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IncGamers has posted a comprehensive preview of upcoming features in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, the next expansion pack for the ever popular MMO from Blizzard Entertainment. The expansion will allow players to adventure as two new playable races, bring their characters to level 85, take on challenging quests and dungeons in all-new zones, and experience dramatic changes to familiar aspects of the game in the wake of a world-shattering disaster.

Players will also get access to new race/class combinations. The following will finally become available, offering much more choice to players starting new characters or wanting to change old ones:

Human Hunter
Orc Mage
Night Elf Mage
Dwarf Mage
Blood Elf Warrior
Dwarf Shaman
Undead Hunter
Tauren Paladin
Tauren Priest
Gnome Priest
Troll Druid

Perhaps the biggest news about Cataclysm comes from the name; Azeroth as we know it now will cease to exist. Most of the zones in Azeroth will change, some massively, others in more subtle ways. An early Horde zone, The Barrens, will be almost unrecognisable, split into two zones, one half becoming a lush oasis, the second becoming a volcanic landscape. Desolace, a largely unexplored area these days, will also be getting a make-over, becoming green and fertile. Other zones will change their recommended level, as Blizzard revealed that the path of levelling should be smoother. A new character should be able to progress through zones in a much more linear way now instead of having to 'hop' from one zone to another. This also gives Blizzard a chance to revise early quests and quest rewards (no more armor with Spirit and Agility, for example).

There was some big news for guilds; a new guild advancement system is being brought in that will benefit players who are part of a guild. In Cataclysm, everything a guild member does will go towards the advancement of their guild. Things like completing battlegrounds, raiding and heroics will improve the guild's standing, accumulating guild experience points and gaining points in its talent tree. There will be 20 levels that a guild can progress through, unlocking abilities such as a group resurrection spell and guild heirloom item recipes.

Finally, after years of pleading from players, Blizzard is introducing the ability to use flying mounts in 'old' Azeroth. This makes sense, considering that the new content will be based here. We could hardly be able to only fly in some zones and not others, could we?. Many players were shocked to hear this news though, as Blizzard has denied the possibility of flying in Azeroth in the past, claiming it would take too much development time to allow it. Many zones were simply never designed to be seen from above, but this news shows just how much work must have gone into re-designing Azeroth. Almost all of Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms must have been totally re-done.

IncGamers: WoW Cataclysm Preview

Blizzard Entertainment

World Of Warcraft: Cataclysm

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