The Smoldering Ember Wyrm is the very definition of elusive — but not in the way most think. You won’t find it dropping from random Timewalking dungeon bosses. Instead, this fiery beauty only comes from Nightbane, a hidden boss in the Legion version of Return to Karazhan. Sounds mysterious? That’s because it is. To even face Nightbane, you’ll need to trigger a specific timed event by activating crystals throughout the dungeon within a strict time limit. Miss a step, and you miss your shot.
The drop rate? Still stingy — around 20%. But hey, at least you’re not mindlessly farming thousands of bosses across every Timewalking dungeon in existence. Nail this one slick, time-pressured run, and you’ve got a real shot. And guess what? There *is* a Feat of Strength achievement tied to it cause summoning and slaying Nightbane isn’t just cool, it’s officialy flex-worthy!
Smoldering Ember Wyrm - How To Get The Mount
The Smoldering Ember Wyrm isn’t just any mount — it’s a hidden gem tucked away in the Legion version of Karazhan. This scorcher drops from Nightbane, a secret boss that only appears if you trigger a special timed "One Night in Karazhan" event during the run. The drop rate is way below 100%, so don’t expect it to show up on your first try — but for collectors chasing rare rides, this one’s a must-have. Just be ready to pull off the run fast and flawlessly to even get a shot at it.
So let's break down the "One Night in Karazhan" challenge step-by-step:
- Set Dungeon to Mythic: The Smoldering Ember Wyrm only drops in Return to Karazhan (Mythic), located in Deadwind Pass. You can solo this at level 80 with ease. Make sure the instance difficulty is set to Mythic (no key is needed, just change dungeon difficulty) before entering.
- Start the Timer: Upon entry, you’ll see an emote: "The strange chill of a dark presence winds through the air". This indicates the hidden timer has begun. You initially have around 8 minutes to reach the first milestone. The goal is to collect 5 magical crystals (Soul Fragments) scattered through Karazhan within a time limit to summon Nightbane and every time you click a crystal, you gain a buff Medivh’s Echo that stacks; at 5 stacks it becomes Medivh’s Presence, signaling you succeeded. The timer is generous at higher levels, but you still need to know the route. Do not die during this run — dying removes the buff stacks and will forfeit the attempt until the next reset.
- Crystal 1 – Opera Hall: Clear your way to the Opera event. In the theater spectator area (opposite the stage), find and click the first Soul Fragment crystal among the seats.
- Crystal 2 – Maiden’s Hallway: Proceed upstairs toward the Maiden of Virtue wing. In the last hallway before Maiden’s room, there is a side room on the left. The second crystal is inside that left-hand room. Clear the mobs there and click it. You can skip fighting Maiden of Virtue entirely – after grabbing the crystal, just backtrack out of Maiden’s area.
- Crystal 3 – Banquet Hall: Time to visit Moroes. From the Maiden’s hall, go through the central Banquet Hall (dining room). The third crystal is behind the dining table in Moroes room. You should defeat him to avoid interruptions, as you’ll want to move quickly and not be chased.
- Crystal 4 – Spiral Stairs: From Moroes dining room, exit to the right into the Kitchen and then drop down or take the side stairs to the Spider area (the creepy cellar under the banquet hall). Navigate through the narrow passages and webs, clearing any spider mobs (be careful of their frontal cone attack if you’re low level, though at 80 it shouldn’t be lethal). In the back of the cellar is the fourth crystal. Click it, then use the nearby Portal that appears to teleport back to the dungeon entrance instantly (This portal saves you travel time – a crucial thing in this run).
- Crystal 5 – The Curator’s Room: You’ll appear back at the start. Now head upstairs toward the Menagerie where The Curator resides. Clear trash quickly on the way. Enter Curator’s room and defeat The Curator boss. The moment Curator dies, the fifth and final crystal will spawn underneath where the boss fell. Click the last crystal to reach 5 stacks of Medivh’s Echo – this will transform into Medivh’s Presence, indicating success. If you made it this far within the time limits, congratulations! You have completed the "One Night in Karazhan" challenge!
- Summon & Defeat Nightbane: With Medivh’s Presence buff active, backtrack down the stairs from Curator toward the front entrance of Karazhan. At the base of the stairs, instead of going out, turn left into the side Terrace (the Master's Terrace, overlooking the front gate). There you’ll find the Image of Medivh waiting. Activate the Image of Medivh and watch a short roleplay scene. Medivh’s apparition will then summon Nightbane, the dragon boss of Karazhan’s past (If Medivh isn’t present, it means you ran out of time or missed a crystal – the event failed). Then engage Nightbane and just slay him as the boss poses no threat nowadays.
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Drop Chance & Loot Mechanics: Unlike many mount drops, the Smoldering Ember Wyrm has a unique personal loot rule. Blizzard confirmed the drop rate is 20% per player in the group who is eligible for loot (meaning has not killed Nightbane that week). So if you're doing the challenge solo, you'll have a 20% chance for mount to be dropped, but if a 5 man group succesfully downs Nightbane, the mount will drop 100% to one of them who doesn't have it already (that's how we at ConquestCapped make sure you get it in a single run).
Tips To Make Your Karazhan Runs Faster
If you’re attempting the challenge solo, the hardest part is just navigating quickly. At level 80, the damage from trash mobs is trivial, so the only real "enemy" is the clock. Practice the route so you don’t get lost. Use speed boosts, sdsd, or invisibility potions to save time between bosses if needed. For example, you can skip some trash by clever jumping (like from Opera balcony down to Moroes’ hall).
However, since the Portal after the 4th crystal brings you right to the start, most of the routing is straightforward. Another tip: Don’t loot along the way. Corpses can be looted after you summon Nightbane (the instance won’t lock you out until you kill Nightbane or leave), so save looting for last to avoid wasting precious seconds mid-run.
When Nightbane dies, cross your fingers. If the mount drops, it will appear in your inventory as the sss. Getting it also grants the Feat of Strength One Night in Karazhan achievement for completing the challenge.
Warning: This challenge can only be done when Return to Karazhan is in its Mythic mode. Don’t confuse this with the old Burning Crusade raid version of Karazhan - you must enter the Legion dungeon version via the upper tower entrance in Deadwind Pass.
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