Battle Visage allows Dracthyr Evokers to remain mostly in Visage form during combat in WoW patch 12.0.5

The recently-released patch 12.0.5 for World of Warcraft added a nice new feature for Dracthyr Evokers: Battle Visage lets them remain in Visage form during combat, only briefly shifting to their Dracthyr forms during certain specific abilities, and then immediately shifting back. Previously, combat had been restricted to the Dracthyr form only, and the biggest compromise allowed was the Chosen Identity racial, which automatically shifted characters back to their Visage appearances after combat ended.

Many Evoker players were dissatisfied with the fact that their Dracthyr forms have a very limited ability to display their transmog pieces. Not even Evoker tier sets fully show in Dracthyr form, being restricted to shoulders and belt only, with an optional tabard thrown-in. Since we all know that transmog is the true endgame, it was more than obvious that this was legitimately something that many players perceived as a flaw with the class.

Enter Battle Visage, a new, improved compromise that gives Evoker characters the option to remain in Visage form for the majority of time, even in combat. It’s not a perfect solution by any means — I’m sure most players would still love to see their Dracthyr forms display their transmog as well. But it’s definitely a big step in the right direction.

Spells that shift you to your Dracthyr form in combat include:

• Empower spells such as Fire Breath,  Eternity Surge, Dream Breath, and Upheaval.
• Flight spells such as Deep Breath and Dream Flight.
• Hover (and you’ll remain in Dracthyr form while casting any other spells while Hover is active).

(Curiously, the Dracthyr racial Wing Buffet and the Dractyr Evoker-exclusive racial Tail Swipe do not change you into Dracthyr form even though they specifically mention dragon parts.)

When Battle Visage is turned on, it almost completely replaces the existing Chosen Identity racial, since you’ll most likely revert to your visage form during combat anyway. Still, Chosen Identity is there for players who specifically want to look like a Dracthyr at all times in combat while also looking like their Visage form at all times outside of combat.

Does Battle Visage make it more likely that the Evoker class could be expanded to other races in the future?

This is an interesting idea that players have been pondering. The way Battle Visage works, shifting your character into your Dracthyr form only during the execution of certain abilities, and then back to Visage, is very similar to what happens to Demon Hunters during their Eye Beam, for instance. The difference is that Eye Beam uses a “generic” demon form — that is also shared by their Metamorphosis ability.

What if that could be the perfect solution for other races to also learn the ways of the Evoker? Perhaps, much like Demon Hunters shift into a generic demon for certain abilities or temporary forms, an Evoker who is a Blood Elf or a Human could work like a normal spellcaster most of the time, and briefly shift into a generic Dracthyr form just while using their Empower and Breath attacks, as well as Hover. If we want to make things really neat, we could even allow some degree of customization to that generic form, perhaps with glyphs or a barbershop dropdown. It definitely wouldn’t need to have access to the full gamut of options that actual Dracthyr characters possess.

Let’s be frank: It’s a bit weird that one of WoW’s thirteen classes is still exclusive to a single race. Even the also very exclusive Demon Hunters have recently expanded to Void Elves, increasing their number of possible races to three. WoW has been allowing more and more customization with each expansion, giving players access to an increasing number of race/class combinations. Battle Visage could definitely pave the way for Evokers of other races.

I know I would love to play as a Nightborne Evoker. Come on, Mr. Blizzard.