What are dungeons in Warcraft Rumble and why should you run them?

Dungeons play a critical role in Warcraft Rumble’s progression system, but it’s not inherently clear how they work or how to make the most of any given dungeon rotation. Below, we’ll take a look at unlocking dungeons in Rumble, how dungeon rotations work, and why the Army upgrades at the end of dungeon runs are so important.

How to unlock dungeons in Warcraft Rumble

This one’s pretty simple: Play the campaign until you’ve earned 30 Sigils to unlock dungeons. See? Simple! You’ll have enough Sigils to unlock dungeons by the time you’ve beaten Ashenvale. After you’ve earned 30 Sigils, the dungeon tab at the bottom of the screen is unlocked and you’re ready to jump into the fun.

The current set of dungeons in Warcraft Rumble includes Gnomeregan, Deadmines, Dire Maul, and Blackfathom Deeps — Scholomance (pictured above) is set to join the roster in the near future as well. Each dungeon has its own specific mechanics to be aware of, but on a broad level, there are some key features to be aware of before diving in.

How do dungeons work in Warcraft Rumble?

Once you’ve unlocked dungeons, you’ll want to be aware of a few key features. It may seem like a lot at first, but once you get the hang of things, dungeons will become a regular part of your gameplay.

• Dungeon rotations: Dungeons are on a rotation, with one dungeon available per week. The rotation resets on Sundays (12:01 a.m.).
• Bosses: Each dungeon features a three-boss gauntlet. You cannot change your Army between bosses, and each boss has its own unique mechanics. Gnomeregan, for instance, features Crowd Pummeler 9-60, then Electrocutioner 6000, and finally Mekgineer Thermaplugg.
• Weekly family: Leader families (e.g., Alliance, Blackrock, etc.) are also on a rotation, changing with each dungeon.
  • The family rotation is as follows: Alliance –> Horde –> Blackrock –> Undead –> Beast (and then back to Alliance).
  • While not entirely dungeon-related, the G.R.I.D.’s “family of the week” matches the dungeon’s family. This means you’ll also want to look out for stars in the G.R.I.D. to upgrade your leaders while the upgrades are available.
• Relics: Before each boss, you’ll pick a Relic. These add a unique element of gameplay to dungeons you won’t find in campaign missions. More on Relics below.
• Rewards: Of course, it wouldn’t be a dungeon without loot, would it? Dungeons in Rumble feature a few rewards that will help players grow and empower their armies.
  • Completing individual bosses in a dungeon will reward Arc Energy and an Ankh. The former is used to upgrade units, while the latter is a dungeon-specific item that lets you try again if you fail a mission.
  • The real draw to dungeons, however, is the army upgrade that you receive for defeating the final boss.

Still following along? Let’s say Week 1 of a season features Dire Maul and Alliance. This means from Sunday to Sunday, I will be able to run Dire Maul with only Tirion, Jaina, or Maiev. When the next week begins, the dungeon will change and so will the weekly family. So in this hypothetical, Week 2 might feature Deadmines and would require Horde leaders (Sneed, Cairne, or Grommash).

What are Relics in Warcraft Rumble?

Relics add a roguelite element to what would otherwise be a three-map gauntlet. Before each boss, you’ll be given three different Relics to choose from, and each of them provides a unique advantage that you won’t find in any of the campaign missions. Once you pick a Relic and start a boss fight, you’re locked into that Relic. In other words, you cannot pick a Relic, fail, use an Ankh, and try the fight again with a new Relic — it’s a minute detail but one min/maxers will want to be aware of.

Relics come in a variety of flavors, and in the right circumstances (read: with the right RNG), Relics can work together very well. Even if they don’t complement one another, they’re still generally very useful. Before selecting a Relic, you’ll see which units it will directly affect — though indirectly affected Minis are not shown (e.g., if deploying your Leader reduces the Mini cost of your next Blackrock unit, your Leader is the only Mini that will be shown on the Relic window).

Below are some examples of Relics; however this is by no means an exhaustive list:

• Prospector’s Mitts: Every 3rd Gold mined grants one additional Gold
• Frost Inscription: Your Barracks and Towers apply Frost on hit.
• Arcane Crystal: Elemental Minis deal double damage, but gain Vulnerability.
• Coated Spearhead: Your Ranged Minis gain Poison.
• Aegis of Battle: Horde Minis near your Leader have a chance to critical strike for double damage.

Over time, you’ll get a feel for which buffs work best for your playstyle — though I encourage experimenting with different builds just to see how non-traditional combos can surprise you! If you can make the most of your Relics, you’ll have a much easier time getting to the end of the dungeon unscathed and ready to claim your reward.

How do Army upgrades work in Warcraft Rumble?

As mentioned, the main draw to dungeons is the end reward: Army upgrades. Army upgrades work on individual Mini slots in your Army window (including your Leader) and they provide a full level increase per upgrade rank to whichever Mini is in that slot and matches the classification. Upgrade ranks work as follows:

• Bronze: +1 level
• Silver: +2 levels total
• Gold: +3 levels total
• Platinum: +4 levels total
  • Note that Platinum upgrades are not currently available and will come from the Molten Core raid.

When you’re first starting out and massively out-level a dungeon, you’ll receive up to three Army upgrade-slot upgrades at the end of a dungeon run. Once you get to a difficulty more appropriate for your Army, you’ll receive one upgrade per successful dungeon run.

In the image above, I’ve just completed a run in my level range (thus, only one upgrade) and I am randomly given the option to upgrade either my Blackrock slot (top row, middle), my Cycle slot (bottom row, left), or my Ranged slot (bottom row, middle). Keep in mind the bottom three Army slots can be changed for relatively little Arc Energy and they do not lose their upgrade rank. If, at some point down the line, I want my Ranged slot to by a Blackrock slot, I can re-roll that slot for Arc Energy and cross my fingers Blackrock is one of the options. Again, a minute detail but an important one to keep in mind.

All in all, dungeons become a pivotal part of the progression experience in Warcraft Rumble, but due to the rotation, players need to make the most of each set since they won’t be able to upgrade any given family’s Army for another 5 weeks. Once you start upgrading your army through dungeon runs, you’ll be able to push much further into the Heroic campaign and prep for Molten Core (whenever it arrives).