Welcome to the WoW TWW 11.1 Season 2 Gearing Up Guide! In this article, we'll break down cstrategies to optimize your progression. The insights shared here come from SoulSoBreezy's detailed YouTube video, where he covered various aspects of the gearing process. Whether you're a seasoned player or just starting your journey, this guide aims to make your gearing experience as smooth and effective as possible. Let's dive in! If you need World of Warcraft The War Within gold in your gearing-up journey, welcome to MmoGah. Having been in the market for nearly two decades, we can be your best option.
Valorstone Farming: A Necessary Side Activity
Valorstone farming is a lane that many players will toggle between. Here are two basic tips:
1. Accept that Valorstones is an important part of the progression. Even though gear progression is easier and more consistent, these side activities are a necessary part of the process.
2. Prioritize how you spend Valorstones and crests. Consider these tips:
- Spend Valorstones to upgrade at least Hero gear or Champion gear.
- Use Valorstones to create crafting Sparks.
- Avoid spending Valorstones on upgrades unless you're close to capping. Many players waste resources upgrading gear they'll replace within a couple of nights. Instead, save resources for more worthwhile upgrades.
Where to Get Valorstones: All the old sources are still valid, meaning pretty much everything you do will net you some Valorstones. With the new zone in Season 2, there are even more opportunities:
- Complete Scrap Heap events and Shipping and Handling jobs for good rewards on top of Weekly Cashes.
- As you gain renown, you can complete the C.H.E.T.T list for quick Valorstone income, which is good for alts.
- The highest-level Delves reward the best Valorstones for time spent. A full delve completion can reward you with 65 Valor Stones, depending on the mobs and Nemesis packs inside.
Raiding: Straightforward but Rewarding
Raiding offers one of the most straightforward gearing lanes. At the start of the season, all raid difficulties are open, including Mythic and Raid Finder. Note that Raid Finder difficulty is split into four wings, and the item level requirement to queue up is 606—roughly equivalent to max-level Veteran gear or mid-tier Champion gear from Season 1.
- Week 1 will feel slow as only two bosses are available, and there are plenty of other sources for Veteran gear to be found.
- You can expect high throughput from progression-minded players jumping across all lanes for the fastest gearing possible.
- Expect similar item-level progression as the raid clears. The final two bosses award crests for the current difficulty and the next highest difficulty, helping you complete your Veteran gear sets.
The Creation Catalyst should work in the same way it did in Season 1. You'll get one charge in week 1, with another available every other week. You can hold on to these charges and use them to complete 2- or 4-set bonuses.
Mythic Plus Dungeons: A New Sweet Spot
Season 2 introduces changes to Mythic Plus dungeons, especially Mythic Zero dungeons, which now drop Champion gear and Carved Crests. The weekly lockout has returned, and you'll see a steady increase in crest income as the season progresses.
- Champion Gear Farming: Mythic Zeros are a great place to farm Champion gear. You can also keep running twos and threes to collect hero gear from the Vault.
- The Sweet Spot: The real sweet spot for progression will be Plus 7 keys. Clearing these will give you a chance for level 1 hero gear, level 4 hero gear from the Vault, and gilded crests. Plus 7 keys offer the fastest way to gear at this level, and these dungeons will be a mainstay for players pushing towards Mythic track gear.
At Plus 7, you'll be dealing with affixes like Fortified or Tyrannical, but with an increased penalty at Plus 12. These will be your go-to keys for earning gilded crests to craft gear or upgrade your hero gear.
Delves: New Opportunities for Solo Players
Delves are undergoing significant changes in Season 2, especially at higher tiers. The curios we earned in Season 1 are being replaced, and new curios will power up our gear.
- Tier 8 Delves: While the gear level has dropped to level 1 hero gear, these delves remain a key target for solo players.
- Bountiful Delves: Clearing a Tier 11 Bountiful delve with lives remaining will reward you with a gilded chest containing 7 gilded crests. You can loot this chest three times a week for up to 21 gilded crests.
- Delver's Bounty: The Bounty now has a higher chance of dropping, and the tier it drops from doesn't matter. If you get it from a Tier 11 delve, you'll score an additional 10 gilded crests.
- This makes Delves an excellent source of Rune and Gilded Crests, especially for solo players who want to gear up without participating in raids or Mythic dungeons.
Crafting: A Vital Part of Progression
Crafting isn't exactly a gameplay lane, but it's a crucial component of gearing in Season 2. With Mythic Plus and Delves dropping gilded crests at a faster rate, crafting becomes more viable.
Gilded Crests: As you farm delves, you'll collect up to 31 gilded crests per week. This allows you to craft high-level gear without entering raids or dungeons. Over time, you'll be able to trade in your runed crests for more gilded ones, which will help you progress even faster.
However, crafting decisions aren't straightforward. Raids drop special weapons with cantrip effects, which deal damage over time. These effects stack and never expire, but they don't seem particularly useful outside of raids, especially since the damage is currently low.
For hardcore players, crafting PvP weapons (if the quest is repeated) might be a strong option. These can provide a good first weapon to get a solid start.
Gearing Notes
Achievement Changes: The achievement rewards for completing AOTC (Ahead of the Curve), Keystone Master, and Gladiator have changed. These no longer grant a token for heroic tier gear but instead reward a Catalyst charge. This shift will have a different impact depending on your playstyle:
- Top Players: Top players in any lane might feel a loss of control over their gearing speed as the Catalyst charge introduces a slower, more long-term approach. However, it does allow the creation of a Mythic tier set piece, which will be a more substantial boon over time rather than an immediate boost.
- Casual Players: Those who jump across every lane for gear may not notice this change too much. They'll still earn plenty of gear overall and can save certain pieces to use their extra Catalyst charge on. Casual players often don't get much use out of these achievements since they might already have equivalent gear from other activities.
Optimal Gearing Path for Progression-focused Players
If you're the type to jump between different lanes for efficient gearing, here's an optimal progression route when Season 2 kicks off.
- Raid Finder: Start here for a chance at veteran gear and tier pieces. Complete the weekly quests for four Pinnacle chests, as well as the equivalent gear drops.
- PvP: If available, complete the season starter PvP quest and craft whatever gear you need for your setup as you go along.
- Non-Bountiful Delves: Progress to Tier 8, then start using Bountiful Keys for additional rewards. If you get a Delver's Bounty, save it until you can clear tier 11 delves with lives remaining for max gilded crests and chests.
- Mythic Plus: Once you've knocked out your raid weekly and completed other activities, dive into Mythic Plus dungeons to get closer to Plus 7 keys, which drop valuable gear and gilded crests.
- Be Selective When Applying Gear Upgrades: Spend Valorstones on what you'll hold onto for a few weeks. Focus on upgrading items that are at least Champion gear or higher.
- Gilded Crest Strategy: Save your gilded crests for best-in-slot gear or crafted gear upgrades. Replacing pieces as you earn Mythic-tier gear is key.
