World of Warcraft Honor System Q&A

A new Q&A in the official World of Warcraft forums offers some feedback about the game’s new honor system from lead designer Kalgan. A snippet:

Q: Does each class have an equal opportunity to advance in the Honor system? It seems that the Mage has a greater advantage over the Warrior due to their area effect spells and their ability to dish out a ton of damage in a short space of time.

A: The initial data has not indicated that any one class has dramatic advantages over another. I believe this train of thought to be spawned from the confusion surrounding how players rise in rank. Keep in mind, an Honorable Kill does not determine the rate at which you progress under this system, only that the kill itself was considered to be fair, and that you received contribution points for that kill. A players total contribution points, which takes into account many factors to determine the value of a kill (as described in other previews and FAQs), is the more relevant factor in determining a character’s advancement in rank at the end of the week.

Warriors for example, are an extremely durable class that are capable of doing good damage and (depending on the scenario) often have a greater survivability rate than cloth classes. The data we’ve seen thus far indicates that the most important factor lies in how well a player uses the advantages of their class. As a side note, one of the things we’re adding in the next patch along with Battlegrounds is a new combat log message which will appear after each kill informing you of your estimated contribution points for a kill when it happens. This number will be slightly crude, as it doesn’t factor in players killed under the diminishing return rule but it will provide players with a better understanding of how the system works and how valuable a given kill is.