10 things we’re most excited for in World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth

The Heart of Azeroth. Maybe.

I am only tentatively optimistic for the new “artifact” mechanic, The Heart of Azeroth. Artifacts in Legion were interesting, powerful, spec-specific weapons that allowed you to customize your skill tree, but things got a little bit out of hand there toward the end as Blizzard couldn’t find a way to keep making the traits meaningful at higher and higher levels. The Heart of Azeroth splits this into at least three different armor slots and is still spec-specific, but without the glitz and glam of carrying around a cool weapon everyone can see.

I’m not a big fan of weird skill trees, and I dislike that the skill paths seem to change every expansion so I have to relearn a whole new customization method. None of this is to say the Heart of Azeroth will be no good. But I remember my awe and delight when the artifact weapons for Legion were first revealed, and I’m feeling none of that excitement for some weird Titan thing I have to carry around in my pocket to give myself helm upgrades.

Next: BlizzCon 2017: What to expect from Hearthstone: Kobolds and Catacombs

Bonus: Upright orcs, more toons, bigger backpacks

At later panels from BlizzCon2017, we learned more fun facts about what mechanical changes await us in Battle for Azeroth. Much-needed changes like the ability to make certain races stand up straight (male orcs, for sure), larger basic backpack sizes, an iLevel squish to make gear make more sense, and more character slots (for all those new races) have us pumped for the sheer convenience of it all. We can’t wait for more details about these features.