World of Warcraft Sholazar Basin Questing Guide

World of Warcraft Sholazar Basin Questing Guide by Virina

Why did you make this guide?
I’m just doing this because at the moment, Northrend is a very annoying and slow place to level in, and Sholazar is a great zone for any toon with a gathering profession (which means more EXP gain). After running through it literally the dozenth time, I decided to make a guide, regardless of how few people read it.

What makes Sholazar so great?
It’s beautiful, and the zone only has one group quest which makes it smooth up until its very end. Sholazar Basin is also very non-linear, so you can leave at any time and still have a quest chain or two under your belt. 

What can I expect from this place?
It’s worth 2 levels, or at least a level and a half, and some of the quests are more fun than their equal level counterparts in Zul’drak. There are also two achievements here, and credit for a few others.

You realize there are lots of other Sholazar Basin guides out there, right?
Yes, I realize this has been done before, but a lot of other guides have you running around and returning to places two or more times or killing groups of mobs more than once. This guide stresses maximum efficiency, and also tells you how to do the quests.

Do I need a flying mount?
Yes you do. There’s a flying trainer in the center of the zone that can help you, or one at the start, in Dalaran.

Do I need any mods for this guide?
No, because Blizzard’s new map features are a big help, but a coordinate addon can help if you prefer. I personally recommend Titan Panel.

1. Go to Dalaran and pick up Where in the World is Hemet Nesingwary? from Archmage Pentarus at the flight pad. Enjoy the cutscene, take screenshots. Turn in to Monte Muzzleshot, he’s right behind you in the tree.

2. Welcome to Sholazar Basin! Turn in to Hemet Nesingwary at Nesingwary Base Camp. Pick up:

Need an Engine, Take an Engine (just off to the west)
Venture Co. Misadventure
It Could Be Anywhere!

Do not pay any attention to It Could Be Anywhere, it’s a zone drop, and it WILL drop. Get to it when you get to it, but loot your mobs! Fly north just past the Suntouched Pillar into Swindlegrin’s Dig. 

3. In the center (35, 47) will be a quest Engineering a Disaster. Pick it up. It’s an escort quest, but go ahead and kill your 15 Venture Co. members while she walks around talking and blowing stuff up. She’ll help out a little if she’s nearby, of course. If you’re short any by the time it’s over, feel free to head back, but exit the same way because we need to do Need an Engine, Take an Engine.

4. At 38, 56 you’ll find the engine by a downed plane in a puddle. Pick it up and turn in. 

5. Pick up:

Have a Part, Give a Part
Wipe that Grin Off His Face

Return to the Venture Co. Camp. Along the Pillar wall (north-side, obviously) you’ll find Meatpie (Ogre) and Foreman Swindlegrin (goblin in shredder). The parts look like torn out car parts, and are scattered everywhere. 

Why are we back here again?
Because killing the 15 members is a pre-requisite to killing the boss mobs, as usual.

Turn in.

6. Pick up:

Kick, What Kick?
Dreadsaber Mastery
Rhino Mastery
Aerial Surveillance

Ignore Aerial Surveillance for now. Do Kick, What Kick? by equipping the gun and then using it over and over until you get it right. RE-EQUIP YOUR ITEM AFTERWARD. Turn in. Pick up the Great Hunter’s Challenge. Do not go for all 60 animals at once, and no, there’s no rush.

7. Go just west of Suntouched Pillar and find a grouping of rhinos and dreadsabers, grind away. Turn in once you’ve got 15 of each.

8. Pick up: 

Rhino Mastery
Dreadsaber Mastery
Crocolisk Mastery
Some Make Lemonade, Some Make Liquor
A Steak Fit for a Hunter

Head south and do Rhino Mastery, which will lead to An Offering for Soo-rahm. Wait on this one. Turn around and kill Longneck Grazers. Trust me, you’ll be killing way more than 5 for those steaks, and you’ll learn to hate Dreadsabers quickly. Head north to the river and down along it and kill crocolisks. You’ll see vines hanging from the trees, pull on them for Some Make Lemonade until you get all the ingredients. 

Around here you’ll find cobras. I’d wait on killing them, because the Oracles are just going to make you kill more cobras, but you can do what you want if finishing the Great Hunter’s Challenge is that big of a deal to you. Turn in.

Crocolisk Mastery
Still At It

Start Still At it by talking to “Tipsy” McManus. If you have trouble, try standing right behind the bananas, because you can reach everything from there. If you STILL have trouble, maybe you’ll get extremely lucky by coming across someone else who needs to do it. Anyone can pick up the quest objective. 

After this, turn in and pick up The Taste Test. Use the item on Hemet and Hadrius. Tamara will come soon.

10. Pick up the sandferns along the river for Crocolisk Mastery. You shouldn’t have to go as far down as Blizzard’s Quest Helper indicates on the map. The upper river is fine. Turn in so you can pick up the next step in the chain.
11. Fly down to exposed end of the fallen tree by the River’s Heart, which lies in the center of the zone. The exact location is (46, 63). Use the sand fern and kill the quest mob, grab it’s item, and head up to turn inAerial Surveillance at last, and get Tamara to complete The Taste Test. Pick up: 

The Part-time Hunter
An Embarrassing Incident
Force of Nature

Ignore Force of Nature. Do An Embarrassing Incident, which is in the River’s Heart. Click on the piles of dirt underwater. Good luck with the drop rate, it varies widely from person to person, toon to toon. 

12. Turn in Embarrassing Incident and pick up Reconnaissance Flight. Take screenshots, then shoot down the Gargoyles and take more screenshots. Eventually you’ll get control of the plane and you’ll have to fly straight to the River’s Heart. Use the 2 button at the landing pad for quest credit. Turn in and head south for Part-Time Hunter.

13. Kill Pitch, pick up Playing Along from the Frenzyheart. Head to their base and turn that in too. 

But I want to be in the Oracles! 
Yeah, you’ll get your chance. I don’t even know why these quests reward rep though, it’s completely negated by ones that come later. 

Pick up:

The Ape Hunter’s Slave
Tormenting the Softknuckles.

Just east of here are some clearings with white gorillas. AOE as you please until you have 8 Foragers dead. Fly east to the Hardknuckle Clearing (around 66, 74) and you’ll find a lot of the Chargers that you need. Kill them as you whip their children and the Matriarch will come out to defend them; kill her too. Take a moment to bask in how wonderful this game is, then turn in.
11. Fly down to exposed end of the fallen tree by the River’s Heart, which lies in the center of the zone. The exact location is (46, 63). Use the sand fern and kill the quest mob, grab it’s item, and head up to turn inAerial Surveillance at last, and get Tamara to complete The Taste Test. Pick up: 

The Part-time Hunter
An Embarrassing Incident
Force of Nature

Ignore Force of Nature. Do An Embarrassing Incident, which is in the River’s Heart. Click on the piles of dirt underwater. Good luck with the drop rate, it varies widely from person to person, toon to toon. 

12. Turn in Embarrassing Incident and pick up Reconnaissance Flight. Take screenshots, then shoot down the Gargoyles and take more screenshots. Eventually you’ll get control of the plane and you’ll have to fly straight to the River’s Heart. Use the 2 button at the landing pad for quest credit. Turn in and head south for Part-Time Hunter.

13. Kill Pitch, pick up Playing Along from the Frenzyheart. Head to their base and turn that in too. 

But I want to be in the Oracles! 
Yeah, you’ll get your chance. I don’t even know why these quests reward rep though, it’s completely negated by ones that come later. 

Pick up:

The Ape Hunter’s Slave
Tormenting the Softknuckles.

Just east of here are some clearings with white gorillas. AOE as you please until you have 8 Foragers dead. Fly east to the Hardknuckle Clearing (around 66, 74) and you’ll find a lot of the Chargers that you need. Kill them as you whip their children and the Matriarch will come out to defend them; kill her too. Take a moment to bask in how wonderful this game is, then turn in.

14. Pick up:

The Wasp Hunter’s Apprentice
The Sapphire Queen

Head south and a little east to the giant fallen tree known as the Sapphire Hive, where we’ll be doing these quests. Head into the tree first for the Queen’s stinger and then kill everything on your way out of the clearing.

15. Turn in and pick up Flown the Coop!. Use the net item to capture chickens. 

Hint: The net isn’t bound by reality. Throw it where they are NOW, not where they’re headed. There’s a flock of them running around, but after that you’ll have to pick up individual chickens. 

Turn in.

The Underground Menace
Mischief in the Making

Head south to the river where you’ll find a ton of bugs that we were just killing a minute or two ago. Blue crystals are up and down along the river until it bends, but keep your eyes peeled for the moving dirt. You’ll find Serfex there once you walk up close to it. Turn in.

17. Pick up A Rough Ride. Ignore the map, run to the northeast side of Frenzyheart Hill (57,68) and take the ride from the Captive Crocolisk to recieve credit. Take screenshots, because you’ll never get to surf on a croc ever again in your life. When you arrive, turn in to Zepik and pick up: 

The Mist Isn’t Listening
Lighting Definitely Strikes Twice

Kill gorlocs until you reach the stone pillar with plank of wood in front of it. Use the crystal item here, and then click on the crystal. Kill more gorlocs until it’s time to turn in.

18. Pick upHoofing it from Zepik and fly back to River’s Heart, where you’ll turn in The Part-Time Hunter at last. Head to Frenzyheart Hill where you’ll turn in Hoofing It and pick up Just Following Orders. Fly just north to river’s south edge (55,65) where you’ll see the injured oracle. Talk to him, kill the crocolisk, turn in to pick up Fortunate Misunderstandings and then talk to him again for a short escort. A cobra might try to take a bite out of you on the way, so bite it back.

19. Turn in and pick up:

Make the Bad Snake Go Away
Gods like Shiny Things

Time to get your Intact Cobra Fangs, and if you haven’t already, get the last few kills needed for the Great Hunter’s Challenge. Head straight to Venomtip, who is the pinkish purple cobra at the waterfall just to the northeast. He sticks out like a sore thumb, if he’s alive. The treasures are annoying to find, but once you spot one tiny sparkle, you start noticing them everywhere. 

Hint: If you stumble upon a hare, VANQUISH IT. It’s worth a 1 minute speed boost that’s very convenient. If you find bugs, don’t just let your companion kill them; AOE real fast so as not to waste time.

Kill cobras until you’re finished with both Offering for Soo-rahm and Make the Bad Snake Go Away. Turn in.

20. Pick up Making Peace and head to the eastern edge of River’s Heart, where it becomes Wildgrowth Mengal (51,64) where you’ll find a Frenzyheart. Talk to him, he’ll send you into the water. Fly out and turn in to pick up Back So Soon?, then fly straight northwest to make up to the gorlocs you slaughtered no more than ten minutes ago.

21. Turn in and pick up:

Forced Hand
The Lost Mistwhisper Treasure

Don’t do them yet. Jaloot has a useful buff and we have Nesingwary stuff to attend to. Head south of Bittertide Lake and do Dreadsaber Mastery finally by clicking on the paw prints in the dirt. You’ll eventually identify all three. The fact that Shango is a mere 15 seconds of flight away is irrelevant, keep at it until it’s time to do a big turn-in at Nesingwary Base Camp. When you do, you’ll see there’s nothing to pick up but the last phase of Dreadsaber Mastery. Head south and turn in the Offering for Soo-rahm finally.

22. Pick up The Bones of Nozronn. Your destination is that giant monster skeleton in sight to the south-east. Click the little dish in front of his mouth. Wait for him to finish talking and turn-in at Base Camp again. Turn in and pick up Rhino Mastery. Head north-east of Bittertide Lake toward the south end of Glimmering Pillar, where you’ll find Farunn. Grab his horn and head north-west to Dorian’s Outpost at the right of a particularly large tree (42,28) just south of the Spearborn Encampment where you need to quest. Pick upBurning to Help and continue north.

23. Fly straight up to the top of the encampment where you’ll find a sparkly orb. Use Jaloot’s Crystal fast, as a boss mob will spawn. Kill him off and pick up the crystal quickly before the event triggers again. Kill wolvar all the way down and then head south-east along the Sholazar Basin wall. Keep your eyes to the ground for a striped tiger with saber teeth. Kill it and collect its pelt.

24. Now head just to the east into the lake to do Burning to Help. For this quest, be careful with your DPS!You have to let the mob spit on you, then use the vial item to cleanse it off, then kill the beast. Do this 5 times, but head south to turn-in at Nesingwary’s. Pick up In Search of Bigger Game.

Home-Time!
Sharpening Your Talons
Securing the Bait

You can do these now but you’re going to head back here later, so I’d say ignore them. Head south-east again to the Oracles to turn-in Home-Time and pick up The Angry Gorloc. It’s time to finally turn in Force of Nature.

26. Avatar of Freya is too big to be missed (64,48), and you probably saw her during your flight over this area with Pilot Vic. Turn in Force of Nature and pick up An Issue of Trust. Don’t do it here. Head far east to where the Oracles sent you, because you’ll find plenty there. At Mosswalker Village (74,50) you’ll get your credit for The Angry Gorloc.

27. Resummon Moodle and turn in to pick up:

Lifeblood of the Mosswalker Shrine
The Mosswalker Savior

Ignore Lifeblood of the Mosswalker Shrine for the moment. Kill any undead dragging or standing over an injured oracle, and talk to the fallen. Eventually you’ll find six survivors and kill all of the necessary undead. Turn in to Moodle and then go and turn in to Avatar of Freya to the west. 

Pick up Returned Sevenfold. For this quest, just dps lightly and use the item the moment he starts casting Deathbolt. It should take two or three deflections to kill him. Turn in.

28. From the Avatar of Freya, pick up

The Fallen Pillar
Salvaging Life’s Strength

Head south to top of the shattered Lifeblood Pillar and turn in to the corpse there, then summon moodle and kill elementals all the way down. Use the red gem to drain quest credit from their corpses. Keep an eye out for shiny red gems on the ground, and mind the zombies that you won’t be needing anymore. Turn in to Moodle.

29A. If you’re 80+, a tank, or you just fancy yourself to be pro, go ahead and do A Hero’s Burden for some major exp. The boss does Frostbolts that can hit for around 4k, and when he’s around 25% you have to fight your old friends from the Frenzyheart and the Oracles. Whichever faction you keep alive will fight alongside you for the remainder of the battle (Altruis will heal up to 50% fyi), and then you will be a part of that faction from then on (or until you do this daily again). I’m not going to cover faction dailies in this guide, though they do give a small chunk of exp. 

Tip: Altruis can’t be silenced. If you can heal yourself, do the second you get below 50%. You can cut it close otherwise. Save your tougher cooldowns for when you have to deal with your old friends so you can either make a full recovery or get through that phase quickly. They don’t hit hard individually, but can be annoying when paired up. 

Otherwise just head back and turn in to Avatar of Freya.

29B. Pick up:

Exterminate the Intruders
Weapons of Destruction

Head just a bit north and to the west to find Death’s Hand Encampment around 56,43. Disable explosives and then kill cultists to your heart’s content. Head back to turn in and pick up The Lifewarden’s Wrath.

30. Fly to the top of the Glimmering Pillar and use the horn when you get toward the center. Some cultists will likely pull, but you are free to ignore them, because they’ll be killed by the magical life beams (ironically), but it takes a few seconds. Fly down to the north and crack open proto-drake eggs and loot the hatchlings. Make sure not to aggro them, or you won’t be able to put them into your bags. Kill proto-drakes and turn in to the Nesingwary guys.

Note: You may get to watch the miracle of life happen yourself, as the proto-drakes occasionally breathe fire on the eggs and get them to hatch. Nice touch on Blizzard’s part.

31. Pick up:

Reagent Agent
A Mammoth Undertaking
My Pet Roc

You need a Shattertusk Mammoth (brown), not a Mammoth Bull (dark gray). There tends to be one just south of the questgivers. Use the item and ride it back to them. Use 1 to turn it in, and then pick up Post-partum Aggression. March through the Savage Thicket, avoiding aggro whenever you can, and go up to around (along the north side, where the fieryness of the thicket persists but the map reads Sholazar Basin; 48,21). 

You should see a very cool black proto-drake. Use 2 to charge in, and mash 1, 3, and 4 as you please. Drag him into traps, but if your mammoth Stampy dies, feel free to just dps him down yourself like normal. You’ll still get credit, but don’t turn in yet.

Keep heading west and you’ll see a giant stone terrace sticking out of the wall of Sholazar. You probably noticed it before, but now it’s time to head in. Feel free to avoid the robots and hit the switch at the end of the large hall. Fly back to turn in to Freya.

33. Pick up the next Powering the Waygate and fly just a bit east and high, high up along the basin wall. There you’ll find a chest with the quest A Timeworn Coffer. Kill robots all the way in and loot them for the key, but avoid the big one unless you have to prove to everyone that you’re a tough guy. Grats on your 60 silver. Hit the button at the end of the hall and turn in to the chest. Grats on your zone achievement! Turn in to Freya if you’re interested in seeing this through. 

34. Pick up The Etymidian from Freya and– 

What? It’s not on Blizzard’s quest helper? 
Fly down south-west, to the south-east of Mosslight Pillar, which is probably a piece of fog on your map unless you’ve gone farming before. Exact coords are 40,82, and yeah, you can’t miss it. Step through to Un’goro Crater. Hold right and turn in to the Etymidian. Pick up The Activation Rune and make your way to High Cultist Herenn, who you’ll get the rune from. Turn in to Etymidian again and pick up Back Through the Waygate. Guess where you’re going? Back through the waygate. 

Turn in to Freya.

35. Pick up Reclamation– the last quest of the zone! Head up to the glacier in the north-east. At the very top (it’s easier than working your way up), use the item she gave you. Take a screenshot and proceed to cleave through hordes of undead. Quick run-down of your abilities:

1. Cleave attack, your go-to move.
2. Very damaging AOE move with a 20 second cool down. Good for clearing away any crowds or adds.
3. Full heal, mana intensive. If you’re at 33% health, use it.
4. Channel to restore your mana to full, but leaves you vulnerable to take a lot of damage.
5. Bubbles you, but drops you out of combat. When you’re dying, back away a safe distance and use this to reset the fight.

Tip: Use 3 and then 4 to set up for boss fight, or recover after one. Use 4 then 3 if you want to get to (relatively) full mana during a boss fight, just be careful your health.

Hailscorn is on the right if you’re facing down the mountain. He uses a wing buffet and tends to summon a bunch of inconsequential adds. AOE them away and continue DPSing until he’s dead. Save your AOE for his summon, he’ll do it 2 or 3 times.

Urgreth is the giant below Hailscorn. Start off with AOE and then just cleave away at him. When he starts channeling his move, turn and run until you stop taking damage, then head back into the fray. Rinse and repeat.

Bythius is the lowest on the mountain and probably the easiest, just target him and give him the ol’ 1-2 until he’s dead. You’ll probably have to heal, because his dogs help his DPS quite a bit.

For the zombies (easily the most tedious and annoying part of this quest), there are hordes of them roaming around the top and a bunch at the foot of the mountain. Kill them until you reach 200.

Turn in to Freya, and congrats on finishing this beautiful zone! I hope you enjoyed the guide as much as I did questing through this place for the dozenth time. :)