Duskwood

Duskwood is a forest under permanent night south of Elwynn Forest, built for characters of roughly levels 18 to 30. Once a bright, prosperous part of the kingdom of Stormwind, it is now haunted by the undead, prowled by worgen and abandoned by the Stormwind army. Its quests are some of the darkest and most story-heavy in Classic, full of murder mysteries, ghosts and family tragedy.

Geography

Tall, twisted trees and a dim blue light cover the whole zone. A main road runs east to west, linking Darkshire with Raven Hill and the Westfall border.

• Darkshire, in the east, is the zone's only living town. It is the base of the Night Watch, a local militia, and has the inn, the town hall and an Alliance flight point.
• Raven Hill, in the west, is a deserted village with a large cemetery, the haunt of ghouls, skeletons and the undead.
• The Tranquil Gardens Cemetery, near Darkshire, and Raven Hill Cemetery are crawling with skeletal warriors and mages.
• Manor Mistmantle, north of Darkshire, is an empty house with a dark past.
• Brightwood Grove, Roland's Doom and the Rotting Orchard are overrun by the Nightbane worgen.
• The Vul'Gol Ogre Mound in the south holds a band of ogres.
• Twilight Grove, in the center, is a sacred druidic grove around one of the great trees, linked to the Emerald Dream.
• The Yorgen Farmstead and Addle's Stead are ruined farms on the western side.

History

The region was once a lush forest. Something unknown, which locals blame on dark magic, turned it into a place of endless gloom where the dead do not rest. When the Stormwind army withdrew its guards, the town of Darkshire organized the Night Watch under Commander Althea Ebonlocke to protect itself. Her husband, Lord Ello Ebonlocke, is the town's mayor.

The neighboring tower of Karazhan in Deadwind Pass, once home of the Guardian Medivh, lies just to the east, and its strange energies are often suspected as a source of Duskwood's corruption.

Quests and notable NPCs

Duskwood has two hubs: Darkshire, and Sven's camp near Raven Hill. Many of its quests are long chains that reward reading the text.

The Night Watch. Commander Ebonlocke's The Night Watch chain sends players into the cemeteries to thin out the skeletons. It ends with the hunt for Mor'Ladim, the undead form of Morgan Ladimore. A weathered grave leads into the story of his crime and his daughter Sarah, now Watcher Ladimore of the Night Watch (The Daughter Who Lived, A Daughter's Love).

The Legend of Stalvan. This is one of Classic's longest chains. The fortune teller Madame Eva senses danger to her granddaughter and sends players through Darkshire, Westfall, Elwynn and Stormwind to uncover the dark secret of Stalvan Mistmantle, a man the town once trusted. The final step, The Legend of Stalvan, is a fight with his ghost at Manor Mistmantle.

Stitches and the Embalmer. The hermit Abercrombie seems harmless at first and sends players for ghoul ribs (Ghoulish Effigy) and other odd materials. In fact he is assembling Stitches, a level 35 elite abomination that marches down the main road to attack Darkshire. A related story, Bride of the Embalmer, sends players to the grave of Eliza, the Embalmer's wife.

Sven and the shadowy figure. Sven Yorgen, whose family was murdered at their farm, camps in the woods near Raven Hill. His chain leads to the nervous Jitters, hiding in the empty village, and to the necromancer Morbent Fel, who lives in a house on the hill above Raven Hill Cemetery and whom players kill in Morbent Fel.

The worgen. Calor in Darkshire sends players into Brightwood Grove after Nightbane worgen in Worgen in the Woods and its follow-ups.

Smaller quests include The Totem of Infliction from Madame Eva, the Look To The Stars astronomy chain, and Dusky Crab Cakes, a cooking errand.

World bosses

From patch 1.8, Twilight Grove is one of four places where the Dragons of Nightmare appear, four of Ysera's green dragon lieutenants, corrupted by the Emerald Nightmare. Ysondre, Lethon, Emeriss and Taerar rotate among the four groves in Duskwood, Ashenvale, Feralas and the Hinterlands. Each is a level 63 raid boss meant for 40 players.

Dungeons

Duskwood has no dungeon. The Deadmines is to the west in Westfall, and the tower of Karazhan in Deadwind Pass is closed in Classic.

Getting there

Take the road south from Goldshire in Elwynn Forest, across the bridge into Duskwood, or the road southwest from Lakeshire in the Redridge Mountains. Darkshire has an Alliance flight point. Horde players come in from Stranglethorn Vale to the south, usually on their way north to the Deadmines or east through Deadwind Pass to the Swamp of Sorrows.

Sources

• Duskwood, Warcraft Wiki
• Dragons of Nightmare, Warcraft Wiki
• Quest data from WoWDB (patch 1.12)