World of Warcraft Patch 4.1: Rise of the Zandalari Released, Q&A and Trailer

Blizzard’s ambitious version 4.1 patch for World of Warcraft apparently sees the troll tribes of Zul’Aman and Zul’Gurub being driven into “a renewed frenzy that threatens to escalate into outright war”, but if you’re curious as to what exactly that means, this insider Q&A with encounter designer Scott Mercer should fill in some of the pertinent details.

Let’s talk phat loot! What kinds of rewards can players expect from the new versions of Zul’Gurub and Zul’Aman?

Scott Mercer: The bosses drop epic quality item level 353 loot, which we hope will help players gear up for Cataclysm raiding. We also reworked the Edge of Madness event as an optional boss encounter which requires the archaeology profession to activate. At a certain point, an archaeologist can release one of four randomly chosen troll spirits, each with unique loot. We’re also releasing new versions of the special mounts that used to be found in Zul’Aman and Zul’Gurub. Players who successfully complete a timed run of Zul’Aman can get the new version of the war bear. Anyone who has the old version of a mount can still get the new version. Also — though this isn’t really part of the dungeon itself — we’re adding a new mini-raptor pet for people who do the Stranglethorn Vale lead-in quests. Oh, and of course, Mojo the toad can still be found in Zul’Aman.

And if that didn’t do the trick, how about a launch trailer?