Old Hillsbrad Foothills

Old Hillsbrad Foothills
Capital(s)	Southshore
Races	Human; Orc; Infinite dragonflight
Major settlements	Tarren Mill; Durnholde Keep
Minor settlements	Eastpoint Tower; Dandred's Fold
Affiliation	Lordaeron, Dalaran, Alliance, Horde, Infinite dragonflight, Independent
Location	Caverns of Time, Tanaris

This article is about the past version in the Caverns of Time. For the present-day one, see Hillsbrad Foothills. For other uses, see Hillsbrad (disambiguation).

Old Hillsbrad Foothills is the setting of the instance Escape from Durnholde Keep. It is one of the timeways ("wings") accessible in the Caverns of Time. The setting takes place seven years before WoW's present (i.e. two years before the events of Warcraft III), to when the future Warchief Thrall was a slave of Aedelas Blackmoore, master of Durnholde Keep. The questing involves helping Thrall escape. The instance area in question spans from Southshore (where familiar personalities of WoW present can be found) to Tarren Mill.

Map limits[]

VZ-Old Hillsbrad Foothills — Map of Old Hillsbrad.

This instance, being the replica of a level 20 zone, is quite explorable alone. The actual areas where you encounter the fights and bosses of this instance are few and far between, leaving a wide-open zone full of things to explore. In fact, it is encouraged that players come here alone to see all the cameos and find the interesting tidbits that lore fanatics crave, because while coming with a group for a run, they are not going to want to wait for players to explore so that they can tackle content.

You enter the instance from a cave that replaces the yeti cave at Darrow Hill in the present-day Hillsbrad. Head south from there and you hit the road that goes east-west from Silverpine Forest to Arathi Highlands.

However, you cannot wander too far away from the zones included in the instance:

Trying to travel too far west in the direction of Hillsbrad Fields or too far east along the southern coast leading to Arathi Highlands causes the screen to become blanketed in an impenetrable fog. Continuing forward despite the fog will result in running into invisible walls.
The gate at the base of Thoradin's Wall to the Arathi Highlands is closed tight.
The entrance into Dun Garok is blocked by a gate.
The passage to the Alterac Mountains is blocked by a wall.
The river that runs through the Foothills is blocked at the entrance to Chillwind Point by a troll wall.
Ravenholdt Manor is physically present but is devoid of NPCs and is unreachable since the entrance tunnel is missing.
The valley to the Hinterlands northeast of Durnholde Keep is blocked by a large stone formation.

The fog that engulfs the screen if the player goes too far west or east.
The closed Thoradin's Wall.
The closed Dun Garok.
The gate blocking the road into the Alterac Mountains.
The wall blocking the entrance into Chillwind Point.
Ravenholdt Manor, unreachable due to the lack of tunnel.
The rocks blocking the entrance into the Hinterlands.

Solo exploring[]

The instance is explorable as a solo adventurer. As the elites are grouped in Durnholde Keep and Tarren Mill, most of the open areas are populated by level 20ish non-elites, much like the present-day Hillsbrad Foothills.
There are no herbs or ore veins to harvest here, and the waters cannot be fished. Also, the mailbox next to the inn isn't there.
Despite the thick fog kicking in before you reach it, the actual Town of Hillsbrad is present within the instance. Oddly, there is a new cave just north of Hillsbrad itself that seems to serve no purpose. The Tower at the entrance to the Hillsbrad region is also present and is not in disrepair. There is a wall blocking entrance or exit from the west of the Hillsbrad region, and the path starts to go into the Silverpine region, but is cut off by instance limits.
The instance even includes Dalaran, although it is not accessible due to the fog that kicks in if one ventures too far. Dalaran during this period in lore is restored but in the game it is not. The vast arcane bubble is not present but what land it does cover is nothing but brown dirt.
The map extends into the Arathi Highlands, and even the city of Stromgarde is built to look like how it appears in World of Warcraft.
Aerie Peak is also present in the map if a player manages to get past the rockslide that blocks the path from the foothills to the Hinterlands.
The map is estimated to span from Silverpine Forest to the edges of Arathi. An interesting fact is that a hunter can view most of these places by using their [Eagle Eye] ability (and, in doing so, may also be able to see that neither the crater nor the opaque dome that surrounded Dalaran before its movement is present).
It is possible for a shaman to explore the area by chain casting their [Far Sight] ability. With this technique, one can see the Ruins of Alterac, Faldir's Cove, Stromgarde Keep, Aerie Peak, and more.

Events[]

There are many NPCs with some connection to important events in WoW and the Warcraft universe as a whole seen here in the past, many of them later being involved with either the Scourge, the Scarlet Crusade or the Argent Dawn. They include (current locations in parentheses):

Southshore[]

A still-human Kel'Thuzad can be found in Southshore, on the road leading north. Patrolling with Kel'Thuzad is Helcular, a necromancer made famous by the Horde quest [33] Helcular's Revenge.
Sally Whitemane, the future boss of Scarlet Monastery Cathedral, playing tag with Renault Mograine, the other future boss from Scarlet Monastery Cathedral. Jimmy Vishas can be seen following them; he later becomes Interrogator Vishas in the graveyard instance of Scarlet Monastery Cathedral. The trio also re-enact some of their lines and events when you encounter them as bosses on a Captured Critter.
Herod the Bully can also be seen walking around Southshore, and he is much larger than the other children.
On the docks, Zixil <Aspiring Merchant> can be seen building a robot: Overwatch Mark 0 <Protector>. In the present day, this goblin (known as <Merchant Supreme> in the current Hillsbrad) can be found patrolling around Hillsbrad as a traveling vendor, accompanied by Overwatch Mark I <Protector>.
Also on the dock is Nat Pagle; he is fishing with Hal McAllister in a zone which, surprisingly enough, has no fish. They have some amusing conversations about Nat's strange dreams.

The Inn[]

Main article: Old Hillsbrad Ashbringer event

In the Southshore inn, many well-known members of the Scarlet Crusade are standing around a table. If you wait a minute or so, they'll have a discussion about the upcoming war against the Scourge—which reveals some backstory about the Ashbringer—in what appears to be their first meeting. This is mostly bosses from Scarlet Monastery as younger versions of themselves, as well as the prominent members of the Scarlet Crusade who splintered off to become the Argent Dawn because they disagreed with the Crusade's fanaticism, including Tirion Fordring, the eventual leader of the Argent Crusade and Ashen Verdict.
Also inside the inn are two ship captains drinking at the bar, who go outside to have a private discussion. Captain Sanders discusses his plans with Captain Edward Hanes to hide his various possessions around the world, and leave [a map] that goes from clue to clue in order to get his prizes. This treasure hunt can be found in the present day from a world drop off of murlocs in Westfall. The rewards from doing the quest are the items he talks about while in Old Hillsbrad. Captain Edward Hanes is also a quest giver for low level Draenei on the Bloodmyst Isle.
A young Taelan Fordring is upstairs in the inn, playing with [a large, glowing hammer].

NPCs for questing[]

The quest NPCs include:

Erozion - bronze dragon in high elf guise at the exit of the cave leading from the instance portal (gives both the quest to rescue Thrall and the incendiary bombs to do so)
Brazen - bronze dragon next to Erozion (gives free ride from instance entrance to Durnholde's front gate)
Thrall - primary quest NPC (in a cell in the basement of Durnholde Keep)
Taretha - other primary quest NPC (the inn in Tarren Mill)

Vendors[]

Barkeep Kelly (Found in the Southshore Inn) - sells various types of beer, including one that restores mana and another that gives 15 stamina for 15 minutes.
Thomas Yance <Travelling Salesman> (Travels the roads between Southshore and Tarren Mill) - sells the starting clothes for most classes, repairs gear, and sells the leatherworking pattern [Pattern: Riding Crop] for 5.
Aged Dalaran Wizard (Travels the roads between Southshore and Tarren Mill) - sells the formula for [Formula: Enchant Shield - Intellect] for 6.

NPCs list[]