Prepare the Stormwind Pickups and Sentinel Hill Chain Before Your Run
A complete Deadmines quest trip starts before you enter the mine. Collect Wilder Thistlenettle's two quests and Shoni the Shilent's task in Stormwind, then finish the Defias Traitor escort in Westfall. That escort opens the final VanCleef task and Scout Riell's Red Silk Bandanas.
This guide follows the original Classic quest layout used in Classic Era and the initial Classic Fresh leveling experience. It covers five Alliance quests to prepare, a separate letter found on VanCleef, and the Alliance Paladin's lumber objective. The minimum levels below are quest acceptance requirements; they do not establish that a character is ready to complete the dungeon at that level.
Five Alliance Quests to Collect Before Entering
| Quest and minimum | Collect and return | Objective and reward |
|---|---|---|
| The Defias Brotherhood Minimum level 14 | Gryan Stoutmantle, Sentinel Hill, after the Defias Traitor escort. | Bring the Head of VanCleef. Choose Chausses of Westfall, Tunic of Westfall or Staff of Westfall. |
| Red Silk Bandanas Minimum level 14 | Scout Riell, Sentinel Hill Tower, after completing the escort stage. | Bring 10 Red Silk Bandanas. Choose Solid Shortblade, Scrimshaw Dagger or Piercing Axe. |
| Collecting Memories Minimum level 14 | Wilder Thistlenettle, Stormwind's Dwarven District. | Bring four Miners' Union Cards. Choose Tunneler's Boots or Dusty Mining Gloves. |
| Oh Brother. . . Minimum level 15 | Wilder Thistlenettle, Stormwind's Dwarven District. | Bring Thistlenettle's Badge from Foreman Thistlenettle. Receive Miner's Revenge. |
| Underground Assault Minimum level 15 | Shoni the Shilent, Stormwind's Dwarven District. | Bring the Gnoam Sprecklesprocket from Sneed's Shredder. Choose Polar Gauntlets or Sable Wand. |
The table lists the final dungeon objectives, rather than every referral in their chains. The Defias task needs the Westfall preparation below; the two Wilder quests can be collected together. If you are already in Ironforge, Gnoarn's Speak with Shoni points you toward Shoni, but that introduction is optional. You can collect Underground Assault directly from her.
Finish the Defias Escort to Unlock Both Westfall Pickups
Start The Defias Brotherhood with Gryan Stoutmantle at Sentinel Hill. Several stages share the same title, so follow the objective text in your quest log:
- Visit Wiley the Black in Lakeshire. Gryan sends you to him in Redridge Mountains.
- Take Wiley's Note back to Gryan.
- Carry the note to Master Mathias Shaw in Stormwind.
- Bring Shaw's report back to Gryan.
- Find the Defias Messenger in Westfall. Recover his message and deliver it to Gryan.
- Accept the escort from the Defias Traitor. Escort him to the Brotherhood's hideout, then return to Gryan with the information.
- Accept the final VanCleef quest and speak with Scout Riell. Check that both the head objective and Red Silk Bandanas are active before joining the dungeon run.
The important hand-in is the Defias Traitor escort stage. Red Leather Bandanas is a different Westfall task; completing it does not replace this escort. You can collect Riell's silk-bandana quest after the escort without first killing VanCleef.
In the Mine Tunnels: Finish Wilder's Objectives Outside the Instance
Collecting Memories and Oh Brother. . . are completed in the mine's external tunnels. Tell the group you need the undead section before everyone crosses the instance portal. These enemies include elites, even though they are outside the instanced dungeon.
- Collecting Memories: four cards
Look for Skeletal Miners, Undead Excavators and Undead Dynamiters. These enemies supply the Miners' Union Cards. Confirm your own four-card objective before moving on.
- Oh Brother. . .: the foreman's badge
Find Foreman Thistlenettle in the undead mine area and recover Thistlenettle's Badge. The badge and the four cards are separate objectives, but both return to Wilder in Stormwind.
You do not turn either quest in at the dungeon portal. Keep the collected items for the return to the Dwarven District.
Inside the Deadmines: Match Each Item to Its Enemy
Sneed's Shredder supplies the Gnoam Sprecklesprocket for Underground Assault. Check the shredder's loot when that encounter is finished. Keep the item for Shoni's Stormwind turn-in.
Collect 10 Red Silk Bandanas from the Defias. Suitable enemies inside the instance and around its external approach can supply them. The leather bandanas used for the separate Westfall quest do not satisfy this silk collection.
Edwin VanCleef supplies the Head of VanCleef for the final Defias Brotherhood task. Before leaving his area, check both that quest objective and his other loot: An Unsent Letter begins a separate continuation.
After VanCleef: Open An Unsent Letter at Level 16
If you obtain An Unsent Letter, use it from your bags to begin The Unsent Letter. The item and quest require level 16, and this original Classic quest is Alliance-only.
Deliver it to Baros Alexston, the City Architect, in Stormwind's City Hall at Cathedral Square. He is a different contact from Wilder and Shoni, so add his stop to the city return trip.
The letter does not require completion of the Defias Brotherhood chain. You can begin its quest if you meet its own requirements and have the item, even if VanCleef's head was not your objective on that run. The letter starts further quests after this delivery; those later tasks are separate from completing the Deadmines pickups listed above.
Alliance Paladins: Activate Jordan's Material Quest Before Collecting Lumber
The Test of Righteousness is the Alliance Paladin's level-20 weapon chain. Its Deadmines contribution is Whitestone Oak Lumber from a Goblin Woodcarver, rather than the finished Verigan's Fist.
Prepare the collection stage before the dungeon trip:
- Follow The Tome of Valor through Duthorian Rall and Daphne Stilwell. Meet Duthorian in Stormwind, find Daphne in Westfall and defend her from the Defias attack. After completing her defense, return to Duthorian.
- Take Duthorian's referral to Jordan Stilwell. The Test of Righteousness, quest 1653, sends you to Jordan outside Ironforge's gates in Dun Morogh.
- Accept Jordan's collection task. Quest 1654 is the material-gathering stage you want active for the Deadmines run.
- Recover the Whitestone Oak Lumber from a Goblin Woodcarver inside the dungeon. Keep it for Jordan while you finish the remaining material objectives.
Jordan needs Whitestone Oak Lumber, Jordan's Refined Ore Shipment, Jordan's Smithing Hammer and a Purified Kor Gem. The hammer belongs to the Shadowfang Keep part of the Alliance Paladin route; the other materials also have their own collection tasks. A Deadmines clear supplies only the lumber component.
Once the full collection is handed in, complete Jordan's forging step to receive Verigan's Fist. This material collection is restricted to Alliance Paladins.
Plan the Turn-Ins by Destination
- Sentinel Hill: Gryan receives VanCleef's head; Scout Riell receives the 10 silk bandanas.
- Stormwind, Dwarven District: Wilder receives the four cards and the foreman's badge; Shoni receives the Gnoam Sprecklesprocket.
- Stormwind, Cathedral Square: Baros Alexston receives the letter if you accepted its separate quest.
- Outside Ironforge: Alliance Paladins return the complete four-material collection to Jordan when all its components are ready.
