Cataclysm is probably still a little bit away. Blizzard has not announced the final launch date, though, so there’s really not any way to guess. Still, we’re seeing more and more information slough out of the beta like so much tantalizing ice cream falling from the soft serve dispenser. The flavor of the week for professions, of course, is enchanting.

Enchanting is probably the most fundamental template for improving a character beyond levels and gear. Even though jewelcrafters have been around for two expansions, people still talk about enchanted gear as being the baseline for character improvement. It makes sense, then, that the foundation is a flagship for gear enhancement in Cataclysm.

However, with a few small exceptions, the rules about which stats get enchantments are changing. As you’ll see as we go through the new enchants one by one, many of the new enchanting standards will be based on procs. We can guess this change is in the interest of making the stat bonuses more interesting and “deep,” so it’s going to be interesting to see which enchants different classes prefer.

As warning, though, it’s beta. It’s almost certain some of these stats are placeholders or subject to change.

Continue reading Insider Trader: Enchanting the Cataclysm