Pirate Software was recently removed from the World of Warcraft streamer guild, OnlyFangs, following a disastrous run in Dire Maul North, which led to the Hardcore deaths of guild members Sara and Snupy. Dire Maul, a dungeon newly introduced to the World of Warcraft Anniversary servers, has been a significant challenge for many players, including those in OnlyFangs.
Before the official launch of Hardcore servers by Blizzard in August 2023, players had been self-regulating their zero-death runs. The popularity of these servers dipped until the addition of the Anniversary servers in November 2024, which revitalized World of Warcraft Classic and led to a decline in the population of the original Classic servers. Since the introduction of these Anniversary servers, numerous Hardcore players have faced death, while a few have successfully reached level 60 under the stringent conditions.
The incident that led to Pirate Software's expulsion from OnlyFangs occurred during a run in Dire Maul North. The group encountered issues after pulling aggro on a boss before clearing a pack of Gordok ogres. When a party member suggested retreating to reset the enemies, Pirate Software chose to abandon the group during their escape, resulting in the deaths of Sara and Snupy. Guild Master Sodapoppin, in a Discord statement, confirmed Pirate Software's removal, citing discomfort among guild members about continuing to play with him. Despite the possibility of remaining in the guild under normal circumstances, Pirate Software's refusal to accept responsibility for the mishap led to his ousting.
A review of the dungeon run by Sodapoppin highlighted that Pirate Software could have mitigated the situation by using Blizzard rank 1 to slow down the enemies, a tactic that would have conserved mana. Additionally, fellow OnlyFangs member Mizkif mentioned that Pirate Software's threats to other streamers post-incident contributed to his removal. Pirate Software took to Twitter to express his dissatisfaction with how the situation was managed.
Since the guild's recreation on the Anniversary server Doomhowl, several members have been expelled, and some may form their own groups. With Blizzard continuing to update World of Warcraft Classic with patches that accurately reflect the Vanilla experience, the community anticipates more challenges and potential Hardcore deaths as new dungeons and raids are introduced.
