The farming to unlock traits in Azerite armor from World of Warcraft will soon be a thing of the past.
The Heart of Azeroth is the “artifact weapon” of the expansion Battle for Azeroth. However, it is not particularly popular among World of Warcraft players. Blizzard has recognized this and is making changes that will be implemented with Patch 8.2 Rise of Azshara.
In a developer Q&A, Game Director Ion Hazzikostas talked about the future of the Heart of Azeroth, Azerite, and artifact power.
Azerite armors unlocked directly: The developer team agrees that repeatedly unlocking the same abilities is not much fun. Therefore, the Battle of Dazar’Alor will probably be the last raid tier in which players will actively have to farm for their Azerite armor.
In upcoming raid tiers, all traits will be unlocked directly. This way, players won’t be frustrated to find out they have to farm again for new shoulder pieces in order to use them.
The Heart gets its own talents: The Heart of Azeroth itself is also set to become more exciting. The focus will shift from the Azerite armor to the Heart itself. Just like back then with artifact weapons in Legion, players will be able to unlock permanent upgrades.
Currently, the team is even considering a few active abilities, so it feels like carrying a truly powerful relic again.
More story for the Heart: Another point is that the Heart of Azeroth and the story surrounding Magni were actually only planned as a “B-Plot” – almost like an ongoing side quest. The focus was on the war between Horde and Alliance.
With Patch 8.2, there will be more story surrounding the Heart of Azeroth and the Azerite, creating a stronger historical connection for players to their artifact. Similar to what was already the case in Legion with artifact weapons.
However, Hazzikostas was unable to provide specific details about the individual systems yet, as it is “too early”. When exactly Patch 8.2 will be released is also still uncertain. Currently, speculation points to a date in April or May 2019.
With Patch 8.2, the Mecha-Gnomes and the mega dungeon “Mechagon” will also be introduced.
Do you like the planned changes? Or are you waiting to see what the developers ultimately make of it?
This is how you stay informed: Don’t want to miss any more news about World of Warcraft? Then give a like on our WoW Facebook page!
