WoW Classic: Reconnaissance – What falls in which phase?

WoW Classic is based on patch 1.12 and the content is divided into 6 phases with different content. So it all seems clear, but there are special rules for many items when they become available. We’ll try to shed some light on this.

With the launch of WoW (buy it now) Classic, Blizzard has committed to launching Classic at the level of patch 1.12. This ensures that annoying bugs are eliminated from the start and that players are guaranteed the best possible gaming experience. It’s not 100 percent what it was back then, but it’s the best middle ground that Blizzard and most of the community could agree on. So, in total, we will be releasing more than ten patches.

However, the content of these updates will not be available immediately, but will be divided into six phases. You are probably already familiar with these: Currently, we are allowed to enter Molten Core and Onyxia’s Lair in the first phase, but Dragon World boss Azuregos, Lord Kazzak and Dire Maul will not appear until phase 2. With that, everything seems to be clear. However, there is still confusion about certain items from dungeons or from call traders, which we will try to clarify below.

The phase chaos
For some items, it is currently the case that the items were already in the game before patch 1.12, but Blizzard still moved them to another phase. There are also special rules that Blizzard itself invented. For example, players can already gain reputation with certain factions, but recipes from that faction will only be unlocked later. The developers’ statements don’t help with this confusion. As Game Director Ion Hazzikostas announced, content that was included in patch 1.4 at the time will appear in phase 2, the vanilla features from patch 1.5 won’t appear until phase 3, and so on. But that’s not entirely true, as you can see from the loot in Molten Core.

The phases in Classic
Once again at a glance – this appears in the 6 phases. When exactly these will appear, Blizzard has not yet revealed

Phase 1: (WoW Classic Release): Molten Core, Onyxia and Maraudon.
Phase 2: Dire Maul, Azuregos (world boss), Kazzak (world boss)
Phase 3: Blackwing Warehouse, Darkmoon Faire, Darkmoon Cards
Phase 4: Zul’Gurub, Green Dragons (World Bosses)
Phase 5: Ahn’Qiraj opening event starts, depending on progress, AQ raids will be unlocked, loot from dungeons will be matched: T0.5 gear from dungeons, relics, loot price and location changes.
Phase 6: Naxxramas, Scourge invasions.

General information about raid loot
In Phase 1, you will have access to all dungeon loot that entered the game in Classic between patches 1.3 and 1.9, as well as all of the Molten Core loot, although items such as the Sharp-Edged Obsidian Blade and the Belt of the Storm were not implemented until patch 1.4. According to the developers, these items were implemented immediately so that the stats of an item would not change afterwards – that would be confusing for the player….

This means, for example, that the Windseeker’s Shackles (loot from patch 1.6) can already be captured from Baron Geddon and Garr, but forging Thunderrage will take until phase 3: only then will the rest of the items from the Blackwing Lair be available. As mentioned earlier, Azuregos and Lord Kazzak have been moved to Phase 2. All Ahn’Qiraj loot will only be available in Phase 5.

Dungeon Loot
The loot in the dungeons is the biggest mess. With patch 1.10, loot from instances has been extensively revised and some new items have been added. According to the developers, new items shouldn’t make their way into the game until Phase 2, but Blizzard is making an exception here as well and has already placed most of the new items from dungeons in Phase 1. This is an advantage for our heroes, because the stats on the equipment items have also been positively adjusted. Unfortunately, with patch 1.10 of Vanilla, the developers also messed up the old loot tables and did not change this in Phase 1.

If you take a look at the loot of a boss from back then, you will be surprised, especially in the Blackrock Depths, if the desired item is never dropped by the NPC. So even the latest add-ons are misleading, since the little helper’s data is also based on old information. Dungeon bosses whose loot table relics were added in Patch 1.10 are exempt from the Phase 1 adjustments: The relics and newly added items from Patch 1.10 will only appear on these specific bosses in Phase 5.

Items from quests
Some quest hubs were not implemented until after the release of WoW Classic. Unlike dungeon and raid loot, there are no exceptions for special quest rewards here: All quest rewards from quest hubs added later are active from the beginning. In addition, all class quests are active in Phase 1, with the exception of the special quests in the Temple of Atal’Hakkar.

Items about factions
Most of the reputation recipes that were available in the original version between patch 1.3 and 1.9 have also been packed into Phase 1. Unfortunately, some interesting items are not yet available. The interesting Tailoring, Leatherworking, and Blacksmithing items from Timbermaw and Argent Dawn will not be available until Phase 3.

The weapon enchantments for +15 Agility (Timbermaw Hold), +15 Strength (Thorium Brotherhood), and +24 Healing Power (Argent Dawn) will also be implemented later in Phase 3. However, these are also the main items that you will miss in Phase 1 and 2. You should be able to complete your adventures in Blackrock and Molten Core without these upgrades.

There is still some confusion regarding the rewards in Silithus and the Circle of Cenarius; until these items come into play with Phase 5, Blizzard can still think about it. Even though some reputation items have been artificially pushed back by Blizzard, you will be able to get all the items you can from the factions via special tasks, as in the “Items from Quests” subsection.

What is WoW Classic?

World of Warcraft Classic is a true recreation of the original WoW as you know it from 2006. All parts of the game – from combat mechanics and talent trees to character models and zones – have been recreated, contributing to the authentic experience.

Getting Started

All players with an active World of Warcraft subscription or game time on their accounts have access toWoW Classic at no additional cost.

1. Open the Blizzard Battle.net Desktop App and select World of Warcraft from the menu.
2. Select World of Warcraft Classic from the Version menu. If you have more than one World of Warcraft account, you’ll see a second Account drop-down list. In this column, select the active account you want to play with.
3. Click the Install button. The progress bar will tell you when your game is ready to play.
4. Click the Play button when the installation is complete.

You will need to select the realm you want to play on from several different realm types. Make sure you choose the same realm as your friends – in World of Warcraft Classic, you can only group with characters that are on the same realm as you!

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