Reduced Requirement For DK & Monk Class Pets

Good news everybody!

To put it short and sweet, Exalted with Armies of Legionfall is no longer required to collect the DK and Monk class pets.

The "grind" is now mainly about collecting enough Artifact Power to unlock all weapon traits.

This news was revealed on a recent Developer Q&A this past week.

Q: Will the exalted requirement for class mounts be account wide?

A: No, it will not be account wide. But...that requirement has been removed! We did want people to have flying before the mount but now we see with how pacing has worked out that that is not a worry. So no, you do not need exalted for class mounts. Just completing the Legionfall campaign and the finale of that for your class = unlocked class mount.

Completing the class mount quest line is necessary to unlock the class pets on the vendor. Without the class mount, players won't be able to see the vendor items at all.

Now that Exalted is no longer required to access the class mount quests, this means reaching Exalted is also no longer necessary to collect the pets.

This is GREAT news for players working on alts (and heck, this is good news for mains too). Those that planned to wait for their main to reach AK 50, so they could send alts a level 45 AK Tome, can now do so without worrying about meeting other "grindy" requirements for the pets.

With this change, here's the updated process for collecting the DK and Monk pets.

1. Reach level 110.
2. Complete class campaign to unlock third relic slot. (necessary to complete a quest in step 6)
3. Unlock and complete Broken Shore quests.
4. Upgrade Artifact Knowledge. (requires AK 25)
5. Empower weapon(s). (requires step 4 + weapon level 34 to start the quest, and weapon level 35 to complete)
6. Complete the ongoing Broken Shore campaign. (estimated 11 weeks from 7.2 launch)
7. Complete the class mount quest(s) to unlock the pets on the vendor. (requires step 6)
8. Level weapon(s) to 52.
9. Buy desired pet(s). (costs 1k Order Resources each)

One thing that should be noted though, is that collectors will want to reach Exalted with Armies of Legionfall on at least one character. The Paragon reward chest (earned every 10k reputation after Exalted) has a chance to drop a new pet, Orphaned Felbat.

Wonderous Wisdomball Change and General Binding Guideline for Battle Pets

This post is late coming but as some may already know, the Wonderous Wisdomball is now Bind on Pick Up as of Patch 7.2.


I only made this discovery after finding out I overlooked one of my alts that had the quest to obtain this pet. Double-checking the reward and to my dismay the item that teaches the Wisdomball was not Bind on Use, as I expected it to be, but instead BoP. This companion remains un-cageable.

@RestoKay on Twitter discovered a Wowhead comment that strongly implies this change from BoU to BoP was intentional.

@perksnpeeves I found a comment on @Wowhead from January where a GM said it was a bug that they were tradeable: https://t.co/BoEsIATnPn

— Kaylei (@RestoKay) April 21, 2017

It's pretty disappointing news for many collectors, but I suppose it shouldn't come as a huge shock. Pets that are not cageable are usually that way for a reason - the developers want them to be exclusive, unique, and earned through specific means by players themselves.

Another example of a "bugged" pet item this expansion is Lagan. Initially, completing the achievement Poor Unfortunate Souls rewarded a BoU pet, however upon adding it to the Pet Journal it became uncageable. It was a very odd circumstance, as all other achievement rewarded pets are not tradeable or cageable in any manner. Lagan was an anomaly.

So it really shouldn't have come as much of a surprise when Lagan was eventually fixed in late Januaray and its binding was corrected to be BoP.

However, I think what was more shocking was how long developers let the pet continue being bugged with the wrong bind, without any clarification that that was the case. I think this is what really caused upset within the collecting community.

The same can be said for the Wonderous Wisdomball. Some collectors are not happy about the change, and rightfully so. After we've come THIS FAR into the expansion and the bug is only being fixed now? Without prior word or clarification on the intended binding of the companion?

Perhaps it wouldn't be as big a deal had there been an official note stating that Lagan and the Wonderous Wisdomball were bugged, and they should not be tradeable or cageable -- collectors would know what to expect and what's intended.

But since a forewarning wasn't made available and I don't think Blizzard can give us a heads up every single time, I think we could all use a refresher on how battle pets (usually) work. Here's quick review of what the general binding standard is for pets. Keep in mind there will always be unique cases, and not every pet will (or has to) follow these guidelines.

• General rule of thumb -

Pets that are not cageable are normally not tradeable. If they are, it's probably unintentional (bugged).

• Achievement pets -

Not tradeable or cageable in any manner.

• Dropped pets -

Depends on the pet and source. Can be a mix of BoP, BoU, cageable, and not cageable.

• Wild pets -

Not tradeable or cageable in any manner.

• Blizzard Store pets -

Not tradeable or cageable in any manner, with the exception of the Guardian Cub.

• Profession pets -

Depends on the pet and source. Can be a mix of BoP, BoU, cageable, and not cageable.

• Promotional pets -

Not tradeable or cageable in any manner, with the exception of TCG pets.

• Quest reward pets -

Depends on the pet and source. Can be a mix of BoP, BoU, cageable, and not cageable.

• Raid dropped pets -

Mix of BoP and BoU, but almost always cageable.

• Vendor pets -

Depends on the pet and source. Can be a mix of BoP, BoU, cageable, and not cageable.

It's truly disappointing news about the Wonderous Wisdomball; many collectors are still battling RNG and were hoping to buy one at a reasonable price. With this change, the ONLY source for this companion now is a drop from the Kirin Tor emissary. It doesn't occur very often, so better rally all of your level 110 characters to be ready to complete some WQs when Kirin Tor does pop up.

And if a collector receives a second Wonderous Wisdomball? We've seen that Blizzard has the tech to turn a previously un-cageable pet into a cageable one, as with the case of Bonkers, so we can only hope that Blizzard will make the Wonderous Wisdomball cageable post-Legion. Right, Khadgar?


You're killing me here, Khadgar.

7.2.5 PTR - Pet Battle Dungeon (Deadmines) Preview

UPDATE: Most recent PTR build (Build 23958) changed how the three new pets are rewarded.

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Hot on the heals of Wailing Caverns Pet Battle Dungeon, we've got the next part of the story - Deadmines! This scenario is currently up on the 7.2.5 PTR and is ready for testing.

Here's an overview of what this new dungeon is all about. Note that because this is from the PTR, all of this is subject to change.

!!! Prerequisite: Complete the Wailing Caverns Pet Battle Dungeon quest (Normal). It's unclear if the Challenge version is also required in order to access the Deadmines quest.

Breanni (Dalaran, Broken Isles) will have a new quest for you in 7.2.5 - "Deadmines, Part Three?"

This quest sends you to Westfall to speak with Marcus "Bagman" Brown. Despite us clearing out Deadmines not once, but twice, he's hearing strange things coming from inside and would like for us to investigate. Who knew Pet Battlers would be such awesome detectives? :P

There's a total of 7 Stages in this Pet Battle Dungeon, with a total of 9 different pet encounters. Backline pets were variations of generic crabs, rats, and parrots (all common quality).


► Stage 1 - What Is All This Junk?: Defeat Foe Reaper 50 (this might be a typo, pet's name is actually Junk Reaper 500)

Single pet fight against an epic level 25 Mechanical pet with Boss passive.

► Stage 2 - Terrible Tunnel: Defeat Unfortunate Defias and Angry Geode, plus their teams

     

Both are uncommon level 25 pets with the Elite passive. First is Undead and second is Elemental. Backline pets do not have any passive/buff.

We killed all the defias inside Deadmines, but somehow their ghosts have become battle pets that we must defeat. How strange haha!

► Stage 3 - Worst. Guard. Ever.: Defeat Mining Monkey and its team

Rare level 25 Beast pet with the Elite passive, plus two backline pets without any buffs.

► Stage 4 - Outta My Way. You Oaf!: Defeat the Oaf Runt ("Captain" Klutz)

Single pet fight against an epic level 25 Humanoid pet with Boss passive.

Who is this guy? More importantly, HOW is he a battle pet?! (He's taller than my nelf!)

► Stage 5 - Cannon Crazy: Defeat Klutz's Battle Rat, Klutz's Battle Monkey, and Klutz's Battle Bird, plus their teams

          

All three are uncommon level 25 pets with the Elite passive. Critter, Beast, and Flying. Backline pets do not have any passive/buff.

After seeing these pets with little pirate hats on, I really want tiny pirate hats for my battle pets now too!

Also, how are these pets manning the ship's cannons? O_o

► Stage 6 - Shadowy Figure: Confront the Shadowy Figure (not the same one we saw in Wailing Caverns!)

Who could this be? What happened to the mysterious figure that was in Wailing Caverns? What are they doing in these dungeons with these pets? And why? :O

► Stage 7 - The Soup's Gone Bad!: Defeat Cookie's Leftovers

Single pet fight against a legendary level 25 Magic pet with Boss passive.

This pet has high health, high speed, plus actively uses crowd control and heals itself.

Same as the Wailing Caverns Pet Battle Dungeon, completing Deadmines will reward an Ultimate Battle-Training Stone, Manapoof Link: Westfall (allows the NPC next to Breanni to teleport you directly to the Deadmines quest giver), and unlocks the Challenge version.

Pet Battle Challenge: Deadmines (account-wide weekly quest) - rewards Mr. Smite's Supplies (chance to drop 2 new pets) one (1) Old Bottle Cap (new currency)

Players can use this new currency to purchase the three Deadmines-themed pets.

• Pet Reaper 50 - 1 Old Bottle Cap
• Pocket Cannon - 3 Old Bottle Cap
• Tricorne - 2 Old Bottle Cap

These pets are BoP and are no longer cageable. This means if collectors want these pets, they'll have to complete the Challenge version of Deadmines Pet Battle Dungeon at least 6 times.


The main thing I noticed during the Deadmines scenario is that the difficulty seemed to spike at the very end (Stage 7), relative to the other encounters.

I would say the dungeon is more 'intermediate' than beginner due to the more diverse pet families you go up against, but it's still doable by even less experienced battlers. The end, however, contrasts with that and I could see some newer battlers struggling with the legendary boss pet. As usual, veteran battlers and those with a large selection of pets to choose from should have no problem.

Overall, I enjoyed the content and was much happier with the length. 9 encounters vs. 11 in the Wailing Caverns was much more pleasant to run through. The atmosphere and setting was also a lot more enjoyable, and there was less travel time between battles.

7.2.5 PTR: Three New Pets & Deadmines Pet Battle Dungeon

The 7.2.5 PTR is now up! There are three new pets (so far), and *drumroll* a new Pet Battle Dungeon! This time it takes place in the Deadmines.


Pet Reaper 50 - Drop: Mr. Smite's Supplies (presumably the reward bag from the Challenge version of the Deadmines Pet Battle Dungeon)


Tricorne - Drop: Mr. Smite's Supplies (presumably the reward bag from the Challenge version of the Deadmines Pet Battle Dungeon)


Pocket Cannon - Achievement Reward: Pet Battle Challenge: Deadmines (complete the Challenge version of the Pet Battle Dungeon)


Quest from Breanni for the new Deadmines Pet Battle Dungeon!

I haven't had a chance to try out the dungeon yet, but I will most definitely put together a preview/overview as soon as I do. ^^;

Confirmed: Squirky Not Yet Available

In an interesting turn of events, developer Jeremy Feasel clarified on Twitter that Squirky is still not yet available.

@Kamboozle Squirky is not yet available, you'll know it when it happens!

— Jeremy Feasel (@Muffinus) April 12, 2017

This is a little surprising as he has hinted at many "secrets" still undiscovered in-game. Many collectors assumed Squirky was on that list, but it would appear that we're mistaken!

So where could this pet come from? Wowhead Site Director Perculia speculates that it might be from a promotion (either BlizzCon or other), due to the fact that one of the advertised plushies is a yellow murloc.

@perksnpeeves @Muffinus Think it's related to a promotion because of this BlizzCon merch pic (guy holding yellow murloc plush) pic.twitter.com/lvbtE7bDCc

— Data Hunter Perculia (@perculia) April 12, 2017

Personally, my hope is that it's not tied to a Blizzard Store item and that Squirky will be readily available in-game. Collectors have waited this long, and still continue to patiently wait, so it would be heartbreaking to find out the availability of this pet is limited only to those that can afford to buy a physical item.

In the end we'll just have to wait and see!

Happy 10 Years WarcraftPets!

7.2 has been a whirlwind of things to do, so I'm a few days late... but HAPPY 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY WARCRAFTPETS!! ^_^

To celebrate, I took a quick selfie with Breanni in her new Dalaran shop on the Broken Isles. :P


I joined WarcraftPets as a normal member in 2008, roughly a year after the website launched. Little did I know just a couple years after that, I would be volunteering for one of the best companion pet resources out there. It's crazy how time flies!

I'm absolutely honored to be helping with WarcraftPets and humbled by the friendly community. Thank you to everyone for making WarcraftPets what it is today. And a BIG thank you to Brian (Breanni) as well for getting this awesome-ball rolling, and for giving me the opportunity to be a part of that awesomeness.

In 3 years I'll be celebrating 10 years with WarcraftPets - hopefully I'll still be on board to see that milestone. :)

Here's to many more wonderful years!