WoW devs confirm The War Within pre-patch release date & details

World of Warcraft: The War Within is arriving in August, and it’s set to mark the next major era in the game’s regeneration after Dragonflight. The first step in that process is the pre-patch, and Blizzard has finally confirmed when players can get stuck in.

As part of the wider This Week in WoW post on the official website for the game, the developer revealed that the Pre-Expansion Content Update goes live on July 24.

As players of previous expansions will know, the pre-patch implements a lot of the major changes and sets the story up for its actual start after the full launch. This time around, Blizzard is bringing more than ever as part of the pre-patch, and it should give a feel for what The War Within will be like (if you didn’t play the beta.)

The first change is Warbands, which will roll out entirely when the pre-patch goes live. This feature will bring a massive system change to The War Within and is designed to make WoW more alt-friendly, offering shared renown, achievements, a bank, and much more.

In addition, Skyriding is finally launching on a lot of flying mounts, offering the dynamic skills previously available only on the Dragonriding mounts, across the board. This should make traversal in the old continents and historical content a lot easier, with vastly increased speed and control.

In story terms, players will be able to jump into the Visions of Azeroth. Taking queues from Patch 8.3 of BFA (where the antagonist for The War Within featured heavily), strange visions will begin calling to the champions of Azeroth. Just make sure to reach Level 70 and complete the main Dragonflight story first.

The last major addition in this brief period before the expansion’s arrival is Call of the Radiant Echoes. This will essentially allow players to explore “haf-forgotten memories” from WoW’s history, earning Residual Memories in the process. Those can then be used to purchase items for your Warband.

Overall, it’s an extensive offering for a pre-patch, marking out how ambitious The War Within is billed to be. With the full expansion set to arrive on August 26 (or August 22 in Early Access), players won’t have long to wait to find out.