WoW Patch 9.2 Announcement Roundup

My fellow saviors of the Shadowlands, it is nearly time for another major content update to World of Warcraft. The upcoming Patch 9.2, officially titled Eternity’s End, is widely speculated to be the final major patch of the Shadowlands expansion as a whole. To that end, I’m here today to provide you with a suitably brief rundown of everything we currently know about what this patch will contain. Blizzard also just announced the patch’s planned release date a couple of days ago at the time of writing, but we’ll get to that in due time.

Let us begin with one of Patch 9.2’s biggest selling points, a new zone that is known as Zereth Mortis. Blizzard has described this zone as one that was used by the First Ones as a workshop to create afterlives. By extension, this means Zereth Mortis is the forge upon which each of the zones we’ve played through in Shadowlands was metaphorically hammered into existence. Players will travel to Zereth Mortis because Zovaal the Jailer seeks to unlock the secrets of this zone and bend them to his will. He cannot be left to his own devices, so it falls to us to stop him yet again.

The main attraction present in Zereth Mortis is a mechanic known as the Cypher of the First Ones. Though not much information is presently known about this Cypher, what it does, or how it will operate, it’s apparently the system whereby players will unlock an item that allows the use of a second Shadowlands Legendary piece of gear. I’m afraid that’s virtually all I can tell you about it at this point. That brings us to the next aspect of Patch 9.2 that centers around Zereth Mortis, namely the ability to ride flying mounts while there.

Unlocking flying in Zereth Mortis requires a meta-achievement. Specifically, it requires an achievement which requires players to earn a series of separate, lesser achievements which comprise it. In case that doesn’t quite make sense, let’s break down the requirements. For starters, you’ll have to explore the entirety of Zereth Mortis, discover five hidden treasures while in this new zone, and kill ten unique Rare Elite enemies while there.

Thankfully, Zereth Mortis flying is account-wide once unlocked, so you’ll only have to jump through all the necessary hoops once. The World of Warcraft fan site Icy-Veins reports that provided you consistently participate in all the necessary activities in Zereth Mortis, “it should take roughly 14 days to unlock flying in Zereth Mortis after Patch 9.2 goes live.” I do believe that’s all I’ve got to report on this topic, so let’s discuss the next significant aspect of Eternity’s End.

Patch 9.2 also contains the Shadowlands expansion’s third and final raid. This raid is known as the “Sepulcher of the First Ones.” Blizzard has explained that this raid’s content will be time-gated because it tells two distinct stories, one after the other. As such, when Sepulcher of the First Ones initially opens during the second week of Patch 9.2, only the first eight of the raid’s eleven bosses will be available. This portion of the raid will be available on Normal and Heroic difficulties at first.

Exactly one week after this portion of the raid is made available, the entirety of Sepulcher of the First Ones will open and Mythic difficulty will be unlocked for those who wish to attempt it. Having said all that, patch 9.2: Eternity’s End is currently slated to reach live servers in North America on Tuesday, February 22nd, 2022. The first eight bosses of Sepulcher of the First Ones and its Normal and Heroic difficulties will open on March 1st, while the full raid and Mythic difficulty will unlock on March 8th.