Get Drake of the East Wind mount

Drake of the East Wind is an epic flying mount added in patch 4.0.3a of the Cataclysm expansion. It is a majestic drake with turquoise-and-silver scales and glowing wings swirling with the gusts of the east wind. The mount is the reward for the Glory of the Cataclysm Raider meta-achievement, which requires completing 24 achievements across the three first-tier raids of Cataclysm.

Once the meta-achievement is complete, the Reins of the Drake of the East Wind arrive automatically in your mailbox. The mount is account-bound and becomes available to all your characters.

• Guaranteed acquisition — no RNG. Complete all 24 achievements and the drake is yours. Every step is entirely under your control
• Solo in one evening — at level 90, all three Cataclysm raids can be cleared in 1–2 hours. Most bosses die within seconds, and the achievements are awarded automatically when killed on heroic difficulty
• Unique model — the Drake of the East Wind stands out among hundreds of mounts. The turquoise-and-silver coloring with the wind-current effect on the wings is found only on this drake
• Ground and flying — the mount works in both modes. Speed depends on your riding skill
• Achievement points — in addition to the mount, you earn 265 achievement points for completing every criterion of the meta-achievement

• A level 90 character (recommended, for comfortable solo completion)
• The Master Riding skill to fly at maximum speed
• The ability to switch raids to heroic difficulty (10 or 25 players — any size works)
• Roughly 1–2 hours of free time

The meta-achievement involves the three first-tier raids of Cataclysm. Here is how to reach each one.

Blackwing Descent

The raid is located in the Burning Steppes, inside Blackrock Mountain. The easiest way is to fly in from the nearest flight point — Flame Crest (Burning Steppes). The raid entrance is in the lower part of Blackrock Mountain, on the Burning Steppes side. Enter the mountain through the main entrance and turn left — the raid portal will be on a balcony.

The Bastion of Twilight

The raid is located in the Twilight Highlands. The entrance is on the western side of the Bastion, up high — fly up to the enormous fortress and look for a portal on one of the upper tiers. The nearest flight point is Highbank (for the Alliance) or Dragonmaw Port (for the Horde).

Throne of the Four Winds

The raid is located in Uldum. The entrance is on a floating platform high in the sky above the southwestern part of the zone. Fly up to the central platform and look for the portal. The nearest flight point is Ramkahen.

The meta-achievement consists of 24 parts: one heroic kill and one challenge achievement for each of the 12 bosses. At level 80, heroic kills are awarded automatically — simply kill the boss on heroic difficulty. The challenge achievements require meeting special conditions.

Before entering each raid, right-click your character portrait, choose "Dungeon Difficulty," and set it to 10 Heroic (or 25 Heroic — both work).

Blackwing Descent (6 bosses, 12 achievements)

1. Magmaw

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Magmaw — kill Magmaw on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Parasite Evening — kill Magmaw without letting any lava parasite infect a raid member

Solo tactic: At level 90, Magmaw dies in a few seconds. Simply attack the boss — he won't have time to summon parasites, and both achievements are earned at once.

2. Omnotron Defense System

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Omnotron Defense System — kill all four golems on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Achieve-a-tron — neutralize specific attacks from each of the four golems (Electron, Magmatron, Toxitron, Arcanotron) during the fight

Solo tactic: At level 90, the golems die almost instantly. If you kill them too quickly, they won't have time to use the required abilities. To earn the challenge achievement, you may need to remove some gear or rely on auto-attacks to give each golem time to activate its mechanics. You need to: destroy Electron's shield, survive Magmatron's flamethrower, destroy Toxitron's bomb, and interrupt Arcanotron's cast.

3. Maloriak

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Maloriak — kill Maloriak on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Aberrant Behavior — kill 12 aberrations before killing Maloriak

Solo tactic: Maloriak summons aberrations in phases. Don't kill the boss right away — give him time to summon enough aberrations. Once 12 have gathered, use AoE abilities, destroy all the aberrations, and then finish off the boss. If your damage is too high, remove your weapon or some gear.

4. Atramedes

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Atramedes — kill Atramedes on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Silence is Golden — kill Atramedes without letting any raid member's sound bar exceed 50%

Solo tactic: At level 90, the boss dies in a few seconds. The sound bar doesn't have time to climb to dangerous levels. Just deal maximum damage immediately — both achievements are earned.

5. Chimaeron

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Chimaeron — kill Chimaeron on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Full of Sound and Fury — kill Chimaeron while losing no more than two raid members

Solo tactic: A trivial fight at level 90. The boss dies instantly. If you're solo, you're the only member and can't lose more than one (that is, yourself), so the achievement is earned automatically.

6. Nefarian

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Nefarian — kill Nefarian on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Keeping it in the Family — kill Onyxia and Nefarian while meeting certain conditions

Solo tactic: The fight has three phases. In the first, kill Onyxia and lower Nefarian's health to roughly 60%. In the second phase, the room fills with lava — jump onto one of the pillars and wait it out. In the third phase, Nefarian lands — finish him off. At level 80, your damage is enough to clear it all without trouble, but don't kill Nefarian before the third phase.

The Bastion of Twilight (4 bosses, 8 achievements)

7. Halfus Wyrmbreaker

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Halfus Wyrmbreaker — kill Halfus on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: The Only Escape — release two chained drakes and kill them within 10 seconds of each other

Solo tactic: Before the fight, right-click the two drakes to release them. The freed drakes join the fight. Don't kill Halfus too quickly — first lower both drakes' health evenly, then kill them within 10 seconds. After that, finish off the boss. The set of available drakes changes weekly.

8. Valiona and Theralion

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Valiona and Theralion — kill both drakes on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Double Dragon — kill 6 twilight spawns in the Twilight Realm, then defeat Valiona and Theralion

Solo tactic: To earn the achievement, you need to enter the Twilight Realm. Stand in the impact zone of "Blackout" (the purple circles on the floor) to be sent into the parallel dimension. There, kill 6 twilight spawns, then return and finish off the bosses. At a high level, the challenge is to avoid killing the bosses too early — remove some gear if your damage is too high.

9. Ascendant Council

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Ascendant Council — kill the Council on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Elementary — kill the Elementium Monstrosity without letting it move from its spot

Solo tactic: The fight has two stages. First, two pairs of elementals (Fire/Ice, then Lightning/Earth). Lower each pair's health below 25% so they merge into the Elementium Monstrosity. After the merge, quickly kill the monstrosity so it doesn't have time to move. At level 80, a few hits are enough — no trouble at all.

10. Cho'gall

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Cho'gall — kill Cho'gall on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: The Abyss Will Gaze Back Into You — kill Cho'gall without letting any raid member's "Corrupted Blood" exceed a certain threshold

Solo tactic: At level 90, Cho'gall dies instantly. "Corrupted Blood" won't have time to build up — both achievements are earned with no extra effort.

Throne of the Four Winds (2 bosses, 4 achievements)

11. Conclave of Wind

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Conclave of Wind — kill the Conclave of Wind on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Stay Chill — gain 7 stacks of the "Chilling Winds" debuff from Nezir before the kill

Solo tactic: The Conclave consists of three djinn on separate platforms: Anshal, Nezir, and Rohash. For the achievement, you need to gain 7 stacks of the "Chilling Winds" debuff on Nezir's platform. Kill Anshal first, then move to Nezir and stand next to him, gathering stacks. The stacks fall off after 60 seconds, so don't dawdle. Once you have 7 stacks, quickly kill Rohash, then Nezir. All three djinn must die within 60 seconds of each other.

12. Al'Akir

• Heroic kill: Heroic: Al'Akir — kill Al'Akir on heroic difficulty
• Challenge: Four Play — kill a Stormling next to Al'Akir to apply the "Feedback" debuff to the boss, and defeat Al'Akir while it has that debuff

Solo tactic: The fight has three phases (transitions at 80% and 25% health). In the first phase, hit the boss carefully — the Stormlings appear in the second phase. Kill a Stormling next to the boss to apply the "Feedback" debuff. After that, keep lowering health to 25% for the transition into the third phase and finish off Al'Akir. At level 80, the main challenge is not killing the boss too quickly before the Stormlings appear. Remove some gear or rely on auto-attacks to slow your damage.

All 24 achievements can be completed in a single run. The recommended order:

1. Blackwing Descent (Burning Steppes) — 6 bosses. Start here, as it's the longest raid. Magmaw, Omnotron Defense System, Maloriak, Atramedes, Chimaeron, and Nefarian
2. The Bastion of Twilight (Twilight Highlands) — 4 bosses. Halfus Wyrmbreaker, Valiona and Theralion, Ascendant Council, Cho'gall
3. Throne of the Four Winds (Uldum) — 2 bosses. Conclave of Wind, Al'Akir. Leave this for last — it has the fewest bosses, but the Al'Akir and Conclave achievements demand the most attention

After killing the last boss and completing the final achievement, the mount arrives automatically in your mailbox. Open the nearest mailbox, learn the Reins of the Drake of the East Wind, and fly off on your new drake!