Zul'Gurub is Coming! Why Phase 4 Will Be AWESOME!

Here we come, Hakkar!

Hey dudes, Silvite Soltis here. And today, I'm back with another quick discussion post.

As we all know, Phase 3 has been out for a while and Phase 4 is set to release sometime this month. And while many of us may have only just defeated the Lord of Blackrock in BWL, there's a lot of reason to be excited for this progression into the next chapter of Classic. So, today I thought it might be fun to talk about some of the reasons that I, in particular, am very hyped for the upcoming content addition to WoW Classic.

Let's get right into it!

Reason 1 - Troll Raid!

Alright, so first and foremost, we're getting a new raid in Phase 4, which I'm sure everyone is super-stoked to sink their teeth into. Zul'Gurub, the first of two 20-man raids in Classic, is a troll raid located along the eastern border of Stranglethorn Vale. With 10 unique encounters (one of which has 4 different possible bosses), a plethora of awesome loot, and, most importantly, a super-short 3 day lockout, ZG is an absolute godsend for raiders everywhere who crave something new between the massive 40-man BWL farm and the eventual Temple of Ahn'Qiraj.

Though I'm quite limited in terms of free time to take on this jungle raid, I'm really looking forward to squaring off against the Gurubashi trolls with my own proud Darkspear! Plus, with my guild of well-equipped raiders, it'll be even more fun to steamroll through as fast as possible. I can't wait!

Reason 2 - Awesome Catch-up Loot

Dat set bonus tho...

Just like all raids, one of the most highly anticipated aspects of Zul'Gurub is, of course, the amazing loot. Unlike the hit or miss items in many of the dungeons and throughout Molten Core, the gear in ZG is powerful, and well itemized for the different classes and specs of Classic. Some of the items on offer are just perfect for those slots you're missing - and of course for gearing alts up fast.

Personally, I'm excited for the Primalist ring set - the Band and Seal - for my priest, and the Zulian Stone Axe and various mail int+AP pieces for my enhancement shaman...whenever I can get him capped, that is!

Reason 3 - New Enchants

Possibly the most important things getting introduced along with Zul'Gurub for raiders like me are the various new enchantments for our helms, legs, and shoulders. No longer will we need to farm Dire Maul, Scholomance, and other old dungeons with no upgrades just to get a paltry 8 damage and healing here or 1% dodge chance there. Instead, we can simply collect some dolls in our voodoo adventures, and BAM - Stamina, Hit Chance, and increased spell and attack power for everyone! Granted, competition for the items needed will definitely be fierce, but so long as you run ZG a few times, you're bound to pick them up eventually!

Mmmmmm +Healing!

Moreover, those of us who grind all the way to Exalted reputation with the Zandalari Tribe, will finally be able to get our hands on some amazing shoulder enchantments - 18 spell power, 30 attack power, or 33 healing, to be specific! Sure, exalted won't be easy to attain, but it will give us all a reason to keep doing ZG, even if/when we're all fully geared to the teeth.

Reason 4 - More Raid Crutches!

All the crutches!

But wait! There's more! As if all the new gear and enchants coming with Zul'Gurub weren't enough, we're also getting more consumables and ANOTHER world buff! - the Spirit of Zandalar! Healers will rejoice as we'll finally have the long-awaited Mageblood Potion and Brilliant Mana Oil that will help keep our teams alive for longer, which will no doubt help us in these later tiers of raiding! What's more, casters will all be scrambling to craft the Bloodvine Garb for that much-needed spell hit - a stat that is unfortunately missing on many of the otherwise best raid gear until this point.

These great items, combined with the enchants and other awesome loot provided by ZG and the Zandalar Tribe will make our BWL clears, and subsequent progress into AQ and Naxx, that much faster and easier. And I'm really looking forward to it!

Reason 5 - Gives a Reason to Finish Leveling Alts

Just a bit more...

All of the gear, enchants, and consumables are wonderful boons to my main, but one of the biggest reasons I think that Phase 4 will be amazing is the simple fact that it will provide me (and I'm sure many others) with a reason to finally finish leveling up our alts.

Personally, the prospect of running a bunch of dungeons on my paladin or shaman just to collect enough gear to be able to step into an alt raid, then spending several hours a week clearing that raid just to get 0-2 pieces of loot out of it has always been a big put-off. So really, I only really worked on leveling my alts as a fun side activity, with no goal in mind other than maybe capping someday. With ZG on the horizon, however, these characters have a 1-stop-shop for loot, enchants, and more.

So, while I'm sure most of us will prioritize getting everything we need for our mains out of ZG first, it will eventually be an awesome place for us to take our alts - which again, I'm super stoked about. But, of course, reaching exalted on my priest comes first...

Final Thoughts

I definitely won't be killing this guy...

So, there you have it. 5 reasons why Phase 4 will be awesome. Zul'Gurub is bringing with it some of the greatest items that Classic will have on offer for the majority of the playerbase and it's really about time! From the Zandalarian Hero Charm to the Zin'rokh, Destroyer of Worlds, we're getting a lot in this epic new era of Classic content. It's also worth noting that we'll also be getting the Emerald Dragons in Phase 4, providing the top-end guilds with another layer of competition for their limited spawns, and thus loot. They'll provide great gear for guilds planning to go hardcore into AQ-40, but since I'm guessing most of us won't ever be able to get a kill on them, I think they're nearly as significant as the other upcoming phase 4 content. Of course, I could be wrong, and I wish luck to any guilds that plan to try for the tags on them!

Anyway, that's all I've got for today. For me, phase 4 is definitely going to be an exciting chapter in the life of Classic, but I'd love to know what you all think. Are you excited for ZG and the dragons, or frustrated at the blazing saddles speed at which Blizzard is churning out the Classic content? Let me know by leaving a comment down below! If you enjoyed this post, and would like to see more in the future, add your email to my mailing list while you're down there - or follow me on Facebook and Twitter for updates! Finally, consider checking out my YouTube channel, if you prefer watching this type of content instead of reading it. In any case, thanks for reading, enjoy phase 4, and as always...

Take it easy!