Darkmoon Faire Guide

Darkmoon Faire Guide

The Darkmoon Faire is a monthly celebration of all things mysterious and weird in Azeroth! After many years as a smaller, traveling attraction, the Darkmoon Faire found its permanent home on the mist-shrouded Darkmoon Island.

Since Cataclysm Patch 4.3, Silas Darkmoon has continued to expand the faire’s offerings, adding battle pets and pet tamers, new toys and games, and so much more. The Darkmoon Faire is an aesthetically curious event, great for those seeking unique adventures.

When: The first Sunday of each month, lasting one week
Where: Darkmoon Island, via portals in Elwynn Forest and Mulgore

Getting to the Darkmoon Faire

Each faction has one portal to Darkmoon Island, both located at the faction’s Darkmoon Faire Staging Grounds. Alliance players, head to Goldshire in Elwynn Forest (61, 69). For the Horde, your portal is right outside of Thunder Bluff in Mulgore (36,35). Darkmoon Faire Mystic Mages appear in each of the major cities, and offer teleports to the faction’s Staging Grounds for a small fee (up to 50 silver), where a portal will then whisk you off to Darkmoon Island.

Faire first-timers: Before heading to the island, visit a Darkmoon Faire Mystic Mage to pick up the introductory quest (Wow Alliance CrestThe Darkmoon Faire/The Darkmoon Faire). Completing this quest will reward a Darkmoon Adventurer’s Guide (required to receive quest-related item drops) and five Darkmoon Prize Tickets, which will be used on the island.

On arrival, follow the path all the way down to the entrance. Characters who haven’t reached the level required to use mounts yet can temporarily use one of the striders available at the top.

Tip: To dismount the strider, right-click on the buff to remove it.

Getting Started

If this is your first visit to Darkmoon Island, here are a few tips to begin your adventure:

  • Stop by the first tent and talk to Zina Sharpworth to purchase Darkmoon Game Tokens, which are required to play each game (more on those later).
    • The price of the tokens depends on your level, reputation with the Darkmoon Faire, and how many you’re purchasing, but should be under three gold.
  • Across from Zina is Selina Dourman, who can provide information about the Faire and place markers on the map for some attractions.
  • Speak with Kerri Hicks (47,67) to pick up the quest Test Your Strength. As long as you have the Darkmoon Adventurer’s Guide in your inventory, you can continue to acquire trophies even while the Faire is inactive.
  • There are quests associated with each of the primary and secondary professions. Several of them require bringing items that aren’t available on the island. To save time, it’s recommended to purchase them before you arrive. These quests will be covered in a later section with the items noted.
Darkmoon Faire Guide - Vendors

Prizes and Rewards

Exotic vendors from all over Azeroth to offer a variety of special items or activities to spend your tickets and tokens on. In addition to a few items that cost silver or gold, there are four types of currency used on the island:

  • Darkmoon Prize Ticket is the primary currency to purchase items on the island, and is awarded for winning games and completing quests. As of patch 11.0.2, the tickets are Warband-transferrable.
  • Darkmoon Game Tokens are required to play all of the mini-games, which award tickets for prizes
  • Darkmoon Ride Ticket is used for admission to ride the rollercoaster or carousel; both provide a helpful buff after an exhilarating (or dizzying!) ride
  • Darkmoon Daggermaw can be fished only on the island and traded for a variety of special items from Darkmoon Faire vendors

Vendors and Notable NPCs

Name
Purpose
Replica Armor
Replica Armor
Daerand Dawncrest
Invitation to Faire
Fishing Prizes
Souvenir & Toy Prizes
Quests
Pet & Mount Prizes
Quests
Game Tokens
Transmog
Game Tokens
Game Tokens

Collections

Pets

Pet
Item
Cost
Source
Darkmoon Island Pet Battle
Vendor: Lhara
Vendor: Lhara
Darkmoon Island Pet Battle
Darkmoon Rabbit Boss
Achievement: That’s Whack
Vendor: Carl Goodup
Moonfang Boss
Vendor: Carl Goodup
Fishing
Vendor: Carl Goodup

Mounts

In addition to a handful of mounts that only last for the duration of the Darkmoon Faire and/or can only be used on the Fairegrounds, there are also four account-wide mounts to earn and use year-round.

Mount
Item
Cost
Source

Toys

Item
Type
Cost (Tickets)
Ride – Consumed on Use
1
Ride – Consumed on Use
1
Ride – Consumed on Use
1
Ride – Consumed on Use
1
Ride – Consumed on Use
1
Ride – Consumed on Use
1
Ride – Consumed on Use
1
Ride – Consumed on Use
1
Two-handed weapon
20
Armor – Back
90
Non-combat pet
90
Off-hand
1
Two-handed weapon
160
Toy
50
Bag
1
Toy
90

Gear

Heirloom Gear

Daenrand Dawncrest sells Heirloom gear that can be purchased using Darkmoon Prize Tickets during the faire.

Item
Type
Cost (Tickets)
Armor – Chest
50
Armor – Chest
50
Armor – Chest
50
Armor – Chest
50
Armor – Chest
50
Armor – Chest
50
Armor – Chest
50
Armor – Shoulder
50
Armor – Shoulder
50
Armor – Shoulder
50
Armor – Shoulder
50
Armor – Shoulder
50
Armor – Shoulder
50
Armor – Shoulder
50
Off-hand
50
One-handed weapons
50
One-handed weapons
50
One-handed weapons
50
One-handed weapons
50
One-handed weapons
50
Ranged weapons
75
Shield
50
Shield
50
Trinket
70
Trinket
70
Two-handed weapons
75
Two-handed weapons
75
Two-handed weapons
75
Two-handed weapons
75
Weapon Upgrade
120
Armor Upgrade
100

Replica Gear

Barum and Baruma (48, 66) sell transmoggable replicas of early tiered and dungeon gear.

To buy a full set, the cost is 520 tickets. Individually, the replica items are:

  • Chest: 75 tickets
  • Hands: 55 tickets
  • Heads: 75 tickets
  • Feet: 55 tickets
  • Legs: 75 tickets
  • Shoulders: 75 tickets
  • Waist: 55 tickets
  • Wrists: 55 tickets

Trinkets

Prior to the Cataclysm expansion, players collected cards from world drops, assembling a full deck and turning in the associated quest to receive an epic trinket. These days, players with the Inscription profession can craft the BoE the cards for each deck. It is no longer required to assemble and turn in by quest. Instead, right-click one of the cards to create a deck, then right-click the deck to receive the trinket.

Dragonflight’s trinkets:

Cards and trinkets from previous expansions are still available, and decks from each expansion (through Mists of Pandaria) can be turned in to Professor Thaddeus Paleo for 350 reputation with the Darkmoon Faire faction.

Things to Do

There is an enormous amount of activities to do while on Darkmoon Island! Between the mini-games, quests, and enemy slaying, there is something for everyone.

Reputation

Darkmoon Faire rep is listed under the Classic heading in your character’s reputation tab. Each month, up to 18,000 reputation can be earned by completing all of the primary activities (games, quests, artifacts). Players who are dedicated to the grind can expect to get from Neutral to Exalted over the course of about three months.

Faire Favors (Profession Quests)

Use your primary and secondary professions to help keep the Faire a fun place for all, and receive rewards along with skill-ups and knowledge. Players can complete five profession quests per month to receive a total of 17 Darkmoon Prize Tickets, +250 rep per quest (if not already Exalted) plus:

  • +3 skill to secondary profession Archaeology, Fishing, and Cooking in the highest expansion known
  • +2 skill to the most recent expansion’s crafting or gathering profession that needs it
    • Example: If your character’s Dragonflight Alchemy isn’t maxed, you’ll receive +2 Alchemy. If it is maxed, you’ll receive +2 Alchemy to the next most-recent expansion until each one’s Alchemy skill is maxed. The same concept applies to secondary professions as well.
  • Dragonflight crafting and gathering Professions will receive +3 Knowledge points and 15 Artisan’s Mettle
Profession
Quest
Quest Giver/Location
Notes
Alchemy
Sylannia (50, 69)
Requires 5 x Moonberry Juice which can be purchased from an innkeeper before arriving to the island
Blacksmithing
Requires an anvil, available at Chronos (55, 70) or by bringing a Thermal Anvil
Enchanting
Sayge (53, 75)
Engineering
Rinling (49, 60)
Herbalism
Chronos (55, 70)
Inscription
Sayge (53, 75)
Requires Light Parchment from trade good vendors before arriving or from Cousin Slowhands on the Expedition Yak mount
Jewelcrafting
Chronos (55, 70)
Leatherworking
Rinling (49, 60)
Requires Coarse Thread, Shiny Bauble, and Blue Dye which can be purchased from trade good vendors before arriving
Mining
Rinling (49, 60)
Skinning
Chronos (55, 70)
Tailoring
Requires Coarse Thread, Red Dye, and Blue Dye which can be purchased from trade good vendors before arriving
Archaeology
Make sure you have “Show Digsites” enabled on your world map, then look for and survey sites with “fossil” in the name
Cooking
Requires Simple Flour which can be purchased from trade good vendors before arriving
Fishing

Cooking

Purchase Darkmoon Faire-exclusive cooking recipes using Darkmoon Daggermaw as currency! 

  • Fancy Darkmoon Feast: Set out a great feast that will feed and dress your party!
    • Restores 10% of health and mana every second for 10 sec and you will become Well Fed, increasing Versatility for 20 min.
    • Requires Cooking 225
    • Purchase from Galissa Sundew for 50 Darkmoon Daggermaw
  • Lemon Herb Filet: Restores 10% of your health and mana per second for 10 sec and you will become Well Fed, increasing Versatility for 20 min. Must remain seated while eating.
  • Sugar-Crusted Fish Feast: Set out a great feast that will feed your party!
    • Restores 10% of health and mana every second for 10 sec and you will become Well Fed, increasing Versatility for 20 min.
    • Requires Cooking 150
    • Purchase from Galissa Sundew for 25 Darkmoon Daggermaw
dragonflilglht dmf seapony

Fishing

Fishing on Darkmoon Island can net some pretty fun rewards:

You may be tempted to eat the Darkmoon Daggermaw, but if you can resist the urge, head over to Galissa Sundew and turn them in for even more prizes! In addition to her inventory of pets, you can also buy the following recipes:

Experience, Reputation, and Stat Buffs

WHEE! increases your experience and reputation gains by 10% for 60 minutes. This is an extremely valuable (and very anticipated) buff for players who are leveling alts, collecting Heirloom Gear, unlocking the Allied Races, or grinding reputation. It stacks with other experience and reputation buffs, making it well worth the trip to the island. There are a few ways to get it:

Darkmoon Rollercoaster

If you need a Darkmoon Ride Ticket, Mae Ti is on the platform selling Ticket Books. Click the Wyvern car, and you’ll automatically enter to begin the ride. Through its rickety curves and plunges, the ride takes under one minute and upon completion, brave riders receive WHEE!.

Note: Use your camera zoom to adjust your view to be first-person if you want a more realistic experience. If you get motion sickness easily, I recommend zooming out so that you don’t experience as much camera movement as the Wyvern cruises along the tracks.

Kae Ti is available if you need more Ride Tickets. Hop on, ride, and receive WHEE!. You can choose to ride on a rocket, murloc, dragon, gryphon, or wyvern, being seated isn’t required to receive the buff. Ride a few turns to receive the full one-hour buff.

Note: If you get motion sickness easily or are sensitive to spinning, this one can be visually worse than the rollercoaster. I recommend looking away from your screen for several seconds while you ride.

Darkmoon Top Hat

Players can also receive the buff with the Darkmoon Top Hat, which can be purchased from Gelvas Grimegate or possibly found in a Darkmoon Game Prize. Keep the hat in your bags to reapply the buff, even when you’re not on the island (assuming Darkmoon Faire is still active)!

Sayge’s Fortune Telling Buffs

Head to Sayge’s fortune telling tent (53,75) to discover where your future lies! You’ll be presented with moral dilemmas along with several ways to handle the situation. Choose your answers wisely, but honestly!

Upon completion, you’re awarded a Dark Fortune buff that is based on the answers chosen, and raises the named stat by 1-10% for two hours.

The Darkmoon Arcade

Behind the Darkmoon Rollercoaster, you’ll find Lynnish Hardmode, the Arcade Proprietor and a special contraption that allows you to play all your favorite arcade games, but with an Azeroth twist! It costs 1 Darkmoon Token to unlock the arcade for the whole day with unlimited plays, though the only reward is the satisfaction of winning. The available games include:

  • Barrels o’ Fun: One barrel will flash at the start of each round. Remember which one it is, and pick it when they’re all done moving around.
  • Bull-E: Uncross the wires to fix poor Bull-E’s circuits.
  • HexSweeper: Traverse an arcane mine field and (carefully!) identify all the booby-trapped areas.
  • Remembery: Flip the shells, remember their placement, and match the pairs.
  • Rune Matching*: Match three or more runes for points. Score 100,000 points, and you might unlock an additional level of difficulty.
  • Totemic Matrix: The object of the exercise is to transform all the totems to water totems. Simply touch a totem to invoke it. Know that all things are connected, a lesson invaluable in this puzzle…as in life.

*If you feel like you’re stuck in a never-ending game of Rune Matching with no way to escape, exit by right-clicking the applied buff.

Mini-Games and Daily Quests

If rewards are the Darkmoon Faire’s bread and butter, then the daily quests and mini-games are its jelly or… whatever you eat with butter on bread. Not only are they fun, but completed dailies award a Darkmoon Prize Ticket. If the character completing the quest hasn’t reached Exalted, they will also receive 250 reputation with Darkmoon Faire per completed quest.

Mini-Game Basics

  • Each game will cost you a Darkmoon Game Token, so be sure to come prepared.
  • Each game has a daily quest that awards a Darkmoon Prize Ticket.
  • Games can be repeated after you’ve turned in the daily quest; you just won’t receive additional rewards. Practice makes perfect!
  • Each mini-game has associated achievements you can work toward – we’ll cover those in a separate achievement guide.

Firebird’s Challenge

Darkmoon Faire Guide - Firebird

Quest: Firebird’s Challenge 
NPC: Ziggie Sparks (48,71)

With a cluster of fireworks strapped to their backs, players get launched high up into the air, and must fly through fiery rings. The challenge begins with a 10-second timer. For each ring passed through, players earn one point and are granted an additional 10 seconds of flight.

To complete the daily quest, players must collect 15 points. Subsequent attempts consume an additional Darkmoon Game Token, but the previous attempt’s points do carry over.

Darkmoon Cannon

Darkmoon Faire Guide Cannon

Quest: The Humanoid Cannonball
NPC: Maxima Blastenheimer (52, 56)

Players are deposited into the Blastenheimer 5000 Ultra Cannon, then shot out with with a pair of temporary wings. While floating, aim yourself toward the target just off the boardwalk, then drop the wings to (hopefully) land inside it.

Complete the daily quest by landing within the target.

Tonk Challenge

darkmoonfaireguide tonks 1

Quest: Tonk Commander
NPC: Finlay Coolshot (50, 64)

Gain control of a steam tonk on the battlefield! Earn one point for each of the marked targets you destroy. Avoid getting hit by enemy tonks and zeppelins which can damage or your tonk.

To complete the daily quest, players must score 30 points in the allotted time. Subsequent attempts cost an additional Darkmoon Game Token, but the previous attempt’s points do carry over.

Turtle Ring Toss

darkmoonfaireguide turtle

Quest: Target: Turtle
NPC: Jessica Rogers (51,77)

The ring toss game is located near the end of the Faire’s main drag. Speak with Jessica to learn the basics and get flingin’! You’ll receive a set of rings that you must successfully toss and land on Dubenko, the Darkmoon Turtle.

To complete the daily quest, players must score three points. Subsequent attempts cost an additional Darkmoon Game Token, but the previous attempt’s points do carry over.

darkmoonfaireguide shooting

Quest: He Shoots, He Scores!
NPC: Rinling (49,60)

Step right up to use a pellet rifle to shoot the correct target and earn a point. Bonus points for speed!

To complete the daily quest, players must score 25 points in 60 seconds. Subsequent attempts cost an additional Darkmoon Game Token, but the previous attempt’s points do carry over.

Whack-a-Gnoll

Darkmoon Faire Guide - Whack-a-Gnoll

Quest: It’s Hammer Time
NPC: Mola (53,54)

Grab a mallet, and head to the play area. Gnolls will begin to pop up out of the barrels. Hit the gnolls to score points… but watch out! There are three different types of targets:

  • Hogger gnolls are worth three points
  • Regular gnolls are worth one point
  • Hitting baby gnolls will knock you over with a stun

To complete the daily quest, players must score 30 points in the allotted time. Subsequent attempts consume an additional Darkmoon Game Token, but the previous attempt’s points do carry over.

Dance Master

darkmoonfaireguide dance

Quest: Dance Dance Darkmoon
NPC: Simon Sezdans (51,74)

Head to the South Pavilion and shimmy inside to boogie down! Watch the Dance Master you’re paired with on stage, then perform the same moves in the correct order to score big and get the crowd roaring. There are three difficulty levels, which means tons of opportunity for achievements.

Darkmoon Faire Bosses

Death Metal Knight & the Blight Boar Concert

The Blight Boar concert is a unique boss event that happens every hour on the 30-minute mark in the Cauldron of Rock cave. If you lose track of time, look for Jay Maguire’s announcement in chat – he’ll announce when the concert will start. Once the band starts, players must defend their performance by completing actions that will increase their fan level in the form of a debuff: 

Dedicated fans who defeat the Death Metal Knight have a chance at the following loot: 

Darkmoon Rabbit

The Darkmoon Rabbit lurks in a cave southeast of the main Fairegrounds. Upon defeat, players will receive the achievement That Rabbit’s Dynamite!, and a chance at the reportedly low drop rate Darkmoon Rabbit companion pet. Note: The spawn timer is quite long, with reports ranging from several hours up to 36 hours. 

Moonfang

Moonfang is found in the northwest portion of the island, and drops several cosmetic pieces of loot. 

To summon Moonfang, players must begin killing the Moonfang Snarlers in the area. As the Snarlers are eliminated, elite Moonfang Dreadhowls will join the battle. After defeating several Dreadhowls, Moonfang will spawn. A successful defeat will give players the chance to loot the following items: 

  • Moon Moon: A battle pet. Moonfang’s cubs grow into massive, slavering, black-furred killing machines…except for Moon Moon. 
  • Moonfang’s Paw: Wear Moonfang disguise for 10 minutes.
  • Moonfang Shroud: Show off to the world – drape Moonfang’s pelt over your helm. 
  • Shimmering Moonstone: A temporary white wolf mount that can be used during the Darkmoon Faire, and disappears after.

Darkmoon Deathmatch Pit (PvA)

Think you can handle the pit and defeat everyone who joins? The Deathmatch is a free-for-all event that starts at midnight, then repeats every three hours. During the match, every player is your enemy, including your own faction (only other players in the same party are friendly). The match lasts until someone manages to loot the prize chest located in the middle of the ring. With an 8-second cast time to open the chest, a party is definitely recommended to fend off attackers and interrupts!

The reward for a player’s first win is the Pit Fighter trinket and quest. This leads to the Master Pit Fighter quest which requires winning the Deathmatch 12 times and awards the Returning Champion heirloom trinket.

Pet Battles

Dragonflight - Darkmoon Faire - Syd Dragonflight - Darkmoon Faire - Darkmoon Eye

Master Pet Tamer Jeremy Feasel and Grandmaster Pet Tamer Christoph VonFeasel both await you in the Battle Pets! ring with daily quests. A New Darkmoon Challenger! and Darkmoon Pet Battle! let you put your battle pets to the test and award Darkmoon Pet Supplies or Greater Darkmoon Pet Supplies for your success. Supplies have a chance of dropping toys, pet supplies, and even rare pets such as Syd the Squid or Darkmoon Eye!

More Sights to See: Darkmoon Boardwalk

In addition to its massive amount of achievements and collectibles, the Darkmoon Faire also offers a boardwalk packed with things to simply walk around and enjoy, complete with live music, fishing, rideable animals, and more!

  • Boardwalk concerts: The infamous band L90ETC performs their hit song every hour. Rock on! 
  • Petting zoo: It may be the closest you ever get to some of the unique animals of Azeroth! They probably won’t bite… hard. 
  • Pony and ram riding: Choose your favorite mount and away you go! While you can ride both, using the pony mount will award you with the achievement I Was Promised a Pony.
  • Faction portals: Ready to return home? Return to Stormwind or Thunder Bluff via the boardwalk’s portals.

Achievements

With many activities come many, many achievements. Nearly 70, in fact. We’ve arranged the achievements according to the associated activity or event.

General/Faire Games

World Bosses

The Real Race

The Real Big Race

Firebird’s Challenge

  • Brood of Alysrazor
    • Collect 50 Blazing Rings in one flight session of Firebird’s Challenge.
    • Reward: Blazing Wings
  • Flying High
    • Collect 10 Blazing Rings in one flight session of Firebird’s Challenge.
  • Ringmaster
    • Collect 25 Blazing Rings in one flight session of Firebird’s Challenge.

Darkmoon Faire Dancing

  • Can’t Stop the Feeling
    • Earn a perfect score in the Darkmoon Faire Dance game on the medium difficulty 10 times.
  • Dancing Machine
  • Don’t Stop Dancing
    • Successfully participate in 30 Darkmoon Faire Dance games.
  • Feeling It
    • Earn a perfect score in the Darkmoon Faire Dance game on the easiest difficulty 10 times.
  • First Dance
    • Successfully participate in the Darkmoon Faire Dance game.
  • Make You Sweat
    • Earn a perfect score in the Darkmoon Faire Dance game on the hardest difficulty.
  • Maniac on the Dance Floor
    • Earn a perfect score in the Darkmoon Faire Dance game on the hardest difficulty 10 times.
  • What a Feeling
    • Earn a perfect score in the Darkmoon Faire Dance game on the medium difficulty.
  • You Got the Beat
    • Earn a perfect score in the Darkmoon Faire Dance game on the easiest difficulty.

Pit Fighting/PvP

 

About the Author

Astrael

Arcane mage for life, pet and mount collection completionist, achievement hunter, and lover of all things lore.
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