Blizzard reveals how Hunters and Mages will change in the upcoming expansion for World of Warcraft!
The Damage Dealers in Focus
Since BlizzCon, Blizzard has been regularly releasing new information about the class changes that are coming with the upcoming expansion “Legion” for World of Warcraft. The main goal for the developers is to strengthen the identity of the class and highlight the differences between the various specializations more clearly. After we already reported on the Priest, Hunters and Mages have now been newly added, and we will briefly highlight their most exciting changes here.
The Hunter – With Pet, Without Pet, and in Melee Combat
Veteran Hunters can look forward to a completely new playstyle with Legion, as the Survival Hunter will become a pure melee class. Together with their pet, they will engage enemies in close combat, can pull themselves towards their enemy, and as the only specialization can still set traps.
For Beast Mastery, relatively little is changing, as they were already in a solid position with WoD. However, Hunters will be given a bit more control over their companions, and they should be able to issue more commands than before. As a new core ability, they will receive “Alpha Beast,” which will become a staple part of the typical rotation.
They were also generally satisfied with the role of the Marksman Hunter. The theme of the lone ranger lurking in the shadows and taking out its prey has already been well captured, but should be improved with small adjustments. In the future, “Arcane Shot” will generate focus, which the other abilities will then consume. By the way, the Marksman Hunter does not have a companion – because he is a loner.
Mages – Fire, Frost, Time, and Space
For Mages, it is challenging to make the differences between the various specializations even clearer. The spellcasters already have three very solid specializations, whose playstyles differ significantly, which is why there will only be slight adjustments.
Arcane Mages will receive a new mastery that increases their maximum mana. This should allow the distorters of time and space to manage their mana more easily and not become “burned out” in combat within seconds due to small mistakes. However, the fundamental mechanics will remain unchanged.
The same “problem” exists for Fire Mages; here, too, there are fundamentally only changes to one ability. “Ignite” will be completely redesigned and now grants the Mage a buff that increases the critical strike chance by 100% for a full 10 seconds. This will make it even easier to deal devastating fire pillars and gigantic pyroblasts to the enemies’ faces.
Finally, the Frost Mage will be slimmed down a bit and will lose Frostfire Bolt, as Blizzard believes that it “does not capture the fantasy of the class” – actually, a mixture of frost and fire should fall to the ground as a pool. The spell in the rotation will be replaced by “Frozen Orb,” which flies towards the opponent and continuously deals frost damage to all nearby enemies.
For more on the changes to the classes and current news from BlizzCon, you can find it on our World of Warcraft page.
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