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April 2014   « Archives | Current News »

Pet Breeding Offers Collectors New Species in WoD!

April 01, 2014
We've just received the first bit of pet-related news from WoW's next expansion, Warlords of Draenor. And this news is pure AWESOME!
Pet Breeding Gives Collectors New Species in WoD!

Pet Breeding is Coming!
Hover over your pets to see their gender
In a previous interview with Cory Stockton, WoW's lead content designer, we asked about the significance of male and female pets. Cory explained that they included pet gender to pave the way for breeding. Well, the wait is over.

In an exclusive interview with April Folson, WoD's creative director, we learned that pet breeding is currently in the alpha stages of testing. The logistics of how breeding will work is still a mystery, but April confirmed that it will require a male pet and a female pet.

If you have an account on our site and you've imported your pet collection from your Armory profile, you can actually see the gender of each of your pets. Simply hover over each to see its current stats, including gender (see picture above).

Breeding Offers Unique New Species
We expected that breeding would be limited to mating two pets with the same species ID — for example, two Calico Cats. Or perhaps you'd be able to mate two pets with the same model and different skins, like an Emerald Turtle and a Turquoise Turtle, creating random offspring with one skin or the other.

But April shared several images of alpha-build models that suggest Blizzard decided to get much more creative, leading to entirely new hybrid species...

New species: Huijin Hatchling

New species: Rainbow Ombre

New species: Steel Panther

New species: Dinocroc

New species: Stinging Sunflower

New species: Wooly Caterpillar

New species: Arma n'Leg

New species: Weighted Companion Cube

New species: CARPNADO!!!

So Many Questions...
There are still many unanswered questions about these crazy new pet species. Like, how many new breeds will we discover? What sort of abilities will they have? How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?

But there's one question that begs an answer more than any other...

How long will legendary angler Nat Pagle live with Carpnado on the loose...?

The World (of Warcraft) may never know.
Posted by Breanni

Pet Breeding in Warlords of Draenor: Follow-Up

April 02, 2014
Yesterday we shared news about pet breeding in WoD that created some rather unique offspring. Well...
April Fool's!
Yes, we're sorry to say that cool as it may be, pet breeding with hybrid offspring is (unfortunately) not coming in WoD. [Insert "Awwww..." here.]

Did you pick up on the clues?

  • April Folson, the person we "interviewed." A.F. = April Fool's.
  • Our eighth new species, the Weighted Companion Cube, was a callback to our very first April Fool's joke in 2008.
  • The date of the post. That was probably the most obvious clue.


Was any of it true?
Yes! In last year's interview with Cory Stockton, Cory did state that pet breeding of some sort is possible down the road, hence the inclusion of pet gender. To learn more about pet gender, check out our Guide to Pet Breeds.

We can only hope that if and when pet breeding comes, it's something truly spectacular... Carpnado would make a nice addition to WoW (though Nat Pagle may not agree).

A Special Thanks
Once again, we'd like to extend a special thanks to Drrum (known in WoW as Michelle De Rum) for providing us with all of the incredible hybrid pet artwork. She is truly a master of her craft. Our joke wouldn't have been possible without her extraordinary design work and wonderful sense of humor.

You can enjoy more of Drrum's creativity at her Gallery of Pets and Mounts.

Share Your Feedback!
Our goal is to make every year's April Fool's joke humorous and memorable. We'd love to hear what you thought of our latest effort.
Feedback: Did you enjoy our 2014 April Fools' Day joke? Were you fooled? Take a few moments to send us your feedback!
Posted by Breanni

WoD Alpha: First Glimpse of New Pets and Abilities

April 05, 2014
The Warlords of Draenor alpha began this past week, bringing new pets, abilities and items!

LeCraft On Twitter
Senior game designer Jonathan LeCraft (@TheCrafticus) Tweeted a small jumble of pet tid-bits. It's an exciting preview of what's to come. Hopefully more information and details will be revealed about each of these topics soon.

"No pet battle patch notes? Baby hippos, baby gronn, carpnado, elite pet trainers, eggs, and leveling stones. Boom. Plus more."

Datamined Information From WoD Alpha
Wowhead dug straight in and did some datamining in the alpha. What they found came as a pleasant surprise for WarcraftPets—a new Pet Battle ability, Carpnado! (See our recent April Fool's for our take on what a pet of the same name would look like.)

In addition to a new pet ability there are new descriptions, possible pets and vanity items. [source]

Abilities and Items



New Pets

  • Carrotus Maximus - Teaches you how to summon this companion.
  • Old Cooking Pot - Teaches you how to summon Lil' Leftovers.
  • Mechanical Toucan - Teaches you how to summon this companion.
  • Temporal Shard - Teaches you how to summon a Temporal Shard.
  • Weebomination - Right Click to summon and dismiss your unusually small abomination.


Descriptions

  • Tenacious and terrible, the mighty Hogs slaughters weaker enemies without hesitation.
  • Both heads are equally fearsome on the terrifying chimaera, each capable of its own unique breath attack.
  • The dark wings will cloud and consume the minds of the weak, because they are just so adorable!
  • This massive weapon of destruction has been miniaturized for use in the garden. Moles beware!
  • Made from bits and pieces of vanquished battle pets, dark magic, and just a pinch of love.
  • Cute enough to eat, but not recommended.
  • The frost, sometimes it makes the carrot stick in the ground. Not this one.


Keep in mind that the current information is still limited and may be incomplete. Not all pets, abilities and items will make the final cut. We'll need to wait for more details as testing continues in alpha and eventually transitions into beta, so stay tuned!

Beware Phishing Attempts
Open invites have NOT started for the WoD alpha. Keys have not been mailed out, so be wary of any e-mails claiming to grant access to the alpha. These e-mails are almost certainly malicious and should not be opened. Keep your accounts (and pets) safe!
Posted by Quintessence
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Happy 7th Birthday to WarcraftPets!

April 06, 2014
It's been seven incredible years since WarcraftPets launched, dedicated to bringing you everything pet-related. And today we're celebrating our 7th birthday!

WarcraftPets' 7th Birthday!
7 Years Young (Do we look our age?)
Through the many years we've evolved so much, and we thank you for continuing to support us. Thanks to your contributions, our community has grown and become a great resource for pet lovers, both collectors and battlers alike.

Year In Review
The past year has been a whirlwind of new additions, features, and of course, many new pets!



We'd like to thank everyone again, especially our Site MVPSite MVPs, for continuing to support WarcraftPets. We wouldn't be here without you.

And as always...

Happy Collecting!
Posted by Quintessence
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Spring Rabbit — Pet of the Month: April 2014

April 14, 2014
Anubisath Idol — Pet of the Month

It's springtime in Azeroth so what better pet for Pet of the Month than the Spring Rabbit — just in time for Noblegarden!

Collecting the Spring Rabbit
Spring Rabbit
This adorable brown and white bunny can be obtained during Noblegarden, an in-game holiday that occurs annually and lasts for seven days.

You can purchase the Spring Rabbit for 100 Noblegarden Chocolates (looted from Brightly Colored Eggs), or if you're lucky, find the pet hiding within a Brightly Colored Egg.

The vendors and eggs can be accessed throughout all level 5 starter towns during Noblegarden. In the spirit of an Easter Egg Hunt, the eggs will often spawn in nooks and crannies, sometimes making them tough to spot. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for these brightly colored eggs because it's first come, first served.

Once learned, the Spring Rabbit becomes Uncommon quality. It's tradeable and you can have up to three in your Pet Journal, so collect away!

Among all the rabbit pets, the Spring Rabbit takes the cake (or carrot) for being the most lively. It will hop around while idle, often traveling a fair distance from the player before bounding back with a giant leap. This pet is also the most prolific and will "mate" with any other Spring Rabbit that's nearby.

Battling with the Spring Rabbit
Despite a soft, cottony exterior, the Spring Rabbit has a lot of utility as a battle pet. This Critter is among the fastest pets in the game, so in nearly all the matchups you come across, your Spring Rabbit will go first. If that's not fast enough for you, you can use the Adrenaline Rush ability, which almost doubles that incredible speed for a couple turns.

The Rabbit's favored moveset drops Adrenaline Rush in favor of an avoidance combo featuring Dodge and Burrow. Using the two together mean that there are 3 rounds out of every 5 that your bunny isn't taking anything but previously applied DoT damage. It is surprisingly deadly, and rather irritating to PVP against. Most moves your opponent tries will glance off harmlessly while you slowly whittle down their health.

If you don't need your bunny to absorb a ton of damage, Stampede is one of the best moves out there for PVE synergy, especially in single-pet fights. Stampede applies Shattered Defenses, a 2-turn damage multiplying debuff which works really well with nearly any other pet. It can apply that double damage to either of the Rabbit's other 2 offensive moves, Scratch and Flurry.

Spring Rabbit stampeding
Scratch is a straightforward dps move, but Flurry has a bit of an interesting twist. It hits several times, with an additional hit if your pet is faster. As previously discussed, your Spring Rabbit is nearly always going to be faster, making this the preferred move for the first slot, with a big Unless. If you're up against an opponent using a damage absorbing shield like Stoneskin, both Stampede and Flurry will be completely absorbed, making this a risky combo to take for PVP.

The biggest punch you pack in using a Spring Rabbit is the Rabbit itself. It's a lot of fun to go up against legions of undead, creatures made of fire, and even dragons, and watch them get mowed down by a loveable little ball of fluff.

Check out our forum thread discussion on the Spring Rabbit and submit your own thoughts on this pet.

Battling Discussion on the Spring Rabbit

Pet of the Month is co-written by Liopleurodon, an experienced pet battler and long-time WoW player. She maintains her own Pet Battle blog, comprised of pet analyses, team strategies and general thoughts on pets.
Posted by Quintessence
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WoD Alpha: Peacock Pet and Update On Pet Breeding

April 28, 2014
New Pet Datamined
A new pet was discovered in the latest build of the WoD Alpha — a Royal Peacock. [source]

Datamined peacock
Prior to Patch 5.1, a baby peacock of varying colors was datamined from the PTR (one version pictured above) but it's unclear if the new pet will use the same model or skins.

The Unlisted Pets page has been updated to include the known details of this new pet, along with information on all of the pets datamined from the WoD Alpha.

List of all WoD Alpha datamined pets

Update On Pet Breeding
Lead Game Designer, Cory Stockton (aka: Mumper), Tweeted an update on the status of pet breeding in WoD.

"We decided against pet breeding for the 6.0 launch. Mainly balance and content concerns."

While this may be disappointing news for some, pet breeding could still be in our future as part of a content patch after the initial release of the expansion. We remain hopeful that WoD will be full of wonderful new pets and features for collectors, battlers, and all players.
Posted by Quintessence

WoD Alpha: New Pet Models and Colors

April 30, 2014
The WoD Alpha has revealed a handful of new pets, and some may look familiar while others sport entirely new models in varying colors. Here's a preview of some possible pets coming in the expansion.

Recognize These Pets?
Carrotus Maximus   Iron Starlette
Apparently the Terrible Turnip has a not-so-terrible cousin — Carrotus Maximus (pictured left).

And thanks to some tinkering from "engineers" the Iron Star (pictured right) from the final battle in the Siege of Orgimmar raid is now miniaturized and less deadly (but watch out for your toes).

New Models
Senior Game Designer Jonathan LeCraft Tweeted a brief preview of possible pets to come in the expansion, and one of the pets mentioned was a baby hippo.

Baby hippo colors

Why stop at just one hippo? We've discovered five different colors for this hefty herbivore, but it's still unknown if we'll be able to collect them all.

Toucans

Other models that we've come across include toucans (pictured above) and a creature known as a Podling (pictured below).

Podlings

According to Jeremy Feasel (Senior Game Designer) the Podling isn't very friendly, so perhaps it's better to let these fierce flowers roam out in the wild rather than attempting to tame them.

It's unconfirmed if these will be creatures in the world or pets that we can collect. They look pretty awesome so we're hoping for the latter!
Posted by Quintessence

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