World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria
Encyclopedia
World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria is the fourth World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game by Blizzard Entertainment. It is the fourth released game set in the fantasy Warcraft universe, which was first introduced by Warcraft: Orcs & Humans in 1994...

 expansion pack. It was announced on October 21, 2011 by Chris Metzen
Chris Metzen
Christopher Vincent Metzen is an American game designer, artist, voice actor and author known for his work creating the fictional universes and scripts for Blizzard Entertainment's three major award-winning media franchises: Warcraft, Diablo and StarCraft. On occasion, Metzen has published his art...

 at BlizzCon 2011.

Overview

Mists of Pandaria will raise the level cap from level 85 to 90. It will introduce a new class, Monk, along with the new playable race Pandaren. The vanity pet system will be overhauled and will include a pet battle system. New PVE
Player versus environment
Player versus environment, or PvE , is a term used in online games, particularly MMORPGs, CORPGs, MUDs, and other online role-playing video games, to refer to fighting computer-controlled enemies—in contrast to PvP .Usually a PvE mode can be played either alone, with human...

 scenarios will be introduced, and Challenge Modes will be added for dungeons. The existing 31-point talent trees will be replaced by a new system of tiered talents that are awarded every 15 levels. Blizzard has stated that there are plans for nine new dungeons, three new raids, and four new battlegrounds.

Plot and setting

Discovery of Pandaria is made after a naval battle between the Horde and the Alliance. It had previously been hidden by magic since The Sundering.

Pandaria

Pandaria is a new continent that will be located south of the Azeroth continent, opposite of Northrend. Several zones have been announced, including the Jade Forest, Valley of the Four Winds, Vale of Eternal Blossoms, Townlong Steppes, and the Kun-Lai Summit. The Jade Forest will be the first zone, and the entry point for the Alliance and Horde. It will feature lush rainforest and stone spires, and introduce the player to the Hozu and Jinyu races. It will contain the Temple of the Jade Serpent, one of the new dungeons, and introduce the Sha enemy. The Valley of the Four Winds will include Pandaren farm lands, with a coastal jungle. The Stormstout Brewery, another new dungeon, is located in the valley.

The Wandering Isle

The Wandering Isle is a roaming giant turtle where player character Pandarens begin their adventure, which they leave after choosing a faction.

Creatures and enemies

Pandaria will play host to new races that the players will encounter. One is the Jinyu, a race that is similar to the Murlocs and Naga. There will be the Hozu, a monkey like race, and the Verming, who are related to Kobolds. The Mantids are an insectoid race with some of Pandaria's raids planned on them. Players will encounter the Mogu, who were the first to inhabit Pandaria, and the Sha, who are "the manifestation of negative energy on Pandaria".

Gameplay

Blizzard has announced that players will not be able to fly in Pandaria until they have reached the maximum level. There will be auction houses scattered across the five zones of Pandaria.

Monk class

Monks use an energy-like resource called "Chi" to power basic abilities like Jab and Roll. The basic Jab attack is used to generate Light and Dark forces, which are then used for more advanced attacks. The monk class does not have an auto-attack like the other classes. The monk class has three specializations known as: Brewmaster (tanking), Windwalker (melee damage
Damage per second
Damage per second is a term used with computer games to describe the average rate of damage inflicted over time. The term is especially common in massively multiplayer online role-playing games and is a key aspect of theorycraft...

), and Mistweaver (healing
Healer (gaming)
A healer is a type of character class in video gaming. When a game includes a health game mechanic and multiple classes, often one of the classes will be designed around the restoration of allies' health, known as healing, in order to delay or prevent their defeat. Such a class can be referred to...

). Some details of the healing specialization have included that it will heal through "proximity" based heals, by dropping statues that pulse healing as they perform attacks on the enemy target. Blizzard announced that choosing the healing specialization will give the monk a mana bar like other healers. Monks will wear the leather armor class. Every race except Goblin and Worgen can be a monk.

Pandaren race

Unlike previous races in World of Warcraft, which are tied to either the Alliance or Horde in-game factions, Pandaren are reported to be faction-neutral for the early levels of the game. Until level 10 the Pandaren player character is faction-less and then the player chooses to align with either the Horde or the Alliance. The languages reported to be known by Pandarians are Common and Pandarian. In an interview with Kat Hunter, Chris Metzen jokingly said the languages had not yet been chosen but Pig Latin
Pig Latin
Pig Latin is a language game of alterations played in English. To form the Pig Latin form of an English word the first consonant is moved to the end of the word and an ay is affixed . The object is to conceal the meaning of the words from others not familiar with the rules...

 was a strong candidate.Chris Metzen during interview with Kat Hunter at Blizzcon October 21, 2011 14:14 CST

Announcement and development

MMO-Champion reported the possibility of Mists of Pandaria being the new expansion title based on a trademark application by Blizzard submitted on July 28, 2011 and approved August 2, 2011 trademarking the title "Mists of Pandaria".

Blizzcon 2011

On October 21, 2011 Chris Metzen announced Mists of Pandaria during the opening ceremonies.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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