Everything You Need to Know Before You Chase a Single Mount in TBC

The Burning Crusade introduced flying mounts to World of Warcraft for the first time, and with that came one of the most diverse and rewarding mount systems the game had seen up to that point. Whether you are playing on the TBC Anniversary servers, which launched pre-patch on January 13, 2026, and went fully live on February 5, 2026, or farming TBC content on retail, the mounts from this expansion remain some of the most iconic in the game. This guide covers every category, from basic ground mounts to the rarest raid drops, and tells you exactly how to get each one.​

Flying Mounts: The Basics

How Flying Works in TBC

Flying was introduced for the first time in TBC, and it only works in Outland. Before you can ride any flying mount, you need to train the riding skill first. Here is what it costs:

  • Normal Flying (150 Riding): 800g training + 100g for the mount
  • Epic Flying (225 Riding): 5,000g training + 200g for the mount
  • Normal flying speed: +60% movement speed
  • Epic flying speed: +280% movement speed
  • Special mounts (e.g., Ashes of Al'ar, PvP Netherdrakes): +310% movement speed

Total cost for all flying tiers combined, Normal and Epic training, plus mounts is 6,100g. Epic flying is a major gold sink and requires serious farming before you hit 70. Plan ahead.​

Tip: Reputation discounts apply to flying training costs based on your standing with the trainer's faction. A higher reputation means lower prices on both training and mounts.​

Where to Buy Basic Flying Mounts

Once you have your riding skill trained, basic flying mounts are sold by faction-specific vendors in Shadowmoon Valley:​

  • Alliance: Brunn Flamebeard at Wildhammer Stronghold
  • Horde: Dama Wildmane at Shadowmoon Village

These come in multiple colors and are purely functional. They are your entry point into flying, not a flex.

Reputation Mounts

Reputation mounts are the backbone of TBC mount collecting. Four factions offer some of the most visually impressive mounts in the expansion, and all of them require patience, dailies, and consistent grinding.​

Netherwing Drakes

The Netherwing faction is based in southeastern Shadowmoon Valley on Netherwing Ledge, and reaching Exalted unlocks your choice of six Netherdrake flying mounts. These are +280% speed and among the most coveted mounts from the expansion.

How to unlock the grind:
You must be level 70 with an existing flying mount and 300 Riding skill to even begin. The starting quest chain takes you from Hated all the way to Neutral, after which the daily quest system opens up.​

Key reputation milestones:

  • Hated to Neutral: Introductory quests including "Kindness" (feeding mature Netherwing Drakes) and freeing enslaved Drakes
  • Neutral to Friendly: Daily quests begin, covering Netherwing Crystal farming, Netherdust Pollen collecting, and Fel Gland collection
  • Friendly to Honored: Additional dailies open up, including "The Great Netherwing Egg Hunt",  eggs spawn randomly across the Ledge, and each hand-in gives 250 rep, making egg farming the fastest method
  • Honored to Revered: Overlord Mor'ghor provides the Captain's Badge, usable across all of Outland, plus two new quest chains and a 7th daily unlock
  • Revered to Exalted: The Dragonmaw Race quests become available, offering 500 rep each for the first six races and 1,000 rep for the final one

Tip: Farming Netherwing Eggs is the most efficient reputation method. They spawn at random locations on Netherwing Ledge and can be turned in repeatedly for 250 rep each. On TBC Anniversary's mega-server structure, expect more competition for egg spawns during peak hours.

Sha'tari Skyguard, Nether Rays

The Sha'tari Skyguard offers five Riding Nether Ray mounts at Exalted reputation. The Skyguard is based in Terokkar Forest, and their quartermaster sits at coordinates 64.2, 66.2. Like the Netherwing, you start at Hated and work your way up through daily quests, bombing runs, and Arakkoa kills around Skettis. The Nether Rays come in five colors, Purple, Red, Blue, Green, and Silver, and all move at +280% speed.​

Cenarion Expedition, Cenarion War Hippogryph

Reaching Exalted with the Cenarion Expedition unlocks the Cenarion War Hippogryph, one of the cleanest-looking flying mounts in TBC. You build this reputation through:

  • Coilfang Reservoir dungeon runs (Slave Pens, Underbog, Steamvault)
  • Quests in Zangarmarsh and Blade's Edge Mountains
  • Turning in Unidentified Plant Parts for 250 rep per 10 until Honored

The Cenarion Expedition Quartermaster is in Zangarmarsh at coordinates 79.2, 63.7.​

Kurenai and Mag'har, Talbuks

Talbuks are ground mounts available from the Kurenai (Alliance) and Mag'har (Horde) factions. They come in multiple variants, including standard riding Talbuks and the harder-to-obtain Dark Talbuks. The fastest way to build this reputation is through killing Ogres in Nagrand, specifically Murkblood Broken, Warmaul Ogres, and Bladefist Ogres, as they drop Obsidian Warbeads, which can be turned in 10 at a time for 500 rep.

Raid Mounts

Ashes of Al'ar

This is the mount. The Ashes of Al'ar drops from Kael'thas Sunstrider in Tempest Keep: The Eye in Netherstorm, with a roughly 2% drop chance. It is a phoenix mount that flies at +310% speed, making it faster than standard epic flying mounts.

Tempest Keep is located in Netherstorm, Outland. The raid entrance coordinates are 73.6, 63.7. You do not need to clear every boss, Kael'thas is the only target for this mount,  but the run takes between 5 and 10 minutes once you know the layout.

The reality of farming this mount is brutal. Players have reported killing Kael'thas weekly for over a decade before seeing it drop. At a 2% drop rate, bad luck streaks are the norm, not the exception. If you are farming this, set a long-term expectation and do not make it your only weekly goal.​

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Fiery Warhorse

The Fiery Warhorse drops from Attumen the Huntsman in Karazhan, the entry-level TBC raid. It is a ground mount and a much more accessible farm than Ashes of Al'ar, as Karazhan is a 10-man raid that resets weekly and can be cleared quickly at appropriate gear levels. The Karazhan entrance is in Deadwind Pass at coordinates 46.9, 74.8.

Dungeon Mounts

Swift White Hawkstrider

The Swift White Hawkstrider drops from Kael'thas Sunstrider in Magisters' Terrace on Heroic difficulty. This is a ground mount and one of the most visually distinctive in TBC. The dungeon entrance is on the Isle of Quel'Danas at coordinates 61.1, 30.8.

Reins of the Raven Lord

The Raven Lord drops from Anzu in Sethekk Halls on Heroic difficulty. Historically, in TBC Classic, summoning Anzu required a Druid with the Swift Flight Form quest chain, but later patches and retail versions allow any class to encounter him. The Sethekk Halls entrance is in Terokkar Forest at coordinates 44.9, 65.6.

PvP Mounts

Arena Netherdrakes

The Swift, Merciless, and Vengeful Nether Drakes were exclusive rewards for reaching high Arena ratings during TBC's Season 1, 2, and 3, respectively. These are armored Netherdrakes that fly at +310% speed, making them the fastest flying mounts in the game. On TBC Anniversary, Arena Season 1 began on February 17, 2026, with each region's weekly reset.​

Black War Mounts

PvP versions of racial mounts, including the Black War Elekk and Black War Strider, are available through PvP honor and conquest systems. Alliance gets the Black War Elekk, Horde gets the Black War Strider.​

Engineering Mounts

Flying Machine and Turbo-Charged Flying Machine

Engineers can craft their own flying mounts in TBC, making this the only player-crafted flying option in the expansion. Both require 350 Engineering skill. The standard Flying Machine uses materials including Fel Iron Bars, Adamantite Frames, and Star Wood. The epic Turbo-Charged version requires higher-tier materials, including Khorium Power Cores. These are account-bound in terms of use; only the Engineer who crafts them can ride them in TBC.​

World Event Mounts

Headless Horseman's Mount

Available during the Hallow's End seasonal event, the Horseman's Reins drop from the Headless Horseman boss in the Scarlet Monastery. This is a limited-time mount tied entirely to the event window, so if you miss it, you wait a full year.​

Brewfest Mounts

The Swift Brewfest Ram and the Swift Brewfest Kodo are available during the Brewfest seasonal event. The Ram is the Alliance variant, the Kodo is the Horde variant, and both are ground mounts obtainable through Brewfest Prize Tickets during the event window.​

Racial Mounts in TBC

TBC introduced two new playable races, Blood Elves (Horde) and Draenei (Alliance), each with their own racial mounts.​​

  • Blood Elf: Red Hawkstrider, purchasable from Winaestra in Eversong Woods​
  • Draenei: Elekk mounts, available in Exodar

Players of other races can unlock these mounts by reaching Exalted with Silvermoon City (for Hawkstriders) or The Exodar (for Elekks).​

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FAQ

Do TBC Anniversary upgrade bundles actually come with flying mounts, or do you still need to grind for them?

Some Anniversary Edition upgrade bundles include a Netherdrake flying mount and a Phase Hunter ground mount. However, they do not bypass level or riding skill requirements; you still need Expert Riding to use the flying mount. They remove the cost of purchasing a standard flying mount separately, but the 800g training fee still applies.​

Can you skip directly to Epic Flying on TBC Anniversary, or do you have to buy Normal Flying first?

You cannot skip Normal Flying. The progression is fixed; you must purchase Expert Riding (Normal Flying) before training Artisan Riding (Epic Flying). The full cost across all flying tiers on Anniversary is approximately 6,100g total, covering training and mounts at each stage. There are no shortcuts in the progression chain.

Did TBC Anniversary change anything about how reputation mounts are earned compared to original TBC Classic?

The TBC Anniversary servers launched on February 5, 2026, using a mega-server structure with extensive layering rather than dozens of smaller realms. The core reputation systems, including Netherwing, Sha'tari Skyguard, and Cenarion Expedition, remain functionally the same, but the larger, more populated server environment means more competition for Netherwing Egg spawns and open-world farming nodes.

Are Druids still the only class that can fly without a mount in TBC Anniversary?

Yes. Druids learn Flight Form at level 68 for just 8 gold and 60 silver, making them the only class that can fly without purchasing a separate flying mount. Critically, Druids in Flight Form can gather herbs and ore without dismounting, making them exceptionally efficient for farming materials across Outland. No other class has an equivalent in TBC.​

If you transferred a character from Classic Anniversary to TBC Anniversary, does your existing ground mount carry over?

Yes, characters that progressed from Classic Anniversary to TBC Anniversary kept their existing mounts and riding skills. The transfer was a permanent one-way choice with no character cloning available, meaning whatever mounts and progress your character had in Classic Era carried forward into Outland with them. Free transfers closed permanently on January 12, 2026.​

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