World of Warcraft: Forever has a surprisingly special new toy: the Night Watchman’s Torch. It is a light-producing torch that your character can hold while keeping a weapon equipped. Naturally, getting one required an epic cross-continent expedition.
The item has quickly become a favourite because it does something previous torch weapons and fire-themed equipment do not: it genuinely illuminates the surrounding environment. The effect is particularly striking in darker, mistier areas shaped by the beta’s improved lighting.
Players have been sharing their excitement about the discovery, including They added Torches! in the wowforever community. The accompanying footage shows the torch’s glow moving across walls and fading into the distance.
A torch worth crossing Azeroth for
Earlier versions of World of Warcraft had torch-like weapons, burning items and equipment that produced visual effects, but not a proper handheld torch that cast useful light. The main game generally did not need one, as most areas were not dark enough to demand a portable light source.
WoW: Forever changes the mood. Some locations are brighter, while others now feature heavier shadows, fog and darkness. Carrying a torch adds a small but meaningful layer of mystery and danger—exactly the sort of environmental detail that suits an old-school beta.
I wanted to test it personally, so I checked the item’s location: it can be found on a dead body in Duskwood, south of Stormwind at the southern end of the Eastern Kingdoms.
That destination was inconvenient. I play Horde almost exclusively, my highest-level character was a level 14 Skyborne Elf in Mulgore, and the beta’s level cap was still 20 when the journey began. The major update that arrived later raised the cap to 30.
There were no mounts, no Ghost Wolf ability for my shaman, and no Eastern Kingdoms flight paths unlocked. The plan was to walk through Kalimdor, take a zeppelin to the Eastern Kingdoms, then travel across the continent while avoiding powerful enemies and Alliance guards.
From Mulgore to the Eastern Kingdoms
The journey began in Mulgore, in an area apparently repurposed as a home for Skyborne Elves. I needed to reach Orgrimmar and catch a zeppelin towards Undercity. Mulgore and Durotar are close, although my route unexpectedly took me through part of Stonetalon Mountains and into the Barrens.
I reached The Crossroads, collected its flight path and discovered that Orgrimmar was already unlocked. That saved a long walk, sending me over the Barrens and into Durotar by flight.
After arriving in Orgrimmar, I headed outside the city walls to the zeppelin platform. The airship was packed with players chatting together—an unusually large crowd for the game, reminiscent of an expansion launch.
When the zeppelin reached Tirisfal Glades, players began daring one another to jump. Skyborne Elves led the way using their floating ability, followed by a rush towards the Lordaeron gates. I continued on alone, stopping briefly to appreciate the area’s atmospheric lighting.
The map suggested travelling around the lake to the east, but that route led towards the Plaguelands, where my character would have died almost immediately. I chose the safer-looking western route through Silverpine Forest.
I collected the flight path at The Sepulcher and continued south into Hillsbrad Foothills. The zone was more dangerous, with creatures capable of killing me and enemies that could aggro from a considerable distance.
Spiders attacked near Tarren Mill, but I escaped after collecting the flight path. A close encounter with a bear followed before I crossed the wall into Arathi Highlands.
Arathi was even more intimidating. Fewer players were using the road, many were travelling in the opposite direction, and Alliance characters were becoming more common. The server was PvE, so the players themselves were not yet the main concern.
The spiders were. After dying, I used the nearby graveyard and returned to the route.
A wrong turn and a shrinking deadline
The Wetlands proved relatively quiet, but I was now outside familiar Horde territory. At a junction with five possible destinations, I chose the eastern route into Loch Modan. That decision immediately made the trip harder.
While taking a break in a tunnel, I noticed another player running past with a visible light. It was the Night Watchman’s Torch. Its glow reflected from the walls and faded as the player moved away, making the reward feel tantalisingly close.
Loch Modan was primarily Alliance territory, however, and its guards were powerful enough to kill me in one hit.
The guard attack also flagged me for PvP, allowing other flagged players to attack until the status expired. Worse, the server announced a shutdown with roughly 14 or 15 minutes remaining.
My Spirit Healer was conveniently positioned in central Loch Modan. Accepting Resurrection Sickness would make me unable to fight effectively and extremely vulnerable for ten minutes, but it would also let me bypass the guards and save time. I accepted the trade-off.
The shortcut did not make the route easy.
Several corpse runs followed.
After six or seven attempts and plenty of lost time, I reached the tunnel leading towards Searing Gorge. Travelling through Dun Morogh and Elwynn Forest seemed even worse because both are Alliance starting zones likely to contain high-level guards. Searing Gorge offered dangerous creatures instead, but it avoided another PvP flag.
A Hunter’s Mark appeared on my character, apparently placed for amusement. Then I discovered that the Searing Gorge gate was locked and required a key. I turned around, unable to find a better route through the Alliance-controlled areas.
The opposite side of the passage was locked as well, leaving me seemingly trapped. A helpful Night Elf explained in Darnassian—a language my Skyborne character could understand—that the beta had added a lever beside the door, allowing passage without the key.
The torch is finally secured
I made it into Searing Gorge, but the server shut down before I could reach Duskwood. The journey resumed later, with another route finally coming to mind: Horde players travelling from Kalimdor should use the zeppelin to Grom’gol and the boat from Booty Bay.
That advice would have avoided much of the disastrous detour through Alliance territory and Burning Steppes. After continuing the corpse runs, I finally reached the reward.
The Night Watchman’s Torch was mine.
The trip was absurdly inefficient, but it demonstrated why long-distance travel matters in an old-school-style beta. Modern WoW makes movement fast through mounts, flight, portals and convenient connections. In WoW: Forever, a journey across several zones can once again feel dangerous, improvised and memorable.
I would still make the run again on a main character when the game launches—although next time I will choose someone at a higher level and begin nowhere near Duskwood.
Update, 2 October 2026, 7:27 a.m. ET: The journey was still continuing through Burning Steppes at 6:30 a.m. local time when the zeppelin to Grom’gol and the Booty Bay boat route came back to mind. Horde players travelling from Kalimdor should use those connections rather than repeat this route.
Update, 2 October 2026, 4:41 p.m. ET: The torch was obtained. The next challenge was returning to Mulgore.
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