The labyrinthine halls of Blackrock Depths (BRD) in World of Warcraft Classic are infamous for their sheer size and intricate pathways. Many adventurers find themselves lost within its fiery depths, particularly when trying to reach the elusive Upper City. But fear not, brave hero! This guide will illuminate the path, ensuring you conquer BRD and unlock its higher echelons.
Have you ever stood at the entrance of Blackrock Depths, gazing into the molten core of Blackrock Mountain, and wondered, "How on Azeroth do I get to the upper levels of this place?" You're not alone! Many players, new and old, find navigating this colossal dungeon a daunting task. But today, that changes. We're going to break down the journey to Blackrock Depths Upper City, step by glorious step.
Unlocking Blackrock Depths Upper City: A Step-by-Step Expedition
Reaching the Upper City of Blackrock Depths isn't a simple straight shot. It involves traversing a significant portion of the dungeon's lower levels, understanding key mechanics, and sometimes, even acquiring a special item. Let's dive in!
Step 1: Locating the Blackrock Depths Entrance
Before you can even think about the Upper City, you need to find the dungeon itself.
- Entering Blackrock Mountain: Blackrock Depths is nestled deep within Blackrock Mountain, a formidable volcano accessible from either the Searing Gorge or Burning Steppes zones.
- From Searing Gorge: Head to the northeastern part of the zone. You'll see a massive chain bridge leading into the mountain.
- From Burning Steppes: Travel to the western side of the zone, and you'll find another entrance leading into Blackrock Mountain.
- Navigating the Mountain: Once inside Blackrock Mountain, you'll need to descend. Follow the paths and chains downwards. You'll pass through areas with various hostile elementals and Dark Iron Dwarves. Keep an eye out for the dungeon portal itself, usually found within a quarry-like area at the very back.
Step 2: Traversing the Detention Block (Lower BRD)
Upon entering Blackrock Depths, you'll find yourself in the Detention Block. This is the initial, lower-level section of the dungeon. While you don't need to clear the entire Detention Block to reach the Upper City, you'll need to navigate a specific path.
- Initial Path: From the entrance, you'll generally head right into the prison area.
- Target: High Interrogator Gerstahn: Your primary objective in this initial section is to locate and defeat High Interrogator Gerstahn. She's typically found in the central part of the prison section.
- Why Gerstahn? She is the crucial mob that drops the Prison Cell Key. While not strictly necessary for the Upper City itself, this key is essential for various quests within the Detention Block, including those related to the Onyxia attunement questline (if you're on that journey). It's also generally useful for opening various locked doors within BRD.
Step 3: The Ring of Law Challenge (Optional, but Often Taken)
The Ring of Law is a significant event within the Detention Block that many groups undertake for experience, loot, and specific quests. While there's a shortcut to bypass it with the Shadowforge Key (which we'll discuss later), most initial runs will go through it.
- Locating the Ring of Law: After the prison area, you'll find a large, circular arena. This is the Ring of Law.
- Initiating the Event: To begin the challenge, simply walk onto the mesh circle in the center of the arena. This will trigger High Justice Grimstone to appear, and a series of waves of enemies will attack your group.
- Victory Opens Doors: Successfully completing the Ring of Law event will open a gate leading to the upper levels of this particular section, allowing you to progress further into the dungeon.
Step 4: The Grim Guzzler and the Shadowforge Lock
This is where the path to the Upper City truly begins to diverge, and where the Shadowforge Key becomes incredibly useful (though not always strictly mandatory for the direct path to the Upper City, it makes future runs much faster).
- Through the Eastern Garrison (if no Shadowforge Key): If you don't have the Shadowforge Key, you'll need to navigate through the Eastern Garrison, which is accessible from the upper levels of the Ring of Law. This path can be long and full of hostile mobs.
- The Grim Guzzler: Eventually, you'll reach the Grim Guzzler, a tavern within the dungeon. This is a common regrouping point.
- Side Note: Breaking kegs here will spawn Hurley Blackbreath, a boss related to a quest for the Lost Thunderbrew Recipe!
- The Shadowforge Lock: From the Grim Guzzler area, or by using the Shadowforge Key to bypass earlier sections, your goal is to reach the area containing the Shadowforge Lock. This lock is a mechanism that controls a movable bridge.
- Activating the Lock: Interact with the Shadowforge Lock to extend the bridge, creating a pathway to the Manufactory and, ultimately, the Upper City.
Step 5: Acquiring the Shadowforge Key (Highly Recommended for Future Runs!)
While you can reach the Upper City without the Shadowforge Key by taking a longer route, having this key permanently unlocks shortcuts and makes subsequent runs infinitely easier.
- The Attunement Quest: The Shadowforge Key is acquired through a quest chain. The final part of this quest involves placing an item called Ironfel on the Shrine of Thaurissan within Blackrock Depths.
- Finding Fineous Darkvire: To get Ironfel, you need to defeat Fineous Darkvire in the Detention Block. He is located in a different section than Gerstahn, further into the dungeon towards the Manufactory.
- Using the Key: Once you have the Shadowforge Key, you can use it to open numerous locked doors throughout Blackrock Depths, including the gate leading directly to the Eastern Garrison from the dungeon entrance, bypassing the Ring of Law and other lower sections entirely. This is the fastest way to get to the Upper City on repeated runs.
Step 6: Into the Upper City
Once the Shadowforge bridge is extended (or you've used the key to bypass to the appropriate entrance), you'll finally be in the section commonly referred to as the Blackrock Depths Upper City. This area contains higher-level enemies and the dungeon's final bosses, including Emperor Dagran Thaurissan.
- Eastern Garrison & Lyceum: You'll typically enter the Upper City through the Eastern Garrison, leading into the Lyceum.
- Lighting Braziers (Optional, but often required for progression): In the Lyceum, you may need to acquire Shadowforge Torches from patrolling Shadowforge Flame Keepers and use them to light two large braziers. This action opens the large doors to the final chambers of the dungeon.
- Progression Through Bosses: From here, you'll navigate through various boss encounters, leading you deeper into the heart of the Upper City and towards the Emperor's throne room.
10 Related FAQ Questions
How to get to Blackrock Depths quickly?
The quickest way to get to Blackrock Depths is to fly to Thorium Point in Searing Gorge (Alliance) or Kargath in Badlands (Horde), and then head into Blackrock Mountain. The dungeon portal is at the very bottom of the mountain's central chamber.
How to get the Shadowforge Key?
The Shadowforge Key is obtained by completing a quest chain that culminates in defeating Fineous Darkvire within Blackrock Depths for the item "Ironfel," then placing Ironfel on the Shrine of Thaurissan in the dungeon to receive the key.
How to open locked doors in Blackrock Depths without a key?
Rogues can lockpick many doors (requiring a Lockpicking skill of 250+ for some), and Engineers can use Large Seaforium Charges to blast open certain locked doors.
How to skip the Ring of Law in Blackrock Depths?
With the Shadowforge Key, you can open a gate directly from the instance entrance to the Eastern Garrison, completely bypassing the Ring of Law event.
How to start the Molten Core attunement quest in Blackrock Depths?
The Molten Core attunement quest, "Attunement to the Core," is picked up from Lothos Riftwalker, an NPC found inside Blackrock Depths, near the Molten Core entrance.
How to find Marshal Windsor in Blackrock Depths?
Marshal Windsor is found in a prison cell within the Detention Block (lower BRD). You will likely need the Prison Cell Key (drops from High Interrogator Gerstahn) to open his cell.
How to deal with Princess Moira Bronzebeard in the Emperor fight?
Princess Moira Bronzebeard will heal Emperor Dagran Thaurissan during the fight. You can either crowd control her (e.g., polymorph, stun, sap) and focus the Emperor, or have a dedicated DPS interrupt her heals. For certain quests, you must keep her alive.
How to summon Hurley Blackbreath in Grim Guzzler?
To summon Hurley Blackbreath, you need to smash the three kegs located in the storage room on the left side as you enter the Grim Guzzler.
How to get the Prison Cell Key in Blackrock Depths?
The Prison Cell Key is a guaranteed drop from High Interrogator Gerstahn, a boss located in the Detention Block (lower) section of Blackrock Depths.
How to find the Shrine of Thaurissan for the Shadowforge Key quest?
The Shrine of Thaurissan is located within the Manufactory section of Blackrock Depths, accessible after crossing the Shadowforge bridge, which is activated by the Shadowforge Lock.
