We’re pleased to announce that we’ll be hosting several official Cataclysm launch events starting on the night of Dec. 6 at retail locations around the world. In North America, the events will take place in Southern California and Toronto, Canada,and will feature World of Warcraft DANCE CONTESTS with great prizes for the winning competitors. We look forward to seeing everyone at the events, and we hope you come prepared to get down with your bad self.

Azeroth's capital cities, once bastions of trade and commerce, are now under siege by forces from the Elemental Planes. While faction leaders have recently established Evacuation Portals throughout each city, allowing concerned denizens to safely escape before the next full-scale invasion occurs, we understand that accidents can still happen. In the event of an emergency, for example, you may become trapped, separated from your evacuation party, or be otherwise unable to reach a secure location. To ensure that you're adequately prepared for this worst-case scenario and can survive until reinforcements arrive, we've created a list of items to include in an Invasion Survival Kit to help you withstand the wrath of the elements.

As you're all aware by now, the shattering of Azeroth will drastically and permanently alter the continents of Kalimdor and the Eastern Kingdoms. In the wake of Deathwing's devastation, adventurers will be summoned to embark on new quests from levels 1 to 60 in these transformed territories -- and with so much new content to be found on these original two continents, many original quests will no longer be available after the shattering occurs.

Pull up a chair, grab a sizable helping of your favorite food, and prepare to reflect on the year's good tidings -- you're invited to Pilgrim's Bounty! The festivities start this Sunday, November 21, and continue all the way through next Saturday, November 27. Try your hand at cooking, hunt down a wild turkey with friends, or throw tradition to the wind and participate in an all-out food fight. There's fun for everyone, so we hope to see you there!

We just wanted to remind you that our Cataclysm YouTube Video Contest and Print Ad Contest will be ending in less than a week, on November 23. If you'd like to put your talents to the test -- and possibly win some great prizes in the process -- head over to the individual contest pages for more information on what we’re looking for, the full rules, prizes, and how to get your entry in.

You may have heard that healing in Cataclysm is going to feel different. The role will be more challenging, particularly in terms of resource management. This won’t be news to a lot of regular forum readers, but I see enough “why nerf healers?” concerns that I thought it was still a worthwhile topic for an inaugural developer blog.

The ground trembles beneath your feet and sinister cultists speak of impending doom. Loved ones have gone missing and the appearance of angered elementals only adds to the confusion. What does the future hold for Azeroth's heroes? What fortune awaits within Sayge’s cards? Visit the Darkmoon Faire and shed light on these mysteries.

With patch 4.0.3 now live, the stage has been set for the coming cataclysm. The return of Deathwing is imminent, and soon Azeroth will be changed forever. Many of you have been anticipating this moment. You've posted, blogged, podcasted, and even tweeted about it. But, after the world is torn asunder by the wrath of the corrupted Dragon Aspect, what will you do first?

The developer chat with World of Warcraft Production Director J. Allen Brack and Game Director Tom Chilton is about to begin! Head on over to the Best Buy forums if you'd like to participate. That link will redirect attendees to the chat shortly before it begins. Participation is limited to the first 500 attendees, but if you aren't able to make it into the chat you can still watch Best Buy's Ustream live mirror here.

World of Warcraft: Cataclysm is just around the corner -- and that means Rated Battlegrounds will soon be available. While Rated Battlegrounds will only be open to level-85 characters, we know many of you may still have some questions about this new system, so we've put together an FAQ to help address some of the more common inquiries we've seen.

Welcome back, adventurers! It's a dangerous world out there, so let's take a moment to wade through some of the latest community developments. If you missed our first entry, you can find it here.

World of Warcraft turns six on November 23rd, 2010! It’s been a truly incredible six years, and we’d like to thank you all for joining us on this momentous occasion. To celebrate, players that log into the game between the dates of November 30th and December 14th will receive a feat of strength added to their Achievements. We look forward to another great year ahead and many more to come!

We have just updated our World of Warcraft Fan Wallpapers section with a new wallpaper titled "Ancient of Lore" by UnidColor.

An island off the coast of the Eastern Kingdoms, Tol Barad is a historic land now sought-after by the leaders of the Horde and the Alliance. Its strategic, isolated location makes it an ideal stronghold from which to conduct military strikes. In World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, a battle will be waged to seize control of this prized territory. Should you triumph, unique rewards await you. Read more about this all-new world PvP and questing zone here.

Patch 4.0.3 is now live! This patch includes additional preparations for the release of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm. While you can expect to find some bug fixes and user interface changes in this patch, the majority of the content being downloaded will pave the way for the impending shattering of Azeroth. It won't be long now before the world changes forever, so be sure to get your affairs in order before Deathwing unleashes his devastation.

We have some tasty leftovers from our community comic contest to share. Check out the full gallery here.

Panic has seized Orgrimmar, Stormwind City, Thunder Bluff, and Ironforge. In each of these great capitals, guards have ordered citizens to evacuate in preparation for what they believe will be an elemental invasion of catastrophic proportions.

Throughout the years, World of Warcraft players have opened up their hearts to the community and shared with us their inspirational stories of romances found, friendships built , and hardships overcome. With Pilgrim's Bounty just on the horizon, we've selected three uplifting stories to share, submitted for your reading pleasure. These are personal accounts from your fellow World of Warcraft enthusiasts that touch upon the importance of family, love, and laughter and remind us that there's so much in our lives for which we should be thankful.

Little progress has been made toward mending Azeroth's dire condition. Thrall has nonetheless continued forging ahead in search of answers. Most recently, he journeyed to his ancestors' lands in Nagrand on the shattered world of Outland. At the fabled Throne of the Elements, he has met with other wise shaman, including the venerable dwarf Gavan Grayfeather, hoping to glean even the smallest shred of insight that could help him save Azeroth from ruin.

We have some tasty leftovers from our community comic contest to share. This comic was submitted by Hulda. Check out the full gallery here.

Earlier this week, we revealed how the new forum and comment rating system will help players promote positive and engaging discussions all on their own . Now it's time to explore another useful tool on the World of Warcraft community site: the search feature.

As part of an ongoing series, we'll be highlighting some of the new World of Warcraft community site features. First on the list is the new rating feature available for both forum posts and comments on these front-page blog entries. Let's explore the ability to judge others' posts, shall we?

The earth shakes with growing frequency. Elementals pour out of rifts like rodents escaping a sinking ship. Your esteemed faction leaders, barely recovered from the strain of the campaign in Northrend, have been summoned to deliberate on a matter most urgent. And now, doomsayers affiliated with the Twilight's Hammer are gathering openly within the city walls, preaching the coming of something dark and ancient... and the ruination of all. What in the Light's name is going on? With the world in upheaval and its people in a panic, it's time to prepare for the worst. If the end of Azeroth is indeed at hand, how would you want to spend your final days?

It's a question you've been asking us for a little while now. And, based on all the posts, emails, petitions, and letters we received following the announcement that the Insane in the Membrane achievement would no longer be in available in World of Warcraft: Cataclysm, we started to wonder if maybe we had gone a bit loco.

With two new playable races just on the horizon, many players have been asking when they'll be able to convert their existing characters into goblins or worgen.