Some of the first items you will ever loot in World of Warcraft: Forever just got a little more exciting. The latest beta build, which went live on Friday (October 16th), upgrades a handful of starting zone drops from plain white Common items to green Uncommon gear with brand-new stats.
Blizzard's official development notes for the beta make no mention of the change. It turned up in datamined item data from build 1.60.1.70425, and the same item changes show up across the game's public item databases, so it appears to be a deliberate change to the beta.
Which Items Changed
Most of the upgraded items drop in Elwynn Forest and Dun Morogh, with a few in Tirisfal Glades. All of them are now Uncommon quality and Bind on Equip, and each one picks up a small stat bonus along with a slight armor bump in some cases:
- Ice-covered Bracers (leather wrist, item level 12, requires level 7): armor up from 26 to 27, now gives +1 Agility
- Royal Frostmane Girdle (mail waist, item level 13, requires level 8): armor up from 69 to 73, now gives +2 Intellect
- Wendigo Fur Cloak (back, item level 11, requires level 6): now gives +1 Strength
- Wispy Cloak (back): item level up from 9 to 10, required level up from 3 to 5, armor up from 8 to 10, now gives +1 Spirit
- Ghostly Bracers (cloth wrist, item level 10, requires level 5): now gives +1 Intellect
- Ratty Old Belt (leather waist, item level 12, requires level 7): armor up from 33 to 35, now gives +2 Strength
- Lithe Boots (leather feet, item level 12, requires level 7): armor up from 40 to 42, now gives +2 Stamina
- Fingerless Gloves (cloth hands, item level 13, requires level 8): now gives +2 Agility
These are small numbers, and nobody is going to build a character around a +1 Spirit cloak. Still, anyone who has leveled a new character in Northshire or Coldridge Valley knows how exciting it is to see green text drop from a kobold or a trogg, and it gives early gear a bit more reason to exist.
Making the items Bind on Equip also means they can be traded or sold on the Auction House. That could give low-level characters a few early ways to make some gold, and it gives twinks and alts a few more options in the first handful of levels.
How It Fits With Other Beta Changes
The change lands during a busy stretch for gear and economy tuning in the beta. In the build notes for October 8th, Blizzard lowered several dungeon quest rewards from Rare to Uncommon quality, adjusted vendor prices for Enchanting wands, and raised the experience earned from dungeons by about 20%. A week earlier, crafted wands were changed to sell to vendors for just 1 copper.
The October 15th notes went even further, with a new tutorial, reworked racial traits, and reduced vendor sell prices for many items made with professions. Human Sword Specialization was replaced by a new trait called Ruthless, which adds 2% critical strike chance, while Dwarf Mace Specialization and Orc Axe Specialization were replaced by Earth Fury and Savage.
Taken together, these changes suggest Blizzard is trying to move value around at both ends of the leveling curve. Big quest rewards in dungeons are less powerful than before, crafted gear is worth less to vendors, and the very first zones now hand out a bit more loot with stats. It is a balancing act that will matter a lot for how the game's economy looks in the first few weeks after launch.
Since the change has not been mentioned in official notes yet, there is always a chance it gets adjusted or rolled back before release. Blizzard has been updating the beta every week, and players should expect a few more surprises before launch.
The Beta Is Almost Over
Players who want to see the new greens for themselves do not have much time left. The World of Warcraft: Forever beta is set to close next week (October 21st), and Blizzard is running an open stress test tomorrow (October 19th) that anyone can join without beta access.
The full game launches globally next month (November 4th), and access is included with a World of Warcraft subscription or Game Time. That means the next time most players see the Ratty Old Belt drop, it will be the real thing.
Do you like the idea of starting zones handing out green gear in World of Warcraft: Forever, or would you rather keep the first few levels as basic as possible?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.