TBC Anniversary The Black Morass Normal and Heroic Guide

The Black Morass is a level 70 Caverns of Time dungeon built around a continuous defense event rather than a conventional corridor route. The party protects Medivh while the Infinite Dragonflight opens 18 time rifts across the swamp. Chrono Lord Deja appears at portal 6, Temporus at portal 12, and Aeonus at portal 18. Blizzard's official Anniversary overview confirms the current Burning Crusade Classic progression environment.

This guide explains Normal and Heroic access, the entrance, the Old Hillsbrad prerequisite, the portal event, dangerous enemies, all three bosses, active quests, Keepers of Time reputation, and the most useful loot. The information was checked for TBC Classic Anniversary on August 7, 2026.

The Black Morass Overview

The dungeon has little optional trash once the defense begins. Success depends on rapid target selection, careful mana use, and immediate control of enemies moving toward Medivh. Normal teaches the timing. Heroic demands stronger gear, faster dispels, and a plan for every late portal.

Location and How to Enter

Travel to the Caverns of Time entrance at approximately 65, 50 in Tanaris. Follow the long tunnel into the central cavern, then take the southern timeway. The Black Morass portal stands beyond the swamp specimens. A Caverns of Time transport dragon can carry eligible characters from the outer entrance to the central area.

The instance has no physical door key. Access is controlled by the Caverns of Time quest sequence. A character that has not completed the required Old Hillsbrad Foothills story cannot enter The Black Morass even when another party member has finished it.

Clear the spiders, crocodiles, and other wildlife near the entrance before moving close to Medivh. Approaching him starts the timed defense, so an early pull can cost the group its only safe preparation window.

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Old Hillsbrad Access Questline

Begin with To The Master's Lair from the Steward of Time outside the Caverns of Time. The sequence introduces the faction, sends the character into Old Hillsbrad Foothills, and unlocks the second dungeon after Thrall escapes from Durnholde Keep.

1. Complete To The Master's Lair.
2. Finish The Caverns of Time inside the main cavern.
3. Accept Old Hillsbrad and enter Old Hillsbrad Foothills.
4. Complete Taretha's Diversion.
5. Escort Thrall during Escape from Durnholde.
6. Turn in Return to Andormu.
7. Take The Black Morass from the child Andormu and speak with Sa'at inside the dungeon.

Blizzard's official attunement guide lists the same Old Hillsbrad sequence and places The Black Morass directly after Return to Andormu. Complete these steps on every character that needs dungeon entry.

Heroic Access and Anniversary Alt Keys

Heroic mode requires level 70 and personal access for every party member. The regular method is Revered reputation with Keepers of Time. At Revered, Alurmi inside the Caverns of Time sells the Key of Time. The same item unlocks Heroic Old Hillsbrad Foothills.

TBC Classic Anniversary also includes the account-bound Communal Key of Time. It requires Friendly reputation with Keepers of Time and can be transferred to an eligible level 70 alt on the same account. It is an alternative Heroic unlock, not a replacement for the Old Hillsbrad story that opens The Black Morass itself.

Heroic has a daily instance lockout. Confirm difficulty and access before anyone approaches Medivh because changing the setting after the event begins wastes time and consumables.

Recommended Group Setup and Preparation

Form a five-player group with a single tank and healer, then fill the remaining three slots with damage dealers. The dungeon rewards burst, mobile damage, and fast dispels more than long crowd control. A balanced party can succeed on either difficulty, but Heroic becomes much easier when the group can remove magic buffs and curses without relying on one player.

• Assign one player to call each new portal and one mobile damage dealer to intercept enemies approaching Medivh.
• Bring magic removal such as Purge, Dispel Magic, or Spellsteal for Temporus and portal enemies.
• Bring curse removal for Curse of Vulnerability.
• Use Tremor Totem, Fear Ward, or another planned Fear response when available.
• A Hunter should prepare Tranquilizing Shot for Aeonus.
• Carry health consumables, mana consumables, food, drinks, class reagents, and fully repaired gear.
• Set a beacon order before the first portal so two players do not spend their assistance on the same easy wave.

Speak with Sa'at before starting. Players completing The Opening of the Dark Portal receive a Chrono-beacon, which calls a guardian of time inside the instance. Save these guardians for difficult trash waves, especially portals 13 through 17. Place a guardian on the add path and away from a boss because a boss can remove a guardian summoned too close.

How the Portal Event Works

1. A time rift opens at one of several locations around Medivh.
2. A Rift Lord or Rift Keeper emerges and controls the portal.
3. Smaller Infinite Dragonflight enemies continue spawning while the controller remains alive.
4. Those enemies run toward Medivh and drain his shield when they reach him.
5. Killing the controller closes the rift and stops additional enemies from that portal.
6. Bosses replace the normal controller at portals 6, 12, and 18.

The group should kill the Rift Lord or Rift Keeper quickly while one assigned player catches enemies that escape toward Medivh. Do not spend most of the party's damage chasing every small add while the controller continues producing more. Once the rift closes, finish survivors, drink immediately, and move toward the next portal call.

If Medivh's shield reaches zero, the defense fails and the completed portal count is lost. Medivh returns after a delay, but the party must begin again at portal 1. This makes shield preservation and late wave preparation more valuable than saving every cooldown for Aeonus.

Portals 6 and 12 provide a longer recovery pause after their bosses die. Use both breaks for mana, rebuffs, resurrections, and replacement beacons.

Route and Boss Order

The next portal can open before a slow group has finished the previous enemies. Move toward new rifts as soon as their location is called, but do not abandon uncontrolled attackers beside Medivh. A mobile damage dealer can finish those enemies while the tank establishes the next controller.

Dangerous Portal Enemies and Kill Priority

Kill priority is the active portal controller first unless an add is already damaging Medivh or a cast will disable the group. Interrupts and dispels should solve dangerous casts while most damage remains on the controller. Long crowd control usually delays the close and creates another wave of enemies.

Chrono Lord Deja Tactics

Chrono Lord Deja replaces the controller at portal 6. He is tethered to his rift, and Infinite Dragonflight enemies continue to emerge throughout the encounter. His main abilities are Arcane Blast, Time Lapse, and Arcane Discharge. On Heroic, Attraction pulls a party member toward him before another dangerous burst.

1. The tank engages Deja at the rift and does not drag him toward Medivh.
2. Assign one mobile damage dealer to collect portal adds before they reach the shield.
3. Keep the group healthy before each Arcane Discharge because it applies unavoidable party damage.
4. On Heroic, move away promptly after Attraction pulls a player into close range.
5. If add control is weak, place a guardian on their route but far enough from Deja that the boss does not remove it.
6. After Deja dies, clear every survivor and use the recovery pause before portal 7.

Heroic does not require a different positioning plan, but Arcane Blast and Arcane Discharge hit much harder. Healers should not spend the opening seconds recovering damage that players could have avoided after Attraction.

Temporus Tactics

Temporus emerges from portal 12 and remains tethered to that rift. Adds continue spawning during the fight. He applies Mortal Wound to the tank, uses Wing Buffet, and gains Hasten, a removable magic buff that increases his movement and melee speed by 200 percent. He is immune to taunt.

1. The tank anchors Temporus close to the rift and avoids moving beyond his tether.
2. Remove Hasten at once with Purge, Dispel Magic, Spellsteal, Shield Slam, or another suitable effect.
3. The healer watches Mortal Wound stacks because each application reduces healing received by 10 percent.
4. If the stacks become unmanageable, the tank can kite briefly inside the tether area to create time for them to expire.
5. Keep one damage dealer available for portal enemies that move toward Medivh.
6. Use a tank cooldown when Hasten and several Mortal Wound stacks overlap.

On Heroic, Temporus gains Spell Reflection. A blue aura signals that spells will be reflected. Casters stop immediately and resume only after the effect ends. Do not cast a magic purge into Spell Reflection. Remove the next Hasten as soon as the reflection window is over.

Aeonus Tactics

Aeonus appears at the central rift when portal 18 opens. Unlike the first two bosses, he is not tethered and immediately runs toward Medivh. No additional Infinite Dragonflight enemies spawn during this fight, so the encounter becomes a single target damage race once the tank intercepts him.

1. The tank meets Aeonus before he reaches Medivh and turns him away from every other player.
2. No one except the tank stands in front because Sand Breath is a powerful frontal cone.
3. Melee players avoid the front to prevent extra Cleave damage.
4. A Hunter removes Frenzy with Tranquilizing Shot. Without a Hunter, use defensive cooldowns during the increased attack speed.
5. The healer applies heal over time effects or shields before Time Stop disables the party.
6. The tank enters each Time Stop at safe health and uses a defensive cooldown when the timing is dangerous.

Heroic Sand Breath can kill a non-tank player, so correct facing is mandatory. Aeonus has no new add phase to distract the group. Clean positioning, Frenzy control, and preparation for Time Stop decide the encounter.

Groups that need a coordinated Normal or Heroic completion can review the Black Morass dungeon run before choosing a difficulty and target reward.

The Black Morass Quests

Hero of the Brood offers Band of the Guardian, Keeper's Ring of Piety, Time-bending Gem, or Andormu's Tear. Compare the four rings before turning in because only one can be chosen.

Combine The Master's Touch with the first successful defense whenever possible. After Aeonus dies and the portal opens, speak with Medivh before leaving. Alchemists should expect Master of Elixirs to require more than one run because Essence of Infinity is not guaranteed from every eligible enemy.

Keepers of Time Reputation

Every full run awards Keepers of Time reputation. Normal grants about 1100 reputation, with 50 from each rift controller and 120 from each boss. Heroic grants about 1750, with 65 from each controller and 250 from each boss. Actual totals can vary slightly with eligible kills and reputation bonuses.

Normal and Heroic kills continue awarding reputation through Exalted. Blizzard's official Black Morass reputation hotfix specifically confirms that Rift Keepers grant Keepers of Time reputation until Exalted.

Normal has no daily lockout, making repeated clears the practical farm once a party has reliable portal timing. Heroic offers more reputation per completion but can only be cleared once per daily lockout.

Notable Normal Loot

Normal contains several strong pre-raid items and multiple dungeon set pieces from Aeonus. The table focuses on drops with broad gearing value rather than listing every possible reward.

Hourglass of the Unraveller drops from Temporus, not Aeonus. Players farming it can leave after portal 12 if the party agreed to a partial run, although a full completion provides more reputation and Aeonus loot.

Notable Heroic Loot

Heroic retains the shared boss tables and adds epic rewards from Aeonus. Each of the three bosses also drops a Badge of Justice, while Aeonus guarantees a Primal Nether.

Check current class priorities before reserving an item. Several Normal drops remain useful on Heroic, while the additional Aeonus epics serve very different roles. The Heroic gems are unique equipped and should be compared with socket bonuses before use.

Common Mistakes

• Approaching Medivh before the entrance wildlife is dead, assignments are ready, and players have recovered mana.
• Chasing every small add while the portal controller remains alive and produces another wave.
• Using all Chrono-beacons early instead of rotating them through portals 13 to 17.
• Summoning a guardian directly beside a boss and losing the assistance immediately.
• Entering portal 12 without a reliable answer to Hasten.
• Casting into Temporus during Heroic Spell Reflection.
• Allowing Aeonus to reach Medivh or facing Sand Breath toward the party.
• Leaving after Aeonus without speaking to Medivh for The Master's Touch.
• Assuming one player's Heroic key grants access to the entire group.

Pre Run Checklist

• Complete the Old Hillsbrad Foothills story on the character entering the dungeon.
• For Heroic, reach level 70 and obtain personal Caverns of Time Heroic access.
• Collect every relevant dungeon, profession, daily, and Karazhan quest before travel.
• Assign a portal caller, an add interceptor, and a Chrono-beacon order.
• Confirm magic dispels, curse removal, and the Temporus Hasten response.
• Clear entrance wildlife before anyone approaches Medivh.
• Save resources for portals 13 through 17 and intercept Aeonus at portal 18.
• Speak with Medivh after the final boss when The Master's Touch is active.

If faction access is the only unfinished preparation step, compare the available Keepers of Time reputation options with the remaining grind before scheduling Heroic.

Final Verdict

The Black Morass is a compact but demanding dungeon that replaces navigation with continuous event control. Normal is the best place to learn portal timing, complete the Caverns of Time story, advance Karazhan access, and farm repeatable Keepers of Time reputation. Heroic adds boss currency, difficulty-exclusive equipment, rare socket gems, and a guaranteed crafting material from the final encounter.

The safest clear comes from killing each portal controller quickly, assigning one player to protect Medivh, removing Hasten from Temporus, and preserving assistance for the final five trash portals. Enter with the required access, all relevant quests, and a clear recovery plan, and both versions become predictable rather than chaotic.