World of Warcraft's Cataclysm expansion was the most disliked expansion at its time of release. People were incredibly excited at its announcement, but many felt it fell flat compared to The Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King. The Cataclysm was a very ambitious project though. Not only did they open the entirety of Azeroth up to flying and add two new races to the game, they completely revampe🎶d every🐟 zone with updated graphics and quests.
Some of the updated zones left fans speechless, with all their nostalgia replaced by excitement for the future. Others were seen as examples of Blizzard taking 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:World of Warcraft away from the roots that made it successful in the first place. Whether you loved or hated Cataclysm, one thing is certain - nothing was the same after it. Here are 5♏ zones that changed for the better, and 5 we think changed for the worse.
10 Improved: Desolace 💯 🐭
While none of the quests in are particularly memorable, we think post-Cataclysm Desolace was at least an improvement on the old version. Nobod𝐆y꧅ ever felt excited to quest in Classic Desolace. The zone was confusing to reach, especially for new players.
Most would travel through the much higher level Fera👍las to reach it. Their many deaths were rewarded with a barren wasteland with very few interesting quests. The only real selling point of Desolace was Maraudon. But we all just kin♍d of hoped we'd have someone summon us there instead. At least New Desolace is prettier to look at.
9 Better Before: Redridge Mountains 🎃
To be honest, we like New Redridge too. However, the epic questline involving infiltrating the Blackrock Stronghold felt much more like a great achievement in pre-Cataclysm Redridge. For many Alliance players, Redridge was the first zone in w༺hich they we🐭re forced to interact with others. If completed at the appropriate level, many of Redridge's quests were difficult or impossible to complete solo.
Blackrock Stronghold was a tiny area densely packed with orcs. Even in a group of 5, improper pulls could wipe the party. It served as a training ground for new players - a perfect introduction to dungeons yet t💦o come. Leaving the area alive, quests completed, with a new group of friends was a real achievement. Doing it with NPCs instead just doesn't have the same effect.
8 ♔ Improved: Westfall 🌌
Old Westfall and New Westfall are both great zones. The pre-Cataclysm version of the zone was famous for its deadly enemies and being home to one of the best dungeons in the game. However, we love the introduction New Westfall gives to the storyline of the area. It opeܫns up with a murder mystery, with the plaཧyer acting as a detective asking local transients for clues.
The theme of local workers discontent with Stormwind nobles comes across more here - with starving people outside of Sentinel Hill's gates begging to be ꧟let inside. Moonbrook and the passage into the Deadmines hold all the nostalgia of Old Westfall, but with more visual storytelling to bring the world to life.
7 📖 Better Before: Duskwood
Duskwood was likely the first place Alliance players would encounter a monster so incredibly out of their league their only hope was to run. Stitches, the level 35 elite abomination, was a monster that players were directly responsible for creating. 💖By helping the hermit Abercrombie obtain a variety of shady materials like ghost hair and ghoul's ribs, we sign the warrant for Darkshire's destruction.
Players typically found in Duskwood are not high enough level to kill Stitches. Even for being elite, the monster hits hard. While the Cataclysm did keep Stitches in the game, the original quest was much more interesting. Cataclysm prompted you to be the hero, giving you a quest to help defeat Stitches. Original Duskwood offered no such incentive. Youꦬ could choose to rectify your mistak🔯e or let the abomination overrun Darkshire.
6 Improಞved: Silverpine Fore𒊎st
When it comes to modern Silverpine Forest and classic Silverpine, there's no comparison. Cataclysm's Silverpine Forest is one of the best leveling zones in all of the World of Warcraft period. Especially with Battle for Azeroth's focus on the B💯anshee Queen, Silverpine Forest is a must-see. The zone focuses heavily on Sylvanas and the war with the Alliance over Lordaeron.
It has both tight storytelling and excellent character development moments. The previous iteration of Silverpine had barel🍬y any visitors,💞 even for its dungeon Shadowfang Keep. However, modern Silverpine will almost always have questers, particularly on the Horde side.
5 🔥 Better Before: Hinterlands
The Hinterlands was one of the most beautiful zones in old Azeroth. With its lush greenery and towering mountains, this zone left an impact on all those who p﷽assed through. It was one of the zones required to visit for the Noggenfogger Elixir quest. And who didn't want to complete that? Plus it even housed a shortc🔴ut to the Western Plaguelands' Scholomance dungeon.
Perhaps most epic though was the city of Jintha'alor. The capital city of the Vileb🙈ranch tribe was full of elite trolls several levels higher than mobs in the rest of the zone. It was a large gauntlet that served as the final destination for a few epic chain quests. Most notable was its role in obtaining the Mallet of Zul'Farak - the item used to summon Gahz'rilla for your Carrot on a Stick.
4 𝔉 Improved: Darkshore
Most Night Elf players hated questing in Darkshore and Ashenvale so much, they opted to death run through the Wetlands just to quest in Westfall and Redridge instead. Deathwing wanted to rectify that. Darkshore's Cataclysm revamps undoubtedly made the zone prettier.
However, it also gave the zone a slew of new quests that linked thematically to the expansion. Between fighting the newly released elementals and Twilight cultists to the hints of Old God whispers, everything in Darkshore felt refreshing. There's also a semi-secret zone at the bottom of a whirlpool, and 🙈who doesn't love little easter eggs like that?
3 🍎 Better Before: Hillsbrad Foothills
Vanilla Nostalgia plays a large part in Hillsbrad's inclusion on the list. But how could old Hillsbrad Foothills not be here? The legendary battles of Southshore versus Tarren Mill are iconic. Although S🦋tranglethorn Vale was another contender for the bloodiest world PvP battle, Hillsbrad easily takes the cake.
The Hordꩲe and Alliance towns are in such proximity, it's as though the zone was made for faction warfare. When Phase 2 of lau൲nched, Southshore and Tarren Mill became hotbeds of honor killing once again. Hillsbrad Foothills was a legendary zone and was one of the best areas for questing back in the day.
2 𓄧 Improved: Azshara ▨
Before Cataclysm, Azshara had almost nothing to do. There were barely any quests and it was a subpar farming zone compared to its counterparts like Felwood and Winterspring. The Bay of Storms was an excellent place for fishing in Vanilla, but that was about it. Cataclysm revamped the area.
New Azshara is home to Bilgewater Harbor and Gallywix's Pleasure Palace, two of the most fun areas to visit in-game. If you like the goblin-themed questing zones, post-Cataclysm Azshara is worth the ᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚvisit. Plus, it was made so much more convenient to travel to, as it can now be reached by heading north from Orgrimmar.
1 🔯 Better Before: Felwood
The best part about Felwood wasn't its quests. What players spent most of their time doing was farming. Many mobs dropped useful items here. Firstly, the satyrs (which are heavily farmed in Classic) had impressive loot tables. Their two most valuable drops were Felcloth and Demonic Runes. There were also fire and water elementals to kill for their respective essences.
To top it off, the Bloodvenom Falls was home to oozes capable of dropping the Oozing Bag. Furthermore, Felwood was littered with useful plants unique to the zone. With Cenarion Salve, players could cleanse flowers for word buffs, whipper root tubers, and night dragon's breath. In addition to having a faction with valuable re𒉰putation rewards, Felwood was a zone packed with value, even for those no longer questing there.