WoW BC Classic will not be exactly as it was back in the days of The Burning Crusade. The developers have made a few changes – some for more comfortable gameplay, others for balance. MeinMMO author Benedict Grothaus finds some of these changes positive – and even wishes for more.
BC Classic is intended to appear as close as possible to how The Burning Crusade was 14 years ago.
- Some players are demanding under the tag #NoChanges that even old bugs and issues be preserved.
- Other players have no objections to #SomeChanges as long as the core of the game remains intact.
The last group, which includes me, believes that most people would not enjoy the old version at all unless it is polished. This, along with the experience from the last 14 years in WoW, leads me to conclude: Many of the changes are actually quite good.
3 changes that make BC Classic better than before
What are these changes? As was the case with WoW Classic, there will also be changes in BC Classic that differ from the original version. This ranges from small but useful adjustments like more visible nameplates to abilities that simply were not in the game before.
I do not want to cover all changes here, but I definitely welcome three of the differences that are coming or have already appeared. I even go so far as to say: Blizzard could change even more, a few small details that would make the game much more enjoyable.
Larger Arena Teams
What is the change? Previously, the size of arena teams was limited to the list in which the team plays. In 2v2 arenas, only two players were allowed in the team. With BC Classic, this limit is increased, allowing for twice as many players in the team as the list in which they play – so about four players in a 2v2 team.
Why is this good? The change has two advantages: First, access to the arena becomes easier, and second, player dropouts are not as severe. In the past, if someone could not play for a while, the whole team would be sidelined.
Now that is no longer the case since there are substitute players. In addition, less experienced players have more opportunities to learn from better players. When the team is larger, not everyone necessarily wants only absolute pros in their group.
It is more likely that you can also visit the arena with lower ratings and PvP experience. For me, a reason to take a closer look at PvP – something I previously completely neglected.
Paladins get more seals
What is the change? Paladins had a seal in Burning Crusade that was only available to their respective faction. For the Horde, it was the Seal of Blood, and for the Alliance, it was the Seal of Vengeance.
Seals are spells that empower paladins, which they then unleash with a judgment. They represent the most important tools for the class in all sorts of situations.
These seals will be made available in BC Classic starting from level 70 for both factions. All paladins will therefore have access to the Seal of Blood (“of the Martyr” for the Alliance) and the Seal of Vengeance (“of Corruption” for the Horde). This change actually only came with WotLK.
Why is this good? The Seal of Blood is significantly stronger than the other seal, which is why Horde paladins were more powerful in BC than those of the Alliance. This is also due to the much stronger racial bonus of blood elves, but the seals had a great influence on the balance here.
As an Alliance player, I’m glad to be comparably strong as my Horde colleagues. Paladin is one of the classes I definitely want to play, and I am happy that in the presumably rarer represented faction, I do not also have to play the weaker version of my class.
A (single) character boost
What is the change? With the pre-patch to Burning Crusade, the Digital Deluxe Edition and the Dark Portal Pass were introduced. These include a character boost to level 58, which can be used once per account and can only be purchased once.
Previously, characters had to be levelled up painstakingly. Today, it is possible to prepare at least one of the characters directly for the shattered world that can be visited from level 58 onwards.
Why is this good? Leveling is a lengthy process in Classic and also in Burning Crusade. Over an hour per level is not uncommon in many areas, both in Classic zones and later in the shattered world. If you do not have a two-week break before the release, it will be difficult to get a character ready for Burning Crusade.
I already have a rogue from Classic that I will transfer, but I actually want to play my old paladin and warlock again in Burning Crusade. There is no way I can level both of them before the release.
That’s why it’s extremely convenient that I can already use the boost for my warlock and definitely play at the end, even if I don’t get the paladin leveled up by the release.
3 changes that still need to happen
As mentioned earlier, I believe that Burning Crusade must simply be good, not necessarily faithful to the original. Therefore, there are a few other changes I would like to see that have already proven to be good in WoW.
A better auction house
How is it currently? The auction house in Classic is still quite similar to how it used to be: confusing and poorly organized. Without an auction house addon, you can hardly find anything properly, and filtering by prices is out of the question.
For sellers, this is of course practical, as they can take advantage of the lack of overview to sell less valuable products at a higher price. Consumers do not want to scroll through 20 pages full of individual stacks just to maybe save 5 silver in the end.
This is how it should be: As someone who buys more than sells, I would greatly appreciate an auction house like that in current WoW. Items are generally displayed as overall available stacks.
Buyers are shown which quantity is available for what price. There is no reason to flood the auction house with small stacks anymore. And the prices are also clearer.
Since I want to quickly level my professions, it would be extremely useful to buy large quantities of ores immediately, without having to pay much more gold than necessary due to a lack of addon or knowledge.
Cross-realm groups (without LFG)
How is it currently? Like in WoW Classic, groups in Burning Crusade will be limited to their own realm. So if you play on Everlook and your friends on Razorfen, you cannot play together.
With the pre-patch, some servers have already been merged. Paid server transfers are already possible. However, as of now, it is not possible to play with players from another realm in the open world.
This is how it should be: Players should be able to play with their friends at any time, regardless of the server. There is already a bug that allows cross-realm groups and dungeons, but in the open world players still cannot see each other.
After the server mergers, the step to cross-realm groups would only make sense to promote more social interaction. However, items and trading should still be restricted to the realm to avoid disturbing the economy.
I understand that players want to keep their server identity; I am even in favor of not mixing too much. But without a group browser, it is anyway difficult to engage in “server hopping”, that is, randomly switching realms.
However, without an LFG tool but with cross-realm groups, players would find it easier to play with their friends, and the sense of their own server as a community would hardly be disturbed.
Dual talent specialization
How is it currently? In Burning Crusade, there are still a ton of talents to distribute. If you want to change or reset these, you pay gold for it – even more each time you switch.
Unlike in Retail WoW, you cannot change your specialization and talents freely to play different content or fulfill roles. You have to go to the teacher and do it all over again, even when switching back.
This is how it should be: In Wrath of the Lich King, there was the option to create two “sets” of talents and switch between them. This allowed:
- to use a DPS and a healer or tank specialization
- to have talents for specific bosses or mechanics in the back pocket
- to have specializations for both PvE and PvP simultaneously without having to redistribute
With the “Dual Specs”, there were also separate action bars for each, making the switch easier. For hybrid classes like paladins, warriors, and shamans, as well as for players who want to participate in both PvE and PvP content, this feature would be very useful.
Equipment still needs to be collected for both specializations, which should remain the case. But even players who do not use the feature would benefit. Because surely tanks and healers would be found faster if they do not have to respec expensively first.
What do you think? Which changes to BC Classic are good, and which still need to happen? Should some of them even be removed? Let us know in the comments!
If you want to prepare for the release, you can find here on MeinMMO 5 things you need to do before WoW BC Classic appears
