The open-world PvP has caused problems with the start of Phase 2 in WoW Classic. Battlegrounds were supposed to improve the negative mood.
The mood before the battlegrounds: Before Blizzard introduced the long-awaited PvP battlegrounds with WoW Classic Patch 1.13.3, there was already a very negative mood in the community. This was triggered by the open-world PvP of Phase 2.
On some PvP servers, there is a severe faction imbalance. Some servers, like EU-Flamelash, are completely dominated by the Horde.
Players frustrated about “Killsquads”
No normal gameplay possible: With the introduction of the honor system, large PvP groups (Killsquads) formed everywhere, constantly farming areas for enemy players. In the end, it became about controlling these zones, so many could no longer properly quest and level up.
The PvP itself was also not a good experience due to the strong imbalance. On the German PvP server Lucifron, there were significantly more Horde players, leading the Alliance to gradually leave the server via character transfer.
Battlegrounds as a solution: Players described the PvP experience as too unbalanced, and it quickly led to the vocal demand of players to bring the battlegrounds earlier. They hoped that PvP players would spend more time in these instanced contents, making the open world more playable again.
PvP Battlegrounds miss their target
The plan is failing: After the two battlegrounds Alterac Valley and Warsong Gulch have now been unlocked in WoW Classic, it is becoming increasingly clear that these could not improve the mood. On the contrary, it seems to be getting worse, as one can follow the numerous negative threads about them in the official forum.
The main reason is Alterac Valley. This battleground was introduced by Blizzard based on Patch 1.12. It therefore differs significantly from the initial experience in Vanilla. During the course of the patches of WoW Vanilla, the following changes were made.
- Patch 1.8: The strength of NPCs was reduced by 30%
- Patch 1.10: Korrak the Bloodrager was removed
- Patch 1.11: A large part of the NPCs was removed from Alterac Valley
In Vanilla times, when Alterac Valley was introduced with Patch 1.5, it was not uncommon for a single match in the battleground to last several days. Especially the strength of the NPCs and their large number made it difficult to gain space on the battlefield.
The battleground with Patch 1.12 can be completed in a matter of minutes. The victory condition is to kill the opposing boss (Drek’thar or Vanndar Stormpike).
Rush-Rush for Honor
Through a simple “rush tactic”, where only that is done, there are very fast Alterac Valley matches. The factions do not fight each other but ride past each other, simply trying to defeat the NPC boss faster than the others.
Whether victory or defeat, quick honor is still earned, even if the winner obviously receives more.
This means a lot of reputation and a lot of honor per minute. Therefore, many players pursue this to be able to buy strong items from the reputation vendor and to rank up in the WoW Classic honor system in PvP.
This “rush mentality” creates bad vibes and frustration for many players. The official forum is full of new threads on this topic every day. Especially, the “rush Alterac Valley” also means that the second PvP battleground, Warsong Gulch, cannot keep up in terms of honor farming.
There is no rush tactic there, and so it takes longer since it requires coordination and strategy.
Players demand the “real” Alterac Valley
What players criticize about Alterac Valley: Player Melandrá stated in the official forum:
Alterac destroys PvP and the honor system.
There are over 3000 honor every 10 minutes for doing nothing.
WS gives significantly less with more time spent, and you actually have to play well to win.
Player Athdan sees it similarly (via official forum):
These 20 min AVs are already disappointing… If you remember how amazing it was back then when an AV actually lasted over 10 hours – that was epic.
Player Pewpewtwo also expresses himself in the same direction (via official forum):
Where are the good old times in AV, where you played there for 3 days? You logged out and the next day the AV was still running 😉 Where you used to summon the creatures.
Nowadays, it’s just rushing, quickly farming honor AFK, and boom, signing up for the next AV.
That’s why these players wish for the Alterac Valley from the early days of Vanilla back.
Not all players see it so negatively
There are also opposing voices: Player Chickadee expressed himself in the official forum about the criticism that Warsong Gulch is not worthwhile due to Alterac Valley.
What if we just play the game for fun and not for the rewards? You’re not a dog to do everything just to get a reward.
Syco even blames the players themselves (via official forum):
It has been known for ages that it runs in phases based on which patch version we are playing. So it was clear that this would happen. But yes, that can be ignored. According to this reasoning, Blizzard should provide a new version for everyone… Somewhere compromises have to be made. If this doesn’t suit you, you have to accept it or just leave. This whining is what completely ruined retail over the years.
Indeed, Blizzard already announced in March 2019 that the battleground Alterac Valley would be introduced based on Patch 1.12. Thus, it was clear what this would mean for the game. Blizzard itself saw this as the state of Alterac Valley that feels best (via GameStar).
Nevertheless, there are currently a multitude of complaint threads in the official forum and announcements to cancel WoW subscriptions. The mood is therefore probably no better than before the introduction of the battlegrounds. They were specifically removed from WoW Classic Phase 3 to address the problems with open-world PvP.
What do you think about the situation? Do you like the “rush Alterac Valley”? Or do you more agree with the critical voices and feel that there is a bad mood in WoW Classic?
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