Delves are The War Within's solo-friendly endgame: short instanced adventures for 1–5 players plus the NPC companion Brann Bronzebeard, split into 11 difficulty tiers. A run takes roughly 10–20 minutes, and Tier 8 is the reward ceiling that feeds gear into your Great Vault. Bountiful Delves add a bonus chest you open with a Restored Coffer Key, which is where the best weekly loot comes from.
Delves at a glance
- Group size: 1 to 5 players. No tank or healer is required; Brann fills the gap.
- Tiers: 1–11. Each tier unlocks after you clear the one below it. Tiers 1–3 are tuned for levelling and fresh characters, 4–8 are where gear matters, 9–11 exist for the challenge and achievements.
- Run length: Most delves close in 10–20 minutes, which is the whole point – a full dungeon's worth of progress in a lunch break.
- Where: Spread across the Khaz Algar zones – Isle of Dorn, the Ringing Deeps, Hallowfall and Azj-Kahet – with a dozen-plus entrances and a boss lair on top. Later seasons added more.
- Bountiful Delves: A rotating handful each day show a golden marker on the map. Clear one and a Bountiful Coffer appears at the end; opening it consumes a Restored Coffer Key.
- Keys: Restored Coffer Keys come from weekly delve quests and from collecting Coffer Key Shards found in the world and inside delves.
- Great Vault: Delves have their own vault row. Complete enough Tier 8 runs in a week and the vault offers Hero-track pieces – the same bracket you would grind heroic raids for.
Season progression
Each season ships a Delver's Journey, a reputation-style track that fills as you run delves and pays out titles, a companion transmog set for Brann, cosmetics and a mount at the end. Brann levels separately, unlocking curios you slot into him for passive bonuses. He can be set to a healing or damage role, so pick whichever covers your class's weak spot.
How high should I push my delve tier?
Tier 8 is the practical cap. That is where the Bountiful Coffer drops Champion-track gear and the weekly vault reaches Hero track. Tiers 9–11 do not raise the loot ceiling; they exist for the achievement chain and bragging rights, and the scaling jump at 9 and above is sharp enough that most players stop at 8 unless they want the title.
Can I do delves completely solo?
Yes, and they are balanced around it. Solo runs scale mobs down and let Brann carry a lot of the healing. The bottleneck at higher tiers is usually not damage but survival – kick the casts that matter, use your defensives on the pull rather than after it, and keep Brann's curios current. Bringing one or two friends does not lower the reward, it just speeds things up.
Do delves still matter now that Midnight is out?
Delves survived the expansion change and carry into Midnight with their own seasonal twists, including ritual-site events and the Nullaeus encounter. The War Within delves remain fully playable for the achievements, the Delver's Journey rewards and Brann's cosmetics, but current-season gear now comes from the Midnight delve set. If you are catching up on an alt, running the newest season's tiers is the faster route to a usable item level.
What is the fastest way to unlock Tier 8?
Chain the tiers on a single character in one sitting. Clear Tier 1 through 3 on any delve to warm up, then push 4 to 8 on the shortest layout available that day. Unlocks are account-wide once earned, so your alts skip straight to the tier you already reached. Slot Brann with a healing curio for the climb and switch him to damage once your gear catches up.
If you would rather not grind it
PewPewShop's vetted human players can run delves with you or for you – a Delve Tier Unlock from EUR 12 to open the ladder, a Delves Boost from EUR 17 for weekly Tier 8 runs, and Tier 11 Delve Clears from EUR 44 if the top-tier achievements are on your list. It is coaching and progression help from real players, no bots, with a long clean record.