World of Warcraft is a game that’s constantly evolving with new mechanics, new spells, and an endless number of ways to play. And in the game’s next expansion, The War Within, it’s possible that one of the game’s newest mechanics might make its way to all of the classes.
The Empowered mechanic, which was first introduced in WoW Dragonflight as a keystone feature of the Evoker class, recently received an update in Patch 10.2.6 that could signal its expansion beyond just Evokers. In a data mine performed by WoW coverage site Wowhead, it was discovered that the “Only for Evokers” designation that has been attached to Empowered spells has been removed, implying that it could be possible for other classes to start making use of the Empowered mechanic in the near future.
Empowered spells are different from other spellcasts in WoW in that there are different tiers at which you can cast them. You can take your finger off the keybind for an immediate cast or hold it all the way down for a stronger version of the spell that takes a stronger time investment.
Some of the new abilities we’ll be getting access to through the new Hero Talents system in The War Within may make use of the Empowered mechanic. The combination of class specializations through those talents will open the door to all sorts of out-of-the-box innovations that definitely should make the most of WoW’s mechanics. By expanding the Empowered spell mechanic beyond just one class, the entire lineup of classes could gain access to new abilities. Furthermore, existing abilities could be tweaked to fit into the Empowered mold. Signature class abilities (like Priest’s Mind Blast or Monk’s Crackling Jade Lightning) could potentially benefit from the Empowered spell bar.
No official word on any classes receiving Empowered spells is public as of now, but if the designation does move on from being just an Evoker mechanic, it’ll likely be announced at some point leading up to the release of The War Within later this year.
Update March 19, 4:48pm CT: WoW‘s new Plunderstorm game mode features Empowered spells, which is likely why the designation was removed from the Evoker class. It’s still possible that other classes could receive Empowered spells in the future, though, now that the Evoker-only stipulation has been removed from the mechanic.
