After rumors spread throughout Kharanos and Ironforge about Mekgineer Thermaplugg preparing his irradiated soldiers to meet the growing gnomish clamoring for the reclamation of their once-great city, High Tinker Mekkatorque today exclaimed Operation: Gnomeregan to be imminent, describing his former ally Thermaplugg’s irradiation of the beloved city as “a date which will live in a proportionate rate of increase in impropriety!” Speaking to a small conglomerate of various Alliance representatives, Mekkatorque pointed out that the time to strike is now. After all, Thermaplugg has eluded death for years to keep his reign over Gnomeregan; and with the fall of the Lich King, the last great threat to the citizens of Azeroth, the chance of any cataclysmic event taking place in the foreseeable future is “less than 12.7%,” Mekkatorque’s leading combat medical advisor Doc Cogspin purported.

With confirmation of the impending attack upon Gnomeregan comes your chance to get involved. Victory begins in Tinker Town! As great citizens of Azeroth and proud members of the Alliance, High Tinker Mekkatorque shall call upon you to serve his gnomes in exile. After all, the best offense is a good… offense! Whether you’re a hero of your people and slayer of the most dreadful Burning Legion and Scourge creatures, or an up-and-coming adventurer, you can start by motivating your gnome brethren to unite behind the Gnomeregan banner. All it takes is a bit of finesse with the Motivate-a-Tron to call gnomes to action. The device works flawlessly! After all, what good would it be if such a powerful invention ended up turning Tinker Town citizens into little critters? Almost no good!

With fresh new recruits at your side, Mekkatorque will send you to Steelgrill’s Depot, the staging grounds for the Gnomeregan offensive, where you’ll meet Captain Sparknozzle. Do as he commands by completing Drill Sergeant Steamcrank’s training and testing the operative capabilities of the brand new Mechano-Tanks before they’re shipped to the front lines. Seizing Gnomeregan is more important than your fear of heights, which will be put to the test as you’re summoned by Pilot Muzzlesprock to neutralize the irradiation vents bruising the Gnomeregan horizon in a critical Radiageigatron bombing run.

Every man, woman, and child is called to serve! Even if you’re just barely getting your bearings on the art of combat in places like Kharanos or Elwynn Forest, you can do your part by helping fuel the war effort. A few dead boars leads to a few more comfortable siege pilot seats, and surely you can handle such a crucial step in the preparation for facing Thermaplugg’s poisoned followers. You can even help master wordsmith Toby Zeigear in writing High Tinker Mekkatorque’s battle cry. The road to success will be paved by you, and you’ll be rewarded as such with a commendation of Gnomeregan Pride, allowing you to temporarily don the uniform of the elite Gnomeregan Infantry.

Thermaplugg is no trifling gnome, though his arrogance will be his undoing! Even still, he is undoubtedly preparing never-before-seen forces to meet this assault. Only the most battle-hardened heroes of the Alliance (levels 75-80) will be called to serve during Operation: Gnomeregan. When Mekkatorque determines the operation is ready to get underway, you must speak with him on the front lines before following him on a full assault of the enemy air field, surface command post, and into the tunnels of lower Gnomeregan. It is said that Thermaplugg has employed the use of so-called “Brag”-bots to spread his propaganda and hubris. Be not afraid of his words, fellow members of the Alliance. Stick with Mekkatorque and Doc Cogspin to ensure your safety. After all, you wouldn’t want to lose the grace of Cogspin’s Surgeon General’s Warding. Gnomeregan must be cleansed of irradiation and the troggs it was intended to repel. It is time to reclaim this modern marvel and earn your very own Gnomeregan Overcloak, a testament to your historic bravery in the face of madness!

Operation: Gnomeregan is coming, and the Gnomeregan Exiles want YOU!

The mare Brightmane gave birth to Invincible as a young Prince Arthas watched with rapt attention.
In the years following Invincible’s birth, the horse and Arthas formed a bond that carried them across the warring nations of Azeroth, through the icy grip of death, and into the throes of battle.

The stallion’s coiled muscles were made for speed, and Arthas often felt that his mount flew rather than galloped across the countryside. With the slightest touch of his heel, Arthas was able to convey his directions, and Invincible obeyed without question or hesitation.

It was Invincible’s unfaltering faith in his master that inevitably led to the stallion’s death and unholy rebirth. On a cold winter afternoon as snow was blanketing the ground, Arthas was desperate to get away from the city even if it meant riding through harsh and unforgiving weather. Once outside, Arthas guided Invincible over a familiar jump, but the stallion slipped on slick ice, and the fall shattered his forelegs. With no way to save his companion, Arthas was forced to give Invincible a merciful death, and the prince carried that guilt with him for a very long time.

Years later, after the Lich King granted Arthas necromantic powers, Arthas returned to the grave where he had buried Invincible and raised his loyal servant into undeath. It was in this dark act that Arthas felt a sense of purpose. He believed that Invincible’s death was not an accident; rather, it was essential to Arthas’s destiny.

Invincible was not bred to be a warhorse, but after he was brought back from the dead and made immune to hunger, pain, and exhaustion, he became the perfect steed for Arthas. Now the skeletal charger stalks Icecrown Citadel, ever at the ready to serve his beloved master.

Arthas and Invincible were as one until parted by the stallion’s untimely death. Now, they are rejoined in death through the power of the Lich King and pose a fearsome sight for all who gaze upon them. Only the power of the heroes of Azeroth can part them once more.

In order to attain such a steed, one must conquer Icecrown Citadel and face the Lich King on Heroic difficulty. Perhaps you will be the lucky individual to obtain the most coveted of mounts — the Invincible Charger. This reward awaits those who are brave enough to tempt fate and face the full wrath of the Lich King!

Professor Putricide is a boss in the Plagueworks wing of the Icecrown Citadel raid.
This boss is available since January 5, 2010 on US servers and January 6 on EU servers.

10-man Strategy

You will want an offtank to click the table Putricide stands at before he is pulled to become the Abomination for the fight. Then at 35%, the offtank helps tank Putricide. Since this encounter relies heavily on high DPS and much of the damage is avoidable, using two healers instead of three provides added DPS to the encounter.

Phase 1: 100% to 80%.

Putricide will spawn growing slime pools throughout the encounter, which the abomination pilot (the offtank) eats to gain ooze power. If you are almost out of ooze, stop eating the puddle to retain your source of ooze power, as you will need the ooze power to snare the Volatile Oozes and Gas Clouds. You will cause 4,000 damage every 2 seconds to the raid while an abomination is piloted. If your abominations dies, you can click the table again to obtain a new one.

Tank Putricide next to the Orange tank on the left side of the room to start with. Not long after the pull you will see a raid warning for “Unstable Experiment,” which causes a Volatile Ooze to spawn next to the Green tank on the right side of the room. Ranged DPS should switch to it immediately and melee DPS should switch to it as soon as it is clear who it is targetting. The Volatile Ooze will root a player in place and move towards them; your abomination pilot needs to snare it with Regurgitated Ooze. It will explode for 175,000 damage split between every player standing on top of the affected person. When the Volatize Ooze is close, all players should collapse on the affected player. If the Ooze is not yet dead it will acquire a new target and do the same thing. It needs to die quickly.

After the Ooze is dead, move Putricide next to the Green tank. He will soon cast another Unstable Experiment and spawn a Gas Cloud next to the Orange tank. The Gas Cloud also follows a random player, applying a dot called Gaseous Bloat on them, which requires a lot of healing. Gaseous Bloat starts with numerous stacks that decrease over time. Should the Gas Cloud reach its targetted player while stacks still remain, the raid takes a large amount of damage, potentailly wiping the raid. The targetted player must kite the cloud around the room while everyone else kills it. The abomination pilot should also snare it.

After this, Putricide should be moved back to the Orange tank. The add spawns alternately in a predictable manner.
Alternate Tactic

A different approach to dealing with the Volatile Oozes is to have the raid stack where the Volatile Ooze spawns. Healers will be near the ranged, but will move away from the target of the Volatile Ooze. When the Volatile Ooze spawns, melee and ranged will quickly kill it. If a healer is the target, ranged will move and stack with the targeted healer. Damage will be split between ranged and melee and they will be thrown back. Quickly finish off the Volatile Ooze before it hits another player. AoE healers can start pre-casting to quickly bring the health back up. With sufficient DPS and less movement, the raid should enter phase 2 before the first Gas Cloud spawns. Handling the Gas Cloud remains the same. This approach works in phase 2 for the Volatile Ooze as well, the raid will still need to watch for Choking Gas Bombs and Malleable Ooze.

Note: This method is not reccomended for low DPS groups.

Phase 2: 80% to 35%

Putricide casts Tear Gas, which stuns the raid for 10 seconds while he phases.

All previous abilities continue in this phase. In addition, Putricide gain two new abilities: Choking Gas Bomb and Malleable Goo.

You can see Putricide holding Choking Gas Bombs (one in each hand), which look like orange laboratory flasks. When Putricide tosses these to the ground near him (and relatively close together), they form an orange cloud on the floor. These flasks explode after 20 seconds, killing nearby players.

Malleable Goo looks like a bouncing green slime ball. Putricide randomly targets and tosses the goo to a ranged player. These cause 20,000 AoE damage on impact, and slow attack/cast speeds by 200% on impact. Easily avoidable by moving out of the way of the goo.

You will need to keep killing adds and controlling slime pools while dealing with these abilities.

Phase 3: 35% to 0%

Professor Putricide casts tear gas again and phases. No more adds will spawn, however adds that are up will remain.

Save Heroism/Bloodlust for this phase. Your abomination driver will need to tank Putricide now. Malleable Goo, Choking Gas Bomb, and Slime Pools continue. You cannot get rid of slime pools anymore so they will grow until you are overrun or Putricide dies.

Putricide stacks a debuff on his current tank every 10 seconds called Mutated Plague, which has a one-minute expiration timer. This causes damage to the entire group, and should a person die from Mutated Plague, heals Putricide for a massive amount. Tanks should switch over at four stacks, and if a tank is going to lose their mutated plague stack, they should taunt, since Putricide is healed if the debuff expires. Switching at four stacks eliminates this issue.

Putricide also stacks a buff on himself called Mutated Strength, causing him to do more damage over time. Phase 3 is a burn phase in which Putricide must be killed in short order or he will wipe your raid. After about 80 seconds when someone gains a 5th stack of Mutated Plague it will cause too much damage to handle.

Putricide will berserk after 10 minutes of combat.

25-man Differences

• Professor Putricide will launch three Malleable Goo projectiles rather than just one.
• Three tanks will give you the most time to kill Putricide in Phase 3 since Mutated Plague triples in damage every stack. You must keep the debuff on all three tanks. Therefore each tank in turn will gain 2 stacks then gain 4 stacks in a 2/2/2 4/4/4 setup. After 120 seconds someone will gain a 5th stack, wiping the raid.

Heroic Difficulty

Heroic difficulty will feature “Thaddius-like” charges in the form of Gas Variable and Ooze Variable debuffs during the encounter.

Sindragosa, formerly the prime-consort of Malygos, is a mighty frost wyrm who was raised by the Lich King himself at Sindragosa’s Fall in Icecrown. She is the very same frost wyrm that the Lich King raised in the Wrath of the Lich King cinematic, as the same scene is played out after completing the quest Where Dragons Fell.

Sindragosa is briefly seen in the Pit of Saron, the second 5-man Icecrown instance, after the defeat of Scourgelord Tyrannus. While the leader of the army of liberated slaves (Martin Victus for Alliance, Gorkun Ironskull for Horde) commends the players for their bravery and their efforts to free them, Sindragosa flies up from the pit below and unleashes her fury, killing the leader and his army. The players are pulled back to the entrance tunnel by Jaina Proudmoore or Sylvanas Windrunner, saving them from a grisly death.

Sindragosa appears as a boss encounter in the Frostwing Halls inside Icecrown Citadel. She was one of the first two bosses to be announced, the other of course being the Lich King himself.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvJIdciEfjs[/youtube]

The Pit of Saron is the second wing of the Frozen Halls instances of Icecrown Citadel, released in patch 3.3. The enormous pit in the dungeon is filled with large extracts of saronite ore and the Scourge have taken many Alliance and Horde prisoners forcing them to mine the saronite or face torture and reanimation into undeath. The players help Jaina Proudmoore or Sylvanas Windrunner rescue the prisoners and put a stop to the Scourge’s operations and defeat the brutal scourge master of the area and his lieutenants.

To become “attuned” to the Pit of Saron, players are required to complete the quest Echoes of Tortured Souls (Alliance) / (Horde) in the Forge of Souls as part of the Frozen Halls story line quest chain.

The Pit of Saron, accessible only to those who have laid waste to the Forge of Souls’ unholy operations, will bring Horde and Alliance forces deeper into the Lich King’s domain. Players who venture here will immediately be confronted by the lord of this lair, Scourgelord Tyrannus. But defeating him will not be as easy as it seems. Before they can present a threat to Tyrannus, the adventurers, instructed by their leaders, will need to free enslaved allies who have been trapped by the Scourge. Until that happens, Tyrannus will leave all adversaries to his minions, workers of the citadel’s mines. Perhaps the challenges here will lend clues as to the whereabouts of the Lich King’s private chambers outside of the Frozen Throne, deep within the Halls of Reflection.

The Ashen Verdict is the name of the alliance struck between the Argent Crusade, led by Highlord Tirion Fordring, and the Knights of the Ebon Blade, led by Highlord Darion Mograine. Much like the Shattered Sun Offensive against Kael’thas Sunstrider, the Ashen Verdict is a combination of opposing orders for a common purpose: the final assault against the Scourge in Icecrown Citadel and the eventual fall of the Lich King.

The strongest combatants of this coalition, along with the champions of the Alliance and Horde, will lead the charge against the citadel.

As explained by Highlord Darion Mograine:

“The Ashen Verdict is a select group of the most talented craftsmen in the Ebon Blade and the Argent Crusade. Its creation symbolizes the unity of our forces as we mount this final assault on the Lich King and his minions. It is through the Ashen Verdict’s efforts that we have discovered how to bend saronite to our will.”

Grand Entrance of the Citadel

After breaching the fortress, players will face a legion of undead guards directed to repel any invaders. Commanding the defenders is Lord Marrowgar, a monstrosity fused together from the bones of the undead. Supreme Overseer of the Cult of the Damned, Lady Deathwhisper is the next opponent. She bolsters the faith of her followers by promising them the opportunity to give eternal service in undeath.

As they continue their ascent, the Alliance and Horde heroes ultimately end up outside of the citadel where their hatred for one another erupts into a battle for dominance over the Rampart of Skulls. Players will join in battle alongside High Overlord Saurfang on the Orgrim’s Hammer gunship or Muradin Bronzebeard on The Skybreaker in a unique encounter. Each faction will protect its gunship and try to destroy the other one in a back-and-forth battle to see who is truly worthy of facing the Lich King.

The Lich King’s most powerful death knight then stands as the final obstacle for the heroes to enter the upper reaches of the citadel.

The Wings of Icecrown Citadel

After the heroes of the Alliance or Horde defeat the other faction on the gunships and wipe out the creatures near the entrance, players will venture into an area with three separate wings. Here they will face a multitude of terrors that must be vanquished in order to confront the Lich King.

In the Frostwing Halls players will battle alongside the Ashen Verdict and push into the lair of the deadly frost wyrm Sindragosa, who continues to strengthen her brood with the help of Ymirheim’s vrykul. Along the way, the heroes will stumble upon Valithria Dreamwalker, a captured green dragon whom the Scourge is using as a test subject for their own ends….

The Plagueworks contains the most twisted experiments ever produced by the Scourge. In this wing players will face two new forms of abomination in Festergut and Rotface, who currently protect their devious creator, Professor Putricide.

The Crimson Hall contains the leaders of the San’layn, undead blood elves who oversee the Scourge’s operations throughout Azeroth. The blood-princes Valanar, Keleseth, and Taldaram were raised into undeath by the Lich King to avenge themselves while protecting their blood-queen, Lana’thel.

The Frozen Throne

After clearing all three wings, players will ascend to the Frozen Throne, where the Lich King and his runeblade, Frostmourne, await to deliver them to their deaths….

At last. In the Fall of the Lich King content update (3.3), the great doors of Icecrown Citadel will be forced open. The mightiest heroes of the Horde and Alliance will confront and finally defeat Arthas, the Lich King — but the lord of the Scourge will not easily part with his sword, his life, or his frozen kingdom.

This update includes an all-new raid and winged five-player dungeon; numerous interface improvements, including detailed quest tracking and instant cross-realm dungeons; scores of new quests and achievements; the epic tier-10 armor sets, and numerous class and system updates. You can find specific info, patch notes, and extensive details on all of the additions below.

The price of victory in Northrend grows higher with each passing day. Charge the gates, and bring an end to the wrath of the Lich King!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5N0pPaDyic&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

They finally released the official trailer for Patch 3.3: Fall of the Lich King. You can view it over on their site right now, or just enjoy it via the YouTube video embedded above. The Blizzard site is extremely slow right now, so we recommend just watching it here.

Fall of the Lich King, the latest World of Warcraft content update, is coming! The heroes of the Horde and the Alliance have faced unimaginable horrors and suffered terrible losses in their desperate struggle against the Scourge. Now the time has come to break through the fortified gates of Icecrown Citadel and confront the Lich King in the frozen heart of his domain. Follow Jaina Proudmoore or Sylvanas Windrunner through the Forge of Souls, Pit of Saron, and Halls of Reflection in an attempt to subvert the Lich King’s army in a new multi-wing 5-player dungeon. Join the Ashen Verdict as they charge through the citadel’s main gate to take on the Scourge’s most powerful leaders and fearsome monstrosities in a new 10- and 25-player raid. Fall of the Lich King also introduces the cross-realm Dungeon Finder interface, new quest-tracking features designed to make it easier to find objectives, and much more.

The latest test realm patch notes can always be found at http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/patchnotes/test-realm-patchnotes.html

The latest patch notes can always be found at http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/patchnotes/

Icecrown Citadel: The Frozen Halls

Looming over the stark wastes of Northrend, Icecrown Citadel awaits those who would see the Lich King and his Scourge brought low and the threat they pose wiped from the face of Azeroth. The heroes who venture within will face some of the greatest horrors yet seen. But before you burst into the front gate of the citadel, an alternate means of entry beckons. Journey through three separate wings of the new five-player dungeon, Icecrown Citadel: The Frozen Halls, and follow Jaina Proudmoore or Sylvanas Windrunner into the Lich King’s domain.

Icecrown Citadel: The Frozen Throne

All across Northrend, many battles have been fought against the vile Scourge. Countless lives have been lost since the Alliance and the Horde first reached these frozen wastes, but the champions of Azeroth continue to march forward — and Icecrown Citadel, the cornerstone of the Scourge’s power and the home base of the Lich King, is their final target. Tirion Fordring and the Argent Crusade have forged an accord with Darion Mograine and the Knights of the Ebon Blade to form the Ashen Verdict. This coalition’s strongest combatants, along with the champions of the Alliance and the Horde, will lead the charge against the citadel. In the new Icecrown Citadel raid dungeon, Azeroth’s mightiest will face terrifying challenges before ascending to the Frozen Throne, where the Lich King and his runeblade, Frostmourne, await to deliver the heroes to their deaths….

Cross-Realm Dungeon Finder

The Dungeon Finder is now available, providing players with quick and easy access to five-player parties. This feature connects all realms within a battlegroup using an advanced matchmaking system, making it easier for players of all levels to find a dungeon group. In addition, players can reap additional rewards through the Dungeon Finder by choosing the Random option, which is available to both pick-up and pre-formed groups. Check out the User Interface section for more details.

Getting Started and Quest Tracking

A number of changes have been made to World of Warcraft’s introductory experience, including updated character and class information at the character-selection screen, more robust tooltips with images, improved health and mana regeneration at lower levels, and adjustments to various classes designed to make it easier for players to get started. In addition, all-new quest-tracking features have been added to assist players in finding objectives, including new interface functionality in the quest log, the map (“M” key), and the Objectives pane.

Quest Tracking