WoW Hearthstone 10th Anniversary Event and Portal Rewards
The WoW Hearthstone 10th Anniversary event ran March 2024 with city portals and Dr. Boom. Here are the bosses, the Stormwind bug, and the rewards.
By:
John Langan
Key Takeaways
- The Hearthstone's 10th Anniversary world event ran in WoW from March 11 to 22, 2024, and it was a one-time event that has not returned.
- Ominous Portals spawned in Stormwind City, Durotar, and Valdrakken, where Whizbang summoned three bosses: a Chillwind Yeti or Boulderfist Ogre, then Patches, then Dr. Boom.
- Dr. Boom was the loot boss, and tagging him for credit could drop the Compass Rose mount and the Stone of the Hearth toy.
- A Stormwind over-spawn bug made the Alliance-side portals appear far more often than the Horde or Valdrakken portals, so players farmed on Alliance characters through the Group Finder.
- Blizzard hotfixed the spawn cadence during the event, with changes on March 12 and March 14, 2024.
- Every reward, from the Compass Rose mount to the Sarge pet and the transmog set, is no longer obtainable now that the event has ended.
For about two weeks in March 2024, World of Warcraft celebrated Hearthstone's 10th anniversary with a crossover world event built around portals in the major cities. A spawn bug turned the Stormwind portals into the fastest farming route in the game, and players reorganized around it almost overnight. This recap covers what the event was, why the Stormwind portals broke the way they did, and what you could collect before it closed. The event ran during Dragonflight and has not come back, so everything here is a look back rather than a live guide.
What the Hearthstone 10th Anniversary Event Was
The event placed an Ominous Portal in three locations: Stormwind City, Durotar just outside Orgrimmar, and Valdrakken. When a portal opened, the goblin showman Whizbang stepped out and summoned a short wave of three Hearthstone-themed bosses. The wave opened with a Chillwind Yeti or a Boulderfist Ogre, moved on to Patches, and finished with Dr. Boom, who scattered Boom Bots around the arena as he fought.
Dr. Boom was the one that mattered for loot. Clearing the wave and getting credit on him was the entire gameplay loop, repeated every time a portal opened, for the length of the event.
The Stormwind Portal Over-Spawn Bug
The portals were meant to appear on a shared timer across all three cities. Instead, the Stormwind portals began spawning far more frequently than the Horde and Valdrakken ones, leaving at least one Alliance portal active during long stretches when the other cities sat empty. The result was a clear imbalance in the Group Finder.
| Portal location | Observed spawn behavior |
|---|---|
| Stormwind City (Alliance) | Spawned constantly in random phases, usually at least one active |
| Durotar and Valdrakken (Horde) | Appeared roughly once an hour or every other hour |
Because the Alliance side stayed busy, that was where the active groups gathered, and the Horde-side queues thinned out by comparison.
How Players Farmed It
The practical answer most players reached was simple: log in on an Alliance character, head to Stormwind, and search the Group Finder for "Stormwind Portal" groups. With a portal almost always up, you could chain runs back to back instead of waiting out an hourly timer. The one rule that tripped people up was tagging. You had to deal damage to Dr. Boom yourself to earn credit and a shot at his rewards, so jumping in late and watching the boss die left you with nothing.
Demand was the other catch. Cosmetics drove huge interest, so group leaders were buried in invites the instant a group formed, and getting a spot took patience. Blizzard did respond to the imbalance, issuing hotfixes on March 12 and March 14, 2024 that adjusted the spawn cadence, and by the time the event wrapped on March 22 the portals were behaving closer to as intended.
Event Rewards
The payoff behind all that farming was a long list of cosmetics. The headline prize was the Compass Rose mount off Dr. Boom, but the full set ran much wider:
- Compass Rose mount
- Stone of the Hearth toy and the Hearthstone Game Table toy
- Sarge battle pet
- Collector's Carryall, a 36-slot bag
- Transmog pieces: Reno's Lucky Hat, Taverner's Belt, and The Tavern's Tabard
One mount that often gets lumped in did not come from the portals at all: the Fiery Hearthsteed was a separate reward for logging into Hearthstone itself during the anniversary window. Collectors who missed this run cannot grab any of it today, though plenty of other rare mounts are still droppable, and you can farm rare mounts you missed across current content instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
When did the WoW Hearthstone anniversary event run?
It ran from March 11 to 22, 2024, during Dragonflight. The end date was extended to the 22nd.
Is the Hearthstone anniversary event still available?
No. It was a one-time event that ended on March 22, 2024, and it has not returned. Its rewards are no longer obtainable.
What was the Compass Rose mount?
A floating compass mount that dropped from Dr. Boom during the event. With the event over, it can no longer be earned in-game.
Why did people farm the Stormwind portals on Alliance characters?
A bug made the Stormwind portals over-spawn relative to the Horde and Valdrakken ones, so players rolled Alliance characters and used the Group Finder to chain runs. Blizzard later hotfixed the spawn cadence.
Which bosses spawned from the portals?
Whizbang summoned three per wave: a Chillwind Yeti or Boulderfist Ogre, then Patches, then Dr. Boom, who also summoned Boom Bots.
What rewards could you earn?
The Compass Rose mount, the Stone of the Hearth and Hearthstone Game Table toys, the Sarge pet, the Collector's Carryall bag, and three transmog pieces. The Fiery Hearthsteed mount came separately from logging into Hearthstone.
Last reviewed 2026-06-24 against the March 2024 Hearthstone's 10th Anniversary event (Dragonflight). Maintained by WowCarry's WoW team.