Plunderstorm has made a triumphant return to World of Warcraft, bringing a fresh wave of excitement with new features and rewards for players to enjoy. This pirate-themed battle royale mode, where 60 players drop into the Arathi Highlands to compete for supremacy and loot, is back in action following a brief delay and is set to thrill fans as they await Patch 11.1.
This second run of Plunderstorm introduces several enhancements to the battlefield. Players will encounter new points of interest and mobs, with non-elite enemies now respawning, ensuring a continuous flow of plunder until the Storm engulfs them. Additionally, horses scattered across the map offer a swift means of traversing the battlefield to discover chests, elite enemies, and opponents. The in-game map now features zone threat indicators, showing fight frequency in different areas, and allows players to select their initial deployment zones, adding a strategic layer to the game.
New World of Warcraft: Plunderstorm Features
- New points of interest
- Respawning non-elite enemies
- Fast travel horses
- Zone threat indicators on the map
- Selectable deployment zones
- Practice Lobby
- Plunderstore featuring new and returning rewards
- Game mode access while on World of Warcraft: The War Within characters
- New abilities:
- Offensive
- Aura of Zealotry – Passively increase movement speed for your allies. Cast to consecrate the ground, damaging enemies periodically. While in consecration, gain enhanced movement speed and melee attacks.
- Celestial Barrage – Call down a barrage of moonbeams, damaging enemies. This spell can be empowered to greatly increase its range.
- Utility
- Call Galefeather – Call forth Galefeather to knock enemies back with heavy winds for a short duration.
- Void Tear – Tear into the Void, placing a Void mark. Recast Void Tear to instantly return to the mark, damaging and slowing enemies. The recast can be performed instantly while casting any spell without interruption.
- Offensive
- Ability balance changes
- Earthbreaker – Cooldown decreased by 2 seconds at all ranks.
- Slicing Winds – Cooldown increased by 2 seconds at all ranks.
- Star Bomb – Cooldown decreased by 2 seconds at all ranks.
- Storm Archon – Cooldown decreased by 2 seconds at all ranks.
- Toxic Smackerel – Cooldown increased by 1.5 seconds at all ranks.
Plunderstorm introduces a range of new spells for players to collect and upgrade. Offensive spells like Aura of Zealotry not only provide a passive speed boost to your character and team but also allow casting Consecrate to damage enemies and buff allies within a specific area. Meanwhile, Celestial Barrage unleashes a long, chargeable line attack. On the utility front, Call Galefeather summons an eagle to knock back enemies temporarily, and Void Tear enables teleportation to a marked point, inflicting damage and slowing enemies. The game also includes cooldown adjustments for existing spells and a new user interface to facilitate ability swaps and pickups, keeping the gameplay dynamic and engaging.
A new addition, the Plunderstorm Practice Lobby, offers a space for players to experiment with abilities, adjust keybindings, and customize transmogs while socializing with others. From here, players can queue for games or access the Plunderstore, the new hub for obtaining Plunderstorm rewards. This can also be done from the login screen or directly within retail World of Warcraft via the PvP interface.
Notably absent from this iteration is the Trios mode, which supported three-player teams. While the reason for its exclusion remains unclear, there's hope that Blizzard might reintroduce it before Plunderstorm sets sail once more.
