5.2 Update: You Can Keep Your Valor!

After reading your feedback and locking ourselves in dim, fluorescent-lit rooms for much deliberation, we have decided that we are NOT going to convert Valor to Justice and Justice to gold when 5.2 ships. Current Valor items will continue to require Valor in 5.2, and will be offered at a discount as listed in the PTR patch notes. Given that PvE and PvP currencies function quite a bit differently, Conquest will still convert to Honor and Honor to gold as previously discussed.

We’re making the Valor change for a couple of reasons, but primarily because we think a down-conversion under the new Mists endgame progression model just feels mean. We traditionally viewed this conversion process with each patch as a necessary evil to discourage hoarding—it’s not fun to feel like you can’t spend your Valor in the weeks before a new patch because you have to be ready to buy everything up. However, we have a Valor cap now to prevent excessive hoarding, many of the Valor rewards in 5.2 require raiding to acquire (for example, many of the ilevel-522 rewards are tied to Shado-Pan Assault reputation, which you’ll only gain rep with by raiding in the Throne of Thunder), and the LFR version has an ilvl-480 requirement, meaning you can’t hoard Valor on a brand new 90 and jump straight to the best stuff. All of these factors being considered, it doesn’t make good sense to take Valor away from players in this context. Down-conversions may occur for future patch releases depending on the circumstances, but for 5.2 it’s safe and snuggly where it is.

In addition, we’re making a change to ensure that there are some gear rewards available via the Kirin Tor Offensive and Sunreaver Onslaught, the two new factions with which players can earn reputation in 5.2 without raiding. The patch was shaping up to be a real challenge for players who don’t like raiding (including LFR), as our original design meant that no new Valor rewards would be available to them without needing to run Throne of Thunder. You can expect to see the Valor rewards on the Kirin Tor Offensive and Sunreaver Onslaught quartermasters updated on the 5.2 public test realms in the near future. These rewards are ilevel 496 and will only accommodate a few slots, as they aren’t intended to be very attractive to raiders (including those running LFR), but should give non-raiders something to shoot for in 5.2.

If you’ve already made plans and sunk your Valor, don’t fret! As of this announcement, and even if you have 0 Valor currently, you still have enough time to cap out at 3000 Valor before patch 5.2 goes live. (It’s math!)

We’d love to hear your feedback about this change, and how you’re planning to earn, save, and spend Valor before the patch releases.

There was no announced patch date. Bashiok simply said yesterday morning that "we’re targeting the last week of February."

Check out his tweet from today on the subject. :)

02/12/2013 08:02 PMPosted by Fatalfred

Edit: so... patch is not in late feb like was announced? The hell is going on?

02/12/2013 08:15 PMPosted by Orcba

I don't care about saving valor, since as you said, we will have to do quite a bunch of raid before we can buy something good to use. In other words, we probably will have enough valor when we are able to buy something.

Actually there are items at each reputation, even neutral, and getting to Friendly is (I believe) essentially just a single boss kill. It ramps up from there obviously, but you will have stuff to spend Valor on pretty quickly.

02/12/2013 08:06 PMPosted by Necrodius

So you do me like this, the day AFTER I spent 750 valor on my lock and priest so it won't be wasted just in case the patch was soon? You OWE me my valor back. When do I get it refunded?

I'm not sure what you're owed. You knew what you were spending points on and got what you paid for.

This is why we so often repeat with every patch that things are subject to change during development and testing.

02/12/2013 08:12 PMPosted by Whathump

It's certainly a relief. It removes the feeling of obligation to decide which pieces to upgrade before 5.2 when they'd likely end up getting replaced in the first couple weeks of raiding.

I feel ya on this one. /brofist