World of Warcraft: Shadowlands Venthyr Guide — Gear, abilities and powers, and more

World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, the latest expansion to the MMORPG, is set in the realm of the dead. Players will spend much of the game exploring four new zones each ruled by a different Covenant that has their own role to play when it comes to tending the souls of the fallen. Players who reach the new maximum level of 60 will choose one of the Covenants to ally with and kick off a campaign specific to that group.

If you can't decide who to join, we're putting together a series of guide to each faction. Here's everything we know about the Venthyr Covenant, scheming vampiric nobles who punish proud and wicked souls.

Who are the Venthyr?

The Venthyr are a group of noble vampires tasked with tending to proud souls in need of reform. Souls that atone can move on to another realm or choose to stick around and become Venthyr themselves. The ones beyond salvation are condemned to eternal torment in The Maw.

Sire Denathrius, one of the most powerful beings in all of the Shadowlands, rules the Venthyr, but his control is slipping due to a shortage of the anima needed to maintain his realm. The Venthyr are schemers by nature and a rebellion is in the works led by Prince Renathal, the first Venthyr made by Denathrius. Renathal blames Denathrius for the anima shortage that is afflicting all the realms of the dead and seeks to replace him with the help of General Draven, leader of the the Venthyr's gargoyle soldiers.

The factions of Revendreth

The zone of Revendreth is divided into seven districts, each ruled by a powerful and ancient Venthyr. Denathrius gave each of the seven members of the Court of Harvesters a medallion, and Renathal believes that gathering all of them would allow him to truly defeat the master of Revendreth and claim his realm.

You'll begin your time in Revendreth in he Village Ward, Darkhaven, a hamlet ruled by the Harvester of Envy. Its residents spend most of their time engaged in hard labor, which has only gotten more difficult due to the anima drought, and they dream of a better unlife. The area is home to many dredgers who perform menial tasks and will even sacrifice themselves to entertain their masters.

The Fearstalker, Harvester of Dread, has found a powerful way to extract anima in the Forest Ward. He gives souls a taste of hope and freedom as they run through his hunting grounds only to chase them down and drink their pride. Denathrius' center of power is the Castle Ward, which is home to the nobles of his inner circle and the Countess, Harvester of Desire. He rules from Castle Nathria, an ancient structure that may also house some even darker power.

Revendreth is protected by anima-infused living statues called the Stone Legion. They're divided into three types: Gargons are quadrupeds that patrol the city streets, Dredbats are airborne sentries, and the Stoneborn are winged fighters who fight with a variety of weapons.

Covenant powers

All characters that join the Venthyr Covenant will gain the movement power Door of Shadows, though it's not really clear how it works yet. Players will also receive a combat power based on their class and specialization:

• Death Knights can conjure a Swarming Mist which ups their Dodge. Enemies in the area will take Shadow damage over time and grant you Runic Power up to your maximum.
• Demon Hunters can hit enemies with a Sinful Brand that does Shadow damage over time and reduces their casting and melee attack speeds. Sinful Brand will automatically be applied to nearby enemies when a Demon Hunter activates Metamorphosis.
• Druids can enter a Ravenous Fury that increases their damage, healing, and haste by stacking percentages. However, if they stop casting or attacking, they'll lose a percent of their health based on the number of stacks and then be stunned, ending the effect.
• Hunters can fire a Flayed Shot that does Shadow damage over time and gives them a chance of gaining a Flayer's Mark buff that allows them to ignore the health restrictions on their next Kill Shot.
• Mages can conjure a set of Mirrors of Torment that shatter to deal Shadow damage and slow the targeted enemy whenever they attack or cast a spell. When the last mirror is destroyed, the target will be Rooted and Silenced.
• Monks use Fallen Order to summon a mirror for 24 seconds that creates reflections of fallen monks every second who stick around for six seconds. The summons can come from every monk order, though ones associated with your own specialization will have more powers and stick around longer.
• Paladins use Ashen Hallow to gain the benefits of Consecration in an area while dealing Shadow damage to enemies and healing allies over time. While standing in the zone, Paladins can use Hammer of Wrath on any target regardless of their health.
• Priests play Mindgames with their enemies, dealing Shadow damage and confusing them so that for a short period of time their damaging and healing spells will have the reverse effect.
• Rogues learn to Slaughter their enemies, causing physical damage and coating their weapons with a poison that lasts five minutes and lets them do Shadow damage over time, earn extra combo points, and steal some of the healing their opponent receives.
• Shamans cast Chain Harvest which heals allies and hits enemies with Shadow damage. The power's cooldown is reduced every time an enemy is crit.
• Warlocks summon and Impending Catastrophe, calling down a cloud of anima that deals Shadow damage to everything in its path before reaching its target and exploding. The target is hit by Curse of Weakness or Curse of Tongues, while all the other enemies in the area are dealt Shadow damage over time.
• Warriors will have their Execute ability replaced with Condemn, which does Shadow damage and weakens enemies who are above 80% or below 20% health. You'll receive some of the Rage you spent back if the target survives.

Welcome to the party

If you choose to join the Venthyr Covenant, you'll be making your home in Sinfall and working to keep the Ember Court entertained by helping Prince Renathar with party planning. These bashes are a big source of status for the Venthyr and you'll be responsible for making the guest list, taking care of the catering, and keeping the uninvited rabble out. If you're the perfect host, you'll be rewarded with loot.

Like all the Covenant Sanctums, Sinfall has fallen into disrepair and it's up to you to restore it. You can work on repairing the network of Blood Mirrors that will make it easier to get around Revendreth.

You can also spend anima in various areas of Revendreth to enable new content based on your priorities. Here are the benefits for restoring each location:

• Crypt of the Forgotten lets you find a unique treasure.
• Dominance Gate unlocks a world quest.
• Dominance Keep lets you fight an elite enemy champion.
• Pridefall Hamlet unlocks a set of daily quests for your Covenant.
• The Shrouded Asylum give you access to powerful Venthyr enhancements.
• Wanecrypt Hill lets you battle an enemy champion.

Friends in dark places

Your choice of Covenant also determines which denizens of the Shadowlands will Soulbind with you, granting you special abilities based on how much Renown you've earned within the faction. These are the three Venthyr you can Soulbind with and their powers:

• Nadjia the Mistblade is a skilled duelist always looking for a new challenge. She'll enhance your Door of Shadows so that you'll disorient nearby enemies when you appear in a new location. When you kill an enemy or spend a few seconds fighting, you'll gain a stack of a Thrill Seeker buff that will moderately increase your speed for a few seconds when maxed out. The buff fades away quickly when you stop fighting.
• General Draven fights honorably to defend Revendreth and the soldiers of the Stone Legion. He'll add Enduring Gloom to your Door of Shadows, giving you a shield for eight seconds after using it that absorbs damage equal to 15% of your health. He'll also enhance your Venthyr class ability so that it grants some Versatility to you and your allies for a moderate amount of time after it's used.
• Theotar the Mad Duke has been exiled from the Venthyr courts but hosts his own gathering of gossipping outcasts like a vampiric version of the Mad Hatter. He'll let you use Door of Shadows to free yourself from being rooted or snared and give your spells and abilities the chance to summon his dredger servants Tubbins and Grubbins, who will hold up an umbrella you can stand under to gain some Mastery for a moderate amount of time.

Choose wisely

Keep checking back for more information on the Venthyr and other Covenants and let us know who you plan on joining in Shadowlands!