PTR Code 8962!

A glorious thing has happened. The PTR (Public Test Realm) got the same codebase as the WoTLK Beta is using, so... There'll be no Northrend coverage or fussing over the new ShadowKnight...er...Death Knight class (sorry), but I should be able to make a very good start at explaining to people what Addons are not only essential, but actually work before the PTR code goes to the live servers and everyone has to learn how to play all over again*. The talent changes are just about that serious. Buffs no longer work anything like they used to, and nearly every class has one or more to bring to a raid now. I promise you will like them. Since these things are new, and "not quite balanced yet", you will especially like the fact that if you are a fairly alert and meticulous person, you will find ways to wreak absolutely ludicrous amounts of havok upon your enemies until things settle down a bit.

So far, the obvious winners (aside from Inscription) have been that the graphics engine has been rejiggered so that it does much more accurate handling of shadows and lighting, which has resulted in a very notable visual improvement in just about every zone. Hunters no longer have to worry so much about running out of mana because of a major change to Aspect of the Viper. Steady Shot has been "unlinked" from Auto Shot, meaning we no longer have to worry about crafting a custom shot rotation macro (those of you who weren't using one still fail, epicly if you thought you didn't need one). ...and for beastmaster-specialized (or "specced") Hunters like myself, we get Exotic Pets which for most people at the moment seems to mean Kurken, the Snowy Giant Two-Headed Dog. Since I have cojones the size of coconuts, I got a "real" core hound. Kurken fans, my pokemon can beat your pokemon. Count on it.

REMINDER: Brewfest begins this weekend.

* - If you're used to having addons around, the time right after game patches have traditionally been when many or all of one's important addons no longer work properly, leaving players feeling like they're playing with a few fingers missing. Players who don't use a lot of addons tend to not understand this strange sensation, which is why I'm explaining it.