Game Guide/Mounts

This article is a copy of "Mounts," a series of official articles from the World of Warcraft Community Site. These articles overviewed the different mounts available in World of Warcraft prior to Cataclysm. The original articles are no longer available, but they can still be viewed through online archives (see below).
==Article==
World of Warcraft offers a variety of mounts for the different races of Azeroth. Humans, for example, generally ride horses, and Orcs tend to favor their trusted wolf mounts. A mount is a special type of permanent pet that a player can own. Using one requires the riding talent, and with extensive training, riding specialists will be able to use mounts not generally available to their particular race.
More than mere status symbols, mounts allow players to travel over land more quickly than on foot. When a player is mounted, he or she has full control over the mount. To avoid exploiting monsters, players cannot attack while mounted. Also, monsters are unable to attack mounts. Instead, when a player is mounted, all attacks and damage are directed at the player and not at the mount. If a player dies while on a mount, the mount will "unsummon" and be available for "resummoning" once the player reenters the world of the living.
*Owning a mount is an impressive accomplishment in the game (not to mention the fact that it makes you look cool).
*Modified emotes are available for when you're on a mount. 
*The mounts for each race can differ in appearance. For instance, wolves' fur can be gray, white, black, or other colors.
*Some quests are related to mounts. Paladins can talk to the paladin trainers Duthroian Rall or Brandur Ironhammer.
*Your mount automatically "unsummons" when you go indoors, and can be resummoned when you go outdoors again.
*Flying mounts can be obtained in Outland at level 60. These mounts can only be used in Outland and Northrend (with Cold Weather Flying at level 68).
*Learn more about the basics of mounts. 
===Racial Mounts===
====Alliance====
Elekks
=====Horses=====
The strong bond between the humans of Azeroth and their warhorses has existed for generations. However, since the fall of Lordaeron, only select varieties continue to be bred throughout Alliance-controlled lands. Most prized among these are the stately Evendales of Elwynn Forest, renowned for their loyalty and even tempers. These horses command a hefty sum, but they reward their owners with steadiness and speed.
=====Mechanostriders=====
The gnomes' revolutionary mechanostrider represents yet another marvel of their engineering prowess. Each strider is specifically designed with the individual rider in mind. They are constructed using state-of-the-art steam compression, servo-motor dynamics, and duro-steel plating. This offers the rider a reliable and durable means of transportation. Some claim that the mechanostrider's lack of true sentience makes for a very dumb mount. However, the gnomes counter that under a skilled rider, the mechanostrider is more responsive than even the best trained live mount.
=====Nightsabers=====
Before they were domesticated by the Sentinel Army and trained as mounts, Kalimdor's savage nightsaber panthers were considered to be among the continent's most vicious inhabitants. While many of these grand predatory beasts still prowl the dusky shores and forests of the night elves' homeland, the finest pedigrees of the species, recognized by their superior swiftness and agility, now serve a more practical purpose for those skilled enough to ride them.
=====Rams=====
Distinguished by their shaggy coats and massive horns, Barak Tor'ol mountain rams are simple yet proud animals whose fearlessness is matched only by that of their dwarven masters. While these good-natured animals lack ferocity, they compensate with uncommon durability and strength. The thickness of their fur helps them withstand the biting winds of Khaz Modan and the sharp claws of the mountain beasts that populate the region.
====Horde====
Hawkstriders
=====Kodos=====
Swifter and slightly smaller than their wild cousins, kodo mounts nevertheless demonstrate the same resilience and fearlessness found in their untamed brethren, traits that serve them well when bearing their equally resolute riders.
=====Raptors=====
The savage ferocity of Kalimdor's raptors has enthralled the Darkspear trolls since their arrival. They consider a raptor to be the truest form of a hunter, and as such, the tamed Troll Raptor is their mount of choice. A tamed raptor is truly a fearsome beast, as a skilled troll is able to channel the reptilian steed's savagery to suit the rider's will. A tamed raptor is also one of the most auspicious signs of status amongst the trolls; many have died trying to tame these swift and deadly hunter beasts, and to possess one indicates great station. 
=====Skeletal Horses=====
Not even the noble steeds that succumbed to the Plague are allowed any rest in the hands of the Forsaken. Through an arcane mix of alchemy and necromancy - the Royal Apothecary Society has raised numerous fallen steeds to serve as mounts for the vengeful dead. These undead steeds are as strong as they were in life, and far more resilient. An unfortunate characteristic, however - one that the Forsaken are none too enamored with is the steeds almost universal stubbornness. From death and beyond, the mighty steeds still cling to the willful spirit that served them in life.
=====Wolves=====
Wolves are indigenous to many parts of Azeroth. They live on every known continent and have a wide variety of subspecies and social habits. Although most are hostile toward anyone who trespasses on their territories, a few unique dire wolf packs have befriended the Horde in recent years. These cunning and ferocious creatures have found an especially welcome home among the orcs, who admire their endurance and keen survival instincts.
===Flying Mounts===
Less than twenty years ago, the orcs' former homeworld, Draenor, was ripped apart by the violent energies of several dimensional portals that tore the very fabric of the planet to pieces. This catastrophic event left Draenor a broken, shattered world that the survivors came to call Outland. To this day, some parts of Outland are still unreachable by foot or boat, floating eerily on the horizon as silent reminders of the terrible fate that befell Draenor. Yet the denizens of Outland have adapted and learned to harness some of the indigenous species as flying mounts, allowing adventurers to reach even the most remote and dangerous regions of this wild, untamed world.
===Class Specific Mounts===
====Paladin====
Possessed of a noble spirit and deceptive intelligence uncommon among its kind, the warhorse is a regal charger that only the most inspiring of paladins can call to service. Once it pledges its service to a worthy master, the warhorse holds to its responsibility as a loyal mount and steadfast companion with a devotion that cannot be found in its lesser cousins. The paladins warhorse is more than a steed; it is a tireless cohort for its valorous master, carrying the paladin across Azeroth on a ceaseless crusade to vanquish evil wherever it may lurk. 
====Warlock====
The remote plains of Desolace were once home to a unique breed of horse too proud and wild to countenance riders. Yet it is precisely this willful conceit that enticed the elders of the Shadow Council to bind these majestic steeds to their service with dark rituals too horrific to perform by any but the most depraved of warlocks. Although they retain their imposing forms, these newly-christened felsteeds have become twisted with infernal energies, treading flames and breathing fire. Where their eyes once shone with exuberance and a zest for life, they now burn with hatred for the warlocks who corrupted them and anguish at the passing of the lives they once knew. 
====Death Knight====
=====Deathcharger=====
During their training, every death knight learns to summon the deathcharger land mount. 
=====Winged Steed of the Ebon Blade=====
The Death Knight can purchase a special flying mount from the Knights of the Ebon Blade. The speed of this mount automatically scales to your current Riding skill level.
===Player vs. Player===
====Stormpike Riding Ram====
Not long after Prospector Stormpike and his expedition arrived in the Alterac Mountains, they began tracking the movements of these massive rams, hoping to tame them for use as beasts of burden. This proved to be no easy task, as the rams possessed the most cantankerous demeanor of any beasts the adventurers had ever come across. Even after the prospectors managed to wrangle the animals into pens, only one out of every fifty responded to training.
It is said that the Stormpike Rams reserve their loyalty for riders of the most exceptional character. It is also believed, however, that once this trust has been established the rams will maintain fierce devotion to their masters up until the very moment of their death. 
====Frostwolf Riding Wolf====
Long ago, before the First War, the warlock Gul'dan exiled a clan of orcs called the Frostwolves to a hidden valley deep in the heart of the Alterac Mountains. These orcs befriended much of the indigenous wildlife, including the massive Frostwolf Worgs. These wolves proved to be not only swift, but deadly as well, helping the orcs turn the tide of countless battles throughout the years.
In recent times, after Thrall's successful uniting of the clans, the Frostwolf orcs have consented to share their beloved mounts with Horde members everywhere as a sign of solidarity. The worgs themselves have answered the call, and many Horde riders now count the wolves as their most trustworthy companions. 
===Other/Special Mounts===
Aside from the more customary racial and class mounts associated with your character, there are many special mounts that can be obtained through non-conventional means. All of the special mounts listed below are "very fast" (increases your speed by 100%) unless noted otherwise.
====Miscellaneous====
[List of Miscellaneous Mounts]
====World Event Mounts====
These mounts can only be earned during particular world events. Some only last for the duration of the particular world event, while others are permanent. 
[List of World Event Mounts]
====Talbuks====
Talbuks are a type of wild, stag-like creatures indigenous to Nagrand, and a favored food of the draenei. Talbuk mounts are available to both factions. They are purchased from vendors in Telaar, Nagrand (Alliance) and Garadar, Nagrand (Horde).
====Qiraji Battle Tanks====
Adventurers in the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj may come across and obtain resonating crystals of various colors. These crystals emit a high frequency sound, forcing a silithid tank to burrow out from its home beneath the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj. The silithid is obedient to the summoner and can be used as a mount within the Temple of Ahn'Qiraj only. Any hostile action towards the rider forces the tank underground.
==Notes==
*Elekks, Hawkstriders, Flying Mounts, Other/Special Mounts were added in January 2007.
*Stormpike Riding Ram and Frostwolf Riding Wolf were removed from the list in January 2007.
*Death Knight Mounts were added in October 2008.
==Source==
*Archive Link - Original
*Archive Link - Last Archived Copy
Category:Game Guides