As we mentioned the other day, The Hallow's End event is now live for testing on the 2.4.3 PTR. As seems to be the general case, Kisirani's world event team hasn't been resting on their laurels, but has been relatively steadily upgrading and fleshing out holidays as they come up. Hallow's End looks to be the latest holiday to get a change or two in the form of some new Headless Horseman loot, discovered by MMO-Champion.
Posts with tag headless-horseman
New Headless Horseman loot shows up on the PTR
Continue reading New Headless Horseman loot shows up on the PTR
WoW Insider's top ten WoW stories of 2007
We had a gigantic year at WoW Insider-- from January 1st to December 31st, we've posted over 4,500 stories here on this very site, about nearly every facet of the World of Warcraft (and you guys didn't slouch, either-- we had over 150,000 comments on the site in 2007). We've reported on everything from hearthstone soaps to Norweigan mooses, and everything from Arena PvP to Zul'Aman. We've posted guides, rumors, insights, jokes, and everything else we could find connected to this game that we all play (17 hours a week on average).And seeing as 2007 is just about to end, we figured it would be fun to take a look at the year behind us, and list the top ten stories that we reported on during that time. From comedic to controversial, these ten stories run the gamut, and they also comprise the most important news that happened in the World of Warcraft this year. As a staff, we collected all of the biggest stories of the year, and then rated them from one to ten.
So click the link below to finish out this year, and check out WoW Insider's Top Ten WoW Stories of 2007. Before the year ends, let's take a look back at what happened in Azeroth and the culture surrounding it.
Did you accomplish your Hallow's End goals?
Two weeks ago, we asked you what your Hallow's End goals were. Almost half of you responded that shaking the Headless Horsemen until phat loot dropped from his gourd was your primary goal. From Heroic rings to the low, low drop rate of the Sinister Squashling to the limited duration flying brooms to the flaming green plate helm, this guy was Azeroth's most wanted.So now we ask you, with the two weeks available to you:
If not, what happened? Bad PuGs? Low drop rate? Real life? Let us know!
Happy Halloween from WoW Insider!
From all of us at WoW Insider, have a safe and happy Halloween, whether you're trick-or-treating in Azeroth tonight or out and about in the real world. And don't forget-- no matter where you are, be sure to send us pictures. We're looking for some great in-game costumes for our Hallow's End contest, and of course we're always looking for great real world costumes with a Warcraft flavor! If we get enough real-world costumes, we'll put them all together in a gallery later this week, and our in-game costume contest ends Friday-- drop us a .jpg of the in-game costume to wowinsidercontests@gmail.com, and be sure to include your name, email address, street address, and age in there as well. Remember, you've got a chance to win some awesome crafts from Manaprincess.
Have a great Halloween this evening, and remember: don't eat too many Tricky Treats, or you'll get an Upset Tummy.
Last few days for Headless Horseman farming
About a week and a half ago, the halls of Scarlet Monastery were packed with more players than they've seen in a long time. Corpses of Horde, Alliance and unwitting Scarlet Crusaders littered the floor when Hallow's End hit the servers and plate-wearers world wide began their obsessive quest to nab the Horseman's Helm. Of course, the warriors and paladins aren't alone in their enthusiasm. Since there are a variety of goodies that can be acquired, it wasn't difficult to find groups to challenge the Horseman the first few days of the event. As players have collected the items they were hoping to get or simply got bored of the encounter, it's become more difficult to find a group to take down the cackling loot piñata.
With the real life holiday of Halloween marking the end of its Azerothian counterpart on Wednesday, time is running out to summon the Horseman. Hopefully more people will be online and willing to get a couple more shots at the helm/pet/ring they've been salivating over.
Personally, it took me over thirty-five attempts to get the Helm for my warrior, and I have guild mates that are still trying to get the Sinister Squashling. While the drop rates are certainly random, in my experience, these two items are both the most sought after and the least common. While I'd love to get the pet for one of my characters, the grind for the helm was enough for this year.
Have you achieved your Hallow's End goals? What are you still hoping to get accomplished?
Brooms not going bye-bye (yet)
Bornakk clears up some of the confusion (which he also had a hand in creating), saying that "the items with a duration on them won't all vanish on November first, you just won't be able to get any new ones." So now here is the factual summary of the official words on blizzard regarding your beloved broom mounts:
- They last for 14 days, not just for one ride.
- They last for 14 days of played game time on the character that possesses them, not 14 days of real time, and extending beyond the Hallow's End event for however long you keep them on an unplayed character.
Brooms going bye-bye
November 1st is the last day of Hallow's End, so come next Thursday, not only will you be sick from all the candy, but the costumes, decorations, and yes, the brooms will all be gone. Get that magic broom flying in now while you can, because in just a week, they'll be takin' yo' broom.
Update: A few players are saying that the brooms will disappear after 14 days of /played time, not after November 1st. My understanding was that when Hallow's End is over, so is the broom riding. We'll find out next Thursday. Happy Halloween!
Breakfast Topic: Yeah, what Eyonix said
The other day Mike wrote about how he considers the Headless Horseman event to be too easy, how giving away epic gear equivalent to those found in Heroics somehow cheapens the epics others have to earn. Evidently he's not the only one with that concern. Posters on the forums were complaining about this very issue, and Eyonix had this to say in reply:
Players have a chance to participate in a fun holiday event and get a nice ring (or helmet) two weeks out of the entire year. The drops are great items, and upgrades for many, but they are certainly far from the best in-game. I'm sorry but this event doesn't undermine anything you've accomplished. Are you sure your complaint doesn't stem from the fact that your epic raid loot makes you feel like you're better than others who have lesser gear?
I'm not accusing, just asking.
He makes a valid point, that Eyonix. While some of the gear from the Headless Horseman encounter is very good, this is something that happens for only two weeks out of the year. Much like the epic loot dropped from bosses for a limited time last year (I can recall a faboo belt I got off a Lich in undead Stratholme) during the fall, these items are only available for a limited time, so act now! Really I see it as a great way to gear up those that can't run Heroics, and currently I think this is the best holiday event we've had. The items are good, but are they so good that they're worth making a fuss over?
Players have a chance to participate in a fun holiday event and get a nice ring (or helmet) two weeks out of the entire year. The drops are great items, and upgrades for many, but they are certainly far from the best in-game. I'm sorry but this event doesn't undermine anything you've accomplished. Are you sure your complaint doesn't stem from the fact that your epic raid loot makes you feel like you're better than others who have lesser gear?
I'm not accusing, just asking.
He makes a valid point, that Eyonix. While some of the gear from the Headless Horseman encounter is very good, this is something that happens for only two weeks out of the year. Much like the epic loot dropped from bosses for a limited time last year (I can recall a faboo belt I got off a Lich in undead Stratholme) during the fall, these items are only available for a limited time, so act now! Really I see it as a great way to gear up those that can't run Heroics, and currently I think this is the best holiday event we've had. The items are good, but are they so good that they're worth making a fuss over?
Is the Horseman too easy?
Now, a little while ago, Blizzard implemented an Arena points system, where as long as you ran 10 arena matches, you could stock up points and then use them for Arena weapons. So raiders (who didn't PvP much, but wanted the weapons) would save up their points even if they lost, and buy the weapons once they'd saved enough. Arena players, however, cried foul-- they said the Arena weapons had become "welfare epics." So Blizzard required a good Arena rating to buy those weapons.As of Tuesday, it's Hallow's End in Azeroth, and there is now a Headless Horseman event in Scarlet Monastery's Graveyard. Everyone I know (including me) has run the event multiple times, and Epics are dropping like Hallow's End candy. So here's the question: should Blizzard really be giving out Epics for an event that takes just a few minutes and only a modicum of skill? Aren't these as "welfare epics" as they come? Is the Horseman event too easy to be giving out loot like this?
Now, obviously, the rings and helm that the Horseman drops are hardly the Arena weapons that Blizzard had to put behind a rating. Though they are Epic, they're not that amazing-- one trip through Karazhan could probably replace all of them. But Karazhan is a ten main raid, and this is an event that can be done with as little as three people once every day (and I wouldn't be surprised to see it soloed by some ambitious Paladin before long). Already, three days into the event, my guild was running a 66 Mage in there just to get a "free" epic ring for him to use, four levels from now. Isn't that a bit much?
WoW Moviewatch: The Headless Horseman
What were you up to last night in-game? If your evening resembled mine (and, by the looks of the crowd, hundreds of my closest friends), then you were hitting up the Scarlet Monastery graveyard to summon and fight the Headless Horseman. The Horseman isn't an impossible fight, but neither is he a pushover -- which is probably appropriate, since he drops epic loot and one of four broom mounts with each kill. But in case you haven't had a chance to jump online and see the fight yourself, I offer this video of the encounter.
Previously, on Moviewatch...
Hallow's End quest guides for 2007
Hallow's End has grown quite a bit this year. Adding to the old favorites of Innkeep Trick or Treating, PvP Smoke Bombing and Wickerman raids is the new Daily Quest to trigger the 5-man Headless Horseman event in the Scarlet Monastery graveyard wing. Considering this new mob drops Flying Broom Mounts, Evil Pumpkin Pets and Purple Jewelry, you can guess that he is going to be quite popular with the players.
New guides on defeating the Headless Horseman have sprung up around the Net. The fight doesn't seem too difficult for a group of L70s, but you can get an overview of all three phases and the loot table and WoW Wiki.
Also check out this excellent Hallow's End guide that covers all the activities for the holiday and lists the reputation gains and item rewards associated with each quest. Now put on your scary face and go get some Hallow's End goodies.
More mount mayhem
We have a couple cool mounts coming to us in the very near future, but as with many cool things in life, there's a catch. You can't have your cake and eat it too it seems, even in Azeroth.
As David mentioned a few days ago, we will get the chance to purchase an epic Hippogryph flying mount when Patch 2.3 err, lands. But Bornakk has let us know that this baby won't be as easy to get as the Skyguard nether ray mount for instance. When asked about the mounts that will be added into the game when Wrath launches, he had this to say:
We do plan to continue adding new mounts to the game, but we aren't ready to go into details on Wrath of the Lich King specific mounts yet. Keep in mind we are adding the Hippogryph mount as a Cenarion Expedition purchasable item in patch 2.3 along with the Engineering only flying mount...The Cenarion Expedition Hippogryph mount is a 280% epic flying mount that requires exalted status and will cost 2000 gold
Patch 2.2.2 is live
Patch 2.2.2 goes live on the servers today as the Test server shuts down in anticipation of the Zul'Aman Patch 2.3. Included in today's patch is the new world event, Brewfest, which begins when the servers come back up and extends for two weeks until October 16. Two days after that, on the 18th, Hallow's End kicks into high gear with the new Headless Horseman event that drops some nice loot for those able to battle this new menace as well as the new flying broomstick mount. Hallow's End will also run for two weeks, ending on November 1st.
The notes for the patch are pretty short, just the two events and a list of new graveyards. You can read them after the jump.
Phat Loot Phriday: Blighted Leggings
Name: Blighted Leggings
Type: Rare Cloth Legs
Armor: 45
Abilities:
- +17 Spirit
- Increases damage done by Shadow spells by up to 10.
- The Shadow spell might make you think Warlock, but the Spirit on these pants says they're for Shadow priests (Warlocks would rather have Stamina, as Life Tap can hook them up with mana as long as they have HP left). And for the level, they're very nice for young Shadow priests to grind with.
And if they don't drop or he isn't there, worry not. The Horseman is a daily quest, and odds are everyone in your party will want something from him, so put your Priest back outside, come back the next day, and check again. By the time everyone in your party has a broom, you'll hopefully have grabbed these pants as well.
Getting Rid of It: Disenchants into Small Glowing Shard, and sells to vendor for 35s 59c.
WoW's own Headless Horseman
[Thanks Darkbeard and Boubouille!]
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