Earthshattering, or "Blizzcon Opening Ceremony and Cataclysm Panel"

Um... all the speculation about Cataclysm has been right on the mark.

Pretty much.

News sites will cover everything in a lot more detail than I'll be able to muster enthusiasm for. :) But these are some overview points if you just don't care to read a blow-by-blow article.

The Cataclysm Panel

Guild Advancement System
They teased us with this and then said "Oh, another panel will go into more depth on this." But it's basically that your dailies, raids, PVP, etc can level your guild from 1 to 20 and you get guild talents usable for things like mass rez, cheaper repair costs, and less damage to gear when you wipe in a raid. It sounds very useful.

Guild currency interests me very much, gained from guild experience, usable for things like guild novelty items and heirloom gear (items which do not transfer out of the guild even if the buyer leaves).

Mounts
Underwater mounts will be "normal flying speed."

Flying mounts can go everywhere. Woo.

The two new races will have racial mounts. You didn't think about that, did you? :D The goblins definitely have spiky cars and this blog found a drawing of a worgen on what looks like a giant wild boar.

Archaeology
Secondary profession that lets you make discoveries of artifacts and do research and you use the artifacts for Paths of the Titans, which is the new system instead of a bunch more talents and talent points.

We'll get 5 new talent points and then be able to pick a path that gives you abilities, bonuses, and isn't limited by class (so a priest and rogue can go on the same path).

Then they said something about Mastery and got technical and I zoned out. Almost every other blog will salivate over these, so I'm not gonna worry about them.

Zones
7 new.

"Every" classic zone will be revamped. (Desolace is a new vacation spot, it seems. Barrens, too.)

Phases, so zones physically change as to where you are on their quest line. I started zoning out during the talk of places I didn't care about, so I'm sure someone else will have all the details you want. I noticed old towns will be consumed in flames or built up.

"The Alliance finally lost Southshore."
"Nobody was defending it."

Subterranean and ocean areas.

"All this time, the world map has been wrong -- there's not a coastline south of Tanaris -- there's a zone!"

The Cataclysm itself is basically like this: Deathwing (crazy leader of the black dragonflight, Onyxia's daddy) has been trapped under the earth. He pops out, causing volcanoes and sunderings and floods to happen. Then, inevitably, druids will run around and try to band-aid everything (the druid part is just speculation, but you know they will, that's all they do).

Races
Worgen were summoned by Arugal, then the area humans got a "curse" that turned them into worgen and apparently the race is trying to figure out why they are worgen. So we don't know, but neither do they. "Are they from somewhere or somewhen?" You can totally choose if you want to look like worgen or human out of combat, but you have to look worgen in combat. So it's pretty werewolfy.

Goblins are a Bilgewater Cartel from the islands, are tech inclined, etc.

They totally confirmed my theory that these races went alliance/horde like they did because Alliance needed something fuzzy and horde needed something short. He said something like "Alliance needed a monstrous race" and "Horde will need some comedy relief." *smug*

My brother said elsewhere: "I'm excited and stuff, but it makes no sense to see even more races introduced with the level cap going all the way to 85. Whatamigonnado, reroll? And, of course, the answer to that is YES... yes I am... but I'm not happy about it."

This is why I want paid race changes (with a super-long cooldown to prevent arena abuse). This is the main motivation for my wanting it. It is sooooo pointless to have to reroll when a new race comes out (or race/class combos), and you lose everything you've worked so hard for because something else is cooler than what you have. It is not a joke to work your achievements up at endgame, lemme tell you, but having to do it a second time just seems insulting.

Rated Battlegrounds
Earn the same type of gear as arenas. Return of honor titles.

Thrilled about this. I love battlegrounds, hate arenas.

Best Part of Panel
Someone in the crowd yelled "New dances!" I'm glad someone is keeping the passion of novelty and character customization alive within their hearing. :)

Worst Part of Panel
Our live stream kept cutting out to "Buffer." We missed whole bits and husband can't watch the tourney game he wanted to see. Nor are they live streaming The Guild, which was what I wanted to see the most. Fail, streamers. Fail.


You may have noticed I changed this post's title. I do that sometimes. Don't worry about it.