In retrospect, we can say that WoW Classic has turned out to be surprisingly casual-friendly over a long period of time. Only with phase 6 and the opening of Naxxramas did the effort for regular raid visits increase noticeably. In Burning Crusade Classic, we now face heavier challenges, but there are no world buffs and the need for consumables is also reduced. So how good is TBC Classic for casual players and twinkers? We’ll tell you!
If we evaluate WoW Classic in retrospect, then we come to the conclusion that the vanilla new edition turned out to be much more casual and twink-friendly than was the case in large parts in 2005 or 2006. The main reason for this is certainly the low level of difficulty of the dungeon and raid challenges.
If you don’t focus on the best possible logs or blatant speedrun records, you could most of the instanced content without spending a lot of time in the ID cycle. Only with Phase 6 and Naxxramas did the effort for the weekly preparation intensify. And thanks to the boosting meta, it’s easily possible to get multiple alts to level 60 without spending too much time. Even the biggest twink grumps in our guild have multiple characters at max level. And thanks to Zul’Gurub and Co., you can even equip them properly in record time. In addition to Naxxramas, the honor system, in which the time invested is the most important currency, was not casual-friendly at all.
With a look at the newly launched beta phase of Burning Crusade Classic, it is of course exciting how the Outland adventure will feel. We venture a look!
TBC Classic: Harder raids, less effort
Patch 1.12 class balancing, patch 1.12 item design, patch 1.12 raid tuning… in WoW (buy now) Classic, there were several factors that ultimately ensured that MC, BWL and Co. turned out to be comparatively easy. This will be different in Burning Crusade Classic. On the one hand, the Blizzard developers announced early on in the course of BlizzCon 2021 that the bosses – apart from selected exceptions (permanent pushback at M’uru) – should end up on the live servers in their pre-Nerf version. Exciting: Some of these bosses were not laid in their pre-nerf form back then, but only after the implementation of the first weakening. What will that look like in TBC Classic?
At the same time, the TBC Classic patch 2.4.3 level will not have such a huge impact on character strength as it did with the 1.12 patch in WoW Classic. Sure, there were a lot of class adjustments and item improvements in TBC, but not to the same extent as in vanilla WoW. So we are sure that in TBC Classic – at the latest from the Tier 5 area – we can expect much crisper boss fights than is the case in WoW Classic.
Casual gamers can still breathe a sigh of relief. World buffs will no longer play a role in TBC Classic, and due to the consumables adjustments, players can only throw in a very limited number of bottles, elixirs, etc. (one bottle or a combination of combat and guardian elixir is specifically allowed , plus buff foods, weapon oils/whetstones/poisons, and special items like resistance potions). The time required for optimal preparation for the upcoming raid evening will also be significantly less than in Classic if you expect a few wipes (progress and speedrun raids may be the exception, as they often involve umpteen training rounds on their private servers run and use items in their runs that average guilds don’t use).
In the Tier 4 content in particular, we also have comparatively tame raid challenges on the agenda, which with a little practice can even be mastered by average guilds in one evening, and for which – we’re pretty sure – it’s right on many servers there will soon be “PuG” raids outside of the guild. Also cool: Thanks to the traders for badges of justice, the items produced by professions and the loot from dungeons and raids, even casual players should be able to equip their virtual alter ego well in a timely manner. However, there will still be isolated, particularly strong items that players will run after for months due to a lack of drop luck.
TBC Classic: Attunements for Main and Twinks
With a view to the raid challenges of Burning Crusade Classic, not only the farm effort for consumables is relevant, but also the (per character) one-time effort that you have to spend on the attunements (i.e. for access permission) for the raid instances. Just imagine what feels like a never-ending Onyxia pre-quest line, which gradually leads you through all the dungeons and raids of the TBC era, but also has numerous quests in the world for you. Especially in the early days, you have to plan some time to qualify for access to Karazhan and to bring all reputation factions that are important for your hero to Revered or even Exalted. There’s no…well…time for twinks for a long time.
Speaking of which: If you want to make your twink raid-ready in a timely manner, you can go through the entire procedure again from start to finish. By the third or fourth pass at the latest, you’ll be wishing that Blizzard would remove or soften the attunements sooner rather than later (like they did back then). Especially if you have very little time to gamble.
TBC Classic: More Than Just Raids
At this point we would like to emphasize that Burning Crusade Classic has a lot more to offer apart from the raids. For example, the umpteen reputation factions with their special reputation rewards and daily tasks. Many of these factions have stylish mounts and flying animals in their luggage, which every collector should have on their list.
Or you can jump into the PvP arena, where teams of 2, 3 or 5 players compete with other players, increase the rating and earn powerful PvP rewards. Since you only need to complete a few matches each week to earn Arena Points, this section should feel motivating and rewarding for casual players and alts fans alike. Especially since you don’t have to reach a minimum rating for certain rewards in the first few – Season s. Gear from old – Season s (which are still good) can even be purchased later for Honor.
Speaking of daily quests: In Burning Crusade Classic you can (without magicians) farm gold much more efficiently than in WoW Classic. The 5,000 gold for fast flying may sound intimidating at first, but you should be pretty close to this mark at the end of the level phase, or even have surpassed it, just through quests, dungeon visits and the like. Of course, your twinks will also benefit from this in the medium term, for which you should also be able to buy flight licenses without any problems.
TBC Classic: Our verdict
Time-consuming attunements, heavier raid bosses, expensive flight licenses – at first glance, Burning Crusade Classic doesn’t look exactly casual and twink-friendly. However, players with little time benefit greatly from the elimination of world buffs and the new consumables restrictions in the raid area. In other words: Once you have increased your reputation with the most important factions and mastered the Karazhan pre-quest line, the two biggest time wasters are over for now. The actual raid preparation should then be manageable for average guilds, and gold can be farmed more efficiently than in Classic.
In addition, there is an additional possibility (besides raids, dungeons and professions) with the badges of justice to equip the character. And with the umpteen reputation factions, dailys and the arena, there are also plenty of other activities that you can throw yourself into at your own pace. At the latest when Blizzard’s attunements are removed or relaxed over time and one or the other crisp boss is defused, Burning Crusade should become a paradise for twinkers and casual gamers.
What is WoW Classic?
World of Warcraft Classic is a true recreation of the original WoW as you know it from 2006. All parts of the game – from combat mechanics and talent trees to character models and zones – have been recreated, contributing to the authentic experience.
Getting Started
All players with an active World of Warcraft subscription or game time on their accounts have access toWoW Classic at no additional cost.
- Open the Blizzard Battle.net Desktop App and select World of Warcraft from the menu.
- Select World of Warcraft Classic from the Version menu. If you have more than one World of Warcraft account, you’ll see a second Account drop-down list. In this column, select the active account you want to play with.
- Click the Install button. The progress bar will tell you when your game is ready to play.
- Click the Play button when the installation is complete.
You will need to select the realm you want to play on from several different realm types. Make sure you choose the same realm as your friends – in World of Warcraft Classic, you can only group with characters that are on the same realm as you!
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