Area of effect grinding locations

This page lists outdoor locations with high mob density that are suited for grinding with a combination of AoE damaging and crowd control abilities. Mobs in these locations are mostly hostile (not neutral) and melee (not ranged or casters) so they can be funnelled without breaking line of sight.
In theory, any class with AoE damaging abilities could attempt this tactic; however, in Classic and early expansions it was commonly associated with the mage class due to spells like Blizzard and Frost Nova. Meanwhile, these tactics are less viable for some classes since the introduction of area damage and healing caps. Finally, tools such as the Dungeon Finder reduce the barrier to grinding instances instead of outdoor zones.
== Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor ==
Levels	Zone 	Area 	Mobs 	Range	Caster 	A	H	Notes
14-15 	Barrens 	SW of Sludge Fen 	Savannah Lions 	N 	N 	Y	Y	 
16-18 	Barrens 	Boulderloade Mine 	Venture Co. 	N 	N 	Y	Y	 
16-22 	Silverpine Forest 	Fenris Isle & Keep 	Rot Hide Gnolls 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	Watch out for the casters, kill them first.
16-18 	The Barrens 	The Dry Hills 	Witchwings 	N 	N 	Y	Y	The Witchwing Windcallers cast an immobilizing whirlwind spell.
17-19 	Loch Modan 	Ironband Excavation Site 	Stonesplinter Troggs 	? 	? 	Y	Y	 
21-24 	Wetlands 	Near Loch Modan 	Mosshide Gnolls 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Respawns unbelievably fast. This is the best lowbie spot to aoe grind. A MUST VISIT. There are several camps right outside the tunnel from Loch Modan, 1 with only 1 caster. Take him down, then you're good to go.
19-21 	Silverpine Forest 	Beren's Peril 	Ravenclaw Undead 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Ravenclaw Drudgers will occasionally become "Fatigued", causing a 2 second stun to the Drudger. This will break your packs.
19-29 	Duskwood 	Raven Hill Cemetery 	Skeletal Undead 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	Watch out for the few casters and the 35 elite that wanders through the cemetery.
21-23 	Barrens 	Bael'Dun Dig Site 	Bael'dun Dwarves 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Surveyors will throw a torch at you before closing to melee. Use fire ward to avoid most of the torch damage.
21-25 	Ashenvale 	South of Raynewood 	Foulweald Furbolgs 	Y 	N 	Y	Y	Healer appreciated
21-26 	Redridge Mountains 	Various 	Shadowhide Gnolls 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	 
21-27 	Duskwood 	Various 	Worgen 	No 	Some 	Y	Y	There are the Nightbane Dark Runners on the farm (make sure you kill the Shadow Weavers first).
22-25 	Hillsbrad Foothills	Hillsbrad Fields 	Hillsbrad Farmers/Peasants 	N 	Some 	N	Y	Stick to the fields, the casters are in & around the buildings.
25-28 	Wetlands 	Angerfang Encampment 	Dragonmaw Orcs 	N 	Some 	Y	N	Few casters, healer recommended
26-28 	Duskwood 	Raven Hill Tomb 	Plague Spreaders 	N 	N 	Y	Y	 
26-28 	Hillsbrad Foothills	Azureloade Mine 	Hillsbrad Miners/Sentrys 	N 	N 	N	Y	Be aware of line of sight, the rough bumpy floor can cause a loss in LoS.
28-31 	Thousand Needles 	Highperch 	Highperch Wyverns 	N 	N 	Y	Y	 
28-31 	Duskwood 	Cave East of Rotting Orchard 	Vile Fangs, Tainted Ones 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Lots of vile fangs outside of cave with no ranged or casters. Excellent location for lvl 28 - 32. There is also camps over the hills to the left. 2 of these are full of dark runners and are very accessible.
31-34 	Alterac Mountains 	Sofera's Naze (North of Tarren Mill) 	Syndicate Humans 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	Camp with tents on a ridge - watch out for patrolling cats and Mages
29-35 	Thousand Needles 	Shimmering Flats 	Various Beasts 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Do not bother with the Silithid, stick to the Beasts.
30-32 	Hillsbrad Foothills	Darrow Hill 	Cave Yetis 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Not recommended for Frost AoE, as Yetis have very high Frost resist.
30-33 	Alterac Mountains 	Various 	Mountain Yeti 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Not recommended for Frost AoE, as Yetis have very high Frost resist.
30-35 	Arathi Highlands 	Dabyrie's Farmstead 	Dabyrie Farmhands 	N 	N 	N	Y	Pull the wandering patrols around the main field first. Watch the road, Lieutenant Valorcall patrols up the road to the farm. Also, kill named NPCs for To Steal From Thieves.
31-37 	Stranglethorn Vale 	Nesingwary's Expedition 	Various Beasts 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Quest stacking from the camp allows for some very fast experience. Raptors are best as they travel in packs and are higher level. Watch out for the Raptor's stun
32-36 	Arathi Highlands 	Witherbark Village 	Witherbark Trolls 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	 
33-35 	Arathi Highlands 	Go'Shek Farm 	Hammerfall Orcs 	N 	N 	Y	N	Pull the wandering patrols first.
33-36 	Alterac Mountains 	North-West 	Crushridge Ogres 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Mobs are spread out, so pulls will need to be smaller.
33-38 	Swamp of Sorrows 	Along the Northern road 	Lost One Muckdwellers 	Some 	Some 	Y	Y	Categorized spot into 5 pulls -- 2 up at the top camp and 3 down at the camp below. Lots of ranged mobs.
35-38 	Alterac Mountains 	North of Zone 	Syndicate Humans 	Many 	1 per camp 	Y	Y	Ranged mobs have been recently added, very bad place for Blizzard based Frost AoE.
35-39 	Dustwallow Marsh 	North of Brackenwall Village 	Darkmist Spiders 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Spiders often "cast" poison. The Darkmist Recluses in the area, "cast" Deadly Poison. Try to pick them off first, then go AOE on spiders.
35-38 	Dustwallow Marsh 	Dreadmurk Shore, Swamplight Manor, Witch Hill	Murlocs 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	There are 2 and a half camps on the northern tip of the peninsula where there are no casters. Lots of mobs here and annoying patrols. Be careful.
36-39 	Badlands 	NW Corner 	Lesser Rock Elementals 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Relatively few mobs, useful as a backup if other places are being farmed, but not as a primary spot.
36-40 	Duskwallow Marsh 	NE of Brackenwall Village 	Bloodfen Raptors 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Mobs are spread out, so pulls of 4 or so are necessary.
37-39 	Arathi Highlands 	Various 	Elementals (various types) 	N 	Y (water, air)	Y	Y	Some elemental types are all casters. Frost mages should avoid Water elementals. Earth elementals have a knockback move. Air elementals cast. Frost AOE should grind fire elementals at the circle of west binding.
37-40 	Badlands 	Agnar Fortress 	Shadowforge Dwarves 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	The caster placement makes this difficult
39-41 	Badlands 	Apocryphan's Rest 	Giant Buzzards 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Around 10 buzzards grouped near a carcass (visible on the map) just South of Kargath, approx co-ords 18,60
39-44 	Feralas 	Central Zone, various 	Woodpaw Gnolls 	Y 	N 	Y	Y	Ranged mob frequency can make this difficult. Really bad place for Blizzard based Frost AoE.
40-43 	Feralas 	Grimtotem Compound 	Grimtotem Tauren 	N 	Y 	Y	Y	 
40-41 	Feralas 	Sardor Isle 	Longtooth Runners 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Island off the West of Feralas.
40-45 	Tanaris 	Waterspring Field 	Wastewander Pirates 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	Several camps of 4-8. Avoid the casters. Each kill is worth 5 rep with Gadgetzan, and there's a repeatable quest from the water they drop that gives extra rep and experience.
41-45 	Swamp of Sorrows 	Misty Reed Shore 	Marsh Murlocs 	N 	N 	Y	Y	A good spot in my opinion. About 20 murlocs scattered in 3 spots really close to one another. Just be careful when using Frost Nova near one of the wandering crawlers, they tend to get on one's nerves. Allys also need to keep an eye out so they don't blink into the nearby Horde camp.
45-47 	Hinterlands 	Central zone 	Green Sludges 	N 	N 	Y	Y	 
44-48 	Searing Gorge 	Various 	Dark Iron Dwarves 	N 	N 	Y	Y	High Fire resists make this unsuitable for Fire AoE mages. Mobs will net you.
44-48 	Tanaris 	Various 	Dunemaul Ogres 	N 	Some 	Y	Y	Ogres will knock you up and away.
43-51 	Tanaris 	Lost Rigger Cove 	Southsea Pirates 	Some 	N 	Y	Y	3 clusters of 10 mobs inside the walled compound. There's one cluster of swashbucklers on the dock. Another cluster of dock workers is on the unfinished boat. The largest is the cluster around Andre Firebeard; beware of a patrol which is sometimes ranged. Kill the Freebooters separately before any pull (they are ranged). Each Pirate is worth 5 rep with Gadgetzan.
42-43 	Badlands 	Agmond's End 	Enraged Rock Elementals 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Cluster of around 10 elementals, just South of "Theldurin the Lost", approx co-ords 53,80. Can kill entire group in two pulls, ok spot to aoe but slow.
48-50 	Tanaris 	Thistleshrub Valley 	Thistleshrub Elementals 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Mobs will root you and use earthgrab totems.
46-47 	Feralas 	Rage Scar Vale 	Rage Scar Yetis 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Frost resists, like the Hillsbrad yetis.
46-51 	Blasted Lands 	Mine 	Nethergarde Humans 	Some 	N 	N	Y	No mounting inside the mine, and a few ranged mobs, can complicate this area.
47-50 	Feralas 	  	Northspring Harpies 	N 	Y 	Y	Y	Lots of casters mixed in
47-50 	Un'goro Crater 	Various 	Ravasaur Raptors 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Keep an eye out for long-ranging pats.
48-54 	Felwood 	Various 	Wolves, Bears 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Pockets of wolves and bears on the side of the road are fun to AOE. Space between mobs makes this a poor spot to AOE grind.
48-54 	Azshara 	Northwest zone 	Timbermaws 	N 	N 	Y	Y	For non-enchanters since TBC this rep matters little, -25 per kill. High frost resist makes this difficult for blizzard aoe, but doable with a high mana pool. If you encounter shamans (casters) you're too far east.
49-54 	Azshara 	Northern Peninsula 	Thunderhead Hippogryphs 	N 	Y 	Y	Y	Sometimes "cast" effects
50-52 	Western Plaguelands	Felstone Fields 	Skeletons 	N 	Y 	Y	Y	Casters must be pulled first, or carefully avoided.
50-53 	Burning Steppes 	Various 	Flamekin Imps 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Not really a good AOE spot - packs of 5 imps die quick but are only equal to one regular mob.
50-54 	Felwood 	Irontree Cavern and Woods 	Warpwood Elementals 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Can root you, but you'll either be far away or ready to blink out of it.
50-55 	Un'Goro Crater 	Outskirts of Marshal's Refuge 	Venomhide Ravasaur, Un'Goro Gorilla, Fledgling Pterrordax	N 	N 	Y	Y	The Venomhide Ravasaur will spit a poisen which casues unknown nature damage every 3 seconds, so mages without Ice Barrier will have some difficulty here. The Prerrordax can knock you down, so time your Blink. The Ravasaur can be found in groups up to 12 in very small areas. This location is southeast, close to the middle of the zone.
52-56 	Western Plaguelands	Sorrow Hill (SE of Andorhal) 	Undead 	N 	N 	Y	Y	These are average level 51 so don't expect too much experience when your level is 55+.
52-58 	Winterspring 	Ice Thistle Hills 	Ice Thistle Yetis 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Due to high resists, these should be avoided by Frost mages.
53-54 	Western Plaguelands	Dalson's Tears 	Undead 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Skeletal Terrors will cast Fear if they are rooted (either with Frostbite or Frost Nova). Blink immediately and take an additional step to get out of range. Watch out for the wandering patrol of Scarlet mobs. You will often become infected with a disease that does damage per 15 secs and will cause spell casting delay when proccing while you channel Blizzard!
53-55 	Felwood 	Felpaw Village 	Deadwood Furbolgs 	N 	Shaman 	Y	Y	Often farmed by those seeking Timbermaw rep, but still worth a try.
54-55 	Silithus 	East of Cenarion Hold 	Spiders/Scorpids/Strikers 	N 	N 	Y	Y	The Strikers can charge but won't force dismount. Two types of poison, neither interrupts Blizzard. Mobs are spaced far apart.
55-58 	Western Plaguelands	Northridge Lumber Camp 	Scarlet Lumberjack 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Watch out for the non-Lumberjack Scarlet mobs. Not the most choice area for Aoe because of Scarlet Knights and a few 58-59 mobs.
55-58 	Deadwind Pass 	The Vice 	Deadwind Ogres 	N 	Y 	Y	Y	Watch out for the casters
57-60 	Silithus 	Northwest Corner 	Elementals (Earth and Air) 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Keep Dampen Magic up when fighting the air elementals. It won't take away all damage, even with the talent, but it makes a big difference. Extremely hard area to aoe grind without getting adds.
58-60 	Western Plaguelands	Hearthglen 	Scarlet Worker 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Blizzard technique works very well with these non-elites.
60 	Dire Maul 	North 	Mastiffs and Guard Mol'dar can be solo'd 	N 	N 	Y	Y	 
60 	Zul'Gurub 	  	Crocolisks 	N 	N 	Y	Y	These require the Cone of Cold pulling technique.
60 	Scholomance 	Entryway 	Undead 	N 	N 	Y	Y	The undead right inside the doors can be solo'd.
60 	Stratholme 	Service Entrance 	Undead 	N 	N 	Y	Y	The undead inside the back door can be solo'd.
== Outland ==
Levels	Zone 	Area 	Mobs 	Range	Caster	A	H	Notes
58-61 	Hellfire Peninsula	SE of Honor Hold 	Bonestripper Buzzard 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Buzzards can smell dead bodies and will come to eat other corpses. Don't rest near your kills! Loot after you're sure adds aren't coming as well.
59-61 	Hellfire Peninsula	Razorthorn Trail 	Razorfang Hatchlings & Razorfang Ravagers 	N 	N 	Y	Y	The Razorfang Ravagers tend to roam, so watch out for Pats. This is an especially good grinding spot for skinners, as all these mobs are skinnable with skinning 305+. These mobs have a knockdown effect, so be careful when you're in close!
61-62 	Zangarmarsh 	The Dead Mire 	Withered Bog Lords, Withered Giants & Parched Hydras	N 	N 	Y	Y	All these mobs have a close-range AoE attack which causes them to stop every so often, separating them from the group. Excellent spot to grind Sporeggar Rep! Great Spot for Herbalists and Skinners. (Herbalist/Skinners can make out like bandits!)
61-65 	Hellfire Peninsula	North of Falcon Watch 	Bonestripper Vulture 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Same as Bonestripper Buzzards, except larger pulls are possible.
63-64 	Zangarmarsh 	The Spawning Glen 	Starving Bog Lords & Starving Fungal Giants 	N 	N 	Y	Y	These guys will hit you with Choking Vines, so either IceBlock out of them, or bring a Priest or Paladin friend along with you. Good Sporeggar rep! Nice Herbalist skinning.
63-64 	Zangarmarsh 	Quagg Ridge 	Bog Lords & Fungal Giants 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Occasionally tosses out mushrooms. They're usually next to the giants and will give a small amount of XP. Make sure they're not tossed next to you. Starving Bog Lords & Starving Fungal Giants will occasionally walk in on the western border, so watch out for them.
63-64 	Terokkar Forest 	Along the banks of any River 	Dampscale Devourer 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Drops , usable to make , which will help with grinding. Skinnable!
64-65 	Terokkar Forest 	South of Allerian Stronghold & SE of the Bone Wastes	Dreadfang Widow 	N 	N 	Y	Y	They have a poison DoT, which you can get multiple times. It doesn't stack, but counts as several DoTs. Drops , which sells well & is used in high-end BC bags.
67-68 	Netherstorm 	The Heap, south of area 52 	Zaxxis Raiders/Stalkers (Ethereals) 	N 	One 	Y	Y	The one aoe guy is south of the bigger groups and doesn't range so much as cast an aoe attack in place. He can usually be safely pulled with an aoe mob. Some of the mobs can teleport behind you.
67-68 	Netherstorm 	Manaforge Coruu 	Sunfury Researcher 	N 	Y 	Y	Y	There are groups on the east and southeast side, there is 1 caster patrol per group, kill the patrol then aoe. Inside the Manaforge is a group with an elite who can be pulled too if done properly. Great for scryers rep!
68-69 	Shadowmoon Valley 	Black Temple (outside) (69,52) 	Sunfury Eradicator & Demon Hunter Supplicant 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Supplicants sometimes require a direct attack to properly aggro or you might get unexpected adds. Careful not to aggro Netharel!! Eradicators can heal. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4_7TG5YAVY
69-70 	Shadowmoon Valley 	Ruins of Baa'ri (around 59,30) 	Ashtongue Workers 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Lots of patrols. The Shamans won't cast ranged spells.
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
== Northrend ==
Levels	Zone 	Area 	Mobs 	Range	Caster	A	H	Notes
68-72 	Borean Tundra	In the Feilds 	Wooly Rhinos 	N 	N 	Y	Y	Great place to AoE Grind - They travel in packs, and are often accompanied by bull rhinos. Just stay away from D.E.H.T.A while you're doing this, k?
71-73 	Dragonblight 	Onslaught Base Camp, Co-ords (80-40)	Onslaught Infantry/Mason/Bloodhound	N 	N 	Y	Y	Masons have a ranged debuff that seems to be bugged. Easily done as a level 70, great place to start in Northrend. Combine quests, The Path of Redemption, The Return of the Crusade and What Secret's Men Hide, for added bonus. Around 5 packs of around 8 to 12 in each pack, and respawn rate is good enough to continually do a rotation of all 5 packs.
Category:Mages
Category:Area of effect spells