Mudback Riverbeast

Mudback Riverbeast is a ground saurian mount that looks like a huge river beast with thick, lumpy hide. The mount was added in patch 6.2 of the Warlords of Draenor expansion and to this day remains one of the most recognizable trophies of the garrison era.

After the changes in patch 9.0.1, the mount requires only character level 17 and basic riding skill, so it can be used by almost any hero who gets it to drop. The model uses the riverbeast family and shares its animation with the sapphire, icy, and other related mounts.

• A unique and fairly rare model: players have noticeably fewer riverbeasts than mount cats or wolves.
• A contribution toward mount-collecting achievements.
• A nostalgic excuse to return to Draenor and breathe life back into your garrison.
• A great pick for roleplay characters and themed accounts: the model looks powerful and unhurried.

The mount is awarded only through the Draenor garrison, so you first need to:

1. Have a character of at least level 40 (for a comfortable run through the Warlords of Draenor questline).
2. Complete the introductory campaign in Draenor and build a level 3 garrison in Frostfire Ridge or Shadowmoon Valley.
3. Unlock patch 6.2: complete the War Council questline from Vol'mar Isle, which grants access to Tanaan Jungle.
4. Build a dock and upgrade it to level 3 to increase the number of available ships and missions.
5. Learn the core ship blueprints from the faction representatives in Tanaan Jungle: the Alliance works with the Hand of the Prophet, the Horde with Vol'jin's Headhunters.
6. Keep a steady supply of oil — the mission costs 150 units. The best source is the daily Apexis Crystal quest in Tanaan Jungle (around 600 oil per day).

The mount's own requirements once obtained are minimal: character level 17 and basic riding skill.

Step 1. Prepare Your Garrison

If you are starting on a fresh character, at level 40+ pick up the introductory quest in Stormwind or Orgrimmar and follow the story up to building the garrison. Upgrade your Town Hall to level 3 — this unlocks the maximum set of followers and buildings.

Step 2. Unlock Patch 6.2 and Build the Dock

Once the War Council quest appears, head to Vol'mar Isle, complete the questline, and build the dock next to your garrison. Upgrade it to level 3 through the Assembling the Crew and Naval Supremacy quests.

Step 3. Assemble the Right Fleet

For rare missions you will need at least one ship of each type: transport, destroyer, battleship, carrier, submarine. Mission 615 specifically requires a battleship and a destroyer, so give them special attention:

• A battleship with a human or Forsaken crew, the True Iron Rudder module, and the Blast Furnace.
• A destroyer with a pandaren crew, the Felsmoke Launcher, and the Ghostly Spyglass.

This combination covers both threats of the mission and reliably delivers 100% success.

Step 4. Wait for the Mission to Appear

The mission It's a Boat, It's a Plane, It's... a Riverbeast belongs to the rare category and appears at random among ordinary naval missions. On average you need to complete several hundred regular missions before a rare one shows up in the list. In December 2015, Blizzard increased the appearance rate of rare missions, but the element of chance still remains.

Step 5. Send the Ships and Claim the Mount

When the mission appears, make sure both ships — the battleship and the destroyer — are alive and properly equipped. Spend 150 oil and launch the mission for 18 hours. When the ships return, collect the reward from the dockmaster — the bag will contain an item that adds the mount to your collection.

• Launch naval missions every 4–6 hours: the more missions you complete, the higher the chance of seeing a rare mission.
• Keep your mission queue full: if there are no free ships, a rare mission will "burn out" for nothing, so try not to fill every slot with long expeditions.
• Use the Tanaan Jungle oil daily so you never have to worry about resources.
• Assemble a full set of crews of all races: pandaren, goblins, draenei, and humans grant different bonuses and come in handy for different missions.
• Run mission 615 alongside five other rare naval missions to also unlock the Explore Tanaan Jungle achievement.
• Farm on several characters at once: each garrison is independent, and the chance of seeing a rare mission stacks up.
• Don't sell old ship modules: they may come in handy if one of your elite ships is lost.