Players in World of Warcraft's Public Test Realms (PTR) report that they're encountering a download error that's preventing them from logging in. The problem was reported by Zhork over at WoW's PTR Forums, who explained that the problem occurred after an attempt at downloading the PTR's most recent patch:

I went to delete my WoW Test folder and it didn't exist, I guess i deleted it some time in the past to try to get it to work. So this is how it goes every single time I'm trying to DL it now. DL Client PC Version>DL Window Pops up(mozilla firefox)>Open>First patch fully DL's then when you can hit finish an Error pops up saying "This update requires WoW.exe  version 2.1.3.6898. You have an older version, 1.10.1.5230."

Zhork attempted to reinstall the game in the PC, although this didn't remedy the problem. Fellow PTR player Kaydeethree (K3D) dropped by a little later to explained what may be causing the problem: Zhork may have multiple copies of WoW in the PC. K3D then suggested the player his WoW shortcut's Properties menu to check the target directory to be sure it was linked to the right folder.

Blizzard spokesman Hortus further dropped by to further advise that Zhork could also attempt to place the PTR downloader directly in the WoW directory, and run it form there. The downloader would then automatically check which version of WoW.exe was in the folder. The problem seems to have been resolved according to the thread.

A bug in World of Warcraft was discovered and it's hindering priests in casting Lightwell. This priest spell has a 1.5 second cast time with six-minute cooldown. When used, it creates a Lightwell within 40 yards of the priest (with a duration of three minutes or five charges, depending on which comes first) that members of his party or raid can click on to heal them over time.

While the priests can't spam the ability, the players who are accessing the Lightwell apparently can. However, a major problem is the fact that the healing effects don't stack so players who keep clicking on it will only get the effects of one heal while wasting the rest of the charges.

Blizzard QA Hortus has already been informed of the problem and is looking into it. Until it has been fixed, priests who use the ability should make sure to warn their players about over-clicking the Lightwell, to ensure everyone gets healed properly.

Hortus is back with a mini-update of sorts. There are issues, new and old, that needed addressing regarding future content and the PTR realms, so Hortus made a quick post, chiming in on those issues so that people wouldn't have to make repetitive posts about them (much to the chagrin of forum mods, to be sure).

Below are the important issues, as well as Hortus' responses:

Pre-mades

Because of the very high level of interest in pre-made characters for the PTR they copy systems is very busy, the queues are very long and may take several days before your character is available. We are aware of this and the only solution is to be patient.

If you get an error when trying to copy a pre-made it is because the queue is full and not taking more requests, try again later.

Pre-made gear and abilities

We are aware that some pre-made characters are missing abilities, or have abilities that they should not. We do not intend to make changes to the pre-made characters at this time in the test phase.

Passwords

The authentication server was updated with account information at the beginning of last week. If you have changed your password since the update it will not work on the PTR, you may be able to use an old password on the PTR but there is no guarantee that it will work.

Error 132 with Athlon Processors

We are aware of this issue and it is being investigated, Please be sure to submit any crash logs that you encounter while playing on the PTR.

Orc Shoulders

Orc shoulders are now the correct size, they are not any larger than they were before, it’s your imagination.

Voice Chat

Yes Voice Chat is planned for 2.2. No it is not available yet. When it is available expect an announcement because we intend to do a lot of testing on it.

Guild Banks and Zul'Aman

The new features mentioned in recent developer interviews are planned for a future patch, they will not be part of 2.2.

As you can see, some important things mentioned there. Orc shoulders have finally been normalized once again and, more importantly, we're now certain that guild banks and Zul'Aman will be a part of a post-2.2 patch rather than a part of 2.2 itself. Keep checking QJ for more updates on this and other issues related to WoW.

 

If you've been playing in the World of Warcraft PTR, you have probably noticed quite a few bugs that have to be fixed before the updates officially roll out. Before you do though, you might want to read up on the reported bugs so you don't waste your time on it.

Blizzard QA Hortus gave out a short disclaimer on the list he posted in the forums, saying that the bugs listed have not yet been confirmed by the QA, so it may or may not be true. However, it's safe to assume that some of the more glaring problems, such as the pink textures on multiple items and Orc Shoulders are true. Here are a few other general issues that were noted:

• Orc Off-Hand weapons are too small
• 1680x1050 resolution is not displaying properly.
• Resilience is reducing dot damage by more than indicated.
• Objects and terrain are fading at different distances.
• Cro Threadstrong in Shattrath has a typo in his yells.
• Druid Cat form range is inconsistent

There's a long list of the bugs on official WoW the forums, so head on over there via our read link if you want to find out more. Keep checking back here for the latest news on World of Warcraft.

 

After Hortus dropped the big bomb (of potential fun) for the Public Test Realm players over at World of Warcraft North America, you may have pinched yourself with the knowledge that the Europe realms would follow suit soon. But without blue words to reassure European gamers, they were starting to turn a bit yellow - with envy.

And then suddenly Tootamia drops by to whistle a tune that goes along the lines of: with a little patience, comes premades. Okay, okay, so it came with typos, but the meaning sticks. And if you're running a little low on the Karate Kid virtue, you could always opt for other sources. Kudos goes to Kazgarth of Moonglade, who says, "[Want to buy] patience."

When can Europe expect the official announcement? We can't say for sure, but tomorrow sounds like a good time as any, wouldn't you agree?

 

There was much loving in the air as the announcement of pre-made characters went out to players on the World of Warcraft Public Test Realm (PTR). Apparently the guys at Blizzard have been thinking that if you're going to do some testing, you'll be doing so in style with a level 70 character.

This announcement was done by Blizzard QA Hortus to much applause. Of course there were a few complaints regarding the spawn points since the pre-made characters were all level 70 and started out in the Outlands.

Spawn camping has come back in vogue once again due to this, but it's still outweighed by the fact that you now have a level 70 character to try out the new stuff. If you're looking to avail of these characters, you need to have The Burning Crusade expansion installed on your system.

So go forth and have fun. Keep in mind that the PTR realm is being used to look for bugs, so report any you find.

The next time you find your travel-weary character settling in at the closest friendly inn, don't be too surprised if the ambience doesn't feel quite...right. This was the topic of an observation WoW gamer Lapongo made over at the World of Warcraft Forums, who reports that the music over in the MMORPG's Booty Bay Inn has been changed.

Far from a previously reported sound bug, however, Blizzard representative Hortus explained that this really was a new game addition. It just turns out that the dev did not make mention of it in WoW's latest patch notes. So there you have it. Sit back, and enjoy the new tunes. Until, your next raid, that is...

 

Many changes are going to made with patch 2.2 and while some of them directly affect the players (like the DoT and Crowd Control changes), some will change the overall game experience in the World of Warcraft.

Blizzard poster Hortus is again calling on players to submit bug reports on the sound changes that were made in the current patch on the PTR. According to the blue poster, there are "considerable changes being introduced to the WoW audio systems." With that said, the Blizzard poster gave directions on how to submit the said reports.

What does this mean for players in general? Well, some speculate that this might be in preparation for the upcoming feature in WoW - voice chat. It's probably too early to assume anything at this point, but stay tuned for more updates regarding the matter. And if you want to give Hortus a hand, click the Read link below.

 

A lot of players have been complaining about problems on the PTR in World of Warcraft. Among the problems that were pinpointed by the players include the Orc shoulders, Mage Season 2 Armor, voice chat, and password problems.

Blizzard QA Hortus has been giving updates regularly on the WoW Forums, and it looks like patch 2.2.0 is slowly coming into its own. However, the operative word there is slowly. Anyway, here are the updates he gave, and from the look of things, a lot of changes will be happening when the testing phase of this patch is over.

Character Copies: Character copies are currently down, we're working on it. I don't have a ETA of when they will be available but I will post if I get updated information.

UPDATE 3: The Copies are backed up, everything is getting queued and they are slowly getting put through.

Orc Shoulders: This issue was fixed for 2.2 but seems to have regressed, it is not my intention to let 2.2 go live with anemic Orcs, so expect this to get fixed.

Mage Season 2 armor: I do not have information about the season 2 armor, I do not know when or if they will be changed, I'll see if the CMs have any information and ask them to post about it. UPDATE: The armor is fixed on the PTR.

Voice Chat: Yes Voice Chat is planned for 2.2. No it is not available yet. When it is available expect an announcement because we intend to do a lot of testing on it.

Passwords: For those of you who have changed your passwords recently, there may be an upcoming update that will let you use your new passwords. I will post more when I have additional info.

So there you have it, the latest from Blizzard. If you've been experiencing any of these problems, rest assured that the programmers already know about it and that a solution should be up soon.

 

Blizzard poster Hortus went on the World of Warcraft Forums to post the patch notes for the newest WoW patch: 2.2.0. Yes, we're moving past 2.1.0 and its subsequent bug fixes and other changes.

So what's new with patch 2.2.0? Well, a lot. Changes were made to crowd control durations in PvP, like the mages' polymorph, druids' hibernate and entangling roots, priests' mind control, and others. Nearly all crowd control spells and abilities now have a reduced duration of ten seconds in PvP.

Another notable change in patch 2.2.0 is the change to the resilience rating mechanic to affect damage over time (DoT) attacks. Resilience rating currently only affects critical strikes though the change was announced recently. We don't know about you, but we're not too keen on visiting the warlock forums right now.

Anyway, if you want to take a look at the full patch notes, feel free to click the Read link below. Patch 2.2.0 has gone live on WoW's Public Test Realm so skip on over there to check out the changes in person.