WoW Classic: SoD Phase 2 Releasing February 8
Blizzard announced that the second phase of WoW SoD will launch on February 8th this year. The update will raise the level cap to 40, open up the Gnomeregan raid, introduce new runes, and add more content. This article will cover the key updates of SoD Phase 2, helping players quickly get up to speed with the new version, upgrade efficiently, and farm gold.
Leveling and Skills
Upon reaching level 40, each class's skill system will gradually improve, and all will gain core skills. These skills will enhance overall damage, ability to withstand injury, or healing. For instance, the Warrior's Sweeping Strikes at level 30 will improve their multi-targeting ability, while Mortal Strike at level 40 will become their primary melee attack. Similarly, other classes will acquire new powerful skills at level 40 to boost damage and improve gameplay experience and feedback.
PvP & PvE
Both PvP and PvE will enter a new stage.
PvP
The new PvP area is Stranglethorn Vale, which is also the focus of Stage Two. The current PvP area is Ashenvale, but due to the size of the map, previous PvP battles have been small and not massive. Stranglethorn Vale is different and extensive, and the second stage of PvP play will be a true battle between the two camps.
PvE
It has been confirmed that the raid for Stage 2 is Gnomeregan. Details related to this raid can be found in Gameusd's previous post. Additionally, the level 30-40 five-player dungeon will be open en masse, including the famous Scarlet Monastery and Uldaman. This stage offers a wide variety of equipment with excellent attributes, providing players with more choices for matching equipment or farming gold.
Runes
Due to the nature of SoD, players have limited access to additional details.
WOWHEAD discovered through data mining that future stages and levels will feature more rune slots. WOWHEAD has already uncovered nine items, including wrist guards, cloaks, shoes, head, shoulders, and waist, that can have runes inserted. Blizzard has confirmed that new runes will be available for SoD stages 40, 50, and 60 in the World of Warcraft Classic 2024 opening schedule released recently. Two new rune slots are expected to be added in each of the future stages.
Blizzard's official promo for SoD has revealed three new Warlock runes. The picture shows rune slots on the waist and foot equipment bar, which are likely the two new rune inserts for Stage 2. The icons and names of three foot runes, Soul Sacrifice, Power Soul Sacrifice, and Power Bargain, were also leaked on the right side. These runes have never appeared in previous versions of World of Warcraft, making it difficult to speculate on their effects based solely on their names. However, Demonic Knowledge, a Warlock talent from TBC and WLK, should have a similar effect.
Another clip from the official Season of Discovery promo leaks the icons and names of the three Paladin Waist runes, Ardent Defender, Howling Blast, and Augmented Seals.
Do you remember this image from the SoDoD announcement? The Rogue has a waist rune Shuriken Toss. Shuriken Toss is a new talent added to Rogue in the Pandaren sourcebook, with a base effect of throwing darts for physical damage. In the next version, it also turns a Shuriken Toss as a new talent added to Rogue in the Pandaren installment. The base effect is to throw darts for physical damage and 1 point.
Warrior's Warbringer rune description has already dramatized that Warrior will have the Intervene rune in the future, as Warrior did not have the Intervene skill in the original level 60.
Gladiator is another new rune for Warrior discovered through data mining, and it is apparently a replica of Warrior's Gladiator from the 6.0 Warlord of Draenor sourcebook. It should be noted that the Gladiator replaces the Combat rather than the Defensive and that the game position is high-damage with shield Warrior, in version 6.0 is mainly used for PVP.
Conclusion
The first phase of SoD is restricted by a level cap of 25. Both gameplay and class matching options are limited, leading to numerous player complaints. However, the second stage introduces a higher level cap and upgraded PvP maps, resulting in a much richer gameplay experience than the first stage. This stage is considered the prelude to the official tour for World of Warcraft players. Please stay tuned. Buy WoW SoD gold coins and items at Gameusd, if you have any needs.