World Of Warcraft: Recent updates to official FAQ

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How do mounts work in World of Warcraft?

World of Warcraft offers a variety of mounts for the different races of Azeroth (the world on which the game takes place). For example, Humans generally ride horses, and Orcs tend to favor their trusted wolf mounts. Mounts are a great way to travel the world for mid-to-high-level characters. With extensive training, riding specialists will be able to use mounts not generally available to their particular race, but this ability will be rare.

What are cities like in World of Warcraft?

The cities in World of Warcraft are large, sprawling areas, each with their own distinctive architecture and style. Cities are where players go to train in their professions, shop for rare goods at local vendors, develop their trade skills, obtain new and exciting quests, buy and sell goods with other players, construct and maintain their personal dwellings, and sometimes, even participate in unique city adventures.

How do guilds work?

Players can band together to form guilds, which are large social groups, in order to help each other progress in the game. Players get to choose an emblem and color combination unique to their guild, embroidered on special guild tabards that players can display proudly over their characters' armor.

Realms:

Will World of Warcraft be hosted on Battle.net?

No. World of Warcraft has a new server architecture that was developed from the ground up with MMORPGs in mind, taking into account everything we've learned from Battle.net and Diablo II. When you log into the game, you will be logging directly into World of Warcraft.

Gameplay:

How will you prevent camping and kill stealing?

We limit camping and kill-stealing issues by 'instancing' certain areas of the game. An instance is a section of dungeon or outdoor area that is private. No other players, unless they are part of your group, can enter your instance of the dungeon/outdoor area. There are also plenty of non-instanced common areas where players can meet and adventure together.

How do you prevent camping and kill stealing in non-instanced areas?

Competition over rare item drops and quest items is the primary cause of camping and kill stealing. In World of Warcraft, many rare item drops are not exclusive to any one creature. Several creatures will have a chance of dropping the same item. If the required item is a quest item, the player can join a group of other players on the same quest and seek the item together with them. Every player on the quest will receive a copy of the quest item from the monster or location where it was found.

Will there be other things to do besides leveling?

There will be a huge variety of things to do to keep players from feeling like they just have to grind through one creature battle after another. Characters can craft items, fight in vast battles against other players, establish homes, and explore distant lands. Even when players do fight monsters, it will often be as part of a quest, or in search of special ingredients for their crafts.

Is there a way to finish World of Warcraft? How long can I play?

There will be thousands of hours of game play in the shipping game, and nearly infinite goals for players. Because we'll have a live team regularly adding new quests, creatures, and items, the game will never truly end.

How large is the party size for players?

Currently, the party size is five players, and the game is generally balanced for groups of five. Smaller groups can still be quite successful, and regardless of the group's size, everyone in the group will be able to make important contributions. Also, players will be able to "link" groups in order to form larger parties for raids or guild activities.

Will there be ranged weapons? Can Dwarves use Guns?

Yes. Different classes can use a variety of ranged weapons, such as bows, crossbows, and yes, even Dwarven muskets.

How and where can I bind?

Players can bind at bindpoints, which are scattered throughout the land. Anyone can bind at these locations, regardless of class or race.

World:

What continents are in World of Warcraft? Will they be familiar to fans of the Warcraft RTS series?

Currently, players will be able to explore the lands of Azeroth, Khaz Modan, Lordaeron, and the newly discovered lands of Kalimdor. Players familiar with the Warcraft series will find that we have depicted nearly every location from the Warcraft universe in World of Warcraft.

Characters:

How does the skill system work?

Characters will have access to a huge variety of both class-specific skills (class skills) and general-use skills (secondary skills). Class skills are determined by your character class and are an integral part of your character. For example, a warrior's sword skill, axe skill, and mace skill are all considered class skills. There will also be a wide variety of secondary skills available, so players will be able to uniquely flavor their characters. Examples of secondary skills might include first aid, lock picking, riding, fishing, and herbalism, to name a few.

How do you improve your skills?

Players will improve their characters' skills through a combination of usage and leveling. A character's level determines the maximum potential for any given skill, while actually using a particular skill determines the current proficiency in that skill.

How do spells work?

All of the character classes in World of Warcraft have access to spells and/or special abilities. As a character levels, they can purchase, train, research, or simply find new spells and add them to their spell book and/or ability book. Casting spells and using special abilities generally requires mana and may sometimes require one or more reagents.

Combat:

How does combat work? What makes it different from combat in other MMORPGs?

In general, combat in World of Warcraft is faster paced than it is in other MMORPGs, without being a "clickfest." When a character attacks a creature, he or she enters into combat mode. In combat mode, the character automatically and repeatedly attacks the target creature, but the player is responsible for timing the use of spells and special abilities to be maximally effective. Warriors and other melee classes will have a host of combat abilities that they can employ while fighting, whereas magic users will be able to cast a plethora of spells.

Will the game be a "potionfest" RPG?

No. Health and mana regenerate naturally over time, and players will not be required to drink potions to restore either. That being said, having potions is a useful way to further minimize downtime (at some cost). However, most consumable items have cooldowns to prevent them from being consumed in rapid succession.

How is death handled in the game?

A character will remain where he or she died for a reasonable amount of time (to allow for possible resurrection) or until the player chooses to "release" the character. After the player releases the character or the designated amount of time has passed, the character will reappear at a bind point with all of his or her equipment safely intact. Although there might be some penalty attached, our goal is to make sure that a character's death is not overly frustrating for the player.

Source link: World of Warcraft official site