PvP Gear in Cataclysm

Cynwise explains all the types of PvP gear available to players now that Season 9 has started.  It's a complex system that is much changed from what was available pre-Cataclysm.
http://cynwise.wordpress.com/2010/12/15/battleground-pvp-gear-in-cataclysm-season-9/

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Arena Season 9, War Games and Money FAQs (News)

Blizzard will introduce a new feature called War Games which are actually PvP practice matches.  This launches with Arena Season Nine.
http://www.wowhead.com/blog=176794/blizzard-launching-war-games-pvp-practice-matches

More about war games.
http://wow.joystiq.com/2010/12/13/new-war-games-mode-for-arenas-and-battlegrounds/

By the way, Season 9 Arena has begun.
http://wow.joystiq.com/2010/12/14/pvp-season-9-has-begun/

WOWHead has added a new currency section to its database.  It lists all the currencies available, tells you the quests where you get these payments and what you can buy with them.
http://www.wowhead.com/blog=176847/new-feature-currency-pages

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PvP Brackets Halved?

Cynwise reports that the PvP brackets all seem to be halved.  No official word from Blizzard yet.
http://cynwise.wordpress.com/2010/11/30/battleground-brackets-halved/

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Cataclysm Launch Date Will be Dec. 7 2010

With the Arena's latest season set to start Dec. 14, does that mean Cataclysm will launch Dec. 7?
http://wow.joystiq.com/2010/09/30/arena-season-9-to-begin-on-december-14-cataclysm-launch-dec-7th/

Yes.


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Arena Season 8 Ends October 12 (Season 9 in Beta)

Blizzard announces Arena Season 8 will end on October 12 while Season 9 is available in the Cataclysm beta.  Season 9 will start officially a week after Cataclysm drops.
http://wow.joystiq.com/2010/09/28/arena-season-8-to-end-as-early-as-oct-12/

http://wow.joystiq.com/2010/09/28/cataclysm-beta-arena-season-9-available-for-testing/

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Retribution Paladin PVP Information

All about retribution pallys in PvP and Arena.
http://ferarro.blogspot.com/2010/08/retribution-pvp-battlegrounds-and-arena.html

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Arena History: The Ranking Systems UPDATED

WOW Insider has an article for history buffs about the Elo ranking system for Arena, used during the Burning Crusade expansion.
http://www.wow.com/2010/06/07/blood-sport-arena-and-the-old-elo-ranking-system/

They promise a follow-up article on the current system and its benefits.  And here it is!
UPDATE:  Personal ratings replace Elo.
http://www.wow.com/2010/06/14/blood-sport-personal-ratings-fixes-the-elo-rating-system/

An article about how Wrath of the Lich King changes and the introduction of death knights changed Arena is coming next week.  And here it is!
http://www.wow.com/2010/06/21/blood-sport-an-overview-of-wotlk-arena-systems/

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Blizzard Cracks Down on Inappropriate Names in Arena

Apparently Blizzard has started cracking down on inappropriate names for Arena players and teams.  This is long overdue and should be expanded to PvE.
http://www.empoweredfire.com/2010/05/06/blizzard-inappropriate-names-arena-tournamen/

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Interview with an Arena Hunter

Another in the series of WOW Insider interviews of arena players, this time a hunter.
http://www.wow.com/2010/04/04/the-colosseum-loinclothz-hunter-of-sargeras/

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Arena and the Arcane Mage

WOW Insider interviews an arcane mage who plays 3v3 in Arena.
http://www.wow.com/2010/03/28/the-colosseum-abni-mage-of-malganis/

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2009 Arena Tournament Pet Reward Change

Apparently Blizzard hands out unique pets as rewards to tournament participants after each season.  As of Patch 3.3.3, the murkimus pets that gladiators won will be across all their characters, not just the character who used the code.
http://www.wow.com/2010/03/23/patch-3-3-3-account-changes-for-murkimus/

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Interview: Arena Holy Paladin

WOW Insider interviews a long time arena player (3v3) about paladins in PvP.  You'll hear hear opinion about warrior nerfs, how to defend against hunters, and tips for playing your best.
http://www.wow.com/2010/03/13/the-colosseum-athlete-paladin-of-mugthol/

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The Most Important Arena Item

Jurgwena says the most important item to take into Arena is focused attention so you can remember and analyze what happens.
http://outdps.com/2010/03/09/the-right-stuff-arena-edition/

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Interview: Restoration Druid in PvP

WOW Insider does an interesting interview with a resto druid who is a long time Arena player with insights into other classes and how Arena has changed over time.  He also discusses some gameplay strategies in passing.
http://www.wow.com/2010/03/07/the-colosseum-diziet-brutal-gladiator-druid/

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Season Eight Arena Teams' Composition

The makeup of the most successful season eight arena teams (both 3v3 and 5v5) with a discussion of what this means in terms of team strategy.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/16/blood-sport-season-eight-team-compositions/

Here are the team stats from Arena Junkies.
http://www.arenajunkies.com/showthread.php?t=154325

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Icecrown Citadel, PvP Season 8 and Patch 3.3.2

Patch 3.3.2 has brought WOW players many new things.  Weeklies have been activated in ICC.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/02/icecrown-citadel-raid-weeklies-activated/

All the Lich King loot has been revealed on the Armory and at WOWHead.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/02/lich-kings-loot-table-revealed/

Season Eight has started and the PvP gear photos are here.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/02/patch-3-3-2-season-8-gear-listing/

WOW Insider has updated their guide to ICC with the new Frostwing Hall information.
http://www.wow.com/2009/12/08/patch-3-3-icecrown-citadel-raid-boss-informaiton-and-resources/

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Arena and Patch 3.3.2 News UPDATED

Apparently last season's arena points have been erased early by accident but they are to be restored since the start of Season Eight has been delayed until Patch 3.3.2 hits.  Details at WOW Insider.
http://www.wow.com/2010/01/27/arena-points-being-reimbursed-for-now/

While you wait for your points to reappear, you can look at the armor sets for Season Eight.
http://www.wow.com/2010/01/27/season-8-armor-sets-unveiled/

UPDATE:  Here's a comparison of gear from Seasons Seven and Eight.
http://bigredrhino.wordpress.com/2010/02/04/the-advent-of-the-wrathful-pet/

What changes Patch 3.3.2 brings are listed here in the Official Patch Notes.
 http://www.wow.com/2010/02/02/official-patch-3-3-2-patch-notes/

A detailed list of stats for the new Patch 3.3.2 strength rings for melee DPS is here, in case you have a paladin, death knight or warrior.
http://www.wow.com/2010/01/26/ashen-verdict-strength-based-melee-dps-rings-stats/

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PVP Resilience Changes Planned

Apparently this will change shortly for Arena and then change back after Cataclysm.
http://www.wow.com/2010/01/20/pvp-resilience-changes/

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Arena Player Interviews

An interview with Jhazy of Blackrock about his PvP Arena play.
http://www.wow.com/2010/01/17/the-colossem-jhazy-of-blackrock/

Interview with Check Six, a pro-gaming arena team, with video.  Part infomercial, part information.
http://www.wow.com/2009/12/15/a-chat-with-check-six-wow-arena-team/

An interview with a player who is on two winning teams, playing a discipline priest both places.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/14/the-colosseum-patz-priest-of-mugthol-and-kelthuzad/

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Icecrown Citadel Videos and Other Information

The Weekly Marmot posts instance videos, particularly new information about the Icecrown Citadel battles and bosses.  This is a good place to find information about new instances.  Click on the Movies tab to see a complete listing of all the videos.
http://www.tankspot.com/

The Guides tab looks interesting.  There are instance guides, a guide to Arena, a big section on tanking (and shorter ones on healing and DPS) and even a technical section to help you deal with lag and security.  There is also a forum and sponsored blogs.  In other words, this is a site worth exploring.  I'm adding it to the list of favorite links, calling it Tankspot Videos.

UPDATE:  Gravity is collecting good guides to Icecrown Citadel plus achievement guides on his blog.  Here's the address.  Click on the # sign or the blog name to go to the guide there.
http://pwnwear.com/2010/01/20/guides-to-icecrown-citadel/

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