Blizzard Watch Weekly: How many patches is too many patches?

World of Warcraft patch 12.1.5 has been live for just under a week, so of course it’s already time to talk about patch 12.1.7, which Blizzard revealed last week. Though we knew many of the upcoming features from BlizzCon and the WoW roadmap, we have a clearer picture of the patch now — and we’re already speeding towards the next big thing. Really zooming, with WoW: Forever due out at the start of November, WoW patch 12.1.7 likely in early December, and WoW patch 12.2 likely in February. Plus we have a Hearthstone expansion and a new TBC Classic phase launching this week. There’s just no time to catch our breath!

But for now, let’s pause for a moment on this Monday morning and catch up on what’s been going on in Blizzard games over the last week, and what’s coming up this week.

What happened last week?

• WoW patch 12.1.5 launched, but it’s already old news because…
• Blizzard revealed WoW patch 12.1.7, likely due out in December. It will continue the main story quest, add the new Talebound gameplay mode, new Lorewalking quests (for Jaina, Thrall, the Titans, and Tyr), and new abilities for the Omnium Folio.
• There’s a new World of Warcraft Twitch Drop to be had: the Cuddly Gold-Colored Grrgl, another variation on the plush murloc decor item for your in-game home. It’s not my favorite colorway, but I’m gonna collect it anyway, just in case I decide to make a completely gold-colored room in the future.
• A great many things have been overhauled in World of Warcraft: Forever, but one notable change is to the First Aid profession, which can now craft much more than bandages. We wrote up the details on First Aid’s new recipes.
• One thing WoW: Forever didn’t overhaul enough (according to some fans) was the Blood Elf models being used for the new Skyborne elves. Players who prefer playing the game in SD, in particular, thought the models looked too crisp. Blizzard has updated Skyborne graphics, changing the Druid forms to better fit in the vanilla-era aesthetic and the devs are working on new SD models, which will arrive early next year.
• We’re still prepping for WoW: Forever’s launch, and have instructions on how to get your Skyborne from their new starting zone in Zephras Isle to Orgrimmar and Stormwind to continue their adventures (or join your friends in a different starting zone).
• This week’s Hearthstone Tavern Brawl is another Brawliseum, and it’s the most frustrating variant of Brawliseum: a pre-release brawl that only lets you use cards from the of-yet-unreleased Reign of the Black Empire expansion. While you can use common and rare cards for free (an improvement over last time), you still can’t craft cards or buy individual packs to get any must-have cards to complete your deck. We have some gameplay tips, regardless.

What’s happening this week (and beyond)

• Live until it isn’t: World of Warcraft: Forever beta test
• October 19 – November 11: WoW Hallow’s End
• October 20: Hearthstone: Reign of the Black Empire expansion
• October 21: WoW: Forever beta stress test, available to everyone
• October 22: The Burning Crusade Classic anniversary realms Phase 3.5
• October 27 – November 3: WoW: Forever early name reservation available
• Through November 3: Cuddly Gold-Colored Grrgl WoW Twitch Drop available
• November 4:  WoW: Forever launches
• November 17: World of Warcraft D&D book launches

Other things we’re playing, watching, and more

Liz and Mitch are back with another episode of The Séance of Blake Manor this week, in which they try out a little lucid dreaming. (Which turns out to be highly disquieting.) You can watch the latest episode here, and if you haven’t been following along you can watch all of the episodes of Blake Manor (so far) on YouTube or catch us streaming indie games live Thursday at 8pm eastern (and follow us on Twitch to get notifications).

There are once again two free games in the Epic Games Store this week, spy puzzle game Agent A: A puzzle in disguise and creepy retro animation horror Bad Cheese. Grab them both before Thursday to get them for free!

Our latest podcasts

• Blizzard Watch Podcast: What we love (and hate) about World of Warcraft patch 12.1.5
• Lore Watch Podcast: Just another Shadowsong, and more stories from the Void
• Tavern Watch Plays Pirate Borg, episode 1: Into the Maelstrom

That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading, and I’ll be back next week with another weekly news recap!