World of Warcraft at Ten Ton Hammer

If you are a frequent reader here at Ten Ton Hammer you probably have already read Messiah’s recent article titled Dragon Soul: Gearing up for Raid Finder. Inside this guide we learn that one of the best places to get the gear that will enable you to raid (and we all want to raid) is inside Heroic instances. However, unlike in the days of old, getting into a Heroic instance isn’t just a matter of walking in anymore.

Players wishing to participate in Heroics must first obtain an item level score of roughly 329-346 depending on which dungeon you wish to partake in. Reaching this item level can be a difficult task and while there are more than a few ways to get there, when asked most players will tell you they just want to get through the gear grind as quickly (and preferably cheaply) as possible.

I myself am one of the many that don’t want to spend an eternity as well as a ton of gold gearing up my various alts, especially when I’ll be replacing most of the gear with Heroic loot soon after. Below you will find the fastest and cheapest way I have personally found to gear up for Heroic instances and thus get you into raiding that much faster. So read onward and enjoy!

Gearing Up for Heroics in Patch 4.3...the Cheap and Easy Way

Since we’ve decided that we all want to get things done as quickly as possible let us not waste any more time on the why and instead turn our attention to the how. This guide is all about the methods that will cost you the least to gear up for WoW heroics in Patch 4.3 while still getting it done in a speedy manner. There are three basics steps to getting Heroic ready in a hurry but before you do that first you should…

Create a List

Make a gear list and check it twice!

I could almost hear the collective groan of my readers as I typed that. Yes, I know it is tedious, and may seem like a complete waste of time, but let me assure you that making list is worth it in the long run. Making a list for gearing up for WoW heroics in Patch 4.3 means that you won’t spend your time running around with a chicken with your head cut off. Even though there are only two methods to my quick and easy gearing madness, being organized while doing them is an excellent idea.

The idea behind this list is to scan through the loot tables of both regular instances and the various factions reputation rewards and see what is best for you. Pick out items, write them down along with other important information such as which boss or faction a particular item comes from and how much reputation (if applicable) you need to obtain it. This way you can easily decide which instances are most important for you to run, what bosses you can look for loot from, and which tabard you should wear while inside each instance. Be sure to check the item level of all gear you list and make sure it is appropriate for heroics!

Once you have complete your list of gear it will be time to go out get it.

Reputation Rewards

Reputation rewards have become some of the easiest loot to collect in game. This is especially true in the Cataclysm expansion where most of your reputation grind is done by the time you are done leveling. This will mean that as long as you have completed most of the quests in each zone, by the time you reach max level you will probably already be able to obtain many excellent pieces of gear without doing much work at all.

Since you will find that you are honored with most factions at 85, you will be able to pick up most of your gear here. Of course these items do cost gold, however, they generally cost much less than buying gear from the Auction House and less time than farming for crafted items. For any additional reputation gear you may want or need you can simply purchase a tabard and wear it while completing one of the many normal instances you will be doing in the near future.

Justice Points

Gunra, Orgrimmar's Justice Quartermaster.

Depending on if you have any Justice Points will depend on if you can complete this step or not. Justice Points in Patch 4.3 come from several places including; completion of a random normal dungeon and defeating raid bosses in Wrath of the Lich King raids. It should also be noted that any Valor Points you obtain will typically be converted to Justice Points whenever a major content patch is released.

If you have any Justice Points at your disposal, head over to your local Justice Point vendor (located in major cities) and pick up any of the items there that may be on your list. This is an especially good place to pick up your weapon as they are harder to come by via reputation reward or instance.

Regular Instances

Whatever pieces you haven’t managed to obtain from reputation or Justice Points thus far can be obtained in normal WoW instances. Ideally, for the best results you will want to bring along a group of friends to help you complete these instances in the most timely fashion. This also ensures that most likely no one else will be inclined to roll on the loot you are after, however, if you cannot manage to get together a group you can always go the way of the Dungeon Finder.

While more risky when it comes to loot and actually having a decent group, most Dungeon Finder groups will easily be able to take on normal instances and breeze through them in a short amount of time. Running these instances with either friends or a group of strangers will server more purpose than just gathering loot from bosses. Putting on the appropriate tabard will ensure that you raise your various faction reputations allowing you access to more gear in that aspect. Also taking on these instances will give you massive amounts of experience which will be critical when it comes time to take on Heroic instances and beyond.

What are the methods you personally use to gear your alts to ready them for heroics in WoW Patch 4.3? Share them with us in the comments section below! Or if you are interested in other (albeit more costly and time consuming) methods to gear up for heroics check out another of Messiah’s articles; Gearing up for Heroics. We here at Ten Ton Hammer wish you good luck in your quest to get raiding!