Vault of Archavon

Vault of Archavon
VoA
Location	Wintergrasp Fortress, Wintergrasp
Race(s)	Stone giant; Iron giant; Fire giant; Frost giant; Revenant
End boss	Toravon the Ice Watcher
Instance info
Type	Raid
Advised level	30 - 31
Player limit	10/25
Bosses
Archavon the Stone Watcher; Emalon the Storm Watcher; Koralon the Flame Watcher; Toravon the Ice Watcher	(lore); (lore); (lore); (lore)
	Loot

Vault of Archavon is a raid dungeon found in Wintergrasp Fortress. Players may only enter the dungeon while their faction controls Wintergrasp. Notably, up to the release of Warlords of Draenor, all bosses in this instance granted honorable kills. 10 minutes before the battle for Wintergrasp starts, any boss who is not currently in combat turns to stone and cannot be fought again until after the battle is over.

Description

Overlooking the frozen plains of the Great Dragonblight and the inhospitable wastes of Borean Tundra lies a region known to the denizens of Northrend as Wintergrasp. Seated atop a high plateau, Wintergrasp has remained undisturbed for ages, its icy winds howling unheard amongst the ancient titan fortifications that dot the landscape.

However, an abundance of elemental materials and its strategically important titan fortifications are making Wintergrasp the focus of a vicious tug-of-war between the Horde and the Alliance. And then there are the persistent rumors of an ancient titan vault beneath Wintergrasp's keep. One can only marvel at the thought of what treasures may be waiting there...^[1]

Geography

Map

Map of the Vault of Archavon (as of patch 3.3).

Encounters and loot

Vault of Archavon bosses.

The bosses of the Vault of Archavon drop a random assortment of gear in a similar style as classic World of Warcraft before the expansions. Class-specific pieces can drop for both the PvE and PvP sets. The loot can be all PvP, PvE, or a mix of the two. The loot is completely random and is not impacted by the raid makeup, so it is advantageous to bring a variety of class/spec makeups to increase the likelihood that someone can actually use the drops.

It should be noted that the PvP gear cannot be disenchanted but the PvE can. It should also be noted that should a group to wipe, depending on how long it takes to get the group reassembled some members may be flagged for PvP while others are not. This is because the watchers are all PvP flagged, having all members manually flag will prevent members from accidentally not having certain buffs when the fights start.

In addition to the noted loot, all four bosses of the instance have a rare chance to drop the [Reins of the Grand Black War Mammoth] on either 10-player or 25-player mode.

Boss	PvE	PvP (10 player)	PvP (25 player)
Archavon the Stone Watcher	Tier 7 (chest, hands, legs)	Hateful Gladiator (chest, hands, legs)	Deadly Gladiator (chest, hands, legs)
Emalon the Storm Watcher	Tier 8 (chest, hands, legs)	Deadly Gladiator (back, feet, finger, hands, legs, neck, waist, wrist)	Furious Gladiator (back, feet, finger, hands, legs, neck, waist, wrist)
Koralon the Flame Watcher	Tier 9 (hands, legs)	Furious Gladiator (back, feet, finger, hands, legs, neck, waist, wrist)	Relentless Gladiator (back, feet, finger, hands, legs, neck, waist, wrist)
Toravon the Ice Watcher	Tier 10 (hands, legs)	Relentless Gladiator (back, feet, finger, hands, legs, neck, waist, wrist)	Wrathful Gladiator (back, feet, finger, hands, legs, neck, waist, wrist)

Achievements

The "Earth, Wind, and Fire" achievement is currently the most difficult achievement for this instance. Even though it only awards 10 and has no associated title reward, this was intentional according to a Blizzard official.^[2]

10-player mode	25-player mode	Objective
Archavon the Stone Watcher	Archavon the Stone Watcher	Defeat Archavon the Stone Watcher.
Emalon the Storm Watcher	Emalon the Storm Watcher	Defeat Emalon the Storm Watcher. Added in patch 3.1
Koralon the Flame Watcher	Koralon the Flame Watcher	Defeat Koralon the Flame Watcher. Added in patch 3.2
Earth, Wind & Fire	Earth, Wind & Fire	Defeat Archavon the Stone Watcher, Emalon the Storm Watcher and Koralon the Flame Watcher within 60 seconds of each other. Added in patch 3.2
Toravon the Ice Watcher	Toravon the Ice Watcher	Defeat Toravon the Ice Watcher. Added in patch 3.3.2

Dungeon denizens

Bosses	Mobs
Archavon the Stone Watcher Emalon the Storm Watcher Tempest Minion Koralon the Flame Watcher Toravon the Ice Watcher	Archavon Warder Flame Warder Frost Warder Tempest Warder

Mobs

As of patch 4.0.1, the Warders in the hall leading to Toravon have been removed.

Things to remember with the trash

Melee DPS should run out before Whirl is cast or take very high damage.
Ranged DPS should run out of cast Rock Falls.
The off-tank should taunt when the main tank has been Shield Crushed.

Gallery

World map as of patch 3.0.2.
World map since patch 3.1.
Hall of Repose is the wing on the right side.
World map since patch 3.2.
The new wing is on the left side.

Patch changes

Patch 9.0.1 (2020-10-13): Now scales up to level 30. Previoux max level: 80.
Patch 7.3.5 (2018-01-16): Level scaling implemented, previous instance level: 80.
Patch 6.0.2 (2014-10-14): Boss kills no longer award [Honor Points].
Patch 4.0.1 (2010-10-12): The mobs leading up to Toravon have been removed.
Patch 3.3.2 (2010-02-01): Toravon, the latest boss to join the Vault's giants and masters of the elements, is now accepting challengers in 10- and 25-player formats. World map updated.
Patch 3.2.0 (2009-08-04): Koralon was added. World map updated.
Patch 3.1.0 (2009-04-14): Emalon was added. World map added.
Patch 3.0.2 (2008-10-14): Added.