WoW - Battlegrounds          

Tol Barad Basics
Controlling Tol Barad
Baradin Hold Instance (Argaloth)
Entering and Leaving Tol Barad


Tol Barad Basics:

General Info: Tol Barad is comparable to a combination of both Wintergrasp and the Isle of Quel'Danas.  Tol Barad consists of a peninsula and a PvP battlefield which are two separate areas connected by a bridge.  The PvP battlefield area is similar to Wintergrasp in that players fight over control of, in this case, an island prison.  The attackers attempt  to capture three different buildings (Ironclad Garrison, Warden's Vigil, Slagworks) while the defenders attempt to protect them.  The PvP zone is for players that are level 85.


Map of the Tol Barad prison.

The peninsula area is where level 85 players can go to pick up daily quests, similar to the Isle of Quel'Danas.  The faction that controls the prison on Tol Barad has access to more quests.  You can queue for Tol Barad using your PvP menu, the same menu used to queue for Wintergrasp and other battlegrounds.


Tol Barad peninsula. 

Objective: Attackers must attempt to gain control of the Tol Barad prison by capturing all of the three structures.  All three structures must be full captured by the attacking team for them to gain of Tol Barad.  The buildings can be captured at different times but all must be captured, and not taken back by the defenders, to win.  At the top of your screen you will see the progress (out of three) of buildings captured.  Attackers can destroy towers to lengthen the match.

The defenders must attempt to protect the three structures from being captured.  The defenders only need to defend one out of the three structures to win the match.  As long as at least one structure is protected by the end of the match the defenders will win.

Structures can be recaptured by either team at any point during the match.  To capture of defend a structure/ building, players just need to gather in the building, near the center and the flag. 


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Controlling Tol Barad: 

The Tol Barad battle is held every couple of hours.  There is a limited number of players who will be able to join.  Unlike the older Wintergrasp, there is no tenacity and teams are evenly distributed.   

The attacking team's goal is to gain control of the 3 structures - Warden's Vigil, Ironclad Garrison, and the Slagworks.  To win the battle, all 3 structures must be fully captured before the time runs out.

The goal for the defending team is to prevent the attacking team from gaining control of Warden's Vigil, Ironclad Garrison, and Slagworks.  There are also 3 towers or spires (West, East, and South) in which the attacking team can destroy to prolong the match.  Each tower destroyed will add time to the game and give more opportunity for the attackers to capture the buildings and win the match. 

In addition to earning achievements and experience, Tol Barad Commendations are rewarded that can be used to purchase items from the vendor on the peninsula. 


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Baradin Hold Instance (Argaloth):

The team that has control over the Tol Barad prison while a battle is not taking place, has access to the Baradin Hold instance.  Baradin Hold is located in the center of the prison and it holds a raid instance similar to the Vault of Archavon.  Argaloth, the main boss, drops PvP gear.  The entrance to the instance is located near the Northwest corner of Baradin Hold.


The Tol Barad instance entrance (Argaloth).


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Entering and Leaving Tol Barad:

You can join the battle for Tol Barad from anywhere in Azeroth using your PvP menu just as you would join other battlegrounds.  When you click on the menu a list of battlegrounds is displayed including the battle for Wintergrasp and Tol Barad.  As long as you are not in a dungeon or other battleground you will be able to see the time that's left before the battle begins.  If the battle is within 15 minutes or less, you can queue from this menu.

To visit Tol Barad at any time you can take a portal from Stormwind if you are alliance, or from Orgrimmar if you are horde.    You can take this portal at any time whether a battle is in progress or not.  You do not have to join the battle in order to visit Tol Barad.  The portal will take you to the bridge that connects the peninsula to the prison.  To leave Tol Barad you can use the portal located at your faction's base camp on the peninsula.  This portal will take you back to Stormwind, if you are alliance, or Orgrimmar is you are horde.


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