Major patchOriginal Vanilla · 2004–2006
Patch 1.7.0 — Rise of the Blood God
Published: UnknownDeployed: 15 changesOriginal Blizzard archive
Zul’Gurub, Arathi Basin, and Hunter talent changes.
Dungeons & Raids
- Zul’Gurub opens as a 20-player raid.
PvP
- Arathi Basin supports 15 players per faction and a race to 2,000 resources.
- Battleground holidays run Thursday midnight through Tuesday morning, rewarding more Honor and reputation for objectives; Warsong Gulch/Arathi Basin use 20–29, 30–39, 40–49, 50–59, and 60 brackets in this patch.
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General
- The debuff limit doubles from 8 to 16; Stranglethorn Fishing Extravaganza is added.
Talents— Hunter
- Beast Mastery and Survival talents are revised and Hunter points refunded.
Classes— Druid
- Cat Form gains 1 Attack Power per Agility, higher base weapon damage, and stronger Rip, Rake, and Ferocious Bite; extra Bite Energy converts into more damage.
- Tiger’s Fury uses a 1-second personal cooldown instead of the global cooldown and lasts 6 seconds; Entangling Roots follows standard long-duration PvP crowd-control timing.
Classes— Hunter
- Pet skills are refunded; pets can learn four active abilities plus armor, stamina, and school resistances. Growl costs no training points.
- Pet untraining starts at 10 silver and rises to 10 gold; pet experience uses the pet’s level rather than the Hunter’s, while kills must still reward Hunter experience.
- Cats learn Prowl, birds Screech, scorpids a five-stack poison, and wolves Furious Howl affecting the party’s next attack within 15 yards.
- Ranged Weapon Specialization affects all ranged attacks; trap resistance uses Hunter skill rather than trap rank, and Feign Death cannot be resisted by players.
Classes— Paladin
- Hammer of Wrath becomes available at level 44 as a Holy attack against wounded enemies; Blessing of Sacrifice cannot share damage with a dead Paladin.
Classes— Priest
- Vampiric Embrace heals for 20% of actual Shadow damage, including criticals and modifiers; Focused Casting becomes free and no longer triggers the global cooldown.
Classes— Warlock
- Conflagrate becomes instant with higher damage and Mana cost; Felhunter Spell Lock also silences, and Demonic Sacrifice buffs cannot be dispelled.
Classes— Warrior
- Retaliation allows up to 30 counterattacks in 15 seconds and cannot counterattack while stunned; changing stances preserves Retaliation, Recklessness, and Shield Wall.
The combined archive carries a September 22 revision heading and also includes 1.7.1. The original 1.7.0 release is September 13.