The long-awaited 4.0.3a patch, also known as The Shattering, hits live servers today in the US, and will follow tomorrow in Europe, following an extended maintenance period.
"…in the wake of the Lich King’s fall, Azeroth’s native elemental spirits grew confused and erratic, setting off a series of deadly natural disasters. Horde and Alliance leaders scrambled for clues about the troubling state of the world, but nothing could have prepared them for what was to come.
Without warning, the corrupted Dragon Aspect, Deathwing, erupted from the stone heart of Deepholm, the domain of earth within the Elemental Plane. Jagged fissures were torn across the earth, and monstrous waves pummeled coastal regions. From Thousand Needles to the Blasted Lands, the surface of Azeroth was reforged through violent upheavals. Now, the Horde and the Alliance must defend their homes against Deathwing and his minions, burdened by the unsettling fact that the world as they know it has changed… forever."
The Shattering patch is the big one that will destroy the world, and introduce all of the environmental changes that follow the cataclysm. Along with the changes comes the new level 1 to 60 levelling experience, complete with thousands of new quests and starter zones, as well as the new race/class combinations.
You will won’t be able to fly in Azeroth, and will have to wait until the release of Cataclysm for that particular pleasure, but expect a lot of confused folk in trade chat asking where the trainers are.
For those in Europe, who still have their servers until maintenance takes over at 2am, can spend the time taking on the elemental bosses to try and get some better gear, as the bosses are now available permanently, rather than only after an invasion.
Any one still working on the Loremaster achievement will be affected by a few changes following the patch, as some quests may be discounted or removed from their quest logs, with the introduction of the new level 1 to 60 experience.
Each zone has now been broken down into categories, much like Outland and Northrend now, however, which will make things considerably easier.
If you have any characters parked in Dalaran, or Shattrath, for easy access to the city portals, you may want to move yourself to either Stormwind, or Orgrimmar, as all portals will be removed and replaced by class trainers.
If you have been itching to start levelling a new character, the new race/class combinations will be available, and will give you something new to play with until you can make a goblin or worgen from the 7th of December.
When you log in following the maintenance, you are likely to find that your character has been moved, and many will be placed at the nearest graveyard to where you logged out. This is mainly to ensure that characters do not get stuck in places that no longer exist.
It is the end of the world as we know it, but the adventure is far from over…
Tags: Cataclysm, World of Warcraft
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