Anduin and I

By now if you have a max level Alliance character you are familiar with the quest chain in Stormwind that sends you off to the Twilight Highlands.  For those who are not, you get the opportunity to spend a little quality time with Prince Anduin Wrynn wandering around uncovering a plot by the Twilight Hammer. What many people may NOT realize is that even after you complete the chain you can go back to visit Anduin at anytime and take him about Stormwind. I like to think he enjoys these visits as he always greets me with "I thought you had forgotten me!"

One of the things I always enjoyed about Blizzard games was their lore or "story telling". They make compelling characters and Anduin is one that has a special place in may heart, not just because he is so close in age to my own sons. It was as the direct result of Anduin that I made a rather enlightening discovery. In Cata some of the quest givers will respond to you differently based upon your class and/or gender.

When the Plate wearer went to do My Son, the Prince, Anduin greeted him by saying "Your a Paladin? Highlord Fordragon was, as well. He taught me a great deal. I...I still miss him." This got me asking around and sure enough Harrison Jones is extremely flirtatious with the females, while the males are treated more like lackeys. So I wanted to see what more I could find...which lead to a problem. With Blizzards new questing design you can't just go and find the chain that you want the lore for and do it. Instead you have to pretty much do the entire zone. And in some cases, you have to do it on a specific race. It has been extremely frustrating.

Places you once could go for accurate information like books, and websites such as Wowwikki and even Wowhead may not be up to date either, as they have completely revamped old content and are continuing to do so. On one hand I like this as individuals we once considered lost in time are coming back into prominence, like Commander Jarod Shadowsong,  Garona Halforcen, and of course his confused Druid self Malfurion Stormrage. Players often have a better idea who the major figures are, what roles they play in the greater picture and how they relate to the over all theme of the game. On the down side, the only variation you have from character to character maybe in how the npc greets you. You no longer have as much freedom of movement within a zone, especially in relation to gaining access to specific factions.

For a Lore monger like myself, I have found I often out level a zone before I complete the quests in it. This with out using Heirloom pieces. Add on guild perks and you can find yourself struggling to stay "level appropriate" and not find yourself locked out of some phased area.

Phasing is another thing I am finding myself loving and hating at the same time. I love that it changes the environment so that you see your actions impacting the world around you. It helps to advance the story, that "lore" I love so much. At the same time it can be such a pain in the butt when you are trying to do simple things like pick herbs, mine or just help out a friend when they are in one phase and your in another. Northrend was a big enough bear, now we have the entire world covered in phasing, the only zones I can think of that DO NOT have phasing in them are Silithus (because they haven't gotten around to it yet), and the Draenei and Blood Elf zones (because they are still tied into the Burning Crusade expansion).

Cata has been such a mixed bag for me. There are some things that I have greatly enjoyed and others that I question what they were thinking. We all have those times I suppose. Perhaps it says a lot that beyond the dungeon redesigns one of the things that they did this expansion that I was happy about was they finally updated poor Anduin.

Anduin has been my role play companion while I do my cooking daily, as well as occasionally accompanying me on blackmailing expeditions. I had always felt sorry for him when he looked like every other snot nosed little kid running around Stormwind, yet he was stuck up in that Keep with Miss Congeniality herself.  At least he had Bolvar to balance things out. Now he has Mr Split Personality as a house mate, I figure the least I can do is give him a break and let him spread his wings from time to time. Auntie Jania can only let him visit so often since the last time he took a road trip he managed to get kidnapped. I can understand his Father's over protective nature, being a parent myself but I would prefer that the next King of Stormwind be sane. So each day I do my small part by giving him a little break from his royal duties of keeping an eye on his Dad. Taking him out amongst the general populace and inviting him to just be a kid.  I'm sure he would appreciate more than lessons on how to take money from the auctioneer or picking locks. Though those are VERY useful things to know.

United Nations

No I am not referring to the international organization run out of New York but rather the guild achievement which has become a thorn in my side. Why do you ask? Because of a tiny little bug.

Originally the achievement was designed to look at every member in your guild who has earned revered reputation or "Veteran" rank. It would then take all their combined unique exalted reputations and count them towards the achievement. However at the moment it is only counting the the one member with the MOST exalted reputations.

Why is this a problem? Well the reward for this particular achievement is a non combat pet. The Dark Phoneix Hatchling. Personally I am not that much of a pet collector despite that fact that I have well over 100 of the little guys. HOWEVER, there are other members of my guild who are more, shall we say...dedicated? borderline obsessive? down right fanatical? when it comes to non combat pets. One of them just happens to be my fellow officer and mount farming partner.

With 85 different reputations in this game this achievement seems deceptively simple until you break it down into what ones you can actually obtain. First of all you have to subtract the ones that are only available to your faction.

That means if you are Alliance you have Stormwind, Ironforge, Gnomergan, Darnassus, Exodar, and Gilneas as your racial cities. These also affect your battle ground alliances in that with Warsong Gulch you fight for the Silverwing Sentinels of Darnassus, the League of Arathor in Arathi Basin, the Stormpike Guard in Alterac Valley and provide support to  Baradins' Wardens in Tol Barad. The Wintersaber Trainers trust only those special few alliance to aid them in the snows of Winterspring. While in Outland both Honor Hold and the Kurenai receive exclusively Alliance support. Then in Northrend we have the Alliance Vanguard  which is made up for four sub factions, the Explorers' League, the Frostborn, The Silver Covenant, and the Valiance Expedition. Even in Cataclysm our faction divides continue with the Wildhammer Clan fighting for land against a group of  orcs in the Twilight Highlands.

Don't fret Horde. You have an equal number of individuals you are just as dedicated to. Orgrimmar, Undercity, Silvermoon City, Thunder Bluff, the Darkspear Trolls and the Bridgewater Cartel are all your founding homes. There is a little village of Fosaken and Blood Elves in the Ghostlands called Tranquilien where you offer your assistance in cleansing those lands of the scourge. In battle the  Warsong Outriders',  The Defilers', the Frostwolf Clan and Hellscreams' Reach all cry "For the Horde!" Thrallmar and the Mag'har bring honor to a lost son and  former Warchief. In Northrend your new war chief got his first taste of battle while leading the combined forces of the Horde Expedition, specifically the Warsong Offensive, while working with the Hand of Vengeance, the Taunka and the Sunreavers.  This experience helped him to forge new alliances with the Dragonmaw Clan.

So that means that each faction has nineteen reputations specific to them. So scratch them out of your 85. From there you can further remove the Bloodsail Buccaneers, the Syndicate, as well as the Magram and Gelkis Centaur clans. Why? Because these four only reach honored or just over in their reputations. Meaning they can never count toward the exalted.

Then you have the factions where you have to chose sides. The Aldor or the Scryers? The Oracles or the Frenzyheart Tribe? Sure you can reach exalted rep with them both at separate times but all that counts is the reputations you happen to have AT THAT TIME. Two more off the list.

Well Dar that still has us at 60. That is STILL plenty of wiggle room. Right? Well not quite, you see some on that list are old. Like Zul' Gurub, which doesn't exist anymore. So you can also subtract the Zandalar Tribe unless you happened to have gotten that reputation before hand. The same goes for the Shen'dralar in Dire Maul. While the quest books still drop, some of the items needed to complete those quests like the Blood of Heroes are no longer in the game, leaving you rather stuck since they were all Bop items you can't buy on the auction house.

From there you have the reputations which can only be gained INSIDE raids. The Hydraxian Waterlords for example is a complete nightmare as once you get past a certain point you only get few hundred points of reputation for each boss kill. This means it will take MONTHS of FULL CLEARS of Molton Core to reach exalted.  Then there is the Brood of Nozdormu out of the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj (AQ 40).  These guys you start out at Hated so it takes quite a while to do a complete reversal, again many full clears as killing trash will only get you to neutral, after that it takes boss kills and quests.

Thankfully by the time we went through the Dark Portal we were able to start earning reputation by killing just about anything in a raid. So the Ashtonque Deathsworn of Black Temple, The Scales of Sands of Mt Hyjal, The Violet Eye of Karazhan and the more recent Ashen Verdict of Ice Crown Citadel just required hours of time spent killing monsters along with bosses. If you aren't a raider however that means you could be missing six reputations, a hefty chunk.

There was a dark cloud to this as well. There are also some factions who you can only get reputations with INSIDE a dungeon. This was an idea that was played around with by the now basically defunct Argent Dawn. Lower City, the Keepers of Time, Cenarion Expedition and the Sha'tar in Outland all require you to crawl around in SPECIFIC dungeons if you wanted to build reputation with them.  In Northrend and now back in the old world they have loosed things so that if you just wear a tabard showing who you support while in dungeons of specific levels you can gain reputations with the faction of your choice. At this point both Ramkahem and the Guardians of Hyjal force you to do this to get to exalted with them.

Other factions believe in giving you a little more variety. For them you can choose to either do repetitive daily quests OR run around wearing their tabard while you dungeon crawl.  The Wrymrest Accord, Argent Crusade, Kirin Tor, Knights of the Ebon Blade, and Therazane all fall into this category.

This leaves us with the neutral factions who think we have nothing better to do than either grind for repeatable turn in quests or keep coming back day after day for tortuous daily quests.  Of the turn in variety we have the Cenarion Circle in Silithus,  the Timbermaw in Winterspring, and the Consortium in Outland.  Then you have the Sporeggar of Zangarmarsh who either have you kill the same mobs over and over again or do endless turn ins. Take your pick. The torturous daily quests were first introduced by the Sha'tari Skyguard and Ogri'la. It was perfected by the Shattered Sun Offensive, who then passed all their knowledge on to the Kalu'ak and the Sons of Hodir. That knowledge seems to only grow as the years go on.

This leaves us with just a few stragglers. The Thorium Brotherhood, who now have a slightly more pronounced presence this expansion but you can still only find the higher reputation items inside Molton Core or via mining the few Dark Iron nodes found outside.  Unless your a Rogue or manage to sweet talk one, your going to have a hard time getting past honored with Ravenholdt as it requires pick pocketed Locked Boxes.  Darkmoon Faire is only in select locations once a month and unless you are a Scribe getting the Darkmoon Faire Decks you need to gain favor with them will cost you a pretty penny.

Finally we have the Steamwheedle Cartle.  Now before Cataclysm there was a fairly easy way to gain reputation with these guys inside Dire Maul, as part of the tribute run. As they are still part of the Insane in the Membrane achievement I will assume you can still do it but I haven't been able to verify that yet. Booty Bay, Everlook, Gadgetzan, and Ratchet are all part of this goblin cartel (not to be confused with the group that joined with the Horde). Their reputations are unique even though they all work for the same trade prince. Think of it as getting in good with each separate store manager for the chain. The others might put in a good word for you but each of them would like to see for themselves what you have to offer. (Typical goblins.)

So where does that leave us? If you happen to have some of the old reputations like Argent Dawn, Zandalar Tribe and Shen'dralar as well as having the benefit of being a Rogue so you have Ravenholdt, you would have the nice amount of Fifty eight reputations available to you to do this achievement. That is right, fifty eight out of fifty five.  In other words if you DO NOT happen to have ANY of the old reputations, you will not be able to get this achievement until one of two things happens. Either Blizzard fixes the bug or they add additional factions. Either way, all you non combat fanatics are going to have to do the one thing you hate, which is wait.

Thankfully for my peace of mined I have all of them, I am actually sitting at fifty three exalted reputations at the moment with my guild anxiously awaiting me to get my last two.  The question is just what I will hit exalted with first.  I just pray I can get it done within the next day or two so I can have some peace. I have been slacking on my dungeon crawls to focus on some other things much to their great frustration.

Fishing for Rogues

I do A LOT of fishing. Not because I find it relaxing or am an avid angler. Rather it is because, as I have stated over and over again, I am cheap and fishing generally provides me with buff food for little more than time. (Beyond that I hear the Omega 3's are great for you.) When I was a skinner, my diet tended more towards the red meats (Ravager Dog or Warp Burger anyone?)  Even after that I wouldn't turn my nose up at a good Mega Mammoth Meal, but I hated leaving behind the evidence of my presence. Fishing doesn't do that.

The irony of this expansion is that very few of our best foods do not come from water sources. Even those you have to hunt down (Baked Turtle, Seasoned Crab, Salted Eye from sea eels and Crocolisk Au Gratin) live in or near the water. Yeah, you could have a Basilisk Liverdog or the Grilled Dragon, but sadly the Dragons mostly give you scales when you skin them and really who wants to eat LIVER? You can make it look like a hot dog all you want but it is STILL liver.

Now beyond all the foods already named there are others we can specifically fish up. The fresh water Boiled Mountain Trout from Mt Hyjal's streams and lakes. Lavascale Fillet and Lavascale Minestrone both come from fishing the lava pools in Deepholm. Skewered Eel is made using Fathom Eels which can be found along the coast of Uldum or Tol Barad making it one of the more plentiful sources out there for us.

There is one difficulty with all these, they do require you to also know how to COOK. However if you have never managed to learn this basic skill you may still be in luck. Many guilds are pursuing their guild achievements Set the Oven to "Cataclysmic" and Time to Open a Restaurant. So you might be able to persuade another guild member to cook them all up for you, since unlike the Wrath recipes they don't require any special spices.  Even better if you state you are working on the That's A Lot of Bait achievement. (Of course this only works if your guild actually CARES about the achievements and the feasts they unlock.) Unlike the Fish Feasts of Wrath these new feasts cater to our most desired stat, like the Fortune Cookies.

For some of you even all of this is not enough persuasion to consider taking up fishing. There have to be additional perks like Non Combat pets or mounts. Well, if you haven't learned by now they already have those in game and have had them for years. There is one overwhelming problem however. The fish all seem to know that when I catch them I plan on eating them. So when it comes to the more "vanity" items you get from fishing, I can't seem to catch any of them to save my life. Now this is only true for Daraia, none of my alts seem to have this curse, but Giant Sewer Rat?, Mr Pinchy? and the very bane of my mount collection the Sea Turtle? They all have played least in site for YEARS while my alts somehow manged to pick them up not even trying. I have some information for you all though, I do know for a fact that you can at least get the Sea Turtle from fishing the high end fishing pools. Tol Barad Eel pools. I love you.

Dailys can be Dangerous

I have always been somewhat of a Daily Quest fanatic since their induction to the game in Burning Crusade. Being a fairly active person I liked the idea of questing even at level cap and I found playing the auction house, while profitable, rather boring. The only problem was that with the old system, the daily quests never changed. You would do the same ones over and over again until it got to the point of going into auto pilot, knocking off the limit in less than 30 minutes and remembering little to nothing of the experience. Cata's daily system has changed that to a certain degree. While some quests never change, they did add a little variety to certain zones, with some daily quests only appearing randomly, or having them generally change each day like the cooking and fishing daily did in Wrath.

There are also a plethora of zones which contain daily quests so you can easily reach the limit of 25 without doing the same daily quest hubs every day. Only the Twilight Highland's quests are annoyingly repetitive but since you can also gain reputation with those necessary factions via use of the tabards they can be skipped. The "Wack a Pygmy" quest in Uldum is one that I will do just for the chuckles and I can't imagine ever getting old.

Tol Barad has become my new favorite daily quest zone. Why? Because doing the dailys there are a challenge every time. Unlike the Wintergrasp daily quests they don't have to be done while pvp or during the Battle Ground situation. However the mobs that litter these two islands are no joke, some of them hit quite hard and respawn rapidly. For a new 85 (as you can't enter the zone until then) they can even become overwhelming. With 34 different quests to cycle through are is always variety and the items they have available are useful for more than just pvping, including but not limited to a pet and two mounts, a flying and a land. One of the most frequent complaints I hear about Tol Barad is that you CAN NOT fly there. Personally this is one of the things I LOVE about the Islands, it brings us back to the basics of remembering how to move around without the advantages flying gives us. Everything is hostile and attacks come from all directions, threat in a questing zone is not something we have had to deal with for a LONG time. I find it refreshing.

There is one other random thing that has added an element of spice to the daily quest grind. Deathwing and his sporadic visits.  Now I made the mistake of complaining that the first of my toons to get the "Stood in the fire" achievement was an alt. Then when Daraia got hit I was afk and missed it completely. Apparently Deathwing heard me mouthing off, because since then I have been hit FOUR TIMES while trying to do my daily quests, if he keeps this up I am going to be VERY grateful for my guild perk which reduces durability damage.

Quest Extinction

When I first heard they were going to bring the King of Stormwind back I never ONCE considered the fate of Marshal Windsor. I know many hated this chain but I LOVED it. By the time Burning Crusade came around I had it down to such a science I could get a guildie attuned to Onyxia's Lair in just over three hours. Escorting Marshal Windsor to Bolvar was a rite of passage. I remember running it once with a guild mate on their first Alliance toon and their awe at the amount of lore we had as compared to the Horde for going after the Brood Mother. New players will never be able to understand why old Veterans tear up at the end of the Wrathgate chain. Why the sacrifice Bolvar makes at the defeat of Arthas so touches Alliance players. All of that from one quest chain now extinct.

As we get closer and closer to Cataclysm, seeing more hints at how greatly the world we have wandered is about to change a disheartening idea came to mind. How many quests I once enjoyed will go the way of the Dodo? Now Blizzard has let us know that they are basically completely erasing ALL the old world quests and re doing them. This could mean anything from they completely start over from scratch to they rework old ones to better fit what is going on in the present world.

So I have to quest the fate of some of my favorite quests. Will young Pamela and the terrors of Darrowshire no longer touch us as the Plaguelands are reworked? While this quest chains rewards are not spectacular all those who completed the Battle of Darrowshire were touched by it. I have lost count of how many Machinima have been made using this single quest as inspiration. Even a fantastic song by Cranius continues to touch with memories. Many of the comments coming from those in the Beta discuss the many changes effecting those zones.

Near by there is also Nathanos Blightcaller....once the only human Ranger, trained under Sylvanas while she was still a High Elf, now the leader of the Horde forces in the Eastern Plaguelands and the Banshee Queen's Champion. Blizzard has already stated that this Stead will be going away. While this is not surprising as few people take the time to complete his chain now a days since they can no longer find individuals to help, I find it sad because his story is so unique. Sure he may be coming back in a greater position with the introduction of Forsaken Hunters but he will only belong to the Horde, the Alliance may lose any connection with his fascinating lore.

Thousand Needles is getting flooded, is there any way that the Raceway participants will survive? (Yes, yes I know leaks have already answered this one.)  Should we all get our chickens now in preparation or will rumors come true and Magus Tirth relocate to a new home? What about Lonebrow's Journal? This quest chain was something only hardy questers usually discovered. I admit this was the ONLY reason I ever ventured into Razorfen Kraul. Having spent the majority of my childhood hanging out on a farm entering a dungeon that stunk of pigs was not my idea of a fun time. However the lore contained there in about the Horde was rather interesting.

Will the Southsea Pirates get washed out of their hidden cove in Tanaris? Recently revealed pictures of Gadgetzan show it as beach front property. I personally always liked Haughty Modiste and would be sad to see her go. Even Stranglethorn Vale is getting a rework, what will happen to the Bloodsails and Steamwheedle Cartel?

At this point I am taking alts and running through some of these beloved quest chains one last time. What about you? Are there any quests out there you would be sad to see go? Any that have already disappeared whose loss you feel keenly? One of the problems with Beta, even closed Beta is it is like block buster movie with a limited release. Those that see it keep telling us all about it wither we want to know the details or not. They forget that not everyone else has the option viewing it at their leisure. I don't mind if they mention how well the actors were cast or the costuming but when they give me the whole story line...it spoils all the fun of watching it for myself.

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.

Know Your Rogue Lore: Captain Rupert

Quite a while ago I used this series to argue that someone many thought of as a Rogue really wasn't. This time I want to do the opposite. There is a hidden rogue in our midst that gets missed because he is so deceptive. His true nature has not been discussed until now.

Captain Rupert is a member of the Argent Crusade, first introduced as part of a series of quests in Zul'Drak. Dressed exactly like his colleagues, his only distinguishing feature is that Rupert is VERY fond of explosives. Players assist Rupert in securing his section of Zul'Drak by taking his bombs and blowing up Nerubian tunnels, burning the corpses of falling comrades or bulling fearful Argent Crusaders back into the fight. As a Forsaken Rupert knows better than anyone what it means to be under the control of the Lich King. His aversion to returning to that state fuels him on.

When we reach Icecrown Citadel and head towards the Frostwing, Captain Rupert, as well has his colleagues appear via the transporter. If you take the time to look you will notice they have all undergone a wardrobe change. These new looks give you a hint as to the classes they represent. Captain Brandon is a paladin, Captain Grondel a warrior, Captain Arnath a priest but what about Rupert? He just his throws bombs around and talks about explosives right? Take a look at his gear.

Rupert is wearing the Terrorblade set, they didn't even take the time to recolor it. Perhaps they thought that since he was a Forsaken we would miss the distinguishing marks. My friends, Rupert is an engineer loving Rogue.

When Rupert first arrives at Icecrown Citadel he remarks that he can feel the Lich King watching, his former service giving him an added awareness. As you make your way down the hallway towards Sister Svalna she will peg each of the Captains off with a lance. When Rupert falls he refers to having a worthy afterlife and asks you to burn his body just as he requested for the fallen soldiers in Zul'Drak there by preventing him from becoming a mindless pawn. When he is raised to serve the Lich King for a second time, Rupert is not pleased. For your failure in fulfilling his last wish Rupert treats you to an added taste of his explosive arsenal, proclaiming we will all burn. In the end however Rupert will fall, sadly this is finally the end for a worthy Rogue. So the next time you are in ICC take the time to get a closer look at Captain Rupert.

Know Your Rogue Lore: Deathstalker Visceri

Deathstalker Visceri is one of the Argent Grand Champions from Trial of the Champion. This individual is the essence of "divided loyalties".  For the Horde he represents the Undercity within the Sunreaver Pavilion.  Specifically he sends players off to get weapons from the various " Water Ladies" as well as starting and ending the Undercity Valliant quests.

Many fail to make note of his Title, it means more than just an identification of his class. Visceri is a DEATHSTALKER. You remember these guys?  The Deathstalker's were Varimathras' elite collection of assassins and spies who assisted in the work the Royal Apothecary was doing with the New Plague. Usually by keeping any information concerning it from getting out to the REST of the Horde. After the Battle for the Undercity there was much question as to WHO exactly these guys were loyal to, Sylvanas or someone else? Visceri ended up in Northrend working with the Argent Crusade and representing the Forsaken. The question then becomes, did he come of his own violation, looking for a fresh start or was he SENT for some OTHER purpose?

When the Argent Tournament was FIRST introduced Visceri was dressed in warrior plate garb. This changed when the actual Arena was finished and he is now appropriately dressed in Deadly Gladiator's Vestments. It is his WEAPONS that are the most intriguing. He is sporting a pair of Spinal Destroyers. These daggers can only be obtained by Horde, who may purchase them with Champion's Seals. Usually when you see a weapon there will be others using the same model but different colors. This is not the case for this particular dagger, it is unique. The bones along the upper edge seem fitting for an Undead who always has his spine poking out.

Visceri's fighting style is identical to his Alliance counterpart Lana Stouthammer. While in our present state of being over geared for encounters his Poison Bottle is not QUITE as deadly as it use to be, it can still be an annoyance. Many players still fail to avoid the deadly green goo which rapidly ticks away at their health. If you don't have a poison cleanser in your group it is best to just avoid them all together. His Fan of Knives was also not be as damaging as it once was, though he still favors this move.

Visceri still manages to hold on to his secrets and for the time seems pleased to be competing in the Tournament forcing players to joust despite how much they may hate it. What more could a Forsaken ask for?

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: Wyrmrest Accord

Dragons Dragons EVERYWHERE!! Yes, this describes the Wyrmrest Accord located primarily out of Wyrmrest Temple in Dragonblight. Made up of representatives from the Red, Bronze, Green and even Black dragon flights, this organization was founded as a direct result of the Blue Dragon Aspect Malygos going insane and attacking the other flights. Now while the Blue Dragon flight is not a part of the Accord they are not completely with out representation. Kalecgos or more commonly called Kalec is also there but as he is at odds with his flight's leader at the moment he can not speak for the rest of the Blue Flight.

While all of the dragon flights were originally designed to work together in harmony events have altered that so that over all they prefer to function independently. With Malygos' mental deteriation The Aspect of Life Alexstrasza has called the flights together in order to counter act the damage being caused to Azeroth as a whole. It is an uneasy balance as each of the other flights are being chipped away eternally by other forces. In addition the Black Dragon Flight has always had an agenda all their own even without the others being aware of Deathwing's impending return.

Now you can't just show up at Wrymrest Temple and start gaining reputation. Being Dragons they have to make it a LITTLE more complicated than that. First you need to do a couple of quest chains in Dragonblight which will bring you to the quest "Prevent the Accord". There are both Alliance and Horde versions based out of either Star's Rest or Agmar's Hammer. When you kill Goramosh he will drop a "Strange Device" which will start you on your way to Wrymrest Temple. It is a rather long and involved chain but completing it will give you a good insight as to what is taking place amongst each of the Dragon Flights. The chain completes when you receive the quest "Defending Wyrmrest Temple" which turns into a daily quest after this point.

The only other place you will find quests that grant Wrymrest Accord reputation is on the island of Coldarra in the Borean Tundra, the home of Malygos himself. Here various dragons seek your assistance in discovering exactly what Malygos has planned. Two other daily quests providing reputation for this faction will become available. One is Drake Hunt which is part of the "Basic Training" chain. The other you can only access at level 80, but you HAVE to talk to Librarian Serrah FIRST who sends you to the TOP of the Nexus to locate Corastrasza. Corastraza gives you the quest Aces High, which is helpful in that it gives you a basic understanding of the controls for the drake mounts INSIDE the Eye of Eternity where you face Malygos himself. Again after you complete it for the first time it will become a daily HOWEVER, all you have to do is speak to Corastraza and she will give you a mount you can practice on for as long as you feel you need.

As we have mentioned countless times it seems if doing daily quests is not your thing just complete enough quests to get to friendly and FLY to the Top of Wyrmrest Temple to get your Tabard. Then all you have to do is run level 80 dungeons to quickly get this reputation up to exalted.

This is a must have reputation for Paladin and Shaman healers as it is the Wyrmrest Accord that provides the helm enchant Arcanum of Blissful Mending. Tailors will be interested in picking up the Pattern for the Mysterious Bag. Jewelcrafters may go after the Design for the Glimmering Monarc Topaz. However the majority of people who grind this reputation are the mount farmers after the Red Drake.

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!