Monday, September 29, 2014

Preview of the Two New Pets Coming In Patch 6.0

With WoD being released in early November, it's only logical that the pre-expansion patch (6.0) will be coming out some time in October. My original plan was to hold off on spoiling the 6.0 content by playing on the PTR, but because of my own curiosity obligations to WarcraftPets, I needed to check out the details of the two new pets coming with the patch. *cough* Uhm, yea. Obligations. :P

Anyway, I went through the pre-expac quest chain. It was straight-forward and fairly easy. You don't truly appreciate the ability to fly until you don't have it, and after being on the beta for so long, it was as if the world was made 100 times more open and free.

The storyline can be completed in a relatively short amount of time; you'll receive the Iron Starlette at the end. This pet is not bound on pick up and can be caged, so even if the 6.0 quest chain is removed once WoD is released, there may be a chance to find this pet on the AH. Or Blizzard might find another place for this pet, in the same way Gahz'rooki was moved from a vendor to a drop. In any case, if you *can* obtain it while the quest is available, why wouldn't you? :)


Some commentary on this pet: With the current breeds on the PTR and its moveset, some are speculating that the Iron Starlette could be the new Fluxfire Feline (pre-nerf).

If you're newer to Pet Battles and are unsure what all the fuss is about, when the mechanical feline (commonly referred to as FFF or FF) was first implemented, it came in a Power breed and had a moveset that made it possible to two shot most pets with startling ease. Naturally this upset the balance of the game, and the FFF had to be nerfed.

It's still unclear whether or not the starlette will sit in the same boat as the original FFF, but there's already some solid discussion on it over at the WarcraftPets forum. Thank goodness for the pet theory-crafters; I would be so oblivious and in the dark otherwise!

And on an aesthetic note, while the Iron Starlette is adorable (who wouldn't love their very own little fiery ball of death?), I'm really disappointed that it doesn't have any idle interaction. I would have loved to see it roll over and kill critters in a fiery blaze. Unfortunately, after sitting and staring at this pet while next to a critter on the PTR for some time, it didn't appear to do anything other than idle around. Maybe I'm wrong and maybe I didn't wait long enough. One can only hope that that's the case, but I doubt it (I waited for a damn long time!).


Bronze at last


The second new pet that will be available once patch 6.0 arrives is the Bronze Whelpling. Keeping in line with the other whelpling pets, she's a drop from the Iron Horde mobs in the 6.0 questing area (revamped Blasted Lands, level 90).

Initially, I wasn't sure if I should kill normal mobs or the elite ones, but in the end I just parked myself next to a group of normal Ironmarch Grunts and killed them for about 30 minutes (of course each person's experience will vary, I might have just been very lucky).

The mobs have a quick respawn time, so if you can find yourself a good spot with a few spawns nearby, you should rack up kills in no time. Even though I killed only grunts, I think any of the normal "Ironmarch" orcs in the area will have a chance to drop the pet.

It's unknown whether or not the Bronze Whelpling will stick around after the pre-expac content is over, but my guess is yes. Gahz'rooki is a pet with a similar history of being implemented during a world event content patch that led up to Siege of Orgrimmar, and once the content was removed the pet was relocated somewhere else in the world so that it would still be available to collect. I can't see any reason why the Bronze Whelpling wouldn't receive the same treatment. But even if the Bronze Whelpling was made no longer available as a drop, the pet is not bind on pick up and can be caged.

Whatever happens, I guess I'll be spending some time in Blasted Lands in October. I can't wait to collect another whelpling! :)

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