Desperate Times is a short recruitment quest that sends you out from a tower in Valanaar to sign up two local factions, then walk back the way you came. There is no combat objective, no kill count, and no boss. The whole thing is a travel loop across Zephras Isle, and the only thing that slows most players down is the run back up the tower ramps.
Quick answer: Take Desperate Times from Valennia Stormfist in the Valanaar tower, recruit the Windshapers and the High Order, then return to her and choose a reward to complete it.
Desperate Times objectives and quest giver
The quest lives at the top of the tower in Valanaar. Valennia Stormfist, a Peacekeeper Captain, hands out the objectives, and in some playthroughs the conversation chain starts one NPC earlier with Talaanis Shadowsong before Valennia takes over. Either way, Valennia is the one who gives you the two recruitment tasks and the one you hand the quest back to.
- Recruit the Windshapers: 1/1
- Recruit the High Order: 1/1
- Return to Valennia Stormfist in the tower
Both recruitment targets are pure dialogue. You pick the conversation option, the objective ticks over to 1/1, and nothing attacks you on the way there.
Desperate Times walkthrough
How to confirm Desperate Times is complete
Two checkpoints tell you the quest is tracking properly. Each recruitment objective updates to 1/1 in your quest tracker as soon as the dialogue closes, so if the counter stays at 0/1 you either skipped the conversation option or spoke to the wrong NPC. At the end, the quest frame on Valennia Stormfist shows a reward choice before the Complete Quest button becomes active. Once you click it, Desperate Times leaves your quest log and the selected item lands in your bags.
NPC names in this chain show up with slight spelling variations between playthroughs. The titles are the reliable identifiers, so look for the Grand Skyseer of the Windshapers and the Supreme Magister rather than matching every letter of a name.
The other Desperate Times: Legion battleground quest
A second quest shares the name, and it is a completely different thing. That version is a level 45 battleground quest added in Patch 7.1.0, started by the Dire Summons item that arrives from the Once More Into the Fray order hall mission. The single objective is to join and win any battleground, and the reward is a Soldier’s Footlocker.
The turn-in is the part that trips people up. The world map marker frequently points at an unrelated class order hall or a random spot in Dalaran, Eastern Plaguelands or elsewhere. Ignore the marker and go to your own class order hall instead.
| Class | Turn-in NPC |
|---|---|
| Paladin | Lord Grayson Shadowbreaker |
| Death Knight | Siouxsie the Banshee |
| Shaman | Advisor Sevel |
| Druid | Skylord Omnuron |
| Rogue | Nikki the Gossip |
| Monk | Master Hsu |
| Warrior | Skyseer Ghrent |
| Hunter | Tactician Tinderfell |
| Demon Hunter | Tylos Darksight |
| Warlock | Gakin the Darkbinder |
| Mage | Archmage Melis |
| Priest | Moira Thaurissan / Alonsus Faol |
If your turn-in NPC is nowhere to be found, check whether they are out on a follower mission or currently assigned as your Combat Ally. Alonsus Faol, in particular, cannot take the hand-in while he is away, so wait for the mission to finish or dismiss him as your ally first, then talk to him. Relogging has also brought him back when he failed to appear in the priest hall at all.
To check whether you already finished that version on a character, paste this into chat:
/run print(C_QuestLog.IsQuestFlaggedCompleted(45173))A result of true means the battleground version is already done and you do not need to queue again.
