It was announced during BlizzCon 2016 that a new pet would be available from the Blizzard Store this winter, and that pet has arrived — Mischief! This little fel kitten is sure to liven up any collection.
From December 1st through the end of the month all proceeds of this pet will be donated to the Make-a-Wish Foundation, a non-profit organization. [source]
Whether you're adopting Mischief for yourself, gifting one to a family member or friend, or doing both, know that your purchase will be going to a charitable cause.
Mischief Plushie
In addition to the battle pet, Blizzard is also selling a Mischief plushie (sold separately) (pictured above)!
This adorable plush can be purchased from the Blizzard Gear Store for $25 (USD). For the month of December, a portion of each Mischief plushie sale will also be donated to the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
Though the leftovers have all been eaten, this grudge match is far from over.
Check out the video below to witness the latest Pet Battle Royale winner as determined by you, the WarcraftPets community.
And the winner is...
This food fight was a runaway victory for everyone's favorite potbelly stove from the start. I guess people aren't a fan of raw turnips or salmonella-laced turkey, so the little guy behind the scenes, Pierre, finally gets a chance to shine. It's a good thing, too. After all those leftovers, I'm ready for a big ol stack of pancakes!
In the world of pet battling, there's always a next match. You never know who might show up in the ring in the next Pet Battle Royale! Check back soon for another chance to vote for the next champion.
Native to snowy mountains (and possibly a relative of The Abominable Greench), this month's pet is perfectly suited for any wintry adventure — the Kun-Lai Runt!
Collecting the Kun-Lai Runt
The Kun-Lai Runt is a wild pet that spawns in the snowy mountains of Kun-Lai Summit in Pandaria.
Max level players should have no problem traveling to Kun-Lai Summit to search for their own Runt. Players below level 90 can still make their way to the zone, however it can be more dangerous.
The easiest way to reach Kun-Lai Summit while on a ground mount is to head to Valley of the Four Winds. There is a stairway northwest of the eastern-most quest hub (Thunderfoot Fields) that leads up into the mountains. Follow this path, travel through the Veiled Stair, and take a short boat ride through the Ancient Passage.
You'll find yourself in Binan Village in southern Kun-Lai Summit, so it will take a bit more legwork to reach the cold peaks where this pet lives.
The Kun-Lai Runt comes in three possible breeds. This wild pet can spawn anywhere between Winter's Blossom and Mogu'shan Terrace. The Runt can be a little shy at times, and some collectors will recommend checking multiple servers for spawns. Be patient and keep looking!
As fierce and vicious as the Kun-Lai Runt appears, this wild pet is a huge bundle of warm fluff. Who knows? Maybe the Kun-Lai Runt could melt even the The Abominable Greench's icy heart.
Battling with the Kun-Lai Runt
The Kun-Lai Runt combines power with lots of fight control. Much of that control comes from its ability to stun its opponent with the combination of Frost Shock, which causes the Chilled effect, and Deep Freeze, which has 100% chance to stun pets which are chilled (example pictured below).
Adding insult to literal injury is its first slot ability Takedown, which deals decent damage most of the time, but doubles it when the opponent is stunned. Getting that combo down means not only is your opponent interrupted and locked down, but they’re probably not getting back up either.
The other three moves the Runt brings to the table aren’t as popular, but they can still have their place. Thrash is a multi-hitting DPS move that can synergize nicely with Mangle, a per-hit additive debuff. Mangle’s duration is an extremely long 10 turns, but what it gains in longevity it trades in power, ending up the weakest but longest of its type.
The final move the Runt is packing in its Winter Veil stocking is Rampage. Rampage deals damage for three rounds, but locks the Runt in through those turns. It’s similar to Stampede but without the juicy damage boost.
Sadly, much like the Abominable Snow Monster of the North, the Kun-Lai Runt probably only wants hugs, but its strength scares everyone away. Make sure you give one a good home!
Pet of the Month is co-written by Liopleurodon, an experienced pet battler and long-time WoW player. She maintains her own Pet Battle blog and is a Pet Battle columnist on the fansite Blizzard Watch.
The first four pets can drop from the [Gaily Wrapped Present] found under the Winter Veil trees in Orgrimmar and Ironforge beginning on December 25th. The next four can be obtained through the "You're a Mean One" daily quest.
Last but not least, the Grumpling drops from lootable Snow Mounds in the Winter Veil daily quest area in Frostfire Ridge, Draenor.
Best Wishes to You and Yours
Thank you for continuing to support WarcraftPets over the years. It has been an honor to serve the pet collecting community throughout 2016, and we look forward to bringing you the latest Pet Battle information in the new year.
We wish everyone a prosperous and pet-filled 2017!
About the Artist:Ooghra (Erin Gomez) is a long-time pet collector and WarcraftPets user. She's a talented graphic artist and we've previously featured her amazing creations in our 2016 April Fool's and Pet Battle Royale series!
For the past year-plus, Breanni, the creator of WarcraftPets, has been working on another "pet" project (pardon the pun). This project, called Renaissance Mod, is a huge conversion mod for a fantasy game called Warlock 2: The Exiled.
What is Warlock II?
Warlock 2 is a turn-based 4X strategy/fantasy game released in 2014. It's a sequel to the acclaimed Warlock: Master of the Arcane.
As a 4X game (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, eXterminate), it's similar to Sid Meyer's Civilization, but set in a fantasy realm with many races and game elements that will be very familiar to WoW players.
If you enjoy fantasy and strategy series like Endless Legend and Heroes of Might and Magic alongside your MMORPGs, you'd be doing yourself a great disservice NOT to try this beautiful, highly addictive game!
What does Renaissance Mod do?
Essentially, Renaissance Mod transforms Warlock 2 into Warlock 3 by fixing a number of issues and adding a ton of new content:
A vastly improved AI on ‘challenging’ and on ‘impossible’ modes
3 new races: Sylvan Order, Infernals, Dremers
21 new Great Mages (characters)
40+ new starting perks to customize your character
27 new hero units
24 new spells
Custom artwork that perfectly fits with the core game
I enjoyed Warlock 2 right from the start. Unfortunately, it suffered from a number of distracting flaws, including a very limited AI. But I saw the potential for this game to be one of the best in the genre. It would just take some polishing by careful hands.
See it in Action!
Longtime YouTuber Pinstar, who does excellent 'Let's Play' videos for a number of strategy and sim titles, recently decided to take Renaissance Mod out for a test spin. Check out his first video to get a taste of the modded game.
Be sure to subscribe to Pinstar's channel to see more of his insightful playthroughs.
Why Post this Now?
Normally Warlock 2 and the DLC required to run Renaissance Mod cost about $45. But during the Steam Winter Sale (now through January 2nd), you can get everything you need for just $20!
This is an exceptional price for the value, especially when you factor in everything Renaissance Mod adds to the core game for free.
Note: I'm not making any money here. I'm just trying to spread the word of a great game and allow my extensive work on it to be enjoyed by as many people as possible.
Why the mixed reviews on Steam?
The mixed reviews reflect the vanilla game WITHOUT Renaissance Mod. However, with the mod, here are just a few things that players have said:
"With the Renaissance Mod, Warlock 2 is one of the best 4X games ever made. Absolute blast." —Carlos77
"With the magnificient Renaissance Mod: 8/10, adds tons of balanced new content and strategic choices, making it a true sequel, and covers up many AI flaws. I've played Renaissance mod for months, and am still not tired of it." —mturkhan
"Renaissance Mod has breathed new life into this game, easily adding 100 more hours of gameplay for me." —Jay
In addition, many of the negative reviews the game received reflect anger from Mac and Linux users.
Warlock 2 is a Windows-Only title, despite claims that it works on Mac and Linux. The developers were forced to abandon the title before it was in a playable state on those systems, yet the publisher released it for Mac and Linux anyway (such a shame).
Rest assured, on Windows the game works great and it's an absolute joy to play (read my full review here). So if you're into turn-based strategy games and run Windows, definitely check this one out. You won't be sorry.
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