Midnight 12.1.5: Kith'ix Raid, Labyrinths and Aqir Invasions

What Blizzard showed for Midnight 12.1.5

Blizzard has published an overview of Midnight patch 12.1.5: a story campaign that closes the Quel'thalas and Zul'Aman arc, a single-boss raid against the C'Thraxxi general Kith'ix, a new activity type called Labyrinths, hourly Aqir Invasion events, and a new currency that pushes fully upgraded Season 2 gear one step further. No release date is attached to any of it. The overview sends players to the test realm instead: "Join the PTR to experience a new one-boss raid, continue the story, explore Labyrinths, battle back outdoor invasions, and help shape the adventures still to come."

The Promise of Tomorrow

The story campaign picks up after Ula'tek's defeat, with tensions to settle between Quel'thalas and Zul'Aman and an ancient threat awake again. It ends in a final stand against the Amani's ancient foe, the C'Thraxxi general Kith'ix.

The Unbinding of Kith'ix

The patch's raid is a single encounter. Kith'ix is bound in a subterranean lair beneath the Vaults of Ula'tek, and players face him alongside Lady Liadrin. No difficulty list and no opening schedule are given for it.

Labyrinths, starting with Kindo'jan

Labyrinths are sprawling, mega-dungeon-like experiences that go deeper than Delves. They can be run in a single session or piece by piece over time, at the player's own pace, with Valeera Sanguinar as the companion guide. The further a group pushes, the more chances it gets to advance characters and claim treasure.

The first one is Kindo'jan, an ancient Amani funeral complex sealed for centuries, where interred spirits defend the site against looters and against the Vilebranch. No group size and no difficulty structure are stated.

Aqir Invasions in Eversong and Zul'Aman

Aqir Invasions are zone-wide public events in Eversong Woods or Zul'Aman, running for ten minutes every hour. Each invasion draws on six scenario types, three combat-focused and three non-combat-focused, and the combat scenarios carry one of eight affixes.

The eight Aqir Invasion affixes

• Void Protection - Chance for an Aqir Voidweaver to appear, creating a protective barrier around all other aqir.
• Aqir Burrower - Several aqir aggressively burrow through the area. They will knock anyone into the sky if they get close.
• Void Sphere - Void Spheres move around the area to try to trap anyone within them.
• Astalor's Anguish - Astalor's experiments continue. He has sent his Anguish Crystals to help, which will cause damage to the aqir and any adventurers caught in their blast.
• Swarms! - All aqir enemies are replaced with swarms of smaller aqir.
• Aqir Elites - All aqir enemies are replaced with fewer but more powerful aqir.
• Void Infestation - Some aqir are infested with the void and will explode after a few seconds in combat, dealing damage to players and infecting other aqir.
• Web Weavers - Chance for an Aqir Webweaver to spawn in. If their channel is not interrupted, they will cover a player in webs.

Ascendant Venomstones

Ascendant Venomstones are the patch's gear-progression addition. Ten of them boost the item level of a fully upgraded Season 2 Hero, Mythic, or highest-quality Tidal Crafted weapon, trinket, or necklace. They come from Heroic and Mythic raid bosses, Mythic+ Keystone dungeons at +10 and above, Tier 11 Bountiful Delves, and Nightmare Prey Hunt Champion gear chests.

What 12.1.5 means for PvP

Nothing in the overview reaches instanced PvP: it names no arena, Solo Shuffle, Blitz, rated battleground or War Mode content, and no Player versus Player notes have been published for 12.1.5. Rated play still runs on the Season 2 tuning set by the September 1 pass, and no hotfix since has moved a PvP value.