#1 - Dec. 9, 2009, 6:10 p.m.
Queuing up Solo
Step 1) Open up the Dungeon Finder.
This tool can be accessed by hitting "i" or by clicking on the "Dungeon Finder" icon in your navigation tray (it’s the small, green eyeball previously used for the Looking For Group tool).
Step 2) Choose your role!
Available roles are Tank, Healer, and Damage (represented by a shield, plus sign, and sword symbol, respectively). If multiple roles are available for your class, you will be provided the option to choose which role you’d prefer to fill. If you feel comfortable performing all available roles, you may select them all. Please note that you will only be asked to perform one role per dungeon group. This role will be automatically chosen for you during the group formation process, so please do not select roles which you are not capable of fulfilling.
You may also identify yourself as an experienced player, or someone who is comfortable guiding others through dungeon encounters. To do so, mark the checkbox beneath the green flag symbol before queuing. While groups formed through the Dungeon Finder will not possess a normal "group leader," the Dungeon Finder will still attempt to place at least one experienced player in each group. If multiple players in a dungeon group have identified themselves as experienced, or if no players have, the Dungeon Finder will use various criteria (gear, quests completed, achievements, etc) to automatically decide who the "most experienced" player of the group is. This player’s character portrait will then be marked with the same green flag symbol. Characters recognized as experienced will not gain any additional features or abilities (they will not be able to remove players from the group or exclusively mark targets, for example) and may pass on this particular designation to any other group member through the normal right-click, "Promote to Leader" option.
Step 3) Select your dungeon(s).
You may queue up for a random dungeon or select from a list of dungeons appropriate for your level. The "Random Dungeon" option will appear in the Dungeon Finder window by default; however, you can easily switch over to the list of level-appropriate dungeons by selecting "Specific Dungeons" from the drop-down menu. If you wish to queue up for a level-appropriate dungeon, mark the corresponding checkbox next to the dungeon’s name. While there is no limit as to how many level-appropriate dungeons you may queue up for at one time, you cannot queue up for a random dungeon and a dungeon from the "Specific Dungeons" list at the same time.
Step 4) Enter the queue.
Once you’ve selected which dungeons you wish to queue up for, or if you wish to queue up for a random dungeon, click on the "Find Group" button.
Queuing up as a Group
Step 1) Group leader: open up the Dungeon Finder.
While all group members may access and browse the Dungeon Finder while in a group, only the group leader will be able to make the appropriate dungeon selections and enter your group into the dungeon queue.
Step 2) Group leader: choose your role!
As with solo queuing, your group leader will need to select the role(s) he or she wishes to fill. (Please note that the option to label oneself as an experienced player will not be available when queuing as a group.)
Step 3) Group leader: select your dungeon(s).
After your group leader’s roles have been selected, he or she will then need to decide for what dungeons your group will queue. These selections are made in the same manner as queuing solo; the button that was previously marked as "Find Group," however, will now say "Join as Party."
Step 5) Group members: choose your roles!
Once your group leader has selected his or her role and the dungeon(s) for which your group will be queued, a pop-up window will appear for each group member. This window will request that each group member confirm his or her role(s) and "Accept" or "Decline"; the dungeon selection(s) made by the group leader. Your group will not be entered into the dungeon queue until all members have confirmed their roles and clicked "Accept.";
Note: Premade groups of five which use the Dungeon Finder to queue will function more or less like a normal group. The group leader will retain the ability to remove other group members and set the group’s looting rules. The difference is that these groups, unlike normal groups, will be able to earn daily random dungeon rewards and access the dungeon teleportation system. Certain features and benefits, however, like the Vote Kick system and "Luck of the Draw" buff (detailed below), will not be available for these group types.
Leaving the Queue
You may leave the dungeon queue at any point by opening the Dungeon Finder and selecting the "Leave Queue" option noted on both the "Random Dungeon" and "Specific Dungeon" pages. This will remove you from the queue for all dungeons for which you initially queued.
Dungeon Requirements
All dungeons possess a minimum and maximum level range. These ranges are displayed within the Dungeon Finder window just to the right of each dungeon’s name. If your level is too high or low for a specific dungeon, it will not populate as an option when you switch to the "Specific Dungeons" option from the drop-down menu.
Some dungeons also require attunement to enter, often in the form of a key or quest, and many of the more difficult dungeons (like Wrath of the Lich King Heroics) possess a minimum gear requirement. If you meet the level requirements of a particular dungeon, but not the additional requirements, a lock icon will replace the check box next to the dungeon’s name. To see which additional requirements were not met, simply hover over the lock icon; a window noting that "You may not queue for this dungeon" will appear and any missing requirement(s) will be listed below.
The lock icon will also appear for group leaders if a group member does not meet all dungeon requirements (level, attunement, etc), and the list of missing requirements will also specify to which group member they apply.
Random Dungeons
If you’re feeling lucky, or simply don’t know which dungeon you’re in the mood for, you can leave the matter up to fate and queue up for a random dungeon. To do so, simply select the "Random Dungeon" or "Random Heroic" option from the drop-down menu and then click "Find Group" or "Join as Party." Random dungeons will always be level appropriate, and you will not be placed into a group for a dungeon for which you do not meet the requirements.
The first random dungeon you complete each day will also function similarly to a daily quest and provide you with specific rewards. For example, Wrath of the Lich King Heroic dungeons will award two Emblems of Frost and Wrath of the Lich King normal dungeons will award two Emblems of Triumph. After a player has received two Emblems of Frost for completing a random Wrath of the Lich King Heroic dungeon, he or she will receive two Emblems of Triumph for every other random Wrath of the Lich King Heroic dungeon completed that day in addition to the Emblems of Triumph which drop from each boss in all Wrath of the Lich King Heroic dungeons. Lower level characters will also receive level-appropriate rewards for running classic World of Warcraft and World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade dungeons while leveling up. These rewards will only be provided once per day, and will be listed on the "Random Dungeon" page within the Dungeon Finder for ease of reference.
These daily random dungeon rewards will replace the old daily dungeon and daily Heroic dungeon quests. The NPCs who offered these quests previously will now be offering weekly repeatable raid quests instead.
