Mists of Pandaria raised the existing level cap from level 85 to 90. It introduced a new character class, the Monk, along with a new playable race, the Pandaren. The vanity pet system was overhauled and added a pet battle system. New PVE scenarios were introduced, and Challenge Modes were added for dungeons. The existing 41-point talent trees were replaced by a new system of tiered talents that are awarded every 15 levels. There are nine new dungeons, three new raids, and two new battlegrounds, such as the Temple of Kotmogu and The Silvershard Mines, as well as one new arena (The Tol'vir Proving Grounds).
The game is set after the events of Deathwing and the Cataclysm. The major setting is the titular land of Pandaria, one of the continents of the world of Azeroth. Discovery of Pandaria is made after a naval battle between the Horde and the Alliance. It had previously been hidden by magic since The Sundering, only to resurface.
Pandaria
Pandaria is a new continent located to the south of the Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor. Several zones have been added, including the Jade Forest, Valley of the Four Winds, Vale of Eternal Blossoms, Townlong Steppes, Kun-Lai Summit, Krasarang Wilds, and the Dread Wastes. The Jade Forest is the first zone, and the entry point for the Alliance and Horde. It features lush rainforest and stone spires, and introduces the player to the Hozen and Jinyu races. It contains the Temple of the Jade Serpent, one of the new dungeons, and introduces the Sha enemy. The Valley of the Four Winds includes Pandaren farm lands, with a coastal jungle. The Stormstout Brewery, another new dungeon, is located in the valley. There are auction houses scattered across the five zones of Pandaria. Along with these normal auction houses, a "black market" auction house is located in an area north of the Valley of the Four Winds called the Veiled Stair. Unlike the player controlled auction house, this auction house is controlled by NPCs who post items, usually of rare status or those that have been removed from the game in previous expansions. Both Horde and Alliance can use the black market auction house.
The Wandering Isle
The Wandering Isle is a roaming giant turtle named Shen-zin Su, where Pandaren player characters begin their adventure, which they leave after choosing a faction. Historically, the Pandaren explorer Lui Lang was overcome with a rare trait in the Pandaren of that time, Wanderlust. It is because of this he departed Pandaria around 10,000 years ago on the back of the turtle, Shen-zin Su. Lui Lang had returned to his homeland a few times, and each time the turtle had become progressively bigger.Creatures and enemies
Pandaria plays host to several new races that the players will encounter. Besides the Pandaren there is the Jinyu, a race that is similar to the Murlocs and Naga, the Hozen, a monkey like race, the Virmen, a pesky rabbit-like race and the Grummels, a race related to the Troggs. The Mantids are an insectoid race that are involved in some of Pandaria's raids. Players will encounter the Mogu, who were the first to inhabit Pandaria, and the Sha, who are "the manifestation of negative energy on Pandaria".Gameplay
Players are not able to fly in Pandaria until they have reached the maximum level.
Monk class
Monks use an energy source to power basic abilities like Jab. The basic Jab attack is used to generate a resource called "Chi", which are then used for more advanced attacks. The monk class was originally announced with not being able to utilize an auto-attack like the other classes, however, the developers chose to forgo this idea and they have been given an auto-attack. The monk class has three specializations known as: Brewmaster (tanking), Windwalker (melee damage), and Mistweaver (healing). Some details of the healing specialization have included that it will heal through "proximity" based heals, by dropping statues, similar to a shaman totem, that pulse healing as they perform attacks on the enemy target. Blizzard announced that choosing the healing specialization will give the monk a mana bar like other healers while the tank and DPS spec will use an energy bar. Monks will wear leather armor. Every race except Goblin and Worgen can be a monk.Pandaren race
The pandaren - a race of anthropomorphic giant pandas initially created by veteran Blizzard artist Samwise Didier - were introduced to the Warcraft canon in the bonus Horde campaign of Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne. Unlike previous races in World of Warcraft, which are tied to either the Horde or Alliance in-game factions, pandaren are faction-neutral for the early levels of the game. Until the end of the principal quest line on the Wandering Isle, the pandaren player character is faction-less; at the end of their starting experience, the player chooses to align with either the Horde or the Alliance. The pandaren speak both the Pandaren language (though the factional language barrier will still remain between Horde and Alliance pandaren) and the main languages of their faction, which are Common (Alliance) and Orcish (Horde). (In an interview with Kat Hunter, Chris Metzen jokingly said the languages had not yet been chosen but Pig Latin was a strong candidate.) The classes available to Pandaren are Hunter, Monk, Mage, Priest, Rogue, Shaman and Warrior.New instances
In 2011 it was revealed that the new instances would include Temple of the Jade Serpent, Stormstout Brewery and Shado-Pan Monastery. It was later revealed that the 4 parts of Scarlet Monastery – Library, Graveyard, Armory and Cathedral – will be merged into two heroics in Mists of Pandaria. A heroic version of Scholomance was also announced. During the Mists of Pandaria press release, it was announced that there will be nine level 90 heroics for players as well as three raids with 14 raid bosses. All of the raids are going to have three difficulties (Heroic, Normal, and Looking for Raid).Challenge Modes
Mists of Pandaria's Challenge Mode is a new gameplay option where a dungeon group will be challenged to finish a dungeon of increased difficulty as quickly as possible. All players' gear will be normalized, allowing for fair ranking. Depending on how quickly the group clears the dungeon, the group will earn one of three possible medals. The higher the medal quality, the higher the prize for achieving that medal.Pet Battle System
Vanity pets can battle in a new turn-based combat system, either against other players for fun or against vanity pets in the wild. If wild pets are defeated, they can be captured and added to the pet journal. Pets in the pet journal can be trained, up to a maximum level of 25. Players are able to seek out master pet trainers and battle their pets, and if the player is able to defeat them, they will gain access to new pet abilities. All information regarding pet levels, abilities, and battles is tracked in a new Pet Journal.There are 10 possible pet classes, each with their own strengths and weaknesses.
