Azuarc's Leveling Guide part 17
Azuarc's leveling guide for Alliance, Act 17: Hellfire Peninsula east (60-61)
Entering Outland
Before heading through the portal, let's have a little chat. The original guide focused on getting to 70 in a calm, measured fashion that focused on having the reputations and gear needed to advance toward playing a level 70 character while level 70 was the level cap. Although this is being written before Lich King is even in beta, I'm going to take more of a "get to 70 and move on" perspective. If you are reading this and want to focus on level 70 as your goal, you should probably use version 1.
Second, tradeskills in Outland can finally exceed 300. If you've got materials stockpiling in your bank, you'll get to use them. If you are struggling to level a profession, you might want to get it to 300 (or close to it) now.
Regarding Outland itself, it consists of seven zones. In order of difficulty, they are:
- Hellfire Peninsula (59-63)
- Zangarmarsh (60-64)
- Terokkar Forest (62-67)
- Nagrand (64-69)
- Blade's Edge Mountains (65+)
- Netherstorm (67+)
- Shadowmoon Valley (68+)
Note that Hellfire has been labeled as starting at level 59. Many players think rushing to Outland the instant they hit level 58 is a good idea. While there is some method to that madness, unless you are very well-geared – and chances are, you are not – Hellfire is going to be a very difficult area. Considering that, we do not want to rush headlong into things. Be at least level 59, and come ready to do battle with some challenging areas initially.
The reason people like to go at 58.000 is that those levels tend to move swiftly because 60+ levels take over 2.5x the experience, and the gear upgrades from quests blow the old world stuff out of the water. Endure a level or two of difficult times, and it will become much easier after that, those people figure. With this version of the guide, some efforts have been made to work around the fact that certain Hellfire areas are difficult if you just slog through the whole zone at once, and so we depart for Zangarmarsh sooner before returning for the rest, but you still want to hit level 61 by a certain point.
However, you may be enduring difficult times anyway. Some classes have an exceedingly difficult time coming to Outland initially, while for others it is extremely easy. This act was originally written following the successes and failures of my enhancement shaman. I was doing miserably. I switched to playing a shadow priest and I couldn't believe it was still the same zone. The moral of this is not to say that shamans are weak or priests are powerful, but only to point out that some classes make the transition more easily than others. Notably, melee classes tend to be at a disadvantage since they *have* to get hit to do their job. If you are playing one of these classes, you may find that you need to change your talent spec to make things work in Hellfire initially.
Scene 0 - Through the Dark Portal (level 59)
Quests completed: Through the Dark Portal, Arrival in Outland, Journey to Honor Hold, Force Commander Danath Flight points: The Dark Portal (HFP), Honor Hold (HFP)
OK, got that out of our system? Good, let's go.
Clear out your ENTIRE quest log – every last quest, and fly to Blasted Lands. Before you leave Nethergarde Keep, enter the barracks and find the vendor that sells Nethergarde Bitter. Buy one for yourself and hold onto it. It's an unofficial quest item.
Ride out to the Dark Portal. Speak with Watch Commander Relthorn Netherwane, who will ask you to speak to his associate on the other side. Pass on through and head to the left side of the stairs and talk to Commander Duron and then Amish Wildhammer. Take the flight to Honor Hold. Marshal Isildor will direct you to Force Commander Danath, who will send you on your first two errands in Outland.
While you're in town, look for your tradeskill trainers. There's one for every profession. You'll have to wait on First Aid and Fishing. (First Aid is in the Temple of Telhamat across the zone, and Fishing is at the Cenarion Refuge in Zangarmarsh.)
Scene 1 - The Path of Conquest (level 59)
Quests completed: The Legion Reborn, Know Your Enemy, Waste Not Want Not, Fel Orc Scavengers, The Path of Anguish
Let's begin our survey of the land by traveling to the east supply caravan and finishing the quest there, and then returning through town to hit the guard tower in the west to pick up two more quests. Three total now. And that's all we can get from all of Honor Hold until we raise our reputation with them.
So let's do something to raise it. Ride north a bit to where orcs line the road. Kill a bunch, and collect pieces of metal and wood in the process. Stick to the level 58-59 guys on the upper ridges, and avoid the riders when you can, but kill them if they'll patrol into you later. Gradually work your way east until you finish.
Once those two quests are done, ride further to the east, still south of the road, to the Path of Anguish. Kill the demons in the area for the quest by the same name. Then return to the east supply caravan and then the western guard tower for follow-ups.
Scene 2 - Fire, Brimstone, and More Fire (level 59)
Quests completed: Ill Omens, Disrupt Their Reinforcements, Mission: The Murketh and Shaadraz Gateways, Zeth'gor Must Burn!, Expedition Point, Cursed Talismans, Warlord of the Bleeding Hollow
Ride southeast to a nasty area named Zeth'gor. Do not fool around here. Kill a few accessible orcs until you get a Cursed Talisman, and then report to Expedition Point just north of there, and grab the quests that are available.
We'll return to Zeth'gor in a moment, but for now head northeast to the edge of the Legion Front. Carefully work on the various demons in the area to gather Demonic Rune Stones, then head inside each portal and use Kingston's Primers to blow them. You'll need 8 rune stones altogether.
Back at Expedition Point, you'll get a follow-up to bomb two larger portals. Talk to the gryphonmaster nearby and you will be sent on a flight swooping over top of those two portals. The bombs that are in your inventory are right-click usable while in flight, so throw them to bomb the portals.
There is a follow-up, but we're going to save that for now. Instead, head south to Zeth'gor. Stay along the east wall. The two quests you have for the area involve killing random orcs and reaching four towers inside the stronghold. This area can get very painful very quickly, so don't be a hero.
Along the wall into the area, you should see a tower just inside the fence. Clear out so you can stand below it and use your smoke beacon. The second tower is nearby, along the back wall. After you clear the second tower, leave Zeth'gor and loop around the outside. You'll fare better with the felboars outside, and the third tower is outside the wall. When you see the northern tower in-between the next two entrances to the fortress, work your way toward it, clear it and smoke it, and then pass all the way south to the final entrance where you will find the last tower. Approach the final tower methodically, watching for patrols and the necromancers that tend to ruin your day. Hide around a back wall or outside somewhere where you can pick off orcs one at a time to finish the talismans quest.
Return to Expedition Point and if you aren't completely fed up with Zeth'gor, return to where the last tower was, and use that entrance to approach the stronghold in the rear of the fortress. You'll find Morkh the Orc in the center room, who you will want to take care of. Save yourself some trouble and hearth out.
Scene 3 - Mecca (level 60)
Quests completed: Ravager Egg Round-Up, A'dal, City of Light Flight points collected: Shattrath City (Terokkar)
From the western exit of HH, travel due south to the zeppelin crash site, and pick up the two quests there. Head all the way southwest to the Razorthorn Trail where you will pick up the eggs you need. Try to stay on your mount and ride through the area, and then work from the back to try to get your eggs. It's much safer on that end, mostly due to fewer large mama ravagers wandering across the road and more eggs laying on the ground. (They do drop from the big ravagers as well.)
After that, ride straight down the road into Shattrath City. In the center of the city, you will find A'dal and Khadgar. Follow the two quests, and then make your decision regarding Aldors and Scryers. While the guide will not deal with Aldor or Scryer quests, they are an extra source of something to do sometimes, and you will more than likely want to pick one of the two rather than remaining neutral for no benefit. (Note: this paragraph assumes you have reached level 60. If you have not, this step will have to wait for later. There's really no significance to doing it now.) The other thing to note is that there are portals back to the old world cities in Shattrath. Since there are no trainers or auction houses in Outland, you will need to use those portals to return. Because of this, be sure to get the flight point in Shattrath, just to the east of the center of the city.
Take care of your affairs – notably training if you've reached level 60, and hearth back to Honor Hold when you are ready to continue.
Scene 4 - Mine (level 60)
Quests completed: When This Mine's a-Rockin', The Mastermind, A Job For an Intelligent Man, Helboar the Other White Meat
Go west out of Honor Hold and talk to Foreman Biggums outside the mine. One of his two quests is inside the mine. Head inside, kill 14 sappers, go back out to him, and then clear your way to the bottom to kill Z'kral.
Note: the ability to get Biggums' quests is dependent on your Honor Hold reputation.
After finishing with the mine, head outside and ride south to the Zeppelin Crash to complete the ravager egg quest. You'll get a new quest to kill boars. So kill boars! Conveniently, the foreman's other quest is for the other creatures skulking about in the areas south and west of Honor Hold, the crust bursters. Work on these, and keep an eye out for the Fel Reaver that likes to patrol through. Complete the quests when finished.
Scene 5 - Buzz Off (level 60)
Quests completed: Smooth As Butter, In Case of Emergency..., Unyielding Souls, An Old Gift
To the southeast of Honor Hold is the Valley of Bones. Kill vultures around here while picking up the random zeppelin debris you encounter. Stay until you finish both quests.
After that, go south to the Expedition Armory. You have two goals: kill enough mages, footmen and knights for Unyielding Souls, and collect the book for An Old Gift. Typically, you will find footmen in front of the armory, mages inside, and knights in the back. The book, however, is in a small house behind the armory, so you may as well head there first. It's sitting right on the front steps.
Return to the Zeppelin Crash to complete these quests, and then up to the western guard tower.
Scene 6 - Outland Sucks! (level 60/61)
Quests completed: The Path of Glory, Laying Waste to the Unwanted, Outland Sucks!, How to Serve Goblins, Shizz Work, Beneath Thrallmar Flight points: Temple of Telhamat (HFP)
Ride northeast out of town, toward the eastern portions of the Path of Glory. You should find battered skeletons along this part of the road that you can cleanse. Following that, head west along the north side of the road, and look for the four blade throwers. They look a little like the other pieces of machinery in the area, but they are still distinct, and in two pairs. Use your torch while standing near them to burn them.
Travel northwest from there, around the western side of Thrallmar, to Thrallmar's mine. Because the foreman there is a goblin, you can actually do the Horde quests. He has a series of quests we intend to do, and the first one involves hunting down boxes in the area where the crust bursters are lurking to the southwest. Get his boxes and get back to him. The next mission is to rescue the Pep Boys. Manni, Moh and Jakk are in three cages along the northern rampart. If you pull the orcs back one at a time, this should not be incredibly challenging. His third quest is to...er, well, walk his "dog" and check the leavings for a key he needs. This is the first of several poop quests in Outland. Kill felboars and check the felstalker droppings until you find the shredder keys, and take them back to Razelcraz. The final mission is just like the second mission in the Alliance mine -- get to the mastermind of the gan'arg operations and kill him.
When you have completed the quest line, or as much as you're prepared to, hop on the road that passes through the northern rampart, and ride it west to the Temple of Telhamat. Grab the flight point there, and any quests that are available. Hopefully you are 61 by now, because one quest you'll be doing soon requires it for some unknown reason. Feel free to hit up the First Aid trainer while you're there.
Scene 7 - Won't Back Down (level 61)
Quests completed: Fel Spirits, Voidwalkers Gone Wild, An Ambitions Plan, Looking to the Leadership, Digging For Prayer Beads, The Exorcism of Colonel Jules, Trollbane is Looking For You
To the west of the Zeppelin Crash is Gor'gaz Outpost. Head there, and notice the berserkers in the area. Drop your Anchorite Relic somewhere, and then kill berserkers one at a time near the relic. As soon as they are killed, a new mob called a Fel Spirit will spawn on top of the relic. Kill that for credit toward the quest. Take your time with this one, as it's easy to get yourself overwhelmed.
From there, go south to The Warp Fields and start killing voidwalkers. At some point, on an uncontrolled voidwalker that you get low on health, use the sanctified crystal you got from Telhamat to get a glowing sanctified crystal to take back. Get 10 condensed voidwalker essence, and continue east to the armory.
In the armory, find the two named mobs and kill them. They are along the western and southern walls of the area, inside the walls. Once they are dead, return to the zeppelin crash and then to Honor Hold.
In Honor Hold, purchase a Maiden's Anguish (from the mage's tower poison vendor) and a Silken Thread (from inside the inn) to get a doggy treat for Fei Fei, and give it to the dog. He'll start heading toward where he might have buried the prayer beads. Either follow him around, or just go around the right side of the inn and look for the pile of dirt you can search. Head to Anchorite Klatu and start the exorcism. All you really need to do in this quest is continually use the prayer beads until it ends. You are more than welcome to do some fighting/healing between cooldowns, however.
Scene 8 - The Eastern Front (level 61)
Quests completed: Shatter Point, Wing Commander Gryphongar, Mission: The Abyssal Shelf, Go To The Front, Disruption – Forge Camp: Mageddon, Enemy of my Enemy..., Invasion Point: Annihilator, The Dark Missive, Return to Honor Hold
We're still going, like the Energizer Bunny. Last scene in the act, though. I promise.
Go to Expedition Point and take the gryphon ride to Shatter Point. You'll get a new bombing quest at Shatter Point. It may take you two passes to finish it. Once you have finished it, get your new flight assignment to Honor Point and grab the next mission. There are three Burning Legion camps in the northern ridges of the zone, and you're going to be attacking them.
Start with the nearest of the three, and kill 10 Gan'arg, plus the large angry Mo'arg named Razorsaw. Run back to complete the quest, and then return to the first camp. Kill a few cannons there, which can be done just fine at the first camp, and pop back to Honor Point again.
The final leg must be done at the third camp, Invasion Point: Annihilator. Hug the wall when you get there, and clear a path far enough back that you can see Warbringer Arix'amal. Pull him to you, kill him, and take his key (along with the Dark Missive quest-starter.) After that, enter the portal and disable it. Although the quest doesn't specify, you must return to Honor Point to complete this quest. Hearth to HH afterwards.
I'm Tired, Can We Go Home Yet?
This should completely clear out the eastern half of Hellfire Peninsula, except for Drill the Drillmaster. Unfortunately, the western half is uncomfortable to do at level 61. So rather than bang our heads on the walls, we're going to hit the next zone over, Zangarmarsh. We want to be pushing 63 before making our move on these other quests.
Stop off at Telhamat to complete An Ambitious Plan, and then hit up Cenarion Post to put their quests in your log. (You might have a few quests to go there anyway.) Hop back on the road and ride it through Thornfang Hill. The Cenarion Expedition is right on the other side, and that is where we'll pick up in Act 18.
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