Of all of World of Warcraft: Forever’s new dungeons, Excavation Site: Wetlands could very well be the shortest. It’s also one of the sweetest for lore-heads, owing to its links to the Dragonmaw Clan, Titans, and more. This self-contained safari won’t take particularly long to clear, but whether you’re Alliance or Horde it’s well worth venturing through.
Our Excavation Site: Wetlands guide will give you all the info you’ll ever need to navigate its danger-filled paths — believe us, you’ll want to go in fully prepared. Below you’ll find not only directions for getting to the dungeon, but all of the quests you can clear (including their breadcrumbs), bosses you can beat, and loot you can fill your boots (or bags) with. While you can pick up all of the quests by the time you ding level 24, we’d recommend waiting until at least level 26 before heading in, based on the difficulty of its major encounters.
How to get to Excavation Site: Wetlands
Excavation Site: Wetlands is located by Thelgen Rock in the southern Wetlands.
Alliance players will have the easiest time getting to the dungeon, seeing as they can take the rotating ship between Auberdine in Darkshire, Southshore in Hillsbrad Foothills, and Menethil Harbor in the Wetlands itself. If you’re coming from Stormwind, first take the ship from the harbor to Auberdine, then switch over to the vessel which follows the listed route. Simply hop off at Menethil Harbor, and make the run across the Wetlands to the east before following the path down to the south. There’s a good chance you already have the flight path in Menethil Harbor if you’ve been questing in the region, which makes travel considerably easier.
For the Horde, it’s slightly more complex. You’ll need to first get into the Hillsbrad Foothills via Silverpine Forest, before following the path through the Arathi Highlands down into the Wetlands. The Highlands aren’t particularly dangerous despite it being a level 30-40 area, provided you stick to the road and keep your wits about you for roaming mobs.
Once you’re in the southern Wetlands, you’ll spot a cave entrance on your map just above Dun Algaz (this is Thelgen Rock). Don’t enter the cave, but instead follow the path just to the south of it upwards into the camp (in the above screenshot you can see Thelgen Rock on your right, and the way up to the dungeon on the left). There’s a meeting stone at the base of the trail, so it’s easy to tell you’re on the right track.
Excavation Site: Wetlands Map
Excavation Site: Wetlands feels surprisingly large considering it’s only a three-boss instance. It’s also easy to get overwhelmed by how densely-populated it is with mobs, even though it’s super linear. The Lost Marsh is the biggest culprit, owing to its breadth. However, you can cut straight through the middle of it, sticking to the islands to maintain your sense of direction.
From there, it’s a smooth cruise through the Stalker’s Thicket, Lost Dig Site, and finally the Site of the Guardian. After felling the final boss, you can drop down the hill behind it, cutting out the need to traverse all the way back.
If there’s one piece of advice you should follow it’s this: don’t walk through the tall grass in Stalker’s Thicket. Doing so has the chance to spawn more mobs, which can lead to absolute chaos and, at worst, a group wipe. Pathways are safe; we like safe. We’ll talk about that a little more in depth when discussing the raptor boss, Shadetooth, later on in this guide.
As we’ve recommended before, Atlas is a cracking addon if you want to keep an eye on the dungeon map in-game. Just remember to install the Kalimdor & Eastern Kingdoms map pack so it’ll show up.
Excavation Site: Wetlands Quests
There are five Alliance and three Horde quests in Excavation Site: Wetlands. Some have breadcrumb tasks as a pre-requisite, while some of the quest items found during your clear will lead to other objectives. As always, detailed gear descriptions can be found in the loot section of this guide.
Alliance Quests
| Quest | Start location | Info | Rewards |
| Highland Hides | James Halloran, Menethil Harbor, Wetlands (8.6, 55.7) |
Bring four Thicket Raptor Hides back to James.
Prerequisite: Complete ‘Young Crocolisk Skin,’ which is also given by James. Level 24, Shareable |
1,150 XP 12 Silver 50 Stormwind Reputation |
| Horrors in the Highland | Rethiel the Greenwarden, Wetlands (56.35, 40.2) |
Kill a Highland Horror and bring its Horrible Rootcore to Rethiel.
Prerequisites: Level 24, Shareable |
6,150 XP One of: Ironwood Destroyer, Curl of Life, or Hornbeam Heft |
| Lost in the Thicket Things | Caitlin Grassman, Menethil Harbor, Wetlands (11.8, 58.6) |
Learn what happened to Ardin Grassman.
Prerequisite: Complete ‘Seeking Caitlin,’ given by Llana in Astranaar, Ashenvale (35, 48.6) Unlocks: ‘Heartwoven,’ given by Ardin inside the dungeon. Level 24, Shareable |
4,900 XP |
| Heartwoven | Ardin Grassman, Excavation Site: Wetlands | Return to Caitlin Grassman in Menethil Harbor with the Reed-woven Heart Ardin gives you.
Prerequisite: ‘Lost in the Thicket Things’ Level 24, Unshareable |
6,150 XP One of: 4x Greater Healing Potion or 4x Mana Potion Swiftness Potion Satchel of Potions |
| Lost Relic Carry | Looted from Relic Guardian, Excavation Site: Wetlands | Bring the Titan Relic to Prospector Whelgar in the Wetlands excavation site.
Unlocks: Prehistoric Prism, given by Prospector Whelgar, Wetlands (38.8, 52.2) Level 24, Unshareable |
1,250 XP |
| Prehistoric Prism | Prospector Whelgar, Wetlands (38.8, 52.2) |
Bring the Titan Relic to High Explorer Magellas in Ironforge’s Hall of Explorers.
Prerequisite: ‘Lost Relic Carry’ Level 24, Unshareable |
6,950 XP 60 Silver One of: Explorer’s League Dustcover, Heavehammer, or Healer’s Staff |
| Songblade Search | Dorin Songblade, Lakeshire, Redridge Mountains (25.8, 46.5) |
Look for Dorin Songblade’s brother, Daewyn.
Unlocks: ‘Fallen in the Fen,’ procced by completing the quest. Level 24, Unshareable |
6,150 XP |
| Fallen in the Fen | Daewyn’s corpse, Excavation Site: Wetlands | Return to Dorin Songblade in Lakeshire.
Prerequisite: ‘Songblade Search’ Level 24, Unshareable |
6,150 XP One of: Daewyn’s Girdle or Songblade Stabilizer |
As you can see, you’re going to need to lay some groundwork before you can pick up and reap the benefits of the Alliance quests in the Wetlands dungeon. For the most part, it’s a simple case of ‘speak to person, go to location,’ but Horrors in the Highland will require some light slaughter as you clear Rethiel’s myriad tasks. Still, it’s good XP, and you don’t need to go far for these pre-reqs, so it’s very much worth doing.
To offer a quick summary of how to clear everything: Thicket Raptor Hides are simply looted from the various dinos that you’ll come across in the second part of the dungeon. Ardin Grassman is found up on one of the wooden battlements next to the final boss, the Relic Guardian (which you’ll then defeat for the Titan Relic). The Highland Horror is chilling in the right-hand side of the Lost Dig Site as you enter the area. Poor Daewyn, meanwhile, is at the back of the dig site, marked with a ‘?’ on your minimap.
You’ll also notice that there are a few follow-up quests that come out of the dungeon. Heartwoven rewards you with the Satchel of Potions trinket, which will likely be your first-in-slot. Prehistoric Prism, meanwhile, yields some excellent blue gear options. Heavehammer is a must-have for Feral Druids, Healer’s Staff is perfect for the magically minded, and multiple classes can benefit from the Explorer’s League Dustcover. The best part is all you have to do is bring the Titan Relic to High Explorer Magellas in Ironforge’s Hall of Explorers — easy win.
Fallen in the Fen isn’t as exciting as the other two rewards-wise, but simply heading back to Dorin in Lakeshire nets you another 6,150 XP, as well as a green of choice — the Songblade Stabilizer gives dodge chance, so for mail-wearing tanks it’s not a bad pickup.
Horde Quests
| Quest | Start location | Info | Rewards |
| Changing Tastes | Borstan, The Drag, Orgrimmar (57.4, 53.3) |
Bring four Thicket Raptor Meat to Borstan.
Level 24, Shareable |
6,950 XP One of: Satchel of Potions or Serrated Raptor Claw Recipe: Twice-Spiced Raptor Slice 5x Twice-Spiced Raptor Slice |
| Elder Knowledge | Looted from Relic Guardian, Excavation Site: Wetlands | Bring the Titan Relic to Bashana Runetotem in Thunder Bluff, Mulgore.
Unlocks: Earthen Echo, given by Bashana Level 24, Unshareable |
1,400 XP |
| Earthen Echo | Bashana Runetotem, Thunder Bluff, Mulgore (70.8, 33.8) |
Bring the Titan Relic to Muln Earthfury in Skywatcher Plateau, Mulgore.
Prerequisite: ‘Elder Knowledge’ Level 24, Unshareable |
6,950 XP 60 Silver One of: Heavehammer, Healer’s Staff, or Fursts of the Earthen Ring |
| Open the Maw | Deathstalker Agent, hill outside Excavation Site: Wetlands, Wetlands (51.5, 59.2) |
Slay two Dragonmaw Saboteurs, four Dragonmaw Warders, and retrieve the Dragonmaw Dispatch for the Deathstalker Agent.
Prerequisite: Complete ‘Dragonmaw Rumors,’ given by Zaruk, Hammerfall, Arathi Highlands Level 24, Shareable |
6,950 XP One of: Knife-Polishing Rag or Dirt-Heavy Bracers Bloody Map |
The Horde quests are nice and simple. Thicket Raptor Meat can be looted from any of the raptors in Stalker’s Thicket. The Dragonmaw enemies can all be found at the Lost Dig Site, while the Dragonmaw Dispatch has a chance of dropping from a Dragonmaw Thaumaturgist. Basically, leave nothing alive. Finally, best the Relic Guardian and the Titan Relic will be yours.
As with the Alliance Titan Relic questline, clearing Elder Knowledge’s follow-up, Earthen Echo, is well worth the short run up to Skywatcher Plateau. Likewise with Prehistoric Prism, you’ll get the choice of three blues: Heavehammer, Healer’s Staff, and Furs of the Earthen Ring. As noted in the Alliance section, Heavehammer is amazing for Feral Druids, while Healer’s Staff is a great choice for any mage. The Furs of the Earthen Ring, meanwhile, offers the same Strength/Intelligence/Spirit spread as the Explorer’s League Dustcover, making it a great cloak for a slew of classes.
Excavation Site: Wetlands Bosses
There are only three bosses in Excavation Site: Wetlands: Saltspine, Shadetooth, and Relic Guardian.
Saltspine
Once you’ve made your way through the Lost Marsh, you may think that’s your lot. However, lurking below the surface is a big ol’ croccie. Before you swim over to Stalker’s Thicket, you’ll need to get through Saltspine, who you’ll spot patrolling the waters.
The first Excavation Site: Wetlands boss isn’t much to write home about, provided you’ve made enough space to comfortably fight it without drawing too much unwanted attention. You’ll typically pull the boss onto the small final patch of land before making the crossing. This effectively yields its Tendon Rip ability, which slows its target’s movement speed, useless.
The ability you do need to watch out for is Dust Storm, which reduces the chances of anyone within ten yards of landing their attacks by 25%. As such, your ranged teammates will need to spread out, hence the need to clear a suitable amount of space before engaging Saltspine. With all that in mind, hit the boss, hit it some more, and you’re good to go.
Shadetooth
Shadetooth is easily the toughest encounter in the dungeon, and can easily wipe your squad due to how it interacts with the environment. As we warned before, it’s important to steer clear of walking into the tall grass in Stalker’s Thicket. Shadetooth has an AoE fear in Terrifying Roar — you can imagine why this may be a bit of a problem.
The good news is that Shadetooth and the two Thicket Hunters it has flanking it roam the area. The safest way to engage this fight is to wait at the entrance of the zone, where you’ve just crossed over from Lost Marsh. You’ve not only got more space to play with, but you’re also that bit closer to the entrance if you need to make a swift escape. Alternatively, there are a couple of larger clearings in Stalker’s Thicket where you’ll typically encounter Thicket Matriarchs. Kill off anything you find there and you should be fine. We’ve eased through the encounter using both spots, so all should be well with proper preparation.
The other things to note in this encounter are that the two Thicket Hunters inflict Infested Wound on their target, which increases physical damage taken. All three foes hit hard, especially when Shadetooth uses Rend, and doubly so when it Enrages at 30% health. Be sure to cleanse or have this cleansed ASAP. You can either zerg down the boss first, before turning your attention to the dregs, or vice-versa — make liberal use of CC to control the encounter. We typically opted for the former in our runs, so it’s more than doable (again, with apt setup).
Relic Guardian
The final showdown in Excavation Site: Wetlands, Relic Guardian, kicks off when you activate the Archival Panel to the right of it. It is exactly as it looks: an absolute unit that’s sporting plenty of health to chew through.
This fight is very much a marathon, rather than a sprint, so don’t blow everything all at once. Make sure your tank establishes threat first, as they’ll most likely need to burn a cooldown or two to wrestle back aggro as the encounter progresses. This is because the Relic Guardian can not only knock them back, but may also stun them for five seconds. Naturally, there’s a high chance of aggro flipping during these windows, so remain cognizant of that.
Relic Guardian also uses Thunderclap on everyone in a small radius, dealing damage, increasing time between attacks, and slowing them. As with Saltspine, ranged party members should keep their yards from the boss to prevent DPS loss. Whack away, and you’ll finish up the dungeon (just don’t forget to loot the Titan Relic before you go).
Excavation Site: Wetlands Loot
Alliance Quest Rewards
| Item | Type | Stats | Quest |
| Daewyn’s Girdle | Cloth belt (Waist) | 25 Armor +6 Spirit Equip: Increases damage and healing. |
Fallen in the Fen |
| Songblade Stabilizer | Mail belt (Waist) | 117 Armor +6 Stamina Equip: Increases your chance to Dodge an attack by 0.4%. |
Fallen in the Fen |
| Satchel of Potions | Trinket | Use: Reach into the bag and hope for the best. (Ten minute cooldown.) | Heartwoven |
| Curl of Life | Ring (Finger) | +5 Stamina Equip: Increases damage and healing done by magical spells and effects by up to five. |
Horrors in the Highland |
| Hornbeam Heft | One-handed axe (Main Hand) | 19-36 Damage 2.40 Speed (11.46 DPS) +6 Strength Equip: Increases damage and healing done by magical spells and effects by up to 26. |
Horrors in the Highland |
| Ironwood Destroyer | Two-handed Mace (Main Hand) | 60-91 Damage 3.40 Speed (22.21 DPS) Equip: Increases damage done by Nature spells and effects by up to 19. |
Horrors in the Highland |
| Explorer’s League Dustcover | Cloak (Back) | 25 Armor +5 Agility +5 Intelligence +5 Spirit |
Prehistoric Prism |
| Healer’s Staff | Two-handed staff (Main Hand) | 43-65 Damage 2.60 Speed (20.77 DPS) +12 Stamina Restores +5 Mana per five seconds. Equip: Increases healing done by up to 67 and damage done by up to 22 for all magical spells and effects. |
Prehistoric Prism |
| Heavehammer | Two-handed mace (Main Hand) | 73-110 Damage 3.30 Speed (27.73 DPS) +60 Armor Equip: +32 Attack Power. |
Prehistoric Prism |
Horde Quest Rewards
| Item | Type | Stats | Quest |
| Satchel of Potions | Trinket | Use: Reach into the bag and hope for the best. (Ten minute cooldown.) | Changing Tastes |
| Serrated Raptor Claw | One-handed dagger (Main Hand) | 19-36 Damage 1.60 Speed (17.19 DPS) +3 Agility Equip: +6 Attack Power. |
Changing Tastes |
| Furs of the Earthen Ring | Cloak (Back) | 25 Armor +5 Agility +5 Intelligence +5 Spirit |
Earthen Echo |
| Healer’s Staff | Two-handed staff (Main Hand) | 43-65 Damage 2.60 Speed (20.77 DPS) +12 Stamina Restores +5 Mana per five seconds. Equip: Increases healing done by up to 67 and damage done by up to 22 for all magical spells and effects. |
Earthen Echo |
| Heavehammer | Two-handed mace (Main Hand) | 73-110 Damage 3.30 Speed (27.73 DPS) +60 Armor Equip: +32 Attack Power. |
Earthen Echo |
| Dirt-Heavy Bracers | Leather bracers (Wrist) | 43 Armor +4 Spirit Equip: +10 Attack Power. |
Open the Maw |
| Knife-Polishing Rag | Cloth bracers (Wrist) | 20 Armor +4 Spirit Equip: Increases damage and healing done by magical spells and effects by up to six. |
Open the Maw |
Boss Drops
| Item | Type | Stats | Boss |
| Glinteye Slippers | Cloth boots (Feet) | 33 Armor +9 Stamina +6 Spirit Equip: Increases damage and healing done by magical spells and effects by up to seven. |
Saltspine |
| Saltscale Girdle | Mail belt (Waist) | 124 Armor +9 Strength +9 Intellect |
Saltspine |
| Supple Bellyskin Leggings | Leather trousers (Legs) | 92 Armor +6 Strength +14 Stamina |
Saltspine |
| Garb of Florid Feathers | Leather armor (Chest) | 105 Armor +9 Agility +15 Intellect |
Shadetooth |
| Raptor’s Gaze | Orb (Off-hand) | +4 Stamina +4 Intellect Equip: Increases damage and healing done by magical spells and effects by up to eight. |
Shadetooth |
| Raptorclaw Greaves | Mail boots (Feet) | 152 Armor +7 Strength +7 Stamina +6 Intellect |
Shadetooth |
| Golemsight Long Gun | Gun (Ranged) | 29-54 Damage 2.50 Speed (16.60 DPS) +6 Agility |
Relic Guardian |
| Reliquary Mantle | Mail shoulders (Shoulder) | 171 Armor +12 Stamina Equip: Improves your chance to hit by 0.4% |
Relic Guardian |
| Ring of Power Regulation | Ring (Finger) | Restores +3 Mana per five seconds. Equip: Increases damage and healing done by magical spells and effects by up to six. |
Relic Guardian |
Now you’re ready to prove yourself a true big game hunter, it’s time to venture forth into the excavation site and snag yourself a whopper or two. You won’t have to wait long until you can get your next taste of WoW: Forever’s new dungeons, either, as you’re only a couple of levels away from being able to tackle the City of Dalaran, and the mystical machinations it holds.
