A series of events appears to have been set in motion following the end of Alpha testing for World of Warcraft's Wrath of the Lich King (WotLK) expansion. For one, we've confirmed that WotLK's official beta forums are now open for public viewing. It was previously accessible only to members of of the beta test community.

Nethaera appeared on the forums recently to further note that Blizzard has lifted their NDA for both the expansion's Alpha and Beta tests. In line with this news, WotLK's official beta site has also been opened and should provide the soon-to-be testers with the information they'll need to sign in.

All this given, it could mean that WotLK's beta invites are almost here, right? According to a member of the deathknight.info forums, Europe's invitations are already being sent out. The forum post was deleted, although another bit of evidence strongly hints that WotLK beta is indeed closing in - screenshots of the expansion's login screen and downloader (via WotLK Wiki):

  

Lastly, Nethaera visited the WotLK forums to post the beta patch notes. We've posted part of it here to give you an idea of what's arriving, though you'll want to read the rest of it at the official forums. Lest we forget, those interested in getting a head start on their frozen delights dose of Northrend will want to opt into the open beta ASAP. Enjoy the read!