We're pleased to bring you a new dynamic web section titled Player vs. Player rankings. You can now look up the rankings for your realm and your faction (Horde or Alliance) on the web site. These listings are updated . We hope this new feature makes your player vs. player experience more enjoyable. Look for more upcoming dynamic web features in the future.

Download Human 4, Human War Room, Human Death, and Human Victory musical selections from the Warcraft soundtrack.

Blizzard Entertainment®, Inc. today announced that World of Warcraft®, its subscription-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), has reached more than one million paying customers in North America. This brings the total population for Blizzard's critically acclaimed game, the largest MMORPG in the world, to more than four million paying customers. You can read more by checking out this press release.

Happy Monday! We hope you got a lot of rest this weekend, because today's spotlight will have you running around all day! It is called The Shorties: Episode 1 by Balgosa of Windspire Entertainment. Enjoy!

• The Shorties: Episode 1 by Windspire Entertainment

Have you made or seen something that you think deserves to be on the World of Warcraft Community Watch? Send us a link at: [email protected].

*Links on this news post may expire over time and are created by other companies/individuals that are neither affiliated with nor supported by Blizzard Entertainment.

We've updated our Battlegrounds section with an extensive page of tips for Alterac Valley!

We're proud to announce our official BlizzCon World of Warcraft Movie Competition, sponsored by NVIDIA! We are looking for some talented players to create a movie using in-game footage and combine it with music from any of our past games. We're accepting submissions beginning Thursday, September 8. Five winners will receive an NVIDIA® GeForce™ 6800 Ultra, two tickets to BlizzCon, and much more.

Click here to learn more!

We have just updated our World of Warcraft Wallpapers section with a new wallpaper featuring the Plaguelands.

New World of Warcraft Fan Art

The Blizzard Fan Art Section has been updated with two new pieces of artwork.

It is Friday, and that means this weekend's rest and relaxation is almost here! Ctrlaldel-online.com has a comic that shows friends helping friends get rest. Well, sort of. Enjoy!

• "...and relaxation" by Ctrl + Alt + Del

Have you made or seen something that you think deserves to be on the World of Warcraft Community Watch? Send us a link at: [email protected].

*Links on this news post may expire over time and are created by other companies/individuals that are neither affiliated with nor supported by Blizzard Entertainment.

A new patch for the Test Realm has just been released. This patch should alleviate many of the crashes players have been experiencing while testing. Please note that you will have to delete the "WoWTest" folder from your World of Warcraft installation before downloading and running this patch. Thank you again for your continued enthusiasm in testing the upcoming content!

[ PC ] [ Mac ]

We've just added a new Arathi Basin section for the upcoming Battleground which features new rewards pages. Arathi Basin is currently being tested by players on our Public Test Realm, and once testing is complete, it will be included in our next patch for World of Warcraft. See the Test Realm patch notes for an idea of what else players can expect with the next patch.

We've redesigned the main page for the World of Warcraft guide. We wanted to make it easier for web page visitors to find what they're looking for so we streamlined the page. We also added new graphics to improve the guide. Take a look.

Download Human 3, a musical selection from the Warcraft soundtrack.

There are three new realms available for play: Detheroc and Wildhammer, both PvP realms, and Staghelm, a new PvE realm. Enjoy!

Character transfers from all remaining eligible realms (see full list below) will close on Tuesday, August 23, 2005, at approximately 3:00PM PDT. If you are interested in moving your character(s) from one of the realms listed below to the designated receiving realm, please do so before Tuesday. We do not currently have plans to reopen transfers from these realms.

Blackrock → Bloodscalp
Icecrown → Azjol-Nerub
Deathwing → Stormscale
Ner'zhul → Crushridge
Proudmoore → Dragonblight
Silvermoon → Draenor
Archimonde → Firetree
Kil'Jaeden → Boulderfist
Tichondrius → Dunemaul
Doomhammer → Perenolde

This week, we're starting off with a new movie! This movie is a twist on a popular commercial that some of you may have seen. I think it is quite refreshing!

• Sierra Mist by cwis

Have you made or seen something that you think deserves to be on the World of Warcraft Community Watch? Send us a link at: [email protected].

*Links on this news post may expire over time and are created by other companies/individuals that are neither affiliated with nor supported by Blizzard Entertainment.

Character transfers from all remaining eligible realms (see full list below) will close on Monday, August 22, 2005, at approximately 3:00PM PDT. If you are interested in moving your character(s) from one of the realms listed below to the designated receiving realm, please do so before Monday. We do not currently have plans to reopen transfers from these realms.

Blackrock → Bloodscalp
Icecrown → Azjol-Nerub
Deathwing → Stormscale
Ner'zhul → Crushridge
Proudmoore → Dragonblight
Silvermoon → Draenor
Archimonde → Firetree
Kil'Jaeden → Boulderfist
Tichondrius → Dunemaul
Doomhammer → Perenolde

Download Human 2, a musical selection from the Warcraft soundtrack.

We're pleased to announce that we've teamed up with Upper Deck Entertainment to bring World of Warcraft to trading card game players nationwide. Starting next Spring, players will be able to build their decks and attend events that let them challenge Onyxia, or raid Molten Core in an attempt to defeat Ragnaros with the hopes of getting powerful Epic cards. Visit entertainment.upperdeck.com/wow for more details on the card-based game.

We have just updated our World of Warcraft Wallpapers section with a new wallpaper featuring a Dwarf Racial Shield.

New World of Warcraft Fan Art

The Blizzard Fan Art Section has been updated with three new pieces of artwork.

The Public Test Realms are live! Players can now experience, and help us test, all the changes and additions coming in patch 1.7, including a new raid dungeon, a new battleground, and many other exciting features. Click here to view the patch 1.7 test-realm patch notes to learn more!

Players can participate in the test realms by creating a character or by copying their characters from existing realms to the test realms. Those who have previously copied their characters to the test realms will need to do so again, as all previous characters have been removed from the previous test realms. To copy your character and to download the test client, visit our Test Realm Character Copy page. Only players who created their accounts before August 2 will be able to login to the public test realms. Also, players will not be able to log in to the public test realms if they have changed their password since August 16.

Please be aware that the test realms are there to allow us to test major content patches before the patch goes public. Therefore, some changes may be introduced to the public test realms before a patch goes live, and some changes may be introduced to the patch after the test realms have closed. To read more about the test realms, please review the Test Realm FAQ. We truly appreciate our players taking the time to help us test the latest changes to the game; thank you all!

Tired of spending time grinding for gold to buy a new piece of armor in the Auction House only to discover that, while the stats are great, the look leaves something to be desired? Some may argue that stats are the name of the game and the way your toon looks isn't anything to worry about, but why not have your cake and eat it too? With the Dressing Room feature in the upcoming patch, you can have both stats and a great look! Take a moment to learn more about this new, useful feature!

We have opened up the final round of realm-to-realm character transfers. Below is the list of the realms now eligible for transfers. Please note that realm transfers are open between 3:00 AM PDT and 3:00 PM PDT.

If you wish to participate, visit our Character Transfer page to start the process! We expect that transfers between the eligible realms will be available for approximately one week, and we will post another notice here prior to their closing. However, extenuating circumstances might require us to close the transfers earlier or with less notice than expected, so if you plan to use the service, we recommend doing so sooner rather than later.

ELIGIBLE TRANSFERS

Blackrock → Bloodscalp
Icecrown → Azjol-Nerub
Deathwing → Stormscale
Ner'zhul → Crushridge
Proudmoore → Dragonblight
Silvermoon → Draenor
Archimonde → Firetree

Kil'Jaeden → Boulderfist
Tichondrius → Dunemaul
Doomhammer → Perenolde

Have you ever gone on a vacation and come back home without any souvenirs? We have, and we felt that BlizzCon attendees deserved better. That's why we're excited to unveil the BlizzCon Goodies page, which lists a collection of rare (and epic) items that every gamer who attends BlizzCon will receive. With a little bit of something from each of our game series, these goodies will help BlizzCon attendees commemorate their journey to Blizzard's inaugural gamer convention.

American Airlines and Avis have arranged to provide special discounts for BlizzCon attendees who book flights/car rentals with them. Please visit the BlizzCon Travel Page for details on how you can take advantage of these special offers.

We have just updated our World of Warcraft Fan Wallpapers section with a new wallpaper featuring an Undead Lich.

New World of Warcraft Fan Art

The Blizzard Fan Art Section has been updated with three new pieces of artwork.

Download Human 1, a musical selection from the Warcraft soundtrack.

A new interactive map is available! Prepare for your latest expedition by planning your flight path route. With detailed information about the level ranges and points of interest, you'll never wander into an area unprepared again!

Click here to check out the new map.

Scott Kurtz of PvPonline illustrates his perspective of the reaction players might have after losing in a PvP match-up against the opposing faction. Check it out here.

Have you made or seen something that you think deserves to be on the World of Warcraft Community Watch? Send us a link at: [email protected].

*Links on this news post may expire over time and are created by other companies/individuals that are neither affiliated with nor supported by Blizzard Entertainment.

With the next content patch on the horizon, we've leaked some new and exciting changes in the various Class Discussion forums. You don't want to miss out on reading this information!

• Hammer of Wrath
• Cat Form Changes in 1.7
• Vampiric Embrace
• Upcoming Conflagrate Improvement!

*Links on this news post may expire over time.

We have temporarily disabled character transfers in order to address an issue that is adversely affecting realm stability. Once we identify and correct the issue, we'll re-open the character-transfer process for the eligible realms. We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause in the meantime.

Over a thousand years ago the powerful Gurubashi Empire was torn apart by a massive civil war. An influential group of troll priests, known as the Atal'ai, called forth the avatar of an ancient and terrible blood god named Hakkar the Soulflayer. Though the priests were defeated and ultimately exiled, the great troll empire collapsed upon itself. The exiled priests fled far to the north, into the Swamp of Sorrows, where they erected a great temple to Hakkar in order to prepare for his arrival into the physical world.

Take a moment to read more about the upcoming raid dungeon: Zul'Gurub!

We have opened up the next round of character transfers with Proudmoore to Dragonblight, Silvermoon to Draenor, and Archimonde to Firetree. This brings the total number of available transfers to eight, with the last phase of the transfers coming this Thursday.

Below is the list of currently eligible and upcoming realm-to-realm transfers. We'll make another announcement here when realms in the second list below become eligible for transfers. Alternately, you can visit our new Changing Realms page, available after logging in to account management, to see the list of realms that are currently eligible.

If you wish to participate, visit our Character Transfer page to start the process! We expect that transfer between the currently eligible realms will be available for approximately two weeks, and we will post another notice here prior to their closing.

ELIGIBLE TRANSFERS

Blackrock → Bloodscalp
Icecrown → Az jol-Nerub
Deathwing → Stormscale
Frostwolf → Frostmane
Ner'zhul → Crushridge
Proudmoore → Dragonblight
Silvermoon → Draenor
Archimonde → Firetree

UPCOMING TRANSFERS

Kil'Jaeden → Boulderfist
Tichondrius → Dunemaul
Doomhammer → Perenolde

Over a thousand years ago the powerful Gurubashi Empire was torn apart by a massive civil war. An influential group of troll priests, known as the Atal'ai, called forth the avatar of an ancient and terrible blood god named Hakkar the Soulflayer. Though the priests were defeated and ultimately exiled, the great troll empire collapsed upon itself. The exiled priests fled far to the north, into the Swamp of Sorrows, where they erected a great temple to Hakkar in order to prepare for his arrival into the physical world.

Take a moment to read more about the upcoming raid dungeon: Zul'Gurub!

We've posted two new news items over on our BlizzCon site: the first is a quick note about the Blizzard Art Gallery that will be at BlizzCon and some of the artists who'll be there to meet players, and the second is a detailed list of the developer panel discussions we'll be hosting at the event. Head over to the BlizzCon site now to check them out.

We'll be updating that site with new information about BlizzCon regularly, so please check back often if you've bought tickets already or are thinking about attending and want to see what sort of activities we have planned.

Blizzard Entertainment is proud to announce our official BlizzCon Fan Art Contest! We're looking for some talented artists to draw their favorite character or monster from the Warcraft, StarCraft, or Diablo universes in a recognizable in-game location. We'll be posting the winning submissions on our site, and we'll also be prominently displaying them next to original artwork from the Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo titles in the Art Gallery at BlizzCon! In addition to this, we're offering some really cool prizes! Interested?

Check here for more information.

New World of Warcraft Fan Art

The Blizzard Fan Art Section has been updated with three new pieces of artwork.

Due to the tremendous response to the opening of Moonrunner, we are happy to introduce another PvE realm - Greymane! Thanks to all our PvE realm fans, and we hope you enjoy. All new realms are tagged with the "New" label on the realm-selection list to make them easy to spot. Happy adventuring, and see you online!

We have just updated our World of Warcraft Wallpapers section with a new wallpaper featuring the Troll Racial Shield.

We have opened up the next round of character transfers with Frostwolf to Frostmane and Ner'zhul to Crushridge. This brings the total number of available transfers to five.

Below is the list of currently eligible and upcoming realm-to-realm transfers. We'll make another announcement here when realms in the second list below become eligible for transfers. Alternately, you can visit our new Changing Realms page, available after logging in to account management, to see the list of realms that are currently eligible.

If you wish to participate, visit our Character Transfer page to start the process! We expect that transfer between the currently eligible realms will be available for approximately two weeks, and we will post another notice here prior to their closing.

ELIGIBLE TRANSFERS

Blackrock → Bloodscalp
Icecrown → Azjol-Nerub
Deathwing → Stormscale
Frostwolf → Frostmane
Ner'zhul → Crushridge

UPCOMING TRANSFERS

Proudmoore → Dragonblight
Silvermoon → Draenor
Archimonde → Firetree
Kil'Jaeden → Boulderfist
Tichondrius → Dunemaul
Doomhammer → Perenolde

After reviewing the talent trees further and listening to player reactions, the upcoming Hunter talents have been updated to reflect their current status. Be sure to check out our talent calculator and preview the changes!

As previewed last week, our new talent calculator is up and available for all classes! Plan out your character's future specialization or experiment with different possibilities -- the tools are at your fingertips! Be sure to check it out!

We have released a minor patch for World of Warcraft. This small update addresses certain issues in Blackwing Lair and includes some improvements to the Macintosh client. To read the full list of changes, take a look at the patch notes here. For an explanation of the different types of updates that World of Warcraft can receive, please read our Patch FAQ.

The fourth installment of Crazyhorse's The Murloc is Lonely, an April Fools inspired saga awaits to be read by those with a love for fan fiction. If you've missed the previous installments check them out here.

The Stranglethorn Fishing Extravaganza is a grand new event set along the coasts of Stranglethorn Vale. Aspiring anglers will soon be able to participate in this grand tournament when the next patch releases. At the appropriate time, the shout will ring out across Stranglethorn to bait your hooks and cast your lines!

Click here to learn more about this unique fishing event.

To better balance overall realm populations, we are offering another round of voluntary character transfers to those players wishing to seek greener, lower population pastures. In addition to giving players the chance to adventure and do battle with an entirely new populace, this round of character transfers will help reduce queues on high-population realms.

Below is the list of currently eligible and upcoming realm-to-realm transfers. We'll make another announcement here when realms in the second list below become eligible for transfers. Alternately, you can visit our new Changing Realms page, available after logging in to account management, to see the list of realms that are currently eligible.

If you wish to participate, visit our Character Transfer page to start the process! We expect that transfer between the currently eligible realms will be available for approximately two weeks, and we will post another notice here prior to their closing.

ELIGIBLE TRANSFERS
Blackrock → Bloodscalp
Icecrown → Azjol-Nerub
Deathwing → Stormscale

UPCOMING TRANSFERS
Frostwolf → Frostmane
Ner'zhul → Crushridge
Proudmoore → Dragonblight
Silvermoon → Draenor
Archimonde → Firetree
Kil'Jaeden → Boulderfist
Tichondrius → Dunemaul
Doomhammer → Perenolde

Make sure that you keep up to date on all the latest in the World of Warcraft July, 2005 News Archive.