5.1 Coming Soon

Apparently the 5.1 version on the PTR is flagged as a release candidate, so it's clear that the new patch is coming soon. Assuming that means some time either at the end of this month or in December, it may be the earliest ".1" patch they've ever done (though I know that Vanilla had a lot of these patches. Naxxramas 40 came in something like patch 1.12.)

Now, of course, 5.1 is not a raid patch, or even a dungeon patch like 4.1 was. However, it accomplishes something that was inherent to the premise of Mists of Pandaria. The current state of the continent is actually a fairly unique thing to witness - a Pandaria before the Alliance and Horde get their hands on it. Regardless of faction, both sides are, at the very most, shipwrecked refugees or small, private expeditions (the Dawnchasers and the Night Elf team are the closest thing to serious presences - nice to see non-human and non-orc forces making up the biggest presence.) 5.1 is going to signal the true arrival of the player factions.

It actually makes the player character seem that much cooler. I remember arriving in Northrend for the first time and having the enlistment clerk get really excited when I arrived at Valiance Keep. Everyone there was saying "Oh, crap. Jarsus is here? Man, they've really pulled out the big guns this time." By the time you're high enough to head to Pandaria, you are a stone-cold badass and one of the most powerful members of your class in the world - a figure of legend.

So, building on that, you are now the Alliance/Horde's best expert on Pandaria. Varian doesn't know about the August Celestials or the history of the Mogu, or the structure of society in Pandaria (Garrosh presumably doesn't care.) But you, who have spent months in this new land, are the person they're going to go to for information.

There's going to be a lot of new plot stuff with the new factions, and while I know that more dailies is not exactly the prescription people are begging for, I am very excited to be involved in the various events to occur that change the landscape of the player factions.

Now, yes, the Brawler's Guild is the most unique addition to this patch, and thus a lot of people have been focusing on it and its gaping pitfalls, but in truth, the patch is really about moving the story along, and considering that the expansion has only been out for a little under two months, I think we've got enough content to keep us busy for now. (My guild has yet to attempt Mogu'shan Vaults, for instance.)

If they can produce patches like this without slowing down the process of making raid and dungeon patches, I fully support them. There are a million different stories going on in-game, and seeing them move with regularity is a very exciting prospect indeed.