On Nov. 4, Blizzard Entertainment revealed a new World of Warcraft Classic season, the Season of Discovery. As a new iteration of WoW Classic, the Season of Discovery will be the original game you fell in love with back in 2004, but with a couple of twists like Discoveries, level-banded content, and new abilities.
Season of Discovery will be a new seasonal server that should last for roughly one year and it will take you on a journey across Azeroth, but with a new coat of paint. There are plenty of new features for you to catch-up on, but it’s centered around you rediscovering your two favorite continents—The Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor.
So, here’s everything you need to know about Season of Discovery, including the new features like Discoveries, Runes, level-banded content, and raids.
What is WoW Classic Season of Discovery?
WoW Season of Discovery is a new Classic server that will look like the original game from 2004, including the old talent systems, leveling, and old continents, but the classes will get additional spells and the level cap will be lower.
This will be a seasonal server, meaning its life expectancy should be roughly one year. Afterward, Blizzard is expected to launch another similar season or truly expand into Classic+.
WoW Classic Season of Discovery release date
WoW Classic Season of Discovery will release on Nov. 30, 2023. It should release as a separate server, but will still be a part of WoW Classic. It won’t be available on PTR realms for testing, as Blizzard wants to shake up the meta to its core and surprise you as much as possible.
Core features of WoW Classic Season of Discovery
As already noted, WoW Classic Season of Discovery will have plenty of new features you’ll need to understand before jumping in. Here’s a breakdown of all these new features, starting with the new and exciting Discoveries.
Season of Discovery: Discoveries
Discoveries in Season of Discovery will be secrets scattered all around Azeroth that you’ll need to find. They’re centered around sharing information and communicating with the denizens of Azeroth.
This is a new addition to the game that should make you feel like you’re at home, but it should also add a new flavor to WoW Classic.
Season of Discovery: Level-banded content
In Season of Discovery, the initial level cap will be 25 for the first few weeks of the season. The level cap will gradually increase over time, but it’s unknown how many new levels each update will introduce. When a new update lands, the leveling speed from level one to 25 will increase, so you can catch up with your friends more easily.
Season of Discovery: End-game content
Since you’ll be stuck at level 25 in Season of Discovery, the main piece of end-game content will be the new raid, Blackfathom Depths. Previously a five-man leveling dungeon in Ashenvale, in the new season, Blackfathom Depths will be a 10-man raid with new loot.
This instance has been redesigned and has a couple of new bosses, as well as encounters you’ll recognize from the past. It will have a three-day lockout, meaning you can’t do it more than twice a week.
Season of Discovery: Raids
The first raid is Blackfathom Depths, but Blizzard hinted at BlizzCon 2023 that you should also expect Gnomeregan, Scarlet Monastery, and Karazhan Crypts further down the road. These instances should again be converted into raids, and they’ll most likely be available at higher levels.
Season of Discovery: Rune Engraving
It’s no secret the WoW Classic meta was a bit boring, with only Warriors dominating the DPS charts. This is all about to change with the new feature: Rune Engraving. This is a new skill all characters know automatically and it allows you to gather, learn, and apply new class abilities. These will be tied to your gear, and in total you’ll have 12 Rune Engraving pieces of gear that will give you new abilities.
Initially, you’ll have three Rune Engraving slots and more slots will unlock with level cap increase. It’s important to note that Runes will be permanent and you can easily swap between them. Runes exist outside of the talent system and you can easily mix and match them with your favorite talents.
Classes will get access to new abilities and you’ll see, for the first time in your life, tank Warlocks, Rogues, and Shamans, and healer Mages. These abilities are taken from different expansions and reworked to fit the spirit of WoW Classic.
Season of Discovery: Talents
Blizzard is reducing the cost of changing specs in Season of Discovery, and there are hints that dual spec could be coming later in the season.
Season of Discovery: Zone-wide PvP events
In Season of Discovery, there will be zone-wide PvP events, set in the zone where the new raid is located. For the first couple of weeks, this means that Ashenvale will become a warzone between the Horde and the Alliance.
The PvP event will trigger if players score kills while in Ashenvale. Once the event starts, each faction will get a leader—the Farseer for the Horde and Priestess of the Moon for the Alliance. The goal is to defeat the enemy leader, but they will be buffed by NPCs from smaller camps scattered around the zone.
This will be a way to earn Warsong Gulch reputation and Honor that you can later use to purchase gear. On top of all this, you can get a special mount, usable only in Ashenvale, that will increase your movement speed by 50 percent.
Well, that’s about it for the known content coming with the WoW Classic Season of Discovery! Some of these changes seem pretty significant, and will certainly make some waves in the meta.
