Classic WoW Bug Unearthed: Season of Discovery Revives Infamous Exploit

Summary

• The infamous Corrupted Blood incident from World of Warcraft has unexpectedly reappeared in the Season of Discovery.
• The Zul'Gurub raid, introduced in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, reintroduced the Corrupted Blood spell, causing widespread chaos.
• Players are unintentionally replicating the 2005 Corrupted Blood event, spreading the deadly plague through Stormwind City, mirroring the original incident's uncontrolled spread.

A notorious chapter in World of Warcraft's history, the Corrupted Blood incident, has resurfaced—unintentionally—in the Season of Discovery servers. Videos circulating online show the deadly plague spreading through major cities, prompting mixed reactions; some players find it humorous, while others worry about its potential impact on Hardcore realms.

Initially unleashed in September 2005 with Patch 1.7 (Rise of the Blood God), the Zul'Gurub raid, a 20-player instance featuring Hakkar the Soulflayer, returned in Season of Discovery's Phase 5 (September 2024). Hakkar's Corrupted Blood spell, inflicting damage over time and spreading to nearby players, was part of the encounter. Normally, this damage is manageable with sufficient healing from classes like Priests and Paladins.

However, for almost a month after Zul'Gurub's release in 2005, Corrupted Blood affected players and their pets/minions, leading to widespread uncontrolled outbreaks outside the raid. A recent video on r/classicwow, posted by Lightstruckx, depicts Corrupted Blood spreading rapidly in Stormwind City's Trade District, mirroring the 2005 "pet bomb" strategy used to spread the plague. The video shows Lightstruckx using healing spells to survive while other players succumb quickly.

World of Warcraft Players Unwittingly Recreate the Corrupted Blood Incident

Some players attribute the Corrupted Blood resurgence to unresolved bugs, while others express serious concern about its potential weaponization in Hardcore realms. Unlike Season of Discovery, Hardcore mode features permanent death, forcing players to restart upon character death.

Despite past attempts to address the issue, the Corrupted Blood incident's legacy persists. With Season of Discovery's seventh phase slated for early 2025, the timing of Blizzard's fix for this latest outbreak remains uncertain.