WoW: Season of Discovery Players Rediscover Notorious Bug From 2005

World of Warcraft's Corrupted Blood Bug Returns in Season of Discovery

The infamous Corrupted Blood incident, a notorious event in World of Warcraft history, has unexpectedly reappeared in the Season of Discovery servers. Players have recreated the chaos of the original 2005 event by unintentionally spreading the deadly plague, sparking both amusement and concern within the community.

The source of the problem lies within the Zul'Gurub raid, reintroduced in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery (September 2024). Hakkar the Soulflayer, the raid's boss, utilizes the Corrupted Blood spell, which inflicts damage over time and spreads to nearby players. While manageable with sufficient healing in the raid itself, the bug allows the plague to spread beyond Zul'Gurub, mirroring the original incident.

Videos circulating online, such as one posted on r/classicwow by user Lightstruckx, show the debuff spreading rapidly through Stormwind City's Trade District. The footage vividly recalls the 2005 incident, where players exploited the bug to spread Corrupted Blood across the game world using pets.

Concerns for Hardcore Realms

The reemergence of this bug has raised concerns, particularly for players of the World of Warcraft: Classic Hardcore mode. Unlike Season of Discovery, Hardcore mode features permanent death, meaning a single encounter with Corrupted Blood could mean the loss of a character and a considerable amount of playtime.

While Blizzard has implemented fixes in the past, the persistence of this issue highlights the enduring legacy of the Corrupted Blood incident. With Phase 7 of Season of Discovery slated for early 2025, the timing of a permanent solution remains uncertain. The community anxiously awaits Blizzard's response and a definitive fix to prevent further outbreaks of this viral in-game plague.