World of Warcraft may soon add a new type of dragoon to Legion of Dragons. While not surprising at first glance, the evidence points to an unexpected new addition to the ever-growing collection of dragonriding mounts in World of Warcraft.
Recently, World of Warcraft released Embers of Neltharion, the first major patch for Dragonflight. The content update adds a new area, an expansion of the Dragonflight story campaign, and new customizations, glyphs, and abilities for the Dragonriding mount.
However, players may just be getting their first look at another future WoW dragon-riding customization. A new item called the Grotto Netherwing Drake has been spotted in Dragonflight’s public testing area. The Grotto Netherwing Drake is listed as a standalone Dragonriding mount, which would make it the sixth of its kind. Aside from the project entry, there are currently no icons, models, or other assets associated with this mount.
There’s currently no evidence that this item will actually be added in the future, or how players will acquire it. Now, the Grotto Netherwing Drake has a Trader’s Tender cost associated with it, suggesting it may appear in WoW’s new trading post feature in the future. Items that cost 999 Trader’s Tender are often placeholders for free Traveler’s Log rewards, so it’s possible to get this mount this way in the future.
That said, many thought it would be weird to have a full Dragoon mount available outside of the expansion campaign, so some wondered if the Grotto Netherwing Drake could be unlocked in patch 10.2 or another future Dragonflight patch. World of Warcraft recently held a devcast that hinted that another race of dragons would soon be involved in the story, so Netherwings from Outland might make an appearance, giving players the chance to unlock them as dragoons in the process.
Meanwhile, players can now access the first part of the Embers of Neltharion story, with further chapters of the story launching on May 9 alongside Dragonflight’s new Aberus raid. This will include Chapter 5 of the Ashes of Neltharion campaign, rewarding players with the Winding Slitherdrake – the first new Dragonriding mount added after Dragonflight. If World of Warcraft continues its trend of offering a new Dragonriding mount every patch, perhaps Dragonflight patch 10.2 will give players the chance to ride the Grotto Netherwing Drake, an HD version of the shark-like dragon from Burning Crusade.
World of Warcraft is now available for PC.