Excavation Site
Raptors in the grass, Dragonmaw on the cliffs, and a Titan guardian at the top.
An outdoor-style dungeon with four bosses (three drop loot). The biggest danger is what hides in the tall grass. Runs take 20 to 35 minutes.
Get ready
Getting there
Near Dun Algaz, at the foot of the mountain you climb to get in. Look for the meeting stone. Alliance comes from Thelsamar or Menethil Harbor; Horde has a longer walk from Hammerfall in Arathi.
Zone: Wetlands, above Whelgar's Excavation, near Dun Algaz
Grab these quests
- Alliance: Songblade Search (Lakeshire), Lost in the Thicket (Menethil), Highland Hides (after Young Crocolisk Skins), Horrors in the Highland (the Greenwarden's chain).
- Horde: Changing Tastes (Borstan, Orgrimmar) and Open the Maw (Deathstalker Agent in the Wetlands, from Dragonmaw Rumors in Hammerfall).
- Both: Lost Relic Carry and Elder Knowledge, from the Relic Guardian inside.
Who and what to bring
- Tremor Totem or Fear Ward for Shadetooth.
- Someone who can cleanse disease and poison.
- A Paladin helps: Blessing of Freedom breaks Nets.
What's new here
Brand new in WoW Forever
This dungeon has no Classic version, so there are no old guides for it. What's here comes from the beta and the first weeks of Forever. Blizzard is still tuning it, so check your tooltips.
Quest XP
Dungeon quests below level 40 pay extra XP in Forever. The 1 October build cut that bonus in half, but the quests are still worth picking up before you go in.
Mob XP
Dungeon mobs give about a third of their Classic XP. Quests are where the XP is. If anyone in the group is far above the mobs' level, nobody gets XP for those kills.
Group Finder
In Forever, Group Finder is a listing board, not a queue, and meeting stones don't summon. A Warlock and two other players can cast Ritual of Summoning at the stone.
Boss by boss
Saltspine
Crocolisk, patrols the lake edge- Dust Storm: Cuts the tank's threat a lot.
- Fatal Bite / Tendon Rip: Hard bites; Tendon Rip slows.
- Don't pull him with other mobs. Wait for his patrol to come to you.
- DPS go easy for a few seconds after Dust Storm so the tank keeps him.
Supple Bellyskin LeggingsShadetooth
Raptor, patrols the raptor path with two Thicket Hunters- Terrifying Roar: Fears you, often into hidden packs in the grass.
- Rend: A bleed on the tank, about 77 every 3 seconds.
- Enrage at 20%: 30% faster attacks and more damage.
- Bring Tremor Totem or Fear Ward. Without one, clear the grass first so a fear can't run you into a pack.
- Save cooldowns for the last 20%.
Garb of Florid Feathers
Raptor's GazeHighland Horror
Alliance quest boss, no loot- Entangling Roots: Roots a player in place.
- Wild Regeneration: Heals himself.
- Don't pull the slimes around him by accident.
- Kill him quickly (interrupt the heal) and loot the Horrible Rootcore for the quest.
Relic Guardian
Titan construct, activate it at the Titan Control Panel- Thunderclap: Slows attack speed nearby.
- Arcing Smash: A frontal cleave.
- Knockaway: Knocks the tank back and cuts threat.
- War Stomp: Knocks back and stuns everyone close.
- He becomes level 31, so expect more misses and dodges. Give the tank a few seconds.
- Turn him away from the group, and keep ranged out of War Stomp range.
- He can be stunned and slowed. If it goes wrong, a Hunter or Shaman can kite him (Concussive Shot, Earthbind Totem).
Golemsight Long Gun
Reliquary Mantle
Ring of Power RegulationTrash that can wipe you
| Mob | What to do |
|---|---|
| Young Riptooth raptors | Packs of three with Fatal Bite. Kill them one at a time. |
| Thicket Lurkers and Stalkers | Packs of three hidden in the tall grass. Walk carefully. |
| Thicket Hunters | Infected Wound: a disease that makes you take more damage. Cleanse it. |
| Dragonmaw Saboteurs | Throw bombs at an area. Step out when they channel. |
| Dragonmaw Warders | Mortal Strike (half healing) and Net (10-second root). |
| Dragonmaw Thaumaturgists | Immolate and Curse of Weakness. Kill their fire elemental first. |
| Highland Lurkers and spiders | Poison and the Highland Venom disease. Cleanse both quickly. |
Run it better
Mind the grass
Hidden packs are the number one wipe here. The tank leads; everyone else follows the same path.
Don't AoE the raptors
Raptors come in threes and hit hard. Focus them down one by one.
Good drops
Raptor's Gaze (off-hand), the Golemsight Long Gun and Ring of Power Regulation are worth a look.
The Guardian is the test
Start him at full mana. If the tank is struggling, stun him and reset threat.
Let Bonkr Compass+ call your buttons
Boss fights go smoother when you're not thinking about your rotation. Build one on the portal's Rotations page and Compass+ shows the next button to press, so you can watch the floor instead.
Loot lists come from WoW Forever's own game data, through the open-source WoW Forever simulator, and are checked for changes every week (last checked 2026-11-09). "New" and "Changed" tags show for 30 days. Hover an item for its WoW Forever stats; click it for Wowhead, which shows Classic's numbers.