WoW Forever beta patch notes — October 8: Dalaran, dungeon XP and Rage fixes

The October 8 WoW Forever beta update opened City of Dalaran for testing, increased experience from dungeon enemies and corrected several Rage calculations. It also brought class tuning, quest repairs, controller changes and Discord voice chat.

Dungeons, combat and general fixes

• City of Dalaran became available for dungeon testing.
• Multiple weapons can again be swapped during one global cooldown. A macro can, for example, replace a two-handed weapon with a sword and shield together.
• Killing dungeon creatures awards approximately 20% more experience.
• Party experience from lower-level enemies now uses each member’s own level for the level penalty, rather than the highest level in the group.
• Creatures with no loot can again be interacted with, restoring Classic looting behavior.
• Visual effects no longer flicker on large creatures.
• A creature-behavior bug that could cause unintended pulls from far away was fixed.

Developer rationale: The individual-level XP calculation restores Classic Era behavior. The developers expected this correction and the dungeon XP increase together to substantially improve dungeon experience for most players. The existing restriction still applies: if a party member greatly outlevels the enemy, nobody in that party receives XP.

Analysis: The XP correction matters when party members have different levels, but it does not remove the restriction on taking a much higher-level character along.

Cooldowns, gamepads and Legacy

Cooldown Manager

All classes, racial abilities and trinkets are supported. Consumable support was announced for a later patch.

Gamepad controls

• Input indicators now distinguish holding a button from pressing it.
• A bug that could disrupt input after looting was fixed.
• Opening the map initially focuses the Quest Log, so running can continue until the player actively uses the map cursor.
• Navigation between raid frames was updated.
• The Gamepad Action Bar can be configured in Edit Mode.
• Edit Mode saves and loads a separate layout for each UI type.
• Gamepad Action Bar options, including the compact layout, moved from the options menu to Edit Mode. Old settings do not migrate: open Edit Mode, select the Gamepad Action Bar and set the options again.

Legacy

• Every beta player received Legacy Challenge completion and its 16 Legacy Points for testing.
• The cheapest Legacy Point talent reset now costs 1 silver. Reset cost falls by one reset’s worth each hour.

Developer rationale: The declining reset cost follows the idea used for class talents. This Legacy adjustment applies only during the beta.

Rage generation

Several corrections affect Warriors and Druids gaining Rage from incoming damage:

• The calculation now uses expected creature health instead of the player’s health. The old calculation had incorrectly reduced Rage gains when wearing more Stamina gear.
• Extra incoming damage from combat multipliers, notably critical strikes and crushing blows, is now handled correctly.
• Absorbed damage is treated as though no absorb were active when calculating Rage from an attack.

Developer rationale: Typical Warriors and Druids should receive more Rage from taking damage. The old tuning assumed 50% Armor, suitable for a tank but not a questing Warrior. The replacement uses level-dependent Armor assumptions ranging from 20% to 40%.

Druid

• Mana Potions can be used in Bear Form, Dire Bear Form and Cat Form again.
• The extra Rage generated by landing a critical strike rises from 75% to 100%.
• Thorns returns to its original WoW base damage, and its spell-power coefficient falls from 13.3% to 6%.
• Cat Form no longer incorrectly lowers maximum health.
• Bear Form and Dire Bear Form now provide a 50% threat bonus, up from 30%.
• Effects that replace a shapeshifted appearance are more restricted, closer to Classic behavior.
• Demoralizing Roar now generates threat on every affected target; it had been generating none.
• Wrath ranks 1–5 have revised base values and per-level scaling, smoothing progression through rank 6 and ensuring each new rank improves on the previous one.

Developer rationale: An opponent needs to recognize a Druid’s combat form. Some transformations remain when they provide another benefit: Noggenfogger Elixir, for example, still transforms the Druid because it also permits underwater breathing.

Feral

• Predatory Instincts is renamed Natural Instinct and additionally increases spell healing by 12/25% of Intellect.
• Shifting Power cannot be used at full Energy.
• Thick Hide now uses a native implementation in place of its scripted one, fixing cases where equipping gear while shapeshifted failed to activate it.

Analysis: Bear threat gains and lower Thorns damage are separate changes. The stronger threat bonus does not imply that the reflected damage stayed the same.

Hunter

• Disengage now delivers the intended doubled threat reduction; the earlier change had not been applied.
• Pets no longer repeatedly gain health when their health is low.

Beast Mastery

• Unleashed Fury correctly increases pet damage.

Marksmanship

• Improved Concussive Shot uses its intended activation chance.

Survival

• Improved Wing Clip uses the intended activation chance, with a lower chance when casting a rank far below the Hunter’s current level.
• Expose Prey lasts 10 seconds instead of 5.
• Entrapment correctly follows diminishing returns.
• Entrapment can activate from Frost Trap’s initial trigger, rather than repeatedly from its periodic effect.

Mage

• Impact no longer activates from Flamestrike’s periodic damage.
• Frostbolt and Fireball ranks 1–5 have revised base values and per-level scaling, making progression through rank 6 more consistent and each new rank an improvement.
• Arcane Missiles receives the equivalent adjustment for ranks 1–3, smoothing progression through rank 4.

Paladin

• Retribution Aura now uses the casting Paladin’s spell power instead of the spell power of the target being hit.
• Retribution Aura returns to original WoW base damage, a reduction of about 33%, and its spell-power coefficient falls from 13.3% to 6%.

Protection

• Reckoning can trigger no more often than once every 1.5 seconds.
• Seal of Fury no longer returns Mana without the Improved Seal of Fury talent.
• Mana restoration from Improved Seal of Fury and Shield Specialization no longer generates threat.

Developer rationale: The Mana returned to keep a tanking Paladin in combat was adding more threat than intended.

Analysis: Mana restoration remains distinct from its threat. This change removes the extra threat generated by those Mana returns.

Priest

• Smite ranks 1–4 have revised base values and per-level scaling, smoothing progression through rank 5 and making new ranks upgrades.
• Lesser Heal ranks 1–3 and Heal ranks 1–2 have revised base values, making progression through Heal rank 3 more consistent and each new rank an improvement.

Discipline

• Penance damage and healing were reduced to correct a calculation that treated its two-second channel as a three-second one.
• Penance Mana costs were revised to keep it consistently more Mana-efficient than Heal and Greater Heal. Rank 1 costs 50% more Mana.
• Healing from Penance ranks 2 and 4 was increased.

Developer rationale: The Penance changes aim to place it alongside other powerful spells limited by a cooldown.

Shaman

• Flametongue Totem uses a shapeshifted target’s actual attack speed instead of the speed of their equipped weapon.
• Lightning Bolt ranks 1–5 have revised base values and per-level scaling, smoothing progression through rank 6 and making new ranks upgrades.

Elemental

• Fire Nova no longer activates Elemental Focus and immediately consumes it.

Restoration

• Water Shield’s buff tooltip shows the correct Mana restoration.
• Water Shield no longer lists a 15-second cooldown it never had.
• Mana Tide Totem’s pulse visual appears again.

Warlock

• Summoning a new pet stuns the Warlock’s current pet for the summon.
• Shadow Bolt ranks 1–4 have revised base values and per-level scaling, smoothing progression through rank 5 and making new ranks upgrades.

Demonology

• Demonic Brand’s bonus pet damage generates high threat only when that damage is Shadow.

Warrior

• Demoralizing Shout now generates threat on every affected target; it had been generating none.

Arms

• Deep Wounds is once again a prerequisite for Impale.
• Deep Wounds no longer incorrectly scales with off-hand weapon Attack Power.

Developer rationale: Deep Wounds does not scale with Attack Power. Its damage-over-time effect rolls, unlike the Classic/Vanilla version.

Protection

• Last Stand grants the correct amount of health when activated.

Items

• New armor-set shoulders were reduced to their intended visual size.
• Wolfshead Helm grants 5 additional Energy when Shifting Power is used. Its Rage effect is unchanged.
• Some dungeon quest rewards changed from Rare to Uncommon, with stats adjusted for their new quality.
• Truthseeker's Bow, a reward from Greater Friend of the Library, now requires level 40 to equip, matching the other two rewards in that quest chain.
• Transformative Cocoon is correctly classified as a debuff.
• Enchant Weapon - Revelation buff persists through Ghost Wolf and Druid shapeshifts.
• The Peace Tea recipe sells to vendors for 10 copper.
• Booty Bay Bruiser's Buckshot no longer knocks targets back.
• Damage from Discolored Healing Potions no longer breaks crowd control.

Enchanting vendor prices

Gelkis and Magram quest rewards

These Desolace rewards received tuning changes:

• Abandoned Ferocity
• Blade of the Magram Clan
• Bludgeon of Betrayed Virtues
• Centaur Spear
• Ceremonial Centaur Blanket
• Desert Crawler's Claw
• Desperate Barrier
• Greatstaff of the Necrokhans
• Kolkar Hunter's Belt
• Kolkar Marauder Chain
• Scavenged Magram Armament
• Soulsplatter Mace
• Staff of Revelations
• Thrice-Damned Effigy
• Traitor's Finger
• Wanderer's Broadsword

Developer rationale: Most were brought to the power expected from their quests; some also had stat changes. A later hotfix was announced to give them a level 35 equip requirement, matching the quest changes below.

Analysis: The October 8 notes distinguish the reward tuning already applied from the level 35 equip requirement still awaiting a hotfix.

PvP, professions and racials

• PvP critical strikes no longer have reduced effectiveness.
• Shipwreck Cove’s capture point appears in the correct location.
• Armor Kits that grant Attack Power no longer incorrectly give twice that amount as Ranged Attack Power.
• Enchant Weapon - Recovery works for shapeshifted Druids.
• Undead characters can correctly use Will of the Forsaken while asleep or charmed, fixing cases where it was unavailable.

Quests and the world

General

• Completing certain quests no longer prevents starting Blood Tithe.
• Night Watchman's Torch displays its aura on the bearer alone, rather than on the other players it lights.
• Capital-city barbers were replaced with local barbers.

The Barrens

• Horn of Echeyakee is retained when used for Echeyakee.
• The Principal Source has a map marker.

Desolace

• The new Gelkis and Magram chain beginning with Valley of Bones now requires level 35 instead of 30.
• Its rewards were retuned as listed in the Items section.

Dun Morogh

• Moving or turning no longer cancels Far Sight during Farsen's Watch. Right-click cancellation remains available at any time.

Durotar

• Break a Few Eggs has more Taillasher Eggs, and they respawn faster.
• Lazy Peons are lazier during Lazy Peons, and the quest marker also covers the northern peons.

Duskwood

• Stitches is hostile again when entering Darkshire.

Excavation Site: Wetlands

• Titan Relic from Elder Knowledge or Lost Relic Carry is returned for Earthen Echo or Prehistoric Prism, so the follow-up does not require finding a second relic.

Hillsbrad Foothills

• Stanley no longer awards kill XP during Elixir of Pain. That XP moved to the quest reward.

Loch Modan

• Dark Iron Ambushers appear less often at Miran’s camp during Resupplying the Excavation.

Mulgore

• Grim Tidings has a more accurate turn-in marker.
• Gloomrise creatures respawn more evenly; Gloomrise Hatchlings award XP suited to their difficulty.

Orgrimmar

• Neeru Fireblade has a map marker and a mouseover tooltip during Hidden Enemies.

Redridge Mountains

• Weapon Racks, Stolen Weapons and Blackrock Supplies respawn faster during Blackrock Blockade.

Rogue

• Plundering the Plunderers has map markers.

Shaman

• Creatures needed for Storm, Earth, and Fire respawn faster and drop their twisted totems more frequently.
• Maraudine Scouts can drop Twisted Air Totems, Ongeku can drop a Twisted Earth Totem, and Murdaloc can drop a Twisted Fire Totem.
• Dustbelcher ogres throughout the Badlands can also drop Twisted Fire Totems. Larger camps such as Dustbelch Grotto respawn faster; smaller camps do not receive that increase.
• Eye of the Tempest for Heed My Call can drop for multiple players.

Stonetalon Mountains

• Jin’Zil accepts quest turn-ins after someone completes Jin'Zil's Forest Magic.

Teldrassil

• After a reset, Sethir the Ancient summons more Minions of Sethir during Destiny Calls. Sethir also respawns faster.
• Sentinel Lynessa Duskblossom moves more slowly during Escaping Ban'ethil.

Tirisfal Glades

• Quests and creatures near Shadowvale and Bandarion Keep have higher levels.

Developer rationale: This content had been below the level of the preceding quests, disrupting progression and potentially turning green before players arrived.

Warrior

• The Mausoleum Trigger reactivates sooner for Ulag the Cleaver, fixing an excessive delay.

Interface and voice chat

• Audio settings can select Discord Voice. The party leader’s selection determines voice chat for the whole party.
• Group Finder listings can specify an In-Game Voice Mode; joining members receive a prompt to enter the selected voice chat.
• The player inspection window was updated.
• Combo-point displays were updated in both the Target Frame and Personal Resource Display.
• Quest types appear as text in the Quest Log, Quest Tracker and Quest Dialogue.
• The Quest Tracker shows quest level requirements.
• Buffed stats are correctly highlighted in Character Info.
• Specific Macros no longer incorrectly display General Macros.
• Selecting an earned Legacy Challenge opens the Legacy Challenge window.
• View Talents appears below Inspect in the target frame’s context menu.
• The left frame of Character Info shows the character’s level and class.

Known issues announced on October 8

• Skyborne Druid Bear Form and Travel Form received their texture updates. Cat Form, various Zephras Isle creatures, and some mounts, pets and other creatures were still awaiting textures in a future update.
• Ferocity does not show the Hunter pet’s increased critical-strike chance on the character sheet. The developers identified this as a display-only bug.
• Some Professions-window icons appear broken.