Even though World of Warcraft and just about every other MMO on the market are designed to be played with others, it can sometimes be tough to get the social gears working. Sometimes when we log on when there are no scheduled guild events, it can be difficult to get groups of people you know together for a bit of fun. Sure you can queue for dungeons or LFR's, but you most likely won't be playing with anyone you know. Over the course of the Mists of Pandaria expansion, Blizzard has introduced quite a bit of content for small groups of gamers. This week on the WoW Factor we take a look at what's available for you and a few of your friends to enjoy in World of Warcraft.
Scenarios
Scenarios were first introduced just before the launch of Mists of Pandaria as an introduction to the new system and to get the story rolling. For those who don’t know what Scenarios are, they are essentially mini-dungeons for three players that take anywhere from ten to twenty minutes to complete. The neat part is that there are no class requirements for scenarios - you do not need a healer, tank and DPS to succeed. While having a tank or healer in your group could be beneficial, it’s not required. Two warlocks and a mage could do just fine.
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In Patch 5.3 Heroic Scenarios were introduced that gave players the option to take on more difficult versions of existing scenarios. You’ll need a pre-made group in order to check them out as there is no queue for Heroic Scenarios. With the increase in difficulty so to is the quality of the loot. Additional valor and a chance to earn epic level gear await those who complete Heroic Scenarios. Additionally, bonus objectives are available in each Heroic Scenario that if complete award even more valor. Scenarios and Heroic Scenarios are a great way to spend time with friends due to the lack of class restrictions and the small amount of time required to complete. Scenarios are also a great way to practice various class roles outside of the recently added proving grounds.
Challenge Mode Dungeons
In my opinion, Challenge Mode Dungeons are one of the greatest new features to debut this expansion cycle. If you and your friends are looking for a great challenge, this is it.
Challenge Mode Dungeons are very difficult-tuned versions of the five-man Mists of Pandaria dungeons. Each run is timed and your group can be awarded bronze, silver or gold medals depending on how fast you can defeat all the bosses of a particular dungeon. In these dungeons all gear is normalized to an ilvl of 463 so there is no possibility of over-gearing the content. This means the success of your party relies entirely on skill and is not gear dependent. There are even leaderboards available for players to compare times against other teams. These challenge modes are a blast as you’ll constantly try to find ways to shave seconds off your run and climb the ladder. I highly recommend them especially if you’re someone who enjoys iterating on strategies.
