So, 58 is the new 60. Nothing momentous happens anymore at 60, except you can get your epic land mount. It used to be back in the day (I feel old every time I type that) getting to 60 was the be-all, end-all. All of a sudden you were serious. People would consider taking you to Stratholme or Scholomance. If you were lucky and attuned, you might get to go to Molten Core. You had made it.
Not so anymore. Now, 58 seems to be the new thing people are striving for. Because at 58 you can go through the Dark Portal and start the long grind to the new level cap - 70. And everyone I see hitting the magic number of 58 dutifully runs, nay dashses, over to Blasted Lands to carry the fight against the Scourge to Draenor.
But not I. And here's why:
- Sometimes my trade skills aren't at 300. I did not want to walk all over the Outland seeing mineral nodes that I couldn't mine on my hunter. So I spent the extra time running around and doing quests. I did this on my new 60 rogue too (Gratz Bremmie!)
- I want cash. Waitaminit, I'm not suggesting I'm going to get rich from the straggly 55-60 quests in my log. But the fewer quests I need to do in the Outlands, the more I can save for when I'm 70 and need cash.
- While you can get a handful of beginning quests when you hit 58, they are going to be hard. And they'll be HARD if you're soloing. Luckily for me, I'm not soloing the rogue up, but I did solo both the warlock and the hunter. I was glad I had the extra two levels of stats and the skills from 60 when I finally tackled Outland.
- You can't buy your epic land mount until you're 60. If you're flush with cash, you'll be able to buy it before you head to the Outland. It's not a huge deal, but the extra speed can help you avoid some trash. (Yes, I know that once you hit Shattrath you can portal back to anywhere, but even getting to the city at level 58 is either challenging or a very long ride.
