Everything there is to know about patch 8.2.5, out now!

Patch 8.2.5 is just about here and will be released with this coming week’s reset. This is a relatively minor patch, at least compared to full patches like 8.2, but it has some nice updates and new content. Let’s dive right in to everything it will include.

When will patch 8.2.5 be released?

Patch 8.2.5 is coming on Tuesday, September 24! Check out the patch notes here.

Worgen and Goblin characters get their spotlight

Patch 8.2.5’s most anticipated feature is the model update for Goblin and Worgen characters. They haven’t been updated since they came out in Cataclysm, and they were considered too new when the rest of the character models were updated in Warlords of Draenor. The character redesigns were mentioned at both BlizzCon 2017 and 2018 so we knew they’ve been in progress for a while. We have full galleries of the differences between the character models, so check out our Worgen gallery and Goblin gallery to see the individual changes. Worgen characters also get completely new faces, including two with gold eyes.

Unfortunately, the expected Heritage Armor for Worgen and Goblins was pushed back and won’t be included with 8.2.5. We don’t know when Blizzard will add it, but it could possibly come in Patch 8.3.

The end of the War Campaign

The War Campaign has been the main catalyst for the story of Battle for Azeroth, but it will be concluding in patch 8.2.5. This is surprising because of its suddenness — we expected the conflict to progress to the very end of the expansion — but it also makes sense with how the story has been progressing. With the reveal at the end of the battle with Azshara, we know that the Alliance and Horde cannot keep beating away at each other and hope to survive N’Zoth.

Want to know how it all ends? The spoilers are right here.

We also see the return of a long-awaited old ally — Wrathion, the Black Prince. He set us on this path, but he has been largely absent for the past few expansions, except in brief moments and cameos that were easily missed. We opened a can of worms (or, more appropriately, tentacles) in our fight with Azshara, and now we must deal with the consequences and new developments of the evil we released upon Azeroth. If you have been paying attention to any datamining, you’ll notice Wrathion has a fabulously updated model, as well as a few model updates for other characters.

Firelands is being added to Timewalking

A new raid will be joining the Timewalking lineup. Blizzard seems to be slowly adding one raid per Timewalking event, and they have decided on the generally well-liked Firelands to accompany Cataclysm Timewalking. It will work like the other two Timewalking raids: form a raid group during the Timewalking event and queue up for the raid, where all the gear and power will scale appropriately. The Timewalking version will likely drop gear equivalent to Normal gear in The Eternal Palace. One question remains as to whether they’ll combine the different raid difficulties like they did with Ulduar.

WoW’s 15th Anniversary

For WoW’s 15th anniversary this November, Blizzard is planning something special. Everyone who logs in during the event will get a Lil’ Nefarian pet, along with the customary “celebration package” that includes an XP buff (likely 15% this year to celebrate 15 years). The actual in-game event will feature three different raids — with three bosses each — celebrating iconic encounters throughout WoW’s history. Defeat all nine bosses and you’ll get the new Obsidian Worldbreaker mount inspired by Deathwing. The three raids appear to be available through the LFG system, and you’ll need to be at least 380 ilvl in order to queue.

An “old-school-inspired” version of Alterac Valley, named Korrak’s Revenge, will also be part of the anniversary event. Players can earn two new mounts — a Stormpike Battle Ram for Alliance and a Frostwolf Snarler for Horde — by participating in the battleground and completing the Alterac Valley of Olde achievement.

Bee mount?!

How many times have we said the bee mount is finally coming? To be fair, it’s not exactly our fault, since Blizzard specifically showed the bee mount at BlizzCon when they announced flying would be coming in patch 8.2. Well, this time it’s coming for real.

The process to acquire the bee mount requires having Bumbles the pet and completing the Mildenhall Meadery quest chain in Stormsong Valley. Alliance players work to gain friendship/reputation with the Hivemother, which will eventually reward the Honeyback Harvester mount. There are also other bee-themed toys and items to be gained in the process.

Recruit A Friend makes its return

Blizzard took Recruit A Friend out earlier this year, and now it’s coming back with a revamped system. This time it combines the new player aspect of the old Recruit A Friend and the returning player aspect of the old Scroll of Resurrection. Returning players must have been unsubscribed for at least two years. Convince your friends to come back to the game, or new ones to start playing, and you’ll get rewards for each month of gametime they purchase, up to a year. The rewards scale the longer they stay subscribed.

Party Sync, Replay, and scaling will make grouping easier

While phasing provides some cool interactions and gameplay for player characters, one downside is that it makes it a headache when you try to complete quests with your friends. Party Sync is toggle-able option that will phase all members of a group to the same step of a quest. The UI will show information like who is all on the quest, what their progress is, and who is ready to turn it in. A new “replay” feature will allow players to re-do old quests with their friends if they had already completed it before. These can be completed once per day for rewards.

Level restrictions are also going to be relaxed so that you can still do content and dungeons with your lower level friends. The way it will work is it will scale the higher level player down to the expansion level cap that the lower level character is in. Blizzard uses as an example scaling a character down to 60 if they are grouped with a level 21, or scaling to 90 if they are grouped with a level 83. Once there, bosses and mobs scale appropriately for each person, just like they do in open world content now. Blizzard also notes a caveat that this will function as a true scaling down, removing any abilities and powers that require a higher level — unlike Timewalking where it just scales you down while retaining access to all your character’s abilities.

More transmog, mounts, and permanent flower crowns!

Perhaps one of the most exciting content updates in the patch for collection enthusiasts.

We won’t be able to access the flower crowns until the Lunar Festival comes back in January, but the changes are included with patch 8.2.5’s data. The holiday will feature a new questline to complete the “Rite of the Moon,” which at the end will give you a way to transmog your flower crowns all year round. This is a great change for transmog addicts and hopefully heralds in the lifting of other transmog restrictions.

The Black Market Auction House is also getting updates with items that have been difficult to acquire. Many different rare raid mounts (including older Mythic mounts), various dropped weapon enchants, and much-coveted but rare and hard to acquire raid gear will be added to the auction house’s selection for bidding. If you have a lot of gold but not so much luck with loot RNG, here’s your chance.

All in all, the patch is looking to be a decent content update. What are you most looking forward to in 8.2.5?