TBC Anniversary Aldor vs Scryers: Best Pick and Route to Exalted

Aldor vs Scryers is the one Shattrath choice in TBC Anniversary that's hard to undo. This guide shows which side fits your class and spec, how much the shoulder inscriptions really differ, which profession recipes each side sells, how to reach Exalted with the fewest turn-ins, and what switching costs. It's current for Phase 3.5, which went live on October 22, 2026 with Zul'Aman and no attunement for Black Temple or Mount Hyjal. Item, recipe and reputation values are checked against Warcraft Tavern and the Warcraft Wiki Aldor page.

Quick summary

• For most characters, pick Aldor. Healers, hunters, Shadow Priests, Affliction Warlocks and most physical DPS get a slightly better Exalted shoulder inscription.
• Pick Scryers as a Protection Warrior or Protection Paladin who still needs defense, a caster who needs Scryer's Bloodgem for spell hit, or a crafter who wants the Scryer recipes (Enchanted Adamantite, Enchanted Clefthoof and Felscale, Runic Spellthread).
• The gap is small. By our math below, the shoulder difference is well under 1% of output for every spec. Don't switch an Exalted character for one enchant.
• Exalted takes 38,500 reputation after the allegiance quest. One-time faction quests cover roughly 7,000 of it; the rest is turn-ins.
• Turn in at least 8 Fel Armaments or Arcane Tomes. They're the only source of the Holy Dust or Arcane Runes that buy the Greater inscription.

Aldor vs Scryers: answer five questions to choose

Work through these in order. The first "yes" decides it.

1. Do you need a specific faction recipe for a real crafting plan? Pick the side that sells it (recipe table below).
2. Are you a Protection Warrior or Protection Paladin still short of 490 defense? Pick Scryers.
3. Are you a caster under the spell hit cap with no raid gear yet? Scryers, for Scryer's Bloodgem, a Revered trinket with spell hit rating.
4. Are you a healer, hunter, Shadow Priest or Affliction Warlock? Pick Aldor.
5. Anyone else? Pick Aldor by a small margin, or whichever side's turn-ins are cheaper on your realm's Auction House.

Example: a fresh 70 Protection Paladin has 470 defense from quest gear. He picks Scryers for the extra 5 defense on Greater Inscription of the Knight, and his guild's Elemental Shaman, who is already hit-capped, picks Aldor.

Compare the shoulder inscriptions

Each side sells one inscription per role at Honored and a Greater version at Exalted (Warcraft Tavern):

Role	Aldor (Honored / Exalted)	Scryers (Honored / Exalted)	Exalted difference
Physical DPS	Vengeance: 26 AP / 30 AP + 10 crit rating	Blade: 13 crit rating / 20 AP + 15 crit rating	Aldor +10 AP vs Scryers +5 crit rating
Caster DPS	Discipline: 15 spell damage / 18 spell damage + 10 spell crit rating	Orb: 13 spell crit rating / 12 spell damage + 15 spell crit rating	Aldor +6 spell damage vs Scryers +5 spell crit rating
Healer	Faith: 29 healing / 33 healing + 4 mp5	Oracle: 5 mp5 / 22 healing + 6 mp5	Aldor +11 healing vs Scryers +2 mp5
Tank	Warding: 13 dodge rating / 15 dodge + 10 defense rating	Knight: 13 defense rating / 15 defense + 10 dodge rating	Aldor +5 dodge vs Scryers +5 defense

Do the math for your spec. At level 70, about 22 crit rating is 1% crit, so the Blade's extra 5 rating is roughly 0.23% crit. Scryers only win for physical DPS if one crit rating is worth more than two attack power to you. Casters need one spell crit rating to be worth more than 1.2 spell damage. Damage over time can't crit in TBC, which is why Affliction and Shadow lean clearly Aldor. Our gems and enchants guide lists the rest of the enchants by slot.

Plan the inscription materials

The inscriptions don't cost gold. Aldor inscriptions from Inscriber Saalyn in the Aldor bank cost Holy Dust; Scryer inscriptions from Inscriber Veredis in the Scryer bank cost Arcane Runes. Honored versions take 2 and Greater versions take 8 (Warcraft Wiki). You get one Holy Dust per Fel Armament or one Arcane Rune per Arcane Tome you turn in.

So turn in at least 8 Fel Armaments or Arcane Tomes, or 10 if you also want the Honored version on the way. A grind done entirely with marks or signets leaves you with no inscription currency at Exalted.

Best faction by class and spec

These picks apply the inscription math above to each spec's main stat, plus the faction items that matter for it:

Class	Spec	Pick	Main reason
Warrior	Arms, Fury	Aldor, or either	Vengeance's extra 10 AP roughly ties Blade's 5 crit rating
Warrior	Protection	Scryers	Extra defense toward 490
Paladin	Holy	Aldor	Faith: 11 more healing
Paladin	Protection	Scryers	Defense, plus early spell hit items
Paladin	Retribution	Aldor	Vengeance slightly ahead
Hunter	All	Aldor	Hunters value AP over crit rating; the clearest Aldor case
Rogue	All	Aldor (slight)	Shoulders tie
Priest	Holy, Discipline	Aldor	Faith
Priest	Shadow	Aldor	DoTs can't crit, so spell damage wins
Shaman	Enhancement	Aldor	Vengeance plus the Overseer's Signet quest ring
Shaman	Elemental	Either	Discipline slightly ahead; Bloodgem if you lack hit
Shaman	Restoration	Aldor	Faith
Mage	All	Either	Discipline slightly ahead; Scryer items help early
Warlock	Affliction	Aldor	DoTs can't crit
Warlock	Destruction, Demonology	Either	Discipline slightly ahead; Scryers have Bloodgem and Seer's Signet
Druid	Balance	Either	Same as Mage
Druid	Feral cat	Either	Vengeance and Blade tie
Druid	Feral bear	Aldor	Bears need about 415 defense, not 490, so dodge is worth more
Druid	Restoration	Aldor	Faith

Our class guides go deeper on each spec's stat priorities: Paladin, Warrior, Priest, Warlock and Hunter.

Aldor and Scryer profession recipes

Profession	Aldor sells	Scryers sell
Tailoring	Flameheart patterns, Silver Spellthread (Honored), Golden Spellthread (Exalted), for healers	Mystic Spellthread (Honored), Runic Spellthread (Exalted), for casters
Leatherworking	Flamescale and Blastguard patterns, Vindicator's Armor Kit	Enchanted Clefthoof and Enchanted Felscale boots, gloves and leggings; Magister's Armor Kit
Blacksmithing	Flamebane plans	Enchanted Adamantite belt, boots, breastplate and leggings
Jewelcrafting	Gleaming Golden Draenite, Royal Shadow Draenite, Pendant of Shadow's End	Runed Blood Garnet, Dazzling Deep Peridot, Pendant of Withering
Alchemy	None	Elixir of Major Firepower (Revered)

Finished spellthreads and the Bind-on-Equip crafts can be traded, so a raider doesn't need the recipe. A crafter selling leg enchants does. Our Tailoring guide covers the spellthread recipes, and the Alchemy guide covers the Lower City recipes alchemists buy alongside their faction ones.

Aldor Rise vs Scryer's Tier: location

Warcraft Tavern notes a small daily difference. Aldor Rise is high up and reached by an elevator, but it has direct access to Shattrath's back door toward Nagrand. The Scryer's Tier is on ground level with no elevator wait, and it's closer to the city's flight path. Neither is worth choosing a side over, but it's a tiebreaker if your spec says "either."

How to choose your side in Shattrath

1. Talk to a Haggard War Veteran walking around Shattrath City and accept A'dal.
2. Complete City of Light by following Khadgar's Servant on the city tour.
3. Accept Allegiance to the Aldor or Allegiance to the Scryers. It gives 3,500 reputation, which puts you at Friendly 500/6,000, and makes the other side Hostile (Warcraft Tavern, Warcraft Wiki).

Choose on your first visit. The faction quests in Netherstorm and Shadowmoon Valley only pay reputation once you've picked. Racial starts differ: Draenei begin Friendly with the Aldor and Unfriendly with the Scryers, and Blood Elves the reverse (Warcraft Wiki). Every reputation gain with one side costs 10% more with the other.

Route to Exalted with the Aldor or Scryers

The thresholds are 6,000 (Friendly), 12,000 (Honored to Revered) and 21,000 (Revered to Exalted).

Turn-in	Side	Reputation	Counts until	Comes from	Turn in to
Mark of Kil'jaeden	Aldor	25 each, 250 per 10	Honored	Low-ranking Legion orcs, such as the camps north of Auchindoun in the Bone Wastes	Adyen the Lightwarden
Mark of Sargeras	Aldor	25 each, 250 per 10	Exalted	Legion mobs level 66+ in Blade's Edge, Netherstorm and Shadowmoon	Adyen the Lightwarden
Fel Armament	Aldor	350 + 1 Holy Dust	Exalted	Same mobs, rare drop	High Priestess Ishanah
Firewing Signet	Scryers	25 each, 250 per 10	Honored	Firewing Point (Terokkar)	Magistrix Fyalenn
Sunfury Signet	Scryers	25 each, 250 per 10	Exalted	Sunfury blood elves in Netherstorm, Shadowmoon and Blade's Edge	Magistrix Fyalenn
Arcane Tome	Scryers	350 + 1 Arcane Rune	Exalted	Sunfury blood elves, rare drop	Voren'thal the Seer

Turn-ins only, rounded up

Stage	Reputation	Marks or signets	Fel Armaments or Arcane Tomes
Friendly 500 to Honored	5,500	220	16
Honored to Revered	12,000	480	35
Revered to Exalted	21,000	840	60
Total	38,500	1,540	110

Warcraft Tavern's counts agree: 220 Firewing Signets to Honored, then 1,320 Sunfury Signets to Exalted, and the Warcraft Wiki puts Honored to Exalted at about 95 Fel Armaments. One Fel Armament or Arcane Tome equals 14 marks or signets, so use that ratio when you compare Auction House listings. Humans gain 10% more reputation from Diplomacy, which means about 9% fewer turn-ins.

Step-by-step route (both sides)

1. Spend your low-rank items first. Turn in Marks of Kil'jaeden or Firewing Signets until Honored, because they stop counting there. Marks of Kil'jaeden also give 125 Sha'tar reputation per ten (Warcraft Wiki), which helps your Sha'tar and Sha'tari Skyguard goals.
2. Do the one-time faction quests. On Warcraft Tavern's Scryer list, the Netherstorm chain is worth about 4,200 reputation and the Shadowmoon Valley chain about 3,000, including Turning Point and Varedis Must Be Stopped at 1,000 each. The Aldor chains are the mirror of these.
3. Farm a dungeon on the way. Shadow Labyrinth for Aldor marks, or Mechanar, Botanica and Arcatraz for Sunfury Signets and Arcane Tomes. Our heroic keys guide covers the heroic versions, which need only Honored keys since October 22.
4. Bank 8 or more Fel Armaments or Arcane Tomes for the Greater inscription.
5. Finish with whichever item is cheapest per reputation on your realm. None of the turn-ins bind on pickup, so they all trade on the Auction House. Our gold farming guide covers the farms if you'd rather sell than turn in.

Example: a Human Holy Priest finishes Netherstorm and Shadowmoon at Revered. She checks the Auction House, sees that ten Marks of Sargeras cost less than one Fel Armament's 14-mark equivalent, buys marks for most of the gap, and keeps the eight Fel Armaments she looted for Greater Inscription of Faith.

What Exalted unlocks in Phase 3.5 and later

• Shattrath flasks: Haldor the Compulsive (Aldor) and Arcanist Xorith (Scryers) sell flasks that only work in raid zones. You need Exalted with your side, the Cenarion Expedition and The Sha'tar, and you pay in Marks of the Illidari from The Eye, Serpentshrine Cavern, Mount Hyjal and Black Temple (Warcraft Wiki). Our Cenarion Expedition guide covers the other two reputations.
• Black Temple and Mount Hyjal: since October 22 neither raid needs an attunement, so your Shattrath side no longer affects raid access. Zul'Aman is open too; see our Zul'Aman guide.
• Shattered Sun pendants (Sunwell phase): the Isle of Quel'Danas necklaces proc differently for Aldor and Scryers, but only while you're Exalted with your side (Warcraft Tavern). Blizzard hasn't dated the Sunwell phase yet; our Sunwell Plateau guide tracks it.

Pendant	Aldor proc	Scryers proc
Might (melee, ranged)	+200 attack power for 10 sec	333 to 367 arcane damage
Acumen (caster)	+120 spell damage and healing for 10 sec	333 to 367 arcane damage
Restoration (healer)	+117 spell power for 10 sec	Instant heal for 618 to 682
Resolve (tank)	+100 dodge rating for 10 sec	+100 expertise rating for 10 sec

How to switch from Aldor to Scryers (or back)

You can switch, but it costs about as much as a second grind:

Switching to	NPC (Lower City)	Repeatable quest	Item	Value
Aldor	Sha'nir	Strained Supplies	8 Dreadfang Venom Sacs (Terokkar spiders)	250 Aldor rep
Scryers	Arcanist Adyria	Voren'thal's Visions	8 Dampscale Basilisk Eyes (Terokkar basilisks)	250 Scryer rep

Both quests only repeat until Neutral with the new side. From Hated, that's about 168 turn-ins, or 1,344 items (Warcraft Tavern, Warcraft Wiki). Partway through you're Unfriendly with both sides and locked out of both banks and inns, so bring every item at once. Neutral to Exalted is then another 42,000 reputation, and some of the new side's one-time quests stay unavailable because you finished the old side's version.

Before you switch: buy every recipe you want from your current side, spend your Holy Dust or Arcane Runes, and put the Greater inscription on every shoulder piece you'll use.

If you're returning, boosted, or on an alt

• Returning players: the values are the same as in 2007 and 2021. What's new on Anniversary realms is timing: with Black Temple, Hyjal and Zul'Aman already open, early faction gear matters less, and the inscription, recipes and flask access matter more.
• Boosted or fresh 70s: you may have skipped Netherstorm and Shadowmoon Valley. Do those faction quests first, since they're worth about 7,000 reputation for no gold. Our fresh 70 catch-up guide puts them in order.
• Alts: reputation is per character. A crafting alt can take the opposite side from your main to cover both recipe lists.

Everything else for this realm type is on the TBC Anniversary hub.

Want a hand with this?

If you would rather not grind this part yourself, TBC Anniversary reputation 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

Is Aldor or Scryers better in TBC Anniversary? Aldor for most specs: healers, hunters, Shadow Priests, Affliction Warlocks and most melee. Scryers for Protection Warriors and Paladins who need defense, and casters who need Scryer's Bloodgem's hit.

When can I choose Aldor or Scryers? As soon as you reach Shattrath and finish A'dal and City of Light. Choose right away, because faction quests pay nothing until you have a side.

How much reputation does a Fel Armament or Arcane Tome give? 350, plus one Holy Dust or Arcane Rune. You need 8 of those for a Greater shoulder inscription.

Can I get Exalted with only Marks of Kil'jaeden or Firewing Signets? No. Both stop counting at Honored. Switch to Marks of Sargeras or Sunfury Signets, or to Fel Armaments or Arcane Tomes.

How do I switch from Aldor to Scryers? Turn in 8 Dampscale Basilisk Eyes at a time to Arcanist Adyria in Lower City until you're Neutral with the Scryers. Reverse it with Dreadfang Venom Sacs to Sha'nir.

Does Aldor or Scryers affect Black Temple access? Not anymore. Since the October 22 update, Black Temple and Mount Hyjal need no attunement, so either side can raid them.

Related guides

• TBC Anniversary gems and enchants
• TBC Anniversary Sha'tar reputation guide
• TBC Anniversary Sha'tari Skyguard reputation guide
• TBC Anniversary Cenarion Expedition reputation guide
• TBC Anniversary heroic dungeons and keys
• TBC Anniversary Alchemy leveling guide
• TBC Anniversary gold farming guide