9.2 PTR - Battle Pets With Multiple Colors/Skins

I haven't been able to confirm all of the following battle pets for alternate colors/skins, but here are the datamined results so far. All 9.2 pets listed are wild.

 

  

Bloodsucker Vespoid - 3 colors

 

Patch 9.1 PTR - Junk Items Shopping List

There are 3 pets coming in Patch 9.1 that won't cost gold or Polished Pet Charms (although there is a 4th pet that *will* cost 10k PPC), but instead junk items. Each pet will require 3 old world grey items (1 of each item). Think of it as a sort of scavenger hunt. It's a unique and refreshing mechanic vs. the usual spend gold/charms for vendor pets.

Since they're vendor trash, finding these items should be a no-brainer, right? Sure, except the revamped world-scaling kind of messed up certain loot tables, and players that aren't level appropriate for these old world greys won't see them drop in most cases. So it's a bit of a puzzle/search.

After some testing on *live* servers, I've determined where to find each of the junk items. All the items were collected on a max level character, except for one. I also needed a rogue to pickpocket mobs. There are probably other ways of collecting these items, but this is what I found worked for me.

I make no guarantee that the loot tables and droprates will stay the same between now and 9.1 release. Blizzard might adjust anything that they see fit.

Hidden behind the jump break, just in case you don't want spoilers and want to figure it out on your own. ;)

8.2 PTR - Nazjatar Slimy Pets Process

Thanks to the efforts of @patf0rd on Twitter, we now know how we'll be collecting "slimy" pets in Patch 8.2.

Players will likely need to progress in the zone a little bit before being able to see lootable crystals around the area. Possible prerequisites: pick up and complete the one-time quest in front of a Ravenous Slime, and unlock World Quests in the zone.

1. Collect Prismatic Crystals (lootable objects lying on the ground on Nazjatar, usually near water/waterfalls, possible prerequisites prior to seeing these objects)
2. Use a crystal to charm a Nazjatar critter
3. "Feed" a Ravenous Slime (total of 4 different slimes) with the charmed critter (slime will 'fall asleep' and despawn after feeding)
4. Repeat for a few days with each slime and eventually the slimes will spawn as cocoons instead of 'falling asleep', with a lootable "slimy" pet inside

Here's a map of where the Ravenous Slimes are located, plus coordinates (thanks @patf0rd!):



/way 32.8 39.7 Slime 151875
/way 45.7 24.1 Slime 151874
/way 71.8 25.6 Slime 151782
/way 54.9 48.6 Slime 151218
As noted above, the crystals tend to spawn near waterfalls. It takes a while for them to respawn, but they do pop back up in what seems to be set locations. Check back every now and then for additional crystals.

Looting the cocoon drops a random "slimy" pet, and you can get duplicates. So it looks like we'll have to repeat this process many times to collect all 7.

Each slime that turns into a cocoon will not respawn the next day, and will instead reset the following week. So it's essentially a "weekly".

Further testing by @patf0rd revealed that feeding the slimes is character-specific and not account-wide. So I guess you could bring alts to Nazjatar to find/loot crystals for the process. This might give collectors more chances for the "slimy" pets that they need/want.

8.2 PTR - Wild Pet Colors of Mechagon & Nazjatar

Many of the upcoming wild pets on Mechagon and Nazjatar come in multiple skins. Here's a visual guide and some notes on these pets.

Most are unique colors and I haven't found any other pets that have the same model+color to stand-in for these wild pets. Other pets that I haven't yet collected on the PTR could be used as substitutes if they come in multiple skins, but we won't know for sure until 8.2 is released.

Image heavy after the page break!

Patch 8.2 PTR - Battle Pet Content in Mechagon and Nazjatar

In an effort to keep track of the upcoming Pet Battle content, here's an overview of each new zone. It's not complete or super detailed; I'm still trying to figure out how some of the mechanics work. Will continue to update this list as I discover more.

Nearly all wild pets come in multiple colors. I'll have a separate post on the Mechagon and Nazjatar wild pet skins.

For 8.2 wild pet collecting, I highly recommend creating and using /tar macros for the difficult-to-find pets. Or wait for flying. But that's awkward, as you'll likely be done with nearly all of the Mechagon and Nazjatar achievements (most are part of the meta-achievement, Team Aquashock, which rewards a new pet) long before flying is unlocked.

★ MECHAGON ★

Mighty Minions of Mechagon

Straight forward achievement. Defeat 8 Legendary lvl 25 NPC pets. They should be available to battle at any time, and I don't think there are any that are gated behind phasing or other content (correct me if I'm wrong).

Another reason you'll want to defeat these Legendary battles - after defeating each one the for the first time, you get a one-time quest that rewards a nice chunk of reputation.

Mecha-Safari

Fairly straight forward collecting achievement (12 wild pets), however there are a few pets that will be troublesome to collect (listed below).

• Experimental Roach - Pretty difficult to find relative to all of the other wild pets found on the island. Guessing it's either a 'only 1 up at a time' type of spawn, or it shares spawn points with its much, much more common cousin, Junkheap Roach.
• Duskytooth Snooter - Same as above. Normally only found in the "green" areas on the island.
  
• Rustbolt Clucker - This pet not spawning was confirmed a bug. It is now spawning, hopefully as intended.
• Specimen 97 - Only spawns in a small location that's often a daily quest area, so player attack spells and AOE have a high chance of clipping and killing this wild pet. There's also only one of these pets up at any given time, but thankfully its respawn timer is quick.
• Yellow Junkhopper - Very difficult to find as spawn locations are limited (only near habitable water). This leaves the pond in the northwest, smaller ponds in the trogg area, and some parts of the coastline (that aren't cliffs/hills). Guessing it's either a 'only 1 up at a time' type of spawn, or it shares spawn points with its much, much more common cousin, Fleeting Frog.

Notes: Some of these might be found inside the instance as well. Most appear to simply be very rare spawns, similar to the Stormstruck Beaver in Stormheim - shares a spawn with other wild pets, and isn't a common spawn.

Misc Mechagon pet collecting

Most non-wild pets will drop from rares, not a 100% guaranteed. Certain pets will be gated either behind time, daily quests, reputation, items, etc. Here's a list of the pet-related rare spawns that have a unique or special spawn mechanic.

• Armored Vaultbot - Requires you craft an Armored Vaultbot Key to open the Armored Vaultbot rare. Item requires a blueprint which can be looted from the rare after kiting it to Bolten Springpsark (in Bondo's Scrap Yard) when his Robot Cruncher Zapper is active (yellow circle next to him).
• Lost Robogrip - Requires you craft a Beastbot Powerpack to engage Malfunctioning Beastbot rare. Item requires a blueprint which can be looted near the rare or from its defeated body.
• OOX-35/MG - Requires the daily quest "My Chickens are not for eating!" to be up from Oglethorpe at the main quest hub.
• Snowsoft Nibbler - Requires the daily quest "Aid from Nordrassil" to be up from Mylune at the main quest hub. Head to the quest area (The Fleeting Forest) and click on the small mushrooms at the bottom of the trees 4 times to spawn the rare.
• Spraybot 0D - Rare only spawns when Drill Rig construction projects are available, found underground inside the Crumbling Cavern.
• Irradiated Elementaling - Unknown and unconfirmed drop. Speculated rares that could drop this pet (some rares might have unique/specific engage mechanics):
  

  - Rumblerocks
  - Gemicide
  - Uncle T'Rogg, Earthbreaker Gulroc, Boggac Skullbash, Crazed Trogg (all troggs)
  - Boilburn, Oxidized Leachbeast, Caustic Mechaslime, Foul Manifestation (all slimes)

For a full list of Mechagon pet-related rares, see the map image above. #4 & 5 are dependent on what daily/event is up, and is to mark the general area where the rare can pop up.

---------------------------------

★ NAZJATAR ★

Nautical Nuisances of Nazjatar

Similar to the Mechagon achievement. Defeat 12 Legendary lvl 25 NPC pets, should be available to battle at any time. Some are in difficult to reach areas. I don't think there are any that are gated behind phasing or other content (correct me if I'm wrong).

Another reason you'll want to defeat these Legendary battles - after defeating each one the for the first time, you get a one-time quest that rewards a nice chunk of reputation.

Nazjatari Safari

Collecting achievement that requires capturing 11 wild pets. Most can be found as secondaries, but a few are harder to find (listed below). Not aware of any prerequisites or phasing with any of these wild pets.

• Bloodseeker - I only found these as primaries in/near rivers around the middle of Nazjatar (Dragon's Teeth Basin & The Royal Approach). Only spawns 1 at a time? Or very few/limited spawns?
• Hissing Chitterspine - Only found inside the Chitterspine Grotto (cave entrance is near Gate of the Queen area, right next to Shadowspike Lurker). Tunnels are full of patting crabs, stealthed mobs, and elites. Very difficult to navigate safely, and there's only one Hissing Chitterspine spawn inside (but it has a very fast respawn time). If you get a lot of "Pet Battle area obstructed" errors, just kill the battle pet and hopefully a new one will quickly spawn in a better area.
• Sandclaw Sunshell - Found on the far eastern side of the zone, Kal'methir, The Drowned Market, and Zin-Azshari. Only saw one up, so might only be one spawn at a time, or very limited.

From The Belly Of The Jelly

Thanks to the efforts of @patf0rd on Twitter, we now know how we'll be collecting "slimy" pets in Patch 8.2.

1. Collect Prismatic Crystals (lootable objects lying on the ground on Nazjatar, usually near water/waterfalls, possible prerequisites prior to seeing these objects)
2. Use a crystal to charm a Nazjatar critter
3. "Feed" a Ravenous Slime (total of 4 different slimes) with the charmed critter
4. Repeat for a few days with each slime and eventually the slimes will spawn as cocoons with a lootable "slimy" pet inside

See this post for additional details on the slimy pets process.

Nazjatar vendor pets

• Prismatic Manapearls are the main currency of the zone. Earned doing dailies, looting treasures, etc. Need 190 for both pets.
• Nazjatar Battle Commendations are earned from PVP activities in Nazjatar. Battle for Nazjatar event, PVP War Supply Chests, etc. Need 30 for the one pet.

Misc Nazjatar pet collecting

Many battle pets drop from rares which are likely gated behind certain content/phasing. Not 100% guaranteed? Check out this achievement to see all Nazjatar rares or this map of all rare locations. Unsure if some have unique spawn mechanics or not.

7.3.5 PTR: New Pet, Pet PVP Achievements, and Uuna

UPDATE: More information on Mailemental can be found here. It's a reward from an achievement that you can earn once you've completed the initial questline. Getting the quest, though.... that could be the trickiest part!

-----------------------------------

PTR testing has begun! There are three notable updates so far, but I'm sure we'll see more as future PTR builds get implemented.

New Pet
First and foremost, new pet! Mailemental, likely inspired by a suggestion made on the Bnet Pet Battle forums. Fun "postal service" themed abilities! The pet is even holding an envelope lol :D

7.3.5 PTR: New battle pet, Mailemental (unknown how we'll get it at this time), inspired by an idea from the Bnet Pet Battle forums! https://t.co/dVbc1nf3pl pic.twitter.com/aLw7OBmHz8

— Quintessence (@perksnpeeves) November 30, 2017

Currently the Pet Journal doesn't list how we'll obtain this pet. But according to datamined files, it looks like we might have to complete a questline that has us delivering mail around Azeroth...? It's unknown how we'll even get the quest though.

This comment may shed some light, as it implies there might be a breadcrumb prerequisite. The catch? It might have limited spawns in Dalaran. We'll have to wait and see.

My biggest hope is that the Mailemental will have an interaction that allows us to use it as a temporary mailbox, similar to the upgraded Argent Squire hehe. :P


New Pet PVP Achievements
Jodmos from the WarcraftPets forum discovered a new set of Pet PVP challenges, à la Family Familiar/Fighter.

Each achievement requires 10 queued PVP Pet Battle wins with a team of all level 25 pets from the same family. 10 achievements total, and the meta-achievement awards a nifty new tabard, Master Trainer's Tabard.

Personally, I'm glad it doesn't reward a new pet. But instead provides something new to strive for for pet PVP enthusiasts and a cosmetic reward for their efforts. It helps keep Pet Battles PVP optional for *PET* collectors, but still adds some content for those that do choose to enjoy that aspect of pets.


Uuna's Continuation Story?
!! SPOILER WARNING !! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK !!
Some datamined dialogue involving Uuna was discovered in the PTR files.
!! SPOILER WARNING !! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK !!

For those unaware, Uuna's backstory is that she died on Argus yet her soul was infused into an Ur'zul. When you "collect" her (or adopt), you're liberating her spirit from that monster.

In 7.3.5 we might see a continuation of Uuna's journey, although it's unclear when, where or how. Wowhead Site Director Perculia speculates that it might be related or part of the new allied race Lightforged Draenei questline.

Will we be able to help Uuna's spirit find peace? What happens if we do? Does she leave us forever? It's still early on in the testing phase, so we'll have to wait and see.

As always, everything above is subject to change and nothing is guaranteed to make it to live from the PTR.

I'm so excited to learn more! :)

UPDATE: Some ominous sounding Tweets from Developer Jeremy Feasel... the future may not be bright for Uuna...

You should find Uuna, before it's too late, imo.

— Jeremy Feasel (@Muffinus) December 4, 2017

To be honest, this was very difficult to write.

— Jeremy Feasel (@Muffinus) December 4, 2017

Hold her tight.
You never know
what darkness she sees.

— Jeremy Feasel (@Muffinus) December 4, 2017

7.3 PTR: Time-Gated Pets of Argus

UPDATE: Blizzard has clarified the time-gated Argus progression timeline.

“Week 1” is currently active on the PTR. This includes the first two story chapters and their related unlocks, including World Quests in the first two Argus areas.
“Week 2” will activate tomorrow, August 16. This includes the next couple chapters of the story, access to the third Argus area, and Invasion Points
“Week 3” will activate Friday, August 18. This includes the remaining story chapters and the rest of 7.3’s non-raid content, such as the Seat of the Triumvirate dungeon and access to the Netherlight Crucible.

This would mean the following Argus-dropped pets will be available in the following order:

• Week 1 of 7.3 - Docile Skyfin, Fel-Afflicted Skyfin, Rebellious Imp, Cross Gazer, Uuna
• Week 3 2 of 7.3 - Grasping Manifestation
• Unknown - Cross Gazer (possibly week 1) and Uuna

Edit: Thanks again to @patf0rd for helping confirm whether or not Ataxon is available as a rare spawn even without Western Mac'Aree quests unlocked.

Edit #2: Per Gamescom 7.3 preview, they might have changed the zone order? Instead of Krokuun to Antoran Wastes to Mac'Aree, they're now saying Krokuun to Mac'Aree to Antoran Wastes.

If the latter is the case, this changes the order of which non-wild Argus pets we'll have access to:

• Week 1 - Docile Skyfin, Fel-Afflicted Skyfin, Grasping Manifestation
• Week 2 - Rebellious Imp, Cross Gazer, Uuna

If this is not the case and the progression will be as initially announced (Krokuun >> Antoran Wastes >> Mac'Aree):

• Week 1 - Docile Skyfin, Fel-Afflicted Skyfin, Rebellious Imp, Cross Gazer, Uuna
• Week 2 - Grasping Manifestation

---------------------------------

UPDATE #2: New information has confirmed that Cross Gazer will likely be available week 1 (unlock Antoran Wastes). Thanks to @patf0rd for helping unravel the mystery of Cross Gazer!

Players must get a buff called Agent of the All-Seer to loot Intact Demon Eyes. This buff can be obtained by either clicking on All-Seer's Focus located throughout Antoran Wastes, or by using items (All-Seer's Draught and Gift of the All-Seer) rewarded for turning in Intact Demon Eyes.

These Intact Eyes can be turned into Orix the All-Seer, located in a cave under the very eastern part of the Antoran Wastes bridge that spans over the fel pools. Turn in 1k Intact Eyes and you'll have your Cross Gazer pet!

It's unknown if there are any pre-requisites (other than unlocking the Antoran Wastes zone) for Orix's quests.

****

Also thanks to @patf0rd, we have some clarification on Uuna and The Many-Faced Devourer rare elite. This companion will likely be available during week 1 (unlock Antoran Wastes).

Obtain a Call of the Devourer (likely a zone-wide drop), and then collect Ur'zul Bone, Imp Bone, Fiend Bone from specific types of mobs objects on the ground. Combine them to create a Bone Effigy. Using this resulting item will spawn the rare elite.

It's unknown if Uuna is a 100% drop rate or not. It's also unknown if there are any pre-requisites for looting these items. Uuna is not 100% drop rate off of the rare elite. Thanks yet again to @patf0rd for figuring out how to collect this companion!

---------------------------------

Note: See above UPDATES above for information on which pets will be time-gated. The NPCs that have a chance to drop the pets CAN spawn as normal rare elites (not part of a WQ). It's unknown if the pets will only drop when the NPCs are up as rare elites or if they will also drop when they are spawned as WQs.

I've been doing some Argus testing on the 7.3 PTR, and noticed something interesting that might be important for pet collectors.

TLDR; a few Argus pets that drop off of rares might be locked behind quest progression, which will be time-gated (over the course of a few weeks) for everyone.

Initially, rares and rare elites behaved similarly to most WoD spawns. Consistent spawning with a "once per day, per character" type of mechanic. In the most recent PTR build, however, this seems to have changed. For a few NPCs, at least.

This is only my own speculation, but there seems to be a couple of different types of 'rares' on Argus. World Quest rares (think Demidos and Orumo the Observer, only drops loot when their quest area is active) and normal rare spawns (once per day, per character types).

After this week's PTR patch, one rarespawn (Ataxon) suddenly seemed to changes its behavior. Prior to the patch, it was up every day and marked as a rare (giant gold star) on your minimap, and it also dropped loot. Post-patch and although Ataxon was spawned for me, it was not flagged as a rare and killing it yielded no loot at all.

I did some research on Wowhead and it turns out Ataxon (plus another rare that drops a pet) is likely tied to Argus World Quests. This might mean they will only have loot for you during their active WQ (similar to Demidos and Orumo).

• Ataxon - Ataxon

drops Grasping Manifestation

• Mother Rosula - Den of Fiends

drops Rebellious Imp

On the other hand, Naroua appears to have two IDs for the same NPC. One for the rare that's spawned all of the time (thanks to @patf0rd for confirming), and one for the rare that's the objective of a WQ. The other two NPCs only seem to have one ID (for their WQ).

So what does this mean for pet collectors? If the two rares are only available for loot when their WQ is active, the pets that drop off these two NPCs will be gated by quest progression. To unlock WQs for certain regions of each Argus zone, you need to complete specific portions of the Argus story.

For Mother Rosula WQ - complete quest The Burning Heart

I believe this takes place toward the end of the quest chain at Krokuun, and during transition to the next zone, Antoran Wastes.

For Ataxon WQ - complete quest Seat of the Triumvirate: The Crest of Knowledge

Mac'Aree seems to be the final zone you'll head to, so this quest chain will take longer to access. There's an earlier quest, Sigil of Awakening, that unlocks Mac'Aree WQs in general, however I've completed that and Ataxon was still not available for me. This leads me to believe that you need to complete the quest that specifically awards Western Mac'Aree WQs (this is where the NPC is located).

During the recent Developer Q&A with Ion Hazzikostas, it was clarified that the Argus story will follow a time-gated model.

From Wowhead liveblog of the Q&A: Argus should have lots of stuff to do -- it has 5 chapters and you'll have lots of stuff to do. The second week, you'll unlock invasion points and the second zone. After the second week, you'll unlock the Netherlight Crucible and the dungeon, the Seat of the Triumvirate.

The noted rares above, if they are indeed tied to WQs, will depend on your own quest progression and time-gating. Pet collectors will probably be unable to jump right in and collect these specific pets. But I should mention that there are MANY other pets that will be readily available for collecting in 7.3. Pet collectors won't be without anything to do. ;)

Anyway, this is still the PTR so the above is all subject to change. These are just my initial observations and speculation - ones that I wanted to share with the community as early as possible to try and stem confusion. I know how frustrating it can be to feel unsure of what's "supposed" to happen and if you're doing something "wrong", especially in Legion where gating/time-gating is noticeably prevalent.

Last but not least, a couple other quests/NPCs that also drop pets but I've found no information/details on:

• (World?) Quest - A Pile of Intact Demon Eyes (see Update #2 at the top of this post!)

drops Cross Gazer

Area/zone? At what point in the quest chain is this available?

• NPC - The Many-Faced Devourer (see Update #2 at the top of this post!)

drops Uuna

Area/zone? Tied to a WQ? Or spawned consistently with a once per day, per character loot mechanic? At what point in the quest chain is it available?

If you have any information on these two, or any corrections/clarifications on any of the above, please let me know!

7.3 PTR - Argus Wild Pet Colors

I couldn't wait for the new wild pets found on Argus in 7.3, so I did some testing on the PTR. It turns out that 4 out of the 12 new wild pets will come in at least two colors. If there are other wild pets that come in various skins, I haven't seen them yet -- please let me know!


Antoran Bile Larva (Antoran Wastes) - comes in green and red



Bile Larva (Krokuun) - comes in green and purple



Pygmy Marsuul (Mac'Aree) - comes in blue and yellow-green



Skyfin Juvenile (Mac'Aree) - comes in blue-orange and orange-white


The two larva pets share the same coloring (green), so if you're looking to collect all available colors you'll only need to collect two of one and then the remaining color of the other larva pet. Or you can collect two each - to each their own! I believe these pets do come in at least a few different breeds... all the more reason to collect more? ;P

Personally, my favorite out of the four is the Skyfin Juvenile. Such a neat looking pet in such vibrant colors!

I'm SO looking forward to collecting all of the Argus wild pets in 7.3! While I enjoy making sure my collection is complete with all possible pet colors, I'm a little glad that there's only a few that have different skins. Otherwise I think my Pet Journal would overflow hehe.

It's a bit surprising that there's no 'Argus Safari' (collect all wild pets of Argus) achievement, but that's ok. There's plenty of pet content coming already. ^^;

7.3 PTR - Argus Pet Battle Content

UPDATE: Developer Jeremy Feasel has pointed out that the Crysa and Environeer Bert encounters are using some new tech on the PTR. Their pets will scale down to match the highest level pet on your team! :O

Example of scaling battles (Crysa) on 7.3 PTR. My team was all lvl 1 pets, her pets scaled down and only had first ability unlocked too. pic.twitter.com/Q5IIoqpQ9A

— Quintessence (@perksnpeeves) August 4, 2017

The quality of the trainer pets do not change, however the abilities they have available to them does change depending on their scaled level.

Some really interesting stuff here! If this initial trial goes well, I wonder if we can expect to see this tech deployed to all trainer battles? It might make getting into Pet Battlers much easier for newer players.

--------------------------

Gigantic pet update in today's PTR build. Will update with more detailed information once I'm able to go through it all.

Summary:

• New achievements (Family Familiar-style but for Argus)
• 23 new pets, 12 of which are wild from Argus

--------------------------

New achievements break down:

• Family Fighter (similar to Family Familiar meta-achievement) - Reward is a new pet, Felclaw Marsuul
• Aquatic Assault
• Beast Blitz
• Critical Critters
• Draconic Destruction
• Elemental Escalation
• Fierce Fliers
• Humanoid Havoc
• Magical Mayhem
• Mechanical Melee
• Unstoppable Undead

Unlike Family Familiar which only requires 12 out of the total number of trainers, it sounds like each achievement under Family Fighter requires defeating all 18 of the following Argus Pet Battle World Quests/pet NPCs:

• Baneglow
• Bloat
• Bucky
• Corrupted Blood of Argus
• Deathscreech
• Earseeker
• Foulclaw
• Gloamwing
• Gnasher
• Mar'cuus
• Minixis
• One-of-Many
• Pilfer
• Retch
• Ruinhoof
• Shadeflicker
• Snozz
• Watcher

UPDATE: According to developer Jeremy Feasel, all 18 pet NPCs will be spawned indefinitely and can be battled even if their World Quest isn't active. Hooray!

PSA: [Family Fighter] pets are up all the time, and can be battled even if their WQ isn't up. Do the achievement at your own pace!

— Jeremy Feasel (@Muffinus) August 2, 2017

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New pets break down: Wowhead has a list with images of the new pets here, plus an early preview of a datamined pet, Twilight Kitten.

A text version of all datamined 7.3 pets can be found here.

• Wild pets: 12 (Argus)
• Drops: 5
• Quest reward: 1
• Achievement reward: 1
• In-game holiday event: 1 (Winter Veil)
• Vendor: 1
• Unknown: 2

Twilight Kitten, which is not listed in the Pet Journal currently, also falls under "unknown". However, @perculia has stated that the datamined info says it will be from the in-game Blizzard shop.

Patch 7.3 PTR: Raiding With Leashes V....?!

UPDATE: Possibly 18 new pet NPCs on Argus, similar to the Tanaan Jungle legendary NPCs? Thanks to @patf0rd and Paladance on WarcraftPets Discord for pointing this out.

Developer Jeremy Feasel also noted:

They will have brand new abilities and world quests next week, keep a look out for the next PTR build! Also some fun achievements :)

— Jeremy Feasel (@Muffinus) July 29, 2017

Can't wait to check these new Pet Battles out!

! → Also, additional updates on RWLV color-changers and Celestial Calf down below.

-----------------------

This week was a big surprise for pet collectors - Raiding With Leashes V: Cuteaclysm popped up on the 7.3 PTR! The previous Raiding With Leashes IV was released in Patch 7.1, so the next installment wasn't expected so soon. What a wonderful surprise! :D

Collectors will need to obtain 15 new pets from Cataclysm-era raids, and upon collecting them all will be rewarded with Amalgam of Destruction.



Here's a break down of the pets and which raid/boss they'll drop from. Image heavy warning!

7.3 PTR - Datamined New Pets and Models

UPDATE: Dibbler will NOT be from a Gnomeregan Pet Battle Dungeon. There's currently no indication that this dungeon will be in 7.3.

However, @patf0rd discovered where the Leprous Sack of Pet Supplies will come from, a new trainer!

Environeer Bert is a new trainer with an all mechanical team. He can be found in Gnomeregan, in the left tunnel after exiting the elevator. He offers the daily quest, 'Bert's Bots', which awards the new bag.

I went out to try out his battle and I have to say, I think it's a bit overtuned and buggy right now. As detailed in @patf0rd's @patf0rd's Wowhead comment comment, M-37's Firebomb ability does Elemental damage instead of Mechanical as advertised in the tooltip.

This combined with how hard some abilities hit makes me think this encounter is overtuned. Especially when compared to a similar all-single-pet family trainer, Crysa. The dot also targets pets that burrow/use evasion effects, which makes it even more brutal. I don't think the difficulty level matches how accessible Bert's daily is.

But we'll see what happens. The fight may need some tweaking, but overall it's an interesting battle! (Let's just not talk about the RNG bag though....)

-------------------------------

Blizzard was not joking when they said more content at a faster pace in Legion -- 7.3 PTR is already here! *whew*

As always, everything discovered/datamined from the PTR is subject to change before patch release. We're still very early on in the PTR testing, so some content may still be WIP or not yet available.

New content

• 4 New pets:
  

  Dibbler - Drop from Leprous Sack of Pet Supplies (hint of upcoming Gnomeregan Pet Battle Dungeon?!)
  
  Ghost Shark - Pet Journal lists it as a vendor item from Nat Pagle fishing, but could be placeholder info
  
  Golden Retriever (datamined by Wowhead) - Unknown source
  
  Naxxy - Vendor pet during Hallow's End, costs 150 Tricky Treats

• New Summon Random Favorite Pet Button in the Pet Journal
• Datamined Australian Shepherd puppy models

7.3 PTR - 3 new pets and new Summon Random Fav Battle Pet button. https://t.co/YKKc0hrSUb pic.twitter.com/qCjPLoB03p

— Quintessence (@perksnpeeves) June 29, 2017

This is just the tip of the iceberg, I'm sure. The Gnomeregan Pet Battle Dungeon hasn't been officially announced/released for testing/confirmed yet, but... *crosses fingers* ^^;

I can't wait to see what else 7.3 has in store for pet collectors and battlers!

Squirky Now Available & 7.2.5 PTR Updates

This week has been full of pet news!


First and foremost is Squirky (at last!) -- Blizzard revealed where this battle pet comes from. As many collectors already guessed, she can be found on Seabreak Isle, off the north-western coast of Azsuna. Squirky is a level 25 wild pet that you have to capture, so I hope you're well equipped to deal with the 110 hostile elites roaming the small island. :P

But not only is Squirky finally available in-game, Blizzard also released a plushie version! Another baby murloc plush joins the family. :)

(Note: The in-game pet and the plushie are not tied to each other. You do not need to buy the plushie to collect the battle pet.)

Second bit of news comes from the 7.2.5 PTR. Two new pets and an updated pet from a previous build.

• Ageless Bronze Drake - Drops from Time-Lost Wallet (The Deaths of Chromie scenario)
• Bronze Proto-Whelp - Drops from Time-Lost Wallet (The Deaths of Chromie scenario)
• Sun Darter Hatchling - Drops from Oddly-Colored Egg

The Ageless Bronze Drake uses a mount model, scaled down, which is pretty neat! It's possible this is just a placeholder model though, but having more mini-mount pets would open up so many pet possibilities!

I'm not quite sure if the Time-Lost Wallet is a general reward for completing the scenario, or if it's more of a rarer drop/reward. It's also unclear how often we can complete the scenario. In general, even after reading a preview, I really don't know/understand much of the new feature. All I know for sure, so far, is that I dislike timed-events...which is what the Chromie scenario seems to be.

Hopefully more information with more detail will be released soon.

The other newest pet, Sun Darter Hatchling, is very lovely indeed!

Also new on PTR: Sun Darter Hatchling! So pretty <3 Drops from Oddly-Colored Egg. pic.twitter.com/SJ4BFKtZVX

— Quintessence (@perksnpeeves) May 24, 2017

It's unknown where the Oddly-Colored Egg will come from, however the flavor text of the pet makes it sound as if it could come from Argus. Either directly from the future zone, or transported to Azeroth from the other world.

Again, all of this is subject to change, so we'll just have to wait and see!

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. ^^;

7.2 PTR - Pet Battle Dungeon (Wailing Caverns) Preview + First Impressions

Patch 7.2 will bring a new feature and challenge for Pet Battlers: a Pet Battle Dungeon!

Requirements: players must be level 110 and have a level 25 pet

The NPC in Dalaran (Broken Isles) will offer a new quest, A Call From the Caverns, which sends you to search for Muyani in Northern Barrens. You'll find this NPC in the left eye-socket of the skull above Wailing Caverns (see image below).

     
She'll have a second quest, Wailing Critters, and this sends you into a scenario version of Wailing Caverns to defeat the enemy pets inside. Speak with her again after picking up the quest to queue into the dungeon.


There's a total of 7 Stages in the Pet Battle Dungeon. Not a short run, so be prepared to sit down and do some Pet Battling!

► Stage 1 - Defeat 3 different pets, Deviate Smallclaw (common beast), Deviate Chomper (common aquatic), Deviate Flapper (common flying)

Each pet comes with 2 adds. The pets are all level 25, common quality, and have the Elite passive.

Enemy teams are "locked" per instance. If you leave and rezone, the secondary pets on the enemy teams may change slightly.

Leaving the dungeon resets your progress, so only exit if you're ok with restarting the entire run.

You can heal/revive on the initial run (see below for additional details on a "challenge mode" version of the scenario).

Unknown if this is a bug or intended, but forfeiting most fights will result in your pet team taking damage (similar to forfeiting wild battles).

► Stage 2 - Defeat Son of Skum (epic beast, 1745 HP, 305 Power, 294 Speed) and his 2 friends

One level 25, epic quality enemy pet with the Boss passive, plus two additional non-epic adds (no Boss passive)

► Stage 3 - Defeat 3 different pets, Phyxia, Dreadcoil, Vilefang (all uncommon beasts)

Similar to Stage 1, each encounter comes with 2 adds. All level 25, varying quality, Elite passive.

► Stage 4 - Defeat Hiss (epic beast, 1614 HP, 319 Power, 311 Speed) and his 2 friends

Same as Stage 2, one level 25, epic quality enemy with Boss passive, plus two additional non-epic adds (no Boss passive)

► Stage 5 - Defeat 2 different pets, Growing Ectoplasm x2 (both rare magic pets)

Each enemy comes with 2 adds; all level 25, varying quality, Elite passive

Traveling to each battle requires running up a long tunnel. There are pulsating mushrooms (they're attackable) spread out around there that give you a stacking movement speed (debuff: Bilebloat).

► Stage 6 - Confront the Shadowy Figure (le gasp! step not required in challenge-version)

There's no actual Pet Battling for this objective. Simply walk up to the shadowy NPC lying on the ground (he gets up once you get close enough, you can follow him). Some dialogue/RP will occur, and you'll move onto the final stage.

► Stage 7 - Defeat Budding Everliving Spore (legendary elemental, 2231 HP, 353 Power, 300 Speed) and his 2 friends

Single pet fight against a level 25 legendary with the Boss passive, plus two additional non-epic adds (no Boss passive).

Once you've completed the final stage, you can jump down the cliff and speak with the NPC who will teleport you out.

Currently, if you complete the quest, zone out, and then zone back in, all of the enemy pets will reappear inside. I don't know if this intended or not. I haven't tested how much pet experience is earned from each battle, so I can't say if zoning in and out of the Pet Battle Dungeon would be a good tactic to level pets or not.

Turn in the quest and you'll be rewarded with an Ultimate Battle-Training Stone. 'But...is that it?' you might be wondering. That's definitely NOT the end!

Muyani will have a follow up quest (must have a certain number of max level pets, possibly 15, for this quest to pop up):

Pet Battle Challenge: Wailing Caverns (account-wide weekly quest) - This quest rewards Damp Pet Supplies (chance to drop 3 new pets).

There's a catch to re-entering the Pet Battle Dungeon for the second quest: NO healing or reviving (similar to the Celestial Tournament). That's right, this is the "Challenge Mode" version of the dungeon!

Note: You do not need to complete Normal each week in order to get the Challenge quest. After completing Normal the first week, you'll have direct access to Challenge mode from then on out.

With this in mind, I'd say this version is meant for more experienced and veteran battlers. This is a great option for those looking for something more along the lines of "end game" (although I'm sure some will be annoyed that they need to do the initial "easy/boring" dungeon first, before heading into the harder stuff).

---------------------------------

My initial impressions (I've already left feedback on the Bnet forums, but I'll go ahead and add them here too)...

Pros:

• Fairly accessible to Pet Battlers of varying experience/knowledge. Initial run was straight forward, no real difficult gimmick. Only needed a handful of pets to complete the run.
• Unlike Celestial Tournie, you can heal/revive in the initial run. Makes it less punishing for newer/less experienced battlers.
• A second run can be done ("challenge mode") where no healing/reviving is allowed. Excellent option for more experienced battlers! (different reward)
• Interesting cliffhanger for the initial quest! The antagonist is still at large, so I hope this hints at future Pet Battle content continuing the storyline. :)

Cons:

• Forfeiting the majority of the encounters results in your team taking damage (similar to forfeiting wild battles). This may be a relatively minor issue, but will cause issue/headache for those that attempt the "challenge mode" version.
• There's no easy/obvious way to exit the dungeon at the end, other than jumping down from the cliff.
• Traveling to Wailing Caverns is a bit annoying, but minor issue.
• Time commitment. This dungeon isn't exactly short. 7 Stages to go through takes time. Debatable if it's too long of a scenario. Exiting resets your progress so taking a break isn't an option.

The "normal mode" version of the dungeon will be very straight forward for veteran battlers. I only needed a few pets to defeat all encounters. You'll mainly go up against beast, flying, and aquatic pet families, so as long as you have pets that are strong/counter those, it should be relatively easy.

I've yet to try the Celestial Tournament version of the dungeon, so I can't comment on the difficulty level there yet. I'm thinking of waiting until there's a fix for losing pet health when you forfeit some of the battles, because that seems like an added and unnecessary level of headache.

All in all, I'm glad that there's something for everyone. Newer battler? Can still give this Pet Battle a try! Veteran battler? There's a challenge for you in there...go get it. ;)

I'm undecided on the rewards. The battlestone I could see benefiting newbies. Veterans will probably just bank it or use it on a spare pet (to sell/trade/keep).

The "challenge mode" reward seems appealing at first, but depending on the drop rate of the 3 new pets... it could become a tedious chore if it requires MANY MANY runs. Like I noted earlier, this isn't exactly a short run. Getting to Wailing Caverns also takes some time as well. The amount of time needed to get there, do the run, and then contending with RNG bag drops... it could get frustrating.

Not to mention the rewards are essentially reskins of existing pets. Is this enough of a draw for collectors?

Once collectors have the 3 new pets, what's to keep them from going back? Nothing, really. But I guess most abandoned the Celestial Tournament after getting all of the rewards, too. Perhaps the longevity of this content is not that big of a deal.

We'll see how well received (or not) this content is with the pet community. I'm cautiously optimistic about it. Although I may have enjoyed the experience for the most part, I can definitely see how this dungeon might come off as mediocre or 'ho-hum' to others.

7.2 PTR (Already!) - 8 New Pets

2017 is starting off with a fairly big bang for Pet Battlers/collectors! The 7.2 PTR is up and running, although much of it still seems like a WIP. More updates/fixes are sure to come as things get flushed out.

There are currently 8 new pets (with a model of a Hearthstone pet, datamined by Wowhead, that's yet to be added to the Pet Journal). Not much information is provided on the new pets, but here's what's available so far.

Note: Everything is still a WIP and is subject to change.

The Whelplings are listed as "PH", and the model of the Frost and Unholy ones are the same (Unholy Whelpling not pictured). I suspect that their models aren't complete yet, so keep in mind that these images/details may not represent the final product.



Blood Whelpling - unique "PH"



Cavern Moccasin - Drop: Damp Pet Supplies



Crackers - Order Hall: Hall of Shadows (rogue)



Everliving Spore - Drop: Damp Pet Supplies



Frost Whelpling - unique "PH"



Scraps - ???


(NOT PICTURED - currently uses same model as Frost Whelpling)
Unholy Whelpling - unique "PH"



Young Venomfang - Drop: Damp Pet Supplies

From what I can tell, there seems to be 4 new class pets (3 DK and 1 rogue), a new pet reward bag that drops 3 pets, and then Scraps... which doesn't have a tooltip description in the Pet Journal yet. This could mean it's either not yet finished, or it's not actually collectible (I'd REALLY love for it to be though!).

The new pet reward bag, Damp Pet Supplies is from the "challenge mode" version of the new Pet Battle Dungeon. More details in my blog post on this new feature.

Other new pet additions to 7.2:
- Pet Battle Dungeon (see my blog post dedicated to the Pet Battle Dungeon)
- @Mononic1 on Twitter discovered what appears to be a new Trainer on the Broken Isles, Sissix (can't interact with the NPC yet?)

Anyway, more to come, I'm sure. Exciting stuff! :D

Shiny Mountain Cottontail Is Back In 7.1

Yesterday while doing a Pet Battle World Quest on the 7.1 PTR, I noticed that one of the adds in the fight looked a little odd. At first I thought my eyes were deceiving me, but upon closer inspection I discovered the Mountain Cottontail in all its glossy glory!

After the battle I promptly sought out a wild Mountain Cottontail on the PTR and found one as a secondary pet. It took a few restarts, but I managed to get it spawn in with its new shiny appearance.


It seems the special version of the cottontail will be back in 7.1! (see above screenshot for glossy skin on the left and normal white on the right)

Unfortunately the updated look doesn't seem to be retroactive. The existing Mountain Cottontail in my Pet Journal on the PTR (was originally shiny) did not have the new skin. Instead, it remained a color-changer so it had the chance to be spawn in with the glossy appearance, but it wasn't guaranteed. Capturing a new cottontail that started out with the shiny skin guaranteed that it retained the look.

It's a little inconvenient that we'll have to capture new Mountain Cottontails in 7.1, but on the bright side we won't have to travel to Redridge to find these wild bunnies. They also appear in Highmountan in Legion, hooray!

I'm ecstatic that this special wild pet will be making a come back. Big THANK YOU to Blizzard for maintaining these small details that mean so much to some collectors. It's the little things that make the game that much more fun and amazing. ❤

7.1 PTR - Falcosaur Battle Pet Preview

NOTE: As of Patch 7.1 release the falcosaur WQ areas are a bit buggy, resulting in the Orphaned Hatchling not spawning even after defeating the Matriarch. It should appear as soon as you kill the Matriarch, but there are weird phasing issues in these questing areas that might be affecting the hatchling spawn for some and not others.

Here are some things you can try to troubleshoot:

- Re-zone (leave the questing area and come back)
- If in a group, drop group and reform
- If not in a group, find someone from your server that's in the same zone and create a group with them
- Relog
- Kill the Matriarch again (be sure to loot her body) and again and again...and again!

And if this wasn't clear already, the Orphaned Hatchling does not spawn directly on or next to the Matriarch. It has a static spawn in the quest area, sometimes fairly far away from the Matriarch's location. Using /tar orphan helps.

Also, yes, you can collect both falcosaur hatchlings in the same day. There is no cooldown for collecting them.

There is, however, an internal cooldown on the quests that the hatchlings give. It seems to be a day for most players.

It's possible to pick up additional quests if you have other level 110 characters, however this does not always work for everyone, and it's unclear if it's intended, a bug, or could be seen as an exploit. Blizzard has not commented on this. Attempt at your own discretion.

Just be patient - your pet is just a baby still, give it some time! :)

Good luck to everyone seeking these pets (and/or the mounts)!

Edit: If you're looking to collect just the mounts, be aware that 2 out of the 4 mounts will NOT be available until the Nighthold is released. The Direbeak and Bloodgazer questlines require boss kills in this upcoming raid zone.

The only 2 mounts currently available are Snowfeather and Sharptalon.

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Developer Jeremey Feasel reminded me yesterday that in addition to the RWLIV content coming in 7.1, there are baby flacosaurus pets to collect! And after testing on the PTR, I can definitely say that they are pretty unique pets, obtained in a unique way.

Four new falcosaur battle pets are coming in the 7.1 Patch:

• Bloodgazer Hatchling - Azsuna
• Direbeak Hatchling - Stormheim
• Sharptalon Hatchling - Val'sharah
• Snowfeather Hatchling - Highmountain

To obtain them, you must first have the World Quest for their area. Sharptalon Swarm! for the Sharptalon Hatchling, Direbeak Swarm! for the Direbeak Hatchling, and so on.

These WQs seem to be up for 2 days each, and more than one can be active at a time. I'm not sure what the respawn/cooldown time is for these quests.

If the World Quest for a specific type is not up, it doesn't seem possible to collect the pet of that species. This is because the Matriarch of the brood will not spawn, and she's the key to finding the orphaned hatchling.


Defeating a Matriarch of any of the four falcosaur species will spawn an orphaned hatchling nearby. (We're monsters, I know. Killing the mother just to scoop up the babies.)

I found using "/tar orphan" helpful, but they appear to be static spawns so once you know the location of one, you can return to the same spot for that species.

The orphan appears to remain spawned so long as the World Quest for its type is active and/or if you haven't collected it yet. You can leave the area and come back, and if the quest is still up the orphaned hatchling will still be there.

Interacting with the orphaned hatchling will initially yield nothing except flavor dialogue. But a hint was dropped on Twitter that each falcosaur pets' description in the Pet Journal might provide some insight.

Here are the descriptions for each of the falcosaur babies. Pay close attention to the underlined part.

• Bloodgazer Hatchling - "Though they may look fierce, the bloodgazer species of falcosaur has a beak that makes it predisposed to consuming fruits."

• Direbeak Hatchling - "Direbeak falcosaurs are heartier than other falcosaur species, but cannot smell as well. They prefer pungent meals and will often eat carrion that has been sitting in the sun for days."

• Sharptalon Hatchling - "Sharptalon falcosaurs can subsist entirely on a diet of small nuts and berries, and use their talons mostly for defense."

• Snowfeather Hatchling - "Snowfeather falcosaur hatchlings instinctively flee to nearby adults when threatened. The species is particularly fond of large prey."

Each falcosaur has a special type of food that they respond to. Bring it the right food and you'll get a wonderful reward!


So after brainstorming for a while and trying out different items (and failing a lot) for the Direbeak and Sharptalon Hatchlings, I got lucky and purchased the right food for the Bloodgazer Hatchling. As the Pet Journal noted, they enjoy fruit. But not just any fruit, Azsunian Grapes!


Perhaps the food each falcosaur is native to the zone they're found in? With that in mind I searched for different foods purchasable in Val'sharah for the Sharptalon Hatchling. There weren't any nuts to be found, but there were a few different kinds of berries. And what do you know? It took some of my Dried Bilberries!

I'm not sure if each hatchling will only accept a specific food, or if a variety of nommies are ok so long as they fall into their preferred food category.

That's as far as I've gone in terms of collecting these baby dino-birds. The orphaned Direbeak despawned on me since the WQ timed out, and I've yet to see the Snowfeather quest pop up. This leaves me some time to brainstorm what food to bring for each falcosaur though. My current guesses are Pungent Vrykul Gamalost or Pungent and Moldy Gamalost and Charcoaled Elderhorn. Stinky cheeses and large game fits their description right? :P

UPDATE: Orphaned Snowfeather loves some Smoked Elderhorn. And Orphaned Direbeak likes Pungent Vrykul Gamalost.

But wait, there's more! These hatchlings aren't just for collecting, there are quests to complete as well. They remind me a little of the Children's Week orphan quest chains.


After adding these pets to your Pet Journal and then summoning it out, the hatchlings will each have a quest for you. Level them up to 25!

Leveling it to max will complete the quest. The hatchlings require a nap time after each adventure (there seems to be an internal cooldown on the quests), but your hatchling will eventually have a new task for you.


I only have two out of the four falcosaurs, so I can't be certain -- but it seems each one has a slightly different quest chain. You can have different quests active at the same time. After leveling each one to 25, I received the following:

- The Smell of Draenei - Bloodgazer (take your Bloodgazer to Exodar Inn)

- The Smell of Night Elves - Sharptalon (take your Sharptalon to Darnassus Inn)

What happens after completing this quest? I'm not sure. My hatchlings are currently worn out and need a break from all the traveling. I'll be sure to update once a new quest pops up for me though!

UPDATE: The quest chains seem to follow this pattern

Patch 7.1 PTR: Algalon Pet Battle Strategy

After many frustrating attempts, multiple failed strategies, and hours of trial and error... I finally defeated Algalon the Observer in a Pet Battle on the PTR and completed the quest that rewards Stardust!


This battle was possibly the toughest I've ever encountered. Algalon has high health, hard-hitting, Elite legendary pets that had annoying abilities...so I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of people run into trouble with this battle.

I'm sure some will have no problem defeating him, but if you're like me and find yourself struggling against him, here is the strategy/pets that I used. (I wish I could battle him again so I could test out my strategy to make sure it wasn't just a fluke, but alas you can't fight him once you've defeated him once.)

Keep in mind that this is PTR, so Algalon's pets/battle is subject to change.

Pets:
Macabre Marionette - H/P (1/2/1)
Emerald Proto-Whelp - P/P (1/1/2)
Infested Bear Cub - H/H (1/2/2) (I think H/P could work as well)

Strategy:
1.) Macabre Marionette - Siphon Life, Dead Man's Party, and then Macabre Maraca twice to finish off Comet.

Notes: The second Macabre Maraca should hit while you're on your Undead-round (when the marionette comes back to life).

Comet CAN crit you. If that happens and he kills you before you can get your second Macabre Maraca off, restart the fight.

2.) Comet dies, Macabre Marionette dies. Swap to Emerald Proto-Whelp, Algalon swaps to Cosmos.

3.) Emerald Proto-Whelp - Emerald Dream, Ancient Blessing, and constantly use these two healing abilities whenever they're off cooldown while filling in the gaps with Breath until Cosmos dies.

Notes: You must time Emerald Dream just before Cosmos' force-swap ability. The bunny uses this ability on cooldown, which is annoying. However, when your pet is asleep, Algalon's pet cannot swap it out.

4.) Cosmos dies, Emerald Proto-Whelp should still be alive, Algalon swaps to Constellatius

4b.) (Optional) Emerald Proto-Whelp - Ancient Blessing just for good measure (if available, not entirely necessary)

5.) Swap to Infested Bear Cub

6.) Infested Bear Cub - Use Hibernate on cooldown and just pass your turn until Constellatius kills all active pets with Apocalypse.

Notes: Because the Infested Bear Cub is Undead, it will take less damage from Constellatius' only attack (Tail Sweep), giving you more room for error.

Algalon's pet uses Wish pretty much on cooldown. Instead of trying to beat through the healing, use its Apocalypse ability against him. Outlast Constellatius by healing your pet and letting Apocalypse expire, killing all active pets.

Emerald Proto-Whelp should be last pet standing. Hooray, you've won!

I'm absolutely ecstatic that I finally defeated this encounter. I went through many different strategies and struggled so much; I thought that I would just have to wait until a pet battle-theorycrafter came up with a viable strategy.

But after consulting the OH and having him give it some attempts, we formulated a solid plan that involved knocking down Algalon's first pet (dragon) because it did massive AOE, avoiding getting force-swapped when facing his second pet (bunny), and then simply letting his third pet (hippo) kill itself. A huge thank you to the OH for helping me brainstorm and test different ideas. :)

Although it was initially VERY frustrating, it was ultimately VERY satisfying completing this Pet Battle. I can't wait to do it again on live once Patch 7.1 is released!

Last but not least, Stardust's idle animation - it turns into a shooting star, flies up into the air and circles around for a little bit before falling back down next to you. NEAT! :D

7.1 PTR Preview: Raiding With Leashes IV and Algalon the Cosmic Pet Battler

The 7.1 PTR recently went up and new Pet Battle content is on the way. There's juicy pet news! :D

Much to every collector's delight, it was revealed that Raiding With Leashes IV: Wrath of the Lick King would be featured in the next content patch.

Previous RWL pets had some fun and interesting interactions/idle animations, so I was hoping these new pets would also have quirky attributes.

I'm happy to say that after some testing, it appears that the majority of them do do stuff! Some are only color-changers, but that's still awesome. I hope their color changing ability is intended and they stay that way. :)

Here they are, broken down into each raid (image-heavy warning):