The hard mode of the Headless Horseman in World of Warcraft promises better loot. We will tell you how to activate it – and what it brings.
In World of Warcraft, the annual event of the Hallow’s End has started. The popular Halloween holiday has been revamped in 2023 and now includes some new rewards and a modernized fight against the Headless Horseman.
What many players have missed so far is that the fight against the Headless Horseman has a “hidden” hard mode. When you unlock it, better rewards and an additional achievement await. Especially collectors of the special mount “The Reins of the Horseman” should check out the hard mode.
Here’s how to activate the hard mode: To activate the hard mode of the Headless Horseman, enter the fight as usual through the group finder. After entering the dungeon, you should immediately turn left. There you will see 5 wooden figures that you probably already know from Drustvar. Talk to the large figure in the middle and choose the option to “accept all curses.”
You should now have a debuff – that activates the hard mode for you as soon as the fight starts.
What changes with the curses? The curses apply individually to each player. You will therefore get new abilities from the boss to deal with. Your group members cannot see these effects nor interact with them. You must:
- Dodge additional ground effects. A purple swirl that spawns directly under you. It looks identical to the swirl that remains centered on your character – but it is not.
- Defeat an additional add with your name that goes toward a marked area. Kill it before it reaches the area.
- Touch a orb that will connect with your character. Run to the orb and collect it.
If you fail at a curse or a normal boss mechanic, your health points will be reduced by 10% for the rest of the fight. This effect is stackable. Those who ignore these mechanics will soon find themselves without health points.
If you activate all 4 curses and defeat the boss, your chance of getting better loot from the reward chest will increase.
The hard mode is not really difficult. You just need to play a bit more actively than usual – the average player should be able to handle the additional curses easily.
However, be aware that the achievement associated with the curses seems to be somewhat bugged at times. Not all players receive the achievement credited on their first attempt, even though they have all 4 curses active. If in doubt, just try again – the event will last for a few more days.
What new rewards are there? The Headless Horseman can drop the pet “Arfus” for the first time this year. This is the soul of a cute dog that originally appeared in Hearthstone.
Arfus is not the “Lich King”, but the “Lick King” – simply because he is so happy and loves to lick all the people.
Besides that, there is a new customization for your ride dragons with cool pumpkin gear – visually perfect for the Hallow’s End.
Thirdly, there is the “Crimson Key.” With this item, you can start a short quest line in the Scarlet Monastery and unlock the old Classic versions of the dungeon! This allows you to get old transmog that was no longer available. You can also buy and sell the key through the auction house if you should have no luck (or too much of it).
All three items have a fairly low drop chance, which you can increase by activating the hard mode.
Have you already collected everything interesting from the Headless Horseman?
Solo players can be happy – because they will soon have more to do in WoW.
