by JR Cook - 10 years ago     show comments

Exploring Draenor delves into the hidden places of the world that will one day become Outland. From the volcanic landscape of Frostfire to the gloomy dells of Shadowmoon, these articles are your guide to events that are off the beaten path.

It seems that 2015 should start with an apology for the lack of Exploring Draenor updates over recent weeks. Work has kept me so busy that I haven’t even had time to log into WoW, let alone write about it. It should start to settle down as the year finds its feet.

Leeeeeeeeeeeeeroy…? is an achievement with its roots way back in 2005. WoW at this time was shiny and new, having been out for less than a year. Players were still getting used to their classes, game mechanics and gearing – exemplified in the classic video ‘A Rough Go’, which eventually became known simply as ‘Leeroy Jenkins’.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkCNJRfSZBU

Some of the spells mentioned in the video don’t even exist any more (Divine Intervention), and the players exhibit what today we would consider an amazing lack of knowledge about what their actions will cause: using Intimidating Shout to fear the whelps, for example, simply pulled the entire Rookery.

Regardless, the video was an internet sensation and shot World of Warcraft to mainstream fame. Blizzard has always had a soft spot for Leeroy, who has made an appearance as a separate (pre-WoD) achievement (Leeeeeeroy!, no longer obtainable), a WoW TCG card and a Hearthstone card. His name has even become a verb in MMO culture, meaning ‘to run in like a headless chicken and pull the entire instance’.

makes his triumphant return in Warlords of Draenor, where – after 10 years – you can finally help him to obtain his Devout Mantle (“It’ll help his healing”).

The achievement takes place in the new Upper Blackrock Spire, of course – where Leeroy has been ‘napping’ for the best part of a decade. You can find his corpse in the Heroic version of the instance, behind the second boss, Kyrak (the same place where Overlord Wyrmthalak used to spawn after clearing the Rookery). Do not leave the room! You need to throw Leeroy a res and then run ahead to clear trash before he can, literally, Leeroy into it. If you allow him to do this he’ll quickly die, still being level 60 (remember, four expansions have passed since he died).

You will need to kill every mob and boss up to and including the Son of the Beast to avoid the poor Paladin getting his head smashed in, including the ogres guarding the way to Ragewing. Crowd control can be useful in several of these pulls, especially those in the room immediately above the Rookery (yes, you’ll need to clear the entire thing) and the room just before Ragewing, where the ogres try to run away and open cages of dragon whelps.

Be careful, when fighting the Son of the Beast, to pull him away from his original location. Leeroy only has 14k health, and running through one of the fire lines the boss leaves on the ground will kill him quickly, costing you the achievement.

During your clear, Leeroy will be ‘cooking chicken’ (he comments on it being a bit rotten – hey, it’s been 10 years) – a process that takes him exactly 15 minutes. His speech, with full voice acting, will keep you company throughout the dungeon. At the end of the timer, Leeroy will deliver his classic line (“Time’s up, let’s do this – LEEEEEROY JEEEEEEENKINS!”) and run towards the Son of the Beast’s room. As long as you’ve cleared everything, he’ll be fine – but make sure that any skinners in your group don’t skin the boss until Leeroy loots his shoulders.

Helping Leeroy out will reward you the achievement and the Paladin himself as a Garrison follower: an epic Retribution Paladin with the Minion Swarms counter, plus another random ability.

I forgot to get pictures when I ran through the dungeon, so thanks to Wowhead for the image!