It's official, but nobody was surprised when Blizard announced that The Burning Crusade expansion was coming to Classic World of Warcraft. Players are already discussing the next step they're going to take, and that's not just a matter of stepping into Outland, hitting those new dungeons and raids, and getting a flying mount. There's also a lot of buzz on the technical side regarding server changes and whether or not characters should progress past Classic WoW.
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While the discussion continues to rage on various Discord servers and Blizzard forums about the next steps for individual characters, some events, items, and activities are closer to the top of everyone's list. As soon as the Dark Portal opens, there are a few things you'll want to do without doubt or debate, and here they are.
10 Go Through The Dark Portal
The Badlands is a zone that doesn't get a lot of love in Classic because there's not a lot to do there pre-patch. For players who care about lore and are playing attention, however, it's interesting that the zone is populated by a variety of demons, corrupted animals, and Blood Elves. In other words, stuff that seems like it should be in Outland.
Warlocks and Warriors have quests in this zone, but other players often don't even get a close look at the Dark Portal until they actually go through it. Taking part in the pre-patch activities is a nice way to get psyched up for actually crossing over into the new continent, which is the signal that TBC has officially begun.
9 Mind the Fel Reaver
It's not enough that the notorious Fel Reaver is about 20 stories tall and makes a booming noise as it stomps across Hellfire Penninsula, it still has this uncanny knack for sneaking up on people. Right after the expansion goes live, most players are focused on the novelty of the new zone and its related quests, raid progression, flying mounts, and the road to Shattrath City. No matter how many times players hear that warning, however, they never seem to learn.
8 Choose Your Outland Faction
Upon arrival in Shattrath City, you'll have to walk through a tour of the town that concludes with choosing between the Aldor or the Scryer. Be careful with this, as you could end up on the wrong side of your own faction. The Aldor tend to be associated with the Alliance and the Scryers are connected to the Horde, but don't let that influence your choice too much.
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Most players make their choice depending on the gear each faction offers. Your character gains reputation with the Sha'tar faction, so either way, you'll still have access to some common loot.
7 Get Your Flying Mount
Of course, just like with your ground mount, prepare to spend some gold. Expert Riding costs 250g, and if you want an epic flying mount, Artisan Riding costs 5000g. Good thing Blizzard made it easier to make money in TBC. There are places in Outland that are only accessible via flying mount anyway, and who doesn't love another mount no matter its form? The argument about whether or not flying mounts "broke the game" will never go away, and these are so cool that we don't care.
6 Start The Dragonmaw Quests
You can't get an epic flying mount right away, but you can start the quest to grind the rep for one. Wandering out in the wastelands of Shadowmoon Valley is a lone Blood Elf named Mordenai. He can start you on the quest chain, "Ally of the Netherwing" provided you can fill out the prerequisites.
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Depending on how fast you can grind to 70, which is required for this quest, and the level you should be in Shadowmoon Valley anyway, players can start the lengthy quest chain to get this mount. The Netherwing Drake is one of Outland's coolest flying mounts, provided you can grind the rep with the proper faction and pay for both Expert and Artisan riding.
5 Roll A Blood Elf
Players who remember Warcraft 3 fondly will stampede to this anyway since this is the closest they can get to rolling a High Elf and seeing the aftermath of the Third War up close. This isn't so much new as the continuation of a story that has already been partly told. The Blood Elf race is ideal for anything connected to the arcane, with powers and abilities that favor Warlocks, Mages, Priests, and Paladins. Speaking of which, this is the first Horde race with access to the Paladin class, and their connection to the Light is a mysterious and insidious one.
4 Roll A Draenei
Shaman is a popular class, known for their high DPS ability and useful totems, and the Alliance players finally have access to a race with the knowledge to take on this ancient magical art. They also have one of the best new racial mounts, the elephant-like elekk. This alien race has a lot going for it when it comes to lore and design even though they're from a more obscure place in WoW lore. The Azuremyst Isle, their home base in Azeroth, is also a sight to behold, ethereal already and now complete with the ruins of an interdimensional space ship making up the Draenei home city.
3 Get the Quel'Danas Flightpath
Not all of the action takes place in Outland. Remember that road in the Eastern Plaguelands that was blocked by some debris and watched over by a lone Blood Elf? That road is open now and all players can travel along it to reach the realm of the Blood Elves, Quel'Thalas. Horde players have the advantage of using a Translocation Orb located in Undercity to travel directly to the Blood Elf capital of Silvermoon, so they can reach the nearby island with more ease. The flightpath on Quel'Danas, the location of the faction neutral Shattered Sun offensive, is north of Silvermoon and gives players access to a new high-level area that includes two new raids along with an ongoing battle against Prince Kael'thas.
2 Run A Raid With 24 Friends...
Gone are the days of 40-player raids. In the Burning Crusade, all of the dungeons and raids require no more than 25 players. Just like flying mounts and monetized character clones, the loss of the 40 player raid has its detractors. Nevertheless, you can't deny it will be that much easier to experience these raids sooner than later with fewer people required.
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There are eight new raids in the TBC expansion, and all of them are 25-players raids except for Karazhan, which only needs 10. However, all of them require level 70 or higher to access, so there's some grinding and farming that needs to be done first.
1 ...And Get Those Tier 4, 5, and 6 Armor Set Pieces
It's all about the precious items, and these are just the raid tier sets. There are also PVP sets to acquire in the new battleground area, the Netherstorm, but as much as we love our player versus player activities, we adore our raids and their epic rewards even more. Every class gets in on the various goodies, most of which are available from vendors in exchange for tokens as opposed to dropping from bosses as was the style in Classic. The change might have something to do with the guild-breaking fights that have resulted from botched item distribution that was typical in the vintage raids.