WoW Shadowlands release date news and World of Warcraft pre-patch update

A new release date has been set for World of Warcraft Shadowlands and fans are hoping for a big update alongside the launch of the WoW pre-patch this week. The big pre-patch launch is scheduled for Tuesday, October 13, and Blizzard has started sharing more about it. Official notes on what is changing in World of Warcraft have been released, and highlights can be found below. Highlights include details on levels, items and stats adjustments, as well as what new event to expect in October.

The Death Rising limited time event will be available soon after the pre-patch rolls out and will be available until Shadowlands official releases.

“Sylvanas Windrunner, fallen leader of the Horde, has pierced the veil between Azeroth and the realm of the dead, setting in motion a series of events that threaten to upset the cosmic balance between life and death.

“Azeroth’s heroes will confront the wonders and horrors of the afterlife as they deal with the consequences of Sylvanas’ actions.

“Shortly after the pre-expansion launch, you’ll be called upon to defend Azeroth from an undead invasion as the Scourge sweep across the land.

“Players will embark on a quest to establish a foothold in Icecrown, where the barrier between Azeroth and the afterlife has been shattered, and prepare for the coming journey into the Shadowlands.

“This limited time pre-expansion event will only be available until the launch of Shadowlands, so make sure to log in to experience it and earn special rewards.”

Fans believe that the new WoW Shadowlands release date will be set for November 24, and this is mostly based on the idea of the pre-patch running for six-weeks.

There’s plenty of good reasons for Blizzard to opt for this date, especially when you consider some will have extra time around the holidays.

However, with the current global situation affecting production around the world in nearly all industries, past patch releases might not be the best way to gauge the future.

Blizzard will have to weigh up its scheduling plans with new raid releases, with the only guarantee right now that WoW Shadowlands will be ready before the end of 2020.

And until the dev team share more on the subject, the World of Warcraft expansion will remain in development.

Another update this week regarding Shadowlands is that players can now refund their pre-orders.

There’s also a chance that we will find out more about the official WoW Shadowlands release date this week, following the arrival of the pre-patch.

There’s no guarantee this will happen, but it will be worth keeping an eye out for the latest news from Blizzard.

WOW PRE-PATCH NOTES FOR OCTOBER

LEVELS, ITEMS AND STATS ADJUSTED

Levels, items and stats have been adjusted to make reaching a new level feel more meaningful while simultaneously making the leveling experience faster than before. Characters at level 120 will become level 50 after the content update.

NEW CHARACTER CUSTOMIZATION

The character creation experience has been revitalized with a brand new user interface and many new character customization options to choose from. Some of the new options are selecting your eye color, new skin tones, new hairstyles and hair/fur colors.

All of these new options are available at Barber Shops throughout Azeroth, including the option for Druids to choose the appearance of their shapeshifting forms and the ability to swap genders. Now all customization is available in game at any time so the Appearance Change service will no longer be sold in the Shop. [LEARN MORE]

NEW STARTING EXPERIENCE

EXILE’S REACH

Exile’s Reach is an all-new starting experience that will take you on an excursion that will introduce you to the fundamentals of playing World of Warcraft and the important mechanics for your chosen class. If you’re new to World of Warcraft and have never created or leveled a character, you will automatically begin your journey into Azeroth with the starting experience. If you’re a veteran player or you’ve leveled a character before, you can choose to opt out of the starting experience and begin instead at level 1 in the starting area for your race.

Upon reaching level 10, new players will continue their journey through Battle for Azeroth and into Shadowlands. [LEARN MORE]

TIMEWALKING CAMPAIGNS

Players who have already experienced Battle for Azeroth and reached level 50 on at least one character can now choose to level any subsequent characters in a different expansion using Timewalking Campaigns. This new feature allows content from locations like Northrend or Pandaria to scale to a player’s level, so they can adventure from level 10 all the way to 50 and experience the stories of these areas at their originally intended pacing. Visit Chromie near the embassies in Stormwind or Orgrimmar to select your expansion leveling experience. If you’d like to select a different expansion to level through, simply speak to Chromie again.

NEWCOMER CHAT

After creating your character and beginning your journey into World of Warcraft for the first time, you will enter the Newcomer Chat channel where you can chat with other new players and experienced players on the same faction who will be your guides as you level through the new starting zone – Exile’s Reach. New players and guides will be able to recognize one another in the chat channels and with icons above their characters’ heads that only they can see. Upon reaching level 20, new players will be prepared to continue their journey ahead on their own and will no longer have access to the Newcomer Chat.