Where the entrance is

Excavation Site sits above Whelgar's Excavation, the dwarf-run dig camp in the Wetlands that Blizzard named directly in its What's Next panel. The dungeon entrance is on the hillside above that existing dig, not a separate zone.

To reach it, follow the trail near Thelgen Rock and its spider cave, close to Wetlands coordinates 53, 66, then climb uphill to the entrance. That route comes from Zockify's dungeon page, updated 4 October 2026, the clearest map note published so far.

Quest givers split by faction. Most Alliance pickups sit in the Wetlands itself, at Menethil Harbor and Whelgar's Excavation, though two pre-quests start farther out in Ashenvale and Redridge Mountains, and one relic quest ends in Ironforge. Horde pickups run through Orgrimmar, Hammerfall in Arathi Highlands, Thunder Bluff, and Mulgore, so plan a longer ride.

Dee stands at a lantern-lit hillside tunnel above Whelgar's Excavation, dwarf prospectors and mine carts below, a raptor watching from the brush.
The entrance sits above the dig camp, not inside it.

What level should you be?

The 1 October 2026 beta notes list Excavation Site: Wetlands at levels 26 to 31. That is the number to plan around, and it supersedes the original estimate.

Blizzard's own 15 September 2026 clarification post put the dungeon at 24 to 29 before the beta opened it. If you have seen that bracket elsewhere, it is the earlier number. Use 26 to 31 until a note newer than 1 October changes it again.

The same 1 October notes capped beta characters at level 30, one short of the dungeon's listed top end. Do not expect to walk in overleveled, even at the current cap.

The four bosses

Four bosses are confirmed, in run order: Saltspine, Shadetooth, Highland Horror, and Relic Guardian. That order comes from Zockify's dungeon page, updated 4 October 2026, which lists all four by name.

Boss abilities and fight strategies are not published yet. Treat early pulls as scouting, not a known script.

What drops, so far

Saltspine drops cloth, mail, and leather: Glinteye Slippers, Saltscale Girdle, and Supple Bellyskin Leggings. Shadetooth adds Garb of Florid Feathers, Raptorclaw Greaves, and the off-hand Raptor's Gaze.

Relic Guardian, the last boss, carries the highest item level drops: the Golemsight Long Gun, Reliquary Mantle, and Ring of Power Regulation, plus the Titan Relic quest item. Highland Horror's one confirmed drop, Horrible Rootcore, is a quest item rather than gear.

One quest tied to that relic is currently broken. Zockify's 4 October 2026 notes flag Elder Knowledge as bugged: turning it in removes your Titan Relic, but the follow-up quest, Earthen Echo, still asks for one. Expect a fix before launch rather than a workaround.

The quests that bring you here

Fourteen quests are tied to Excavation Site so far: nine Alliance, five Horde. The full pickup order, with who to talk to and what each one pays, is in the Excavation Site quests article.

Two of those quests start from the Titan Relic that drops off Relic Guardian and send it to opposite corners of the map, Thunder Bluff and Ironforge. That chain, and the ones tied to other Forever dungeons, has its own writeup.

Wowdee will turn this loot table into one checklist, sorted by boss and checked against what your character already has equipped, so you know before you queue whether Relic Guardian is worth a fourth pull.

Still to come

Not yet settled by our sources or tested in game:

  • Boss abilities and fight strategies for all four encounters.
  • Whether the Elder Knowledge turn-in bug is fixed before launch.
  • Exact entrance coordinates, pinned on a map rather than described by landmark.
  • Whether the 26 to 31 bracket holds once the beta's level cap rises past 30.

Sources

Beta notes are dated because Forever is still changing.