Patch 2.2, currently in testing on the PTR, has some great improvements like voice chat and reporting AFK'ers in Battlegrounds. What it doesn't have is any new, big, sexy chunk of playable content. So when are we going to see the post-Karazhan 10-main raid zone, Zul'Aman? New Heroic Badge rewards? Guild banks? Oh, we already know that last one.

Forum MVP Schwick on the WoW European forums has compiled a list of known updates in Patch 2.3 and beyond. He often provide reference links to his sources form many of his future patch notes, which makes him an information god in my book.

He also goes on to list all the verified information about the WotLK expansion. I thought I had read all the info that was out already, but on Schwick's list I found items I didn't know, like the fact that Blizzard has a plan to deal with the fact that the Horde doesn't have a fear ward. Or that Naxxramas, the last raid zone introduced before TBC launched, will be repurposed in the new expansion. Or that new shaders will be introduced for shinier graphics. Mmm, sparkles.

Check out Schwick's post if you want to get a look ahead about what's known for future patches.

Screenshot of Zul'Aman boss models courtesy of MMO-Champion.com.

Every Monday Scott Andrews contributes Officers' Quarters, a column about the ins and outs of guild leadership.

With another BlizzCon behind us, the wealth of information about upcoming content has been at times overwhelming. As a player, I'm always excited to learn about what's around the corner. But as a guild leader, I worry about what kind of ugliness is going to crop up as a result of it. From the upcoming patches to the WotLK expansion, new challenges will arise to test the savvy, determination, and people skills of officers in all types of guilds. Just like the CEO of any good business, a guild leader shouldn't just react to challenges as they arise, but anticipate them and take steps to meet them head-on. Let's examine what's in store for Warcraft guilds and what we can do now to transition smoothly into the future.

Hortus has posted a sticky about the current PTR issues which addresses a lot of problems in and questions about 2.2. Most notably, he has confirmed that Zul'Aman and Guild Banks will not be in patch 2.2. He also has confirmed that Voice Chat will still be in 2.2, but it is not yet available for testing on the test server.

In addition, Hortus addressed some of the problems people are having with premade character copies. Hortus says that if you get an error when trying to copy a premade, the queue is full and to try again later. He does not address why the error message doesn't just say that...

Also, it seems that even though some premade characters are missing abilities or have abilities they are not supposed to have, they do not intend to fix them at this time.

Side note not mentioned by Horus: Copying characters that are not premade to the test realms is also on a several day wait.

Hortus denies that the Orc Shoulders are now bigger than before the bug:

Orc shoulders are now the correct size, they are not any larger than they were before, it's your imagination.

He also addresses Athlon errors, authentication issues and how not to get your post deleted.

It seems that with all of these issues and Voice Chat not even being tested yet, Patch 2.2 is a long way off. What are you most looking forward to or dreading in 2.2? Have you successfully copied a premade? If so, any problems and how long did it take?

We're here at E3 and, although not blown away by any major announcements from Blizzard, did get a chance to check out a preview of the new 10-man Zul'Aman outdoor instance in Ghostlands. It's going to be a more casual dungeon than Karazhan, ideally doable in a few hours' time investment, with six bosses and no attunement required. There will be quests included as part of the story line, with at least one rescue mission per avatar boss that will have a time-dependent element similar to the Baron Run mechanic in Stratholme, with better rewards offered for quicker completion. The six bosses include bear, dragonhawk and lynx avatars, a "god of evil," a witch doctor, and the final troll boss Zul'jin. Like Hakkar in Zul'Gurub, Zul'jin has a spiritual connection with the other boss avatars and is able to draw upon their ghostly spirits in order to change his shape and assume some of their powers and abilities. All the bosses and the trash mobs (which will be primarily forest trolls) will be social and able to call for help from additional mobs -- surely good for a few wipes whilst learning the encounters.

Blizzard offered a few other small bits of news: voice chat and guild banks will be coming in minor patches before the big Zul'Aman patch is released. Voice chat will include a feature that automagically lowers the game volume when players are talking, and onscreen interface indicators to help keep track of who is talking at any given time. Guild banks will be endowed with some sort of permission system enabling guild masters to give access to specific items to some guild members and not others.

Unfortunately, Starcraft 2 was not yet playable, but we'll be looking forward to that and far more megaton news to be forthcoming at Blizzcon -- it's clear this press conference was merely a teaser.

Guild banks are inching closer and closer to reality. According to Enoyls in this thread, Blizzard initially planned to implement guild banks for the expansion, but that has been pushed to the back burner, and the banks will make their appearance in a post-expansion patch.

Sure, it is a little disappointing to hear that they were planned for the Burning Crusade but have since been pulled, but it is great news that they are very much on Blizzard's radar. The current system of storing items on alts works, but it is annoying...and wouldn't it be nice to have a guild bank everyone could send items to? Instead of having MiningBank or ShardVault alts?

What features would you like to see included in a guild bank? Should everyone in the guild be able to view it? Do any other MMORPGs have a well-implemented guild bank feature you'd like to see Blizzard copy?