- The Reins of the Time-Lost Proto-Drake - Louise Hampson
The Reins of the Time-Lost Proto Drake are a “Binds on Pick Up” (BoP) drop, so they can only be acquired by by killing and looting the Time-Lost Proto Drake, and it’s definitely not a way to make gold. This drake is a very rare spawning elite dragon. Anyone reading this is likely to play WoW already, but to use the Reins of the Time-Lost Proto Drake a player needs epic flying skill level and cold weather flying for any flying in Northrend.
To kill the drake it’s best to have reached level 80, it is possible to get the loot below 80, but organizing a group to hunt for the hours and hours that this can take is very difficult (especially as only one member of the group will be able to win the reins), and on finally meeting the Time-Lost Proto Drake it would be more than a little annoying to not be able to kill it.
Blizzard on the Time-Lost Proto Drake
Blizzard are not very forthcoming about the stats and spawning of this elite. They just state that it is rare and random. The World of Warcraft community has (as usual) tried tracking sightings and kills of the mob but because of the extreme rarity, and the multiple spawning spots recorded no one spot is suggested to wait for the creature to spawn.
For the same reasons there is no definitive patrol route, it’s impossible to state what directions and routes it will take, and the few comments and experiences shared by players are contradictory. The only conclusion is that it’s, well, very rare and very random, and in the western half of Stormpeaks.
Vyragosa and Time-Lost Proto Drake
A less rare (but still elite and rare) dragon called Vyragosa patrols the same area, and Vyragosa has never been spotted. Some of the recorded spawn points are also shared between Vyragosa and the Time-Lost Proto Drake. This suggests that Reins of the Time-Lost Proto Drake is affectively spawned occasionally when Vyragosa is killed. Blizzard wont confirm this but it is definitely worth killing Vyragosa if she is flying about, it can only increase the chances of a spawn.
So, there is no single spawn point, and no single patrol route (even the direction of travel seems to be random), which makes choosing a place to hunt singularly difficult. The Time-Lost Proto Drake has been seen around The Temple of Storms, Brunhildar Village, Terrace of the Makers, Ulduar, The Snowdrift Plains, Frosthold and in the “south west of Stormpeaks”, so that’s the entire west Stormpeaks.
How to Get the Reins of the Time-Lost Proto Drake
The Engine of the Makers and the frozen lake at Bor's Breath are good places to wait it out, they have higher spotting numbers and seem to be on cross roads of the Time-Lost Proto Drake assumed routes, but beware, these are popular hunting spots, other players hovering around are likely to be after the same thing so be extra vigilant, or move on to another spot. The drake has been recorded at flying at an altitude of between 20 and 70 yards, so hover around 40 yards up while waiting.
Be aware that a hunter can hover for hours, or even days without spotting this mob, remember the “very rare, very random” qualities and be patient.
Addons to Help get the Reins of the Time-Lost Proto Drake
However, there are some great addons that can help with elite hunting. Try “Silver Dragon” which can be downloaded from Curse.com. This addon will notify players of any elite or rare mobs in their locality, giving them a heads up that the mob is about.
Another technique is to create a macro, to target the mob as soon as it is in range. Open the macro box, name the new macro, give it a pretty icon and type “/tar Time-Lost” into the macro box. The spam clicking or button mashing would give a hunter something to do with their hands while they wait.
Fighting the Time-Lost Proto Drake
On finally meeting her, the Time-Lost Proto Drake has 2 different spells, one offensive and one defensive. Time Lapse is the offensive one, it stuns her target and does 369-731 nature damage per hit. The defensive spell is Time Shift which teleports her away from the attacker in a random direction and cleanses all offensive spells from her (sorry warlocks). She is quite easy for an adequately geared level 80 to kill, with only 18,900 health.
Louise Hampson - Louise studied English at Cambridge, before taking a Post graduate Certificate in Education. She worked as a secondary school and 6th Form ...
