While Wrath of the Lich King was the World of Warcraft expansion that began to make the game's content more accessible to all players, it still contains a number of rare items that only a small portion of the player base will ever have the opportunity of wielding. The most famous among them is the legendary two-handed axe Shadowmourne, however it's far from the only highly sought-after item in the game. You may be surprised to learn that a number of Wrath's most precious items are actually accessible to even more casual players as long as they've got the gold or, in some cases, the sheer determination.
Reins Of The Time-Lost Proto Drake
This elusive mount is a drop off of the rare spawn called the Time-Lost Proto Drake, which can be found flying among the mountains of the Storm Peaks. While you might imagine that acquiring this mount would be rather simple, you'll find that there's an incredible amount of competition to tag the mob. In fact, it's well-known for people to camp the four patrol routes it might spawn in for days at a time. It also doesn't help that the rare itself shares a spawn with another rare dragon mob named Vyragosa, and Vyragosa has a much higher chance of spawning than our beloved Proto Drake.
Battered Hilt
This is an epic drop off of all mobs in the Heroic Icecrown Citadel dungeons: The Forge of Souls, Pit of Saron, and Halls of Reflection. The item itself leads you on a long chain quest that will eventually take you to the one and only Sunwell before rewarding you with your choice of one of seven powerful epic weapons all named Quel'Delar.
For anyone who played vanilla Classic, this sword is the sister blade of the better-known blade Quel'Serrar, which was acquired through a similarly epic quest line where you had to have the raid boss Onyxia breathe on the sword with her fire breath before stabbing her corpse in the heart with it to complete the weapon. Lore lovers especially will enjoy experiencing the journey that this weapon has to offer, but it also helps that the end reward is a great weapon for any spec or class.
Bryntroll, The Bone Arbiter
While it's certainly not as flashy as Shadowmourne, Bryntroll does a pretty good impression. This axe made its reputation thanks to its deadly proc (procedure triggered under certain circumstances) that steals nearly 3,000 life from your target.
The weapon also drops off of Lord Marrowgar which is the first boss in Icecrown Citadel, making it relatively easy to obtain as far as raid weapons go. Naturally, this weapon is ridiculously good in PvP (player versus player), primarily because of its ability to a huge chunk of life from your target. Despite it being fairly easy to acquire, expect this item to be very highly contested when Icecrown Citadel finally arrives.
Deathbringer's Will
We just got done looking at the best trinket for spellcasters, so it only makes sense that we would take a look at the best trinket for melee damage dealers next. Deathbringer's Will provides its wearer with a hefty amount of armor penetration which is arguably the most important statistic for melee once Icecrown Citadel drops. Even better than that though, the proc on Deathbringer's Will provides your character with a simply absurd thirty-second buff, as well as an awesome cosmetic transformation into one of several unplayable races in the game. The races include Vrykul, Tuskarr, Wolvar, Taunka, Iron Dwarf, and Gorloc and their buffs will provide you with 700 strength, 700 critical strike, 700 agility, 1400 attack power, 700 armor penetration rating, and 700 haste rating, respectively.
Val'Anyr, Hammer Of The Ancient Kings
Players often forget that Wrath was home to more legendaries than just the two-handed axe Shadowmourne. Val'Anyr is the best-in-slot healing weapon in the entire expansion, and you can acquire it as early as Ulduar. The hammer itself can be created once a player has collected 30 Fragments of Val'Anyr which drop off of bosses in Ulduar.
Shadowmourne
This legendary axe is the sister weapon to the Lich King's even more legendary blade Frostmourne. Like Frostmourne, it is a weapon born of pure evil. Nonetheless, the unmatched power that this axe possesses guides players to craft and wield it to the detriment of any who should stand before them. Shadowmourne is by far and away the best melee weapon in the entirety of the game, and by a significant margin.
The axe can only be wielded by paladins, warriors, and death knights. Sorry hunters. Like Val'Anyr, it is created by collecting shards from bosses. Unlike Val'Anyr, you'll need 50 of these shards, and they only drop in Icecrown Citadel. Furthermore, you'll need to complete some preliminary quests that require a huge amount of reagents, including drops from Icecrown Citadel raid bosses, 25 Primordial Saronites, and more.
