WoW Forever News · items · dungeons · beta
An axe that mines ore and a sword for battle mages: WoW Forever's rule-breaking loot is showing up in dungeons
Now that testers have reached the level 20 cap, the items that make WoW Forever different from a remake are being found. An axe from the Deadmines mines ore 30 times without the mining skill, which frees up a profession slot. The Coldflame Saber in Shadowfang Keep makes melee attacks burn frozen targets, so a mage can fight in melee. A Cozy Sleeping Bag gives a 3% XP buff that stacks with cooking's 5%. Blizzard deliberately kept many items out of the datamined files.
By the WoW Forever Builds News Desk ·
For the first few hours the WoW Forever beta looks like the game you remember, with extra quests. Once testers hit the level 20 cap and started clearing the dungeons properly, the picture changed. The new items do things Classic items were never allowed to do.
An axe that mines for you
The clearest example drops from an enemy in the Deadmines. It is an axe you can use to mine ore without the Mining profession, about 30 times before it is used up.
Think about what that does to profession planning. The usual pattern is one gathering profession feeding one crafting profession. If a consumable tool can gather for you, and you can collect more than one, you can run two crafting professions and still get materials. That was close to impossible in 2004, and it is a real change for anyone planning an alt and profession setup for launch.
A sword that wants your mage in melee
The second find is the Coldflame Saber, from Shadowfang Keep. Its bonus makes your melee attacks deal fire damage to frozen targets.
Read that as a Mage and it is obvious: freeze the target, then hit it with the sword. Classic Mages carried a weapon for its stats and never swung it. A frost Mage with this sword has a reason to stand next to something, which used to be the fastest way to get removed from a group.
This is Season of Discovery thinking, where Mages could tank, arriving in a much smaller dose. Forever looks less extreme, but the direction is the same: items that unlock a playstyle rather than just adding stats.
A sleeping bag that stacks with your cooking buff
The Cozy Sleeping Bag, an item players will recognise from Season of Discovery, has also been found. Rest in it for three minutes and you get a 3% experience buff, and it stacks with the 5% from a cooked meal.
An 8% XP bonus is small in a single session, but for a race to 60 at launch, or for a second or third alt, it adds up. Expect it to be standard in leveling routes. Our leveling guides will include it once the source is confirmed.
Blizzard is hiding things from dataminers on purpose
The most interesting part: many of the new items were not in the datamined files. Blizzard kept them out so players would find them in the world. Testers have also started finding hidden books that hand out strong rare items while leveling.
That matches what senior game designer Josh Greenfield told MMORPG.com about hiding item stats until an item drops. Between the two, the first weeks after November 4 will belong to explorers rather than spreadsheets.
What this means for launch
- Open every book and click strange objects. Some of them pay out.
- Do not plan professions around Classic rules. A tool that gathers for you changes the maths.
- Keep an eye on dungeon blues. A weapon with the right effect can beat a better item, which is exactly what Blizzard said it wanted.
We will add each confirmed item to the gear section with its source.
Sources
How this article was made: drafted with AI from the sources listed above, then checked and edited by the WoW Forever Builds team before publishing. WoW Forever Builds is a fan site and not affiliated with Blizzard Entertainment.
