Filed under: Online

Patch 3.3 is just around the corner in the World of Warcraft, and WoW.com is there as usual: we've got lots of information about what's coming in the new patch, including the new Icecrown raid instance, the cross-realm Dungeon Finder system, new loot and gear, lots of class updates and changes, and of course lots of new achievements and quests. Hit the break below to read ten of our most popular posts from the last week -- whether you're a new player or just coming back for the game's fifth anniversary, we've got something for you.

It's been a big week in the World of Warcraft -- aside from both the impending patch 3.3 release and the onset of the game's fifth anniversary (yes, it's been almost five years since Blizzard brought their MMO online), Blizzard has finally done something that many thought they would never directly do: start selling in-game items for real money. There was lots of argument about that one this last week, and you'll find that, along with the usual news and insights, over on Joystiq's sister site WoW.com. Check out our most popular posts of the last week in the second half of this post.

News

• Cataclysm races leaked
  WoW.com reveals the new playable races in the Cataclysm expansion, to be announced at BlizzCon next week.
• Player reaction to the 5-man Trial
  What did players think of the brand new 5-man instance?
• Patch 3.2 Known Issues
  Here's what's still broken in the newest patch.
• BigRedKitty gets his own gun in Azeroth
  Our friend and former coworker BRK gets honored with his own piece of ingame gear.
• 53 Emblems per day
  Want to take advantage of the Emblem changes in the new Heroics? Run this route and farm as many emblems as you can.

Features

• Every kind of player's guide to patch 3.2
  Not sure what to do in patch 3.2? Let us help.
• Arcane Brilliance: Good and bad in patch 3.2
  The Mage column examines the pros and cons of what's happening to them in the recent patch.
• Insider Trader: Progressive professions
  How to move professions forward in the future of the game.
• Time is Money: On patrol
  Have only a little time but want to make a lot of gold? Join the Troll Patrol!
• World of Warcraft Patch 3.2 Mounts guide
  The mount changes have affected the game a lot -- here's the rundown of everything that's new.

News

• Hunters discover "new" Worgen pet
  A glitch in the game lets you "tame" a humanoid Wolfman to attack and fight for you. Good times!
• Blizzard files trademark for "Cataclysm"
  A series of trademarks hints that the next WoW expansion might be named Cataclysm.
• Faction changes coming to the World of Warcraft
  Blizzard announces that, sometime in the future, you'll be able to change from Horde to Alliance and vice versa.
• Faction changes Q&A
  A short series of questions and answers about the upcoming faction change mechanic.
• China's gold farming ban not really a ban
  A followup to the "ban on gold farming" in China shows that the legislation isn't quite what we thought it was.

Features

• Guildwatch: Paydirt in the drama mine
  Our weekly column of guild hijinx and achievements has all the drama, downed, and recruiting news you'd ever want.
• The Queue: You are slightly more prepared than you were
  You ask us some questions, and we deliver you some answers.
• Arcane Brilliance: Living Bomb on the patch 3.2 PTR is awesome
  Our Mage blogger is a little excited about upcoming changes to his talents.
• Why won't Blizzard let me change my race?
  You'll be able to change your faction soon, but you still won't be able to change your ingame race.
• Blizzard's Tier 9 preview
  Get a pictoral look at the next series of Tier armor going into the game.

News

• Faction changes coming to World of Warcraft
  Horde can be Alliance, Alliance can be Horde, cats and dogs sleeping together! It's lunacy!
• Patch 3.2 PTR unveils Tier 9 sets
  The next level of epic armor is coming to the game in the latest content patch...
• Patch 3.2 PTR Tier 9 set names
  ...And it's got a great set of lore names to go with along with it.
• Patch 3.2 upcoming Engineering changes
  Big changes for one of the game's most popular professions.
• Exodus punished for exploiting Yogg-Saron encounter
  After a guild accomplishes a world-first achievement kill, Blizzard determines they didn't quite follow the rules.
  

Features

• Patch 3.2 PTR: Tauren Druid conversation may reveal lore and expansion secrets
  A pair of Druids chatting in the new content patch might hint at the future of the game.
• The OverAchiever: Guide to Midsummer Fire Festival achievements
  Azeroth is heating up with the Fire Festival -- here's how to get everything done this week.
• Arcane Brilliance: More questions than answers
  Our Mage columnist didn't get all his questions answered in Blizzard's recent Q&A article about the class.
• Patch 3.2 PTR: New heirloom items gallery
  A pictoral look at some new heirloom items headed to the game.
• WoW Casually: What Patch 3.2 means for casuals
  Oh, you don't raid five times a week? Patch 3.2 has something for you as well.

Joystiq's sister site WoW.com covers the most popular MMO ever, World of Warcraft, every day of every week. Want to know what's new in Azeroth? Here's our biggest stories from the last seven days.

News

• Upcoming mount changes
  Required levels for mounts are being lowered, as are the costs for each.
• Isle of Conquest details released
  Hot new deets on the game's upcoming battleground instance.
• Mountain Dew Battle-bots now live
  Mountain Dew released their promotional in-game items -- come and get 'em while they're... bot?
• New zeppelin and portals coming in Patch 3.2
  In addition to the mount updates, Blizzard is adding a new zep to ride and a portal straight to Outland. How convenient!
• Yogg Saron and Flame Leviathan nerfed tonight
  Two Ulduar bosses get hit with the nerf bat.

Features

• Guildwatch: He's really, really sorry
  Drama, downed, and recruiting news from around the realms.
• Ten things WoW players should know from E3
  Activision is bigger than ever, the MMO genre is widening, and wow, Star Wars: The Old Republic looks good.
• Addon Spotlight: Essential addons for raid leaders
  Our weekly column for UI addons examines some recommended installs for those leading raids.
• Popular scams and how to avoid them
  There are scams aplenty in Azeroth, so here's some tips on how to dodge them.
• WoW, Casually: Tips for leveling on a PvP realm
  Play on a player vs. player realm but don't want to die that often? Here's how to stay alive.

WoW Insider is now WoW.com, if you haven't yet heard, but don't worry: we still have everything you need to know about the world's most popular massively multiplayer online game, from tips and tricks to news and views. Here's our most popular posts from the past week, including news about all the new Druid forms above -- if it's in Azeroth, we've got news about it, just for you.

News

• Beware of Blood Elves selling mounts
  One of our writers' friends falls prey to the game's newest scam.
• Achieved: Level 1 to 80 with no deaths
  A character appropriately named Cautious reached the highest level in the game without dying once.
• Revamped Night Elf Druid cat forms revealed
  New looks for Night Elf Druids.
• Zarhym explains Druid form color combos
  Want to make sure your Druid has the form you want? Here's how.
• Ensidia gets world-first Algalon 25-man kill
  One of the game's biggest pro guilds downs the last major boss in the current content.

Features

• An interview with a scammer
  The perp in the article above gets the WoW.com interview spotlight shined on him.
• WoW, Casually: Rating the classes for casuals
  Which class is best to play for a casual player?
• Arcane Brilliance: Reaching the hit cap
  Mages, here's how to make the most out of those spells you're casting.
• The lore of Ulduar
  The latest game dungeon has more than a few hooks and hints into the rest of the World of Warcraft.
• The Queue: Waterfalls
  Our Q&A column will actually go chasing waterfalls to find answers to your questions. Not just stick to the rivers and the lakes that they're used to.

News

• Welcome to WoW.com!
  Yes, WoW Insider has undergone a facelift. And we've got some new junk in the trunk too, actually.
• Patch 3.2 details released
  Information from Blizzard about the game's next big content patch: a new BG, a new instance.
• More information on 3.2 release date, Coliseum, new battleground
  Filling in some of the blanks on what's in patch 3.2.
• Patch 3.1.2 goes live today
  Meanwhile, the Equipment Manager finally goes into the game, along with a few other changes.
• Insider Trader: Jewelcrafting nerf incoming
  Blizzard's taking the nerf bat to jewelcrafters and their prismatics.
  

Features

• Bolfang and the future of the Horde and the Alliance
  Bolvar, one of the Alliance's biggest lore characters, is MIA. We wonder where he might be...
• WoW.com Help
  Need to know how to get our new addon working or share your profile page with friends? Here you go.
• Phat Loot Phriday: Porcelain Bell
  Our weekly loot spotlight column examines the most valuable gray in the game so far.
• Time is Money: Saronite
  How to make some big bucks with some shiny ore.
• Forum Post of the Day: The end of big guilds
  The game seems targeted at making smaller, more flexible guilds the most successful. Could giant megaguilds be a thing of the past?

News

• BlizzCon ticket status
  BlizzCon ticket sales took place last Saturday, and things sold out in about 30 minutes. Here's the breakdown.
• Project 62*80: 62 level 80s by Christmas
  A World of Warcraft player wants to create 62, yes 62, level 80s by December 25th.
• Boom goes the servers
  Server issues bring the game down on a Friday night.
• Game Fuel pets for all. Sort of.
  Mountain Dew meets World of Warcraft in the form of a noncombat pet.
• Ensidia gets 10-man Algathon world first
  And yet again, the game has been beaten.

Features

• The Queue: Going to the movies
  You have questions, and we endeavor to answer them for you.
• From our readers: Is my Ulduar-clearing guild holding me back?
  Is it possible to be in a guild that's too good?
• WoW Rookie: Filter out the @#*(!
  How to make sure you only see what you want.
• Ready Check: Casual meets hardcore
  What's the real difference between casual and hardcore players?
• Forum Post of the Day: Be disciplined about healing meters
  Healing meters definitely aren't everything when it comes to raiding performance.

News

• WoW Insider interviews Tom Chilton on Patch 3.1 and beyond
  We talk to the game's lead designer on the latest updates, and what's coming up next.
• Star Trek references in the World of Warcraft
  We've all (well, most of us -- ahem, Alex and Dan) seen Star Trek and loved it, so we compiled this little list of sightings in game.
• WoWMatrix responds to Curse and WoW Interface
  There was a kerfluffle in the addon scene lately, and popular addon updater WoWMatrix finally responds.
• BlizzCon tickets on sale May 16th
  Blizzard's convention is returning to the Anaheim Convention Center, and it'll cost you $125 and some time in line to go.
  
• Flying in old world Azeroth
  Blizzard has long said it wouldn't be possible to allow flying mounts in the original game world. And here's why.

Features

• Disappointment the patch 3.1 game world
  Not everything is hunky dory after the latest update -- at least one of our bloggers is a bit bored.
• Officers' Quarters: Fragmentation
  Our column for guild officers takes a look at who should get the game's newest legendary.
• The OverAchiever: Glory of the Hero strikes back
  How to do one of the biggest achievements in the game.
• WoW, Casually: Guide to the latest features
  Not every WoW player is a hardened veteran -- for the newer folks, there's WoW, Casually.
• Arcane Brilliance: PvPing as a Fire Mage after patch 3.1
  What's new in the world of Mages? Our Mage blogger Christian Belt tells you.

News

• Player receives developer item in the mail, one-shots Ulduar
  The Game Masters accidentally send a killer shirt to a player, who then uses it to drop progression content.
• The Martin Fury scandal: Karatechop reveals all
  We talk with the player who got banned for using a GM item in Ulduar.
• WoW reference found in Wolverine game
  The creators of the new Wolverine videogame sneak in a WoW reference just for us.
• Ulduar nerfs and Blizzard's new raid philosophy
  Blizzard tweaks the newest raid instance, and shows their design cards a little bit.
• World of Warcraft patch 3.1.2 PTR notes
  There's a new patch on the Public Test Realm -- here's what's new.

Features

• The Queue: Mercenaries
  You ask, we answer. It's that easy.
• Guildwatch: It wasn't me, man
  Drama, downed, and recruiting news from guilds around the realms.
• Val'anyr explained
  What exactly does the game's newest legendary do for you? We'll tell you right here.
• Noblegarden: Sexy or sexist?
  The new Easter ingame holiday has you throwing bunny ears on females level 18 and up. Hot or not?
• Scattered Shots: Pets for raiding
  Hunters, if you need a pet to take along with you to Ulduar, look no further.

What a week in the World of Warcraft -- we've explored even further into the mysteries of Ulduar, we saw Peggle in WoW and WoW on the iPhone, and the Easter holiday of Noblegarden has arrived (even though it is a little late thanks to Blizzard's long testing periods) in Azeroth. But even though all of this is happening at once, there's no need to fear -- Joystiq's sister site WoW Insider is here every single day with news and views about what's going on in Azeroth. Whether you're a complete noob, you left the game at level 60 (boy howdy things have changed since then), or you're currently rolling through the 80 endgame, we've got news for you.

News

• Val'anyr stats discovered
  A new legendary mace has been discovered in the game's new Ulduar instance.
• WoW Insider exclusive: PopCap releases Peggle for WoW
  Insert joke here about one addictive substance inside another.
• Video teases iPhone WoW client
  Blizzard will likely never let it happen, but a third party says they've gotten WoW running on the iPhone.
• Today's in-game fixes
  Two weeks later, Blizzard is still fixing a few issues from patch 3.1.
• The OverAchiever: Guide to Noblegarden Achievements
  Albeit a little late, Blizzard is finally celebrating their version of Easter on the live realms.

Features

• Varian Wrynn is right
  The Alliance's latest leader really, really hates the Horde. And here's why he should.
• The Queue: Raid goes up, boss goes down
  A little Queue and A about... whatever you want to know.
• Loot, rationality and The Sunwell Effect
  A great essay about what drives us to do what we do in-game, and how Blizzard can use that.
• Lichborne: A Patch 3.1 talent build cookie platter for Death Knights
  So you're a DK and you have no idea what talent build to choose after 3.1. If you're OK with a cookie cutter build, boy do we have a batch for you.
• Eggsellent Guidance: 30 Noblegarden eggs in 15 minutes
  The easiest and quickest way to collect some yolks for the latest holiday achievement.

News

• WoW Insider's Guide to the Argent Tournament
  It's joustin' time in the World of Warcraft. Here's what you need to know.
• WoW Insider's Patch 3.1 FAQ
  Frequently asked questions about last week's patch, answered just for you.
• Ghostcrawler on the mechanics behind Armor Penetration
  One of the game's devs talks about one of the tougher damage dealing mechanics to figure out.
• First day for Champions on the Argent Tournament
  The very first class of Champions arises.
• Curse, WoW Interface band together to block WoWMatrix
  A small shakeup in the addon world leaves a few players hanging right around patch day.

Features

• Wrath 101: Emalon the Storm Watcher
  There's a new boss in the Wintergrasp Vault, and here's a quick guide to taking him down.
• The Queue: Service with a smile
  You ask, we answer. That's how it works.
• How to get the Turtle Mount
  Want to get your hands on the brand new aquatic mount? Here's a few tips.
• How to activate Ulduar's hard modes
  Sure, anybody can raid Ulduar. But can you do it on hard mode?
• Lichborne: Top Death Knight DPS builds and patch 3.1
  With dual specs out, everybody wants to know which builds are best. Our Death Knight column breaks down which talent points to look for in patch 3.1.

News

• WoW Insider's Guide to Patch 3.1
  We're closer than ever to the next big content patch -- which means we know more than ever about what's in it.
• April Fools 2009 roundup
  A bevy of Warcraft-related jokes from the 4/1 holiday last week.
• WoW subscriber numbers still increasing, multiboxers trivial
  The devs confirm that the number of people in Azeroth is still going up.
• Noblegarden tentatively rescheduled for April 26th
  Blizzard goes a little late on a patch, so it actually reschedules the in-game Easter holiday.
• Battle.net login servers down again tonight
  Blizzard just recently transferred lots of player accounts onto the new Battle.net servers, but apparently they weren't quite up to the job.

Features

• Opinion: 25-man gear should not be better than 10-man gear
  The 10-man raids are actually harder than the 25-mans. So why is the gear worse?
• WoW Rookie: Gaming terminology 101
  Don't know your "LFG" from your "PST"? Let WoW Rookie help.
• The Art of War(craft): Wintergrasp in patch 3.1 and beyond
  All the news that's fit to print on the changes to the game's most popular battleground.
• Guildwatch: A kinder, gentler GW
  For April Fool's Day, our guild drama column decides to focus on the positive instead.
• Lichborne: Tradeskills for Death Knights
  Profession help for former members of Arthas' army.