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!

WoD Alpha - First Round of Datamining

LeCraft shared some "sneak peaks" on Twitter (note the "#tipsytweets" XD).

"No pet battle patch notes? Baby hippos, baby gronn, carpnado, elite pet trainers, eggs, and leveling stones. Boom. Plus more. #tipsytweets"

Now, I was excited about these small tidbits, however the 'Carpnado' portion really threw me off. I just couldn't believe that the April Fool's gag from WarcraftPets would really be implemented into WoW. With that in mind, I wasn't sure if I should dismiss this Tweet as half-truths or take it as something that needed more detail and explanation.

Well it turns out that it was the latter!

Wowhead has datamined the WoD alpha and discovered some new Pet Battle abilities and descriptions. (IMPORTANT: No alpha keys have been distributed at this time. Any emails mentioning a free key or invite to alpha is likely a phishing attempt and should NOT be opened.)

Carpnado: Summons a frenzy of furious fish on your enemies, dealing X damage, split evenly amongst them.

Tenacious and terrible, the mighty Hogs slaughters weaker enemies without hesitation.

Both heads are equally fearsome on the terrifying chimaera, each capable of its own unique breath attack.

The dark wings will cloud and consume the minds of the weak, because they are just so adorable!

This massive weapon of destruction has been miniaturized for use in the garden. Moles beware!

Made from bits and pieces of vanquished battle pets, dark magic, and just a pinch of love.

Cute enough to eat, but not recommended.

The frost, sometimes it makes the carrot stick in the ground. Not this one.

So even though Carpnado didn't make it into the game as an actual pet, an attack of the same name may be just as awesome! I can't wait to check it out and see if it's as hilarious as it is in my mind. I've been playing my Witch Doctor in D3 quite a lot lately, and Piranhado is an absolute must for me. Hopefully Carpnado in WoW will be something similar, if not more amusing.

Exciting times, pet collectors and battlers - WoD alpha has arrived!

EDIT: The cooking profession might be getting two new pets added to the craft:

Carrotus Maximus - Teaches you how to summon this companion.

Old Cooking Pot - Teaches you how to summon Lil' Leftovers.

Thanks to @EpicGems on Twitter for pointing this out to me!

EDIT #2: MMO-Champion has done their own round of datamining.

Savage Safari Hat - Huntin' pets is dangerous business. Don't go out without your hat.

Mechanical Toucan - Teaches you how to summon this companion.

New Possible Trainer In WoD Garrisons

LeCraft Tweeted a screenshot of an interesting NPC team that "might just visit your garrison in the future."


Nevermind my insane jealousy over this NPC having Mini Tyrael and Mini Diablo on her team; this screenshot provides an interesting preview of a future PVE battle. We'll be fighting one humanoid (that has magical attacks), another humanoid (standard humanoid abilities), and one Magical pet (possibly humanoid, magic, undead or elemental attacks).

If I were more of a pet theorycrafter, I might be able to anticipate what abilities these pets would take to produce the best team synergy. But alas. I can only stare at these little guys and cry a little on the inside because they'll never be in my pet army :( lol.

An additional tidbit LeCraft is revealing with this screenshot is that Garrisons will provide some new Pet Battle PVE content. We already knew that there MIGHT be pet breeding inside our personal player housing, but other than that, what could Garrisons mean for pet lovers? Perhaps random trainer battles each day, unlockable content, specific and unique rewards, etc.? There are many possibilities involving the Garrisons, and it'll be interesting to see how it plays out.

I just hope it doesn't cost me an arm and a leg or a bazillion years of my character's life to get to all of it. :P