This Month in WoW – June 2015

The fortunate month of June is here once again. Unfortunately for the Iron Horde, the armies of Azeroth continue to muster in Draenor, and will soon be heading to Tanaan Jungle in Patch 6.2—now available on the Public Test Realms. You can check out the latest patch notes here, and once you’ve had a chance to try it out, share your experiences with other testers on the PTR forums.

Upcoming In-Game Events

Midsummer Fire Festival [June 21 – July 5]
There’s a fire in the sky and a dance around the ribbon pole. Flames will be ignited and tossed and caught and blessed. All of the fires will attract the Frost Lord, Ahune, who can only be battled during this event each year. Don’t forget that his Satchel of Chilled Goods is the only way to get a Frigid Frostling.

Darkmoon Faire Returns [June 7 – 14]
The wondrous Darkmoon Faire returns to Azeroth early this month. The new Darkmoon Races are now in full swing. Test your speed and agility on a variety of racing mounts as you dodge electrifying obstacles and zip all over Darkmoon Island for rewards and achievements.

The faire continues to be one of the best ways to acquire heirloom gear, and don’t forget all of the toys, mounts, and pets that can only be gotten here. Furthermore, legend has it that there’s a vicious rabbit on the far Southeastern corner of the island. This terrible bunny is said to have HUGE, SHARP TEETH!

Upcoming World of Warcraft Tournaments

Looking for something in the realm of eSports? Here are a few World of Warcraft Arena tournaments to keep tabs on.

GCDTV

Tournaments every Friday and Saturday at 9:00 p.m. EDT / 6 p.m. PDT / 3 a.m. CEST.

The GCDTV [(G)lobal (C)ool(D)own TV] tournament is hosted by DMachine and cast by Arena veterans Supatease and Venruki, and you can catch all of the action on the GCDTV Twitch channel. Catch up on previous tournament VoDs here, and follow their official GCDTV Twitter feed to stay up to date on all of the action.

MGN WoW

Don’t miss this 3v3 Arena tournament starting at 12:00 p.m. PDT / 3:00 p.m. EDT / 9:00 p.m. CEST on Saturday, June 20.

Check out their official tournament page for more details and entry instructions. Follow MGN WoW on Twitch.tv and Twitter for the latest.

ESL WoW (EU)
The Electronic Sports League presents a month of Sundays brimming with WoW action:
June 7 at 17:00 CEST – 3v3 Arena
June 14 at 17:00 CEST – 3v3 Arena
June 21 at 17:00 CEST – 5v5 Warsong Gulch
June 28 at 17:00 CEST – 3v3 Arena

For more information, head over to the ESL news site, and don’t forget to follow ESL on Twitch and Twitter.

This Month in World of Warcraft History

June 2005 – Ten years ago this month, World of Warcraft’s first two battlegrounds opened up. Warsong Gulch and Alterac Valley gave players new places to fight as the war raged on in Azeroth.

June 2006 – The original Naxxramas raid dungeon appeared above the Eastern Plaguelands nine years ago. A furiously difficult set of encounters answered the call of only the most well-geared and determined raiders.

June 2008 – The first Blizzard Authenticators hit the scene. Check out this blast-from-the-past article by Chris Chester on Engadget.

June 2011 – Players entered the Firelands raid for the first time, challenging Ragnaros the Firelord for the very life of Nordrassil.

Related Reading: Charge of the Aspects by Matt Burns

10 World of Warcraft Dungeon Boss Encounters

We asked players on Twitter to name their favorite experiences facing down the big bad guys in dungeons. Here are some of their responses.

• “What is this? You must forgive me, but I wasn’t expecting company.” (Nexus Prince Shaffar in Mana Tombs)  —GwyndeWoW
• Argent Confessor Paletress in the Heroic Trial of the Champion. So innocent and unassuming...POW, it's HOGGER! —Adam B.
• Murmur in The Shadow Labyrinth. Seeing his initial health and thinking it would be easy, then realizing how wrong I was. —Ginger
• Lich King in Halls of Reflection. Different, but still used the skills of the group, with a great sense of foreboding and fear. —Crow G.
• Mutanus the Devourer. I remember the first time I completed Wailing Caverns with my friends, we were not expecting that! —J. Matheo G.
• “Soldiers of Lordaeron, rise to meet your master's call!” (Falric in The Halls of Reflection)—Rulinus Thunderaxe
•  “I’ll paint my face with your blood!” (Ingvar the Plunderer in Utgarde Keep) —Kameron H.

What’s your favorite?