Know Your Rogue Lore: Plunderbeard

Few people become famous for being little more than a cold corpse but the rogue we are going to discuss today managed to do just that. When the Alliance first set foot in Northrend the result was many of them ended up dead. Somehow they found enough time to dig a crypt and create a mausoleum. (Dwarves are industrious builders after all and FIRM believers that the dead belong encased in rock underground thank you very much.) Of course this was all before our favorite human prince picked up his new toy and decided to make a major career change. When the Alliance arrived for the SECOND time in Northrend, this time in pursuit of that same prince who had landed there before, they were unaware of the previous burial ground. So they happily build a large fortress only to have scourge start popping up in the basement. This of course caused issues for the new residents.

Plunderbeard was a member of the 7th Legion. Originally formed as the Alliance portion of the combined Might of Kalimdor forces during the Ahn'Qiraj War effort. They were made up of veterans who fought beside Lady Proudmoore and Warchief Thrall at Mount Hyjal.  The 7th Legion is believed to be one of the oldest and most elite fighting forces in the Alliance military. It's members are ALL veterans of numerous campaigns. As these men and women have worked together for YEARS, they know and trust each other. They have experience in numerous hostile environments in both Azeroth AND Outland fulfilling their duties. Now they have been called to the icy ridges of Northrend to take down the Lich King. So they don't scare easily, but having scourge over head as well as popping up out of the ground gets old quickly, even for them.

What else do we know about Plunderbeard? This particular dwarf rogue was sent to figure out exactly what is going on beneath Wintergarde Keep, the 7th's new home in Northrend. Specifically, how are the scourge maneuvering between the crypts and the mausoleum? In addition to this he finds out who is running things, what its weakness are and how to take him out. Unfortunately he while he managed to gather all this information he failed to survive long enough to report. His superior, a man by the name of Ambro Cash sends individuals looking for him pretty much anticipating the worst. Knowing what we do about the 7th Legion I can understand his attitude, but still I love Ambro's faith in Plunderbeard. He knows that even if the dwarf died while preforming his job he WILL have the information he needs SOMEWHERE on him or near by.

Plunderbeard's body is located in a deceptive tunnel connecting the mausoleum to the crypts located beneath Wintergarde Keep in Dragonsblight. If you push your way past all the hanging roots and you can easily traverse from one end to the other. His body faces in the direction of the mobs you need to find his missing journal pages on. Unlike other dwaven writers of note Pluderbeard's work manages to stay fairly close together with some individuals managing to locate all four of the missing pages of the journal on a single mob.

This is all part of the "Wrathgate" chain for the Alliance. It is shortly after you find Plunderbeard and use the information he gathered that you first meet up with Bolvar Fordragon, in Northrend. In fact Bolvar will come rushing in to save your butt at the end of this particular chain. If you happened to have done the Jail Break chain back in Vanilla, he will even express delight at seeing you still alive and kicking. Sadly the same can not be said for poor Plunderbeard, but his legacy lives on in those Alliance who carry on his mission, delivering his reconnaissance and fighting in his stead.  While for the Alliance he is but a small part of an epic chain but don't over look the large contribution he and his colleagues have made and will continue to make as the years pass.

Midsummer Fire Festival Guide

If you do no other in game holiday, participate in this one. Why? Because you will make huge amounts gold and/or experience for relatively little effort in a short period of time. Even better the vast majority of quests scale with level so there are very few you can NOT do if you are not max level. On Pvp servers it is a little more difficult but not impossible, for Pve players it may be the ONLY time you participate in a "pvp" type of event.

Bonfires
Each of the four continents have bonfires, as well as each of the major cities, only Northrend does not have an achievement connected with it. This makes tracking which bonfires you have already hit all that much easier. Near the bonfires located in the capital cities you will find holiday specific merchants and quest givers who will start you on your way. Honoring or Desecrating each fire will reward you with Burning Blossoms as well as either Gold or Experience depending on your level. The Horde come out slightly ahead on the max number of Blossoms and cash they can earn. Below is the route I generally take for bonfires. A stands for Alliance, H for Horde and N for Neutral.

Northrend

Howling Fjord
A: Fort Wildervar (58,16)
H: Camp Winterhoof (48,13)

Dragonblight
A: Wintergard Keep (75,44)
H: Agmar's Hammer (39,48)

Grizzly Hills
A: Amberpine Lodge (34,61)
H: Conquest Hold (19,61)

Zul'Drak
A: Argent Stand (41,61)
H: Argent Stand (43,71)

Stormpeaks
A: K3 (42,87)
H: K3 (40,86)

Sholazar Basin
A: River's Heart (47,66)
H: River's Heart (47,62)

Borean Tundra:
A: Fizzcrank Airstrip (55,20)
H: Bor'Gorok Hold (51,12)

Crystalsong Forest
A: Windrunner's Overlook (78,75)
H: Sunreaver's Command (80,53)

There are no bonfires in either Icecrown or Wintergrasp.

Outland
N: Shattrah Next to the flight path

Nagrand
A: Telaar (50,70)
H: Garadar (51,34)

Terokkar Forest
A: Allerian Stronghold (55,55)
H: Stonebreaker Hold (52,43)

Shadowmoon Valley
A: Wildhammer Stronghold (40,55)
H: Shadowmoon Village (33,30)

Hellfire Peninsula
A: Honor Hold (62,58)
H: Thrallmar (55,40)

Zangermarsh
A: Telredor (69,52)
H: Zabra'Jin (36,52)

Blade's Edge Mountains
A: Sylvanaar (42,66)
H: Thunderlord Stronghold (33,30)


Netherstorm
A: Area 52 (31,63)
H: Area 52 (32,68)

Kalimdor

Teldrassil (Darnassus)
A: Rut'theran Village (55,91)
A: Dolanaar (55,60)

Darkshore
A: Auberdine (37,46)

Azuremyst Isle
A: The Exodar-The Crystal Hall (41,41)
A: Azure Watch (44,53)

Bloodmyst Isle
A: Blood Watch (55,69)

Winterspring
A: Everlook (62,35)
H: Everlook (59,35)

Ashenvale
A: Astranaar (38,54)
H: Splintertree Post (70,69)

Stonetalon Mountains
H: Sun Rock Retreat (50,60)

Desolace
A: Nijel's Point (65,17)
H: Shadowprey Village (28,76)

Barrens
H: Crossroads (52,28)

Durotar
H: Orgrimmar-Valley of Wisdom (47,38)
H: Razor Hill (52,47)

Mulgore
H: Thunder Bluff-Spirit Rise (21,26)
H: Bloodhoof Village (51,60)

Thousand Needles
H: Freewind Post (41,52)

Feralas
A: Feathermoon Stronghold (28,44)
H: Camp Mojache (72,47)

Silithus
A: Cenarion Hold (57,34)
H: Cenarion Hold (46,44)

Tanaris
A: Gadgetzan (52,29)
H: Gadgetzan (49,27)

Duskwallow Marsh
A: Theramore Isle (62,40)
H: Brakenwall Village (33,30)

Un'Goro Crater does not have any bonfires.

Eastern Kingdoms

Stranglethorn Vale
A: East of Booty Bay (33,73)
H: East of Booty Bay (32,75)

Blasted Lands
A: Nethergrade Keep (58,17)

Swamp of Sorrows
H: Stonard (47,47)

Redridge Mountains
A: Lakeshire (24,59)

Duskwood
A: Darkshire (74,51)

Westfall
A: Sentinel Hill (56,54)

Elywnn Forest
A: Stormwind-The Canals (49,72)
A: Goldshire (43,65)

Dun Morogh
A: Ironforge-Hall of Explorers (64,25)
A: Kharanos (46,46)

Burning Stepps
A: Morgan's Vigil (80,62)
H: Flame Crest (62,29)

Loch Modan
A: Thelsamar (32,40)

Badlands
H: Kargath (4, 49)

Wetlands
A: Menethil Harbor (13, 47)

Arathi Highlands
A: Refuge Point (50,44)
H: Hammerfall (74,41)

Hinterlands
A: Aerie Peak (14,50)
H: Revantusk Village (76,74)

Western Plaguelands
A: Chillwind Camp (43,82)

Hillsbrad Foothills
A: Southshore (50,46)
H: Tarren Hill (58,25)

Silverpine Forest
H: The Sepulcher (49,38)

Tirisfal Glades
H: Undercity-Ruins of Lordaeron (68,9)
H: Brill (57,52)

Ghostlands
H: Tranquillien (46,26)

Eversong Woods
H: Silvermoon City-Court of the Sun (70,43)
H: North Sanctum (46,50)

There is no bonfire in Deadwind Pass or on the Isle of Qual'Danas.

Grand Total: Alliance 580 Blossoms, Horde 590 Blossoms, from bonfires alone. You receive 3g 70s for every flame you honor and 13g 23s for every flame you desecrate. This means that an Alliance at level 80 can make 544g 90s and a Horde 563g 96s from the fires alone.

Quests

Non Repeatable

A: (lvls1-80) The Master of Summer Lore - This is the Alliance bread crumb quest provided by commoners scattered all over the major cities. The Master of Summer Lore is located near the major bonfires of each of the Alliance Capital Cities. Stormwind, near the Stockades (38,61) Ironforge, in front of the Hall of Explorers (65,24) Exodar, in the Crystal Hall (41,25) and for Darnassus he is actually OUTSIDE at the Rut'theran Village (55,91)

A: (lvls1-80) Incense for the Summer Scorchlings -  Near each of the bonfires is a small awning under which you will find the Flame Warden and a Summer Scorchling. Take the incense provided and give it to the Scorchling. Simple, but don't run off before he finishes eating it. What he has to say and does is rather revealing.

A: (lvls1-80) A Thief's Reward - A lot of people have problems with this one and that is because it is based on DROP quests. Once you have stolen the flames of each of the four Horde Capital Cities and turned them in to the Loremaster you will receive THIS quest, which you can immediately turn in for a fancy hat.

H: (lvls1-80) The Spinner of Summer Tales - This is the Horde bread crumb quest provided by commoners scattered all over the major cities. The Spinner of Summer Tales is located near the major bonfires of each of the Horde Capitals. Orgrimmar, in the Valley of Wisdom (47,38) Thunderbluff, at Spirit Rise (21,26) Undercity, in the Courtyard (68,9) or Silvermoon City (69,42)

H: (lvls1-80) Incense for the Festival Scorchlings - Near each of the bonfires is a small awning under which you will find the Flame Warden and a Summer Scorchling. Take the incense provided and give it to the Scorchling, Simple, but don't run off before he finishes eating it, you don't want to miss what he does and says.

H: (lvls 1-80) A Thief's Reward - A lot of people have problems with this one and that is because it is based on DROP quests. Once you have stolen the flames of each of the four Alliance Capital Cities and turned them in to the Spinner of Summer Tales and you will receive THIS quest, which you can then immediately turn in for your fancy hat.

Chains and Daily Quests

A & H: (lvls1-80) Playing with Fire - Another bread crumb quest. Located near each of the Flame Wardens you will find a Fire Eater tossing flaming torches, he will send you back to the capital cities to speak to one of the Master Fire Eaters near the main bonfires. The Horde versions of these quests are exactly the same as the Alliance you just do them in different places and turn them in to different people.

A & H: (lvls 1-80) Torch Tossing - Once you make it to a Master Fire Eater he gives you a torch and tells you to STAND NEXT TO THE BONFIRE so you can practice tossing them at the targets (braziers) he has placed in a semi circle near by. If you are not near the bonfire the torch won't work. An arrow (much like a hunter's mark) will appear randomly over a target, aim by placing the circle over the target and hit the target before the arrow moves on. Do this before your time expires. Personally I like to just hot bar my torch onto my number 1 key. Don't expect to get EVERY arrow, I try for every other one, you will still have plenty of time and less stress. Each person has their preferred bonfire to do this at, just find one that works for you. You get 5 Blossoms and 7g 40s for completing this quest at level 80.

A & H: (lvls 1-80) Daily More Torch Tossing - Once you have the initial Torch Tossing quest down the Master Fire Eater ups the ante by giving you a little more time and a LOT more targets you have to hit.Use the same strategy you did before and success will be yours. This quest pays out 5 Blossoms and 7g 40s each day. I love to do this on my low level alts as it is EASY XP.

A & H: (lvls1-80) Torch Catching - This is another one that gives people fits but there is a simple trick to it. The Master Fire Eater gives you a torch to light at the bonfire. Make sure the area around you is clear and you can easily see the ground. Once you lite the torch and toss the first one WATCH THE GROUND, you will see a shadow where ever the torch is headed. Just keep yourself positioned directly beneath the shadow and you will catch and toss the torch each time.  If you miss the torch will knock you back and do a little bit of fire damage forcing you to start all over again. This one just takes a bit of practice and luck at finding a quiet spot to toss in. (I personally like Exodar and Silvermoon City.) Again a 5 Blossom and 7g 40s pay out at level 80.

A & H: (lvls 1-80) Daily More Torch Catching - Once you have the torch catching down you can do it every day for more cash and blossoms or even XP at low levels.

N: (lvls16-80) Unusual Activity - Near each of the Major Bonfires you will find an "Earthen Ring Elder", these individuals are actually faction neutral and will have quests based on level. This particular quest sends you to just outside Blackfathom Deeps in Ashenvale.  It is a simple seek and destroy quest in which you locate the cultists, kill them and retrieve the information off their cooling corpse. Just pay attention to the quest because to turn it in all you have to do is SUMMON the guide with the beacon they give you as this is the beginning of a small chain.

N: (lvls 16-80) An Innocent Disguise - Once you complete "Unusual Activity" you are provided with a disguise and asked to go further up the beach following the blue torches. (9,12) Wait until you get to the proper area (look for the Heretic and Ice Caller Braitha.) The naga CAN see through your disguise so be careful. Find a safe spot, transform and listen in until you get a completion.

N: (lvls 16-80) Inform the Elder - Just like the name implies this quest is a simple, run back to one of the Earthen Elders at ANY of the Capital City fires and tell them what you know.  Daily quests will now become available which are level specific.

N: (lvls 16-28) Daily Striking Back - If you are lvl 16-28 you will find yourself headed right back to Zoram Strand in Ashenvale for your daily quest. At 9,12 you will find the stones. He is a lvl 22 water elemental. Kill him then return to receive your 10 Blossom and 1750 xp reward.

N: (lvls 29-38) Daily Striking Back - This group gets sent out to north west Desolace, near the beach (40,30) your target is a lvl 32 water elemental. Summon him at one of the stones located here then return to an Elder for your 10 Blossom 2710xp reward.

N: (lvls 39- 48) Daily Striking Back - Northwest Stanglethorn Vale is your destination, the water elemental island (21,23). The summoned target is a level 43 water elemental. Again return to an Elder for your 10 Blossom  5050 xp reward.

N: (lvls 49-55) Daily Striking Back - This is a MUCH smaller level divide so it is very possible to do this one and then bump up into the next quest bracket the same day. (Yes you CAN do both.) Head to Searing Gorge, there is a small cave there (21,37) it is here you will find the ice stones. The target is a level 51. Reward? Standard 10 Blossoms and 7070 xp.
 
N: (lvls 56-63) Daily Striking Back - Another SMALL level range but this one can be a little trickier due to his location. The stone is found in northeast Silithus (67,21) you will want to clear the area of Twilight cultist first. The target himself is a lvl 60. 9,550 xp and 10 Blossom reward.

N: (lvls 64-74) Daily Striking Back - Again small level group so possible to do this one day and get into the next quest bracket the same day. You will also need to have the Burning Crusade expansion to complete this quest as it sends you through the Dark Portal to Outland. The stones are located right along the base of the Dark Portal in Hellfire Peninsula (84,47). If you have a flying mount you can land right at the base, summon the elemental, kill him and leave avoiding the nearby mobs. The target is a level 67, rewards 11650 xp and 10 Blossoms. 

N: (lvls 75-80) Dungeon Ahune, The Frost Lord - The only pre recs for this quest are that you have BOTH the Burning Crusade AND Wrath Expansions as well as be at least level 75 to pick it up. This is a bread crumb quest you will only get once. It sends you to Numa Cloudsister in the Coilfang Reservoir: Slave Pens. It is not in any way required to kill Ahune, just extra money, and XP (6g 63s or 11,050xp).

N: (lvls 75-80) Dungeon Ahune is Here - Again BC and Wrath expansions are required. This quest is located just inside the Slave Pens and is offered up by Numa Cloudsister. You will only receive it once per festival. It is another bread crumb quest that sends you further into the pens. 1g 32s or 2,200 xp for completion.

N: (lvls 75-80) Dungeon Daily Summon Ahune - Once you complete Ahune is Here, Summon Ahune will become available to you. When you complete it you will be given your goodie bag as well as 7g 40s plus 22,050 xp or 13g 23s at level 80.  You need to make sure that everything (including snowballs) have been looted from the chest before the next person will be able to summon him again. You will get 1 summons per character per day.

Drop Quests

N: (lvls 75-80) Shards of Ahune - The first time you kill Ahune a Shard will be found in his Ice Chest. Pick it up and turn it in at Luma Skymother in Slave Pens for a choice between two tabards. The Tabard of Summer Skies or the Tabard of Summer Flames, you can only get one a year but they count toward your tabard achievements.

A: (lvls 1-80) Stealing Orgrimmar's Flame - When you go to do the "Steal the Flames" make sure to have open bag space because these are actually "drop" quests. As you will most likely be getting slaughtered by the flame defenders you don't want to have to do it more than once. Orgrimmar's Flame is located at 47,35, it takes you 1 sec to loot the flame and it can be interupted so I personally like to come in the back entrance, slip around to the top of the tent next to the flame and loot from there as you can usually drop any guards you picked up running in this way. While you can be ANY level to steal the actually flame but it will be difficult, if you can get a level 80 to carry you around on their Chopper or Mammoth, more power to you.

A: (lvls 1-80) Stealing Thunder Bluff's Flame - I prefer to enter from the back. (Maybe it is a rogue thing?) Take the lift up and hug the outer edge until you get to the building at 36,50, ride through and across the bridge (the guards and their nets can be a pain but if you move quickly you can usually make it) the bonfire is located at 20,26. Once you have the flame, flee in what ever manner you choose. (I like to jump off the side...but I'm just crazy that way, Feather fall FTW.)

A: (lvls 1-80) Stealing Undercity's Flame - This can be either the EASIEST or the most DIFFICULT depending on your server. Undercity's Flame is located RIGHT inside the main entrance to Undercity, (60,9). You don't even need to be pvp, however you WILL be once you touch the flame which is usually when the 20+ defenders jump on you on our server. Just find a quiet time to go after it.

A: (lvls 1-80) Stealing Silvermoon's Flame - Silvermoon's flame was added with the Burning Crusade so if you don't have this expansion you will not be able to do this quest. Mount up at the main entrance and ride STRAIGHT back to Murder Row, take a quick right then a left around the corner and again go straight up the stairs, the flame is on the left. (70,43) I usually make sure I have a hearth available for this one.

H: (lvls 1-80) Stealing Darnassus's Flame - Of all the flames this is the EASIEST to steal, you don't even have to go into Darnassus at all. Catch the right hand boat from Auberdine, the bonfire is located at 55,91 in Rut'theran Village. If you are killed however you can NOT corpse run back. You will rez back in Auberdine and have to do the whole thing all over again so try to hug the docks until the coast is clear.

H: (lvls 1-80) Stealing The Exodar's Flame - Again you need to have the Burning Crusade expansion to do this one and again start in Auberdine. Take the boat at the very END of the dock. Once you get off ride all the way AROUND the Exodar which you will see on your left. Enter from the far entrance and just head straight down the tunnel and to your right will be the Crystal Hall. The bonfire is located at 41,25. Try to avoid the vendors. Head back out the way you came.

H: (lvls 1-80) Stealing Stormwind's Flame - This use to be one of the more difficult ones to get and now it is MUCH simpler. Just hop on the left hand ship in...you guessed it Auberdine. It will take you DIRECTLY to Stormwind's Harbor, mount up and ride straight up the stairs, take the road on the right. Stormwind's bonfire is located at 49,72, right in front of the Stockades. There are usually quite a few defenders so you may have to take a quick dip in the Canals to lose them. (I promise King Varian had them cleaned recently.)

H: (lvls 1-80) Stealing Ironforge's Flame - Once you have Stormwind's flame make your way to the Tram (the entrance is located in the Dwarven District 66,34) take the tram or run the tunnel to Ironforge. Take a right, the Ironforge bonfire is located directly in front of the Hall of Explorers at 64,25) There will most likely be A LOT of defenders so pick a quiet time or later during the festival week to do this.

Ahune the Frost Lord
Like the Headless Horseman during Hallow's End, Ahune the Frost Lord is a summoned boss. He is located within the Coilfang Resovior: Slave Pens so it requires the Burning Crusade expansion to have access to him. Unlike previous seasonal bosses this time rather than going to the instance you will need to enter by speaking to the Earthern Ring Elder to queue into the Looking for Group system or just selecting Lord Ahune directly on the Looking for Group interface. In addition rather than having numerous attempts at such rare items as the Weapon Enchant or the Frostscythe instead you will receive a "goodie bag" at the time of your summon containing your "prize" at whatever rate they decide to have those items. (Supposedly it will be increased to compensate for forced limited attempts.) So no more all day farming on one particular character. *sniffle* There is a new Pet Frigid Frostling who throws snow balls at passers by.

The specific mechanics of the fight are unchanged other than raised to level 83 standards. The fight itself is in two phases. During the first phase Ahune will spawn a variety of snowy earth elemental adds, elites who case a non dis spellable stacking frost damage debuff every 2-3 seconds and then multiple non elites that shoot frost bolts. After the first cycle of phases he will add a set of air elemental adds to the mix. These are weak but can pull you towards danger zones so kill them quickly to avoid the annoyance. While all this is going on Ahune is placing frost on the floor, after 3 seconds an ice spike will appear where ever this animation is in effect so move out of the way to avoid getting stabbed then tossed into the air. After the first phase which lasts about a minute Ahune will collapse into himself and become a Frozen Cone, once you kill all the adds dps on the cone until you are thrown back, be melee be careful as the ground near him is slick and you can slip and fall, 20 seconds later he reemerges and you begin phase one again. Rinse and repeat until killing him. (You shouldn't need to do it more than once though.)

If you are standing near him when he dies your "Pockets" (bags) will become filled with "snow" (snowballs) or if you get hit by the ice spikes. A large chest appears containing your loot, various cloaks equivalent to the items purchasable with Triumph badges, so nice for new 80's and alts, vendor trash for ICC raiders. There has been some rumors floating around that certain classes CAN solo him if they are geared well enough but I have not seen any conformation of this. Since you will only get one summons a day no matter WHAT you do I don't see why anyone would even want to try other than to say they did it. Personally I have always enjoyed this fight and the Huge Snowballs are some of my FAVORITE things...they positively OBLITERATE Gnomes.

If I discover any changes I will be editing this. Please feel free to comment on any errors you see. Again take the time to enjoy the Midsummer Festival as this will be the LAST time we will experience it before all of Azeroth is affected by the Cataclysm.

Rogue Lore: Alrin the Agile

I wasn't planning on talking about Alrin today but this guy has been the bane of my existence for three weeks running now so maybe if I give him his day in the spot light he will vanish for a while. Alrin the Agile is another member of the Argent Crusade's special forces working as part of the Ashen Verdict. He presently is in the position of  supervisor over all the covert operations within Icecrown Citadel, most specifically dealing with reconnaissance.

As with his dwarven colleague Minchar Alrin is wearing his Alliance armor, (though why he is only using one dagger is beyond me.)  Also like Minchar you should only see him if he needs your assistance. Alrin will report  that Infiltrator Minchar has been captured and is presently being tortured by the Blood-Queen Lana'thel. (The dwarf's screams of "Eep" are kinda funny though.) Alrin informs you that Minchar is fading fast and won't last more than a half an hour in her hands, you need to fight your way past all the San'layn and rescue him. Most raiders HATE this quest. The GOOD part is you only need to make sure that Lana'thel is ENGAGED within that 30 minutes and then kill her successfully. The problem is getting past all her annoying trash and long winded speeches in that time. The timer starts as soon as the first trash mob is pulled (though I have heard there are ways to get around it for the first trash mob which makes this SLIGHTLY easier, I personally have never seen them work.) Even if NO ONE has the quest the timer will start.

If you are successful Alrin gifts you with your tasty reward, 56g and a Sack of Frosty Treasure which contains 5 emblems of Frost and a chance to contain epic level gems or even BOE 265 gear. While the carrot he dangles is quite tasty, sometimes I have to wonder if Minchar thought being killed at the hands of the lovely Lana'thel was preferable to continuing to work with Alrin.

Know Your Rogue Lore: Infiltrator Minchar

Infiltrator Minchar is a member of the Argent Crusade whose background almost certainly includes association with the Hidden Circle and SI:7. Interestingly enough unlike Captain Rupert who is wearing neutral armor, Minchar is proudly displaying his Alliance colors. His job specifically for the Ashen Verdict is reconnaissance. As a result this dwarven rogue will play least in sight for players unless he needs their specific assistance in accomplishing his goal. Minchar is involved in two separate weekly quests located within Icecrown Citadel. Both of them are considered VERY annoying by players.

In the first quest Deprogramming, Minchar charges players with rescuing one of his fellow spies, a human by the name of Darnavan. Apparently Darnavan was so over come by Lady Deathwhispers persuasive powers he decided to switch allegiances. One has to question his reasoning and sanity as personally I am always looking for a mute button to shut Deathwhisper UP. For this quest you have to locate Darnavan amongst the followers Lady Deathwhisper summons during the fight then pull him off to the side so he doesn't get killed. Once you have managed to defeat Deathwhisper Darnavan is fetched by his colleagues to be "deprogrammed" from his brain washing.

The next time you have the opportunity to encounter Infiltrator Minchar it is HE that needs rescuing. While investigating the San'layn in the Halls of Blood Minchar is captured and taken before Queen Lanathel herself for questioning. Minchar's superior Alrin the Agile requests that players rescue him from her clutches. What makes this quest annoying is it is timed. You have 30 minutes from the first pull until his execution, (this was recently increased from 20 minutes) even if no one accepts the quest. That means you have to kill all the trash, the Blood Princes AND Queen Lanathel in order to save Minchar who is being suspended by blood chains in Queen Lanathel's thrown room.  Many consider this to be the HARDEST of the weekly quests located within Icecrown Citadel.

There is also some debate about where exactly Minchar's NAME came from. Some feel it is as result of Elitist Jerks (a precedent that has been set), others think is has something to do with the coding itself. As Blizzard has not seen fit to enlighten us it will just have to stay up for debate and theory.

Know Your Rogue Lore: Hexil Garrot

Hexil is a part of the Goblin controlled Arena circuit. Early in Azeroth's history individuals would compete in gladiator type competitions for money and glory. Thrall most notably was raised in just this type of environment under Lord Blackmore. The Goblins, seeing what profit could easily be made by conducting these types of games quickly created an underground circuit of arenas to which individuals could go to compete. King Varion in fact fell victim to these, being forced to participate by Rehgar Earthfury.

Hexil is part of the staff sent to open and operate the arena located in Dalaran. However he is not content to just stand around watching when there is profit to be made. Setting up a small shop called "Tools of the Trade" in a dark corner of the Underbelly Hexil sells goods, most notably armor goods to the leather wearers who express interest. Since he is not the OFFICIAL vendor for the Goblin arena he can not sell any of those items, but he CAN make a profit with his niche clientele. Players who wish to avoid the often over crowded shops run by the Elves trading emblems for goods.

Clad in a reworked Bloodfang armor set he attempts to convey that his goods are for everyday life rather than the rigors of the arena. Both Druids and Rogues can benefit from his product list as he does not discriminate between the physical damager verses the caster leather wearer. He also has a small  collection of weapons. So don't pass this guy buy, while he may not Primordial Saronite he DOES have many of the other non tier pieces we can use.

Rep: Sons of Hodir

The Sons of Hodir are one of the most important factions to have reputation with (unless you happen to be a Scribe) because they control our much needed shoulder enchants. Where in Burning Crusade players had a choice to support either the Aldor or the Scryers,  in Wrath there are only the Sons of Hodir and they make you WORK to get THEIR enchants. Lets begin by covering who exactly this faction is then move on to how you go about gaining their favor.

The Sons of Hodir are not actually the biological offspring of Watcher Hodir as the name somewhat implies. Rather these Frost Giants are Hodir's creations. Servants designed to assist Hodir in his duties as guardian over the ice and snow. There is also some speculation that Hodir is where the concept of Father Winter first came about, his workers are just A WHOLE LOT larger than those of Santa Claus. When Prim Designate Loken betrayed the rest of the Watchers, Hodir disappeared from his Temple of Winter and the Frost giants believed him dead.  Before they could take the time to truly investigate however they found themselves under attack by their former ally Thorim who believed them responsible for the death of his wife. It is at this point that players first encounter them.

Thorim's followers, the Frost Vrykul and the Earthen, with the loss of THEIR leader to his grief are now in three separate camps. The Hyldnir, which are an exclusively Frost Vrykul female organization, have coped with their leader's despondency by continuing his war against the Frost Giants and battling amongst themselves in hopes of discovering one of them worthy to replace Thorim's deceased wife Sif. The idea is that if a NEW mate is found he will snap out of his stupor and get back to work. Of the Frost Vrykul males, they are treated as slaves to the females, (think blue skinned amazons). The rest of Thorim's Frost Vrykul followers have fallen to the thrall of the Lich King. The Earthen on the other hand have recognized that Thorim was deceived and battle alone against Loken's forces, continuing Thorim's work while he is unable to.

When players first enter Storm Peaks, not having a clue about any of this history they will discover that both the Hyldnir and the Frost Giants are hostile to them. In fact one of the goblin females located at the small outpost of K3 will ask for assistance in recovering her male colleges. Thus begins the long attunement like chain to discover exactly what is going on in Storm Peaks.

The first section of the chain which is sixteen quests in length begins with "They took our Men" from Gretchen at K3.  This part of the chain deals with learning about the Hyldnir and eventually becoming a part of them (via disguise). Once you are deemed worthy to be a fighting member of the Hyldnir you are asked to create bear riding  harness. This will send you on to an eight part chain in which you capture yourself a bear mount before entering competition to be Thorim's new wife. At the end of this section Thorim wakes up enough to explain what has happened and admits that he was deceived. It was the realization that he not only had lost his wife but one of his best friends that has sent him into deep depression. Finally he decides that purhaps it is time to attempt to repair the damage he caused so he sends you to help mend the fence so to speak.

While helping the Frost Giants against their common foe the Iron Giants you need to make sure you pick up the Slag Covered Metal off of one of the corpses. This will start a two part parallel chain which is needed to continue further. Once you have completed BOTH Mending Fences AND A Spark of Hope return to Thorim at the Temple of Storms. Now at this point you are Neutral with the Son's of Hodir. This means you can now land in their capital of Dum Niffelem with out fear.

Previously you would now see a variety of quests open up around Dum Niffelem, completing these will open the six daily quests. There is also a six part chain which sends you BACK to Thorim, now relocated to the Terrace of the Makers. Thorim has two quests for you The Earthen Oath and Loken's Lackeys. Once you have completed both of these Thorim asks you to accompany him to the Temple of Wisdom while he confronts Loken. It doesn't go well and in the end Thorim is captured just like Hodir was. When you report what you have seen to King Jokkum, the present leader of the Sons of Hodir he sends you to the Halls of Lightning, where Loken is known to be working. I personally find the quest he gives you rather disturbing as he wants Loken's lying tongue as proof he is no longer living.

Now since patch 3.0.8 there IS an easier way to get reputation with this faction. However you STILL have to do ALL the quests up to Forging an Alliance. Once you are neutral with the Sons of Hodir you can go to their quartermaster Lillehoff and turn in stacks of 10 Relics of Ulduar for 250 reputation each. The Relics drop off of pretty much any mob located in Storm Peaks or the Ulduar 5 man dungeons. Doing this can easily get you from hostile to exalted in just a matter of hours verses the WEEKS it use to take. Relics are also MUCH easier to farm than Everfrost. Not only that unlike Everfrost which is bind on pick up the Relics can be sold on the auction house so it is rather easy to pick up a stack if farming is not your thing.

Lillehoff has more than just the shoulder enchants to sell. Mount collectors will be interested in his TWO land mounts, the Ice Mammoth or the roomier three passenger Grand Ice Mammoth. Tailors will want to pick up the pattern for Glacial Bags, while these now have a 7 day cool down they will ALWAYS sell on the auction house for a decent amount. Leather workers can also find buyers easily for the Mammoth Mining Bag so that is recipe they should obtain.

At the beginning of Wrath players cursed this faction to all perdition due to the time consuming demand of grinding daily quests. Now they are MUCH kinder to the casual player. The only issue people seem to have is getting lost while working on the attunement chains. My encouragement would be to make sure you have a set aside a couple of hours of uninterpreted play time to work until you have access to Lillehoff.

Happy Grinding!

Rep: Knights of the Ebon Blade

I'm not sure where I want to start with the story of The Knights of the Ebon Blade, a faction that some feel is truly the heart of the Wrath of the Lich King expansion. Not since Vanilla and the Cenarion Circle have we seen a group in which the CLASS you are can effect your reputation gaining abilities. There is no way you can discuss these guys without looking at Death Knights in general so lets begin there and move forward until we get ourselves to present day.

The Death Knights for Blizzard have undergone several reworkings. When they were first introduced in Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness they were really little more than mounted Liches. At that point in time Death Knights were the souls of fallen orc warlocks residing in the claimed bodies of Alliance Knights. With Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos they decided to get rid of the middle man and just go about corrupting former Paladins turning them into puppets of the Lich King. Unlike the original Death Knights this new incarnation were apt at both close quarter combat as well as ranged increasing their ability for terror on the field.

This brings us to their PRESENT incarnation. Now the ranks of the Death Knights are filled with both the fallen as well as the willing and deceived from various disciplines. Gifted fighters, their present abilities reflecting the previous two incarnations with a new twist. Their ability to control their own actions have been greatly increased, to the point that some of them have managed to escape the grasp of the Lich King and now work independently.



After the Battle of Light's Hope Darion Mograine gathered those willing to defect with him and took the floating necropolis Acherus over the Scarlet Enclave in the Easter Plaguelands as their new home. Once that base was established as a neutral ground for ALL Death Knights he sent representatives back to their original factions with letters from Tirion. With the former heroes once again welcomed amongst the Alliance and the Horde the Death Knights of the newly formed Ebon Blade fixed their eyes on Icecrown and gaining retribution for all that they have endured.

If you play a Death Knight you will reach friendly with the faction shortly after you gain your freedom from the Lich King, all other classes begin at neutral and really won't encounter the Knights of the Ebon Blade until Northrend. Most players will first begin gaining reputation with this faction at their quest hub in Zul'Drak. Here the Knights of the Ebon Blade are working in conjunction with the Argent Crusade but it is still VERY early in their relationship so distrust and disdain between the two factions is evident.

By the time you get to Icecrown and encounter the Knights of the Ebon Blade again Darion Mograin and Tirion Fordring are BOTH present so the everyday troopers are on their best behavior. However if you manage to take the time to listen to Darion (disguised as the Ebon Watcher) and Tirion discussing tactics at the Argent Vanguard you will quickly realize that the two have VERY different ideas about what it will take to win against Arthas. This divide is further demonstrated at the Argent Tournament where Death Knights have their own SEPARATE quest givers from those of other players. (Though the quests given are exactly the same.)

Aboard the flying ships the Skybreaker and Orgrim's Hammer players will encounter representatives of the Ebon Blade working with the Alliance and Horde military. Again the basic troopers express their discomfort with working with the Death Knights but by this time the specific representatives have earned their grudging respect. Thassarian and his friend Koltira Deathweaver start players on the quest chain to create a Ebon Blade stronghold, this time in the recently purged Shadow Vault. Once players complete the "Its all fun and games" quest line you gain access to both the Ebon Blade quartermaster and a wide range quests which will quickly get you to exalted reputation.

In total the Knights of the Ebon Blade offer 112 quests. Of those only seven are Death Knight specific. Eleven are daily quests all located in Icecrown. What this means is that while you won't really be able to work on gaining reputation with this faction until about level 77, it is VERY easy to get after that point. Once you have access to the quartermaster in the Shadow Vault you can also obtain a tabard and gain reputation while running dungeons as well.

Why is gaining reputation with these guys even important? Because at Revered you can purchase the helm enchant Arcanum of Torment which for the vast majority of dps classes is the enchant of choice. When Wrath was first released they also sold some of the best introductory epics available, however with the introduction of the tier gear for badges system this isn't as much the case any longer.

Happy Grinding!

Rep: Kirin Tor

The Kirin Tor is a faction literally under attack. The Blue Dragon flight, not content to allow the "lesser races" mess with magic any longer is actively attempting to removed this faction whose very existence relies on magic. The Kirin Tor is more than a governmental body for the kingdom of Dalaran. Yes Dalaran is more than just a city, it is a small kingdom created independent of all the other human kingdoms. Originally located in a small valley between the human Kingdoms of Alterac and Lordaeron. Dalaran came about early in human history.

When the various human city states began encountering the trolls one of them, The Arathi, out of Stromgarde realized that if they didn't band together they stood a chance of being wiped out completely. So through the act of both might and diplomacy they managed to band all of the various human tribes together into a sweeping empire, building a new capital city which would become Lordaeron. At the same time the High Elves had immigrated to the Eastern Continent and were also at war with the Trolls as they attempted to establish a foot hold of their own. In desperation the elves sent ambassadors to the humans asking for assistance, in exchange they proposed teaching 100 of the humans most promising scholars magic. Together they were able to defeat the trolls and those students along with some of their High Elf teachers became the seed of the kingdom of Dalaran.

The idea was that as the Strom empire was declining into various smaller kingdoms at the end of the Troll Wars the mages created of ALL their peoples needed to be independent of the politics and able to focus more on study. Further more there was concern about the unregulated use of magic drawing the attention of the Burning Legion again. (Something the High Elves were very familiar with.) So the hope was if ONE "kingdom" contained and taught ALL of the mages this risk could be countered and circumvented.  Seven of the the most promising magic users of each of the races formed into the governing council of the kingdom of Dalaran's governing body the Kirin Tor.

For the next few generations the experiment appeared to be working. Dalaran became a beacon for any desiring to learn the use of magic. A haven of study for the magi and those who chose to make their homes among them. When demons began to make an appearance rather than give up their paradise the leaders instead chose to create a champion, a human vessel to combat any demons who managed to arrive and prevent any more from entering. Since the magi were quite aware that the general population would not look favorably upon demons coming as a direct result of their over use of magic they kept their actions secret, creating the Order of Tirisfal to both teach and select this "guardian".

Things continued somewhat quietly for the next little while, baring the occasional demon attack the Kirin Tor over all managed to remain neutral in the general political landscape. Each of the various kingdoms continued to send their best and brightest to Dalaran for in depth study. Then came the invasion of the Orcs. At first the Kirin Tor attempted to remain neutral, declaring this to be a "human nation" issue but eventually they to joined the Alliance of Lordaeron. Even this was not enough to protect them as they discovered a small bad of Orc death knights were able to break into the Arcane Vault and steal the Eye of Dalaran. Still reeling from that unprecedented act Dalaran later found itself utterly at the mercy of Prince Arthas as he lead his scourge forces through completely decimating the city.

The Kirin Tor were not willing to give up on their dream however. Months later they returned, encased their beloved city in a protective bubble and began to rebuild. For years no one could enter the city, some even questioned if the Kirin Tor still existed.  Shortly after the Lich King made his presence known once more to the people of Azeroth by moving Naxramass and attacking the general populace, everyone awoke to discover the entire city was gone, only a huge crater remained.

Upon their arrival in Northrend it was discovered that rather than blowing itself up as some feared the Kirin Tor had instead MOVED the entire city NORTH so that they could more effectively counter the madness of the Blue Dragonflight as well as the Scourge. In an astounding feat of defiant magic Dalaran now floats above the Crystalsong Forest where it continues to act as a neutral staging ground for the peoples of Azeroth.

While the Kirin Tor may be neutral that doesn't mean that everyone is in agreement. Rhonin the present leader must deal with two opposing factions who make Dalaran their home. The Silver Covenant and the Sunreavers are continuously at odds over the presence of the Horde in Dalaran. What makes the tensions even more profound is that one of the faction leaders also happens to be be his wife Veressa Windrunner. However at this point the Kirin Tor has decided to welcome the Horde in face of the greater threats they all face.

When this faction was first introduced as reputation granting it was NOT an easy thing to say the least. The Kirin Tor really only have a few quest hubs outside of Dalaran itself, Amber Ledge in the Borean Tundra as well as some along the rift in Dragonblight. Those quests which were contained in Dalaran are either trade specific daily quests or based on dungeon runs. As a result the majority of people had to get their reputation up via using the faction Tabard while running level 80 dungeons. For the majority of magic users who needed access to the Kirin Tor's Helm enchant it was considered a nightmare. In total there are only 71 reputation granting quests for the Kirin Tor of those 34 are faction specific and 21 are daily quests of varying availability.

Rep: The Argent Crusade

The Argent Crusade is a faction of recent origin however it's roots are MUCH older. The name itself means "Silver" so the faction is in fact the "Silver Crusade". This name makes a great deal of sense when you consider exactly where this group came from and how they came to be. A great deal of this information has to do specifically with the faction's founder and leader Highlord Tirion Fordring. Many have stated that if Fordring were ever lost the Argent Crusade would crumble as this movement is really little more than an extension of his vision and personal charisma. Who is this guy who is always giving speeches and why should ANYONE especially the horde stop and take notice?

Tirion Fordring was one of the five founding members of the Knights of the Silver Hand, a group of paladins created during the Second War to counter the demonic forces accompanying the Orchish invasion. He was there when his friend Alexandros Mograine took an orchish artifact and assisted in purifing it so that it could later be crafted into the Ashbringer. After the war Tirion married and settled down to rule over the small hamlet of Hearthglen located on the outer edges of Lordaeron. His honor is one of his most valued possessions and something he would and has sacrificed all else to protect.

One day Tirion discovered a lone orc taking refuge in an abandoned tower near his lands. Convinced this was a scout sent to test the strength of his holding he attacked. The battle between the two combatants was so fierce that in the end the structure of the tower could not handle it and collapsed on top of them, knocking Tirion unconscious. When he awoke it was to discover his foe had pulled him from the rubble as well as put him astride his mount so that it would take him home.

Tirion recovered enough to go out again looking for the Orc who had saved him, eventually finding  him near the ruin of their first encounter. There they talked, for Tirion was shocked to discover that the orc who was named Eitrigg was fluent in common. Discovery his foe desired nothing more than a quiet place to remember better days, his family was all gone, killed during the invasion. Both recognized the honor in the other. When Tirion left it was with the vow that he would not betray Eitrigg and granting him safety on his lands.

Of course Tirion's secret was eventually discovered and Eitrigg captured. When Tirion refused to betray Eitrigg he was kicked from the Order of the Silver Hand, striped of his family, lands and most importantly to him, his communication with the Light. Even his great friend Uther Lightbringer could not understand Tirion's single minded devotion to protecting Eitrigg.

With nothing to left to loose save his life AND his precious honor, Tirion slipped into Strathome while they were preparing to execute Eitrigg, fought his way to the scaffolding and rescued his unlikely friend. The only reason this mad plan succeed was because another group lead by Thrall was ALSO there attempting to find Eitrigg. Tirion managed to drag the critically wounded Eitrigg out of Strathome. In despair Tirion called out to the Light to heal his friend. To his surprise and delight the Light answered, healing power poured from his hands into the lifeless body of Eitrigg restoring him.

When Thrall and his followers found them Tirion was certain this was the end. Instead Thrall gathered Eitrigg to be his mentor in shamanism and granted Tirion the chance to escape further into the wild outskirts of Loredaeran. From there Tirion kept tabs on his family and observed the incoming Plague that decimated his former home and people. To this day Tirion and Eitrigg consider each other brothers in arms and are the best of friends. Eitrigg can even now be located commanding Argent Crusade forces in Zul'Drak.

Players of the Old World would first encounter Tirion at his hiding place along the river in the Eastern Plaguelands. There he requests their help in freeing his son who is being used by the Scarlet Crusade. The end of this quest chain gives you your first glimpse into the type of "kick butt" fighter Tirion Fordring is. In the end Tirion realizes he must take up the mantle left vacant with the death of Uther Lightbringer and begins to rebuild the Knights of the Silver Hand.

Fast forward a few years. Tirion continues to stay in hiding but some of his disciples, individuals who once worked closely with Alexandros Mograine have created a group by the name of Argent Dawn. These individuals broke away from the Scarlet Crusade after Mograine's death because they felt that Tirion was right, they couldn't just focus on fighting the Scourge as the humans alone, other races also needed to be included, be they Alliance OR Horde. When Arthas' Death Knights attacks Light's Hope Chapel Maxwell Tyrosus, the leader of the Argent Dawn pleads with Tirion to come help. Tirion can not deny him and his presence there revitalizes the defenders. Unfortunately they discover it was all just a ruse to bring Tirion out of hiding.

As the last founding member of the Knights of the Silver Hand The Lich King wants to turn Tirion into his own personal champion. The memories Arthas has have shown him that only Tirion is truly still a treat to him as he is one of the few still alive that helped train the young prince. The gambit fails, instead of capturing Tirion the Lich King instead is faced with a Tirion now holding a purified Ashbringer.  At the conclusion of The Light of Dawn Tirion takes that moment to step into his own and declares that the Knights of the Silver Hand along with the Argent Dawn will now work together to bring about the Lich King's final downfall. The new hand picked group will be called the Argent Crusade and set sail immediately for Northrend.

Alliance players will stumble across Fordring shortly after their arrival at Valgarde in Howling Fjord. However for all others their first encounter with the newly formed Argent Crusade will most likely take place at either Dawn's Reach in Dragonblight or at the Argent Stand in Zul'Drak. Before patch 3.2 it was in Zul'Drak that people needed to farm for Argent Crusade reputation by doing the daily Troll Patrol. With the release of the Argent Tournament however gaining reputation with this faction is MUCH easier as numerous quests which grant reputation with this faction were added.

Age is starting to catch up with Fordring but his clear eyed vision is the same, no matter what others think he will do what he believes to be the best and most HONORABLE method of completing his objective dragging the rest of the Argent Crusade along with him. At times this puts him in direct conflict with those who over all support him. This can be clearly seen at the Argent Crusade's main outpost the Argent Vanguard located on the very edge of Icecrown.  It is here players can over hear the arguments between Tirion and Darion Morgrain regarding how Tirion plans to deal with the Lich King.

All told there are 119 quests which give reputation for this faction, of those 15 are daily quests (though they are not all available every day) located either in Zul'Drak or Icecrown. For Tanks this is a MUST HAVE reputation for the helm enchant. Tailors are also after this faction for the Brilliant Spellthread recipe.

I hope you enjoyed the overview of this faction, Happy Grinding!

Rep: The Oracles

The wolvar have an arch enemy, those they call the "Big Tongues" or The Oracles. These strange little reptilian people are actually gorlocs or the next evolution of the more common murloc. The reason that the wolvar have such issues with them is that the Oracle tribes actually inhabited the Sholazar basin FIRST so when the Frenzyheart tribe was displaced and chose it as their new home they were not to pleased to discover it already occupied.

The Oracles are made up of several different tribes of gorlocs with the main village being located at Rainspeaker Canopy. It is here you will end up after completing "Just following Orders" for the Frenzyheart. What makes this faction so interesting is their perceived PURPOSE in the area. When the gorlocs discovered this oasis in the arctic north they interpreted it to be a gift from the "gods" and all the artifacts left behind which keep the zone topical "shrines". So while they in fact know little to nothing about the Titans themselves, they have set themselves up as guardians for all of the relics they left behind.

Since the Oracles see themselves as having a purpose they view the intrusion of the Wolvar as more of a annoyance than anything else. The "puppy-men" as they call them keep wanting to fight over the territory while they would rather just focus on collecting "shinies" for their shrines. Any attempts to compromise with the Frenzyheart have been rebuffed because the wolvar just can not comprehend SHARING period.

So where does that leave the Oracles? Looking for helpful "Dry Skins" to provide a buffer. Unlike the wolvar the Oracles have a concrete grasp on the value of a good "Treasure" motivator to get individuals to help them out and thin out the Wolvar ranks FOR them. They offer four different non combat companion pets and even better a MOUNT to keep people coming back even AFTER they reach exalted reputation with them.

So how do you build that reputation? As with the Frenzyheart once you have completed the "Hero's Burden" chain you will be given a choice as to WHO you wish to support. The nice thing about choosing Oracles at that point is that you are already honored with them so reaching exalted and it's promised prizes is that much closer. Each day you will be offered three daily quests at Rainspeaker Canopy.

Appeasing the Great Rain Stone will always be available. Make sure you have your Oracle companion to help you gather the "shinies". If you happen to loose your companion's summoning item just speak to High-Oracle Soo-say who gives out the quest and you can get another one. Now there is some debate as to which of the three is best for this quest, Lafoo, Jaloot or Moodle. My personal favorite is Jaloot as I find Moodle's constant complaining irritating and Lafoo is easily distracted by bugs, Jaloot seems to REALLY enjoy doing this quest however.

Oracle Soo-nee will send you out each day to do "routine maintenance" for all the shrines by dealing with the various spirits in the area. He has four different quests he offers at random. A Cleansing Song, Song of Fecundity, Song of Reflection, and Song of Wind and Water.

Oracle Soo-dow will offer three quests which deal with the Wolvar annoyance. Mastery of the Crystals, Power of the Great Ones, or Will of the Titans. Each of these quests is actually turned in not back at Rainspeaker Canopy but at another Oracle village called Sparkedtouched Haven to Lightningcaller Soo-met. While each of the quests DOES give you some device to help, you don't have to use it to get credit, so for those classes who can AOE it is often easier to just do it yourself rather than use them.

Completing all eight quests will gain you the achievement Savior of the Oracles. Reaching exalted reputation with them grants The Oracles achievement.

Rep: Frenzyheart Tribe

Located in the Sholazar Basin are two factions who cause a great deal of confusion and frustration as people first encounter them. This week we will focus on the Frenzyheart Tribe or more commonly referred to as the "Wolvar".

This species of Wolverine people is native to the area so they are located in places other than Sholazar such as Howling Fjord, Dragonblight and  Zul'Drak. The difference is that (with the exception of the Rageclaw Tribe from Zul'Drak who start out friendly) they will continue to be hostile even after you gain exalted reputation with the Frenzyheart Tribe since the tribes don't really interact much nor get along.  Don't confuse them with the bear based race of Furbolgs we have dealt with out entire leveling experience either, these guys are completely different.

Players can first start gaining reputation with the Frenzyheart after completing a quest located at Lakeside Landing for Tamara Wigglesprocket called Part-time Hunter (on a side note she is the only female human NPC in game who is known to be married to a Gnome). After you kill Pitch a group of Frenzyheart show up and accuse you of stealing their kill, as a result you are now their "captive" and must report to Frenzyheart Hill to make retribution.

What causes all the confusion to players is that you work for the Frenzyheart until you are well into honored reputation but then the quest chain sends you over to the opposing faction The Oracles. Don't worry, before you declare one faction over the other you must FIRST gain honored reputation with BOTH. Something easily done while completing the quest chain. How you declare factions is based on the final quest of the chain A Hero's Burden. This is a repeatable quest so switching back and forth between factions can easily be accomplished as most level 80's can solo this quest.

There are several reasons why you may wish to chose the Frenzyheart faction over the Oracles. The first is if you are attempting to complete the Mercenary of Sholazar achievement as this requires exalted reputation with BOTH factions at some point. Another reason is if you are a trinket collector and desire to get the Frenzyheart Brew. When Wrath first was released many rogues would chose Frenzyheart for the Azure Strappy Pants and Frenzyheart Insignia of Fury.

Faction reputation can be gained in only one way, by completing daily quests. So once you have done A Hero's Burden and declared yourself a Frenzyheart you will need to rebuild your reputation. This will take you about a 20 days as there are only 3 quests you can do each day.

Chicken Party! From Elder Harkek will give 500 rep and is available every day.

Vekar will offer you one of three quests each day to go out and kill a specific number of "Big Tongues". While each quest will give you tools to do them you don't have to kill the Gorlocs using them to get credit. They will each give you 700 reputation upon completion.

Kartak's Rampage
Secret Strength of the Frenzyheart
Tools of War

Rejek has four possible quests to give you which give 500 reputation as reward at completion.

A Hero's Headgear
Rejek: First Blood
Strength of the Tempest
The Heartblood's Strength

There is also an achievement for completing each of these daily quests called Honorary Frenzyheart. This is easily obtainable while working on the Frenzyheart Tribe achievement.

The biggest issue I had with these guys was while I found them cute they are just down right annoying. They remind me of my bossy younger brother with some of their remarks. (Though the "You go before I taunt you second time!" is funny.) The thing to keep in mind is while the form changing trinket has no dependence on reputation the other items they offer DO. This means that you can't get the pants for instance and then switch to Oracles with out loosing the use of those pants. The jewel crafting recipes you learned are still good though.

Another thing of note, during Children's Week in May Orphan Matron Aria will show up in Dalaran with a Wolvar pup named Kekek. You DO NOT have to have reputation with the Frenzyheart to choose to do his quests. Complete all seven of his quests before returning him to the Orphan Matron and you will get him in the mail as a Noncombat companion pet.

Happy Grinding!

Rep: The Kalu'ak

The Kalu'ak are actually a faction of the Tuskarr even though most players will refer to them AS the "Tuskarr". While they ARE a neutral faction they most closely relate to the Horde and are actually responsible for assisting them in the establishment of their bases in Northrend. At least this is the official lore NOW, however ORIGINALLY they were at War with the Taunka (the northern cousins to the Tauren) this was later quietly changed to having them constantly competing with the Kvaldir and a small number of Gorlocs who happen to live along the coast rather than in Solazar Basin.

Physically they resemble walruses and have a society completely devoted to earning a living off the near by ocean. As fisherman they are unparalleled. Their dependence on the bounty of the waters seen in their construction and art. Despite their jovial looking appearance they are fierce fighters with a intense dedication to familial ties.

The average player will not be in Northrend long before their first encounter with this group as their settlements dot the cost line. However it IS easy to miss some of their more heavily populated areas as they prefer isolated coves. The three main settlements are Kaskala in the Borean Tundra, Kamagua in the Howling Fjord and Moa'ki in Dragonblight. These settlements are connected via flight paths as well as the neutral "turtle boat" ferry.

It is in those three locations that players will discover the repeatable daily quests which can be used to get this reputation to exalted. Beyond that there are 54 quests total which grant reputation for this faction. Unlike the majority of other early factions reputation can ONLY be earned via the quests, they do not make use of a tabard. One of the quests is slightly tricky as in order for players to gain access to "The Way to His Heart" in Howling Fjord is by FIRST completing the quest Swabbing' Soap over at Scalawag Point. (Another example of players inadvertently creating a problem they now get to fix.)

So why bother? The Tuskarr are skilled craftsman. (Not unusual when you consider they spend a great deal of time indoors during the more foul weather Northrend has to offer.) For lower level players some of the gear pieces they have to offer can be very handy while leveling. In addition to this they provide several craft recipes for Jewelcrafters, Leatherworkers and even Tailors. The reason most individuals grind this reputation is for the Epic fishing pole and the Penguin pet.

 

Now Pengu DID undergo a recent coloration change so that he more closely resembles the Beta pet Chilly.  The above picture shows BOTH of them, with Chilly on the left and Pengu on the right. With patch 3.3 Pengu now ALSO has blue eyes rather than the original red, however he still larger than Chilly was and has a darker face color.

Happy Grinding!

Rep: The Sunreavers

There as been a great deal of confusion regarding this last faction of the Horde Expedition. Specifically who they are and how they came to be there. The Sunreavers are a group of Blood Elves who petitioned the Kirin Tor for the acceptance of the New Horde. This is HUGE as the Old Horde was responsible for almost completely destroying the city of Dalaran during the Second War. While the Kirin Tor and Dalaran specifically have attempted to remain neutral during the various conflicts that have plagued Azeroth that does not mean that they have remained uninvolved observers.  This dual citizenship conflict is most recently played out in the form of Archmage Aethas Sunreaver.

Archmage Sunreaver is a member of the Council of Six, the ruling body of the Kirin Tor. He took the position Prince Kael'thas abandoned following the destruction of Silvermoon City. It has not been an easy transition and his presence has not been welcomed by everyone, most notably his cousin Vereesa Windrunner, who happens to be the spouse of the Kirin Tor's present leader Rhonin. However he has persevered and though his efforts managed to establish a sanctuary for the Horde within Dalarn itself.  His supporters have taken the name "Sunreavers" to honor him and his tireless efforts. Another thing of note, at the beginning of the expansion Aethas was not wearing a tabard but that was later changed, while he still is affiliated with the Kirin Tor he wears the Sunreaver tabard.

Like their Silverwing counterparts players were teased at the beginning of the Wrath expansion with a faction bar but no way to gain reputation. This was rectified with patch 3.1 and the introduction of the Argent Tournament, here the Sunreavers play host to the Horde forces. Originally the plan was for the Tournament to take place in Crystalsong Forest just under Dalaran, as a result small bases were constructed in the zone complete with flight paths. However Blizzard soon realized that with all the activity taking place overhead it created to much lag so they relocated it to Icecrown.

Horde players can now gain reputation with the Sunreavers in two ways. By doing the daily quests located at the Argent Tournament or by running level 80 dungeons while not wearing a reputation granting tabard. Once you have reached Champion with at least one of the home factions as well as exalted with the Sunreavers additional daily quests will become available to you. More importantly players will be able to purchase the flying mount, land mount, pet and tabard for their various collections.


Happy Grinding!

Rep: Silver Covenant

The Silver Covenant is the last of the four members of the Alliance Vanguard we will be covering in our reputation series. When Wrath was first released this faction caused reputation buffs untold nightmares. The reason was that they were tired to an achievement requiring you to have exalted reputation with all four of the Alliance Vanguard factions but at that time there was absolutely NO WAY to gain reputation with Silver Covenant. Like vultures, players circled the small base in Crystalsong Forest (complete with flight path) attempting to discover the secret to gaining favor with these elusive guardians. Eventually the achievement was changed but the question still remained as to why we had a reputation bar for them to begin with.

That question was finally answered with Patch 3.1 and the introduction of the Argent Tournament. The Silver Covenant serves as a martial force within the Kirin Tor, lead by Veressa Windrunner, (wife of the Kirin Tor's Leader Rhonin and Sister to Lady Sylvanas.) Veressa and her followers look upon the blood elves as sick individuals so consumed by their desire for magic that they should not be trusted. (I am sure she was not pleased when Rhonin considered them as members of the Kirin Tor.) As a result they offer their services and support to the Alliance Vanguard, granting protection while in Dalaran as well as hosting the Alliance forces for the Tournament.

It is through the tournament that players can now gain not only reputation with this faction but fun toys as well.  There are no specific quests that will give you Silver Covenant reputation, rather you can get it either as "spill over" reputation from doing the daily argent tournament quests or as of patch 3.3 by running level 80 dungeons with out wearing a reputation granting tabard. Once you have reached exalted there are four items you can purchase from them. A land mount, a flying mount, a pet, and a tabard. In addition to that, if you have also reached Champion status with one of the racial faction cities you will also notice 3 additional daily quests available to you. You've Really Done It This Time, Kul will show up EVERY day (the dwarf never learns it seems), but the other two will vary options offered will vary. Narasi Snowdawn has four others that she cycles through besides the Kul one, A Leg Up, Rescue at Sea, Stop the Aggressors, and Light's Mercy. Savinia Loresong only offers three, Breakfast of Champions, Gormok Wants His Snobolds, and What Do You Feed a Yeti, Anyway?

Patch 3.3 brought another interesting tidbit to this faction. The introduction of the Quel'Delar quest chain. If SOMEHOW you managed to miss this, in side the Icecrown Citadel five man instances drops a BoE quest item the Battered Hilt. The story behind it is that when Kael went north after Arthas, with him went a warrior by the name of Lana'thel who was welding one of the legendary Quel'Serrar blades, gifted to the elves by the dragon aspects. When she fell no one knew what became of it. Now players will get to "repair" the weapon and carry it as their own. Of course the Silver Covenant will have a vested interest and assist you by telling you where to go and what to do along your journey.

While I have yet to be fortunate enough to see the silly thing drop even ONCE on ANY of my toons I have been able to help several guild mates complete the chain and it is well worth it. At the moment the Hilts are still commanding astronomical prices on the Auction houses but if you happen to come into possession of one the quest chain is well worth it.

Happy questing!

Rep: Taunka

The Taunka are an interesting addition to the Horde Expedition forces. Discovered by Garrosh Hellscream shortly after his arrival in Northrend he is able to convince these ancestral cousins of the Tauren to assist them in their fight against not only the scourge but the Alliance as well. This is an astounding feat as the Taunka are already engaged in the task of grim survival against the elements and over all seem to be losing. Unlike their Tauren brethren the Taunka view the elements as something to bend to their will rather than a cooperative partnership, perhaps this is why Garrosh deals so well with them. Horde players will encounter them shortly after their arrival in Northrend as quests for this faction are located both in Howling Fjord and the Borean Tundra.

The exact origin of the Taunka is lost. There is some speculation that the Taunka could in fact be the Icemist Tauren, a fact further reinforced by the name of their capital Icemist Village. The Icemist Tauren were introduced back in the World of Warcraft Roleplaying Game and the similarities between the two are certainly there. Physically they resemble Bison more than Cattle along with having significantly lighter coloration than the Tauren.

While technically the Taunka have six villages in Northrend players will quickly discover that the vast majority of them are being evacuated or abandoned as the Taunka are finding themselves overwhelmed. Icemist Village has been completely overrun and destroyed by Nerubians leaving the Taunka without their main home. Taunka'le Village is being evacuated in anticipation of a scourge attack. Camp Winterhoof is planning to evacuate. Camp Oneqwah, a place many Taunka are fleeing to as a  refuge is dealing with neighboring humans who are actually Worgen.  This leaves really only Westwind Refuge and Camp Tunka'lo as safe havens.

While Garrosh may have thought gaining the Taunka to his cause would be a way to strengthen his armies in actuality it in fact is bringing THEM more benefit and saving THEM as a people from extinction. It may not have been intentional but Garrosh has become a hero to this people by bringing the Horde to their aid and perhaps this will aid him as nothing else in his raise as leader by saving these cousins to the Tauren.

Before Patch 3.3 you would cap out at Honored with this faction after doing all of the 79 quests available for them. Since that patch you can now gain reputation with them as a Horde player by doing level 80 dungeons while not wearing a reputation granting tabard as well as by doing the Champion level quests for the Argent Tournament.