Lead Systems Designer Greg "Ghostcrawler" Street has posted his latest World of Warcraft dev blog entry, and this one features an interesting change to the Luck of the Draw buff.

In its current state, the buff provides a 5% bonus to damage, healing and health if you group with at least one random person using the Dungeon Finder. In patch 4.0.6, the buff is being increased to 5% per player, up to a maximum of 15%.

So why make the change? According to Ghostcrawler, "the intent of Luck of the Draw is to help make up for the lack of coordination, communication, and familiarity that pick up groups suffer relative to organized groups of guild members and friends." This buff should help PUGs in Cataclysm and make using the Dungeon Finder a more pleasant experience.

Also, fun fact: it turns out the Luck of the Draw buff hasn't been working in Cataclysm at all, except for in a few specific dungeons. Check out the entire blog entry after the jump and discuss the buff in this thread in our WoW general forum.

Community Manager Nethaera just announced on the official World of Warcraft forums that all 15vs15 rated battleground weeks will be changed into 10vs10 weeks. This switch will be implemented in a hotfix that will go live before next Tuesday. Here are the details:

"Looking at participation, the 10vs10 rated battleground weeks have been far and away more popular than the 15vs15 weeks. The difference in organizational requirements as well as battleground map popularity have been a couple big factors that have led to the 10vs10 weeks seeing a great deal more action. By making this change and supporting the popular option we hope to encourage even more players and teams to participate, as they won’t have to wait out every other week, or struggle to beef up to 15 players to match the requirement.

We also have plans to adapt additional battleground maps in the future to work in the 10 player bracket to increase the variety of maps available."

What are your thoughts? Did you participate in many 15v15 rated BGs?

The Syndicate is celebrating its 15th anniversary this month! According to the Guinness Book of World Records, The Syndicate is the oldest, continuously operated online gaming guild. Members of this group have played nearly every MMO imaginable, but they focus predominantly on Ultima Online and World of Warcraft.

While the members of the guild enjoy playing games, they are also accomplished testers and guide writers. The group is featured in the MMO documentary Second Skin and published a book that details the first 10 years of the organization. The Syndicate is also the first online gaming entity to trademark its name, logo and slogan.

Congratulations to The Syndicate for 15 years of gaming! So ZAM readers, how old are your various guilds?

StarCraft II fans will definitely want to check out the latest BFF Report. Mike B. aka Fony shows you everything you need to know about the three new Blizzard-made custom maps: Aiur Chef, StarJeweled and Left 2 Die. As you can probably tell from their titles, the games are based on Iron Chef, Bejeweled and Left 4 Dead.

Watch BFF Report episode 55 after the jump to see these StarCraft II maps in action!

Wowhead's Miyari recently reviewed a documentary called "Gamers," which takes an in-depth look at the the culture surrounding MMOs and World of Wacraft. If her article made you want to watch the movie, it's now available for free on SnagFilms. The site boasts a free online library of more than 2,000 films.

The documentary follows filmmaker Ben Gonyo as he interviews WoW players and other people associated with the world of MMO gaming. For example, he takes a trip to BlizzCon to talk with attendees and host Jay Mohr, and he also speaks briefly with Blizzard's Jeff "Tigole" Kaplan.

Miyari said that "Gamer" provides an interesting look at the MMO subculture, but she also feels that many of the players interviewed were extremely stereotypical of your average World of Warcraft player. Check out the film for yourself on SnagFilms and let us know what you think.

For more information on "Gamers" or to watch some other gaming documentaries, head over to Gonyo's Gamers Film site.

Blizzard latest World of Warcaft blog entry focuses on breaking skulls and buying stuff. The article explains that players can earn Conquest Points by winning rated Arena and Battlegrounds matches and use the currency to purchase PvP gear.

The blog entry also contains a handy table that shows how your personal rating affects your weekly Conquest Points cap. Check out the entire entry after the jump for all the details.

World of Warcraft players often commemorate their most epic in-game moments by taking screenshots. Now you can share your favorite Cataclysm dungeon moment with the world and win epic loot from SteelSeries and J!NX. You could win one of four Cataclysm prize packs valued at over $450. Just post a screenshot of your most amazing dungeon crawl moment on the SteelSeries or J!NX Facebook pages to enter.

Four winners will be selected, but you'll have to act soon, as the contest only runs from now through February 4!

World of Warcraft has grown to over 1 million fans on Facebook. To mark the occasion a new wallpaper is available for download on the site. Check out the latest background which depicts an epic eight-person raid on Magtheridon.

And if you haven't already, head on over to the World of Warcraft Facebook page and hit the 'like' button. Wonder what they'll offer up if they hit 2 million?

The third issue of Curse of the Worgen, the newest World of Warcraft miniseries. is now available. You can get a copy of the comic in stores and online.

"Halford struggles to govern his body and mind, but as he loses more and more of himself to the worgen form, he feels his self-control slipping away. We delve even deeper into World of Warcraft lore and learn more about the seductive power of the worgen. Are they brutal beasts or extraordinary heroes?"

What do you think about the Worgen comic? Will you be getting the latest issue?

There's no safer feeling when exploring through Azeroth than knowing your Core Hound Pup is at your side. Blizzard's authenticator for World of Warcraft entitles players to the free in-game pet, but not everyone has gotten on board with safety they can provide you.

Blizzard is launching the Adopt a Core Hound Pup campaign to encourage players to use this security device for their accounts. Simply visit the Battle.net account security site to learn how to get an authenticator or download the Battle.net Mobile Authenticator, available through the mobile apps page or as a free download from the Apple App Store or the Android Market.

Once you have your pet, take a screenshot of you and your buddy for a chance to win a free iPad. Already have an authenticator? Then what are you waiting for? Submit your screenshots today for your chance to win! The contest lasts for a year, so keep sending in your images.