Before we get too far into this, you have to admit – it’s pretty funny.
Blizzard is in the final days of their World of Warcraft: Shadowlands prepatch event, the Scourge Invasion. After the breaking of the Helm of Domination, the Scourge went mindless and began assaulting cities once again – with the help of the players.
The event gives players the chance to turn into an Infected Ghoul, which does what all zombies do – infects. Infected Ghouls create more Infected Ghouls by killing NPCs and Players alike, with a stackable debuff causing an auto-kill and auto-zombification.
Because of this, low-level zones have become a prime target, as zombies can begin to slaughter the NPCs as they continuously spawn to make more and more zombies.
Such is the case in Elwynn Forest, where players have been getting murdered and zombified before even getting control of their character. This might sound ridiculous, but it’s more of a workaround than anything.
When a character is created, their model spawns in at login like any other, in a set spot depending on the zone – Northshire, for Humans. This model isn’t controllable while the opening cutscene is going on, though, so the player’s character is static and unmoving.
That leaves them prime for infection, and given that they’re low level, they die and become zombies pretty quickly. It’s worth noting that this only is doable against players starting a traditional character – Exile’s Reach graduates are given immunity to the “virus” for a time.
Some are a bit perplexed, as the zombies require a player to have PvP toggled on and this normally isn’t the normal default for a new character. Still, whether it’s a glitch or if some players are vulnerable nonetheless, there’s definite proof of players getting killed during the opening cutscene.
This event has led to a world of humorous griefing, with capital cities being completely overtaken at some points. There was an hour or so where Silvermoon on the realm Wyrmrest Accord was nearly overtaken entirely by a raid of players that built up hundreds of Infected Ghouls in one of the buildings before swarming over the city.
Overall, there are parts of the Scourge Invasion event that have been a bit disappointing, with the first week leaving most players unsatisfied. Slow spawn times and low drop rates, as well as an absence of ghouls, left players a bit down.
But as we end the event and move onto the Shadowlands, players have been having a blast with the last week, infecting each other and grinding out exclusive materials before the event ends. We only have one more full day, so if there’s anything left for you to grab, get going!
