With this last weekly reset yesterday on Tuesday, Blizzard has implemented a massive amount of endgame content for World of Warcraft: Shadowlands. With rated PvP, Castle Nathria, and Mythic+ now added in, players have much more to sink their teeth into.
The Mythic+ system is widely popular due to the fact that it’s endlessly repeatable. While raid bosses can only be looted once a week (same for Mythic dungeons, which are quickly out-geared), Mythic+ content can be done repeatedly without ever locking out of loot.
Because of this, they’re the most popular endgame content to farm for those that favor PvE. Even many PvP players hop into the Mythic+ content to get geared swiftly for their rated Conquest-awarding content, and few players eschew it altogether.
As this is the first week, Blizzard has thankfully made it a bit easier than most. The affixes added in can really make a Mythic+ dungeon considerably more difficult, and in the wrong (or right) combination, dungeons can become a massive headache.
For those that may be unfamiliar with the system, Mythic+ dungeons are activated by using a key, which can be obtained once a week from a Mythic dungeon. This key, depending on the level, will have between one and four affixes that adjust the dungeon.
All keys will have Fortified, which presents a buff to non-boss enemies in both damage and healing. At +4 and higher, the Bursting affix is added, which causes some enemies to explode on death and give a stacking DoT debuff, which can quickly wipe a party on large packs.
From +7 and higher, Volcanic joins in, which causes volcanoes to spawn under players periodically, forcing them to move or take a high amount of damage. From 10+, the fourth affix added is the seasonal Prideful affix, which causes a Manifestation of Pride to spawn for players to kill and receive a sizeable buff.
While it may not sound like it on paper, this week is actually extremely easy, with Bursting being the only that presents any real danger. Fortified will be there on alternating weeks, and all it really does is provide a flat buff to trash mobs.
Volcanic is easily negated by stepping away from your spot a bit, so it’s far from dangerous to those that can keep an eye on your positioning. Still, it can provide a problem in dungeons where mobs use crowd control abilities, so don’t count it out entirely.
Prideful, as a seasonal affix, is almost more of a buff than a detriment. Given that the Manifestation of Pride gives players a buff on kill, it’s almost more useful to have it appear to strengthen a party before an important fight.
