The Throne of Thunder features 12 baseline encounters on Normal and 13 on Heroic, where players face the exclusive bonus boss Ra-den. The first seven encounters take raids through the Last Stand of the Zandalari and the Forgotten Depths, challenging groups with tight spatial management and heavy raid damage. This wow mop throne of thunder guide details how to enter the instance, navigate the initial seven bosses, and secure Tier 15 gear.
Location & Entrance
The raid entrance sits at coordinates 63.6, 32.4 on the Isle of Thunder. To reach the island, players must complete an introductory questline starting with the quest Thunder Calls.
Portals to the island are located outside the Shado-Pan Garrison in Townlong Steppes:
- Alliance portal: coordinates 49.7, 68.7, north of the garrison.
- Horde portal: coordinates 50.7, 73.4, southeast of the garrison.
Advancing the island campaign is required before entering the raid instance itself.
Raid Modes, Lockouts & Loot Item Levels
Throne of Thunder runs in 10-player and 25-player formats across Normal and Heroic difficulties, with each difficulty binding raid members to a weekly lockout. The Raid Finder version was removed in Mists of Pandaria Classic, redirecting that tier of gear into Celestial Dungeons instead.
Regular raid drops can be upgraded up to six item levels with Justice Points. Gear also has an RNG chance to drop as Thunderforged, which rolls with higher baseline stats.
| Difficulty | Standard Item Level | Thunderforged Item Level |
| Normal | 522 | 528 |
| Heroic | 535 | 541 |
Tier 15 Gear & Reputation Vendors
Bosses drop Tier 15 armor tokens divided across three standard class groups: Vanquisher (Death Knight, Druid, Mage, Rogue), Conqueror (Paladin, Priest, Warlock), and Protector (Hunter, Monk, Shaman, Warrior). Tokens exchange for set pieces at Shado-Pan Assault quartermasters.
Reputation with the Shado-Pan Assault is primarily earned inside the Throne of Thunder raid, though some can be earned on the Isle of Thunder up to Friendly. Quartermaster Ao Pye operates at Niuzao Temple in Townlong Steppes, while Teng of the Flying Daggers is located beneath the Isle of Thunder's Conqueror’s Terrace. Both offer ilvl 522 equipment for Valor Points alongside tier trades.
A MoP Throne of Thunder Boost can clear the instance to secure Tier 15 tokens and Shado-Pan Assault reputation without assembling a progression team.
Rare Mounts and Pets
Specific encounters within the raid yield unique cosmetic drops on both Normal and Heroic difficulties:
- Spawn of Horridon: rare mount drop from Horridon.
- Clutch of Ji-Kun: rare mount drop from Ji-Kun.
- Living Sandling: battle pet drop from trash mobs preceding the Council of Elders.
- Ji-Kun Hatchling: battle pet drop from Ji-Kun.
Clutch of Ji-Kun. Image: Blizzard.
Jin'rokh the Breaker, Horridon, High Priestess Mar'li, Tortos, Megaera and Ji-Kun. Images: Blizzard, Wowhead.
Boss 1: Jin'rokh the Breaker
When Jin'rokh casts Thundering Throw, he tosses his tank into a distant statue, spawning a growing pool of Conductive Water. Standing in fresh water grants Fluidity, boosting outgoing damage and healing done, but amplifies Nature damage taken.
Jin'rokh the Breaker. Image: Blizzard.
When targeted by Focused Lightning, kite the fixated orb out of the water onto dry ground before it detonates into a Lightning Fissure. Never drag or detonate the orb inside a pool, as Conduction will zap all players standing in it.
The entire raid must evacuate the pool before Lightning Storm begins. Lightning Storm permanently turns the pool into Electrified Waters, which inflicts damage and provides no damage bonuses. Tanks swap when Static Burst applies high stacks of Static Wound.
Boss 2: Horridon
The encounter requires managing four successive waves of troll adds entering through perimeter gates:
- Farraki Gate: Sul'lithuz Stonegazers and Farraki Wastewalkers.
- Gurubashi Gate: Gurubashi Bloodlords and Venom Priests.
- Drakkari Gate: Risen Drakkari and Frozen Warlords.
- Amani Gate: Amani'shi Protectors, Flame Casters, and Beast Shamans on Warbears.
Interrupt the Zandalari Dinomancer's Dino-Mending and burn it to 50% health, causing it to transform and drop an Orb of Control. An assigned player clicks the orb to steer Horridon into the active gate, destroying it and stopping add reinforcements.
Horridon. Image: Blizzard.
Tanks swap to manage Triple Puncture debuff stacks. Everyone must stand at the boss's side to avoid Double Swipe, which strikes in both front and rear cones. At 30% health or after the fourth gate, War-God Jalak joins the fight; Horridon gains Rampage if Jalak dies first.
Boss 3: Council of Elders
Raids fight four troll champions simultaneously while the Spirit of Gara'jal rotates possessions among them. Forcing Gara'jal out requires burning 25% of the possessed councillor's maximum health before their Dark Energy reaches 100, which avoids a wipe to Dark Power. Gara'jal leaves a stacking damage increase called Lingering Presence behind each time he jumps.
High Priestess Mar'li summons spirits that take top priority: burn the Blessed Loa Spirit before it reaches an ally to heal them, and kite while bursting down the fixating Shadowed Loa Spirit before its 20-second kill timer expires.
High Priestess Mar'li. Image: Wowhead.
Keep players afflicted with Biting Cold at least 4 yards away from the group. When Frost King Malakk is possessed, assigned allies must collapse near the Frostbite target to absorb and reduce stacks. On Heroic, avoid overlapping Sul's Quicksand pools, which fuse into Treacherous Ground.
Boss 4: Tortos
Tortos rests stationary against the cave wall, requiring at least one player in melee range to prevent Growing Fury. Periodically, Call of Tortos summons Whirl Turtles that chase players. Knocking a turtle to low health triggers Shell Block, making it immune to conventional attacks.
Tortos. Image: Blizzard.
A player must click the Kick Shell extra-action button while standing near a dormant shell, positioning the shell between themselves and Tortos, to interrupt Furious Stone Breath and apply Shell Concussion.
The raid must step away from Rockfall impact zones. Incoming damage spikes during Quake Stomp, which triggers consecutive Rockfalls; on Heroic, soaking crystals to generate a Crystal Shell absorb barrier protects against this damage spike. Tanks must pick up spawning Vampiric Cave Bats to keep them away from weakened players.
Boss 5: Megaera
Megaera's body hides in Concealing Fog while two heads emerge on the front platform. Slaying a head knocks off about 14% of the hydra's total health and forces two new heads to grow in the back, requiring seven total head kills to win the encounter.
Megaera. Image: Blizzard.
Killing any head triggers Rampage, pulsing 20 seconds of unavoidable raid-wide elemental damage that demands defensive cooldowns. The surviving head heals to full and attacks faster via Hydra Frenzy.
Backline heads attack the raid with elemental abilities:
- Cinders: Targets run out of the raid to safe ground before receiving a dispel, as cleansing creates a lingering fire pool. On Heroic, it drops fire pools every three seconds. Afflicted players can run through Icy Ground to melt it.
- Torrent of Ice: Kite the tracking ice beam away from raid members and across fire patches to douse them.
- Acid Rain: The entire group moves at least 15 to 20 yards away from the marked impact marker to minimize splash damage.
- Arcane Head: Spawns on Heroic mode, channeling Nether Tear to summon Nether Wyrms that stun players.
Boss 6: Ji-Kun
Combat takes place on a main platform surrounded by nesting ledges. Hatchlings emerge from eggs in the nests and will mature into Fledglings and Juveniles if not swiftly eliminated. Killing eggs or hatchlings in lower nests drops feathers that provide Daedalian Wings, granting extra-action flight charges (four uses on Normal, three on Heroic) with a Lesson of Icarus cooldown of two minutes in 25-player and one minute in 10-player.
Dedicated groups fly between upper and lower nests to wipe out nests before birds hatch. While in the air, flying players should intercept Ji-Kun's Feed Young globules, preventing Feed Pools on the floor while collecting the Primal Nutriment buff.
Ji-Kun. Image: Blizzard.
When Ji-Kun casts Down Draft, push against the gale winds to avoid getting swept off the edge. Tanks alternate taunts to manage stacking Talon Rake debuffs. Everyone requires defensive coverage during the eight-second Quills channel.
Boss 7: Durumu the Forgotten
Durumu requires careful raid awareness during the Disintegration Beam phase. Durumu focuses a lethal beam directly in front of him and turns slowly while the Cross-Eye creates an Eye Sore maze across the floor. Stepping into the beam causes instant death; players must stay ahead of the rotating laser while navigating the safe gaps in the floor maze. On Heroic, damage dealers must shatter Walls of Ice blocking the movement corridor.
Durumu the Forgotten. Image: Blizzard.
During Light Spectrum, three players receive colored light cones (Red, Blue, Yellow) that split damage among everyone inside them. The red beam group sweeps across the platform to unmask hidden Crimson Fog beasts, which must be destroyed to end the phase.
Place Lingering Gaze missiles at the edges of the arena, because the void zones persist through the rest of the fight. Tanks swap after Serious Wound stacks reduce incoming healing. Clear the 10-minute enrage timer before Durumu casts Obliterate.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many bosses are in the Throne of Thunder?
Throne of Thunder contains 12 standard encounters on Normal difficulty and 13 encounters on Heroic difficulty, concluding with the Heroic-only boss Ra-den.
Where do I turn in Tier 15 armor tokens?
Tokens can be redeemed at Ao Pye at Niuzao Temple in Townlong Steppes or at Teng of the Flying Daggers underneath the Conqueror's Terrace on the Isle of Thunder.
