Summary
World of Warcraftrecently updated its new Skyriding system in theWar Withinbeta to be unlocked at level 10 – the same level characters unlock normal mounts in the game. OnceThe War Withinmakes this change, normal ground mounts inWorld of Warcraftwill become all but useless.
Skyriding is the new nameWorld of Warcraftis using for Dragonriding now that it is being transformed into an evergreen system. WhenWoWfirst announced the Skyriding system, it revealed players would unlock it starting at level 15, and that nearly every flying mount in the game would be able to use it.
However, in the months since that first announcement,World of Warcrafthas made even more improvements to the system. According to reports fromWoWcontent creator MrGM, as of a recent build oftheWoW: The War Withinbeta, Skyriding is now unlocked at level 10, rather than 15. While unlocking the feature that early is exciting, it is also the same level players unlock ground mounts, calling into question the purpose of these slower mounts in the first place.
The Struggle of Ground Mounts in World of Warcraft
When they were first added inThe Burning Crusade, getting flying mounts required a lot of gold, making them challenging rewards to earn. In subsequent expansions, gaining the ability to fly in zones required players to complete the challenging Pathfinder achievement, which took a lot of time and effort. Theserequirements were lessened in laterWorld of Warcraftexpansions, making flying much easier to unlock – and ground-only mounts less relevant. This expanded even further inDragonfightwith the advent of Dragonriding, but it seems likeThe War Withinmay be the nail in the coffin for these mounts.
That said, there are a couple waysWorld of Warcraftcould save ground mounts. It could give every mount the ability to fly, similarly to whatFinal Fantasy 14did with its own mounts duringShadowbringers. Alternatively, it could take theGuild Wars 2approach and add special traversal abilities unique to its ground mounts.World of Warcraftplayers discovered strings that suggest dynamic ground mountscould be in development, so Blizzard may already be working on something similar.
Nevertheless, thechanges coming to Skyriding inWorld of Warcraftare huge. Capitalizing on one of the best features inDragonflightis a great decision, and players can’t wait to unlock the system automatically while leveling up. What’s more, as of right now, all but one flying mount, the Otherworldly Ottuk Carrier, are Skyriding-enabled. So long as it can eventually fix the dilemma with ground mounts, the Skyriding system will be perfect.
World of Warcraft: Dragonflight
WHERE TO PLAY
World of Warcraft: Dragonflight was developed by Blizzard Entertainment and is the ninth expansion pack for the iconic massively multiplayer online role-playing game World of Warcraft.Dragonflight features an overhauled user interface, raises the level cap to 70, and introduces a new race and class.
