Mythic+ Rewards Above +15 in BfA Patch 8.3
Patch 8.3 added extra Mythic+ loot for pushing keys above +15 in BfA Season 4. Here is the full loot-by-key-level table and how the system worked.
By:
John Langan
Key Takeaways
- Patch 8.3 "Visions of N'Zoth" launched on January 14, 2020, and its Mythic+ Season 4 added extra loot for pushing keystones above +15 for the first time.
- A dungeon paid a base of two items, or three if the group beat the timer, and every key level past +15 added a 40% additive chance at an extra piece.
- At +16 that chance was 40% and at +17 it reached 80%; at +18 the extra item became guaranteed with a 20% residual chance at another, and +19 pushed that residual to 60%.
- A +20 key guaranteed four pieces untimed and five if timed, the ceiling of the system.
- The extra rewards were quantity, not quality: end-of-run gear still capped at item level 465 and the weekly chest at 475, so a +14 and a +20 dropped the same item level, just different amounts.
- This was the last Battle for Azeroth season; Shadowlands later replaced the weekly chest with the Great Vault, so the system described here is historical.
Here is how the above-+15 reward system worked, the full loot-by-key-level table, and why it changed high-key pushing.
The Additional Rewards System Above +15
Before Patch 8.3, a +15 Mythic+ key was the effective ceiling for loot: higher keys added prestige and rating but no extra reward. Season 4 changed that with a system that gave a concrete reason to push further, aimed at keeping high-end players engaged deeper into the season.
The base payout stayed familiar. Any completed dungeon dropped two pieces of loot, and beating the timer added a third. Starting at +16, each additional key level layered on a 40% additive chance at one more piece of gear. That chance stacked with the guaranteed drops, so the further a group pushed, the more items a single run could produce.
The Loot-by-Key-Level Table
These were the item counts a group could expect from the end-of-dungeon chest at each key level, before and after beating the timer:
| M+ Level | Items (untimed) | Items (timed) | Additive Chance at an Extra Item |
|---|---|---|---|
| +15 | 2 | 3 | - |
| +16 | 2 | 3 | 40% |
| +17 | 2 | 3 | 80% |
| +18 | 3 | 4 | 20% |
| +19 | 3 | 4 | 60% |
| +20 | 4 | 5 | - |
Reading down the ladder, the additive chance rolled into a guaranteed extra item at +18, reset to a fresh residual chance, and rolled over again into a second guaranteed extra at +20. That is why the guaranteed count climbed from two at +15 to four at +20.
📌 The common mistake was treating a +20 as a straight upgrade over a +14. Both dropped the same item level, so a group unsure of its ceiling gained more by timing a clean +14 for guaranteed pieces than by wiping repeatedly on a +18 they could not finish in time.
Item Level Versus Item Quantity
The key nuance was that the extra rewards were about volume, not power. In Season 4, the end-of-dungeon reward capped at item level 465 and the weekly chest at 475, and those caps were already reached at +15. Pushing higher did not raise the item level of a single piece; it raised the number of pieces that could drop.
That reframed the decision at the top of a group's range. The choice was whether the extra items from a risky high key were worth more than the guaranteed items from a comfortable, reliably timed lower key. For a well-geared group that could clear a +18 in time, the four dropped pieces were a strong return. For a group that found +18 a coin flip, farming timed +14 runs for three guaranteed pieces of the same item level was the safer path.
The Patch 8.3 Season 4 Context
Season 4 was the final stretch of Battle for Azeroth. Patch 8.3 also carried the "Awakened" seasonal affix, which spawned obelisks that pulled the group into Ny'alotha to fight one of N'Zoth's servants, and any lieutenant left alive went on to aid the dungeon's final boss. The season's Mythic+ pool ran the full Battle for Azeroth dungeon roster, including both halves of Operation: Mechagon as the separate Junkyard and Workshop keystones.
The above-+15 reward system did not survive the expansion. When Shadowlands launched later in 2020, its Season 1 replaced the single weekly Mythic+ chest with the Great Vault, a broader choice-based reward window, and the loot-quantity ladder from 8.3 was retired. Players weighing whether to push or farm in a live season can see our Mythic+ dungeon carries for the current pool.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Patch 8.3 change about Mythic+ rewards?
Patch 8.3 "Visions of N'Zoth" added extra loot for Mythic+ keys above +15, which had previously been the loot ceiling. Each key level past +15 gave a 40% additive chance at an additional piece of gear on top of the base drops.
How many items did a +20 key drop in BfA Season 4?
A +20 key guaranteed four pieces of loot if completed untimed and five if the group beat the timer. That was the top of the additional rewards system introduced in Patch 8.3.
Did higher keys give higher item level gear?
No. The end-of-dungeon reward capped at item level 465 and the weekly chest at 475, and both caps were reached at +15. Pushing higher increased the number of items that could drop, not their item level.
Was it better to push high keys or farm +14 in 8.3?
It depended on reliability. A group that could time a +18 gained more items per run, but a group that struggled to time high keys got a better guaranteed return from clean +14 runs, which dropped the same item level with less risk.
When did Patch 8.3 release?
Patch 8.3 "Visions of N'Zoth" released on January 14, 2020. It was the final major content patch of Battle for Azeroth and launched Mythic+ Season 4.
Does this reward system still exist?
No. Shadowlands replaced the weekly Mythic+ chest with the Great Vault in its Season 1, and the above-+15 loot-quantity ladder from Patch 8.3 was retired with the end of Battle for Azeroth.
Last reviewed 2026-07-20 against Patch 8.3 Visions of N'Zoth — Maintained by WowCarry's WoW team.