World of Warcraft: Legion Patches 7.1.5 and 7.2 revealed

Patch 7.1 for World of Warcraft: Legion just launched a few weeks ago, but Blizzard is already talking about what's coming next for the expansion. During a panel at BlizzCon, the developer revealed two upcoming patches full of new content: Patch 7.1.5 and Patch 7.2.

Patch 7.1.5 will be coming first and represents a new type of "small" patch that Blizzard is working on to ensure that fresh content will hit the game more often. The developer says small patches will focus on additions that will remain a part of the game long-term rather than content that only fits within the constraints of any given expansion.

In the case of 7.1.5, this means a number of additions. All six of the dungeons from 2012's Mists of Pandaria expansion will become part of the game's timewalking feature, which allows players to tackle older dungeons at the max level of difficulty for special cosmetic rewards. The Brawler's Guild feature will return with dozens of new bosses, including new "raid" encounters that will pull in other players hanging out in the arena. The Blade's Edge PvP arena will be receiving an update.

In more long-term additions, Patch 7.1.5 will add what Blizzard is calling "micro-holidays." Where holiday events in the game normally last for a week or two and offer a lot of different rewards, micro-holidays will only run for a day or two and will be there just to shake up what players are doing, not to provide rewards or achievements. One example is Ahn'Qiraj Remembrance Day, which takes place on Jan. 22, the day that the gates to Ahn'Qiraj were first opened by players back in 2006. Another is Volunteer Guard Day, where players can take on the role of a city guard and go on patrol.

Finally, 7.1.5 will see Blizzard taking a new pass at class balance. The developer will rework some talents that players aren't using, will mix up the effect of secondary stats like haste and crit, and will address feedback to improve the "feel" of class ability rotations.

Following the announcement of Patch 7.1.5, Blizzard went on to reveal Patch 7.2, its next major content patch, which it is calling "The Tomb of Sargeras." This update will take players back to the Broken Shore, which kicked off the Legion expansion. In the revamped zone, the 12 class order halls will come together to form a new faction: the Armies of Legionfall. Players will need to build up a base as they raise their reputation with the new faction, which will include choosing which buildings are created to unlock different bonuses.

Outside of the Broken Shore, Legion Assault events will start happening all over the expansion's five main zones. These events will shut down the regular world quests, replacing them with new quests to help push back the demonic army invasion.

Players will be able to achieve a new set of achievements in Patch 7.2 to unlock flying in the new zone, which hasn't been allowed yet since Legion's launch. In addition to the return of flying, players will be able to earn epic mounts that are unique to each class. These range from a tiger for monks to a skeletal dragon for death knights to a giant wind elemental for shamans, and all will be able to fly.

The new Tomb of Sargeras raid will feature nine bosses and the progression of Legion's main plot following the Nighthold raid (which has not yet unlocked in the game). In addition to that, the patch will include a new five-player dungeon called Cathedral of Eternal Night. This four-boss dungeon will also take place in the Tomb of Sargeras area, but players will ascend it rather than descending. It will be available at heroic and mythic difficulty. Likewise, the current mythic-only dungeons in Legion will receive heroic versions for more casual players.

World of Warcraft's player-versus-player content will receive a new brawl mode inspired by similar brawl modes seen in Hearthstone and Overwatch. Examples of WoW PvP brawls include Packed House, a mode where two 15-player raid groups are dumped into an arena map normally used for a max of three-versus-three match-ups, and winter Arathi Basin, a chilly version of the classic map where visibility has been reduced severely.

Finally, Patch 7.2 will see some additions to artifact system. New artifact traits will be added to each artifact weapon, as well as the ability to purchase additional points in existing traits. Players will need to work through new quests to unlock these new trait options. There will also be a sixth appearance to unlock for each artifact weapon, which will be opened up via solo play challenges.

Blizzard says patch 7.1.5 will go up on the public test realm immediately following BlizzCon, with a release on live servers not far behind. As soon as 7.1.5 is live, Patch 7.2 will go up onto the PTR. Blizzard says this aggressive pace for new content will continue and that players should expect new test realm content every time something moves to live servers. The developer said a patch 7.2.5 is in the works, and beyond that hinted that players may be headed to the Legion planet of Argus in the future.