If you only have a handful of hours a week in World of Warcraft: Midnight (patch 12.0.7, Season 1), the most common question is brutally practical: should you grind Delves or push Mythic+ keys to gear up fastest? They reward different currencies, cap at different item levels, and suit very different player types. This is the side-by-side math, with no fluff.

The short answer

Solo or duo players should gear through Delves. Delves deliver near-Heroic-raid item level with zero group coordination, predictable per-run rewards, and a weekly Great Vault slot you fill alone. Group players chasing the highest non-raid ceiling should run Mythic+. Pushing keys is the only repeatable route to the top end of the crest ladder and the highest-ilvl Vault rewards outside raid. Most efficient players do both: Delves to fill the floor fast, then a few timed keys each week for the ceiling.

How the two gearing tracks actually work

Both paths feed the same upgrade system. You collect crests (the seasonal upgrade currency) and spend them to push gear up its track. The difference is which crests each activity hands you and how high the gear it drops is allowed to go.

Delves: solo-friendly, capped but generous

  • Tier scaling 1–11. Delve difficulty runs from Tier 1 up to Tier 11. The ilvl of what you get climbs with the tier, and the meaningful gearing tiers sit at the top of that range.
  • Tier 8 is the practical floor for endgame gear. Around Tier 8 your end-of-Delve chest (via the map/key reward) starts dropping gear in the upper Champion / lower Hero range — strong baseline pieces with no group required.
  • Tier 11 is the Delve ceiling. At the top tier, rewarded gear reaches roughly the Hero track ilvl band — comparable to Heroic-raid-level loot. That is the hard cap for direct Delve drops; Delves do not hand out Mythic-track (top-end) gear directly.
  • Crest yield is steady, not spiky. Higher tiers reward more upgrade crests per run, and the yield is consistent: clear the Delve, get your crests. No timer pressure, no deaths from a bricked key.
  • One Vault slot from World content. Completing Delves fills the World row of your Great Vault, giving solo players a guaranteed weekly high-ilvl pick.

Mythic+: higher ceiling, group required

  • Key levels scale endlessly upward. Season 1 keys start low and scale up; the end-of-dungeon chest and your Vault rewards rise with the key level you complete.
  • Top-end crests come faster here. Above a certain key level, M+ becomes the most efficient farm for the highest-tier crests — the ones you need to cap out a Hero or Mythic-track piece. Delves top out on crest tier before M+ does.
  • The Vault is the real prize. Running keys fills up to three Dungeon-row Vault slots. Time high keys and those slots offer the best non-raid ilvl in the game, edging above what Delves can put in your Vault.
  • Variance is real. A timed key is fast and lucrative; a depleted or failed key costs you the run with nothing to show. Output depends on your group.

Cost-per-hour: where each path wins

Think in terms of guaranteed ilvl per hour versus ceiling per hour.

  • Delves win on guaranteed throughput. A Tier 8–11 Delve takes roughly 8–15 minutes solo, drops a guaranteed item plus crests, and never wastes your time on a failed timer. For raw "get me to a solid ilvl this week" efficiency, nothing beats it for a solo player.
  • M+ wins on ceiling-per-hour — if you clear. A clean 25–35 minute key can drop a higher-ilvl piece and top-tier crests and bank a Vault slot in one run. Three good keys a week max out your Vault potential. But that math only holds when your group times the key.
  • The hybrid is the true optimum. Spend most of your time in Delves to flood your gear track with crests and fill the floor, then run the minimum keys needed for your three Dungeon Vault slots and the top crests Delves can't give you.

Ceiling caps, side by side

  • Delve direct drops: cap around the Hero track (Heroic-raid-equivalent) at Tier 11. No Mythic-track drops.
  • M+ direct drops: scale with key level into the Hero track, with the highest keys pushing the upper end of that band.
  • Great Vault: the Dungeon row (M+) can offer the highest non-raid ilvl available, slightly above the World row (Delves). Both Vault rows out-reward direct drops, so always claim every slot.

Net: the two tracks converge in the Hero band for most pieces. The real divergence is at the very top — only high M+ and raid push gear past the Delve ceiling.

Which boost should you buy?

Solo / casual player: buy a Delve boost (or self-play coaching) to clear Tier 8–11 fast and fill your World Vault every week without needing a group.

Group / pusher: buy an M+ key boost to time the levels you need for top crests and all three Dungeon Vault slots.

At PEWPEWSHOP you can grab either as a safe, piloted or self-play boost — Delve tier clears, M+ key runs, or a full Vault package — so you hit your weekly ceiling without burning your limited play hours.

FAQ

Do Delves give the same gear as Mythic+?

Up to the Hero (Heroic-equivalent) band, broadly yes. Delves cap there at Tier 11; high M+ keys reach the same band from direct drops and can edge higher through the Vault. Delves do not drop Mythic-track gear directly.

Can I gear to the cap entirely solo?

You can reach a strong, near-top ilvl solo through Tier 8–11 Delves and your weekly World Vault slot. To push past the Delve ceiling on every slot you'll eventually need M+ or raid.

Which is faster for crests?

Delves give the most reliable crest income with no failure risk. High M+ keys give the highest-tier crests faster once you can clear them. Run Delves for volume, keys for the top tier.

What should I do each week as a hybrid player?

Clear enough high-tier Delves to fill your World Vault and farm crests, then time three keys for your Dungeon Vault slots and top crests. That combination maxes your weekly gearing in the fewest hours.