WoW Zone by Zone Achievement Guide Part 5: The Plaguelands and Scholomance

Welcome to ZAGGARAT ( Jetsai’s Zone-by-Zone Achievement Guide for Getting Across the Realm with Alliance Toons), a comprehensive zone by zone guide to wrapping up every achievement you need. You can view all instalments by clicking here. The printer and screen friendly guides can be downloaded at the bottom of this post.

This week’s ZAGGARAT takes us to the Plaguelands where we first meet the Argent Dawn and Argent Crusade. This region also presents the first at-level dungeon with achievements – Scholomance.

I have to admit I used to hate both the Plaguelands. Apart from being drab and in desperate need of Zap Beezlerocket’s Interdimensional Cobweb Cleaner, they were awfully grindy and extremely difficult to move about in unaccosted. Install a beach, equip each of the mobs with a selection of bead jewellery or teach them how to braid hair and you’d have yourself a tropical holiday but Blizzard chose a different path when revamping these zones and they did a pretty good job.

Both Plaguelands are now cut-scene central. Lore-buffs will appreciate a personal introduction to Highlord Tirion Fordring and the story around Andorhol in Western Plaguelands has been condensed, tarted up with some cut-scenes and is much easier to follow. Those of you who are just after Blighted Plaguehawk will have to /popcorn while you quest as these zone-excusive battle pets aren’t available until after Andorhal is phased.

Eastern Plaguelands is tied together through the story of Fiona’s Caravan, with Gidwin and Tarenar providing all the quintessential elements of an epic Dwarf meets Blood Elf tale – friendship, paladin humour, tragedy, betrayal, ultimate reunion and a serious amount of rep with Argent Dawn.

In fact, you get Revered about half-way through the zone. A few repeatable quests later, one of which can be done in Heroic Scholomance and you’re Exalted.

Stratholme, surprisingly, still has a lot to offer achievement hunters. You need to do both live and dead sides to get Stratholme and credit toward Classic Dungeonmaster but the live side offers four books for Well Read and a repeatable quest for 2000 Argent Dawn Rep. Aurius Riverdare, on the dead side, has a chance to drop his gorgeous… er, I mean… very manly, Deathcharger.

Scholomance is where it’s all at, though, with some of the easiest and one of the hardest achievements to get your Reins of the Crimson Cloud Serpent. Shouts go to lancore89 of wowhead who developed some macros that have made Attention to Detail very much easier as well as any healer that has managed to retain their sanity after completing School’s Out Forever. Also don’t forget to grab a full supply of disguises for Polyformic Acid Science completed throughout the rest of Panda’s dungeons and The Invasion of Draenor from Lilian Voss’ room in either Heroic or Normal for Well Read as this is the only place you’ll find this book in the game now.

Download the screen-friendly version here

Download the printer-friendly version here

(Editor’s note: I just wanted to say what an amazing feat Jemima has pulled off with these Zaggarat guides – if you find them as incredibly useful as I have already, please use the donate link below – proceeds will be forwarded onto Jem for her work)