Blizzard announced a preliminary preview of the latest Expansion Pack of World of Warcraft, Age of Dragons, during a live broadcast in the early hours of this morning.
In the new version, players can take on an adventure as a new race/class, Dragon Hill Summoner, a class that no other race can choose from, and the character is positioned as an output/healing. The ability of the new class is derived from the Guardian Dragon, with an initial level of 58, and a skill similar to Onykxia's "Deep Breathing" has appeared in the demo.
The new area of the expansion pack is the Dragon Islands, which consists of five maps. Here, players can learn the new flying riding technique "Dragon Riding", a skill that grows with the player. The Talent System will also return in its new form in the Expansion Pack, while professional skills will be completely reworked. At present, Blizzard has not announced the opening time of "Age of Dragons", and has not even mentioned that it will be launched in 2022.
After the expansion pack was released, Campfire and several media peers interviewed the designers of Age of Dragons, with World of Warcraft director Ion Hazzikostas.
Ion Hazzikostas, director of World of Warcraft
| Q: This opening CG has a little more tranquility and less conflict, can it reveal the reasons for this change?
A: In fact, the main line of the new version is exploration and discovery. Azeroth is healing itself, new conflicts are emerging, and players will gradually discover these threats over the course of the game. Overall, it's a bit like "The Mystery of the Panda Man", we are not facing the disaster of destroying the world at the beginning, but gradually unlocking.
▲One of the themes of the new cutscene animation - climbing the tower
| Q: The new "Dragon Taming" system seems interesting, but does that mean we can only really "fly" at the end of the version? And is the original flying riding in effect in the new area?
A: The new version is around the Dragon Archipelago, which is home to winged creatures, and we hope players can explore the world in new ways. Specifically, you can learn new dragon taming techniques in the first week of the game, and gradually learn more skills in the future, such as dive, tumbling, and faster flight. In addition, the original flying riding technique cannot be used in the Dragon Islands.
| Q: Talents, professional skills, UI, etc. have all been redone, and such a big update has not appeared for a long time, so what does 10.0 mean for Blizzard?
A: In a way, the Dragon Age version is really a fresh start, and we're back in Azeroth again. The Warden's story is over, we also ushered in a new storyline, adding new races and classes is never a simple task, it needs to fit the background of the version, and this "Age of Dragons" is a good opportunity, I hope that players can reach the 13th class of World of Warcraft as soon as possible.
▲ New UI interface
| Q: In the new expansion pack, what new skills will the original profession have, such as will warlocks have new babies?
A: The specific content cannot be said yet, but there will definitely be new skills, and there are some returns of old skills, including covenant skills, legendary equipment skills, and so on. And we also have new talent bonuses, and players can permanently get some skill improvements.
| Q: Dragon Taming seems to be an extension of the mount system, what else can players do besides making it easier to explore maps and collect appearances?
A: For dragon taming, the most important thing is that it is a flying ability. Whether it's flying back to town to hand over missions or finding target enemies to fight, these are all new experiences.
| Q: Magicians have output and healing specializations, what are the characteristics of this new class compared to other similar specializations?
A: The Sorcerer uses the power of the dragon, but there is no black dragon yet. Using healing as an example, the Sorcerer can reverse the time to cancel damage through the Bronze Dragon's abilities, or slow down the rate at which damage appears. The Green Dragon, on the other hand, can trap enemies in a sleepwalking state through dream-related abilities. In terms of general skills, the Dragon Clan can use the ability of the Dragon Wing to fan out high winds to repel enemies.
| Q: The magician's skills appear to be sprayed with the mouth during the demonstration, is there any other way? What weapons can they use?
A: As for which weapons can be used, they are still in the design, at least traditional weapons such as magic staffs and daggers must be used. In terms of combat methods, the ability of the sorcerer comes from guarding the dragon, and the special system is to charge power and spray AOE attacks after take-off.
| Q: Is there anything I can mention about Galakron? What form will he take?
A: The legacy of Galakron is the main line of the new version. The bones of Galakon are scattered throughout the Keel Wilderness, and as he declines, the guardian dragon forces rise. There will also be some new dragon forces in the new version, where we will learn more about the history of dragons, as well as the story of Galakon.
▲ The five guardian dragons
| Q: Will the new expansion pack have a new PVP gameplay, and how will the Sorcerer affect the class balance?
A: In Shadowlands, we added a single-row and brawl PVP mechanic, followed by a single-row matching rating to make it easier for players to find the right opponent for them. In terms of class balance, the new class will definitely have an impact on the game environment, our original intention is to make it very interesting and cool at first, and the specific balance problem will be further adjusted in the beta test, making the new class both interesting and does not affect the overall balance.
| Q: After the birth of a new class, will other class skills be transferred to the Magician? For example, before the demon transformed into a warlock, the demon hunter was transferred to the demon hunter after he appeared.
A: The promise we can make is that the Dragon Breath Technique of the Fire Law will still belong to the Fire Law. The abilities of the new class come from dragons, a new set of spell sources that will basically not conflict with the existing system, so there is no need to worry about something similar happening.
| Q: The new version mentions a lot of things related to "physical feedback", so will there be a similar upgrade in terms of combat action?
A: We're excited to see that dragon taming makes a lot of difference in flying. We wanted to gradually increase the player's sense of immersion, as the Warcraft engine allowed. Taking charge casting as an example, it may be extended to other classes in the future, and it will currently be the exclusive gameplay of the magician.
| Q: At present, there are very few clues about the black dragon in the public information, and most of the cases of the black prince Rashio are just a formality. What role does the Black Dragon play in the new expansion pack?
A: The Black Dragon will play a major role in the new expansion pack. The first time the player arrives in the new area, they will come to a Black Dragon Castle, and the Dragon Hill race was created by Nesario, so there will be a lot of his role. As for Rashio, he is also the central character in the expansion pack, and there will be many other black dragons coming to his side. The summon beacon we saw in the opening animation not only called the guardian dragon, but also a lot of dragons with other identities, and the new version will have a lot of black dragon stories, please rest assured.
| Q: Players seem to have a concern about the new version, feeling that the style of this expansion pack is a little different from the previous one, and there is a concern that "I don't seem to be playing World of Warcraft", how do you think it as a developer?
A: We've seen some player feedback. The new version actually hopes to return to the origin of "World of Warcraft", but the "ShadowLand" is far from the tradition. The new expansion pack has many familiar elements, such as Titan Ruins, Walrus Man, and more.
▲ The new cutscene is indeed "not too Warcraft"
| Q: Does Dragon Taming exist as a feature of the version, and can it be used outside of the Dragon Islands?
A: Whether to use this mount elsewhere in the future, we have already planned, and it is not the time to make it public at this stage. On the other hand, we hope to give players more permanent improvements, such as rework talent and professionalism. Each new version is a journey of exploration, and we don't want to remove existing capabilities, but rather add more.
| Q: Can you elaborate on the new Talent Tree?
A: For different scenarios, players can choose different talents, such as PVP, Tuanben, Great Secret Realm and so on. In addition, there are now two separate talent trees, one of which is class-limited and the other part is specialized, such as the mage will get fire talent points this upgrade, and the next level is ice. We want to make players' choices more diverse.
| Q: The Great Fission 4.3 version explicitly mentions that "the age of the dragons is over", so how can this new version make them return?
A: This aspect is an important part of the new version. We will find many clues along the way, in addition to the dragon itself and the story of Azeroth. Dragon Guardians also need the power of mortals, and players have to assist them in a specific ritual in a temple. Please also ask the player to explore it in the game for themselves.
| Q: Will the new expansion pack be optimized for burden reduction? For example, daily tasks, prestige systems, and so on.
A: We wanted a better experience in every aspect of the game, including daily missions, prestige systems, outdoor missions, and so on. The question we've been thinking about is what developers are asking players to do, and what rewards players need. In the case of the 9.25 final version, players are free to explore the ciphertext system, but players who only pursue the strength of their characters can ignore them. We want to give players a richer set of options as they play.