to go ahead and level to 70 or just get my 60's to 68 and just start leveling again when Wrath comes out?
Tim asks... Can you apply both and enchantment and an engineering "upgrade" to an item?
Johncheese asks... How soon can park our new DKs in an inn or resting zone?

Ask a Beta Tester: Leveling, the Taunka, and mounts
All of us here at WoW Insider are staggering around somewhat zombie-like in the wake of BlizzCon with the patch (probably) coming tomorrow and the amount of information we're hoping to get out in the next 24 hours. So in all truth I don't know whether the answers to today's questions are completely factual or just stuff that started swimming in front of my eyes at 1:00 this morning. Arthas is actually a girl underneath all that armor, just like Samus Aran. The zone music to Icecrown is "Won't Get Fooled Again" by The Who. The Hateful Gladiator cloth belt is a pink tutu. Flying bunnies will be available in the next expan-

Jason asks... Will Northrend be accessible at 68 like Outland was accessible at 58? Or do I need to be a solid 70 to quest and instance in Northrend?
Frostymage asks... With the 50 mounts achievement are you going to have to get a load of rep up with all the capital cities or are there loads of new mounts available?
Trilynne asks... Rep mounts from Outlands factions: Will these still be available to obtain in the expansion? I'm thinking about the Cenarion War Hippogryph, Netherdrakes, and Sha'tari Skyguard Nether Rays.
Sweet Sweet SoulShards asks... I wonder about Tauren lore...have the taunka helped the taurens with finding out their origin or something?
Abbadon asks... How soon can we start sending mail to our new DKs? Can they get mail from the getgo, or do they have to finish the "experience" first? Thanks.
Zanieblyar asks... Is there much of a difference in quest experience/money that I should or shouldn't level my alt to 70 in Outland before entering Northrend?
Aysel asks... Any sign of the AQ40 mounts being usable outside of AQ40?
Jedunster asks... Since Rhonin and Vareesa show up in Northrend, are there any signs of Krasus/Korialstrasz or of Rhonin and Vareesa's children?
Everrest asks... Will (dual specs and new enchanting mechanics) be in the patch that is expected/rumored to be dropping on Tuesday? Or are they going to be introduced within a patch after Wotlk launches?
Eternauta asks... How fast can you level in outland with the changes to xp? are they implemented in the xpac or in the echoes of doom patch?

Ask a Beta Tester: It's all about the money
We have a lot of profession questions today, but also a few about Achievements, the Beast Mastery 51-point talent, and what happens when you push Death Knights off a cliff.

Riley asks... How is the Shaman Hex ability working? Does the target still have control of movement and does the PvP trinket work against it?
Mannas asks... Can achievements be lost?
Khree asks... You say that alchemists keep their specializations. Will tailors?
Robert M asks... What new alchemy trinkets are BoP?
Matt asks... My alchemy skill is at 375 (on live) but I never bothered to pick up a specialty? Does it make sense to do it now, or should I wait until the xpac?
Realz asks... Has there been any mention of an Engineering Research?
Wii WIlli asks... With regards to BM hunters. If we tame exotic pets and then decide to respec later (either with a complete respec to, say, Marks, or just a BM tinkering), will we lose our tamed exotic pets?
Stormscape asks... Do Death Knights have any means of surviving a long fall?
Sjb asks... Another profession question... how profitable will inscription be in the long-term?

Ask a Beta Tester: The Alchemist
Apologies to Paulo Coelho fans for borrowing his title, but we have two Alchemy-related questions to start us off today, in addition to questions on Blacksmithing, cinematics, and dailies:

Horizons asks... Do the alchemy specializations in wrath still work the same way as they do now in BC?
Rhozul asks... Do I want to push my Priest, who is in greens, to Northrend after my Paladin to level Alchemy?
Sorano asks... Can you apply Vigilance, the buff gained from the 31 point protection warrior talent tree, on the same warrior who cast it?
Woca asks... Once I ding 71, will my crit rating plummet?
Frostymage asks... I saw the Wrath gate video and was wondering if there are any other quests that have a cinematic or involve having something big happening in the world?
Sjb asks... Do Blacksmiths seem to be making a name for themselves with their new ability to socket items? Any idea how the BS armor and weapons scale with dungeon gear?
Roma.mink asks... Since we're on the subject of WotLK dailies...what level do you have to be to start doing them?? Do I have to wait until I'm level 80? :(

Ask a Beta Tester: The Borean Tundra, Paladin spells, and more
Welcome to Ask a Beta Tester! We're not going to waste any time today, and just jump in feet first...

Jerematic's question... Are there any other world PvP objectives, beyond Wintergrasp?
Chalios asked... I'm a prot pally and I was wondering that since Blessings of Kings is going to be 2% stat increase base with an extra 8% on the improved version, will Greater Blessings of Kings start off with 2% as well at base and scale with the improved version or will it still be 10% and provide me with an extra 4 talent points?
Rylia asked... Regarding professions: what's the minimum character level required to get grand master profession level? i.e. if I want alts with every profession, how high do I have to get them?
saldat asked... Is there any news on allowing engineers to change specializations in WotLK?
Sherp asked... How much gold do Daily Quests earn in WotLK? Do they average 10g like the SSO dailies do, or is it more? Are there any other easy moneymaking venues?
BlindSeerWolf asked... I read that Arugal and his werewolfs(worgen) are coming back in WotLK. Have you seen him/them?
Fobok asked... I've heard some people complain about Borean Tundra, but no specifics. What's wrong with it? Is it the zone design, the look, the quests?
Ally_pally asked... I have a rather technical question. wowhead.com reports Seal of the Martyr's Judgement as receiving 25% bonus from weapon damage as opposed to the Horde's Seal of Blood which renders a 45% bonus from weapon damage. What are we really looking at? Is this a "balance testing" to figure out which Blizzard will use for both, or is alliance getting a toned-down version?

Ask a Beta Tester: Exotic weapons, furbolgs, and more
Hi there, and welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester after its little Sunday break! If you're new to the column, then just 'welcome' instead of 'welcome back' and if that's the case allow me to explain! Have a question about the Wrathbeta? We have an answer! Probably. Just ask in the comments section below, and we'll try to answer you in a future episode. Now, let's get started!

CactusHam asked... I noticed on the Description of the Shaman's Maelstrom Weapon (and maybe its in other places as well, but this is where I saw it) that in addition to requiring axes, maces, staves and daggers it also requires "One handed Exotics, Two Handed Exotics" as well as "miscellaneous". I'm curious about what seems to be a new weapon type? Is this a new weapon type? If so, what classes can use "exotics"? And what exactly is an "exotic?"
nist7 asked... Are they increasing the amount of quests you can have active at any one time? Also, I'm guessing they are upping the amount of dailies you can complete in one day as well?
palatank asked... What's the minimum profession level to learn new Wrath recipes?
Durana asked... Will you be able to donate Frostweave to increase your reputation with the old world home factions (Darnassus, Orgrimmar, Darkspear Trolls, ect.)? Or will I still be running Scholomance/Stratholme for runecloth?
stunts01 asked... If you wear the same faction tabard as the faction dungeon you are running do you receive extra rep?
Sirg asked... What can you tell us about furbolgs in Northrend? It's one of my favourite races, and I would like to see a faction or some furbolg related quests.
Vivimord asked... Any word or sign of Atiesh being implemented in WotLK?
Stigg asked... What would you say is the best tree for leveling as a druid? Is feral still on top or is moonkin more efficient for leveling?

Ask a Beta Tester: More on daily quests and champions
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester! I've plugged in more music for you above, this time from Icecrown Glacier. If you're feeling kind, you should go give some love to the guy that posted them later on. For now, though, we're here to answer your Wrath of the Lich King questions!

Sorano asked... While killing mobs in a dungeon that normally gives rep for a faction, for example: The Wyrmrest Accord, if I am wearing the tabard representing the Warsong Offensive, will I gain reputation for both Wyrmrest Accord and Warsong Offensive at the same time?
Locke asked... Had a question about Old World city guards, will their level be raised from 65 to 75 with he expansion? Or will it remain the same?
Vinicius O. E. asked two questions... Do we have new item suffixes like the ones added in BC like "of the Beast", "of the Invoker", "of the Champion", etc?
When will the XP needed to level from 60-70 decrease? When patch 3.0.2 is released? WotLK?
Wroar asked... Can we get some more information on daily quests? Where are they? How many are there? I believe it was already stated they reward about 30g per quest, but how hard to do are they? And how long do they take?
raya said... Please tell me there is gonna be a AH in Dalaran!

Ask a Beta Tester: Reputation, crowd control, and more
We all know how this goes by now, so let's jump right in. If you don't know how this goes, click back through a few of the previous editions of Ask a Beta Tester. You'll catch on, I'm sure.

Xaktsaroth asked... How does reputation work in general in Wrath? Are there turn-in quests? Rep for killing Mobs? Quested Rep? If you just quest, how far along does that reputation take you?
timmy! asked... With the adjustments made to healing, is it still possible to heal 5-mans while leveling with a non-healing spec e.g. a shadow spec priest healing a 5-man dungeon?
Creo asked... Do the 3 person mammoths (such as the 20k version from Dalaran) involve any speed increase beyond the normal 100% epic ground speed increase?
Legather asked... If one is determined to pick up mining as the gathering profession, does blacksmithing or engineering seem to be more rewarding in Wrath?
Emmy asked... If I spent a few days raping and killing in Booty Bay to get the Bloodsail Admiral title, will my resulting hated reputation amoung the various Goblin factions cause me to get killed on sight at an important quest hub in Wrath?
Alpen asked... How are boomkin shaping up? What I really want to know is will entangling roots be a good enough cc to get us into any 5 man we want like mages?
David Whyld asked... How large is Northrend in comparison to Outland? I read an article today in Total PC Gaming that claims Northrend is 20-30 times the size of Outland... which sounds like a pack of lies to be honest as that would make the expansion 4-5 times the size of the original game. But it got me wondering if Northrend is bigger or smaller than Outland?

Ask a Beta Tester: Raid zones, plot, and more on phasing
I decided to do something a little different with the image above for today's Ask a Beta Tester. Instead of beating you over the head with another of my awesome Dalaran screenshots, I've plugged in some music you can listen to while you read, if you'd like. Just hit play, and get in a Wrathkind of mood.

Milkgas asked quite a few questions, but many of them involve story spoilers that I don't think readers would appreciate seeing in this particular column. What I don't answer, you can truck over to Ask a Lore Nerd and I'll squeeze them in on the bottom behind my usual "spoilers be here, yarrrr" line. We can definitely hit a few of them though:
Has there been any hints in the quest text of either the Uldum or the Karazhan Basement as a raid or dungeon in this expansion or the next?
I've noticed some undead blood / high elf models in the beta, is there any evidence of us having to fight an undead Kael'thas?
Are there any keys necessary to access raids or dungeons? One of which I noticed was the drop from Sapphiron to access the Eye of Eternity.
In Warcraft III there were eight dreadlords sent to keep Arthas in check. Six are dead, all but Mephistroph and Varimathras. Is there any hint of Mephistroph in Northrend?
Is the Scarlet Crusade still determined to flight the plague? If so why do they have a base off the coast of Icecrown, surley the Lich King would have pushed them back if they were so close.
uncaringbear asked... What happened to the new dances? Weren't we supposed to be getting some sort of a dance studio to make our own customized dances?
Chris asked... Will titles like Champion of the Naaru and Hand of A'dal be disapearing with patch 3.0 or when the actual expansion hits? My guild only needs to kill Kael...
Talia asked... You've mentioned, regarding the new phasing system, riding through a zone "empty of mobs" because you've already quested through it. Does this phasing idea hold for all mobs, or only special/quest related ones? Does this, then, have the obvious implications for helping friends with quests you've already done? What about farming/grinding?
Derec asked... Are there any quests that send you back to Outland?

Ask a Beta Tester: Soundtracks, trinkets, and travel
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester! We'll jump right into things today...

Graham's question... What is the music like in Dalaran? Is there a web site where I can hear some/all of it?
onetrueping asked... In the new Naxx, and indeed, Wrath in general, does the old Argent Dawn trinket work? Not as far as scourgestones, mind (doubt they'd add that), but as far as granting a little rep per kill and the bonus AP vs undead?
Justin asked... Is there an easy way to get from Northrend to Outland (and back)? A portal from Dalaran to Shattrah, or something? Everyone does it in WoW now by keeping Hearth set to Outland, but that won't work with us all questing in Northrend...
Cyramn asked... I'm currently farming some rep for the Cenarion Circle in Silithus, and I was wondering if any quests in Northrend will give some CC rep. I saw some D.E.H.T.A. quests are giving Cenarion Expedition repuation, but are there any other druids in the north giving rep for CC?
Galla asked... What is the duration of the new 'Replenishment' effect that hunters, priests, and paladins now give their raid and party, can they stack, and how does it work if you have more than one of these classes in one group/raid?
Rhudaur asked... I am wondering about learning new recipes in professions in Wrath past what the trainers can teach. Will all professions have a daily quest to get tokens that are turned in for new recipes, or is it just the Jewelcrafters that will have to do that? Will there be other recipes available through drops?

Ask a Beta Tester: Shaman, Engineers, and Feral Druids
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, where for one glorious day, we don't have any passenger mount questions! But I know, deep down, there are a thousand more on the horizon.

Elmo asked... How are Enhancement Shamans shaping up? I heard silly things like Elemental gear is great for them or 2x fast weapons with Flametongue. Are we really gonna make that much of a turn around? In other words, is my hard earned gear all worthless? Not just the epic gems and Strength enchants.
Jolly asked... Does engineering in WotLK have an equivilant gathering skill to gas cloud mote-farming in BC?
raful asked... As the Death Knight will be a bit better then the other classes, will it replace Warriors place as MT in elite guilds?
Jankka asked... I haven't heard much about the new siege weapons except for the part that they're used in Strand of the Ancients. But what I'm wondering is; Are you able to take the siege weapons against keeps, such as the Valiance keep?
Mattarias asked... Oh gods, does anyone notice that barber chair has manacles attached to it?
Steven asked... Have you seen any feral tanks along your travels? How have they shaped up?
james asked... How much gold do things like dailies, quests, instance runs etc get you? Will the 5000g for mount training suuddenly become alot more affordable with everyone making much more money from quests and other sources. Seeing other big cash dump things like the dalaran ring it looks like it 5000g will not seem so much Whats your experience from beta?

Ask a Beta Tester: Shaman, Engineers, and Feral Druids
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, with even more passenger mount questions! Don't worry, though. It didn't devour our entire column today. We have plenty more for you!

Sorano's question... What I'd like to know his exactly how much protection warrior dps as changed. All the talents seem too good to be true.
Ironside asked... If somebody shoots a fireball at your group while you're riding the mammoth who takes the damage?
Hakker asked... How does the whole passenger thing actually work? Like, if I were to ride on someone's mammoth, would I be stuck in place like I were riding my own mount? Or would I be able to move around the mount freely like say the tram or on a boat?
Chris asked... Regarding raid gear: If the gear from 10-man raids is one Tier below the 25-man version, that must logically mean that, having completed the entire 10-man progression path, there will only be one 25-man dungeon with any loot better than yours. Won't this completely discourage people from progressing through the 25-man versions of the raids? (Until the very last one, of course)
Nathral asked... With Death Knights being a Tanking/Melee DPS class, I have to ask do they have any kind of Threat Management or a full Threat Dump? Or is it going to be like a Fury warrior, your threat dump is to take one in the face and die?
Necromos asked... Quick question about loose ends in Naxx lore: Is the whole Kel'thuzad's phylactery thing cleared up?
Bombrik asked... Regarding Barbershops, I was told there are only three chairs that can be used and everyone else must wait in line. Are there any mechanics in place to prevent griefing cause I am very sure on my server of Kirin Tor, that you'll have people taking the chairs, then going AFK for the next 3 hours to insure that no one else can use the barbershop.

Ask a Beta Tester: Shaman, Engineers, and Feral Druids
We have a few more questions about the passenger mounts today, but a lot of Mammoth-related questions are repeats of ones we've answered previously. So if you still have a question about them after today, I recommend checking the last few editions of Ask a Beta Tester to see if it's been answered already.

Iceman's question... Are the flying passenger mounts? Ground mounts are lovely and all, but once everyone takes to the skies will they become useless to everyone with cold weather flying?
G asked... if the "vehicle itself takes falling damage," what does that mean exactly? Will it eventually break and be unusable? Can it be vendor repaired like armor and weapons?
Snoogles asked... How do gear and weapon enchants stack up? Mainly, are there leatherworking, blacksmith, and enchanter...erm...chants, that stack on one item?
Sweet Sweet SoulShards asked... Can you tell us more about the new Slash Commands and Emotes in Wrath? Is /cower the only new emote with an animation?
Zuldim asked... With 25 man and 10 man raiding, the gear is "one tier" above in 25 man. So, for example, 25 man naxx gear is equal to 10 man whatever comes after naxx gear?
Sanzer asked... So wait,...we get a pet UI and a mount UI, but no tabard UI, and yet there is a achievement for getting 25 tabards (which I am strangely drawn to do)? Am I confused, will there be a UI for tabards, or are they just going to clog my bank?

Ask a Beta Tester: Multi-passenger mounts and Enchanting
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, where we answer your questions about the Wrath of the Lich Kingbeta! We had quite a few questions regarding the multi-passenger mounts coming in Wrath, so we'll mostly focus on those. That's not all we have today, but most of it.

JPN asked... What does the tooltip mean for the Traveler's Tundra Mammoth where it says it carries vendors?
Sniss asked... Can you suggest the best enchants for a Death Knight fresh from the starting zone?
Kessian asked... When an enchanter puts the enchant on parchment and then on the Auction House, will they have to have the mats to create the enchanted parchment, or will the person purchasing the enchant have to provide the mats?
Tap asked... About Druid's flight form: can they fly in Northrend without cold weather flying? I'm guessing no, but...
Do they get it like everyone else (buying/training) or is there a specific druid quest for it?
Dendail asked... With the passenger mounts how will aggro radius be affected? Will your lower level passengers still aggro like normal?
Moonshot asked... Will the passengers of the multipassenger mounts be able to get off whenever they want or will they be stuck on the mount tell the driver dismounts?
Chamual asked... What are the passanger mounts acutally for? Why would anyone want to spend 20k on them? Apart from bussing around pre-lvl30 characters, whats the benifit of them? Everyone at least now has an epic ground mount, so why would you want to be a passanger on a motorbike or Mammoth?
What is it that makes it worth 20,000 gold?

Ask a Beta Tester: More on mounts and other things
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester, where we answer your questions about the Wrath of the Lich Kingbeta! Most of our answers are short and sweet today...

Molly's question... What's the word on passenger mounts? Will they be a whole new level of riding skill, or will you simply purchase them individually? How much do these things cost?
David Whyld asked... What kind of HPs and mana are characters at level 80 going to get? I saw some screenshots where characters in a level 80 raid looked to have 30-35k HPs - is this something we'll all be able to achieve?
Zhiva said... What levels can use multipassenger mounts?
Bill asked... I was wondering what is going to happen to the quest line for the druid's epic flight form. Will new druids have to scramble to put together a few 80s to go back and finish off a level 70 heroic instance for the quest completion? Will it become trainable at a druid trainer in Northrend? Or if I don't get it on my druid before the expansion will I miss out on the opportunity all together?
Reliik asked... What is the DPS on the ammo in WOTLK?
Drae asked... For Blacksmithing, are there any new mail items? Wondering if I should change my professions on my shammy.

Ask a Beta Tester: Flight, gear, and more
Welcome back to Ask a Beta Tester! We'll jump right into things today...

Snuffles asked... In regards to flight, what areas are restricted (besides Dalaran) and how to they prevent us from flying over the ocean? Is it a wall, or a new fatigue system?
Kodath asked... With Death Knights coming out, are there any plans on setting up Teir armor sets? For instance, take down Curator, and there is a T4 glove token he can use?
Rufihoe asked... I have been looking at some of the level 80 gear from factions and dungeons and I am just starting to feel like I might even be keeping some of my items all the way to heroics at level 80. So the question is am I missing something or Is my full t6 set replaceable before 80 or is it going to take me to 80 and somewhat beyond?
themadchemist asked... I currently have 2 70s a resto shammy and a prot pally. I am hoping to make my Death Knight my DPS class. How is DPSing PVE/PVP with a Death Knight? Is it redundant or engaging/challenging?
Boke asked... Has there been any mention of the item or items that are going to be replacing the Amani War Bear Mount in ZA?
Sapphyre asked... Is running Heroic dungeons still tied to faction reputation for individual dungeons? If so will this remain at honored or is this being reset back to a higher level upon launch?
JM asked... Have quest rewards been improved so that you aren't getting so much useless gear? I hate completing a quest on my rogue just to find a wand and plate gear as my reward selection.

Ask a Beta Tester: Raids, rare mobs, and more raids
We've had a lot of class-specific questions lately (especially Hunters) here on Ask a Beta Tester, but since I don't play every class, I can't answer all of those. However, I've forwarded some of them on to our motley crew of bloggers, so we'll hopefully be able to answer you soon. Until then, let's get started on some other things, shall we?

Robert M asked a pair of questions... Is there going to a difference in the number of badges the same boss drops in the 10 man and the 25 man?
Will you be saved to a raid in the 10 man and not be able to do the 25 man that week? it seems like a 25 man geared toon could help the guild in the 10 if its a slow week or some of the raid members have a RL issue.
sphynx asked... After learning to summon a mini-pet, do you lose the 'container'? From what I saw of the beta you can keep it, but does that mean I can, say, send my firefly to all my alts and sell it on the AH again after using it? That would be rather devastating for the rarity for a lot of pets...
Agent StanSmith asked... Are there going to be more rare mobs in Northrend? As a rare-hunter, I was kind of disappointed by the sparseness of rare mobs in the outlands, and I would really hope wrath returns to the variety available in the old world.
Chamual said... Seeing as there are now lots of 10man raids, does this mean the end of heroics? Are there still heroics in WotLK and do you have to run them to gear for the first 10man?
Daniel asked... What is the WotLK raid ladder at the moment?

Ask a Beta Tester: Championing clarification, raiding, and more
Quite a few people wanted some clarification on the Championing system mentioned in previous editions of Ask a Beta Tester, so I'll try to do just that: The Championing system is not retroactive, and by that I mean old factions are not included in it. You can't use this to grind Orgrimmar or Honor Hold or whatever in level 80 dungeons. It only applies to Wrathreputations, and so far, not even all of those.

Bhubba asked a pair of questions... Are there any items similar to "Everlasting Underspore Frond"? It was immensely helpful while leveling in Outland, and I was hoping for another version, or one at level 80 (the Frond isn't as helpful at 70 as it was leveling).
With the change to mounts and pets, once you "train" them, do they tell you if you already have learned them, such as with other similar items? God forbid in my quest to get all the mounts I can, I waste gold buying ones I already have.
Culhag asked... I plan on getting the "Leading the Cavalry" achievement sooner or later, and for that I may level my faction cities to exalted. Do we get any significant amount of reputation with them while leveling in WotLK? Or should I start now, before the rush on runecloth for the titles?
gridwerk asked... I have a question- and this is probably the wrong place to put this but... Is the skill-level necessary to start in WoTLK going to be the next step up from the skill-level necessary to beat the last run, i.e Sunwell? To dumb it down so even I dont get confused: will you be able to start WoTLK in TBC greens or are you going to need to get all the top tier stuff just to stay alive?
Bean asked... I had a question about the new mana regen mechanics. Does the Replenishment buff stack? As in, if you have a group with a SPriest and a Survival Hunter, and Both activate it at the same time, do you get a stacking buff at all? Two unique buffs? Do they stack at all?
Muddy asked... I'm wondering about raid content progression. Are most guilds planning to split teams and gear up in 10-man versions or does it seem feasible to go straight to the 25-man version?

Ask a Beta Tester: Baron Rivendare, heirloom items, and more
Remember a little while ago on Ask a Beta Tester, someone asked if Jaina Proudmoore has any role in Wrath? And I said no, she has no new story involvement? Well, a recent beta patch made a fool out of me. She has a role, it's epic, and no she doesn't make out with Arthas you horrible, horrible people.

Shadgalaul asked... What about the whole dual-spec situation? Was this implemented, or did it just fade out and get scrapped?
Mike asked... How are the rewards for getting achievements received? Through the mail? Do you get them from certain NPC's? Does it become a quest you turn in?
Hinalover asked... I thought I heard that they were taking out the Baron run of Stratholme. I was running that with a Pally Buddy a month ago and he heard of that and was trying to get the mount with no success.
doug asked... Question about bind-to-account items: I understand you could probably mail them to characters on the same server, but how would you transfer a bind-to-account item from server to server?
CallMeIrd asked... Maybe this has already been asked, and if so I missed it. Sorry! I want to level my DK in Inscription and Blacksmithing. Do I need to start running around collecting Peacebloom and copper, or do the knights get a profession boost?
Loudfiero asked... Is VANISH fixed yet?
Mr. Chibbles asked... What is the state of Gorillas in Wrath? it seems like the new talent system for pets and their Thunderstomp ability would make them great tanks. I have been really curious to see how they work out!
Robsato said... Is there any news on the new dances that were announced in the teaser movie?
Beldoro asked... Reading the tabard tooltip, I get the impression that rep gained will only go to the tabard faction - ie you don't get any rep for the faction the dungeon should give rep to. Is this correct?

Ask a Beta Tester: Mounts, threat meters, and tabards
We'll jump right into things in today's Ask a Beta Tester, because destiny waits for no man!

andyjay220 asked... How have people liked the new threat meter? I have tried PTR but I don't really understand it as I am used to Omen. As far as I can tell the only information it gives you is "YOU NOW HAVE 100% AGGRO" which isn't very helpful. I want to see a meter showing how far away from pulling aggro I am so i can gauge my attacking accordingly. Any way someone could explain it to me?
Gat asked... I have a question, and please don't say take your time and enjoy the content. I want to get to 80 as fast as humanly possible when the xpac comes out, do you have any advice? Can I carry over quests? Should I shoot for instances or quest?
Alex asked... Aside from the Amani War Bear, are any other mounts being removed?
Kypros asked... I vaguely remember reading that Blizz was looking to allow players to gain rep by wearing that rep's tabard, essentially removing the need to run a specific instance. Any word on this, or did I just make this up?
Vylemacer asked... Are Inscription glyphs actually items that can be readily replaced, or do you have to get or buy new glyphs if you want to swap them out?
Tap asked... Hrm, does using a flying carpet require cold weather flying?
BiggusGeekus asked... Can the driver of the motorcycle have a battleground flag carrier as a passenger? So if my buddy grabs the flag can I give him a ride to our keep?

Ask a Beta Tester: Attunements, achievements, more low level quests
Welcome to another edition of Ask a Beta Tester, wherein we all sit around, drink ale, smoke cigars, talk about our awesome hogs and then tear up the road of Dalaran, risking our lives with extreme stunts just for the thrill and the feeling of adrenaline flowing through our veins.

Swiss asked... I'm interested in the Low Level Quest Tracker. Does this replace other trackers such as Find Herbs or Find Minerals? Or does it stack with other tracking as well?
Droul asked... What has happened to jewel slots in Wrath? A lot of the gear that has been previewed or leaked has maybe one but most have no slots for gems. Are Jewelcrafters going to be useless in WotLK?
saerb asked.. There has been mention of new flying mounts, but since we can't use flying mounts until later, and the removal of Riding Crops, has there been any indication of any new ground mounts with increased speed?
Phil asked... Do we know if the new 10/25 man Naxxramas has an attunement?
Reric asked... Have various factions been implemented yet in Northrend? How about reputation gear?
Alex asked... From what I've seen on the PTR, you can only get boss kill achievements by having completed the quest. By doing that Blizzard is locking out the achievements for Ragefire Chasm to the Alliance and the Stockades for the Horde. Any idea if this is going to change in the final build?

Ask a Beta Tester: Murlocs, mounts, and minimaps
You want mounts? We got mounts. Just waltz on through the intimidating portal above flanked by deadly drakonids, and they're giving em out like candy! Actually, no, I'm lying. Kind of.

Locke asked... Any word on new flying mounts or anything like that?
rigz asked... Any news on the legendary drops that could be obtained through 40-man Naxx? Is it still possible to get a corrupted Ashbringer or Atiesh?
dahwedge asked... I see that Riding Crops and Carrots are going away. Will my Charm of Swift Flight be disappearing as well?
Leprakahn asked... What capital cities outside Dalaran will there be Inscription trainers? I think I remember reading that there will be one in Undercity, but where else?
jurandr asked... Any murlocs in Northrend?
Kaeder asked... I haven't heard any news of being able to show all questgivers on the minimap since the article about it. Is this something that is now available in Beta, or on the PTR? I took a look at the PTR and either I can't find it or it isn't available yet. Any ideas?

Ask a Beta Tester: Spell power, phasing, and more
The image above has almost nothing to do with the content of today's Ask a Beta Tester, but I found it funny so you get to deal with it.

Turfing's question... I have a priest alt getting close to 70. Planning on doing healing come Wrath. With the conversion to spell power should I be picking up healing gear or damage gear right now?
Camaris asked... Is there actually any limit to the number of pets/mounts those new windows can accommodate? I'm assuming they work like key rings (growing larger as you get more stuff), and I hope I'm not wrong on this.
yazah asked... Are there any changes to fishing? I don't mean new fishing areas, or fish, but are there any changes to the *mechanics* of fishing? Or is it the same boring process as before?
trogdor7 asked... Now that the king is back, where did Bolvar and Prestor go? I'm wondering how the Onyxia attunement chain in particular will work.
Shadowpriest asked... Do the two talents Improved Spirit Tap and Meditation stack?
Erinar asked... Is there any storyline in beta so far involving Jaina Proudmoore?

Ask a Beta Tester: Flying in the snow, etc
Because Dalaran is floating high above Northrend, you need a flying mount to reach it, and when you first arrive in Northrend, your flying mount simply doesn't know how to handle the cold weather. You'll need to complete a level 77 quest chain to obtain Cold Weather Flying and reach Dalaran on your own.

FoSho asked.... Maybe I'm in the dark here, but how does one get to Dalaran since its floating in mid air. Is there a portal in a town, or do you have to be 67 to get there? I keep on hearing its "dangerous" to get to Dalaran, how so?
Blue_Bland asked.... Are the Mage spells Conjure Food (Rank 8) and Conjure Water (Rank 9) still only able to be learned from book drops or are they now available from the Mage trainers at 70?
Debesun asked.... I'm unsure whether this has been detailed yet but I was wondering about the starting reputation of Death Knights. Does a Death Knight begin the game at 55 but with the faction standings of a level 1?
tehvoid asked.... Death Knights will have all old world flight paths but what about explored zones? Will they have some pre-explored parts of the world (like flight path sites) or have just forgot all of her past life minus flight paths?
Tap asked.... Speaking of talent spec swaps, is Blizzard going to implement anything? I'm guessing they're too busy and won't get to it for WotLK....too bad, it would be awesome to change from DPS to healer (as a Priest) or (less likely) tank to healer and back (as a Pally) depending on need.
MacGayver asked.... I remember someone mentioning something about king Varian Wrynn being back on his throne. Any word about how that all is currently?
Eric asked.... Do we have any idea what the rewards for the achievements will be, beyond those points? Will we be able to trade them in for something?
Kevin Gass asked.... Your mounts are learned to the new spell book and you move them around an organize them? or should a clutterfree freak like myself learn the mounts in the exact order I want them to appear?

Ask a Beta Tester: World Explorin'
I'm sorry, folks, but I have to revisit the school-specific spell power discussion... yes, again! As a great many commenters have pointed out, school-specific spell power has recently been removed from the beta versions of the tailored Shadoweave and Spellfire sets. Its overall damage has been decreased and converted to spell power.

Binge asked.... Looking for details on the requirements for "World Explorer" achievement. Do we have to visit each sub-area of a zone? How about districts of an opposite factions capital (Stormwind cathedral, trade, old town, etc)?
Sorano asked.... Is Shield of Righteousness effectively the attack Holy paladins can/should use between 6 seconds cd Holy Shocks? What would be your opinion on that new ability?
Sorano asked.... With a build like this you get 10% baseline spell crit and 16% when using Holy Light or Holy Shock. It just seems to good to be true. Can anyone confirm?
David asked.... I currently feel that Blizzard is treating us EU beta testers as second rate testers. Our beta server is currently overcrowded and having all sorts of lag and disconnects as you can see from our forums and we have been asking for a second realm for ages. And now we had an answer from Vaneras basically reafirming that we won't get any server and won't even get premades. i think this is extremely unfair and his a proverbial kick in the face to all of us EU testers.

Ask a Beta Tester: Of Paladins and Primals
We'll start off with a question that we've probably answered before, but let's try to clear it up....

max attack asked.... With the new change to Sheath of Light put lower in the Paladin's Retribution tree, no longer allow for a viable Holy/Ret spec taking advantage of Sheath of Light's over time heals?
Scunosi (and several others) asked.... Relating to the 3000 quests question, do dailies count as one quest or do they count for each time you turn them in?
Sanzer asked.... In regards to the Paladin Holy tree -- the talent Purifying Power made me wonder if the number of undead in Northrend makes getting this talent worth the points. Am I going to be destroying so many undead that missing this talent would be a mistake?
Brandon Tilley asked.... As a lower-level fury warrior, I dual wield two one-handed weapons. When you get Titan's Grip and dual wield two handed weapons, does it use your weapon skill for one-handed or two-handed weapons?
Harmun asked.... I wonder what this will do to the primals market? Will it become mostly obsolete like the elemental market did after TBC? Now the only time people need old world drops like this is if they are leveling tradeskills... I ask because I'm sitting on a stupidly large stack of primal life I bought at what was a good price before the markets crashed as people stopped raiding (and getting new gear) and started farming primals while waiting for Wrath.

Ask a Beta Tester: Professions and Primals
Right now tailors in the beta with 410 skill can craft Frostweave Bags with 20 slots. However, it has pretty basic materials and I'd guess that there will be 22 slots, at least, at higher levels.

Demonocracy asked.... Recently 22 slot bags have become available through a vendor in Shattrath for 1,200 gold each. When I saw this my first reaction was to buy-buy-buy, but I questioned whether this was an effort on Blizzard's part to draw gold out of the economy before Wrath. What are tailors capable of creating in terms of bags in Wrath?
Several people have , in recent memory, written in to ask about weather in Wrath.
Derringher had some engineering questions.... Are there gas clouds in WotLK for engineers to farm? / What are the WotLK equivalent of Motes and Primals in WotLK?
turb0dog asked.... Has there been any more mention of Druids getting a "normal" rez without the cool down?
Squelchy asked.... This may be boring, but what's farming like? I'm interested in mining, specifically. Stacks of Adamantite Ore sell like gangbusters on my realm's AH. What will be the new Adamantite in Wrath?
Maz asked.... I'm interested in obtaining the Seeker title, for which you need to complete the 3000 Quests Achievement. Now, does that Achievement track how many quests you have completed so far? (e.g. 2544/3000)
Maz asked.... Also, how hard do you think this Achievement will be to obtain? Does the average player complete ~ 3000 quests while leveling to 80 or do I have to go back to every zone and do each and every quest?
Specialis asked.... For Warriors does 2-handed weapon spec. stack with dual wield spec. when one has Titans Grip?
Mark asked.... I'm still struggling with the mana percentages for spells concept. If all the spells will be a certain percentage of your total - is there any reason to try and pump up your intelligence to get more mana any more? Why not stick with 1200 mana rather than pushing to get 6000.

Ask a Beta Tester: Professions and gems
We'll start out today with a simple enchanting question....

WarwolfSwe asked.... Is there and new rod for enchanting? And do i need to upgrade the standard Runed Adamantite Rod to a Runed Eternium Rod?
actodd asked.... Will Northrend have gem vendors like Outland does -- selling low end gems? If so, how do these gems compare to ones currently in game? How do the basic Northrend JC gems compare?
RogueJedi86 asked.... As an extension of that, will there be basic glyph vendors? Because otherwise, it'll suck to have to go to players every time we want a glyph. Unlike Jewelcrafting, we'll have a big old Glyph tab in our spellbook from the first level we get a Glyph. Without basic Glyphs on a vendor, Scribes will be pushed a little too hard, harder than JC was with BC.
Connor asked.... Do I get a seventh Glyph slot with lvl 1 inscription? I know it's not uncommon for max-level characters to drop their gathering profession for another crafting one. For me, the cost of leveling the profession wasn't worth the BoPs at the end but all I've heard is "seven if you've taken Inscription yourself." Seems like a no-brainer to drop my mining once I get my BS maxed and pick up a free glyph-slot. The only way I don't see that working out is if the 7th-glyphs are BoP or something....
Meethan asked.... What does Murder Spree do now? Is it still borked as a Rhino's growl?

Ask a Beta Tester: Beta from A to Z
Today we've got achievements, zeppelins, and a few things in between. We'll start at the end of the alphabet and work forward from there!

tehvoid asked.... Any news about the come back of the boats and zeppelins' crews? Do boats in Northrend have a crew?
swaldman asked.... Are achievements per character, or per account?
Jerematic asked.... With spell power being a universal stat among healers and casters, is there an obvious itemization difference between the two roles? For example, spirit & mp5 for healers and hit & crit for casters? Or is it less obvious and may result in confusion when rolling for loot?
Wayne asked.... I know Blizzard has stated that they wanted to make pally tanking a little more responsive; have you experienced any change at all or has the tanking mechanics remained the same? Also, with the new Blessing of Sanctuary, does that mean that now, warriors and tankadins are looking for the same gear and the plate spell dmg gear is for the most part non-existent? Or would we still benefit more from spell dmg?
Several people pointed out an error in my comments about the barber shop recently. Specifically, Justin noted.... "The barber shop doesn't let you change facial features or skin tone -- a real shame." Not entirely true. I just went in there and gave my undead a jaw that he has been missing for 3 years.
MooGooGaiPan asked.... Regarding Glyphs, If we're only allowed a set number, how screwed are hybrid classes going to be? As a Druid, I often switch back between Feral and Resto. It's already a big pain to switch out gear, consumables etc, and now glyphs too? How expensive do you think the glyphs will be? I have a bad feeling the 'good' ones will be some sort of rare pattern like enchants, JC patterns, etc and it just won't be cost effective to switch back and forth repeatedly.

Ask a Beta Tester: More about inscription
We might have had more news today -- if Blizzard's beta servers could stay online for more than five minutes consecutively. We've been staring a lot at the "World Server Down" message since Blizzard rolled out patch 8905 late last night (or early this morning, depending on how you look at these things). Let's start today off with more on Inscription.

Cruces asked.... From a healer's point of view, I understand that spells will get a huge casting cost and we loose downranking, but that won't be a biggie in raids where you'll have 2-3 raid mana batteries, but what happens to 5-mans? Will healers be able to cope with this in instances where you may not have a mana battery with you?
Promethus asked.... I was wondering about some of the achievements, for the ones like finish every group dungeon in Classic WoW and every raid in classic WoW, do they give you a list of any sort to mark off what ones you have done and ones have not?
Dightkuz asked.... Borean Leather is the new leather type, so I presume there will be an equivalent to Knothide Leather Scraps also, which I guess is Borean Leather Scraps? Considering that Frostweave Cloth can be turned into Bolt of Frostweave at 350 Tailoring, I suppose that Borean Leather Scraps can be turned into Borean Leather at 350 Leatherworking also?
Andostre asked.... I have some alts that haven't reached 375 in their crafting skills, yet. Am I still going to have to start hunting for Primal Nethers and Primal Mights to get there once the expansion starts? The grinding involved in that will probably net me a level or two, XP which would be more fun to get questing in Northrend. I remember that when Burning Crusade started, many of the recipes that were dungeon and world drops became available through a trainer...
J asked.... Here's one for the tankadins regarding spell power and gea