Welcome, adventurers, to a deep dive into one of Turtle WoW's most unique features: the Survival secondary profession. Distinct from the Hunter talent specialization bearing the same name, this custom profession is available to all classes and races, offering a rich blend of practical utility and immersive roleplaying opportunities centered around wilderness living and campsite crafting.
Why invest time and resources into Survival? The benefits are manifold. Practically, Survival allows the crafting of Traveler's Tents, invaluable tools that significantly accelerate rested experience (XP) gain, speeding up the leveling process. Anglers will appreciate the ability to construct Fishing Boats, granting a substantial +50 bonus to their fishing skill. Furthermore, Survivalists can craft Dim Torches and Bright Campfires, providing useful Spirit buffs to themselves and their party members. Beyond mechanics, Survival deeply enhances the roleplaying experience, allowing players to create immersive campsites and utilize thematic tools, fostering a connection with the world and other players. It stands as a deliberately RP-friendly feature introduced by the Turtle WoW team. Finally, mastering the basics of Survival is the key to unlocking another custom profession: Gardening.
This guide serves as a comprehensive resource, walking players through every step of the Survival journey. From undertaking the initial "Night's Exploration" quest to mastering the leveling process from 1 to 150, understanding material costs, utilizing key crafts, linking into Gardening, and integrating Survival into the rich roleplaying tapestry of Turtle WoW, this document aims to be the definitive guide for aspiring Survivalists.
Getting Started: The Night's Exploration Quest
The journey into Survival begins not in the bustling cities, but deep in the wilds of Stranglethorn Vale.
Locating the Trainer/Quest Giver:
Players must travel to Nesingwary's Expedition camp located in northern Stranglethorn Vale, near coordinates 35.6, 10.5. It is important to note a potential discrepancy in sources regarding the specific NPC who initiates the quest. Some accounts point to Rufus Hardwick, identified as the "survival expert" and primary vendor for Survival supplies, while others name Sir S. J. Erlgadin as the quest starter. Players arriving at the camp should look for both NPCs; Erlgadin may provide the initial quest dialogue, while Hardwick is the essential contact for purchasing recipes and materials afterward. The quest itself is titled "Night's Exploration" and requires a minimum character level of 5, although the practicalities of reaching the camp safely often necessitate a higher level.
Acquiring the Quest Items (Material Gathering):
"Night's Exploration" tasks players with gathering three specific items:
- Wooden Club: This item is free and can be found by looting a small "Pile of Wood" located on the ground within the Nesingwary camp, near coordinates 35.8, 10.9.
- Coil of Sturdy Rope: This must be purchased from Jaquilina Dramet, the Superior Axecrafter vendor also located at Nesingwary's camp. The cost is 35 Silver.
- Cheap Goblin's Oil: This crucial component requires a trip south to Booty Bay. It is sold by Mazk Snipeshot, the Engineering Supplies vendor. The cost is 40 Silver 50 Copper.
Accidentally purchasing multiple oils can be a significant waste of silver for low-level characters, so care should be taken during the purchase. The combination of cost and the mandatory, perilous journey makes obtaining this item an early test of commitment for aspiring Survivalists, potentially encouraging cooperation or clever navigation.
Navigating Stranglethorn & Booty Bay (Low-Level Challenge):
The journey to Nesingwary's camp and subsequently to Booty Bay presents a significant challenge for low-level characters. Stranglethorn Vale is populated with creatures far exceeding level 5, making the trek dangerous. Several strategies can mitigate the risk:
- Flight Path: Secure the Darkshire flight path in Duskwood before heading south into Stranglethorn Vale.
- Swimming Route: A less conventional but potentially safer method involves swimming directly from the coast of Westfall to Booty Bay. This avoids hostile land mobs entirely, though it is a time commitment, taking approximately 10-15 minutes.
- Seek Assistance: Don't hesitate to ask higher-level players for an escort through the dangerous zones. The Turtle WoW community often proves helpful.
Quest Completion and Initial Skill-Up:
Once all three items are gathered, return to Nesingwary's camp and turn them in to the quest giver (Erlgadin or Hardwick). The reward includes a book which, when read, teaches the Survival skill, starting the player at skill level 1. A torch is also provided. Players should immediately use the nearby campfire to light this torch; doing so grants the first skill-up, bringing Survival to level 2.
Leveling Your Survival Skill (1-150)
With the initial quest complete, the path to mastering Survival unfolds through crafting. Patience is key, as the most reliable leveling methods involve cooldowns.
Core Crafting Components & Vendor:
Most essential supplies for leveling are purchased from Rufus Hardwick at Nesingwary's camp:
- Flint and Tinder: A reusable tool required for making campfires and lighting torches.
- Unlit Poor Torches: Consumable items needed for the Dim Torch craft. These must be purchased from Rufus and stack in inventory.
- Simple Wood: A consumable material used for campfires and potentially other crafts. While sold by Rufus, it can also be purchased from General Goods vendors throughout Azeroth.
The Path to 75 (Apprentice/Journeyman):
The most efficient and reliable strategy for reaching skill level 75 involves prioritizing Bright Campfires, supplemented by lighting torches.
| Craft | Materials | Cooldown | Skill-up Info | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bright Campfires | Flint and Tinder, 1 Simple Wood | 5 minutes (shared with Basic Campfire) | Guaranteed +1 skill up to max 150 | Creates a campfire with +8 Spirit buff for nearby party members |
| Dim Torches (Lighting) | Existing fire source, Flint and Tinder, 1 Unlit Poor Torch | 1 minute (may be outdated) | Guaranteed up to ~10-20 skill, chance decreases after | Creates a Dim Torch with +4 Spirit buff to party when equipped in off-hand |
Time Estimate: Leveling to 75 takes approximately 2.5 hours if crafting Bright Campfires relentlessly every 5 minutes, or around 3-4 hours if done more passively while questing and adventuring.
Reaching Artisan (75-150):
Upon reaching skill level 75, the path to the maximum skill of 150 opens up.
Leveling 75-150: The strategy remains the same: continue crafting Bright Campfires every 5 minutes. The guaranteed +1 skill point per craft continues all the way to 150. While Traveler's Tents and Fishing Boats become available during this range, their long crafting cooldowns (2 hours each) make them unsuitable for primary leveling. They provide occasional skill points but Bright Campfires remain the most efficient method.
| Item/Phase | Component(s) | Estimated Cost | Source/Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quest Items | Coil of Sturdy Rope | 35s | Jaquilina Dramet |
| Cheap Goblin's Oil (BoP) | 40s 50c | Mazk Snipeshot | |
| Tools | Flint and Tinder | ~1s? | Rufus Hardwick (Cost estimate) |
| Leveling (2-75) | Bright Campfires (approx. 73 crafts) | ~73 Simple Wood | Rufus Hardwick / General Goods Vendor (Cost varies) |
| Optional Supplement | Lighting Torches (up to ~60) | ~60 Unlit Poor Torches | Rufus Hardwick (Cost varies, skill gain inconsistent past ~20) |
| Potential Total | (Excluding Optional Torches & Wood Cost) | ~76s 50c + Wood Cost | Focuses on guaranteed path; actual cost depends heavily on Simple Wood price. |
Mastering the Craft: Key Survival Items & Their Uses
Survival allows the creation of several useful items that enhance exploration, leveling, and other activities.
Illumination & Spirit Buffs:
- Dim Torch: The most basic light source. When lit at a fire and held in the off-hand, it provides a +4 Spirit buff to the holder's party and illuminates dark areas. The torch effect lasts for one hour. Primarily a utility and roleplaying item.
- Bright Campfire: More than just a leveling tool, this campfire provides a superior +8 Spirit buff to the party compared to the basic cooking campfire's +4. Essential for cooking and a valuable group buff.
- Iron Lantern: This item is listed as a Survival craft, and players can learn the recipe. However, specific details regarding its effect, materials, and skill requirement are scarce in available resources. It likely provides light, but its exact benefits compared to torches or other potential light sources remain unclear. It may be primarily cosmetic or offer minor stats. Notably, another item, the Repaired Electro-Lantern, is also mentioned, granting +4 Spirit (like a Dim Torch) but also adding a chance for melee attacks to zap the target and, crucially, never running out of fuel. This suggests a potential tiering or specialization in light sources within the profession.
Accelerated Rest: Traveler's Tents
Arguably the most sought-after craft in the Survival profession, Traveler's Tents are central to efficient leveling in Turtle WoW.
The rested XP gain bonus stacks when multiple tents are placed near each other. The effect scales up, reaching maximum speed with approximately 5 tents clustered together. This encourages players to create "Tent Parties" in popular questing hubs. The radius of a single tent's effect is 15 yards.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Skill Req. | 50 Survival |
| Char Level Req. | 15 |
| Recipe Source | Traveler's Tent Blueprints (Rufus Hardwick) |
| Recipe Cost | 1g 50s |
| Mats per Craft | 1 Simple Wood, 5 Linen Cloth, 1 Sturdy Rope |
| Craft Cooldown | 2 hours |
| Item Duration | 20 minutes |
| Effect | Accelerates Rested XP gain |
| Stacking | Yes, up to ~5 tents for max speed |
| Radius | 15 yards |
| Usage Req. | Survival 50 to place |
Master Angler: Fishing Boats
For dedicated anglers, the Fishing Boat is another major utility craft offered by Survival.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Skill Req. | 125 Survival |
| Char Level Req. | 25 |
| Recipe Source | 'Boats for Dummies' Book (Rufus Hardwick) |
| Recipe Cost | 2g 50s |
| Mats per Craft | 2 Fish Oil (Likely current) OR 15 Simple Wood, 1 Handful of Copper Bolts (Old) |
| Craft Cooldown | 2 hours |
| Item Duration | 60 minutes |
| Effect | +50 Fishing Skill bonus (creator only) |
| Usage Req. | Must be in water to summon |
Branching Out: Survival and the Path to Gardening
Survival serves as the gateway to another of Turtle WoW's unique secondary professions: Gardening.
The Link:
Gardening allows players to cultivate various plants for food and potentially other resources. However, it cannot be learned independently; a certain level of proficiency in Survival is required first.
Skill Requirement:
To begin the introductory quest for Gardening, players must have achieved 75 Survival. It is worth noting that earlier iterations of the system or older guides may mention a requirement of 100 Survival. The reduction to 75 makes Gardening accessible sooner, likely aligning its availability more closely with the point at which players typically master tent crafting.
Starting Your Garden: "You Reap What You Sow" Quest:
- Prerequisites: Requires character level 20 in addition to the Survival skill requirement.
- Quest Givers: Located just outside the main gates of Stormwind for Alliance players, and near the lake at Bloodhoof Village in Mulgore for Horde players.
The quest tasks players with finding and returning four specific types of seeds: Pumpkin, Watermelon, Mushroom, and Berry seeds. A book with hints regarding their locations is provided. The seeds themselves are Bind-on-Equip (BoE), meaning they can be traded or bought/sold on the Auction House. Some seeds, particularly Mushroom seeds, might be difficult or impossible to farm and may need to be purchased from vendors, potentially adding a significant cost (one source mentions 2.5 Gold for mushroom spores).
Upon successfully returning with at least one of each seed type, players are rewarded with their first Wooden Planter and a unique Shovel item, which functions as a usable weapon.
The Simple Wooden Planter:
- Obtaining: The initial planter is received as a quest reward.
- Crafting Additional Planters: To expand their gardening efforts, players can craft more planters. The recipe, "Plans: Simple Wooden Planter", is learned via the Survival profession.
- Skill Requirement: Requires 75 Survival to learn and craft.
- Recipe Vendor: The plans are sold by Gardener's Apprentices located near the Gardening quest givers.
- Recipe Cost: The plans cost 2 Gold 50 Silver.
- Materials: Crafting a Simple Wooden Planter requires materials including Handful of Copper Bolts. This creates an inter-profession dependency, as Copper Bolts are crafted by players with the Engineering profession. Gardeners without Engineering will need to acquire these bolts through trade or the Auction House, linking Gardening to the broader server economy.
Gardening Basics:
Process: Gardening involves several steps over a period of time. First, place the Wooden Planter on the ground. Then, add Un'Goro Soil (a reagent farmed in Un'Goro Crater, also used for reputation turn-ins) and a desired Seed to the planter. The plant then requires tending: after 9 minutes, it needs watering (using Refreshing Spring Water) or fertilization (potentially using more Un'Goro Soil). After another 9 minutes, it requires watering again. Finally, after a third 9-minute interval, the plant is ready for harvest.
Harvesting yields food items with varying effects, often providing buffs to stats like Agility or Stamina, and have specific level requirements for consumption. Some players have raised concerns about the balance between the time and gold investment required for Gardening (including Survival prerequisite, seed costs, Un'Goro Soil farming) versus the practical value of the rewards.
Survival in Practice: Tips for All Adventurers
Survival offers benefits at all stages of the game. Here's how players of different levels can make the most of it:
- Plan the Quest: Understand the challenges of "Night's Exploration." Accumulate the necessary silver for the Rope and Oil (total 75s 50c). Remember the Oil is BoP – you must travel to Booty Bay on the character learning Survival.
- Navigate Safely: The journey through Stranglethorn is perilous. Consider the Westfall swim route to bypass land mobs, or ask high-level players for an escort. Getting the Darkshire flight path first is advisable.
- Early Investment: Decide if the initial time and cost investment is worthwhile for your playstyle. The main benefit early on is setting the stage for tent access later.
- Prioritize Tents: Aim to reach Survival 50 as soon as feasible to unlock Traveler's Tents. The accelerated rested XP is a massive leveling advantage.
- Maximize Rested XP: Always look for tent clusters in major quest hubs (SW/Org entrances, Crossroads, Goldshire, Darkshire, etc.). Spend downtime accumulating rested XP under tents.
- Tent Party Etiquette: If you have the skill and materials, contribute your own tent to clusters. Be mindful of placement to maximize overlap. A simple "thank you" to tent providers is often appreciated.
- Passive Leveling: Keep Flint and Tinder and Simple Wood in your bags. Make a habit of crafting a Bright Campfire whenever it's off cooldown during travel or downtime for easy, guaranteed skill-ups towards 150.
- Fishing Mastery: Utilize the Fishing Boat's +50 skill bonus to efficiently farm high-level fish for cooking, alchemy, or profit.
- Gardening Exploration: If interested, delve into Gardening. Evaluate the high-level crop benefits against the ongoing time and material costs (planters, soil, seeds).
- Roleplaying Utility: Employ Survival tools – tents, campfires, boats, torches – to enhance roleplaying scenarios and build atmosphere.
- Community Support: Place tents in convenient locations (like outside raid entrances or popular farming spots) to help other players.
- Stay Informed: Keep an eye out for announcements regarding the planned Survival profession rework. This overhaul may introduce new crafts, enhance existing ones, or add further endgame relevance.
Beyond Mechanics: Survival and Roleplaying in Turtle WoW
Survival transcends mere utility; it is deeply woven into the roleplaying fabric of Turtle WoW, enhancing immersion and fostering community interaction.
Building Immersion:
- The core crafts of Survival allow players to interact with the environment in a tangible way. Setting up a Traveler's Tent and a Bright Campfire creates a visible, functional campsite, grounding the character in the world. Community suggestions often include expanding this with items like chairs or sleeping bags.
- Using Dim Torches or lanterns to navigate dark caves or forests enhances the atmosphere, especially if players utilize community-made patches for darker nights. The simple act of needing light makes the world feel more real.
- The process of gathering materials (like Simple Wood) and crafting tools connects players more directly to the resources of Azeroth, moving beyond abstract quest objectives.
Fostering Community:
Traveler's Tents have organically become social hubs. Clusters of tents outside cities or in popular leveling zones naturally draw players together, creating impromptu gathering points where adventurers share space and benefit mutually from accelerated rested XP. This encourages open-world interaction in a way few other mechanics do.
The party-wide Spirit buffs from Bright Campfires encourage group activities and shared moments around a crackling fire.
Even the initial "Night's Exploration" quest, with its inherent dangers for low-level players, can foster cooperation as adventurers seek or offer escorts through Stranglethorn Vale.
Atmosphere and Flavor:
Survival reinforces the overall philosophy of Turtle WoW, which emphasizes a slower-paced, more immersive, and grounded "Vanilla+" experience. It adds layers to the world beyond combat and questing.
The visual presence of tents and fishing boats adds unique flavor to the landscape, showcasing player activity and engagement with these custom systems.
Conclusion: Thriving in the Wilds
The Survival profession stands as a testament to Turtle WoW's commitment to unique, immersive content. It offers compelling practical advantages – most notably the accelerated rested XP from Traveler's Tents and the significant fishing boost from Fishing Boats – that directly benefit players throughout their journey. Leveling the skill requires patience and some initial investment, but the rewards, particularly for levelers and anglers, are substantial.
Beyond its mechanical benefits, Survival deeply enriches the game's roleplaying potential and strengthens community bonds. It provides tools for immersion, creates natural social hubs through tent clusters, and offers tangible props for roleplaying scenarios, aligning perfectly with the server's ethos.
As a custom feature, Survival is not static. It has evolved since its introduction, with changes to skill requirements, material costs, and item effects. The Turtle WoW team has indicated plans for a future rework of the profession, promising further enhancements and potentially new avenues for Survivalists to explore. Players are encouraged to embrace this unique profession, utilize its tools to enhance their adventures, contribute to the communal aspect of tent sharing, and enjoy the distinct flavor Survival adds to the vibrant world of Turtle WoW.