#0 - April 22, 2009, 9:26 a.m.
Blizzard Post
Arena Season 6 has now officially begun, and players can immediately begin competing for the new Furious Gladiator PvP item sets. We have reset all Arena team ratings, Arena points, and personal ratings though players retain their honor points and matchmaking rating going into this season. Some new changes are being made in this season as well:

  • All teams at the start of the season and all new teams created during the season will now start at 0 team and 0 personal rating instead of 1500.
  • In order to get teams boosted up more quickly from their 0 starting rating, whenever a team’s rating is below the lesser of 1300 rating or their matchmaking rating minus 200, they will receive extra points for a win but won’t lose more on a loss. The amount of extra points will taper off as the ratings reach the list these values.
  • Team matchmaking ratings will now be shown on the score box after a rated match is completed.
  • When a player joins an existing team, their personal rating will start out equal to the team rating up to a maximum of 1000.
  • We have recalibrated the ratings required to purchase items and many now have lower requirements compared to season 5.

Also, to coincide with the launch of Arena Season 6, players who were on the top teams from each battlegroup at the end of season 5 should be receiving their end-of-season rewards today. These include Arena-specific titles until the end of the new season, and for players that have earned the rank of gladiator, a Deadly Gladiator’s Frostwyrm.

Here is a list of some PvP items that will be available in Arena Season 6 and their expected rating requirements:

No Rating Required:
Hateful Gloves
Hateful Legs
Hateful Chest
Hateful Helm
Hateful Shoulders
Hateful Ring
Hateful Trinket
Deadly Bracer
Deadly Belt
Deadly Boots
Deadly Neck
Deadly Ring
Deadly Cape
Deadly Trinket

Rating Required:
1250+: Deadly Relics/Idols/Librams/Totems
1300+: Deadly Gloves
1350+: Deadly Legs
1400+: Deadly Chest
1450+: Deadly Helm
1500+: Deadly Shoulders

1400+: Furious Bracer (honor)
1450+: Furious Belt (honor)
1500+: Furious Boots (honor)
1550+: Furious Neck (honor)
1600+: Furious Gloves
1650+: Furious Ring (honor)
1700+: Furious Legs
1750+: Furious Chest
1800+: Furious Trinket (honor)
1850+: Furious Weapon
1900+: Furious Helm
1950+: Furious Wands/Relics/etc
2000+: Furious Cloak (honor)
2050+: Furious Shoulders
2200+: 2nd Tier Furious Weapon
2300+: Furious Tabard