Wailing Caverns Dungeon Guide

Forever vs Classic

What changed in Wailing Caverns for WoW Forever

What is different from the Classic version you may know. Everything else works as it did in Classic.

• Boss loot reworkedBeta data

  Almost every boss drop got new stats, and most of them are blue now instead of green or white. Serpent's Shoulders from Lady Anacondra used to be a plain white item and are now a blue leather piece with Agility. Several pieces need a lower level than before, the Mutant Scale Breastplate from Mutanus from 18 instead of 23.

• Four new dropsBeta data

  Snake Eye Kaleidoscope (Lady Anacondra) is a necklace with a point in every stat and resistance. Cloak of Hermitic Bliss (Kresh) slows you on land and makes you swim faster. Slither Cord (Lord Pythas) is a cloth belt whose use effect frees you from roots. Skum's Bucket (Skum) is an off-hand that restores mana while you sit. Beta players report all four as very rare.

• Embrace of the Viper has new bonusesBeta data

  The five-piece leather set now gives 10 Intellect for two pieces, 10 Attack Power for three, a small heal and mana return when you drop to 25 percent health for four, and a chance on melee hits to stun for 1 second with Dream Venom for all five. Every piece is blue. Four come from the Fanglords, the Gloves of the Fang drop from Druids of the Fang and can be traded.

• A serpent look for druidsBeta

  Beta players found that a druid wearing all five Embrace of the Viper pieces turns into a large serpent. Most reports say it is Cat Form only, one says every form. Blizzard has not commented and no item text mentions it.

• New quest rewardsBeta data

  Leaders of the Fang adds Hammerbone, a two-handed mace, as a third choice. Serpentbloom adds Heat Resistant Mitts for leather users and Safety Boots for mail users next to the Apothecary Gloves. Deviate Hides changed how it hands out the bag and the leggings, and it is not clear yet whether you now get both.

• Deviate Scale Belt pattern at 90Beta data

  Pattern: Deviate Scale Belt from Deviate Eradication needs Leatherworking 90 now instead of 115, so leatherworkers can use it while they are still in the dungeon's level range.

• Bigger numbers on two boss spellsBeta data

  Thundercrack from Mutanus shows 475 Nature damage and a 2.5 second stun on its tooltip, far more than in Classic. Skum's Chained Bolt shows 143 damage per target. The druid bosses heal about 8 to 13 percent less with Healing Touch. Nobody has reported yet whether the bosses really hit that hard in the beta.

• Less quest bonus, more kill experienceConfirmed

  Dungeon quests give a big experience bonus in Forever, and Blizzard halved that bonus on October 1. A beta player got 7700 experience for The Glowing Shard at level 18 before the cut and 5150 at level 20 after it. Since October 8 dungeon kills give about 20% more experience, and in a group your own level decides your kill experience, not the highest player in the party. One player far above the mobs' level still means no experience for anyone in the group.

• Serpentbloom snakes despawnConfirmed

  Picking Serpentbloom can spawn a snake. Since October 1 those snakes despawn after a couple of minutes instead of piling up around the nodes.

Location

Where is Wailing Caverns? Entrance and how to get there

The cave mouth is on the north side of Lushwater Oasis in the Barrens, south-west of the Crossroads, at about 46.0, 36.3. Its front looks like a giant serpent skull. Inside, an outer cave with Deviate beasts and a few rare elites winds to the instance portal at about 47.7, 35.0. Nalpak and Ebru stand in a small cave above the entrance with two quests for both factions.

Map and route

The route through the dungeon

5 areas, one path. Tap a stop to see what waits there.

1Screaming Gully2Pit of Fangs3Winding Chasm4Crag of the Everliving5Dreamer's Rock

1. Screaming Gully
2. Pit of Fangs
3. Winding Chasm
4. Crag of the Everliving
5. Dreamer's Rock

Area 1 of 5

Screaming Gully

Behind the portal the Disciple of Naralex waits near the start. Leave him for now. Elite Deviate raptors and Druids of the Fang guard the way through the Screaming Gully to Lady Anacondra, usually the first Fanglord you meet.

Boss here

• Lady Anacondra

Mobs here

• Deviate RavagerElite
• Deviate GuardianElite
• Druid of the FangElite

Area 2 of 5

Pit of Fangs

Lord Cobrahn and Lord Pythas hold the area around the Pit of Fangs. Cobrahn stands with three non-elite Deviate Pythons, Pythas with a Druid of the Fang and a Deviate Shambler. Kresh the turtle swims along the river and is optional. Their exact spots differ between guides.

Boss here

• Lord Cobrahn
• Kresh
• Lord Pythas

Mobs here

• Deviate Python
• Druid of the FangElite
• Deviate ShamblerElite

BetaSpot from beta reports, it can still change

Area 3 of 5

Winding Chasm

The twisting tunnels and the water caves below hold the optional fights. The rare Deviate Faerie Dragon spawns with two Druids of the Fang, Skum lurks in the water, and Evolving Ectoplasm drops the Wailing Essence for Smart Drinks. Mark the way you came, the tunnels look alike.

Boss here

• Deviate Faerie Dragon
• Skum

Mobs here

• Evolving EctoplasmElite
• Druid of the FangElite

BetaSpot from beta reports, it can still change

Area 4 of 5

Crag of the Everliving

Lord Serpentis, the last Fanglord, can be pulled on his own here. Verdan the Everliving stands on the crag behind him. Kill Verdan even though the event does not need him, in Classic his death opens a waterfall shortcut back to the start.

Boss here

• Lord Serpentis
• Verdan the Everliving

Area 5 of 5

Dreamer's Rock

With all four Fanglords dead, talk to the Disciple of Naralex at the start. He walks to Naralex on Dreamer's Rock, raptors and then snakes ambush you on the way, and the ritual brings three elite Deviate Moccasins, a swarm of Nightmare Ectoplasm and finally Mutanus.

Boss here

• Mutanus the Devourer

Mobs here

• Deviate MoccasinElite
• Nightmare Ectoplasm

Encounters

Boss roster

Main bosses8

1Boss 1 of 9

Lord Cobrahn

BossHumanoidLevel 20

5 abilities3 loot items

1Lord CobrahnBossLevel 20

Lord Cobrahn stands with three non-elite Deviate Pythons. He sleeps a player with Druid's Slumber, poisons the tank and later shifts into Cobrahn Serpent Form, which swings slower but much harder.

Abilities

• Poison · Inflicts Nature damage to an enemy every 3 sec. for 30 sec.
• Healing Touch · Heals a friendly target for (85.7% of Spell Power).
• Cobrahn Serpent Form · Shapeshifts into a serpent for 5 min., increasing attack damage and increasing the time between attacks by 43%.
• Druid's Slumber · Puts the enemy target to sleep for up to 15 sec. Any hostile action will awaken the target. Only one target can be slept at a time.
• Lightning Bolt · Blasts an enemy with lightning, inflicting Nature damage.

Tactics

• AoE the three Pythons down first, they have little health.
• Interrupt Druid's Slumber and Healing Touch.
• When he turns into a serpent he stops casting and starts hitting hard. The tooltip shows 238 extra attack damage, so the tank uses a cooldown then.

Tank

Pick up the Pythons and Cobrahn together, then save a defensive for Serpent Form.

Healer

Remove his Poison from the tank when you can, it ticks for 30 seconds.

Damage

Kill the Pythons, then switch and burn Cobrahn while he still casts.

Watch out for: The hard melee hits once he is in Serpent Form.

Adds

• Deviate Python ×3

Notable loot

• Robe of the Moccasin · Chest
• Leggings of the Fang · Legs
• Cobrahn's Grasp · Waist

2Boss 2 of 9

Lady Anacondra

BossHumanoidLevel 20

4 abilities4 loot items

2Lady AnacondraBossLevel 20

Lady Anacondra is usually the first of the four Fanglords. She is a caster with Sleep, Healing Touch, Lightning Bolt and Thorns Aura, and she drops a gem for Leaders of the Fang.

Abilities

• Sleep · Puts the enemy target to sleep for up to 20 sec. Any damage caused will awaken the target. Only one target can be asleep at a time.
• Healing Touch · Heals a friendly target for (71.4% of Spell Power).
• Thorns Aura · Causes Nature damage to any creature that strikes a nearby party member. Players may only have one aura on them per paladin at any one time. The aura lasts 1 min.
• Lightning Bolt · Blasts an enemy with lightning, inflicting Nature damage.

Tactics

• Clear the raptors and druids around her before the pull. In Classic, one Sleep is fine but two sleeps from her and an extra druid at once wipe groups.
• Kick Sleep first, Healing Touch second.
• Thorns Aura hurts melee that hit her, so healers keep an eye on the melee too, not just the tank.

Tank

Pull her away from any druid pack and keep her facing away from the group.

Healer

If you get slept, the tank needs a top up right after, so stay in range and pre-heal before a cast lands.

Damage

Agree on an interrupt order before the pull so every Sleep and Healing Touch gets kicked.

Watch out for: Two sleeps at once when an extra Druid of the Fang joins.

Notable loot

• Serpent's Shoulders · Shoulder
• Belt of the Fang · Waist
• Snake Eye Kaleidoscope · Neck
• Snakeskin Bag · Other

3Boss 3 of 9

Kresh

BossBeastLevel 20

3 loot items

3KreshBossLevel 20

Kresh is a big turtle that swims along the river. He is optional and a plain tank and spank with lots of armor, and he drops two shields and the new Cloak of Hermitic Bliss.

Tactics

• Fight him in the open. In Classic he could swim into the rocks and become hard to reach.
• His armor makes melee groups slow, so casters and wands speed this up.

Tank

Hold him where he stands, there is nothing to dodge.

Healer

Steady damage on the tank only.

Damage

Casters do the work here, melee just keep hitting.

Watch out for: Him pathing into the rocks mid fight.

Notable loot

• Worn Turtle Shell Shield · Shield
• Kresh's Back · Shield
• Cloak of Hermitic Bliss · Back

4Boss 4 of 9

Lord Pythas

BossHumanoidLevel 21

4 abilities3 loot items

4Lord PythasBossLevel 21

Lord Pythas brings a Druid of the Fang and a Deviate Shambler. He casts Sleep, Healing Touch and Lightning Bolt, and his Thunderclap slows everyone close to him.

Abilities

• Sleep · Puts the enemy target to sleep for up to 20 sec. Any damage caused will awaken the target. Only one target can be asleep at a time.
• Healing Touch · Heals a friendly target for (71.4% of Spell Power).
• Thunderclap · Inflicts Nature damage to nearby enemies, increasing the time between their attacks by 43% and slowing their movement by 40% for 10 sec.
• Lightning Bolt · Blasts an enemy with lightning, inflicting Nature damage.

Tactics

• CC the Druid of the Fang for the whole fight.
• Kill the Shambler first and interrupt its Wild Regeneration.
• Keep one player on Pythas the whole time to kick Sleep while the rest kill the Shambler.
• Thunderclap hits everyone nearby for Nature damage and slows attacks and movement for 10 seconds, so ranged stay out of melee range.

Tank

Hold Pythas and the Shambler together and face them away from the group.

Healer

Watch the CC on the druid, if it breaks you deal with two sleeps.

Damage

Shambler first, then Pythas, and never hit the CC'd druid.

Watch out for: The CC on his Druid of the Fang breaking.

Adds

• Druid of the Fang ×1 · Druid's Slumber: Puts the enemy target to sleep for up to 15 sec. Any hostile action will awaken the target. Only one target can be slept at a time. · Healing Touch: Heals a friendly target for (71.4% of Spell Power).
• Deviate Shambler ×1 · Wild Regeneration: Heals the caster for damage every 2 sec. for 20 sec.

Notable loot

• Armor of the Fang · Chest
• Stinging Viper · One-Hand
• Slither Cord · Waist

5Boss 5 of 9

Skum

BossBeastLevel 21

1 ability3 loot items

5SkumBossLevel 21

Skum is an optional thunder lizard in the water caves. His only real spell is Chained Bolt, but his loot makes him worth the detour, including the new Skum's Bucket.

Abilities

• Chained Bolt · Strikes an enemy with a lightning bolt that arcs to another nearby enemy. The spell affects up to 3 targets, causing Nature damage to each.

Tactics

• Chained Bolt jumps between up to three players. The tooltip shows 143 Nature damage per target, so melee spread around him.
• In Classic he runs away at low health. Slow or stun him so he does not pull more mobs.

Tank

Keep him still and turned so melee can stand apart.

Healer

Heal up after each Chained Bolt before the next one jumps.

Damage

Spread out and save a slow or stun for when he tries to flee.

Watch out for: Chained Bolt jumping through a stacked melee group.

Notable loot

• Tail Spike · One-Hand
• Glowing Lizardscale Cloak · Back
• Skum's Bucket · Held In Off-hand

6Boss 6 of 9

Lord Serpentis

BossHumanoidLevel 21

3 abilities4 loot items

6Lord SerpentisBossLevel 21

Lord Serpentis is the last of the four Fanglords and the easiest. He has no adds and casts Sleep, Healing Touch and Lightning Bolt.

Abilities

• Sleep · Puts the enemy target to sleep for up to 20 sec. Any damage caused will awaken the target. Only one target can be asleep at a time.
• Healing Touch · Heals a friendly target for (100% of Spell Power).
• Lightning Bolt · Blasts an enemy with lightning, inflicting Nature damage.

Tactics

• Pull him on his own after you clear the area.
• Kick Sleep and Healing Touch, and the fight is over quickly.

Tank

Pull him away from the next packs and hold him there.

Healer

Nothing special, just watch for Sleep on yourself.

Damage

Keep a kick ready for when the main interrupter is asleep.

Watch out for: Healing Touch going off when nobody has an interrupt ready.

Notable loot

• Footpads of the Fang · Feet
• Serpent Gloves · Hands
• Savage Trodders · Feet
• Venomstrike · Ranged

7Boss 7 of 9

Verdan the Everliving

BossElementalLevel 21

1 ability3 loot items

7Verdan the EverlivingBossLevel 21

Verdan the Everliving is a big elemental on the Crag of the Everliving. The event does not need him, but he drops a staff, a shield and a cloak worth having.

Abilities

• Grasping Vines · Inflicts Physical damage to nearby enemies, knocking them down and immobilizing them for 10 sec.

Tactics

• Grasping Vines hits everyone close to him, knocks them down and roots them for 10 seconds. Ranged and healers stand at max range.
• Once you are rooted, you cannot move away, so take your spot before the pull.

Tank

Find your spot before the first Vines and stay there.

Healer

Stand at max range so the Vines never reach you, and heal the melee through it.

Damage

Ranged at max range, melee accept the roots and keep hitting.

Watch out for: Healers standing close enough to get rooted.

Notable loot

• Seedcloud Buckler · Shield
• Living Root · Two-Hand
• Sporid Cape · Back

8Boss 8 of 9Final boss

Mutanus the Devourer

BossHumanoidLevel 22

3 abilities3 loot items

8Mutanus the DevourerBossLevel 22

Mutanus the Devourer is the final boss. He only appears at the end of the Naralex event, after the escort and two waves of adds, and he tries to kill the Disciple. Killing him is what counts for the Novice Spelunker achievement.

Abilities

• Terrify · Terrifies an enemy, causing it to flee in fear for 4 sec. Only 1 target can be terrified at a time.
• Naralex's Nightmare · Puts the enemy target to sleep for up to 15 sec. Any hostile action will awaken the target. Only one target can be slept at a time.
• Thundercrack · Inflicts Nature damage to nearby enemies, stunning them for 2.5 sec.

Tactics

• Talk to the Disciple of Naralex at the start once all four Fanglords are dead, then escort him to Dreamer's Rock.
• Thundercrack hits everyone close to him. The tooltip shows 475 Nature damage and a 2.5 second stun, so ranged and healers stay well away.
• Terrify fears one player for 4 seconds and Naralex's Nightmare sleeps one player for up to 15 seconds. Have a backup healer or potions ready.
• If the Disciple dies, the event fails and you need a reset and all four Fanglords again.

Tank

Grab him the second he spawns and turn him away from the Disciple.

Healer

Stand at max range, out of Thundercrack, and watch the tank during your own sleep.

Damage

Ranged do the heavy lifting here, melee use cooldowns and potions to survive the stuns.

Watch out for: Thundercrack stunning the melee and the tank at once.

Adds

• Deviate Moccasin ×3

Notable loot

• Slime-encrusted Pads · Shoulder
• Deep Fathom Ring · Finger
• Mutant Scale Breastplate · Chest

Rare spawns1

9Boss 9 of 9Rare spawn

Deviate Faerie Dragon

Rare spawnDragonkinLevel 20

2 loot items

9Deviate Faerie DragonRare spawnLevel 20

The Deviate Faerie Dragon is a rare elite that does not spawn in every run. It has no special spells but comes in a pull of four elites with two Druids of the Fang, and it drops the Firebelcher wand and the Feyscale Cloak.

Tactics

• CC one druid, kill the other first and kick its sleeps.
• Then burn the dragon. It has low armor and hits hard.
• The tank takes hits from three elites, so hybrids help with heals.

Tank

Hold the dragon and the free druid together.

Healer

Expect heavy tank damage at the start of the pull.

Damage

Focus one target at a time and do not break the CC.

Watch out for: Druid's Slumber on the healer while the tank holds three elites.

Adds

• Druid of the Fang ×2 · Druid's Slumber: Puts the enemy target to sleep for up to 15 sec. Any hostile action will awaken the target. Only one target can be slept at a time. · Healing Touch: Heals a friendly target for (71.4% of Spell Power).

Notable loot

• Firebelcher · Ranged
• Feyscale Cloak · Back

Trash

Dangerous trash and diseases

Most wipes here start before a boss. These are the packs and effects to respect.

• Druids of the Fang

  The pack that wipes groups. Druid's Slumber puts one player to sleep for up to 15 seconds, often the healer, and they heal each other with Healing Touch. Fight one druid at a time, CC the rest and kick every Slumber. Once they shift into Serpent Form they cannot cast for 10 seconds, so that is your window to burn them. They also drop the Gloves of the Fang.

  
  • Druid of the FangElite
  • Druid's Slumber
  • Healing Touch
  • Lightning Bolt
  • Serpent Form

• Shamblers and Lashers

  Deviate Shamblers cast Wild Regeneration, a big heal over 20 seconds. Interrupt it or kill the Shambler first. Deviate Lashers hit everything in a cone in front of them, so the tank turns them away from the group.

  
  • Deviate ShamblerElite
  • Deviate Lasher
  • Wild Regeneration
  • Wide Slash

• Deviate wind serpents

  Deviate Dreadfangs fear one player for 4 seconds with Terrify, which can send him into the next pack. Venomwings spit Nature damage from range. Pull them back around a corner so they come to you. A shaman's Tremor Totem helps.

  
  • Deviate DreadfangElite
  • Deviate VenomwingElite
  • Terrify
  • Toxic Spit

• Poison snakes

  Deviate Vipers stack Localized Toxin for a minute and Deviate Adders a 30 second poison. Several stacks on the tank add up fast, so bring poison removal or anti-venom. The non-elite Pythons near Lord Cobrahn die to a bit of AoE.

  
  • Deviate ViperElite
  • Deviate AdderElite
  • Deviate Python
  • Localized Toxin
  • Poison

• The Naralex ritual

  Three elite Deviate Moccasins come first, then a swarm of non-elite Nightmare Ectoplasm. Everything goes for the Disciple, so the tank grabs the Moccasins and the damage dealers AoE the slimes off him before Mutanus shows up.

  
  • Deviate MoccasinElite
  • Nightmare Ectoplasm

Quests

Wailing Caverns quests

Wailing Caverns has 11 quests: ten for the Horde and six for the Alliance, five of them shared by both factions. Most can be taken from level 13 to 15 and are level 17 to 22, The Glowing Shard chain goes up to 26. Blizzard halved the extra experience of dungeon quests on October 1, so the experience still moves in the beta and is left out below.

Loot

Loot table

Every boss drop and every quest reward of the dungeon. Hover an item for its stats.

Almost every boss drop is blue now. Leather users get the most with the Embrace of the Viper set and the Serpent's Shoulders. Mail users get Cobrahn's Grasp, Savage Trodders and the Mutant Scale Breastplate, casters the Robe of the Moccasin, Serpent Gloves and Slime-encrusted Pads, and tanks three shields. Short on evenings to farm these drops? A booked WoW Forever dungeon run with a booster team takes you through Wailing Caverns without the group search.

All40Cloth6Leather7Mail6Weapons9Rings, cloaks, off-hands11Blueprints and recipes1

Item	Slot	Source	Req.
Robe of the Moccasin	Chest · Cloth	Lord Cobrahn	17
Leggings of the Fang	Legs · Leather	Lord Cobrahn	17
Cobrahn's Grasp	Waist · Mail	Lord Cobrahn	17
Serpent's Shoulders	Shoulder · Leather	Lady Anacondra	18
Belt of the Fang	Waist · Leather	Lady Anacondra	16
Snake Eye Kaleidoscope	Neck	Lady Anacondra	17
Snakeskin Bag	Other	Lady Anacondra	–
Worn Turtle Shell Shield	Shield	Kresh	16
Kresh's Back	Shield	Kresh	18
Cloak of Hermitic Bliss	Back	Kresh	17
Armor of the Fang	Chest · Leather	Lord Pythas	18
Stinging Viper	One-Hand	Lord Pythas	19
Slither Cord	Waist · Cloth	Lord Pythas	17
Tail Spike	One-Hand	Skum	17
Glowing Lizardscale Cloak	Back	Skum	18
Skum's Bucket	Held In Off-hand	Skum	17
Footpads of the Fang	Feet · Leather	Lord Serpentis	17
Serpent Gloves	Hands · Cloth	Lord Serpentis	18
Savage Trodders	Feet · Mail	Lord Serpentis	18
Venomstrike	Ranged	Lord Serpentis	19
Seedcloud Buckler	Shield	Verdan the Everliving	19
Living Root	Two-Hand	Verdan the Everliving	18
Sporid Cape	Back	Verdan the Everliving	17
Slime-encrusted Pads	Shoulder · Cloth	Mutanus the Devourer	20
Deep Fathom Ring	Finger	Mutanus the Devourer	19
Mutant Scale Breastplate	Chest · Mail	Mutanus the Devourer	18
Firebelcher	Ranged	Deviate Faerie Dragon	18
Feyscale Cloak	Back	Deviate Faerie Dragon	16
Slick Deviate Leggings	Legs · Leather	Deviate Hides	13
Pattern: Deviate Scale Belt	Recipe	Deviate Eradication	–
Sizzle Stick	Ranged	Deviate Eradication	15
Dagmire Gauntlets	Hands · Mail	Deviate Eradication	15
Talbar Mantle	Shoulder · Cloth	In Nightmares	–
Quagmire Galoshes	Feet · Mail	In Nightmares	–
Crescent Staff	Two-Hand	Leaders of the Fang	10
Wingblade	Main Hand	Leaders of the Fang	10
Hammerbone	Two-Hand	Leaders of the Fang	10
Apothecary Gloves	Hands · Cloth	Serpentbloom	15
Heat Resistant Mitts	Hands · Leather	Serpentbloom	14
Safety Boots	Feet · Mail	Serpentbloom	14

Beta drop chances come from a handful of kills and are left out until the sample is bigger.

Collect

Achievements, Pet families and Classes from Wailing Caverns

Before you go

Before you go

• Bring interrupts and CCFive bosses and every Druid of the Fang cast sleeps. Rogues, warriors and shamans with a kick, and a mage, hunter or warlock for CC, make the druid pulls safe.
• Bring poison removalVipers and Adders stack long poisons on the tank, and Lord Cobrahn adds his own. A druid, shaman or paladin, or a stack of anti-venom, saves a lot of healing.
• Collect the quests firstHorde quests start at the Crossroads, in Thunder Bluff and in Ratchet, Alliance ones in Ratchet. Nalpak and Ebru stand right above the entrance for both factions.
• Plan for the eventRest to full and drink up before you talk to the Disciple. A group with two or three ranged damage dealers has the easiest time with Mutanus.

• Ranged and healers stay at max range on Verdan and Mutanus. Both punish anyone close.
• Hunters who want Kresh as a pet can tame him. Beta players report that a fresh Kresh spawns for the group's loot.
• Keep your Glowing Shard. The follow-up gives a blue shoulder or boots choice for both factions.

FAQ

Questions players ask

Sources

Sources

• Blizzard: WoW Forever beta development notes, October 1Confirmed
• Wowhead · Forever beta databaseBeta data
• Warcraft Wiki · Classic referenceClassic
• Run time and difficulty are editorial estimates by mmonster.