Thursday 18 August 2011

They come in.. With.. Transmogrification?!

The fashion is changing..

Who says we can't raid?!

So, seems fashion and appearance is on Blizzards list of things to fiddle and improve! With an Official Blizzard Transmogrification Announcement from above, a preview of the features due in the upcoming patch (4.3) have been laid out. Of course, as always, subject to change, but nonetheless:

You’ve been asking for it, and we were listening. In patch 4.3 you’ll be able to customise the appearance of your weapons and armor like never before.

So that's the meaning..
After some research, it appears that the Etherals are at the center of all this madness. It has been quoted that they will be making a impacting return to Azeroth. Maybe not in the usual 'destroy the world' sense though, alike every other addition to the world. Travelling from the far reaches of The Nether, these Etherals are hoping to earn a fortune with a new technology they call 'Transmogrification'. In exchange for some gold (of course, what else?). Simply put; copying the appearance of one magical item onto another.


Further explained, you can take the appearance of one item and use it's model, while keeping the stats on the receiving piece. For example you could choose to wear a level 85 piece of raid gear, have it 'Transmogrified' from a source model of tier 1, while retaining the stats and all the benefits that it holds. Not all item pairings are compatible with Transmogrification. From what has been officially released and stated upon, here is what I have gathered:

  • You must be able to wear both items
  • Only items that have stats can be used in the transmogrification process
  • Of which you may have had to 'own' the source model at some point (Not confirmed)
  • They won’t allow you to change weapon and/or class specific/material armor types. So no pretending to wear that Death Knights plate gear (I'm looking at you Mages!) or equipping some librams for you warrior-want-to-be-shamans out there!
  • Though the exception are Bows/Guns/Crossbows. (Which, I am unsure why they are exempt to this rule, unlike Maces/Axes/Swords and so on)
  • Item tooltips for items, which have been Transmogrified, will show that they are under the effects. 
  • This will be a reversible process.
  • ...
  • NO LEGENDARIES!

Blizzard have said they are looking into a way of obtaining gear, which has become unavailable over time, in an alternative manner. Any ideas? Time Machine?


Just.. Where.. To put it all?!
Although a small few are unhappy with what Blizzard has spent time producing (nothing new there), as they are apparently creating the wrong content? I am, however, really REALLY looking forward to this incoming feature! Suppose there's always those who can't be satisfied. (Not to say any are wrong in their thinking).

As has been quoted: "Transmogrification encourages players to hold onto items with sentimental or aesthetic value."
But will the community sacrifice there, level 85 equivilent, 'status symbols'. I'm one of those to build a sentimental value around particular items and, more so, armor sets. Mean, why not? Some look brilliant! This leaves some open, and great, opportunities and doorways for many characters. Such as Role players or those looking to look a part different from there allies (even enemies). I see this being a big step into creating a more in-depth character view. More diversity. Seeing and actually taking in what your fellow players are choosing to wear and such. I feel this move will benefit the growth of WoW.



Lets take a look at a small handful of the older/outdated armor sets and items, which for some players, I am sure, can't wait to jump back into:


Various Hunter sets

Paladin Tier 2
Warrior Tier 3




















Various Priest Sets

Rogue High Warlord Set
Mage Tier 5




















Shaman Gladiator Set

Warlock Tier 3
Druid Tier 3




















Death Knight Tier 10

Etherals can see this causing an increase in the demand for space. So that is when 'Void Storage Service', will come into play. Using clever pocket dimensions to create 80 more slots for particular items (More than likely armor/weapons). Anything stored there will lose all gems and enchantments, and even name of the player who crafted the item.


NOW TELL ME, WHAT DO YOU THINK? I'D LOVE TO HEAR WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY? GOOD OR BAD!


Before we finish up. Here are other 4.3 points of interest, to say the least:

  • Deathwing raid (to be the last of the expansion). With some cool unique features apparently added to the fight. Seems a little soon right?
  • 3 new 5-man instances will be added with the patch.
  • Raid Finder also being added.
  • Darkmoon Faire island?!


Thanks for reading,


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- Jamin
  
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21 comments:

  1. I think this is a wonderful addition to Wow, and I can see that there will be a lot of people very excited about it. Wow is not all about end game (competition, tryna beat the game etc), its about an experience of living as a character in a fantasy world, and this will make that experience so much better for all those players who 'get' that concept.

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  2. @Dora

    Me too! As always there will be a bedding in period, and time for blizzard to get it exactly how they right.

    You are right that there is more to that. I see it creating a more diverse end game, just this cosmetic change alone!

    - Jamin

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  3. I already wrote a short echo on this feature today, while I would've loved this way back I am horribly grumpy at Blizzard's timing. so will others be who have trashed many great items for lack of space and use in the past. oh well..

    the fact that guilds can now wear 'team colors' while retaining their real raidgear and stats is kinda fun; it would be loads easier though if they allowed you to mix armor types too, basically any item you can wear and own should be elligible. leaving out legendaries still baffles me, too.

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  4. @Syl

    I just read your post. A side I hadn't heard and/or seen yet.

    Now, I didn't think of team colours! Mean, especially for RP guilds and such. Like the first picture, they could all be dressed as Scarlet Crusaders!

    Hmm.. I suppose (on the topic of Gear Types) they want to keep it on point. Not having a load of Warriors running around in Cloth. Wouldn't fit too well right?

    - Jamin

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  5. When I read the news about transmogging, I actually let out a cheer. My secondary main is a ret pally. Her boots and belt NEVER match the rest of her tier. With this feature, all I have to do is get my hands on the holy stuff and HURRAY! No more warrior/DK boots and belts. And no more WWE style belts ever again! I'm looking forward to farming up old gear with my guild as well. :D

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  6. @Faye

    Ah, so nice to see some positive feedback!

    Haha, your comment about the WWE gear made me laugh! Though your right, that the belt and 'accessories' never seem to match up!

    Thanks for stopping by,

    - Jamin

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  7. I saw a link to this blog from WoW Insider and was going to read this entry, but I quit after a couple paragraphs and will never come back again. What's with the random boldings and italics and mix of fonts and sizes? Are you 12 or something? Your blog is a pain to read.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Reading is hard...

    On another note, I already have full Arcanist, so I'll probably use that as my first target. I'd like to finish off the Tirisfal set though - it's always been the best mage set I've seen.

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  9. @Mr.'Anonomous'

    My first troll! Though I already know not to feed trolls.

    However, in a mature manner, I shall salvage what I can from that comment, as such. I will re-evaluate the use of bolds/italics.


    @GamerGaz

    Indeed so..

    Ah lucky you. Seems you have a head start on the majority! Just looked up the two sets you mentioned, and they look great! Hopefully everyone won't follow suit.


    - Jamin

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  10. All I can say is, About time Blizzard! Next thing they will do is add lighsabers.

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  11. @ScaryBooster

    Been waiting for this one have we? About the lightsabers.. You never know.. I can see Blizzard implementing a gimik/take the Micky item or NPC in game to stir the pot.

    - Jamin

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  12. It seems Blizz is taking the game in a more social direction with dress up and lots of vanity pets and such, it's slowly becoming SecondLife. Nothing wrong with that tho, there is plenty in this game for everyone. I for one am waiting for player housing with bearskin rugs and Tauren head trophys on the walls!

    It also occurs to me that the reason Void Storage will strip all enchants and player names off items is to allow them to link the same item across multiple player accounts to save space on their servers. Perhaps.

    Also, yea drop using so many italics/bolds, it's not like you're writing the safety warning section for a rocket launcher manuel or anything! lol

    Still, great read, cheers!

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  13. @Mr.Bubble

    Ah, not thought about it like that! Maybe because I haven't played Second Life myself? (I'll look into it). I for one see that it is great to see Character customisation, to a small extent, starting to develop some more! Also I vote for player housing/Guild housing! Heck, what about boats!?

    Hmm.. Really good idea about the reasons behind Void Storage there! Didn't think of that one.

    Also, thank you very much for a more constructive comment about my writing. I haven't received any feedback about that before, so I actually thought my theory behind using them was helpful. (Because I do know how to write with out them). So thank you.

    Drop by again!

    - Jamin

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  14. I noticed that other people have mentioned this, but I'm going to add my voice too. Please stop overusing bold and italics. It's like the textual equivalent of you yelling in my face every couple of words. I ended up skimming what you wrote and just scrolling down to view the pictures.

    You might want to look around at other popular blogs and see how they format the text to make it easy to read and follow.

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  15. @Another 'Anonymous'

    Thank you for your input. At least you explain yourself. As I have written above, I will be re-evaluating my writing 'style', as such.

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  16. This is the anonymous who posted about how the bold/italics is like shouting in my face. What you are doing by changing the font is emphasizing the words, right? Well, try reading your post out loud to yourself, stressing each bolded or italicized word. I'm sure you'll notice that it sounds extremely odd and distracting. (Or have someone you know read it out loud to you in that manner.)

    There's nothing wrong with using bold and italics in moderation, but you don't want to overuse them. It's like WRITING IN ALL CAPS or ending every sentence with a thousand exclamation points!!!!1!one!

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  17. Well, you know I'm excited about the changes! It's going to take a long time to farm up all the things I'd like, but that doesn't put me off. I do hope that we aren't looking at the high costs in the previews and that those were merely test prices... :)

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  18. @Anonymous (latest comment)

    I see your point, and you make it very clear. I do see them as overused. But I hadn't had any complaints up until now, so I didn't know whether to change. I will really be considering the way I format my posts now. Thank you for taking the time to expand (no sarcasm, I appreciate it very much).

    Thanks again,

    - Jamin

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  19. @Aralosseien

    Well, until we receive more information we can't tell. However I actually think the price for this process will be rather cheap. I do however, see a questline being implemented or something to go with the cost (Like an attunment for the skill).

    Time will tell :)

    - Jamin

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  20. Umm wow where to start....

    Yes, I do think 4.3 talk seems a bit soon, I'm not really one to rush content personally, so hopefully they won't either.

    As far as transmog goes, I admit I wasn't sold on it at first, but I am coming around. Mostly because I absolutely adore tier 8.0 for all classes, which I plan to hammer out again for both my paladin and priest. I think I associate tier sets with memories more than appearances, so it's nice for the sentimentalist in me.

    I know there have been a lot of complaints about this expansion, I even have a few of my own, but it will never change how much I love this game. I am always sad to see an era end, but excited to see a new one begin!

    Bring it on, Blizz, whatever it is!

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  21. @Gladiola

    I agree. At least for me (being slightly slow), I have yet to experience the latest content.

    Seems many players are now coming to terms with what's to come and dropped the baseball bat.


    I like your last comment :)

    - Jamin

    (P.S. Going to look into tier 8 like you mentioned)

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