We noted in our April look at the future of World of Warcraft that a big part of it would be, with the release of patch 7.3, a journey to Argus, the homeworld of the Burning Legion. We said at the time that the update was "easily half a year away," and while that's presumably still true, it is playable now on the WoW public test realm.
"Most (but not all) of the new stuff in 7.3 takes place on Argus—and as you might expect, this is hostile territory. Demons patrol every crag of Argus’s shattered surface, and sometimes it seems as if the planet itself is out to get you," Blizzard wrote in the PTR development notes. "This will be a very story-driven update, but we’re also designing areas with sandbox elements intended to be enjoyed even after you complete the main quest, with gameplay and challenges on the planet’s surface reminiscent of past endgame areas such as the Molten Front, the Isle of Thunder, and the Timeless Isle."
Players venturing to Argus will early on encounter the Vindicaar, "a vessel that will serve as your mobile base of operations," and also one of the few safe places on the new world. Argus is a no-fly zone, so the Vindicaar will also provide access to "an extensive network of teleportation hubs" that are "similar to flight paths, but without the travel time."
Argus will have three mains areas to explore, although only one of them is currently available on the PTR. The update also includes the first couple of chapters in the new storyline, and new and improved casting animations for various classes. Updated Shadow Priest animations are also in the works, but not included in this build, and some spells will "likely" have no animations at all at first.
Other hot new stuff planned for the 7.3 update :
- Further chapters of the Argus storyline, including many cinematic story moments
- New World Quests
- Professions updates, including epic gems
- The Netherlight Crucible, which allows you to upgrade your Artifact to unlock a new way to customize your Relics
- New dungeon: Seat of the Triumvirate
- New raid: Antorus, the Burning Throne (though as with other Legion raids, it won’t be released immediately with 7.3)
- Invasion Points, a new type of replayable content that let you fight the Legion on multiple different worlds
- Several other improvements and updates to existing features
Blizzard said that further updates will be provided with future builds as they go live on the PTR.
