Excavation Site

Preparation checklist

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Collect distant city quests before travelling and check active quest counters.
Assign fear protection before Shadetooth and save a fresh cooldown for Relic Guardian.
If following the Titan Relic chain, accept the follow-up and check its item before travelling onward.

At a glance

Forever-only dungeon, group of five. Blizzard's announced range is 26-31. The dungeon is open in the level-30 beta. A first party near 28-30 has a safer final boss than one at the bottom of the band. Allow roughly 40-60 minutes for quests and a careful first clear.

Location: the hills above Whelgar's Excavation in the Wetlands. Find the approach and meeting stone near Thelgen Rock, around 53.4, 65.3, then follow the new uphill path to the portal around 47.8, 56.3. The old outdoor dig itself is not the dungeon entrance. Alliance can travel from Menethil Harbor or Loch Modan; Horde can cross from Hammerfall through Thandol Span and follow the Wetlands road south.

The following is a beta walkthrough assembled from public sources checked on 17 October. GetWoWGuides has not tested the run in game. Rewards, quest sharing and tuning can change between builds.

Quests to pick up first

Most published dungeon quests begin at level 24, before the recommended clear band. Collect the distant city quests before travelling, and use the active quest log for collection counts.

Alliance

Lost in the Thicket Things, Caitlin Grassman in Menethil Harbor: find Ardin Grassman inside and accept his Heartwoven return to Caitlin. Seeking Caitlin from Llana in Astranaar is an optional breadcrumb.
Songblade Search, Dorin Songblade in Lakeshire, Redridge: find Daewyn Songblade's body inside and accept Fallen in the Fen back to Dorin. Take the Lakeshire objective before the group assembles in the Wetlands.
Highland Hides, James Halloran in Menethil Harbor: collect 4 Thicket Raptor Hides from the raptor section. Method reports Young Crocolisk Skins as its prerequisite; finish Halloran's earlier skin quest if he does not yet offer the dungeon objective.
Horrors in the Highland, Rethiel the Greenwarden around 56.2, 40.6: loot Horrible Rootcore from Highland Horror. Method reports the Greenwarden chain beginning with Tramping Paws as the prerequisite. The optional quest boss is easy to miss on a direct final-boss run.
Lost Relic Carry starts from the Titan Relic dropped by Relic Guardian. Take it to Prospector Whelgar, then follow Prehistoric Prism to High Explorer Magellas in Ironforge.

Horde

Changing Tastes, Borstan in Orgrimmar: collect 4 Thicket Raptor Meat inside. Pick it up before taking the zeppelin east.
Dragonmaw Rumors, Zaruk in Hammerfall: speak to the Deathstalker Agent in the hills outside the dungeon, around 51.4, 59.2. Accept Open the Maw for 2 Dragonmaw Saboteurs, 4 Dragonmaw Warders and a Dispatch from a Thaumaturgist inside. Check all three objectives before leaving the camp area.
Elder Knowledge starts from Relic Guardian's Titan Relic. Take it to Bashana Runetotem in Thunder Bluff, then follow Earthen Echo to Muln Earthfury in Mulgore.

Blizzard's current beta notes confirm that the Titan Relic is returned for Earthen Echo and Prehistoric Prism. Turn in the initial relic quest, accept the follow-up and check that its item reaches your bags before travelling to the next NPC.

The run

The route moves from the marsh through the raptor thicket and Dragonmaw dig to the Titan site. Stay together on the open path; the tall grass hides extra raptors. Bring disease removal if possible, because several effects last well beyond a single pull.

Lost Marsh: pull crocodile packs back one at a time. Cure the long Spirit/Stamina-reducing disease and watch Tendon Rip's slow. Do not drag a slowed tank through several live crocolisks while the healer is still drinking.
Saltspine: wait for his patrol to reach cleared ground. The tank holds him away from the next crocodile pack; ranged and the healer stay outside the close-range Dust Storm. The tank's attacks can miss more during the storm, so damage dealers ease off if threat slips. Keep healing through bites rather than spreading into the water to chase extra enemies.
Stalker's Thicket: avoid cutting through the tall grass. Focus dangerous raptors one at a time, remove Infected Wound if available and collect faction hides or meat. Check for Ardin and Daewyn along the quest route instead of racing past every object to the boss.
Shadetooth and two Thicket Hunters: clear an open fighting area away from unvisited grass and pick up both guards. Control one or both Hunters with a valid beast-control ability, or kill one first. His Terrifying Roar can send the party into hidden packs; use Tremor Totem, Fear Ward or suitable personal breaks if available. Leave safe fear paths even when those tools are present. Save a tank defensive or strong heal for his low-health Enrage, react when its buff appears and keep Rend's ongoing damage covered.
Dragonmaw camp: pull Saboteurs, Warders and Thaumaturgists in small groups. Step out of bomb landing areas, interrupt dangerous caster spells and keep the tank healed through Mortal Strike's healing reduction. Remove roots if they trap a player in damage. Horde players finish the kill list and Dispatch before moving uphill.
Highland Horror, optional Alliance quest boss: clear the nearby slimes, interrupt or stun Wild Regeneration where possible and handle Entangling Roots without pulling other enemies. Loot Horrible Rootcore if on the quest.
Highland spiders and final approach: cure long-lasting disease and poison effects before the final boss. Fight on cleared ground and regroup before entering the Titan site.
Relic Guardian, final: clear the site, drink to full and assign one person to activate the Archival/Titan Control Panel beside the inactive guardian. Face Arcing Smash away from the group; the tank uses nearby solid terrain for knockback. Ranged and the healer stay back from Thunderclap and the nearby stun/knockback. After a threat-reducing knockback, stop heavy damage until the tank regains control. Public beta guides report stuns and slows working, useful for a short recovery kite if the tank is disabled. Keep that kite on cleared ground within healing range.

Loot the Titan Relic individually if eligible, then check the two NPC conversations, collection quests and Highland Horror objective before leaving. There is a long return after a wipe, so a controlled first clear saves more time than a risky grass shortcut.

Loot worth staying for

Current beta examples, with final stats and drop chances still subject to change:

Saltspine: Supple Bellyskin Leggings, Glinteye Slippers and Saltscale Girdle.
Shadetooth: Garb of Florid Feathers, Raptorclaw Greaves, Raptor's Gaze, a caster off-hand, and Blueprint: Greenhouse, requiring 140 Herbalism.
Relic Guardian: Ring of Power Regulation combines mana recovery with spell/healing bonuses; Golemsight Long Gun adds Agility. He also drops Reliquary Mantle and Blueprint: Rock Garden, requiring 140 Mining.
Heartwoven: Satchel of Potions.
Fallen in the Fen: Daewyn's Girdle or Songblade Stabilizer.
The relic follow-ups: weapon and cloak choices depend on faction and current beta rewards; compare the actual reward window rather than assuming both chains have identical options.

Tips

The level-31 final boss can cause more misses and more tank pressure than the earlier mobs. A low-level quest pickup is not a recommendation to tank the full dungeon at 24.
Assign fear protection before Shadetooth and save a fresh cooldown for Relic Guardian. The two difficult fights require different positioning.
Check the current NPC prerequisites before a special trip from Lakeshire or Orgrimmar. An accepted dungeon objective is what makes a one-run quest route possible.