World of Warcraft at Ten Ton Hammer

The first instance that you are likely to enter when the Wrath of the Lich King is released is the first wing of the mighty Utgarde Keep. The first wing is so far just called Utgarde Keep, the same as the whole dungeon hub. The first instance will be a level-up dungeon for players level 70-72. It is , located in the Howling Fjord alongside the coast of Daggercap Bay. The instance was first available to trial at Blizzcon 2007.

The name Utgarde comes from the Norse word Utgård meaning the stronghold of giants. The original meaning is fitting since Utgarde Keep houses the viscous Vrykul which are a giant race of viking like warriors. The keep had been abandoned for many years however recently the Vrykul established a base there and are attacking the surrounding area in an attempt to gain favor with the Lich King.

The keep and its various wings apparently extend deep underground, however not much is know about the area yet. So far there have been rumors of three wings, Utgarde Keep for level 70s, Utgarde Catacombs for level 80s, and a level 80 raid wing called Utgarde Pinnacle.

Blizzard has stated and it could be seen in the playable demo that the instance is meant to be very quick and easy to access for players. It is located close to town and can easily be completed in less than an hour. Most groups will take less than 10 minutes to get to the first boss and probably no more than 45 minutes to clear. Once clear it has an easy exit method. In fact its size, flow, and difficulty are much the same as the Hellfire Ramparts were for the Burning Crusade.

So far three bosses have been confirmed: Prince Keleseth, Skarvald the Constructor, and the final boss Ingvar the Plunderer. There has been some suggestions from Blizzard that there may be additional bosses in the instances when done on Heroic mode, but nothing has been announced yet.