Patch 11.2 Dev Interview with MarcelianOnline - Reshii Wraps, Resilient Keys, & Dinar

Posted 2025/06/20 at 4:11 PM by Archimtiros

MarcelianOnlineAre the Brokers Ethereals?

You'll have to wait to see specifically how the Brokers are tied to the Ethereals, but we do know that they're parking their city (Tazavesh) on K'aresh, telling us they have some interest in the planet. Lore interested players are definitely going to want to pay close attention to that questline.

Playable Ethereals in the Future?

Nothing to announce at the moment, but they're always interested to hear what races players find interesting to interact with. Allied races opens the door for different fantasies, and they'd love to hear what players think after experiencing the story of Ghosts of K'aresh.

Returning to Iconic Ethereal Zones

K'aresh includes Eco-Domes players that may remember from Netherstorm, and we'll even be returning to the Azure Span to deal with Ethereals who are breaking into the vaults, but while you can expect some familiar callbacks most of the patch will take place on K'aresh.

New Dungeon – Eco-Dome: Aldani

Eco-Dome: Aldani has been built with the same philosophy shift that led to Season 2 changes addressing combat pacing and cast bars in Mythic+, so it should feel similar to other dungeons. That said, if you pull a lot of enemies, you're still going to have to deal with all of their abilities!

The team is also trying to further refine dungeon boss design, making them more focus, with clear hooks. Not every boss fight has to be super intense for the healer, or require everyone to dodge swirls every two seconds either. At a certain key level, everything will kill you, but the core experience should be much more approachable and they've simplified the bosses a bit, but they do have very cool bosses in there, with some mechanics players haven't seen before.

Eco-Dome is a three boss dungeon, so they're trying to keep the timer pretty reasonable. One of the goals when making a dungeon concerns the overall variety and flow. Using Floodgate as an example, it starts very open with free routing, but then shifts to tight corridors of traditional dungeon crawling - you can expect some of that in the Eco-Dome. It's also set on K'aresh, so you'll be going in and out of it; some takes place in the dome and some in the dunes and ruins.

Addons & WeakAuras in Raids

The new approach to addons is a long-term goal, not something that Manaforge: Omega has been specifically designed around. That said, the team is taking it very seriously, and as they remove future addon functionality, it's important for them to make sure that the content still fits - the types of challenges requiring computational addons probably aren't appropriate in a world that requires solving problems by communicating through voice, pings, or markers.

Visual Clutter & FPS Fixes

Of course they want the world to look incredible, class abilities to feel awesome or powerful, and a dangerous dragon's breath to take up a certain amount of threatening space, but there's always a balance between spectacular visuals and performance. The CPU usage feature was added to help players see if addons are impacting their performance, and the team is keen to hear more feedback.

Mythic-only Raid Phase Surprise?

Can't share anything about the Mythic version of the end-boss, but in terms of the "predicable" nature of big bad threat -> overcome threat -> new patch new threat, Patch 11.2 is not the end of the World Soul Saga. They're telling a huge story spanning three expansions, and so we may see a conclusion for this Ethereal storyline, it's more the closing of a chapter rather than the whole book.

Case in point: Xal'atath is still out there, and she may have taken a backseat briefly during the Liberation of Undermine, but her schemes are back in full force in the Ghosts of K'aresh update.

Phase Diving System Explained

The outdoor world of K'aresh is shattered and volatile, so players will use the Reshii Wraps to help them navigate it much in the same way that the Ethereals do. Phasing this way will allow them to interact with new objects, encounters, and enemies in this arcane version of the world, with plenty of content and rewards along the way.

Dinars & Uncapped Crest Farms

They've gotten a lot of great feedback from the mid-season Turbo Boost. What has been very apparent is that this is a breath of fresh air for players pursuing mid-season goals like AOTC, Keystone Legend, or Cutting Edge, so they are very interested in some type of mid-season boost again.

Feedback has been positive, but it's the first time they've tried this type of thing in the middle of a season, so whether the next iteration takes the same form is something they're still discussing.

Resilient Keys on Lower Levels?

Feedback regarding the Resilient system has been pretty good; giving players a natural goal, as well as a clear demarcation between progression and pushing and experimenting with new strategies. No major plans to change the structure of it in Season 3, but they're happy to hear more feedback for future improvement.

Resharii Wraps – New Borrowed Power

In addition to allowing players to interact with new objects outdoors and helping them traverse the raid in interesting ways, the Reshii Wraps are a powerful item that can be upgraded by obtaining items from various activities and includes a special socket to customize secondary stats.

Hero Talent Reworks in 11.2

Nothing to share today, but always looking at feedback for improvements. Larger reworks generally happen in-between expansions, to avoid changing gameplay that players have already gotten used to, but all class feedback is useful, especially during the PTR.

Group Finder & Role Shortages

The team is very aware of the group finder boss, and the developers are players too, so they've felt it themselves. Ultimately, they want players in dungeons and raids, not sitting around trying to find them, so it's something that the team is taking very seriously and wants to address soon.

Capped vs Uncapped AoE Debate

A key part of balance is recognizing that each class shouldn't be equally good at everything. They want to ensure each class/spec/hero spec has a place where they can shine and excel, which is something enabled by encounter designers working closely alongside the class design team.

As designers, their focus is on creating a variety of different combat scenarios through their seasonal dungeon pool and the eight new raid encounters, to make sure that each class, spec, and dps or healing profile has a moment to shine.

Class Diversity in Raids

One of the pillars of encounter design is empowering the player, which means making those unique class capabilities feel heroic. If they don't put those problems and obstacles in to challenge players, then the player never really gets to feel like their tools matter, so they're trying to design with those capabilities in mind - is this a time for Grip, or a place where a well-timed Demonic Gateway or Barrier can save the raid.

They're trying to create a landscape where every type of utility has a spot where it feels awesome, and they believe that there should be ample opportunity for every class to shine in Manaforge: Omega.

One-Shots in M+ Still a Problem?

The goal is to avoid one-shots within the core experience, though as you start pushing the ceiling and things are doing 200% more damage, then its somewhat unavoidable. What's important is to make ground visuals very clear, give players enough time to avoid them, and make it feel like there's room for counter-play and without making everything feel like a healer problem.

On the other hand, going from +2 to +20 over the course of the season, where you run into one-shots is going to change based on your gear and skill level, so its tricky to design for the wide range of experiences they're trying to serve within the larger Mythic+ audience.

Patch 11.2: Ghosts of K'aresh

Class Updates

Dungeons & Mythic+

Interviews

Wowhead Future of Raids Interview
Wowhead Dungeon Design Interview
Art & Story Interview with Abbadon
Campaign Skip Eurogamer Interview

Delves Updates

S3 Delve Nemises: Ky'veza

New Raid - Manaforge: Omega

WoW's Biggest Boss Ever

Comment by FlynDinars & Uncapped Crest Farms

They've gotten a lot of great feedback from the mid-season Turbo Boost. What has been very apparent is that this is a breath of fresh air for players pursuing mid-season goals like AOTC, Keystone Legend, or Cutting Edge, so they are very interested in some type of mid-season boost again.

Feedback has been positive, but it's the first time they've tried this type of thing in the middle of a season, so whether the next iteration takes the same form is something they're still discussing.Comment by Bon3zz1001The part about target caps is such a cop out. If that's your philosophy then there is zero reason that any uncapped specs should be able to even come anywhere close to specs that are capped at 5/8 targets in those target windows.Comment by MiriandandesGET RID OF TARGET CAP. STOP DANCING AROUND IT. NO ONE SHINES WITH A TARGET CAP. EVERYTHING WITH IT STINKS AND WILL ALWAYS STINK AS LONG AS IT EXISTS. GET YOUR LITTLE PEON HEADS OUTTA YOUR LITTLE PEON CHEEKS.Comment by MetsuroDinars & Uncapped Crest Farms

They've gotten a lot of great feedback from the mid-season Turbo Boost. What has been very apparent is that this is a breath of fresh air for players pursuing mid-season goals like AOTC, Keystone Legend, or Cutting Edge, so they are very interested in some type of mid-season boost again.

Feedback has been positive, but it's the first time they've tried this type of thing in the middle of a season, so whether the next iteration takes the same form is something they're still discussing.Comment by ChaosMonkey They've gotten a lot of great feedback from the mid-season Turbo Boost. What has been very apparent is that this is a breath of fresh air for players pursuing mid-season goals like AOTC, Keystone Legend, or Cutting Edge, so they are very interested in some type of mid-season boost again.

Feedback has been positive, but it's the first time they've tried this type of thing in the middle of a season, so whether the next iteration takes the same form is something they're still discussing.GrindComment by ShadrazaarGET RID OF TARGET CAP. STOP DANCING AROUND IT. NO ONE SHINES WITH A TARGET CAP. EVERYTHING WITH IT STINKS AND WILL ALWAYS STINK AS LONG AS IT EXISTS. GET YOUR LITTLE PEON HEADS OUTTA YOUR LITTLE PEON CHEEKS.Comment by Winke125Geeeeeeeeez... Players always want new races...Comment by bannyvaderNothing to announce at the moment, but they're always interested to hear what races players find interesting to interact with.Comment by fokersDH new spec confirm or denyComment by st1flerI sure as hell hope they take a look at target caps or severely buff those that are capped.

The frustrating part is that target caps are basically irrelevant in raids, but matter so much in keys. You have a Fury warrior that MIGHT be #1 damage in some small pull of 4-5 mobs, but only by a small margin and then you do a big pull and the boomkin/unholy dk is doing 50% more damage than you.Comment by SeniaaI'm getting real tired of them defending the target cap. If we want specs to "excel" at different fight designs then specs like Fury Warrior should absolutely obliterate specs like Unholy or Balance on a fight like the first boss of ToP which is 3-4 target cleave. Instead it maybe edges out 10% ahead if at all meanwhile it gets gapped by probably double or more on pulls like the first one of Cinderbrew. Where is the parity?Comment by RwNZI'm getting real tired of them defending the target cap. If we want specs to "excel" at different fight designs then specs like Fury Warrior should absolutely obliterate specs like Unholy or Balance on a fight like the first boss of ToP which is 3-4 target cleave. Instead it maybe edges out 10% ahead if at all meanwhile it gets gapped by probably double or more on pulls like the first one of Cinderbrew. Where is the parity?Comment by XellaThis news post is misfiled as Live, not PTR.Comment by johntravolta342Dinars & Uncapped Crest Farms

They've gotten a lot of great feedback from the mid-season Turbo Boost. What has been very apparent is that this is a breath of fresh air for players pursuing mid-season goals like AOTC, Keystone Legend, or Cutting Edge, so they are very interested in some type of mid-season boost again.

Feedback has been positive, but it's the first time they've tried this type of thing in the middle of a season, so whether the next iteration takes the same form is something they're still discussing.Comment by 0VapyrI sure as hell hope they take a look at target caps or severely buff those that are capped.

The frustrating part is that target caps are basically irrelevant in raids, but matter so much in keys. You have a Fury warrior that MIGHT be #1 damage in some small pull of 4-5 mobs, but only by a small margin and then you do a big pull and the boomkin/unholy dk is doing 50% more damage than you.Comment by Tanknspank“Addons bad and cause the fps loss, guys”Comment by Luck4What a load of bull...

Nearly all questions got non-answers or avoided the main subject...

While I compliment the devs behind the art and lore, the ones behind gameplay deserve to be humbled for their disservice.Comment by SinteThe part about target caps is such a cop out. If that's your philosophy then there is zero reason that any uncapped specs should be able to even come anywhere close to specs that are capped at 5/8 targets in those target windows.Comment by SinteI sure as hell hope they take a look at target caps or severely buff those that are capped.

The frustrating part is that target caps are basically irrelevant in raids, but matter so much in keys. You have a Fury warrior that MIGHT be #1 damage in some small pull of 4-5 mobs, but only by a small margin and then you do a big pull and the boomkin/unholy dk is doing 50% more damage than you.Comment by AniseOne-Shots in M+ Still a Problem?

The goal is to avoid one-shots within the core experience, though as you start pushing the ceiling and things are doing 200% more damage, then its somewhat unavoidable. What's important is to make ground visuals very clear, give players enough time to avoid them, and make it feel like there's room for counter-play and without making everything feel like a healer problem.

I was killed in a 7 ToP yesterday. There is no other way to describe it.

Last boss. To avoid a frontal beam you are made to go one way or the other. Naturally you will avoid going the way that has the beam. So you are corralled into going the other way. Waiting for me was one of those grey running mobs that suddenly appeared and ran me over. I did not even have time to move it was that fast. Thsi mob started running as soon as it appeared. No delay like they usually have to give you time to get out of their path. No. The game straight up made me run away from the beam to place me into the path of that mob that pretty much landed on top of me and startted running.

This was punishment for saying in chat russia 0 EU 1 after tank and i as healer had to do %25 of gorechop on our own as DPS died.. 3 DPS died, like many times before up to gorechop. So the game made sure i died at least once. This was no we are goign to give you a chance to ge tout of the mobs way. This thing was planned from the start to the finish to kill me. The beam. The placenment of the mob. Everything.