The new and exciting feature in the brand new World of Warcraft: The War Within expansion is Delves. This is a PvE-focused aspect that allows you to embark on thrilling mini-adventures with your friends or even NPC companions. As you complete various tasks within the Delves, you’ll face off against bosses, and in return, earn exclusive rewards and even remarkable gear. So, let’s find out how to unlock the higher tier Delves in WoW The War Within and gain access to even more powerful item level gear.

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How to Unlock Higher Tier Delves in The War Within

When you attempt to access a Delve in WoW The War Within, you’ll notice that there are up to 11 tiers available, each with its own level of difficulty and rewards. Traditionally speaking, you can unlock the harder and higher tiers of Delves by simply completing the previous tier. Once you successfully complete a Tier 2 Delve, you can then access any Delve on Tier 3. However, there is a slight catch due to the time constraints during the early stages of the The War Within expansion launch.

Due to The War Within having an initial Early Access period followed by a roughly two-week warm-up period before the start of Season 1, and then the release of Mythic+ and Mythic Raids a week later, there are essentially four distinct periods during the launch of The War Within. Here are the highest tiers of Delves that you can engage in during each part of the launch:

• Early Access (August 22-August 25): Tier 3 Delves
• Global Release (August 26-September 9): Tier 3 Delves
• Season 1 Start (September 10-September 16): Tier 11 Delves
• Mythic+ and Mythic Raid Week (September 17 and later): Tier 11 Delves

This means that at the outset of WoW The War Within, the highest tier of Delve you can access until Season 1 begins on September 10, 2024 is Tier 3. Once Season 1 commences, you will be able to explore any tier of Delve up to Tier 11 as long as you have unlocked it by completing the previous tier.

Should You Do Delves for Loot or the Weekly Vault?

This question will largely depend on whether you truly enjoy doing Delves. After all, it is designed to be another enjoyable and optional form of PvE content for players to engage in and use to acquire gear. If you’re not a huge fan of pushing through Mythic+ or competing in the most challenging raids, Delves can be a solid alternative for gearing up.

However, from a purely technical standpoint, Delves will generally be most worthwhile during the week that Season 1 begins from September 10 through September 16. During this week only, Mythic 0 Dungeons will unlock, but not Mythic+ dungeons. In Mythic 0, the dungeons reset daily, and only drop item level 593 gear.

Delves, on the other hand, are unlocked all the way up to Tier 11. At Tier 8 and above, completing Delves rewards you with item level 603 gear, which is higher than what you can obtain from the dungeons that week. Additionally, the Weekly Vault reward for completing Tier 8+ Delves is item level 616, which is the highest item level gear you can earn from the Weekly vault during this week.

Once Mythic+ and Mythic Raids open a week later on September 17, the M+ dungeons will offer loot up to item level 613 for completion, and the Weekly Vault up to item level 623. This makes the loot from Delves slightly lower in item level compared to the best gear you can acquire from Mythic+ dungeons. Nevertheless, if you enjoy the content, Delves can be a nice option for farming gear upgrades.