Druid Leveling Guide - The Burning Crusade
Best Quest Upgrades for Restoration Druid
Below are a few items you can pick up in the early zones of Hellfire and Zangarmarsh while questing. Sadly, there aren't a lot of decent upgrades in the early zones for healing purposes, but these are some good pick-ups if you don't have anything better to begin with.
Restoration Druid Healing Pre-Raid BiS
Ancient Crystal Talisman/Glowing Crystal Insignia
Reward from A Spirit Ally?/Overlord Gorefist
The Alliance version of this trinket comes from a two-part questline that starts with the quest Ango'rosh Encroachment. In the first quest, you will have to kill 10 Ango'rosh Ogres and 5 Ango'rosh Shamans before killing Overlord Gorefist and 10 Ango'rosh Maulers in the second part.
The Horde version of this trinket is from another two-part questline that starts with Spirits of the Feralfen. In the first quest, you will have to bring 10 Feralfen Protection Totems to Seer Janidi at Zabra'jin. In the second part, you take the Feralfen Totem to the foot of the stairs at the Boha'mu Ruins and plant it in the ground.
Swift Cenarion Footwear
Reward from Leader of the Darkcrest
These boots come from a quest from a wanted poster at (79, 65) in Zangarmarsh. You must kill Rajah Haghazed at the Lagoon and return to Warden Hamoot at the Cenarion Expedition.
Totemic Staff
Reward from Administering the Salve
You can get a weapon in Hellfire through this short two-part questline. The first quest in the chain is A Debilitating Sickness, where you must retrieve 1 Drycap Mushroom from a cave inside the Great Fissure and bring it to Earthcaller Ryga at Mag'har Post. The second quest requires you to administer the Healing Salve to 10 Debilitated Mag'har Grunts nearby Mag'har.
Best Dungeon Upgrades for Restoration Druid
Below are some early items you can pick up from the lower-level dungeons in Hellfire and Zangarmarsh.
Auslese's Light Channeler
Drops from Broggok
This trinket drops from the second boss in The Blood Furnace. This is a very good trinket early on for new characters.
Bloody Surgeon's Mitts
Drops from Broggok
When socketed, these gloves can be competitive for pre-raid gear, making them an excellent early pick-up. They also drop from the second boss in The Blood Furnace.
Coilfang Hammer of Renewal
Drops from Rokmar the Crackler
If you're in need of a weapon early on, this one is a fantastic find off the second boss in The Slave Pens.
Best Quest Upgrades for Feral Druid Tank
Feral Druid Tank Pre-Raid BiS
Scout's Hood
Reward from Saving the Sporeloks
This quest is a follow-up to the chain starting with The Umbrafen Tribe, and is very easy to complete. The mobs you need to kill are found all over the cave in Funggor Cavern.
Sure-Step Boots
Reward from Weaken the Ramparts
This is a quest that you will complete "for free", as it simply requires you to clear Hellfire Ramparts once and kill all the bosses.
Bladefist's Breadth
Reward from Overlord/Cruel's Intentions
These quests are at the tail end of a long quest chain that takes you through the majority of the leveling process in Hellfire Peninsula. The final quest involves taking down an Elite mini-boss Arazzius the Cruel, which requires a large group of players unless you are significantly over-leveled. Putting a group together for this quest is well worth the effort, however, as Bladefist's Breadth will last you all the way to level 70, being replaced only by trinkets from endgame dungeons. Acquiring this trinket is especially valuable for freshly boosted characters, who will not have alternative options from level 60 raids.
Idol of the Wild
Reward from Colossal Menace
This quest should be completed at the same time as Natural Remedies, as you will need to kill several Raging Colossus mobs with your group anyway in order to clear the summoning circle. Every feral druid should complete this quest, as Idol of the Wild is not only your sole DPS option in the Idol slot until level 70, but is also situationally best in slot for tanking on encounters where you are Rage starved and cannot sustain more than 50% Maul uptime.
Best Dungeon Upgrades for Feral Druid Tank
Vest of Vengeance
Drops from Keli'dan the Breaker
This chest piece is a massive upgrade from any other dungeon drops in the level 60-63 range, and can even be used in level 70 pre-raid sets! The presence of gem sockets in such an early item is a big perk, since cheap gems can be purchased right away from vendors in Hellfire Peninsula. The Blood Furnace is a very efficient leveling dungeon, so spending time here will also gain you a ton of XP.
Ursol's Claw
Drops from Vazruden
Ursol's Claw is by far the biggest early upgrade you can get as a boosted level 58 feral druid, and will last you through multiple leveling zones. In general, weapons are the most impactful gear slot for feral druids, as they are itemized with an insane amount of Feral Attack Power and raw stats. You will notice a big power spike in your Threat output and survivability each time you get a weapon upgrade, similar to traditional melee DPS classes.
Skulldugger's Leggings
Drops from The Black Stalker
Similar to Ursol's Claw, this piece is several tiers better than any other alternatives available in this level range, and also comes with the benefit of three gem sockets that you can load with cheap vendor gems at the start and crafted Uncommon quality gems later on.
Mantle of the Dusk-Dweller
Drops from Keli'dan the Breaker
Very strong shoulder piece for its level, and outclasses all available quest rewards in Hellfire Peninsula and Zangarmarsh.
Bogstrok Scale Cloak
Drops from Rokmar the Crackler
This cloak is one of the best early mitigation pieces available to feral tanks, and is particularly strong because it is loaded with armor, which scales wonderfully for bears. This is a very valuable dungeon pickup, as there are very few dedicated mitigation options in early-leveling dungeons, so it will help you survive higher-level dungeons.
Mok'Nathal Clan Ring
Drops from Vazruden
Mok'Nathal Clan Ring compliments Bogstrok Scale Cloak as one of the very few well-itemized mitigation pieces from early leveling dungeons. Like the cloak, this ring is loaded with a lot of armor, which is rarely present on rings in Classic WoW, so it is perfect for bears.
Best Quest Upgrades for Feral Druid DPS
Feral Druid DPS Pre-Raid BiS
Pilgrim's Belt
Reward from Marking the Path
This quest is only available to Horde druids, unfortunately, but it is an important one to complete because it provides a strong DPS belt that will last you until at least level 63. This easy quest involves running by three beacons and lighting them up by right-clicking them. Make sure to run away from each beacon as soon as you light it up, as 3 mobs will spawn each time a beacon is lit.
Studded Green Anklewraps
Reward from Natural Remedies
This quest requires a group to complete, as you will be dealing with Elite mobs with a lot of HP. You will make your way to a summoning circle west of the Temple of Telhamat, where you will plant a seed that summons an elite Colossus, which you must kill. Make sure to clear the area around the circle of all other Elite Colossi before you start the summon so that they don't tag along with the summoned mob. The Elites in this area are level 63-64, so bring a large group if you are attempting this quest when underleveled. If you wait until at least level 63, however, then you can actually solo the Elites in Dire Bear Form if you leverage your healing over time spells and defensive abilities carefully.
Bladefist's Breadth
Reward from Overlord/Cruel's Intentions
These quests are at the tail end of a long quest chain that takes you through the majority of the leveling process in Hellfire Peninsula. The final quest involves taking down an Elite mini-boss Arazzius the Cruel, which requires a large group of players unless you are significantly over-leveled. Putting a group together for this quest is well worth the effort, however, as Bladefist's Breadth will last you all the way to level 70, being replaced only by trinkets from endgame dungeons. Acquiring this trinket is especially valuable for freshly boosted characters, who will not have alternative options from level 60 raids.
Warden's Ring of Precision
Reward from Drain Schematics
This is an extremely simple quest, and requires swimming to the entrance of Coilfang Reservoir. Be careful of the ravenous frenzy fish in the water; it is recommended to approach the reservoir from the north to avoid them.
Idol of the Wild
Reward from Colossal Menace
This quest should be completed at the same time as Natural Remedies, as you will need to kill several Raging Colossus mobs with your group anyway in order to clear the summoning circle. Every feral druid should complete this quest, as Idol of the Wild is your only DPS option in the Idol slot until level 70.
Best Dungeon Upgrades for Feral Druid DPS
Vest of Vengeance
Drops from Keli'dan the Breaker
This chest piece is a massive upgrade from all other alternatives in the level 60-63 range, and can even be used in level 70 pre-raid sets! The presence of gem sockets in such an early item is a big perk, since cheap gems can be purchased right away from vendors in Hellfire Peninsula. The Blood Furnace is a very efficient leveling dungeon, so spending time here will also gain you a ton of XP.
Ursol's Claw
Drops from Vazruden
Ursol's Claw is by far the biggest early upgrade you can get as a boosted level 58 feral druid, and will last you through multiple leveling zones. In general, weapons are the most impactful gear slot for feral druids, as they are itemized with an insane amount of Feral Attack Power. You will notice a big power spike in your damage output each time you get a weapon upgrade, similar to traditional melee DPS classes.
Skulldugger's Leggings
Drops from The Black Stalker
Similar to Vest of Vengeance, this piece is several tiers better than any other alternatives available in this level range, and also comes with the benefit of three gem sockets that you can load with cheap vendor gems at the start and crafted Uncommon quality gems later on.
Mantle of the Dusk-Dweller
Drops from Keli'dan the Breaker
Very strong shoulder piece for its level, and outclasses all available quest rewards in Hellfire Peninsula and Zangarmarsh.
Best Quest Upgrades for Balance Druid
Below are a few items you can pick up in the early zones of Hellfire and Zangarmarsh while questing.
Balance Druid Pre-Raid BiS
Ancient Crystal Talisman/Glowing Crystal Insignia
Reward from A Spirit Ally?/Overlord Gorefist
The Alliance version of this trinket comes from a two-part questline that starts with the quest Ango'rosh Encroachment. In the first quest, you will have to kill 10 Ango'rosh Ogres and 5 Ango'rosh Shamans before killing Overlord Gorefist and 10 Ango'rosh Maulers in the second part.
The Horde version of this trinket is from another two-part questline that starts with Tiger's Fury. In the first quest, you will have to bring 10 Feralfen Protection Totems to Seer Janidi at Zabra'jin. In the second part, you take the Feralfen Totem to the foot of the stairs at the Boha'mu Ruins and plant it in the ground.
Totemic Staff
Reward from Administering the Salve
You can get a weapon in Hellfire through this short two-part questline. The first quest in the chain is A Debilitating Sickness, where you must retrieve 1 Drycap Mushroom from a cave inside the Great Fissure and bring it to Earthcaller Ryga at Mag'har Post. The second quest requires you to administer the Healing Salve to 10 Debilitated Mag'har Grunts nearby Mag'har.
Flamehandler's Gloves
Reward from Marking the Path
These gloves are from an early questline in Hellfire that starts in Thrallmar with the quest . You'll have to travel to Falcon Watch, then kill 8 Stonescythe Whelps and 3 Stonescythe Alphas at the Great Fissure, and finally light three beacons.
Best Dungeon Upgrades for Balance Druid
Below are some items you can pick up in the early dungeons in Hellfire and Zangarmarsh.
Manaspark Gloves
Drops from Hungarfen
There are a lot of glove options that drop from early dungeons, but these ones are an excellent source of hit rating. They drop off the first boss in The Underbog.
Luminous Pearls of Insight
Drops from Ghaz'an
This is a great early necklace you can get off the second boss in The Underbog.
Zangartooth Shortblade
Drops from Swamplord Musel'ek
Another great early item from The Underbog, this weapon comes with hit rating and can be a solid starter piece.
