Besides Artifacts, weapons are the most important part of good character building in Genshin Impact. Playable characters can fight using Catalyst, Bow, Sword, Polearm, or Claymore, but not all weapons are created equal. Weapon levels range from 1 star to 5 star. The 5 star weapons are the best and of course the rarest.

Getting good 4-star or 5-star weapons in Genshin Impact can be difficult, especially for new players. Luckily, there are plenty of great 3-star weapons available in the meantime.

In this guide, we’ll showcase 8 three-star weapons worth saving for every player. They are extremely useful and have great potential, especially once players upgrade, improve, and refine them.

1. Thrilling Tales Of Dragon Slayers

The first weapon is pretty obvious and most of us know why. It’s Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers.

This weapon is one of the best secondary weapons in the game, providing a massive 48% attack power boost to the next character you switch to. While it does make your spin a little stiff, the huge attack boost is worth it.

In a team with a damage dealer with scalable attacks, 90% of the time this weapon will be the best choice of catalyst support.

You also don’t need to upgrade the weapon unless you need HP sub-stat. Just bring it to R5. I’ve saved 3 R5 copies of this weapon, 2 for each Spiral Abyss team, and one as an extra.

2. Harbinger Of Dawn

If passive uptime is maintained, the next weapon will damage most 4-star weapons and sometimes even 5-star weapon options. It’s Harbinger of Dawn.

It provides a large amount of critical damage and an additional 28% critical chance if your health is above 90%. It does have lower base attack power, but its critical hit stats make up for that. For characters, like Albedo and Alhaitham, low base attack has little impact.

Although the passive may seem difficult to maintain, it’s an amazing weapon choice if you have a Shielder or a character on your team who can dodge enemy attacks.

This is great for low DPS characters since they spend most of their time on the sidelines, giving you 100% uptime on the passive side.

Corrosion and Furina are the weaknesses of this weapon. But you should save at least 1 R5 Harbinger of Dawn. I saved 2 just to be safe.

3. Black Tassel

The next weapon we have is Black Tassel. This Polearm provides the highest HP in the game. The passive is useless, but the raw stats make it a splendid choice of characters like Zhongli, Thoma, who only need HP.

4. White Tassel

Next is Black Tassel’s brother, White Tassel. The critical hit rate of this weapon is astonishing.

Although its base attack power is lower since it is a 3-star weapon, the passive skill provides a 48% increase in basic attack damage at R5. This makes it a brilliant choice for carriers like Cyno who use normal attacks.

It’s even comparable to 5-star Polearms if you use its passive skill. So I recommend you keep at least 1 R5 copy of this weapon.

5. Slingshot

Next we have R5 Slingshot. This weapon provides critical strike chance. It increases basic and charged attack damage by 60% if you’re close to an enemy.

Tighnari is the best candidate for this weapon because he relies on charged attacks, and low base attacks don’t affect him much.

6. Sharpshooter’s Oath

Next we have Sharpshooter’s Oath. This weapon doesn’t have much use so far, as its passive is situational and craftable bow-based. And Prototype Crescent is better suited to enemies like Ganyu, who are weak to ATK% DPS characters.

However, this weapon provides critical damage that the 4-star bow does not. This could make it a superb choice for future character stats. So I suggest you better save 1 copy of this weapon at R5.

7. Recurve Bow

Then we have Recurve Bow, which is the only bow that provides HP%. While the passive is useless, the raw stats may be useful in the future. Even now, if you don’t have Favonius Warbow, this weapon is great for Yelan.

8. Dark Iron Sword

Next we have Dark Iron Sword. Although this weapon doesn’t have much use, it is a very rare sword. It can only be found in 2 places. The first one requires talking to Chen the Sharp, and the next one is in the chest in Wangshan Hall in Chenyu Vale. Even though it’s not that useful now, who knows you might need it in the future.

Other Weapons Worth Saving

Besides these weapons, I recommend you keep a copy of the 3-star weapons. These weapons provide critical hit stats and stats rarely seen in 4-star weapon options like Def%, Hp%, or Elemental Mastery.

For example, Traveler’s Handy Sword provides Def%, while the only sword that provides defense is Cinnabar Spindle, which is an activity-limited weapon. So, being on the safe side, you should keep the sword.

Anyway, I hope this 3 star weapon guide is helpful to you. Be sure to share this guide with your friends so they don’t waste those valuable 3-star weapons.

In Phase 2 of WoW Classic Season of Discovery, several new Rogue runes have been introduced, including Shadowstep, Master of Subtlety, Rolling with Punches, Shuriken Toss, Poisoned Knife and Waylay. Next is a comprehensive guide aims to provide you with information on where to locate these 6 runes.

Rolling With Punches

To obtain this rune, you need to journey to Thousand Needles to Camp E’thok. Inside the big tent, you'll find a chest that needs to be looted. Inside the chest, you'll find a smaller lockbox that requires multiple lockpicking attempts. A lockpicking skill of 125 is sufficient. Upon opening the final chest, you'll receive a debuff that prevents you from stealth for 5 minutes. Additionally, you'll obtain the rune.

The rune significantly increases your durability, providing tankiness in challenging situations. When the rune expires, your health percentage remains the same, which can be inconvenient for healing. To mitigate this, manually right-click the buff to remove it or create a macro for quicker removal. Removing the buff before healing reduces the amount of health you need to restore. Alternatively, using a macro ensures prompt removal of the buff, preventing health percentage discrepancies upon expiration.

Master Of Subtlety

Start by heading to Kurzen's Compound in Stranglethorn Vale. Inside the Compound's broken tower, you'll find a captive who needs to be freed. He informs you that high-ranking cursion mobs hold the key to his cage. Enter the nearby cave where the elite mob is located. Pickpocket Kurzen Elite to obtain the key. Inside the cave, you'll also find a supply crate, which contains Kurzen Fighter's Uniform.

If you're unable to defeat the mobs guarding the supply crate, you can wait for other players to clear them out so you can loot it. Exit the cave and return to the tower to give the key to the prisoner. Then, provide him with the Kurzen's Fighter's Uniform as a disguise, allowing him to escape.

Once the prisoner escapes, he instructs you to speak with Captain Aransas in Booty Bay. The captain can be found under the Inn near the fisherman. She expresses gratitude for saving her crewman and rewards you with the rune and Jani's Charm. If you don't see the prisoner in the cage, it means someone else has already freed him. You'll need to wait for a short respawn period before attempting again.

Shuriken Toss

Possess the Disarm Trap ability or wait for someone else to deactivate the trap. Travel to the Swamp of Sorrows. Find a chest which is trapped with a poison dart. You must disarm the trap to loot the chest. Remove the trap and then loot the chest to acquire the ability. The ability allows you to throw Shurikens and costs 30 energy to use. Despite the ability's cool factor, its damage output is relatively low. Unfortunately, the ability does not proc with Blade Flurry, which would have been a desirable feature.

Shadowstep

The first thing is that you need to be at least Level 30 to start the quest. Upon entering any major city, you receive mail from a person named C, who offers you a new job. He instructs you to go to a hut next to Shadowfang Keep. At the hut, you find instructions for the next stealth mission. You're tasked with finding a disguise on the monastery grounds and entering the Scarlet Monastery to retrieve an artifact. Locate the stables west of the monastery and loot a disguise from the chest. You may need Lockpicking skills.

Enter the Scarlet Monastery and head to the leftmost dungeon, which is the Graveyard. Pickpocket the Scarlet Scryer in the Chamber of Atonement for a key. Proceed to the Library and put on a disguise of a human Mage. Navigate the dungeon without attacking anyone until you reach a personal letterbox. Use the key to loot the chest, obtaining confidential messages. Exit the library and enter the Graveyard. Follow instructions to reach the Forlorn Cloister and interact with benches to trigger flavor text. Loot the stone cipher from the north crypt.

Return to the Library, and then head to the Gallery of Treasures. You will find the final quest item in the first small room on the left. Back to Shadowfang Keep to turn in the quest, but you won't receive rune rewards yet. Return to your Capital town and wait for a message from C directing you back to the hut for your reward.

Finally, return to Shadowfang Keep once more to loot your rune of Shadowstep. This rune allows you to blink and gain a 70% movement speed boost for 3 seconds, even while rooted. It's especially useful against Druids and Mages, as using Shadowstep does not provoke combat.

Poisoned Knife

You can begin in Desolace and pick up the quest from the Extinguished Campfire. Investigate the camp murder by visiting Kormek’s Hut where a goblin directs you to Booty Bay. In Booty Bay, find Tokal inside the Inn. Buy her a drink to obtain information about the assassin's whereabouts. Travel to Arathi Highlands. Take a boat from Thandol Sspan to the east coast of the Arathi Highlands. Proceed where a Night Elf will spawn after a few minutes. Engage her in combat to obtain a key.

Use the key to unlock a nearby chest, obtaining the Poisoned Knife rune. The ability costs 25 energy (20 with Improved Sinister Strike), deals full offhand weapon damage, and procs poisons on your offhand. The ability has a minimum range of 8 and a maximum of 25. It generates a combo point and is effective for solo content, allowing kiting and stunning tactics.

Waylay

Start in Deadwind Pass and speak with the Dalaran Agent at the small camp. Equip the trinket she gives you to locate the Dark Riders. There are 7 Dark Riders spread across the world. The first is in Deadwind Pass. Defeat him to obtain The Dalaran Relic. Proceed to Raven Hill in Duskwood, Swamp of Sorrows, and Badlands to summon and defeat the Dark Riders. Encounter the Highlands Dark Rider, but be aware of competition from other players.

Head to the Barrens and Desolace to summon the Dark Riders. With all relics gathered, return to Deadwind Pass to turn them in. You will earn 11 gold and 60 silver from the quest, but the reward, the Waylay rune, is considered underwhelming. Suggestions for improving the Waylay rune include providing a backstab damage boost while using the rune, making it more useful and relevant.

In this guide, we’ll cover how to defend every attack using unique Madden 24 strategies, blitzes, coverages, and disguises. If you want to learn the best defensive techniques, this guide is for you!

This game-changing defense is designed to create lightning-fast blitzes, lockdown coverages, and defensive disguises that force opponents into multiple interceptions. Without further ado, let’s get started.

Coaching Adjustments

We’ll be running Dollar 3-2 formation in Kansas City Chiefs Defensive Playbook.

For adjustments, first, press the right stick to make coaching adjustments, then make sure auto-flip is off. This will be used for our blitzes, as they need to come from the left side. Automatically aligns the base next turn to help disguise the defense. Then set the option defense to conservative and make sure everything else is set to default.

The next step is to select our audibles, this is very important because every time we snap we will audible to a new play. Press the left trigger to access sounds, then select from these three key plays: Cover 4 Drop, Overload 3 Seam, and FS Zone Blitz.

The last part is selecting DBL Safety Go for each snap, which rolls both safeties into the box and then pre-snaps. While the safeties remain in the box, you can audible any play you choose in the formation.

The safeties scrolled down will help disguise your defense, help play tighter coverage, and provide better run support. If you want to adjust the secondary pre-snap, adjust the player individually because if you adjust the entire secondary, the safeties will return to their original position outside the box.

Overload 3 Seam Play

The first gameplay we’re going to review is Overload 3 Seam. This will be your first choice because of its insane pressure and excellent coverage on the back end.

Please remember to select “DBL Safety Go” in the play calling menu first and then select “Overload 3 Seam” in the audibles pre snap so that the safeties are in the box.

To make adjustments, press left on D-pad and hold down the left analog stick, pinching D line. Then place the free outside blitzer in the left vertical hook and press Y or Triangle to shade your coverage, then press the right stick to get hard flat zones.

When the user plays the coverage linebacker as opposed to the blitzing linebacker, your job is to immediately hover over this A-gap, which will allow this A-Gap Blitz to move in freely for easy sacks while locking down coverage.

But after you hover, it’s important that you run back into coverage to defend this area with no defensive help.

Another way to set up coverage is to control the outside blitzer with the biggest threat in your attack, then press Y or Triangle and press the right stick to lower the coverage.

For blitz, pinch the line like we did before. Now that the offense is in a tight double formation, what I’m most worried about is the short-side receiver running the corner route.

On the far side, I’m not worried about corner routes because no receivers line up far enough to occupy the back third of any route. So this back third can easily match the corner kick you see here.

Back on the short side, if the receiver were to run the vertical and corner, the vertical would occupy the back third, which would leave the corner route open. That’s why I use the slot corner to guard the inside receiver. When the two inside receivers run corners, they are locked in and heavily guarded by the defense.

As a user in this setting, your job is to guard the middle of the field. Overload 3 Seam is very effective compared to a 5-wide offense with no running backs in the backfield.

Start by pinching D line to blitz and make sure to hover over this A gap. Then man the weak-side corner of the slot receiver and man the strong-side corner of the middle receiver.

As a user, if the inside receiver goes to the middle of the field or to the corner, follow him. Because of the tight coverage, this setup results in A-gap pressure, easy sacks and interceptions.

Cover 4 Drop Play

Now strategically, it’s important to mix your blitz and coverage calls. Once you’ve called Overload 3 Seam blitz multiple times, try pulling more players back into coverage by running a Cover 4 Drop.

Call DBL Safety Go to place safety items in the box, then audible to Cover 4 Drop pre-snap.

As a user, playing the same player and hovering in the same A-gap, so the play looks exactly like every other play will make your defense unpredictable and difficult to read.

In Cover 4 Drop, you can use it as a base or shade it for hard flat zones. Because if you blitz too often, your opponent will think he has to get rid of the ball quickly. If he does that, we’ll immediately set up zones to stop it, like you saw in this game.

Avoid Corner Routes

If you can block one of the most popular Flood Concept plays using Vertical route, Corner route, and a Flat route, you’ll be victorious in a ton of games.

What we’re going to do is something called “Double Mable” in Cover 4 Drop, which will block Flood Concepts and Corner Routes.

First, enter the zone drops in coaching adjustments. Then, place the flat on the 30 yards and the curl flat on the 5 yard. Afterwards, select DLB Safety Go so that the safeties roll into the box and audible to Cover 4 Drop.

If Bunch set is on the short side of the field, place the outside corner where Bunch formation is on the hard flat zones and individually back him up. This way, the corner will be 30 yards deep to defend the deep cut route on the outside.

On the lone receiver side, we will use a regular Cover 4. So when the offense gets the ball, you see the corner route extending directly to a 30-yard hard flat. The flat route extends directly to the 5 yard curl flat. The vertical route just enters the inner safe zone.

FS Zone Blitz Play

One of the best meta plays this year is vertical out of a trips set, where if you can’t stop it, players will spam you and kill you for the entire game quickly.

For this play through, we’ll be doing a FS Zone Blitz. We should note that in order to change the defensive look, please do not choose DBL Safety Go, but choose to play FS Zone Blitz. Make sure zone drop is off and you have the original coaching adjustments shown at the beginning.

In this play, the left safety will roll into the box instead of both safeties rolling down, and it consists of another A-Gap Blitz.

For this adjustment versus a trips set on the left side, you need to use the middle catcher to control the rolled down safety. Then turn the coverage down for light blue hard flats. Then pinch the line and make sure you’re using the linebacker in coverage and hover over the other A gap to optimize the blitz.

Your job is to guard the inside receiver, and if he runs down the middle of the field, on a corner route, or on a vertical route, you’ll be able to sneak under like a tight end and jump over the route for an easy interception.

Also note that we get a free rusher on this A-gap while all vertical routes are locked, as are the tight end’s crossing route and the hard flats defended by the running back.

If Trips set is on the right side, put the left rolled down safety in the middle third and the other safety in the middle receiver assignment. Then pull down the shadow, pinch D Line and hover over this A gap to blitz.

Your assignment as a user is the same, just to the opposite side. If he runs down the middle of the field, running a vertical route or a corner route, catch the inside receiver. This way, you’ll be able to lock down the most popular matchups and routes in Madden with your best formation.

Today we’re going to talk about Whitestrake’s Mayhem Event in Elder Scrolls Online.

Whitestrake’s Mayhem is a PVP-focused campaign that takes place in Cyrodiil, Battlegrounds and Imperial City. The event was formerly known as Midyear Mayhem Event and will officially be renamed Whitestrake’s Mayhem Event in 2022.

How To Participate In This Event?

In order to participate in this event, you need to be at least level 10 to enter PVP area. Typically, Whitestrake’s Mayhem Event is active twice a year. The first time was in the spring and the second time in the summer.

This year, the event will be held for the first time in February and will be held again in summer 2024. The event is open to everyone. You can pick up Imperial City DLC for free in Crown Store. Both Cyrodiil and Battlegrounds are part of the base game.

Starting in 2024, 100% of Alliance Points and Experience gain will automatically activate during Whitestrake’s Mayhem Event. This means you’ll earn double XP in all Cyrodiil, Battlegrounds and Imperial City, and double Alliance Points while the event is active.

Before this change, we had to use Scroll of Pelinal’s Ferocity every two hours, which you could get from Predicant Maera.

To participate in the event, pick up the free event quest starter in Crown Store, or speak to Predicant Maera directly.

You can find Predicant Maera in any Battlegrounds tent in Tamriel, or at the main entrance to Alliance War faction in Cyrodiil. Talk to Predicant Maera to complete the quest and receive Pelinal’s Boon Box.

Additionally, players can earn 100% Tel Var Stones during the event. This buff automatically activates during Whitestrake’s Mayhem Event. But you won’t get double Tel Var Stones by defeating other players.

Special Rewards & Collectibles

During the event, you can earn special rewards and collectibles.

Mayhem Victor’s Laurel Wreath

You can get the new Mayhem Victor’s Laurel Wreath here. To obtain this headdress, you must unlock Star-Made Knight Achievement by completing seven Achievement:

• Mayhem Connoisseur Achievement
• Echo of Pelinal’s Fury Achievement
• Hand of the Whitestrake Achievement
• Wrath of the Whitestrake Achievement
• Pelinavant the Scourge Achievement
• Pelinaline the Bloody Achievement
• Pelinerrif Insurgent Achievement

Pelinal’s Boon Boxes

During Whitestrake’s Mayhem Event, you’ll also receive regular rewards of Pelinal’s Boon Boxes, as well as valuable supply crates.

Additionally, you can earn Boon Boxes from Cyrodiil’s repeatable Town, Battle, Bounty, Conquest, Scouting, Warfront Quests. You can also complete Imperial City district and Battlegrounds repeatable quests to earn Boon Boxes.

Items in Pelinal’s Boon Boxes include:

• Tel Var Stones
• Transmute Chrystals
• Alchemy ingredients
• Repair Kits, Forward Camps, Siege Weapons and other PVP consumables
• Ebonheart Pact Style Pages
• Daggerfall Covenant Style Pages
• Aldmeri Dominion Style Pages
• Akaviri Style pages
• Sancre Tor Sentry Weapon Style
• Style items for Alliance and Akaviri Style
• Coldharbour Siege Weapons
• Prismatic Runestones
• Books of Pelinal Housing Items
• Dovah’s Du’ul Outfit Style

Other Rewards

In addition, you can also get Sancre Tor Sentry Armor Style Pages and Gloamsedge Style Pages during the event. These pages may also be dropped from bosses in Imperial City and Imperial City Sewers.

During Whitestrake’s Mayhem Event, all nodes in Cyrodiil and Imperial City will drop double the regular resources. In addition, special legendary quality necklaces and rings will also be sold by the special Golden Vendor, Adhazabi Aba-daro during the event.

Quests

You can complete a variety of daily repeatable tasks in Cyrodiil. Besides PVP related quests, there are also PVE daily repeatable quests available in Cyrodiil. You can complete Settlement Quests in Bruma, Cheydinhal, Chorrol, Cropsford and Vlastarus.

In Imperial City, you can complete up to 6 Imperial City daily repeatable area quests.

In your Alliance base, you’ll find a room with a lot of ladders. Climb each ladder to find the daily quest giver for a specific Imperial City district.

You can talk to Battlemaster Rivyn in any Gladiator’s Quarters to accept Battlegrounds daily repeatable quests. To complete the game’s start mission, you must participate in 5 Battleground matches.

Event Tickets

You can also earn 3 Event Tickets per account per day during the event period. Earn two Event Tickets by completing any Cyrodiil or Battlegrounds daily repeatable mission. And earn the third Event Ticket by completing any Imperial City district daily repeatable mission.

Event Merchant

Of course, Impresario Event Merchant will also open her shop during the event. She offers a variety of unique items for each event, including:

• Molag Bal Illusion Imp Fragments
• Planemeld’s Master Markings Fragments
• Dovah’s Du’ul Style
• Bag of Veteran’s Glory

Some rewards from previous Whitestrake’s Mayhem Events can no longer be found in Pelinal’s Boon Boxes. But you can now find them in Bag of Veteran’s Glory. You can purchase this bag from Impresario for 2 Event Tickets.

In Bag of Veteran’s Glory you’ll also find:

• Aldmeri Dominion Banner
• Ebonsteel Knight Outfit Style
• Legion Zero Outfit Style Pages
• Second Legion Outfit Style Pages
• Banner-Bearer Shield and Staff Styles
• Legion Zero vigils Pages
• Black Drake’s Face and Body Markings
• Battle-Scarred Body Markings and Battle-Scarred Face Markings
• Black Drake Clanwrap Armor Style
• Ebonsteel Knight Armor Style
• House Dufort Banneret Armor Style
• Tools of Domination Weapon Style

Indrik Vendor will open her store during the event, where she offers in the first quarter of 2024:

• Nascent Indrik Mount
• Dawnwood Indrik Mount
• Spectral Indrik Mount
• Springtide Indrik Pet
• Haunting Indrik Pet

Impresario’s Assistant Philius Dormier, will also be opening his shop during the event. He offers in Q1 2024:

• Unstable Morpholith Pet Fragment
• Doomchar Plateau House Fragments

The above is all the information you need to know about this Whitestrake’s Mayhem Event, come join us now!

Here, we are showcasing 7 FC 24 football clubs in no particular order, all of whom are currently experiencing a challenging football season and are in need of a rebuilding phase as they aim to elevate their performance to a higher level.

Europa League Kings - Sevilla

Let's start with Spain. At the time of recording, Sevilla is just one point above the relegation zone, performing significantly below expectations.

Known as the kings of the Europa League, this season has been a struggle despite a strong squad, including veteran Sergio Ramos.

What's a rebuild without goals? Achieve the following objectives to consider the rebuild a success:

• Year 1: Ensure you stay in La Liga and finish in the top half.
• Year 2: Secure European football.
• Year 3: Honor Sevilla's legacy by reaching the Europa League final.
• Year 4: Contend for the title in Spain.
• Year 5: Reach at least the Champions League semi-finals and win La Liga.

To make it challenging, we suggest the following rules during this Sevilla rebuild:

• Rule 1: Employ the Moneyball Strategy and buy quality players at low prices.
• Rule 2: Choose a difficulty level that is challenging for you.
• Rule 3: If you fail to achieve an objective, repeat the same goal for the next season.

Sevilla is in dire need of a rebuild and hungry for new European success. Can you lead them there?

Surprise No More - Union Berlin

Now, let's head to the capital of Germany, Berlin. There are 2 clubs here, and no more in need of a rebuild, but for this guide, we'll focus on Union Berlin.

After 2 sensational seasons, they now find themselves in the lower regions of the Bundesliga. Achieve the following goals with Union Berlin to complete the rebuild:

• Year 1: Stay in the Bundesliga.
• Year 2: Finish in the top half of the Bundesliga and reach the semi-finals of the German Cup.
• Year 3: Finish in the top 5 and secure European football.
• Year 4: Qualify for the Champions League and reach a European quarterfinal.
• Year 5: Win the Bundesliga.

Union Berlin's journey is remarkable, considering they were nearly bankrupt 20 years ago and were kept afloat by their supporters.

This inspires our sole unique rule for this rebuild: Never spend more FC 24 Coins than what is earned.

Additionally, we'll stick to the 2 standard rules: Choose a challenging difficulty level and repeat the same yearly goal if not achieved.

Union Berlin is a beautiful club on the quest for upward mobility, a truly great challenge.

2019 Shadow - Ajax

Our next destination: 2019 Shadow.

In 2019, Ajax captured the hearts of football fans by impressively defeating Real Madrid and Juventus in the Champions League before being dramatically eliminated by Tottenham.

Following 10 Hag's departure to Manchester United, the club is a shadow of its 2019 self. This year, they can already forget about winning the Eredivisie title, which leads us to the objectives for Ajax:

• Year 1: Secure Champions League football with the current Ajax squad and establish a Youth Academy.
• Year 2: Compete for the Eredivisie title and survive the Champions League group stage.
• Year 3: Win the Eredivisie with at least 3 players from the youth academy.
• Year 4: Win the Dutch double with at least 5 starters from the youth academy.
• Year 5: Go all out to win the Champions League.

Ajax fans, known for not resting on past laurels, mean 2 rules must be considered:

• Rule 1: Play offensive and attractive football.
• Rule 2: Prioritize homegrown talent over new signings.

With these 2 rules, winning the Champions League in Year 5 becomes a significant challenge, especially when choosing a challenging difficulty level.

Bring Ajax back to the promised land, as they did in 1995 and were so close to in 2019.

Kick And Rush - Stoke City

For our final 4 clubs, we turn our attention to various levels in England, the mecca of football. We start in Stoke City, the least glamorous of the four.

Six years ago, their run as a mid-table Premier League team for a decade ended, and now they're languishing at the bottom of the Championship, England's second tier.

Stoke was always known for playing hard with the well-known kick and rush approach. We'll incorporate this into our rebuild:

• Year 1: Make sure you don't get relegated to The League 1.
• Year 2: Start your ascend by finishing in the top half of the Championship and be the surprise of the year by reaching the quarterfinals of either the Carabao Cup or the FA Cup.
• Year 3: This is the year you get Stoke back in the Premier League.
• Year 4:  This season is all about staying Premier League.
• Year 5: Get Stoke City back where they were a decade ago, in the top half of the Premier League.

As I said, Stoke City was known for playing hard with the well-known kick and rush football.

For this rebuild, maintain this as a rule: for transfers, we're looking for strong, fast, and tall players who imprint their aggression on the game.

Leave the beautiful, elegant football behind and dive in with the Stoke City rebuild.

Points Deduction - Everton

Now, let's move up a level to the Premier League, where Everton is fighting relegation and facing penalties due to financial issues.

Everton has long been a solid mid-table team but has fallen so far that they are seriously fearing relegation. Additionally, there's a new stadium in the pipeline, which might not materialize if they're relegated. Everton could certainly use some renewed vigor.

• Year 1: Stay in the Premier League. If you get relegated, every following objective is paused until you are back in the Premier League.
• Year 2: Strengthen your squad and climb up to a top 10 finish.
• Year 3: Aim for a top 5 finish and reaching the semi-final of either the Carabao or FA Cup.
• Year 4: This is the year you make a splash internationally by reaching the semi-final of a European tournament.
• Year 5: Get Everton the Premier League title.

We've also devised some rules for Everton to make it extra challenging due to financial troubles. Everton faces penalties such as points deductions.

Therefore, don't spend more than what is earned. Save Everton from the brink and restore them to their rightful place and beyond.

Fallen Glory - Manchester United & Chelsea

In our discussion of the final two clubs, we shift our focus to the upper echelons of the Premier League, or more accurately, its erstwhile summit. These two teams now exist as faint reflections of their former greatness, earnestly pursuing a resurgence.

Even with just a modest interest in the Premier League, the mention of these 2 clubs—Manchester United and Chelsea—undoubtedly rings familiar.

Both teams have invested heavily yet seem further from success than ever. These powerhouses are yearning for success and ready for a new rebuild.

• Year 1: Finish in the top 4 with the current squad in the Premier League.
• Year 2: Compete for the title, finish in the top 3, and win a national cup.
• Year 3: Win the Premier League and reach the semifinals of the Champions League.
• Year 4: Win the mythical triple - the Premier League, the FA Cup, and the Champions League.

Manchester United and Chelsea have both been trying for years to regain their form and win another Premier League title, but to no avail.

To keep it realistic, we've set the following rules:

• Rule 1: Don't spend more money than what is earned.
• Rule 2: Set up a Youth Academy where new local stars can develop, just as both clubs did in the past with players like John Terry, Frank Lampard, and Manchester United's Class of '92.

These clubs are closer to the ultimate goal, but the journey will be a significant challenge.

Experience the Lunar Awakening, a time-limited event amplifying Shrines in Diablo 4 Season 3.

Running from February 6th to the 20th, Lunar Shrines grant 50% XP per monster kill, a 30% movement speed boost, and an extra modifier beyond their usual effects. For instance, Lethal Shrines, in their Lunar New Year variant, provide a chance for instant enemy execution alongside critical strikes. Lunar-variant Shrines feature distinctive dragon skins for easy identification.

This guide delves into all Lunar additions and more.

Begin Participating In This Event By Initiating The Following Steps

Once the event is active, fast-travel to Ked Bardu and head to the northern section of town. There you'll meet Ying-Yue, who runs the Lunar Night Market, your main event hub for Lunar Awakening.

You can ask her about some interesting lore, check your Ancestral Favor reputation, and claim some sick rewards. There are 10 reputation levels to earn and 6 different Lunar-themed rewards to unlock.

The weapon skins for the event are the Lunar Scepter Wand, the Dragon's Courage Two-Handed Axe and the Moonshot Bow. If you're a fan of markings, there is a Dragon's Tapestry marking to unlock, as well as a Moon's Bounty mount trophy and the Moonborn Stallion mount.

Lunar Shrines are spread throughout Sanctuary, so just play as you normally would. You can find them in the overworld Vaults, Whisper bounties, and dungeons.

Speaking of dungeons, during the event, Nightmare Sigils have a chance to roll an Ancestor's Favor Dungeon Affix. This guarantees extra Shrines can spawn for that dungeon, and you will receive 10% bonus Glyph XP once complete.

Remember, you can only earn Ancestral Favor reputation while the Lunar Shrine effect is active, so make sure to rack up as many kills as you can before the time runs out.

What Other Shrine Powers Do We Have For The Event?

Lunar Awakening Shrines are enhanced versions of regular Shrines, offering bonus XP, increased movement speed, and all the familiar powers along with an additional ability. Here are some examples.

• The Blast Wave Shrine maintains its usual periodic explosions but, with the Lunar New Year variant, it also scatters cluster bombs.
• The Channeling Shrine not only provides attack speed but also has a chance to reset cooldowns, making it potentially beneficial for various builds.
• Conduit becomes even more charged during the event, summoning more potent shocking strikes across the area.
• The Artillery Shrine, when activated, has the potential to summon a holy bomb, putting our demon adversaries in a tough spot this season.
• The Lethal Shrine introduces a chance to instantly execute enemies on hit, excluding Bosses.
• Empowered by the Greed Shrine, goblins spawn at the 25th and 50th kill milestones.
• Lastly, the Protection Shrine now reflects incoming damage throughout its duration.

Tips & Tricks For This Event

For the Lunar Awakening Event in Diablo 4 Season 3, you must master these 2 tips.

Tip 1: Lunar Celebrant Event Efficiency

Engage in the Lunar Celebrant local event for a classic monster-defense experience. Completing the Mastery objective triggers a bonus frenzy wave, making it more efficient than regular Shrines.

Tip 2: Lunar Affix Rewards And Reputation Grind

Earn bonus Glyph XP with Lunar Affix Nightmare Dungeon Sigils. Guaranteed Lunar Affix Nightmare Sigils in reputation reward tiers make the reputation grind self-reinforcing. Optimize efficiency by completing Whisper bounties parallel to events.

In summary, play Diablo 4 Season as you wish, reinforcing your preferred gameplay loop. Efficiently tackle Lunar events and dabble with Shrines for a rewarding experience.

Shrine Nuances

There are some interesting lesser-known nuances with the Shrines in Diablo 4 Season 3.

• Protection Shrine: Reflection damage scales with Level and World Tier.
• Channeling Shrine: Enables frequent ability spam due to instant cooldowns; beneficial in specific situations.
• Lethal Shrine: Triggers Fear in monsters during execution, creating a unique and satisfying experience.
• Greed Shrine: Offers a 30% movement speed bonus, allowing for swift actions and decisions.

Explore these lesser-known nuances with Shrines for an enhanced and strategic gameplay experience in Diablo 4 Season 3.

How To Optimize Shrines & Rewards

Here are some tips on how you can optimize Shrines and get more rewards.

Strategic Shrine Activation

Slay demons swiftly to align with the pace of conversation.

Personally wait for a good monster density before popping a Shrine for optimal impact.

Event Mastery Objective Bonus

Miserly Spirits contribute as a bonus to the local event Mastery objective.

The focus is on maximizing player enjoyment through rapid monster shredding.

Nightmare Sigils & Ancestor's Favor Affix

Stockpiling Nightmare Sigils with Ancestor's Favor Affix is viable for post-event use.

Bonus Glyph XP remains on crafted Nightmare Dungeon Sigils even after the event concludes.

Persistent Rewards

Inspired by the popularity of Gileon's Brew from Midwinter Blight, rewards are designed to persist.

This encourages players to stockpile for future use, ensuring rewards endure beyond the event.

Go ahead and stockpile for doomsday.

Occultist, as an Ascendancy class, is mainly related to Explode construction in Path of Exile. The monster actually explodes and does considerable damage to nearby enemies. In POE 3.23, however, Occultist reaches new heights, thanks to the new Transfigured Gem: Penance Brand of Dissipation!

Here I’m going to share our build guide for Penance Brand of Dissipation Occultist! If you’re interested in creating this character, don’t miss this build guide!

Skill Itself

Our skill choice is Penance Brand of Dissipation. You create a brand, which will connect to an enemy and start collecting energy, dealing more and more damage per energy. When the maximum energy is 20, the brand will deal maximum damage until the end or the target dies and jumps to another target.

But to be honest, I don’t think the build will ever reach max stack because in Sanctum, most people will die after the first damage. Even the supreme boss will die after 2 seconds. But we can use the new Specters added to the game in this patch.

Specters And Other Minions

So why am I not using any Specters in Affliction League? Since I always try out some Uber Boss content, and Specters die easily on the map, it’s annoying to buy new ones every time. What’s more, if they weren’t in Sanctum, they were zero threat.

However, in Sanctum, the effect of Specters is completely different. So we use Specter, Perfect Spirit of Fortune. It will bring us Wrath Aura.

Another Specter is Perfect Hulking Miscreation. This gives us 20% of physical damage as bonus lightning damage. This is a big damage buff for this build.

To further increase our damage, we will use Animate Guardian in a basic setup, with Dying Breath as a weapon, which will give us more damage and also increase the aura effect used by Guardian.

Because we use Guardian’s Blessing, and select Haste Aura, we will move faster and cast spells faster.

We also use Leer Cast as a helmet, which also gives us more damage. Gruthkul’s Pelt acts as body armor, which will give him health regeneration. Southbound Gloves will also increase his maximum health.

To keep Specter and Animate Guardian at their best, we’ll use Convocation on left-click. This way they will transfer to us every few seconds and gain life regeneration.

How We Scale Damage Even More?

Because this build is focused on critical hit damage, we’ll be using a lot of unique items that will give us more and more damage.

But I want to talk more about body armor, Dialla’s Malefaction. We need 2 red sockets because red sockets increase the gem level by 2. We insert Penance Brand and Empower here.

Other sockets need to be green. In green slots, they will gain +30% quality. This is the biggest damage increase and is much better than gem levels.

With all this, our gemstones will have 50% quality and Penance Brand will also reach level 27.

We’re going to convert all damage to lightning, and then convert it to cold with Call of the Brotherhood. This is because we can deal with cold damage better than lightning damage. And we can also freeze enemies so we can reduce the risk of getting hit in Sanctum.

Since this build has such high cold damage, we can also use Heatshiver. Based on cold damage, we take additional fire damage. We also take more damage if we hit a frozen target.

Malachai’s Loop deals with more spell damage and also grants 2 additional Power Charges. We can also use Badge of the Brotherhood to increase our maximum Frenzy Charges to 10.

Also, we cannot ignore Ralakesh’s Impatience, which will give our character Power Charges. So all 10 Power and Frenzy Charges will be activated and it will also give us Endurance Charges.

Items

In this build we also use some unique items which will give us extra damage.

• Weapon: Void Battery
• Helmet: Heatshiver
• Shield: Malachai’s Loop
• Body Armor: Dialla’s Malefaction
• Amulet: Badge of the Brotherhood
• Ring: Call of the Brotherhood
• Gloves: Pandemonium Hold
• Belt: Ambush Trap
• Boots: Ralakesh’s Impatience

Flask

Next, let’s take a look at some of the important flasks you’ll need in this build.

• Divine Life Flask: Restores minion health. I’m not sure if our minions are strong enough to survive, so I just use it to play it safe.
• Silver Flask: Has cast speed.
• Quicksilver Flask: Has higher movement speed.
• Diamond Flask: Has critical damage for the duration of the effect.
• Taste of Hate Unique Flask: Deals extra cold damage.

Passive Tree

Then I would like to highlight some key points from Penance Brand of Dissipation Occultist on Passive Tree, as well as some of the unique jewelry used.

Each Frenzy Charge deals with damage at 2% movement speed and penetrates elemental and all elemental resistances.

Watcher’s Eye takes additional physical damage as lightning damage while affected by Wrath. We get Wrath Aura from Specters, so it’s always active. And its movement skills have a good cooldown recovery rate when affected by Haste. This will give our Flame Dash a very short cooldown.

Militant Faith Timeless Jewel with carved to glorify a new faithful converted by high Templar Dominus. Note that we assign Inner Conviction here because it may convert the node you are using into a bad node.

Green Dream Viridian Jewel will give us extra cold damage.

Ascendancy

We use Occultist as Ascendancy.

• First Lab: Void Beacon. This reduces the enemy’s cold resistance and they cannot regenerate health.
• Second Lab: Frigid Wake. You will deal with more cold damage and cannot be frozen and chilled. You also take less damage from frozen enemies.
• Third Lab: Forbidden Power. You gain additional energy and increase the area of effect and damage per energy.
• Last Lab: Vile Bastion. Each recent enemy kill by you or your minions restores 2% of Energy Shield per second, up to a maximum of 10% per second.

Conclusion

There is no doubt that Penance Brand of Dissipation Occultist is one of the best builds in Path of Exile 3.23 in terms of bosses and maps. While this build feels clunky at first, it gets better later on, especially if you’re already equipped with everything mentioned in this build guide!

Finesse Shot and Controlled Sprint are both old meta on FC 24, so what is the new meta on FC 24? That’s exactly what we’re going to learn today. In this guide, we’ll take a look at 4 game-changing new meta Skill Moves. Without further ado, let’s get started!

Flair Nutmeg

First, there is a new Skill Move introduced at FC 24 this year, and that is Flair Nutmeg. Even at the highest levels of the game, Flair Nutmeg and Flair Nutmeg Pass are the most impactful weapons.

I’m talking about Pro vs Pro gameplay, but not many people are using it in their games. I rarely encounter players using Flair Nutmeg Pass. As a new meta-Skill Move, this is definitely worth learning.

Flair Nutmeg is a new 5-star skill in EA FC. This means you can only use it on players with a 5-star Skill Move. To get the most out of Flair Nutmeg, it is necessary to spend FC 24 Coins on explosive players such as Kylian Mbappé, Marcus Rashford, or Ousmane Dembélé.

In fact, executing Flair Nutmeg is actually pretty simple. All you have to do is hold down L1/LB and R1/RB, flick the right analog stick to cancel the movement and rush in the specified direction. While we recommend using Flair Nutmeg to get into the side areas, you can go wherever you want.

So what is Flair Nutmeg Pass? It’s best used on wings. While we’re doing Flair Nutmeg, I’m going to press X, which will cancel Nutmeg animation. Then I’ll pass the ball to the excellent players. It’s a game-changer!

When you go down the side, your opponent may expect you to go straight in this game, but you have to surprise it. At this moment, the best way to surprise him is to use Flair Nutmeg Pass. This way, you can take a clever shot when your opponent isn’t expecting it. Now you have a new weapon to use on Wings.

One way to defend against Flair Nutmeg is to take a few steps back and hold L2 in line with Skill Move to make a tackle. However, be careful with this strategy, as missed tackles can leave a lot of room for the opposing striker.

Inverted Trivela

Next on our list is Inverted Trivela. This Trivela technique involves hitting the ball with the outside of the foot, creating a turning effect. Use this technique during a match to surprise your opponents.

The goal is approached from that corner based on the player’s dominant foot. For example, if you are a right-footed football player, run towards the goal from the right side. Make sure to stay diagonal to the goal; otherwise, you won’t be able to get the shooting angle Trivela needs.

Before shooting, press and hold L2/LT button on your gamepad. Aim for the far post and keep shooting.

The far post detail is crucial here. The goal is to use the outside of your foot to shoot the ball into a corner that the goalkeeper cannot reach. So, no matter which corner you attack from, aim in the opposite direction of the goalkeeper on your gamepad.

Shooting ability is also something to pay attention to. It is crucial to adjust the power based on the distance from the target. Failure to do so could result in a shot being deflected or leaving it too easy for the goalkeeper to catch the ball.

Crossing

Next we have Crossing. Crossing is the best trick we’ve seen since FIFA 19. And FC 24 Crossing is crazy and you really need to master it. Even at the highest levels of play, it’s the most threatening skill.

Classic Crossing in EA FC 24 is one of the best ways to get the ball into the box, especially when the forward is in a suitable position. However, it is important not to use too much force when passing the ball, lest the ball fly over the player’s head. Before you pass the ball, make sure your attacker is ready to receive the ball and shoot to complete the move.

There are many players in the game who can fill this role for you. As you can see, we have Ronaldo as RF and RAM, and what you want to do is you want to use L1 Square Cross. You can use it once you are in and around the area, or even inside the box. It will increase the force by 1 to 1.5 bars, making it more difficult for the goalkeeper to catch crosses.

Player Lock Fake

The last one on the list is Player Lock Fake. Player Lock Fake is a game-changing move that you really need to master.

So how to implement Player Lock? You just need to hold down L3 and R3, then flick the right stick toward the player. So how do you fake it? You can cancel it by pressing R3 and L3 again.

Just like you can see in the example. If you’re running down the wing and a player moves inside. After you do this, most opponents will try to track the run. Then you just cancel it and choose another option directly. It’s all about finding space, utilizing space and creating space.

That’s it for the four new meta Skill Moves we’re talking about here: Flair Nutmeg Pass, Inverted Trivela, Crossing and Player Lock Fake. These are powerful skills that can change the rules of the game, so come and try them out!

Talking about defending in FC 24, there are 3 types of defending, which are Legacy, Tactical, and Advanced Defending. However, you can’t use Legacy Defending in competitive mode, meaning you can’t use it to play online games. 

So, if you want to learn how to defend in FC 24, Tactical and Advanced Defending is what you need to learn.

Why Choose To Use Tactical & Advanced Defending?

In Legacy Defending, by holding X, your player will press the ball holder. 

But that’s not how it works in Tactical and Advanced Defending. This is what will happen if you hold X or A to contain in Tactical and Advanced Defending: observe the behavior of the player with the indicator. 

Instead of the player standing in front of the attacker and challenging him, he will just run beside him. That means, in Tactical and Advanced Defending, you need to be the one to control the behavior of your defenders.

Jockeying

Jockeying is crucial to control the behavior of your players when defending. 

Whenever your opponent is approaching, instead of holding X or A to press the attacker, what you need to do is hold L2 or LT button. By holding the L2 or LT button, your player will stand in a good shape to defend. 

Then, use your left analog to move your player while holding the L2 or LT button.

Whenever you’re using the Jockey, your first objective is to deny him of free passage. Your second objective is to place yourself in a position to block any shot he plays. Your third objective is to wait for him to try and dribble past you. But since you’re standing in front of him, you will win the ball. 

The last thing is to wait for the perfect time to use Stand Tackle to win the ball.

Stand Tackle

To use Stand Tackle in Tactical or Advanced Defending, press the button you used to shoot. 

You can also use Hard Stand Tackle. This is more effective than a normal Stand Tackle. Hold R1 or RB, then press Circle to use this. 

Whenever you want to make the tackle, make sure it’s from forward to avoid any foul. If you tackle from behind, you will give away a free kick or penalty inside the box. 

Also, get the timing right because if you miss a tackle, it won’t be easy to recover with that player.

How To Use Speed Jockey?

Now, let’s go back to Jockey and talk about how to use Speed Jockey and when to use it. 

Once you hold L2 or LT to activate your Jockey, your player’s speed will reduce. So, if the attacker is moving fast in front of you, you need to use the Speed Jockey to keep up with him. 

To perform this, hold your Sprint button together with the Jockey button. There are some situations in which your opponent will get past you while using Jockey. 

Then, you need to take your hands off the Jockey button and let your player run at full speed to get the ball. To do this, use your left analog and Sprint button only to control your player.

How To Keep A Good Defensive Structure?

Let’s talk about how to keep a good defensive structure when playing the game. 

If you use all the defensive techniques very well but can’t keep a good structure when defending, it won’t be enough. That is why I’m going to teach you how to avoid those common mistakes that always make your defense slack.

Firstly, whenever your opponent is attacking, don’t ever press with any one of your 2 center backs. Pressing with either one of them will destroy your defensive shape. If your opponent is a good attacker, he will utilize the opportunity you gave him.

To keep a good defensive shape, your right back, left back, and 2 center backs should be intact with no cursor on them. If you rush out to press with one of your center backs with no 100% guarantee of winning the ball back, you will leave your defense vulnerable. 

It’s not forbidden to switch to your center backs. You can switch to your center back to anticipate and stop your opponent’s movement. Once I see his opponent making a run, I switch to the center back to stop the run. The difference here is that I switch to my center back to drop back. The other one is that I switch to my center back to press. You should know the difference and avoid making mistakes.

Anytime your opponent is attacking, press with your midfielders or any other players except the center back. Pressing with your midfielders will keep your defensive shape, and your opponents will find it hard to go through. 

Of course, if you learn these tips and know how to properly invest your FC 24 Coins in your players, winning various games easily will be a piece of cake for you!

Greetings and welcome to the latest guide for WoW Classic Season of Discovery Phase 2, with a primary emphasis on the Feral Druid within PvP.

I've labeled it as speculation due to the uncertainty surrounding the runes scheduled for the upcoming phase. Thus, our discussion will revolve around the runes speculated on forums and the essential abilities that Feral Druids urgently require for improved playability in PvP.

Feral Druid In Phase 1

Phase 1 was and still is very rough and unfair for Feral when it comes to PvP. We are forced to play every kind of hybrid build with Cat Form kiting and Sunfire spams. But that’s not the cat we want. I mean, we are not even using Feral abilities and Feral talents, so we can’t really consider it as a Feral. On the other side, if you try to use cat abilities as the main source of DPS, we still run the balance tree to get the clarity and pray for it to proc for the instant Shred because it’s unusable with 60 energy and not so good DPS. The only good thing is the Feral talent that allows us to refresh 40 energy instantly whenever we shape-shift, but that’s also limited because of mana problems.

Our other spells are Rake and Shred. Rake has so low DPS even with Savage Roar and Mangle bleed buff, and it costs the same as Mangle but does less DPS. Feral is almost made as a one-ability class in this phase, which I can’t accept.

But before we jump into runes’ prediction and the things we hope we get in the next phase, let’s talk about abilities and talents.

New Abilities

At Level 40, there is some fantastic news for new abilities. We are finally getting our stealth opener ability, Pounce. So, we don’t walk cluelessly around in stealth just to hit a Mangle. Pounce allows us to hit 1 free ability, get 2 combo points, and hit a couple of auto attacks while our target is still stunned. However, we still have energy issues.

Another opener ability we got between Levels 20 and 40 is Ravage, which actually deals with some nice damage but costs 60 energy and doesn’t stun the target. So, we need Pounce to get actual opening damage with these 2 different abilities. Having in mind that with Pounce, we deal with a couple of auto attacks while the target is stunned.

Next, the brand-new ability is finally another combo point finisher called Ferocious Bite. It deals instant damage, unlike Rip, which deals damage over time. However, the use of these 2 is situational, but Rip still remains the best DPS finisher with numbers.

But it’s not always about the numbers in PvP. New levels don’t bring us just attacking potential news but also defensive ones. At Level 40, we are getting Dire Bear Form and Frenzied Regeneration, which boosts our defensive capabilities a lot. A Level 40 Druid with proper PvP items and the talent Survival of the Fittest had some insane HP, like 4,500 health and about 40% to 50% reduced damage. And when we add Frenzied Regeneration on top of that, that makes Druids insanely hard to kill in Phase 2 in Bear Form.

Next to offensive and defensive capabilities, we also have a Cat Form Dash and Travel Form so we can actually close the gap with enemies or kite them and heal. But wait, a lot of shape-shifting also requires a lot of manas. But there is also a solution for that. We are getting innervate at Level 40, which regens our mana on some insane scales, so we can actually shape-shift and heal in the middle of the fight.

These abilities and possibilities bring Feral Druid surely onto another level when it comes to PvP. We are not a one-ability spec anymore.

New Talents

For talents, we can finally spend our points where they belong - in a Feral tree. Some of the important and matchable talents would be Sharpened Claws, which increases our crit chance in Cat Form by 6%, and Blood Frenzy, which adds another combo point whenever we make a Critical Strike with an ability. This is one of the game-changers and the start of the better times that will come for Feral Druids.

On top of that, this talent will make Druids actually stack agility instead of strength because now we have direct advantages for our Critical Strike, which wasn’t the case in Phase 1. Strength still gives us 2 points of attack power, while Agility gives us 1 point and gives us bonus armor, dodge, and crit. For every 20 points of Agility, we get 1% of critical chance.

The next important talent we are getting is Improved Shred, which reduces its cost by 11 energy. And by the time we hit level 40, we will have a Level 3 Shred with some increased damage, plus a 30% bonus scale from Mangle bleed effect. So prepare yourself in case these crits.

Other mentions would be Savage Fury, which finally boosts our Rake damage and will probably make it worth with Savage Roar and Mangle bonus, like in Phase 1, where damage sucked hard. But this talent also increases the Claw damage, which means our Mangle is getting buffed once again for the same energy cost.

There are also Predatory Strikes and Heart of the Wild for Faerie Fire (Feral), and even Feral Aggres sion in case we decide to go for Ferocious Bite damage.

Rune's Prediction

As I mentioned because there are a lot of variations we can try, and all that still depends on runes we are actually getting in Phase 2. And with runes being mentioned, let’s see what we had on the runes’ wishlist: Eclipse, Berserk and Tree of Life. So, they are more or less aiming for each spec to have their ultimate rune. These 3 would be surely the game-changers in both PvP and PvE.

Berserk would surely make a big difference, especially in PvP, where we could hit 5, 6, or 7 Mangles in a row, which on this damage scale would be probably absurd. While in PvE, Berserk is already decent with DPS, so getting this ability would be a blast. But I don’t think we are getting Berserk in this phase. I think that’s an ability saved for later phases.

Things We Need

Still, it’s not impossible because we don’t know what runes other specs are getting. So, I would rather talk about realistic things that Feral lacks at the moment and the runes that would be nice to get for a much better experience in PvP.

The first thing that comes to my mind, thinking about PvP and PvE, is a Tiger’s Fury. This ability is completely useless at the moment. With a 30 energy cost, this energy cost should be zero, or even better for Feral, would be something like a talent from the Cat called King of the Jungle to make our Tiger’s Fury restore 20, 30, or 40 energy when used and keep the ability damage bonus. That would be a blast in both PvP and PvE, especially in PvP because now we got Pounce opener, and this would lead to instant 3 to 4 combo points in the opener without our enemy moving at all.

While we still talk about offensive runes, I have to mention Primal Gore. This one would be amazing, but I think it’s less likely to happen, and we would probably need to sacrifice one of the other PvP runes we are talking about now if we want to use it. Probably, this one would be used much more in PvE.

The next game-changing rune for PvP would surely be Predatory Strikes. With 5 combo points, we get an instant ability, which we can use either for Entangling Roots to kite or instant healing like Healing Touch. This rune would improve survivability and stability in fights, so we don’t need to constantly shift into Travel Form and waste tons of mana on shape-shifting. I don’t even think this is something unfair when I compare it to the Priest survival ability and damage in Phase 1, which is insane.

And the last thing Feral Druid needs is some kind of slow to control the fight and make Shreds easier to land. A perfect solution could be Infected Wounds with a 50% movement speed reduction debuff from Mangle. But this one wouldn’t be a game-changer to actually waste 1 whole rune on this. For example, a combination of 70% from agility into healing done and a 50% slow on Mangle should be a nice combination for just 1 rune, which would add much more stability in our fights.

Something that could also be considered adding in Phase 2, for example, Apex Predator’s Craving, where our Rip has a chance to proc Ferocious Bite. Because I feel that Ferocious Bite won’t be used much since we have so much bonus bleed damage, and Rip just outperforms it for pure numbers. This free Ferocious Bite damage doesn’t need to be at maximum 5 combo points.