EDIT: Thanks to Dsauns for noticing the emblem I missed from CoS. The post has been editted appropriately. I have also moved the route around slightly. I believe this new route can’t be beaten. I have also editted the Emblem totals as the drops from the normal version of the new dungeon and the dailies has changed.
EDIT: Just seen the feature on WoW.com! I’ve had a few comments regarding the Oculus and after checking it does indeed drop 4 emblems instead of 3, so I have editted the post accordingly.
As promised yesterday, here is my post on what I believe to be the quickest way around Northrend to pick up the full amount of Emblems. I realised that in my post yesterday I made a slight mistake in saying that the amount of Emblems available from Heroics is 47. I completely forgot to take into account the Emblems available from the Trial of the Crusader (the new 5 man, doh!) and also miscounted elsewhere, so I believe the figure to be at 54. The Heroic version will drop 3. Let’s begin!
This is the map I’ll be using (a larger version can be found here). The basic premise for this is to have the most efficient route possible. The problem however is that many places; such as Coldara and Utgarde Keep, are well out of the way. This in my opinion is one of the quickest routes to get around, so let’s break it down.
We should start off by travelling back in time to the Culling of Stratholme and should go there from Dalaran. Doing this means that we can hearth back to Dalaran afterwards to allow our Hearth Stone time to come off cooldown sooner. If you are in a good group, getting 5 Emblems here shouldn’t be a problem, otherwise you might have to settle with 4 Emblems if you can’t pull off the timed run. Once you’ve finished forcing Mal’ganis into submission, it’s time to go back to Dalaran for Violet Hold. It’s a relatively easy Heroic and will allow you to get 3 more Emblems without too much hassle. Once done, you should be up to 8 emblems in total!
After CoS and the Violet Hold, just take a quick trip over to visit the Nerubians at Ahn’kahet and Azjol Nerub. Azjol Nerub is by far the easiest of the two (did a very quick 11 minute run of it recently) and will bag you 3 easy emblems. Once you’re done with Azjol Nerub, Ahn’kahet is just next door. It is one of the harder Heroics in Wrath, but there are 5 more Emblems up for grabs, along with a 22g Daily quest for the place. Another 8 emblems added to the total brings you up to 16 already! Good job!
After dealing with the Nerubians, it’s time to head over to Coldara and get The Nexus and Oculus out of the way. The Oculus is one of the most irritatingly annoying Heroics at the moment, but with the drakes adjusting with your average iLevel, it should be a bit less annoying next patch. The Oculus will give you the next 4. The Nexus is just down stairs from the Oculus and will bag you an easy 5 emblems, bringing your total up to 25.
It’s now time to hearth back to Dalaran to stock up on ammo, food and reagents before setting off to prove your worth at the Coliseum. Once you’re done stocking up and repairing, head over to the Tournament Grounds in Icecrown. Here you can run the Trial of the Crusader in Heroic mode bagging yourself 3 Emblems giving you another 3. This takes you to 28.
From here just fly on over to Stormpeaks to traverse both the Halls. Completing the Halls of Stone will give you 4 Emblems to start with. I personally don’t like the Halls of Stone as it was one of my first Heroics. Nothing quite sets you up for hating an instance more than trying for difficult achievements whilst being severly undergeared. Maybe it’s just me, I’m sure someone out there loves the place. Anyway, Halls of Lightning will also give you another 4, bringing the total up to 36. Not too shabby!
After the Halls, you have the oppurtunity to repair again with the vendors just outside the instance entrances. Once you’re done filling your bags with ammo (I feel I’ve mentioned this before…), head on over to Gundrak. This is another fairly easy Heroic; even if the last boss can be a little unpredictable, you can get another 5 Emblems. It’s well worth going out of the way for it as it takes the total up to 41!
From here it’s a short journey over to Drak Tharon Keep. This is another instance I love but I also hate. I love it because it is so easy and the bosses are a little different, but I also hate it for the fact the King Dred just didn’t drop that trinket when I needed it. Even though the place is so easy, you’ll still be awarded 4 Emblems. This takes us up to 45 in total.
Now it’s time for the last trip of the journey, down into the depths of the Howling Fjord. Here are another two instances for you to milk for Emblems. The first should be Utgarde Keep itself as it’s the easiest of the two. It’s a fairly straightforward Heroic and I know I’ve run the place in well under 20 minutes. This gives you another 3 Emblems. Finally we have Utgarde Pinnacle, regarded as one of the harder Heroics, even giving you an oppurtunity to leave with a shiny Proto Drake. Even still, persistance should let you get another 4 Emblems. This will bring your daily total up to 54!
The Normal Daily also rewards another Emblem, bringing your final total to 54!
From a full days instancing, you can bag yourself 54 Emblems of Conquest, just short of a shiny piece of Tier 8.5. Also doing all the Heroics should also bag you 2 Emblems of Triumph from the Heroic instance daily. If you keep this up for a few days, you’ll be geared enough to play with the big boys… and you’ll be in need of some time away from your computer.
It’s no secret at all that Heroics will be attracting a lot more activity next patch due to the bosses dropping the current top tier of emblems. This is going to be a big help to many guilds and players across the entire board. Hardcore raiders are going to be able to pick up that one piece that just won’t drop and casuals are going to have an oppurtunity to play catch up to some degree. There’s a fair amount of moaning from the hardcores in particularly, but I don’t see how their moaning can actually be justified. Allowing players to catch up is a great way to get those dedicated players who might have been late to Wrath get the gear and join in with the big guys, rather than just being dismissed outrightly because of their gear and overlooking their skill.
Desperately Bored 
