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One of the new game modes in Battle for Azeroth is Island Expeditions, in which players are invited, as part of a group of 3 participants, to raid for Azerite on a variety of islands full of enemies, more enemies, and even more enemies. For those who remember the scenarios from Mists of Pandaria well, Expeditions should not come as a big surprise, since they are based on scenarios. But even if you remember all the scenarios by heart, it can be difficult to understand expeditions right away - after all, this is a new game mode. And just for such cases, there is our guide, which you can read at any time convenient for you.

Basics of Island Expeditions in Battle for Azeroth

The main goal of each Expedition is to collect a certain amount of Azerite, which depends on the selected difficulty level. The main reward for this is the power of the artifact, with which you strengthen your Heart of Azeroth amulet. It’s not just you who participate in Expeditions—along with your team, representatives of the enemy faction land on the islands and also seek to collect Azerite. These can be either AI-controlled NPCs or real players if the appropriate difficulty is selected. That's the basics - you land on an island, collect Azerite faster than the enemy team, and then head off with your reward. Everything else is details, and let’s talk about them in more detail.

Where to start the expedition?

First, you need to unlock Expeditions - to do this, simply follow the Battle for Azeroth storyline and level up your character. Once you've reached a sufficient level, a quest will become available in Boralus or Zuldazar Harbor (depending on the faction you choose) that will introduce you to the basics of Expeditions - the quest will be marked on the minimap as soon as it appears, so you won't miss it. After completing the introductory quest, you will be able to use the Expedition table located next to the quest NPC - the table is not marked on the map, so just remember where it is. On the table, in addition to familiarizing yourself with general information, you can select the difficulty level of the Expedition:

1. Normal difficulty - you need to collect 6000 units on the island. there are no requirements for the level of equipment, as well as bonuses to the mined Azerite and the health of opponents;

   Heroic difficulty - you need to collect 9000 units on the island. Azerite, equipment level 295 is required, the amount of Azerite mined increases by 50%, and the health of opponents by 100%;

   Mythic difficulty - you need to collect 12,000 units on the island. Azerite, equipment level 315 is required, the amount of Azerite mined increases by 100%, and the health of opponents by 200%;

   PvP – you need to collect 12,000 units on the island. Azerite, equipment level 295 is required, the amount of Azerite mined increases by 100%, and the health of opponents (except players) by 200%. Instead of NPCs, you will be confronted by a team of 3 players from the enemy faction.

After you select the Expedition difficulty that suits you, simply click on the button at the bottom of the Expeditions window and go on your journey.

Weekly Azerite Collection Quest

Once a week you have a task to collect 40,000 units. Azerite in expeditions - the reward for it is a whole bunch of artifact power for your amulet. It is not necessary to specifically complete this quest - just take part in Expeditions from time to time, and after several sorties you will probably accumulate a sufficient amount of Azerite. The difficulty you choose will affect how much Azerite you'll bring back from the Expedition, but again, it's not worth doing Expeditions just for the sake of the quest.

Arrival on the island

After you have chosen the difficulty of the Expedition and confirmed your participation in it, the search for a group begins - it lasts literally a couple of minutes. When all three players are ready, they are taken to the island. Before landing directly, you will have to wait 30 seconds, but then you can immediately start collecting Azerite. To successfully complete your task on the island, you need to know a few important things:

Azerite is found everywhere on the islands - in chests, deposits, and even in enemies. The larger the enemy or chest, the more Azerite you will find in it;

It is better for players to stick together, especially at higher difficulty levels, when even ordinary opponents will begin to pose a threat;

All the time that you spend on the island and do not die, charges of a negative effect accumulate on you - the number of charges is equal to the amount of Azerite that a member of the enemy team will receive if they defeat you. The same rule is true for members of the enemy team;

On any difficulty except PvP, the enemy team will consist of NPCs controlled by AI. They actively maneuver, try to exploit your character's weaknesses, and even use control abilities. When facing such a team, remember the old battlefield rule - get rid of the healer first;

On PvP difficulty, the Expedition turns into a small battlefield, although it is best to attack the enemy team only if they are ahead of you in collecting Azerite.

Sanctuaries on the islands

In addition to a variety of sources of Azerite and enemies on the islands, you can find shrines that can either help or harm you. When using the sanctuary, a positive effect is applied to the character that lasts 10 minutes. and compensated by some nasty thing. The sanctuaries are like this:

Altar of the Sea - gives Song of the Sea. This effect increases speed by 30%, but every 30 sec. deals damage from ice magic;

Corrupted Offering - given by Burnt Soul. This effect increases Mastery by 30%, but reduces maximum health by 50%;

Death Guard - gives Mark of Darkness. This effect increases your Shadow damage dealt by 30% and also allows you to occasionally deal additional Shadow damage. At the same time, damage received from light magic increases by 50%;

Totem dark forests- gives by the Heart of the Forests. This effect increases Nature damage dealt by 30% and also allows you to occasionally deal additional Nature damage. At the same time, damage received from arcane magic increases by 50%;

Moonlit ruins - gives Lunar Frenzy. This effect increases the critical strike parameter by 30%, but increases all magic damage received by 50%;

A relic overgrown with grass - gives Liberated Light. This effect increases Holy damage dealt by 30% and also allows you to occasionally deal additional Holy damage. At the same time, damage received from dark magic increases by 50%;

Pillar of Watchers - gives Zeal of Light. This effect increases all incoming and outgoing healing by 30%, but reduces parry, block and dodge by 100%;

Primordial Sanctuary - gives Enrage. This effect increases physical damage dealt by 30%, but reduces armor by 50%;

Stone covered with runes - gives Ancient magic. This effect increases Arcane damage dealt by 30% and also allows you to occasionally deal additional Arcane damage. At the same time, damage received from natural magic increases by 50%;

Slime-Covered Sanctuary - Gives Slippery Skin. This effect increases the character's movement speed by 30%, but when the effect is applied and dispelled, the character takes damage equal to 80% of his maximum health;

Font of Spirits – gives Absorption of Souls. This effect triggers when taking damage. He calls evil spirit, which can attack both the enemy and you;

Wanderer's Rest - gives Wanderer's Tempering. This effect increases your versatility by 30%, but reduces incoming healing by 60%.

Mariner's Doubloons

While participating in Expeditions, you will occasionally find a special currency that can only be used on the islands. The only merchant who accepts seafarer's doubloons will be waiting for you on the ship from which you land on the island. The items the merchant sells are randomly selected from big list– some of them are more useful than others, but they also cost not one coin, but two or even three. You should choose items based on your preferences and the chosen class - for example, if you deal damage, then choose an item that will help you deal more damage or compensate for the lack of healing.

Additional rewards

In addition to the artifact power for the Heart of Azeroth amulet, Expeditions are a real treasure trove for those who like to collect mounts, pets, toys or rare equipment. Such rewards come across quite rarely, but they still come across, opening up unprecedented opportunities for farming.

Question how to get to Outland meets in the fan community Games World of Warcraft very often. This is not surprising, since Outland is not connected to the WoW game worlds by land routes and travel there is only possible with the help of mysterious mystical forces. However, it is, of course, possible to get there. We will present all the methods, starting with the simplest and ending with the most difficult and dangerous.

Any magical whim for your magical money!

The easiest way to find yourself in Outland is to turn to a magician. Any sufficiently well-trained magician will organize your tour to this separate continent “for a fraction of the price” without talking. But this method also has its disadvantages:

• Price issue. The magician will take no less than 1015 gold for his services;
• If the purpose of your trip to Outland is to level up your character, then this method is not very rational due to the fact that the magician sends the “client” to the starting location (the capital of Outland - Shattrath).

Normal heroes always take a detour to end up in Outland.

Therefore, many choose more difficult path, entering Outland through the Dark Portal, which is located in the Blasted Lands. You can get there on your mount, however, you must take into account the likelihood of encountering quite serious monsters, so you should not go on such a risky journey without reaching at least level 58. The location of the Dark Portal is marked on the map below:

If you don’t have the strength or desire for a long and adventurous journey, you can use the portals located in the capitals. They will transport the player to the Scorched Earth, from where, in turn, the Dark Portal will transfer the character to the first location of Outland, that is, to the Hellfire Peninsula

In the capital of the Alliance, such a portal is located in Stormwind, near the entrance to the tower in which the magician trainers are located. If you play for the Horde, then your path should lie in Orgrimmar. Climbing the stairs leading to the trolls, you can find the desired portal.

Other known and legal ways in Outland does not exist. True, they say that there is a portal to the capital of Outland, Shattrath, in Dalaran. It would be nice to check it out!

It remains only to remind you that all of Outland consists of the following locations:

• Hellfire Peninsula
• Terokkar Forest
• Shadowmoon Valley
• Ostrogorye
• Nagrand
• Zagrantol
• Netherstorm

Have a nice trip!

Outland is considered a mainland, although in fact it is the remains of another planet, which was the homeland of the orcs. This continent became available to players in 2007 with the release of The Burning Crusade update, which increased the maximum level to 70 and added new races for each of the two factions. There are several locations in Outland designed for character levels from 58 to 70. The monsters here are much stronger than those who could be encountered at a similar level in the “old world,” but the experience gained for killing them is significantly greater. In addition, as prey from defeated opponents It is possible to obtain higher quality and more valuable items than players could find in Azeroth. This is why most players strive to get to Outland as soon as possible.

Free or for money

Technically, even a first-level character can move to Outland, if, of course, the required add-on is installed on the computer. To do this, you just need to contact another player who has a magician character enough high level. The mage class has the opportunity to open portals to all capitals of the world, including the city that is the capital of Outland. By the way, in Shattrath there are portals to the capitals of all races, so many players prefer to billet here. Keep in mind that some magicians may charge a fee for their services, but the standard rates are quite low.

The mage portal method has one significant drawback, since Shattrath is located not in the starting location of Outland, but in a neighboring one. Therefore, in order to begin the quest chains in Outland, you will have to return. However, there is a second, “official” option to move from Azeroth to Outland. As soon as your character reaches level 58, portals will appear in the mage guilds of the main capitals of the factions, allowing you to teleport to a location called “Scorched Lands,” which is located in the Eastern Kingdoms. The teleport will take you straight to a huge portal leading to Outland.

You can get to the Blasted Lands on your own, but for this you will need to travel quite a long way, since there is only one road leading there, passing through the Swamps of Sorrows. Considering that along the way you will have to fight with many monsters of a fairly high level, it is much easier to use the teleport in the capital. In addition, then you will not need to waste time searching for the portal itself in Outland.

In Battle for Azeroth, we visited two legendary places for the first time - Kul Tiras and Zandalar. We've been able to go to Tol Barad, Gilneas, Uldum, Tomb of Sargeras and Suramar for a long time. We've been to Draenor twice. Even places we once considered mythical (Pandaria) are now accessible to visit too. Will Azeroth be able to surprise us with something else?

We even reached the legendary Argus - the home of the Eredar and the stronghold of the Burning Legion. Therefore, at first glance, it may seem that there is nothing left unexplored in Azeroth, or beyond. But there are still several places where we have not been, and if we have been, we have not had the opportunity to thoroughly explore them.

Mine

In Battle for Azeroth we return to Kezan. Or at least part of it - a five-player dungeon called GOLD MINE!!! However, Kezan itself and the Mine have remained unexplored since Cataclysm. I'm glad that Blizzard gave us the opportunity to return there.

We were never shown the Mine itself, and not much time was spent on the goblins. They played an important role in Mists and Warlords, and serve as the main Azerite experts in BZA. But I would like to see some content related to their society instead of them just mining Azerite for the Horde.

Mine is huge underground city, and we know almost nothing about him. It's time to see what the goblins are doing there. It would be great if the city turned out to be a sprawling underground metropolis in a noir style.

Kingdom of Spiders

We got a glimpse of Azjol-Nerub in Wrath of the Lich King. We stopped the Scourge from conquering this place, and killed the servants of the ancient gods to boot. However, when we are in last time left An'kahet, its future remained uncertain. The Upper Kingdom of Azjol-Nerub was infected with the Scourge, as was Anub'arak itself. But the Old Kingdom was divided between the Scourge on the upper levels and the mad servants of the ancient gods on the lower levels. The strike of Sargeras' sword in Silithus threatens the world, but who knows what is happening in the fallen kingdom of the Nerubians?

The Nerubians were once part of the Black Empire of the Old Gods. It is unlikely that we will be able to resist the curiosity to return there and find out some secrets about our most important opponents, which we could discover in the ancient citadels of the Nerubian rulers. Remember that many outposts of the Nerubian Empire are located around Northrend, from Dragonblight to Icecrown just south of the Argent Tournament. This means that there are still many potential areas left for us to explore.

Emerald Dream

We've been to the Twisting Nether, Argus, and Outland. But there is one reality, intertwined with ours, to which we have paid too little attention.

The Emerald Dream is like the blueprint for Azeroth as the Titans forged it. It is a wild, untamed, pristine world that looks like Azeroth, but without all the torment and chaos of the past millennia of war and strife that corrupted it. But not everything is so perfect there either. The corruption of the ancient gods has seeped there in the form of the Emerald Nightmare, trapping travelers and destroying what it can reach.

We explored the Emerald Nightmare in one of the Legion raids, but left it immediately after defeating Nightmare Lord Xavius ​​without having explored much of the Dream. After Ysera's death, Eye of Ysera, former source the forces of green dragons in the Emerald Dream were left without protection. Existence itself is under threat. Moreover, the opposite can also happen. Without green dragons, the threat may arise from within the Dream and freely enter our world.

At its core, the Dream is the state of Azeroth before the advent of the mortal races. Imagine prehistoric Kalimdor without the Sundering. It is a vast landmass, much larger than the entire map of Azeroth today. If you took the current Kalimdor, Eastern Kingdoms, Northrend, Pandaria, Broken Isles, Kul Tiras, Zandalar and moved them to the Emerald Dreams, there would still be many free space. If anything, it may be too big for one expansion.

Darklands

If the Emerald Dream is the reality of lush, primordial life, then the Dark Lands are the reality of death and decline. If you went through the death knight starting area, you visited this place briefly. But we have no idea what they really look like. Maybe this is just a twisted reflection of reality, where everyone goes after death? Maybe it was this dark place that Arthas saw at the moment of his death? The dark lands are so unexplored that it is difficult to make even the slightest guess.

The prospect of visiting the Shadowlands is quite daunting, but it is most likely possible to get there. This may require powerful necromancer magic, but there has been a previous case of traveling there. Odin gave his eye to an entity from the Dark Lands in exchange for the power to create the Valkyrs. Valkyrs could move between the realities of the living and the dead, searching for the souls of worthy champions. The reality of Helya, which we visited in Legion, can be considered one of the examples of a pocket dimension within the Shadowlands. But there may be others out there that we need to explore. We might even encounter one of the creatures Odin made a deal with.

Unexplored Azeroth

We don't know what else Azeroth is hiding from us. What lies in the waters that wash the Eastern Kingdoms, Kalimdor, Northrend and Pandaria? They arose when ancient Kalimdor shook during the Sundering. Most of it went under water. Even today, the inhabitants of Azeroth prefer to navigate the Great Sea, despite the dangerous Maelstrom at its very heart. But there is very little information about this in the game itself. If Azeroth is spherical, then why don't people ever sail east from the Eastern Kingdoms to get to Kalimdor? Or does it just take longer? Maybe threats or obstacles await travelers there? Or is it just that no one dares to explore those places?

There's so much more Azeroth holds within itself. interesting places. Somewhere out there there could be entire continents the size of old Kalimdor. Or island chains like the Broken Isles. Or small continents scattered across the ocean. We don't yet know the exact size of Azeroth. There may be nothing else there. Or vice versa, many new places are waiting to be found.

AND we're talking about only about land. What can you find underwater? They say that ancient god N'Zoth sleeps somewhere in Ny'alotha, but we know almost nothing about it yet. And even though we haven’t been there yet... there’s still more to come.

Running a dungeon in World of Warcraft feels like what Groundhog Day in the movies would have been like if Bill Murray had never escaped the infinite loop on February 2nd. It's the same experience all over again - only instead of a weatherman I'm a druid, pounding my head against the keyboard wondering why I'm fighting this same boss for the hundredth time.

I truly love WoW dungeons, but they get repetitive. Mastering the specific strategies that each dungeon requires is like a choreographed dance, with timings and positioning that take a lot of practice. But if World of Warcraft's dungeons are choreography, the new expansion's Isle Expeditions, Battle for Azeroth, are like a night at an impromptu show. Except that other performers are trying to kill me. It's an adventure that makes World of Warcraft feel exciting and unpredictable again.

Island Expeditions have long been available in the Battle for Azeroth Closed Alpha. I spoke with Senior Producer Travis Day about them at a preview event this week, where Blizzard finally gave us the expansion's release date and some other interesting details.

Review

Island Expeditions are a new form of content in Battle for Azeroth. As a reminder of the scenarios from Mists of Pandaria, players will be part of teams of three to travel to a remote island to collect Azerite treasures and secrets. As with the old scenarios, your party's team composition is independent of role - you can have an Expedition with three DPS, three healers, or three tanks, and you should be able to complete it! The idea is that Island Expeditions should be quick content that typically lasts no more than 15-20 minutes.

Players will be dropped onto an island populated by various types of creatures. Even if it's an island you've visited before, Island Expeditions are randomly generated and may have different types creatures, capture points, chests, Azerite nodes, quests, Consumables, shrines, events and more!

Members of the opposing faction will compete for the same resources as you, and the first team will reach 6,000 victories! You will have to fight with enemy factions for resources and treasures on the island. The opposing faction AI is new to Battle for Azeroth and will try to play smart; The AI ​​comes in three difficulties: Normal, Heroic, and Mythic, which affects the difficulty of the AI. You can also choose PvP mode to play Island Adventures against other players.

How it works

It's Horde versus Alliance in a battle to collect 6,000 Azerites.

At the start of the match, players will spawn on their faction's ship and be released to explore the island. Goblins and Dwarves have developed technology to show the location of nearby Azerite on a map. All enemy creatures on the Island are composed of Azerite when killed, and players can find Azerite fragments throughout the island.

Around the island, players will find Rare Elite NPCs that are more powerful but cost more over time. Hostile players also cost Azerite when you kill them; the longer they live, the more they are worth!

Throughout the island, players can also find unique items that can be used to interact with other things on the island. For example, players can find a shovel around the island, which allows them to interact with a pile of dirt, or find a key that opens a cage with a friendly NPC.

After 10 minutes, the gnomes and goblins set up their technology to show every stack of Azerite and creature on the map. Elemental storms spawn a large number of Azeri nodes in the area, but also a large number of powerful creatures. In other cases, the elemental portal will be marked on the map, and taking the portal will lead you to the lair of the Elemental Boss. Killing the boss will reward a large amount of Azerite and two chests containing even more Azerite!

Island paradise

Island Expeditions is a seven-layer immersive dynamic systems experience that will result in a wildly different experience every time you play.

Isle Expeditions is one of two exciting new game modes coming to Battle for Azeroth. This is a unique PvPvE experience in which two opposing teams from three countries on uncharted islands collect Azerite, a new resource key to the conflict between the Alliance and the Horde. The mode is divided into regular difficulties from Normal to Mythic, which pits you against a team of advanced AI players with predefined personalities and playstyles. There's also a PvP mode that pits you against a team of real players.

Island Expeditions is a seven-level immersion of dynamic systems that will have a completely different experience each time you play it. “One of the things with the Island Expedition is that it's really just a boost for game agency and decision-making,” says senior producer Travis Day. "I think some of the best gameplay comes from actively making decisions about where you want to go and what you want to pursue."

Each team randomly appears somewhere on the island and begins killing creatures and performing other gathering activities. But here's where those seven levels of fall make a difference: while the basic layout of the island remains the same, almost everything about it is dynamic. “We achieve complexity and variability in several ways,” Day says. "We start with the islands self made, of which there are six, so this is our base layer. And then there are hundreds of different groups of NPCs and "events" that can appear in all the different places. AI that also works, that has its own behavior and really creates these unique experiences.”

What creatures spawn and where, random Azerites, your team composition, boss monsters, hidden puzzles, wild random events, and the enemy team's strategy will be different every time you play.

The types of elections and mentions of the Den agency are related to the on-the-fly strategy of what is the fastest way to engage in Azerite. Your team composition isn't tied to the trio of tanks, healers, and DPS, so it's important to know how to play your strengths and compensate for weakness. If you're a bunch of squishy DPS, you might choose to clear out weak packs of mobs but avoid a long boss fight. If you have a healer, you might decide to go after the enemy team or do your best to avoid them.

During my pass, we landed on the beach and started munching through a group of powerful hydras that appeared there. Slowly we made our way deep into the country, killing monsters, opening treasure chests and mining Azerbaijani deposits. It was a bit perplexing at first, but things really started to heat up a few minutes in as we went up against the enemy team. They may be AI, but they are still capable of kicking our asses.

A big part of Island Expeditions is the advanced AI behind the NPC team. World of Warcraft's monsters have been pretty stupid so far. If you get too close they will start attacking you with maybe one or two abilities. There's a reason they're called "garbage" in the dungeon. But during Island Expeditions, the enemy team is made up of characters that feel truly real. They have access to their full range of abilities, changing targets and adapting to new threats, and they even emulate the way most players jump around aimlessly like 90s teenagers.

It was easy for me to forget that these were AI opponents, especially after they shouted different words and slaughtered a large amount of Azerite in the process. The intensity of the race increased significantly and I loved the wide variety of choices my team had at every moment.

Compared to running the dungeon, it was refreshing how quickly things change during an Island Expeditions match. At some point, both teams were discovered in Azerite locations. Some time later, a massive Azerite golem spawned from vast reserves of this substance. As we tried to engage it, the enemy team arrived and put up an epic three-way battle as we desperately tried to stay ahead. After this battle, things got even crazier.

When the Azerite golem died, the elemental lord engulfed the entire island in wreaths of flame, turning all enemies into fire demons. Suddenly everything was different. A portal opened up that led to an entirely separate area where an elemental lord could be contested in exchange for crazy amounts of Azerite. Wanting to achieve victory, we beat it. Killing that boss, nervously looking at the portal, knowing that at any moment the enemy team could swoop in to steal our kill was exhilarating. I can't wait to try this against (hopefully) smart real players.

Killing that boss, nervously looking at the portal, knowing that at any moment the enemy team could swoop in to steal our kill was exhilarating.

If there's one area where Island Expeditions falls short, it's the "visual storytelling" that developers like Day have talked about. The idea is that the events of each expedition come together in a cohesive, anecdotal way. But in my experience it was more like pure chaos. I completely agree with this. A much more important success is that every time I stood in line for Island Expeditions, the experience felt fundamentally different.

At the same time, Day tells me that there will be a feeling of repetition when it comes to certain meetings. In the end, you should see the same bosses because there is satisfaction in learning how to fight them. But it's important to know if you need to do it. Near the enemy team? Is there more quick ways, which this composition of classes can control Azerite? Is this boss really annoying?

I can't wait for Battle for Azeroth just to see how island expeditions fit into the casual WoW player's already packed schedule. Blizzard hasn't been too open about it, but when I asked Day, he said Island Expeditions would "sit in the same space as dungeons and raids." This is a system that is designed to become the main activity. Not only will expeditions to the island reward you with the Azerite needed to upgrade your gear, but they will also lose equipment, currency, and maybe a few nice ones cosmetics For loading. Similar to dungeons, there will likely be some kind of daily bonus to encourage playing at least once a day.

Honestly, I can easily see that I want to play a lot more. Island Expeditions feel like the perfect vehicle for a repetitive dungeon task. It's unpredictable, wild, dirty, and damn fun. Already this looks like the kind of innovative idea I'm expecting to see.