Leveling in Mists of Pandaria involves another five levels of work, but there are many ways to speed up the process.
Pandaria is the second of two expansions that break the WoW levelling cycle into blocks of five. While at the time it wasn’t known, now we know this would be the last time. At the same time, the reality is that it takes about as long as it always takes. It feels slower due to having fewer “ding” moments. So, it’s important to make sure you’re doing everything in your power to make the most of your time.
If you're heading into WoW Classic Mists of Pandaria and want to level from 85 to 90 as fast as possible, this guide covers everything that actually works to give you a head start.
Content:
Preparation is key
Before we head into Pandaria, there are a number of things we can do to gain an advantage.
Gear - Get as much gear as you can heading into Pandaria. Pug Cata raids, do the highest dungeons you can and take advantage of all the catchup gear the pre-patch has to offer.
Spring cleaning - One of the best things you can do before preparing to head into Pandaria is to clear out your bags, bank, and quest log. We pick up a lot of rubbish during an expansion, and a new release gives us a chance to reset. Place anything you want to keep in your bank, and hit Pandaria with a fresh inventory.
Stacking Quests - It’s not always the most reliable method, however, if you can fill your quest log with easy-to-hand-in quests before heading to Pandaria you can sometimes make a small dent into that first level. This strategy also gives you some breathing room to drop quests you don’t like.
Log your alts - This is purely for your alts, but make sure to log into them and get them to an inn or city as soon as possible. That way, they can start earning rested XP for when you level them.
Questing is King
Even in MoP Classic, questing is your main source of XP. Blizzard built Pandaria around quest chains that tell a story and push you through the zones logically. Follow the main storyline in each zone, not only do you get more XP per quest, but it also unlocks flight paths, new zones and sometimes dungeons.
You can do side quests, but only if they’re close by. Don’t waste time zigzagging across the map for 12,000 XP. Cluster your quests, aiming to knock out 4-5 at once, hand them in together, and move on. Use an add-on like Azeroth Auto Pilot or TomTom to help streamline your routes. The less time you spend travelling, the faster you hit 90.
Best Level for Each Zone
Here’s the best order to move through Pandaria’s zones. You’ll avoid being under-levelled, and you won’t outpace quest rewards, either.
85-86: Jade Forest
This is your intro zone. Stick with the main faction storyline, The Serpent’s Heart, the Alliance/Horde landings, and the first contacts with the Pandaren. Don’t skip the cinematics if it’s your first time as they are worth watching. If you want to push, then obviously skip at your own pearl.
Pro Tip: Do all the quests at the Temple of the Jade Serpent to unlock the dungeon quest later.
86-87: Valley of the Four Winds into Krasarang Wilds
Valley of the Four Winds is chill, lots of farming quests, good pacing, and quick kills. Once you start running low on quests, move south into Krasarang Wilds. That’s where the fighting ramps up, and the XP gets better
Pro tip: The best quest chains are Anything involving Chen Stormstout, you’ll follow him across the map and get some good rewards. If you find one of his quests, always do it as a priority.
87-88: Kun-Lai Summit
Go north into the mountains next as we move into the later zones. Kun-Lai Summit has a great mix of quests, and the zone isn’t too spread out. The Temple of the White Tiger chain is a highlight. You’ll also want to pick up the dungeon quests for Shado-Pan Monastery and Gate of the Setting Sun here.
Watch for a few escort quests. They’re slow, so skip them if you’re trying to speed them through.
88-89: Townlong Steppes
It starts to feel like a grind here, but the quests pay off. The Shado-Pan need help fighting the Mantid, and their hubs are well-organised. Focus on the Shado-Pan Monastery quests, good XP with nice gear upgrades.
89-90: Dread Wastes
This is the final push, and where we should hit 90. Dread Wastes is darker, more vertical, and the mobs hit harder. But XP is solid, and the Klaxxi questline is worth finishing.
You’ll pick up lots of Klaxxi rep quests, these are well worth doing for both XP and rep. They’re repeatable and give solid returns, especially the dailies once unlocked.
Add in Dungeons
Running dungeons can be great for XP, but not if you’re doing them non-stop. The trick is to mix them in at the right time:
- Queue after finishing a quest hub
- Always pick up the dungeon quests at the entrance; that’s where the real XP is
- Don’t keep re-queuing if your group wipes three times in a row. Cut your losses and go back to questing
Here’s when to run each dungeon:
- 85-86: Temple of the Jade Serpent
- 86-87: Stormstout Brewery
- 87-88: Shado-Pan Monastery
- 88-89: Gate of the Setting Sun
- 89-90: Siege of Niuzao Temple
Each one gives a big XP bump the first time, so run them once, collect rewards, then move on.
Get Your Herb (and Ore) on
Look, you can grind mobs if you want, but it simply isn’t worth it. Thankfully, Pandaria adds a new type of grind to the level journey: Herbalism and Mining.
Find a dense area like the fields in Valley of the Four Winds, or the bug tunnels in Dread Wastes. You’ll get herbs/ore and XP at the same time, and you might even pick up some extra materials to sell or use later. This is a great way to level an alt or to abuse the early game economy and give yourself a huge gold boost.
The same goes for killing mobs in your path while questing. Don’t go around them, kill as you move. Every bit adds up, but just farming mobs isn’t really the play in WoW.
PvP to Change the Environment
Battlegrounds like Arathi Basin do give XP, and Honour Points, but it’s not the fastest route. Queue if you need a break from questing or want to stack some PvP gear. But don’t rely on PvP alone to level, it’s too hit-or-miss. We don’t really recommend this as a good option. But, it’s something to consider on an alt.
Other leveling Tips
Rested XP
Log out in an inn or the capital city. Rested XP stacks up fast and doubles your mob XP. If you’re not going to play for a few hours, make sure you’re rested.
XP Potions and Buffs
If you’ve got XP potions from events or boosts, use them at the start of a quest hub or dungeon. Don’t pop them and then spend five minutes flying around. Make them count. These are mostly useful on alts.
Group Up
Some mobs take ages to kill solo. If you’re on a busy server, group up with someone doing the same quest. Kill faster, loot faster, level faster. Just use /1 and ask if anyone is around, there is likely someone else looking to kill the same mob.
Darkmoon Fair
Grab the XP buff and turn in profession quests if the timing works out, while it won’t be up during release weeks, it will help if you are leveling alts. The buff isn’t really worth going back and forth to get, but it’s great to get at the start of your journey.
Best Leveling Addons for Pandaria Classic
Azeroth Auto Pilot – Automatically picks and turns in quests, sets waypoints.
Rested XP - While you must pay for the full version, at Method, we’ve got a promo link to get you 10% off the new Pandaria Leveling Guide, which is currently on pre-order. The code will also work for their other guides as well.
TomTom – Great for setting custom waypoints and for taking quest coordinates from guides like ours
Questie – Shows quest objectives clearly on your map and helps to make questing a little smoother.
And that’s about it for questing in Pandaria. Have fun on your quest to 90, and be sure to share any other tips with us on social media.
