Obtaining an Infernal

It’s taken a very long time to get this far, at least as long as it takes most people, but my warlock Secronus finally hit 50th level the other day. Naturally, I rejoiced, as every 10th level for a warlock means a new summon becomes available. And, as most veteran warlocks know, more summons makes things a lot more interesting. The summon available at 50th, of course, is a great deal different from the others leading up to it, but we’ll get to that in a minute.

First thing’s first, you have to quest for it. Yes, while the Felsteed was a piece of cake and a joke of a “quest” at 40th, those days are gone. Your infernal will be incredibly difficult to obtain. It will be so difficult, in fact, that you’ll more than likely need some help unless you plan to gain a few levels before making the attempt. I’m not ashamed of admitting that I had help about half the time.

The quest starts, as always, with your trainer. They will give you “An Imp’s Request,” pointing you to Felwood. Supposedly Impsy the Imp wants some Felcloth. As the quest states, you can get it off of the satyrs in Felwood. I managed to pick one up off of a Jaedenar Legionnaire after the fact, so they probably drop from many different creatures in the area. Whatever the case, they’re going to be a very rare drop, so you might want to suck it up and buy one at the Auction House. I bought mine for three gold.

It’s worth noting that you may not even need to give Impsy the felcloth to proceed. I did without thinking, so I couldn’t say, but this quest is not directly tied into the others. It may very well be that the quest is only intended to lead you to Niby, his master. After all, they’re in the middle of nowhere, so it’s doubtful you’d know that they existed. Whatever the case, if you don’t mind risking a second trip, you can go without the felcloth and just talk to Niby. Who knows, you might just save a few gold pieces in the process.

Whatever the case, Niby the Almighty tells you to talk to Impsy. Impsy then sends you on a quest to the far reaches of the world to obtain three flawless fel essences. Believe it or not, two of these are reasonably close at hand. The third, unfortunately, is on the other side of the world, so you’ll have some travelling to do before you can get it.

The first essence listed drops off of the Legashi Satyrs of Azshara. At level 50, this is a piece of cake. Just be mindful while you pick your way through the territory, as there are elite giants and lots of aggro in general lurking about. More than anything, don’t do what I did and go through the Ruins of Eldarath, as there’s no easy way back out. Just hug the mountains northward. The Legashi camp is in the north central portion of the map. I didn’t see any satyrs who were higher than 52nd level, and the essence dropped pretty quickly.

The second essence is the closest to Niby and Impsy. It drops off of the Jaedenar Legionnaires of, you guessed it, Jaedenar, which is a non-instance dungeon located in the center of Felwood. I found it somewhat misleading at first, as there are two caves in the Jaedenar region. You want the northernmost one. The Legionnaires are the worst thing you’ll encounter, but they’re still level 55 and surrounded by friends. Use your Banish and Enslave spells liberally, and don’t go alone. I went with my brother’s level 51 paladin and didn’t have too much trouble, although the drop seemed to be obscenely rare. Plan on spending a great deal of time trying to get this essence.

The last essence is in the far-off Blasted Lands just south of the Swamp of Sorrows. It drops from the Felguard Sentries who patrol the outer rim of the Dark Portal, which occupies the southern portion of the territory. It’s a scenic area, but it can be deadly if you’re not careful. Just mind the roving boss-level dragon and the other demons around the portal, who themselves are level 57 and 62 elite. The Sentries are level 54 and 55, so you might be able to take them on your own. After some frustration, I was able to pull enough 54’s to get the drop. They always have a pet felhunter with them, so be sure to open the battle with a Banish or Enslave.

It took me well more than a day of dedicated adventuring to get my three essences, so the whole quest is a huge undertaking. Friends will speed the process along a lot, so try to volunteer them ahead of time. Some people are of the mind that this quest isn’t feasible until a few levels after 50. Having managed it before hitting 51, however, I can say that it can be done.

Once you have the essences, return to Impsy. He’ll craft them into Fel Fire, which you’ll use to resurrect Kroshius. Yeah, you’re bringing him back to life just to kill him, but why nitpick at this point? Kroshius can be found in Shatter Scar Vale, the same area as Niby and Impsy. He’s a large pile of rocks lying just north of the easternmost crag on the map.

In case it isn’t apparent the second you see him, you will need help killing Kroshius. He’s a big honking level 55 elite demon that seems particularly powerful even for his level. I’ve read lots of strategies for soloing him. However, after having seen what he can do in combat, I don’t honestly believe a warlock lower than level 58 or so could do it on his or her own without insane buffs and gear. There’s really no point, anyway, as there are usually lots of high-level characters in the area who are more than willing to help. I sent one message out and got the immediate aid of a level 55 priest and a level 60 mage. Even then it was a hard battle, though, so don’t take him lightly.

Once you’ve killed Kroshius and extracted his infernal core, take it back to Niby. Congratulations, you’re the proud owner of a spiffy new Inferno spell. For some odd reason, though, the quest doesn’t end with that. Niby, in all of his cartoonic glory, decides to summon… a chicken. Yes, he sends a level 50 demonic chicken to kill you, yelling, “Death to Stormwind! Death by chicken!” or some such thing. Don’t ask me to explain why; I don’t honestly know. The chicken is child’s play, anyway, and it’s funny to see Impsy berating his master, so what’s the harm? Kill it and go on about your business.

Having used the infernal only once, I don’t claim to be an expert on its use. Besides, knowing which summon to use and in what scenario to do so is a science in and of itself, so watch for a separate post dedicated to that very topic in the future. It is worth noting, however, that the infernal is what’s called an end-game summon. Think of it as an aggroing monster that comes into being enslaved. It will only stay that way for about five minutes before it turns on you, so have your soulstone active or a friendly healer nearby if you plan on using it. You can potentially reenslave it once it goes berserk. However, this is risky in the extreme. The dang thing hit me for about 200 damage per punch, so I only barely managed to get it back under control. If it had resisted, well, you get the picture.

All in all, I look forward to using my infernal strategically as an emergency summon and crowd breaker. For all of its trouble, the infernal is by far the most powerful summon you can have at this level, and should be able to whoop just about anything you’ll come by. As calling one is a once-per-hour ability that eats up a 50-silver-piece reagent, however, don’t plan on using it lightly. It’s your secret weapon at 50th level, so use it sparingly and savor the look on your enemies’ faces when it comes crashing down from the heavens to wreak havoc.