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Delver’s Journey in Season 2: What Rank 9 Gives You
Delver’s Journey details below were checked on 12 October 2026. Patch 12.1.5, due on 13 October, adds Ascendant Venomstones as a new reward from Tier 11 bountiful delves.
Delver’s Journey is a seasonal reward track with 10 ranks. Every 4,200 progress unlocks the next rank, so rank 9 needs 37,800 and rank 10 needs 42,000 (our arithmetic from the Warcraft Wiki’s 4,200 per reward). The ranks were rearranged for Season 2, so some guides list different rewards for the same rank numbers. The table below follows the Season 2 list.
| Rank | Reward | What it gives |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boons and Blessings | Boons from Mislaid Curiosities, Blessings from Heavy Trunks |
| 2 | Gift of Pestilence | Corrosive Reticule from Astrandis |
| 3 | Treasure Hunter | Shrine of Abundance can appear in bountiful delves |
| 4 | Gilded Jackpot | A Gilded Stash after Tier 11 delves, 4 times per week, with Hero and Myth Mistcrests |
| 5 | Mount: An Ethereal and a Snake walk into a Delve | Extra boons; from week 3, Zah’ran at the end of delves offers Champion gear |
| 6 | Keys and Coffers | Buy 2 Restored Coffer Keys per week from Naleidea Rivergleam |
| 7 | Delve-O-Bot 7001 chip | Adds Midnight delves to the Delve-O-Bot’s destinations |
| 8 | Warbound in Blood | Champion warbound gear drops from Tier 9 and higher |
| 9 | From Champion to Hero | Tier 11 Bountiful Coffers can give Hero gear or Untainted Mana-Crystals; crystals buy gear from Zah’ran |
| 10 | A Delver’s Journey | Snake Eater title and more Coffer Key Shards from every source |
Why Delver’s Journey matters much more than players first expected
Delves stopped being side content once the track was tied to gear. The rewards improve loot, add currencies and increase the number of gear choices after a run. That is why delves compete with Mythic+ and raid for catch-up, especially for alts.
Season 2 delve loot, from the Warcraft Wiki:
| Delve tier | Loot item level | Map | Great Vault |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 276 | 282 | 289 |
| 5 | 279 | 289 | 292 |
| 6 | 282 | 295 | 298 |
| 7 | 292 | 302 | 302 |
| 8 | 295 | 305 | 305 |
Tier 11 is the top tier. Hero Mistcrests drop there, and Hero-track gear comes from rank 9 coffers. The full list of sources is in the Midnight gearing guide.
The early ranks are useful, but the system really starts scaling fast
Ranks 1 to 3 give quality-of-life rewards and decor: boons and blessings, a Corrosive Reticule, and the chance to meet a Shrine of Abundance in bountiful delves. They are not build-defining.
Rank 4, Gilded Jackpot, is the first rank that changes your supply of crests. After a Tier 11 delve a Gilded Stash appears, four times per week, rewarding Hero and Myth Mistcrests. The wiki lists no per-week cap on the crests beyond the four stashes.
Rank 5 changes delves from “loot runs” into a real vendor progression system
At rank 5 a vendor named Zah’ran appears at the end of delves from week 3 of the season and offers Champion gear. The Warcraft Wiki spells the vendor’s name Zah’ran, although you may still see it written Zaron. Instead of waiting for a chest, you can aim at a missing slot, which is a big help for undergeared alts.
Rank 5 also gives a mount reward bought from Astrandis (Corroded Soul Crusher) and extra boons from Mislaid Curiosities.
Rank 6 through 8 keep adding value, especially for alt preparation
- Rank 6, Keys and Coffers: you can buy 2 Restored Coffer Keys per week from Naleidea Rivergleam. Restored Coffer Keys are the limiting resource in this system: Method puts the cap on keys at 6 per week, and each Tier 8 bountiful delve with a key gives a Champion-track item.
- Rank 7: a Delve-O-Bot 7001 chip, bought from Astrandis, adds Midnight delves to its destination list. Convenience only.
- Rank 8, Warbound in Blood: Champion warbound gear drops from Tier 9 and higher delves. Warbound items can be handed to other characters on your account, so your alts benefit from every run.
Rank 9 is the real payoff, and the reason you should care
At rank 9, “From Champion to Hero,” the Bountiful Coffer at the end of a Tier 11 delve can give Hero-track gear, and when it does not it gives Untainted Mana-Crystals. Tier 8 to 10 coffers give smaller crystal amounts. The crystals buy gear from Zah’ran, so even a run without a Hero drop moves you toward a piece you choose. That is the whole appeal of rank 9: every key run either gives Hero gear or pays toward it.
Rank 10 adds the Snake Eater title and increases Coffer Key Shards from all sources. The wiki does not list a crystal price for Zah’ran’s Hero items, so check the vendor before you plan how many runs you need.
The fastest way to farm Delver’s Journey renown is simple: more tier 11 bountiful delves
Renown sources listed by the Warcraft Wiki:
| Source | Progress |
|---|---|
| Bountiful delve completion, no key (Tier 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8) | 50 / 75 / 100 / 125 / 150 |
| Seasonal foe’s item drop | 60 |
| Bountiful Coffer opened with a Restored Coffer Key (any tier) | 250 |
| Weekly quest “The Key to Success” (starts from an Archaic Cipher Key found in a delve chest) | 1,500 |
| Heavy Trunks, Hidden Troves, packs affected by the seasonal foe | listed without amounts |
The key detail is that a key always adds 250 whatever the tier, so spend keys on Tier 11 coffers, where the rewards are best. Do bountiful delves daily for completion progress, and run the same loop on every level 90 you own. The wiki does not say whether renown is shared across characters, so open the Delver’s Journey frame on a second character before you rotate alts through the weekly quest and keys.
Weekly renown sources are also extremely important and should never be ignored
- The Key to Success is worth 1,500 progress, the single largest source, and starts from an Archaic Cipher Key found in a delve chest.
- Trovehunter’s Bounty is a map that drops from Azta’rec during delve invasions, in Heavy Chests at the end of bountiful delves, or from the weekly quest “Purging the Vaults”. If you have not found one that week, you can buy the Scalebound Herald’s Flute for 5,000 Undercoin from Naleidea Rivergleam and use it at a resurrection stone to force a spawn. Use the map in a Tier 8 or higher bountiful delve to guarantee a Hero-track piece (Method).
- Restored Coffer Keys: six per week by Method’s count, plus the two you can buy at rank 6.
Infinite farming does exist, but it is less efficient than the weekly structure
You can keep repeating the currently active bountiful delve for smaller amounts of progress and Undercoin after your first completion. At Tier 8 a completion is worth 150 progress without a key, so the arithmetic is simple: repeat runs fill the track, but slowly, and a keyed Tier 11 coffer gives 250 plus better loot. Use repeats only when your weekly sources are spent.
Patch 12.1.5 adds a new solo activity, the Labyrinth of Kindo’jan in north Eversong Woods, with nine chambers, a Tier 11 solo challenge, Mythic gear, cosmetics and titles. Blizzard does not say whether it gives Delver’s Journey progress, so do not plan around it.
Why reaching rank 9 early changes alt gearing completely
Once rank 9 is active, every level 90 alt can run Tier 11 bountiful delves and collect: Champion gear, a chance at Hero gear, Mana-Crystals for a chosen Hero piece, and warbound drops that your other characters can use. That predictability is the real advantage over a dungeon that may drop nothing for your slot.
From 12.1.5 these runs also drop Ascendant Venomstones, 10 of which raise the item level of a fully upgraded Hero or Myth item near the Catalyst in Silvermoon. They only work on fully upgraded items, so finish the upgrade ranks first.
What to Do This Week
- Pick up The Key to Success and do the Trovehunter’s Bounty on every character you gear.
- Spend Restored Coffer Keys on Tier 11 coffers, once you can clear them.
- Buy your two keys at rank 6.
- Put Zah’ran’s gear at the top of your slot list and buy it with Untainted Mana-Crystals at rank 9.
The track is cheap to complete over a season, but gear and enchants cost gold. If you would rather buy than farm it, WoW gold on Onlyfarms is the shop; for the free route see our solo gold farm guide.
FAQ
How much renown is rank 9? 37,800, because each rank costs 4,200.
Which delve tier should I run? Tier 8 is the first tier worth a key for a Champion item; Tier 11 for Hero chances at rank 9.
Do I need a key every run? No. Completing a bountiful delve gives progress without a key, but keys add 250 per coffer.
Does Delver’s Journey carry over to the next season? The wiki describes 10 unlocks per season, so plan on starting the track again.