Raid Finder

Raid Finder 5 — The Raid Finder interface as of 5.0.4

RaidFinder2 — The previous Raid Finder interface in 4.3

Not to be confused with Raid Browser.

The Raid Finder (or “Looking For Raid”, commonly abbreviated as “LFR”), accessed through the Group Finder, is a tool that helps players find and join a random or specific raid instance with others. The feature was first released in patch 4.3.0 for Dragon Soul as a permanent addition to the raiding system, and has been included in all subsequent instanced raids.

The Raid Finder can be found in the Dungeons & Raids tab of the Group Finder, accessed through a button on the micro menu at the bottom of the user interface.

"Raid Finder" is also the difficulty level of any raid joined using the tool, and is only available using the tool. It is always in 25-player mode, and its difficulty is the lowest offered for any raid in which it is available. Raid Finder gear level falls between five-player heroics and the Normal raid mode on the same tier.^[1] For the Siege of Orgrimmar in Mists of Pandaria, flexible difficulty was the next step above Raid Finder but this was removed in Warlords of Draenor.

Supported raids[]

Raid Finder eligibility is based on character level, average item level, and specific raid achievements. Generally, the first wing of a raid tier does not require any achievements, but subsequent wings (in the same raid instance or not) require the previous wing's achievement.

Players can use the Raid Finder to queue for the following raids:

Tier	Instance	Awarded achievement	Level	iLvl	Required achievement	Date opened (US)
13	Dragon Soul - Part 1	[Siege of Wyrmrest Temple]	85	372	None	29 November 2011
13	Dragon Soul - Part 2	[Fall of Deathwing]	85	372	Siege of Wyrmrest Temple	6 December 2011
14	Mogu'shan Vaults - Part 1	[Guardians of Mogu'shan]	90	460	None	9 October 2012
	Mogu'shan Vaults - Part 2	[The Vault of Mysteries]	90	460	Guardians of Mogu'shan	16 October 2012
	Heart of Fear - Part 1	[The Dread Approach]	90	470	None	6 November 2012
	Heart of Fear - Part 2	[Nightmare of Shek'zeer]	90	470	The Dread Approach	13 November 2012
	Terrace of Endless Spring	[Terrace of Endless Spring]	90	470	None	20 November 2012
15	Throne of Thunder - Part 1	[Last Stand of the Zandalari]	90	480	None	12 March 2013
	Throne of Thunder - Part 2	[Forgotten Depths]	90	480	Last Stand of the Zandalari	19 March 2013
	Throne of Thunder - Part 3	[Halls of Flesh-Shaping]	90	480	Forgotten Depths	2 April 2013
	Throne of Thunder - Part 4	[Pinnacle of Storms]	90	480	Halls of Flesh-Shaping	16 April 2013
16	Siege of Orgrimmar - Part 1	[Vale of Eternal Sorrows]	90	496	None	17 September 2013
	Siege of Orgrimmar - Part 2	[Gates of Retribution]	90	496	Vale of Eternal Sorrows	24 September 2013
	Siege of Orgrimmar - Part 3	[The Underhold]	90	496	Gates of Retribution	8 October 2013
	Siege of Orgrimmar - Part 4	[Downfall]	90	496	The Underhold	October 22, 2013
17	Highmaul - Part 1		100	615	[The Walled City]	December 9, 2014
	Highmaul - Part 2		100	615	[Arcane Sanctum]	December 16, 2014
	Highmaul - Part 3		100	615	[Imperator's Fall]	January 6, 2015
	Blackrock Foundry - Part 1	[Slagworks]	100	635	None	February 17, 2015
	Blackrock Foundry - Part 2	[Black Forge]	100	635	[Slagworks]	February 24, 2015
	Blackrock Foundry - Part 3	[Iron Assembly]	100	635	[Black Forge]	March 10, 2015
	Blackrock Foundry - Part 4	[Blackhand's Crucible]	100	635	[Iron Assembly]	March 24, 2015
18	Hellfire Citadel - Part 1		100	650	[Hellbreach]	30 June 2015
	Hellfire Citadel - Part 2		100	650	[Halls of Blood]	14 July 2015
	Hellfire Citadel - Part 3		100	650	[Bastion of Shadows]	28 July 2015
	Hellfire Citadel - Part 4		100	650	[Destructor's Rise]	11 Aug 2015
	Hellfire Citadel - Part 5		100	650	[The Black Gate]	25 Aug 2015
–	Emerald Nightmare - Part 1	[Darkbough]	110	835	None	September 27, 2016
	Emerald Nightmare - Part 2	[Tormented Guardians]	110	835		October 11, 2016
	Emerald Nightmare - Part 3	[Rift of Aln]	110	835		October 25, 2016
19	Nighthold - Part 1	[Arcing Aqueducts]	110	865	None	January 24, 2017
	Nighthold - Part 2	[Royal Athenaeum]	110	865		February 7, 2017
	Nighthold - Part 3	[Nightspire]	110	865		February 21, 2017
	Nighthold - Part 4	[Betrayer's Rise]	110	865		March 7, 2017
20	Tomb of Sargeras - Part 1	[The Gates of Hell]	110	885	None	June 27, 2017
	Tomb of Sargeras - Part 2	[Wailing Halls]	110	885		July 11, 2017
	Tomb of Sargeras - Part 3	[Chamber of the Avatar]	110	885		July 25 ,2017
	Tomb of Sargeras - Part 4	[Deceiver's Fall]	110	895		August 8, 2017
21	Antorus, the Burning Throne - Part 1	[Light's Breach]	110	915	None	December 5, 2017
	Antorus, the Burning Throne - Part 2	[Hope's End]	110	915		December 19, 2017
	Antorus, the Burning Throne - Part 3	[Forbidden Descent]	110	915		January 2, 2018
	Antorus, the Burning Throne - Part 4	[Seat of the Pantheon]	110	915		January 16, 2018
22	Uldir - Part 1	[Halls of Containment]	120	340	None	September 11, 2018
	Uldir - Part 2	[Crimson Descent]	120	340	Halls of Containment	September 25, 2018
	Uldir - Part 3	[Heart of Corruption]	120	340	Crimson Descent	October 9, 2018
23	Battle of Dazar'alor - Part 1	[Siege of Dazar'alor] [Defense of Dazar'alor]	120	370	None	January 22, 2019
	Battle of Dazar'alor - Part 2	[Empire's Fall] [Death's Bargain]	120	370		February 12, 2019
	Battle of Dazar'alor - Part 3	[Might of the Alliance] [Victory or Death]	120	370		February 26, 2019
24	Crucible of Storms	[Crucible of Storms]	120	380		April 23, 2019
	The Eternal Palace - Part 1	[The Grand Reception]	120	380	None	July 16, 2019
	The Eternal Palace - Part 2	[Depths of the Devoted]	120	380		July 30, 2019
	The Eternal Palace - Part 3	[The Circle of Stars]	120	380		August 13, 2019
25	Ny'alotha, the Waking City - Part 1	[Vision of Destiny]	120	410	None	January 28, 2020
	Ny'alotha, the Waking City - Part 2	[Halls of Devotion]	120	410		February 11, 2020
	Ny'alotha, the Waking City - Part 3	[Gift of Flesh]	120	410		February 25, 2020
	Ny'alotha, the Waking City - Part 4	[The Waking Dream]	120	410		March 10, 2020
26	Castle Nathria - Part 1		60	170		15 December 2020
	Castle Nathria - Part 2		60	170		5 January 2021
	Castle Nathria - Part 3		60	170		19 January 2021
	Castle Nathria - Part 4		60	170		2 February 2021
27	Sanctum of Domination - Part 1	[The Jailer's Vanguard]	60	195		13 July 2021
	Sanctum of Domination - Part 2	[The Dark Bastille]	60	195		27 July 2021
	Sanctum of Domination - Part 3	[Shackles of Fate]	60	195		10 August 2021
	Sanctum of Domination - Part 4	[The Reckoning]	60	195		24 August 2021
28	Sepulcher of the First Ones - Part 1	[Ephemeral Plains]	60	220		8 March 2022
	Sepulcher of the First Ones - Part 2	[Cornerstone of Creation]	60	220		22 March 2022
	Sepulcher of the First Ones - Part 3	[Domination's Grasp]	60	220		5 April 2022
	Sepulcher of the First Ones - Part 4	[The Grand Design]	60	220		19 April 2022
29	Vault of the Incarnates - Part 1	[The Primal Bulwark]	60	359		19 December 2022
	Vault of the Incarnates - Part 2	[Caverns of Infusion]	60	359		2 January 2023
	Vault of the Incarnates - Part 3	[Fury of the Storm]	60	359		16 January 2023

Difficulty[]

The boss fights in a Raid Finder raid are simplified: their difficulty relative to normal and flexible is scaled down with the intent that they be manageable by randomly assembled, less organized pickup groups. Reduced boss health and damage compared to higher level modes in the same group size, as well as the removal or modification of specific mechanics that normally make the raid dependent on the performance of a single player.

A Raid Finder run is a gentle introduction to the bosses, and can be educational for a player who is new to, or still learning the fight. Some important differences in boss tactics exist between Raid Finder and Normal mode, and it is especially important to remain informed of this when or if you transition to Normal mode.

Each time a Raid Finder group wipes on a given boss, the [Determination] buff will be applied to the players which increases their health, damage dealt, and healing received by 5%, stacking up to 10 times, and dropping when the boss is killed.

Loot rules[]

Main article: Personal loot

Raid Finder uses a system called Personal Loot. When a boss is killed for the first time each week, every player has a fixed percentage chance of receiving a loot item. For each player, the game will decide whether the player will receive loot. If so, the game will then select a class- and spec-appropriate item from the boss's loot table and immediately deposit the item into the player's inventory. The specialization is the one the player is using at the time of the boss's death, and is not related to the role chosen by the player when queueing for the raid. All players who do not receive a loot item will instead be issued a bag of gold. All loot gained through this method is strictly Bind on Pickup and can not be traded with other players.

Bosses may only be looted once per week, though they can be run as often as desired.

Extra loot rolls[]

Main article: Bonus roll

Level 90 players can choose to use an [Elder Charm of Good Fortune] (for Patch 5.0 bosses), [Mogu Rune of Fate] (for Patch 5.2 bosses) or [Warforged Seal] (for Patch 5.4 bosses) for an additional roll on loot after every attempt. This bonus roll works just like the first roll does and will not affect in any way other players' loot.

A charm may also be used, on most bosses, for an additional roll even on subsequent kills during the same week. For example, a player may return to Lei Shi and kill her a second time, receiving no loot by default, but use a charm and get another chance. Notable exceptions include open world bosses and the final bosses of an instance, on which only one bonus roll may be used per week.

Queueing[]

Queuing can done by forming a complete 25-man raid and initiating a queue request. You will then immediately be teleported to the raid.

You can also form an incomplete 25-man raid and queue, with additional members being chosen by the game to fill out the 25-man roster; all players will be teleported to the raid.

It is currently possible to form a regular party including cross-realm Real-ID friends and queue for the raid. It is not yet possible to convert a party including Real-ID friends into a raid.

Replacements[]

Since the Raid Finder is designed to serve players whose schedules do not permit regular raiding, it is designed to replace drop-outs. It is not possible to invite specific players to a Raid Finder raid once it has started (to prevent players from kicking pugged players to make room for friends).

Lock-out[]

There is no lock-out for Raid Finder in the traditional sense. You can queue in the Raid Finder repeatedly and defeat the same bosses over and over again. However, you are only entitled to a chance to receive loot from a boss the first time you kill that boss per weekly reset. If you kill the boss again later during the same weekly period, you are not eligible to receive any loot other than that from a charm bonus roll.

If you are chosen as a replacement for a partially-completed raid it is possible for you to complete that raid, then queue again later and try for loot for bosses that you had not personally defeated yet. When the raid reaches bosses you have defeated, you will not be eligible for loot. If you have completed bosses later in the progression schedule for a raid, the system will give you priority to join a group that will take on the bosses that you have missed.

If you leave a Raid Finder squad while they are in combat with a boss and that squad defeats the boss during that same battle, you will not receive loot but will still be marked as having defeated that boss, and will not be eligible for any more rewards from that boss until the weekly reset. Players who need to leave the keyboard in the middle of a fight may leave their characters in the raid to avoid being subject to this consequence.

Gallery[]

Patch 4.3.0

Patch changes[]

Patch 6.0.2 (2014-10-14): Now supports flexible raid scaling.
Patch 5.1.0 (2012-11-27): No longer displays the number of bosses defeated in the invitation popup.
Patch 5.0.4 (2012-08-28): Interface merged into the new Dungeon Finder interface.
Patch 4.3.0 (2011-11-29): Added.

References[]

^ Patch 4.3 Interview with Greg Street (Ghostcrawler). MMO-Champion (2011-09-19). Retrieved on 2011-09-19.

External links[]

World of Warcraft Community Site 4.3 Raid Finder Loot Rules
World of Warcraft Community Site Raid Finder Q&A

[1] Patch 4.3 Interview with Greg Street (Ghostcrawler). MMO-Champion (2011-09-19). Retrieved on 2011-09-19.

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