Here is how the week of January 8, 2024 played out across retail and Classic.
The biggest retail news was the lead-up to Patch 10.2.5 "Seeds of Renewal," dated for January 16, 2024. The patch opened the Azerothian Archives, a story feature whose centerpiece was the Big Dig public event in the Dragon Isles, where players excavated relics for currency and rewards. It also introduced Bel'ameth, the new night elf haven grown from the world tree, Follower Dungeons that let players run all eight Dragonflight dungeons with AI companions, and dragonriding across Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms. New troll and draenei character customizations rounded out the update.
On the Classic side, Wrath of the Lich King Classic reached its final raid. The Ruby Sanctum opened January 11, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. PST (23:00 GMT), tucked beneath Wyrmrest Temple in Northrend. Inside, the black dragon Halion and his lieutenants stood between raiders and the last Wrath-era loot before Cataclysm Classic. It was a short, sharp single-boss instance that capped the Wrath Classic raid tier and gave guilds one more reset target to clear together.
The midweek slot leaned into catch-up content on January 9, with the Cooking Impossible PvP Brawl and Wrath of the Lich King Timewalking both active, alongside the new Follower Dungeons. Players using the Timewalking week to revisit old dungeons could explore our WoW Timewalking boosts to clear them on a schedule. The week also teased the Grim Campfire Toy as a Twitch Drop tied to watching Dragonflight content, but Blizzard rescheduled it: the drop ultimately ran January 23 to 30, rewarding four hours of viewing with the cosmetic campfire toy rather than going live in the second week of January.
The week also set expectations for Classic's seasonal track. Season of Discovery Phase 2 was dated for February 8, 2024, raising the level cap from 25 to 40 and granting up to 31 talent points. Its centerpiece was a reworked Gnomeregan, rebuilt as a 10-player raid in Dun Morogh with six bosses and fresh loot, plus a new wave of runes to discover. It gave Season of Discovery players a clear target to level toward over the following month.
With the week's calendar covered, here are the questions players asked most about it.
Seeds of Renewal launched January 16, 2024. It added the Azerothian Archives and the Big Dig public event, the night elf city of Bel'ameth, Follower Dungeons for the eight Dragonflight dungeons, dragonriding on the old-world continents, and new troll and draenei customizations.
It was a Wrath of the Lich King Classic raid, not a retail one. The Ruby Sanctum opened January 11, 2024 beneath Wyrmrest Temple, with Halion as its final boss. It was the last Wrath Classic raid tier before the move to Cataclysm Classic later in 2024.
The Azerothian Archives is a Seeds of Renewal feature centered on the Big Dig, a public event in the Dragon Isles where players excavate relics for a new currency and rewards. It added a lighter, exploration-focused activity to Dragonflight's endgame in early 2024.
Despite being teased for mid-January, the Grim Campfire Toy Twitch Drop ultimately ran January 23 to 30, 2024. Watching four hours of WoW: Dragonflight content from participating streamers on Twitch, with a linked account, earned the cosmetic campfire toy.
Season of Discovery Phase 2, dated for February 8, 2024, raised the cap from 25 to 40, granted up to 31 talent points, and reworked Gnomeregan into a 10-player raid with six bosses. It also added a new set of runes for players to discover across the world.
On January 9, the Cooking Impossible PvP Brawl and Wrath of the Lich King Timewalking were both active, with Timewalking sending players back through Wrath dungeons for Timewarped rewards. Retail's new Follower Dungeons were also available for solo and small-group runs.
Last reviewed 2026-06-22 against Patch 10.2.5 Seeds of Renewal. Maintained by WowCarry's WoW team.
