Back to Classic WOW

Blizzard is re-releasing Vanilla WOW (version 1.12) on August 26, 2019 at 3 p.m. PDT.   The game will be free to monthly subscribers and be released in six phases.
https://blizzardwatch.com/2019/05/29/everything-know-wow-classic/

https://us.shop.battle.net/en-us/product/world-of-warcraft-subscription?utm_source=Bing&utm_medium=Search&utm_content=28807318&utm_campaign=BLZ_WoW_L_Classic_Anniversary_Q3_2019_NA

Here are all the details—
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-is-how-blizzard-plans-to-finally-bring-back-vanilla-wow-servers/

https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/wow/t/everything-we-definitively-know-about-classic/25299

https://warcraftlover.com/wow-classic-beginners/

Here's my list of Favorite WOW Links. Some are dead (this was written in 2010), some are still going and still useful.
https://solommo.blogspot.com/2010/12/favorite-world-of-warcraft-links.html

Sadly, most of the classic content captured here just goes to dead links, so don't bother doing searches.  WOWHead now has a Classic WOW section, though.
https://classic.wowhead.com/guides/classic-world-of-warcraft

So does Ten Ton Hammer.  How good it is, I cannot say.
http://www.tentonhammer.com/games/world-of-warcraft

WOW Insider turned into Joystiq and was closed by AOL but some WOW Insider folks run Blizzard Watch now.  Here's the WOW section.  (They cover many Blizzard games.)
https://blizzardwatch.com/category/world-of-warcraft/

The Elitist Jerks website is gone but you can probably find it via the Wayback Machine.  The second link below is the 2005 version.
http://web.archive.org/web/sitemap/http://elitistjerks.com

https://web.archive.org/web/20050612075638/http://www.elitistjerks.com/

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

Rift: Wikis

Besides the official Rift website (www.riftgame.com), there are several other Rift resources that may be worth bookmarking:

Rift Junkies seems to have maps and dungeon walkthroughs already. This site is packed with information, making it hard to navigate.  Click on the tabs at the top under the header (especially Guides) for help finding things.  You can also use the search box at the upper left corner.
http://www.riftjunkies.com/

Telarapedia wants to be your one stop Rift encyclopedia.  There are videos and a navigation column on the left to help you find what you want.  This site has great potential as it seems organized and the articles I've read are well written.
http://telarapedia.com/wiki/Rift

Rift Kingdom is an IGN-hosted site so you'll see lots of ads and contests here, but the home page is a great place to catch up on current Rift news.  Right now the news is all about the servers.  However, the home page has links to the Wiki (second link below) and the Guides sections (third link) which has a lot of information. Note if you click on something in the Guides section (Paladins, for example), you often get a blank page.  This is a work in progress but IGN has the resources and writers to make this something worth keeping an eye on.
http://rift.ign.com/

http://rift.ign.com/wiki/Rift_Wiki

http://rift.ign.com/wiki/Category:Guides

Rift Kingdom's Beginners Guide is very helpful when you are choosing the race you will play.
http://rift.ign.com/wiki/Beginners_Guide

Rift Wiki has an interesting graphic organizational style that may be easier for some folks to navigate.
http://rift.wikia.com/wiki/RIFT_Wiki

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

New Battle.net Site is Live

The new Battle.net site is live.  WOW Insider says there is not hint as to when the old Battle.net site will be replaced by this.
http://www.wow.com/2010/07/15/new-battle-net-site-is-live/

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

Cataclysm News from Press Event

Blizzard invited various members of the WOW community press to their offices last week and gave them all sorts of information about the Cataclysm expansion, particularly things they are scrapping and things they are changing.  Here are the high points from WOW Head:
http://www.wowhead.com/blog=159674

WOW Head also posted an exclusive interview with Blizzard's spokesman, Ghostcrawler.
http://www.wowhead.com/blog=159586

The most interesting thing I see in the above is that Blizzard is dropping some of the guild changes they planned originally.  Here's reaction from Cold Comfort.
http://blog.cold-comfort.org/major-guild-improvements-dropped-cataclysm/



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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

Game News and Rumors

There's lot of MMO news today.  First up, Bethesda is rumored to have a big announcement coming at E3 this month.  1Up speculates they are going to announce a new Elder Scrolls game.  (Everyone, please cross your fingers.)
http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3179617

The BBC has released a Dr. Who game.  It's not in final form but you can download it from their website.  (I hope it is better than their latest episodes.)
http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3179616

Red Dead Redemption is releasing their first downloadable content June 22:  six co-op missions.  No word on the cost.
http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3179632

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

Pre-Cataclysm World Event News

WOW Insider has found information about the pre-Cataclysm world events that Blizzard plans.  This link has spoilers in it, so if you want to be totally surprised, don't go here and don't read the link.
http://www.wow.com/2010/03/17/blizzard-releases-official-gnomeregan-and-echo-isles-cataclysm-i/

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

Patch 3.3.3 Changes UPDATED

UPDATE #2:  WOW Insider is keeping a list of expected changes to the game from Patch 3.3.3 and updating it as more information comes out.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/20/patch-3-3-3-ptr-what-weve-seen-in-the-last-24-hours/

Blizzard is announcing upcoming changes to the game thick and fast.  Patch 3.3.3 has a public test realm that is up and running now, or about to be.  I think the link below is where you access the PTR (public test realm).
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/ptr/

Here is what to expect from it.  Note that the random Battleground system is included in this patch.  You can't use this unless you are wearing a Level 80 character.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/19/patch-3-3-3-ptr-patch-notes/

A more complete explanation of the changes to Battlegrounds, as well as a list of other changes.
http://mmorpgs.pvpee.com/patch-3-3-3-ptr-notes

Patch 3.3.5 apparently has a new raid called Assault on the Ruby Sanctum.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/19/assault-on-the-ruby-sanctum-coming-in-patch-3-3-3/

There is going to be some tinkering with Wintergrasp specifically in the "next minor content patch" which I suppose means Patch 3.3.3.  WOW Insider is excited about the mechanics of Wintergrasp which Blizzard explains here.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/19/wintergrasps-hidden-balance-mechanics-revealed-minor-changes-c/

More details on the Wintergrasp changes.
http://mmorpgs.pvpee.com/upcoming-wintergrasp-changes

Note this about the authenticator from WOWHead's blog entry about the 3.3.3 patch notes--
"Authenticator Frame: If a player has a Battle.net Authenticator attached to his or her account and selects Remember Account Name at the login screen, the next time that player logs into World of Warcraft, a field to input the Authenticator code will be displayed below the password field."

http://www.wowhead.com/?blog=145532

The Auction House will have major changes and there will be profession changes, too.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/19/patch-3-3-3-ptr-major-changes-to-the-auction-house-and-game-eco/

Changes to the dungeon finder.
http://www.wow.com/2010/02/20/patch-3-3-3-ptr-random-dungeon-finder-changes/

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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com

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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Copyright Solo MMO Player at http://solommo.blogspot.com