WoW Midnight Ascendant Venomstones Farming Guide: 12.1.5 Upgrades
Farm Ascendant Venomstones in WoW Midnight 12.1.5: unlock quests, every drop source and weekly limit, item levels after the hotfix.
In this guide 10 sections
This Ascendant Venomstones farming guide covers the whole loop in WoW Midnight 12.1.5: the two quests that switch the currency on, every activity that drops it, how many you can count on each week, the item levels you get after Blizzard's October 23 fix, and which weapon, trinket or necklace deserves your first ten stones. Venomstones have dropped since the October 20 hotfixes, so everything below describes the live game, not the PTR.
Quick summary
- Unlock: finish Orin Straylight's "Ancient Depths, Ancient Venom" and then "Ascending with Venomstones" from him at the Silvermoon City Catalyst. Stones only drop after the second quest (Blizzard).
- Cost: 10 Ascendant Venomstones lift one Season 2 weapon, trinket or necklace that sits at Hero or Myth 6/6, or a Tidal Crafted one at top quality (Blizzard).
- Sources: Mythic+ at +10 and above, Heroic or Mythic raid bosses, Nightmare Prey Champion gear chests, and Tier 11 Bountiful Delves (Blizzard).
- Item levels since October 23: Hero 6/6 rises 321 → 328 and Myth 6/6 rises 334 → 341. A max-quality Tidal Crafted Myth weapon goes 331 → 337 and a Hero one 318 → 325 (Method).
- One upgrade per item. An Ascended piece can't be upgraded again, and 344 Mythic loot isn't eligible (Method).
What Ascendant Venomstones do in WoW Midnight
Venomstones are Season 2's version of Season 1's Ascendant Voidcores. Both push an item past the top of its upgrade track once you've finished it. Two things changed. Season 1 had you combine 5 Ascendant Voidshards into a Voidcore (Method's Voidshard guide), while Season 2 asks for 10 stones per upgrade. Voidcores also stopped at weapons and trinkets, while Blizzard's 12.1.5 article adds the necklace to the Venomstone list.
| Slot | Takes Venomstones? |
|---|---|
| Weapons (main hand, off-hand, two-hand) | Yes |
| Trinkets | Yes |
| Necklace | Yes, new this season |
| Head, shoulders, chest and the rest of your armor | No |
| Rings | No |
Treat stones as a slow, late-season resource. The Warcraft Wiki lists a stack limit of 100 and says the currency belongs to Season 2 only. Neither Blizzard's notes nor Method mention a weekly cap on the stones themselves. Raid bosses, Prey hunts and Delve keys still run out each week, though, so plan on a slow trickle rather than an upgrade every few days.
How to unlock Ascendant Venomstones
Blizzard's 12.1.5 launch article spreads the unlock over two resets, with Orin Straylight running research in between. Method puts Orin by the Silvermoon City Catalyst, at /way #2393 40.04 64.67.
| When | Step | Source |
|---|---|---|
| October 13 (Americas), October 14 (Europe) | Patch 12.1.5 goes live | Blizzard |
| Week of October 13 | Orin offers "Ancient Depths, Ancient Venom". Turning it in starts his research | Blizzard |
| Week of October 20 | Research ends and Orin offers "Ascending with Venomstones" | Blizzard |
| October 20 hotfix | Stones become available once that quest is done | Blizzard hotfix notes |
| October 23 hotfix | Blizzard fixed "incorrect item levels" on upgraded items | Blizzard hotfix notes |
If Orin isn't offering the first quest, Method says you still need "Prismatic Potential", the earlier step in his Voidcore chain. Our 12.1.5 catch-up guide lists that chain in order. Returning players can do both quests on the same day now, because the research period finished weeks ago.
Do alts need the quests too? We couldn't confirm it either way. Blizzard's article, Method's unlock guide and the Warcraft Wiki page don't say whether the two quests are account-wide, warband-wide or per character. Some community guides say one completion covers your whole account, but until a primary source states it, log into an alt and check whether Orin still offers "Ancient Depths, Ancient Venom" before you farm on it. An alt that hasn't unlocked stones won't get any.
How to farm Ascendant Venomstones: every source
Blizzard names four sources. Anything outside this list, such as Normal raids or keys below +10, isn't a source.
| Source | What qualifies | Weekly ceiling (reported) |
|---|---|---|
| Raid bosses | Heroic or Mythic bosses in the Venomous Abyss and The Unbinding of Kith'ix (Method) | Bosses you haven't killed yet this lockout |
| Mythic+ | Keystone +10 or higher | No limit stated by Blizzard or Method |
| Bountiful Delves | Tier 11, chest opened with a Restored Coffer Key | Limited by keys and daily spawns |
| Prey | Nightmare hunts, Champion gear chest | First two Nightmare hunts each week (Method) |
The ceiling column is a planning aid, not a limit Blizzard has published. Neither Blizzard nor Method gives a stone count per boss, run or chest, so track what you actually receive.
Farming Mythic+ dungeons for Ascendant Venomstones
Method lists +10 and higher keys among its guaranteed sources. Neither Blizzard nor Method mentions a weekly limit for Mythic+ stones, so it's the one source we'd expect to keep giving after the others run dry, but treat that as an expectation, not a confirmed rule. Neither source says a higher key gives more stones either, so if stones are your only goal, a +10 your group clears quickly is the right key. Below +10 you get nothing.
Season 1 points the same way. Method notes that a hotfix scheduled for May 13 made +10 keys an uncapped Voidshard source, though that rule covered Voidshards, not Venomstones. Our Season 2 Mythic+ guide has the dungeon pool and vault item levels.
Raids, Delves and Nightmare Prey
- Raids: Blizzard says stones drop from every Heroic or Mythic raid boss, and Method names the Venomous Abyss and The Unbinding of Kith'ix as the raids. Neither gives a count per boss. See our Venomous Abyss guide and Kith'ix guide.
- Delves: Only Tier 11 Bountiful Delves count (Blizzard), so your supply of Restored Coffer Keys sets how many chests you can open. Key supply is covered in our Delves guide.
- Nightmare Prey: Method says the Champion chests from your first two Nightmare hunts each week hold stones. Our Prey guide covers how the hunts work.
A note on the Labyrinth of Kindo'jan. It isn't one of Blizzard's four sources, so don't count on it for stones. Our Labyrinth guide covers what it does reward, mainly targeted armor.
Best way to farm Ascendant Venomstones
There's no single best farm. It depends on what you already clear. The order below takes the capped sources first, because you probably run them for gear and crests anyway, and leaves the uncapped source for last.
- Turn in "Ascending with Venomstones". Kills made before the quest is done give nothing.
- Clear your Heroic or Mythic raid. It's the biggest weekly batch.
- Do your two Nightmare Prey hunts. Method only counts the first two each week.
- Spend Restored Coffer Keys on Tier 11 Bountiful Delves. This is the best fit for solo players, up to the limit of your keys.
- Fill the rest with +10 keys. Any extra time goes here, because no weekly limit on Mythic+ stones has been announced.
Example: a player who clears Heroic Venomous Abyss and Kith'ix, does two Nightmare hunts and opens a couple of Tier 11 Bountiful chests has used up every capped source for the week. We haven't found a published count per source, so note your total after that first week. It tells you how many +10 keys you'd need on top to reach 10 for the next upgrade.
If you don't raid, Mythic+ is where most of your stones will come from. A steady group from your guild or community that clears +10s comfortably is worth more than pushing higher keys.
How to use Ascendant Venomstones
Bring 10 stones and use them near the Silvermoon City Catalyst (Blizzard). The Warcraft Wiki quotes the in-game tooltip. Before you spend, check the item against Blizzard's rules:
- It's a weapon, trinket or necklace.
- It's a Midnight Season 2 item.
- It's at Hero 6/6 or Myth 6/6, or it's a maximum-quality Tidal Crafted piece.
| Item | Before | After (since October 23) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hero 6/6 | 321 | 328 | Method |
| Myth 6/6 | 334 | 341 | Method |
| Max-quality Tidal Crafted Myth weapon | 331 | 337 | Method |
| Max-quality Tidal Crafted Hero weapon | 318 | 325 | Method |
The Warcraft Wiki records an October 23 hotfix that fixed "incorrect item levels" on upgraded items, so numbers written before that date, in our crafted gear guide too, may differ from the table above. Once upgraded, the item becomes Ascended and can't take another upgrade (Method). Items that already sit at 344, such as Mythic loot from the Coiled Altar and Ula'tek, can't be upgraded at all (Method). If a piece isn't at 6/6 yet, our Season 2 gearing guide covers crest costs.
Best items to upgrade with Ascendant Venomstones
Ten stones take real time, so spend them on an item you'll keep. This order follows Icy Veins' advice as summarized in our Season 2 spec guides. It's based on throughput per item level and on how likely a slot is to be replaced, not on a sim of your character.
- Your best Myth-track weapon. Weapons usually add the most throughput per item level. Dual-wield specs pay 10 stones for each weapon.
- Your stronger trinket. Some trinkets scale far better with item level than others, so sim the pair before you choose.
- Your second trinket. Do this one only if you plan to keep it.
- Your necklace. It's a steady stat gain, but smaller than a weapon or trinket.
Prefer Myth-track items over Hero-track ones. An Ascended Hero piece reaches 328, which is still below a Myth piece at 6/6 (334). If a Myth version is realistically a week or two away through the Great Vault or a raid drop, save your stones for it. For crafted options, see our crafted gear guide.
The World of Warcraft hub lists our other Midnight guides and services.
Want a hand with this?
If you would rather not grind this part yourself, World of Warcraft gearing services are listed on FullBoosts. Read Blizzard's End User License Agreement before you buy any service from anyone, FullBoosts included — a marketplace listing isn't publisher permission.
FAQ
How do you farm Ascendant Venomstones in Midnight 12.1.5? Start with Orin Straylight's "Ancient Depths, Ancient Venom" and "Ascending with Venomstones" in Silvermoon City. After that, run +10 or higher keys, Heroic or Mythic raid bosses, Nightmare Prey hunts and Tier 11 Bountiful Delves (Blizzard). The first quest has been available since the week of October 13 and the second since the week of October 20.
How many Ascendant Venomstones do you need to upgrade one piece of gear? Ten per item. Each upgrade covers one weapon, trinket or necklace, so a dual-wield spec needs 20 for both weapons.
Where do Ascendant Venomstones drop in WoW Midnight? Blizzard lists four: keys at +10 and above, raid bosses on Heroic or Mythic, Nightmare Prey Champion gear chests, and Bountiful Delves on Tier 11. Normal raids and keys below +10 aren't on that list.
What gear can be upgraded with Ascendant Venomstones? Season 2 weapons, trinkets and necklaces at Hero or Myth 6/6, plus top-quality Tidal Crafted ones (Blizzard). Armor and rings aren't eligible, and neither is Mythic loot at 344 or a piece that's already Ascended (Method).
What is the fastest Ascendant Venomstone farming method? For a geared group, it's likely +10 Mythic+, because neither Blizzard nor Method mentions a weekly limit for it. Raids, Prey and Delves are tied to lockouts or keys, so they run out each week. Solo players lean on Nightmare Prey and Tier 11 Bountiful Delves instead.
Related guides
- WoW Midnight 12.1.5 catch-up gearing guide
- WoW Midnight Season 2 gearing guide: Mistcrests and upgrade tracks
- WoW Midnight Great Vault guide for Season 2
- WoW Midnight Season 2 Mythic+ dungeons and rewards
- WoW Midnight Delves guide for Season 2
- WoW Midnight Prey guide
- Labyrinth of Kindo'jan guide
- WoW Midnight weekly checklist for Season 2
