This Month in WoW – February 2015
Update (February 16) -- The Lunar Festival is live! Check it out in-game, and check out our new events guide.
The second month of 2015 is already upon us, and it’s going to be a busy time for players all over Azeroth and Draenor. We’ve prepared a handy breakdown of some of what’s in store for you in February, so you can make the most of your time.
Love Is in the Air [Feb. 2 – Feb. 16]
Love and adoration are in the air in the major cities of Azeroth... and in celebration of the occasion, you’re invited to share candy, perfume, and gifts with guards, townsfolk, and other players for special rewards.
However, a strange "love sickness" seems to cloud the hearts of many of Azeroth’s people. Is this simply an outbreak of amore? Or will you and your fellow adventurers uncover a dark secret behind this plague of passion?
Locations: All major cities
Rewards include: Toxic Wasteling, Lovebird Hatchling, Peddlefeet, several new amulets, Vile Fumigator’s Mask, lovely dresses and suits, off-hand flower bouquets.
Visit our Love is in the air gallery for some images from this annual event!
Blackrock Foundry [opening Feb. 3]
This foundry was the ancestral home of the Blackrock orcs, wherein master smiths smelted and worked the impossibly hard ore that is the clan's namesake. Now, massive giants captured and broken by the Thunderlord heat the great forges, flamebenders of the Burning Blade imbue the ore with an inner fire, and engineers shape the slag according to otherworldly schematics. Warlord Blackhand's foundry is the center of the Iron Horde's military might, churning out the weaponry that will be used to raze Azeroth.
Check out our Blackrock Foundry raid preview here.
Darkmoon Faire [Feb. 8 – Feb. 14]
It’s incredible! It’s unbelievable! You’ll be dazzled! You’ll be amazed! You aren’t prepared for the Darkmoon Faire, ’cause it’s like nothing you’ve seen before! Don’t be shy now; don’t be bashful; step right up for a tantalizing glimpse of what we've got in store for you!
Gathering exotic wonders from around the world, Silas Darkmoon presents a celebration of the marvels and mysteries found in Azeroth. While the Faire spends most of its time in parts unknown, this traveling festival is available from time to time by accessing portals in Mulgore and Elwynn Forest.
Location: Darkmoon Island, via portals just outside Thunder Bluff and Stormwind.
Rewards include: 17 different battle pets, including the Darkmoon Tonk, Darkmoon Zeppelin, and Syd the Squid; two mounts: Darkmoon Dancing Bear and Swift Forest Strider; replica armor sets for all classes, such as the famous Lightforge set for Paladins; many heirloom items.
Lunar Festival [Feb. 16 - Mar. 2]
The Lunar Festival is a time of celebration for all of Azeroth. Across the world, people gather to acknowledge the triumph of ages ago, when an alliance of races—night elves, tauren, and the proto-dwarven earthen—defeated the Burning Legion. At the beginning of each year, elders of generations past manifest around the world to impart their wisdom upon all who listen. Should you encounter these venerable spirits in your travels and take the time to heed their words, they may even pass along tokens of their gratitude: Coins of Ancestry, mementos of the lessons of a past age. Gather enough Coins of Ancestry and the Cenarion Circle will open their stores of celebratory garb, fireworks, trinkets, and recipes!
The Cenarion Circle has good cause to celebrate, for the Lunar Festival marks the return of many Ancients that fell in battles past: Goldrinn, Malorne, Aviana, and Cenarius himself. But this celebration is darkened by the eternal torment of one of their own—Omen, a wolf Ancient blessed by the moon goddess Elune, has risen from the depths of Moonglade’s lake. Though Omen was once as noble and proud as any Ancient, he was driven mad by the Burning Legion’s tainted magic during the War of the Ancients. Omen’s immortality dooms him to forever return in his maddened state at the advent of each new year—and this year, he has grown further in power, a challenge for even heroes of level 100. Heroes must make haste to ease this tormented Ancient’s suffering, in the hopes that perhaps next year he will return with a clearer mind.
Locations: Stormwind, Thunder Bluff, Booty Bay, and Moonglade (look for portals in the Vale of Eternal Blossoms).
Rewards include: Lunar Lantern, Festival Lantern, dresses and suits, schematics for fireworks, stacks of fireworks, individual fireworks, the sounds of fireworks, fireworks for days.
Visit our Lunar Festival gallery for some images from the annual event!
Seasonal Pursuits
The Snowy Owl is only available in the Winterspring zone during winter months, and it’s a requirement for the Kalimdor Safari achievement.
Prepare for Patch 6.1
There’s no time like the present to get ready for the upcoming patch. We’ve been updating a complete PTR patch notes list, and you can use the Public Test Realm to test the patch with us. Check out the PTR discussion forum and the PTR Bug Report forum for more.