WoW The War Within Patch 11.1: Cartel Guide

Jonas Author

Created - 05.03.2025 Updated - 06.03.2025

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Takeover Undermine

Patch 11.1 is a massive update in WoW. This WoW The War Within Cartels guide will give you a full run-down of what you need to do for the four cartels of the Undermine. We know you’re excited to get those amazing rewards after all.

Doing jobs for the four cartels of the Undermine can be difficult, but if you have enough WoW gold to gear up with, this will all be a lot easier. Now, without further ado, here’s our cartel’s guide for WoW The War Within.

The First Day in Undermine: Getting Started with Cartels

Your first day in Undermine is all about getting the lay of the land and understanding how things work.

Right away, you’ll have access to a mix of main campaign quests and side quests, giving you plenty to do as you explore the zone. Whether you’re diving straight into the story, working on side quests, or grinding out reputation, there’s no shortage of content to tackle.

But before you get too deep into questing, your map will highlight several feature unlock quests, marked by pink triangles.

These are essential and should be your first priority. Completing these will unlock key systems, including the Drive System and Scrapping, with additional features like the Chat List becoming available as you progress through Renown.

We’ll go over these mechanics in more detail later, but for now, just know that knocking out these unlock quests will open up important features for your adventure.

Understanding the Weekly Routine in Undermine

As you progress through the campaign, you’ll get a better sense of how the weekly cycle works in Undermine. The central hub of the zone is the Incontinent, which serves as the main location for picking up your weekly quests. This is also where you’ll make an important choice: selecting a cartel to align with for the week.

Each weekly reset, one of the first things you should do is choose a cartel to work with. This decision is crucial because it’s required to unlock World Quests—functioning similarly to how faction choices worked in previous expansions.

Choosing Your Cartel in The War Within

Your choice of cartel in The War Within may seem significant at first, but don't worry—this isn't a decision that will impact your gameplay experience in any major way.

Unlike past faction-based systems that could determine your player power or influence your group-finding potential, the cartel system is purely cosmetic and roleplay-driven.

Each week, you can pick whichever cartel you want, similar to the Severed Threads factions in Dragonflight. Your selection won’t change your experience other than dictating which rewards and cosmetics you’ll be working toward.

Regardless of the cartel you choose, your overall renown level with the Undermine Cartels will continue to progress. This means you’re always working toward rewards at a broader level, no matter which faction you side with. Ultimately, it’s just a matter of preference—whether you want to chase specific cosmetics, align with a cartel for roleplay reasons, or avoid one entirely.

Each cartel offers rewards at Honored, Revered, and Exalted reputation levels. While you can spread out your progress, it might be more efficient to focus on one cartel at a time to unlock its rewards faster.

Earning Reputation and Renown

As you complete objectives while working under your chosen cartel, you’ll gain reputation with them. This allows you to purchase special rewards from their vendors. However, unlike past faction systems, your cartel selection is shared across your warband, meaning all your characters will work with the same cartel each week.

On top of individual cartel reputation, there is an overall Renown track for the entire Undermine zone. This is where you’ll earn the more substantial rewards, such as:

• Zone perks
• Gear upgrades
• Enchanted Crests

Because Renown progression is universal, you’re always moving forward, regardless of which cartel you choose. This ensures that there’s no “wrong” choice, allowing you to play freely without feeling like you’re missing out on key rewards.

Now that the basics are covered, let’s dive into the activities you’ll be taking on in Undermine. The journey in Undermine is very complex, so you’ll need enough WoW The War Within currency to get by.

The Goblin Cartels and Their Rewards

Now, let’s break down each of the four cartels, their history, and the rewards they offer at different reputation levels.

Bilgewater Cartel

The Bilgewater Cartel is known for aligning with the Horde after Cataclysm. Originally led by Jastor Gallywix, leadership later transitioned to Trade Prince Gazlowe. Their base of operations is Bilgewater Bay in Azshara.

• Honored Rewards: A horn sound for your driving mount and a Bilgewater Banner to plant in the ground and showcase your loyalty.
• Revered Rewards: The Bilgewater Junk Hauler battle pet and the Storefront in a Box, a deployable market stall that’s great for roleplay or just confusing people.
• Exalted Rewards: The Crimson Armored Prowler mount and a Bilgewater Tabard featuring the cartel’s emblem.

Steamwheedle Cartel

The most well-known and widespread of all goblin cartels, Steamwheedle has had a presence in World of Warcraft since the very beginning. Their influence stretches across Booty Bay, Gadgetzan, Area 52, and many other locations. Led by Marin Noggenfogger, they are deeply ingrained in goblin business culture.

• Honored Rewards: A horn sound for your driving mount and a Steamwheedle Banner.
• Revered Rewards: The battle pet Epi, a cute hyena-like creature, and the Everlasting Noggenfogger Elixir—a reusable version of the classic Noggenfogger potion, with a 10-minute duration and a 3-second cooldown.
• Exalted Rewards: The Mean Green Flying Machine mount and the Steamwheedle Tabard.

Blackwater Cartel

Originally a subsidiary of Steamwheedle, Blackwater has grown into its own cartel over the years. Based primarily in Booty Bay, they are led by Baron Revilgaz and operate out of a hidden underground port in Undermine.

• Honored Rewards: The Blackwater Horn and Banner.
• Revered Rewards: A Mecha-Dinosaur battle pet and the Personal Fishing Barge, a fantastic alternative for those who don’t already have a raft toy.
• Exalted Rewards: The Blackwater Shredder Deluxe Mark 2, a brutalized mech mount, along with the Blackwater Tabard and a blue paint job for your mount.

Venture Co.

The Venture Company stands out from the other cartels. Unlike the rest, they don’t have a Trade Prince leading them, and their history is mostly one of conflict. They have been the enemy of Azeroth’s heroes for nearly 20 years, with adventurers constantly taking them down. But now, you have the chance to work for them.

• Honored Rewards: The Venture Co. Horn and Banner.
• Revered Rewards: The battle pet Rocket Fist, a cybernetically enhanced gorilla, and the Throwing Saw Blade toy—a fun (and slightly dangerous) tossable blade.
• Exalted Rewards: A hover-style mount, a Venture Co. Tabard, and a paint job so you too can embody the look of an enemy of Azeroth. (Just kidding—kind of.)

Renown Cosmetics and Additional Rewards

Aside from individual cartel rewards, your renown progression with the Undermine Cartels as a whole will grant access to additional cosmetics. However, just because you unlock them doesn’t mean they’re free—you’ll need Resonant Crystals to purchase these rewards. Be prepared for a lot of farming and careful budgeting if you want to collect everything.

Understanding Warband-Locked Reputation

Before diving into the sources of Renown, it's important to clarify that all reputation gains in Undermine are warband-locked.

What this means is:

• Weekly and daily activities can only be completed once per warband. If you finish a weekly quest on one character, your alts won’t be able to do it again.
• One-time reputation sources do not reset across characters. If you complete side story quests or campaign content on your main, you won’t be able to farm the same rep on alts.

This system ensures that reputation progress remains consistent across all characters, rather than requiring multiple characters to grind the same content.

If you're used to past expansions where you could run the same rep-boosting activities on multiple alts, Undermine's faction system works differently. Here, you’ll need to focus on doing everything available on your main each week instead of spreading it across multiple characters.

Weekly Reputation Sources

There are a lot of amazing new features in patch 11.1. But if you want a complete rundown on how to make reputation farming easier, here’s a guide on all sources in the patch.

1. Weekly Dungeon Quest from Beargoth

• Available in Dornal, this weekly quest allows you to select the Cartels of Undermine as your reputation reward upon completion.
• Rewards 1,500 reputation for the main cartel.
• Can be completed via the Follower Dungeon Tool or with a group of friends.

Currently, this is the only weekly reputation source outside of Undermine.

2. Weekly Quests from Smack (Incontinent Hotel)

Inside the Incontinent Hotel, you’ll find Smack, who offers three weekly quests related to unique events in Undermine.

• Each weekly quest grants:
• 1,000 reputation for the main cartel.
• 1,000 reputation for your aligned sub-cartel.
• A total of 3,000 reputation per week if all quests are completed.

To begin, align with a cartel of your choice at the NPC nearby, then pick up your quests.

Odd Jobs (First Weekly Quest)

• Uses the Drive Cart Mount with a hotkey (default: 5) to complete tasks like:
• Delivering packages
• Defeating mobs
• Taking down propaganda posters
• Recruiting citizens
• Completing 10 jobs completes this quest.

Urge to Surge (Second Weekly Quest)

• Participating in the Surge Pricing Event, which happens every hour on the half-hour mark (e.g., 1:30, 2:30, 3:30, etc.).
• Completing jobs during this event contributes to a progress bar, improving reward caches.
• To complete the weekly, you must receive at least one reward cache from the event.

Scrap Jobs (Third Weekly Quest)

• Marked on the map with a golden trash bin icon.
• Speak to Carlo Greegrind at scrap locations to start.
• You’ll have two minutes to dig up as many scraps as possible.
• Must be completed three times to finish the quest.

3. Side Gigs

Each week, different NPCs located near the entrance of Undermine will offer four Side Gigs, which:

• Reward 100 reputation for a specific sub-cartel.
• Reward 50 reputation for the main cartel.
• Completing all four grants 200 main cartel rep and 100 rep for each of two sub-cartels.
• Works with contracts—once available, these will provide bonus rep.

4. World Quests and Special Assignments

• Eight World Quests are available per cycle.
• Some grant 50 reputation with the main cartel and 150 reputation with your aligned cartel.
• Not all World Quests provide rep, but contracts will ensure you gain something.

Special Assignment

• Unlocked after completing three World Quests.
• Rewards 200 reputation for both the main and aligned cartels.

5. Bountiful Delves

• Two new delves in Undermine:
• Sidestreets Loot
• Excavation Side N
• If a Bountiful Delve is active, it will grant 1,000 reputation with the main cartel upon completion.

6. Rares and Elite Rares

• Five elite rares spawn at set locations.
• Require a group to defeat (unless playing a tanky or self-sustaining spec).
• Each elite rare grants 50 reputation with the main cartel.
• Only one elite rare is active at a time, and a new one spawns after the previous one is defeated.

Bounty Rares

• Five bounty rares exist, but they require:
• Alignment with a cartel.
• Renown 6 with that cartel.
• Defeating a bounty rare grants:
• 100 main cartel reputation.
• 150 aligned cartel reputation.

Note: You don’t need to be aligned with a rare’s corresponding cartel to gain its rep—just ensure someone in your group has unlocked it.

7. The Chat List System

Unlocked at Renown 13, this weekly task list:

• Requires completion of four tasks to turn in.
• Turn-in rewards 500 reputation for your aligned cartel.
• Does not provide reputation for the main cartel.
• Used to be repeatable via alts on PTR, but will likely be limited to once per week when live.

One-Time Reputation Sources

Campaign and Side Storylines

• The main campaign rewards up to 10,000 reputation total.
• 13 side storylines provide 125–200 reputation each.
• Completing all side stories contributes to the Sojourner of Undermine achievement.

Secret Cartel & Loyalty Rewards Club

• Dark Fuse Solutions is a fifth secret cartel requiring a new currency (Market Research) to gain reputation.
• Galago Loyalty Rewards Club is tied to the Liberation of Undermine Raid and progresses weekly.

Renown Progression Estimate

For players completing every available activity in Week 1:

• 18,000 main cartel reputation (including campaign rewards).
• 5,350 aligned cartel reputation.
• Estimated Renown 6-7 within the first week.
• Reaching Renown 20 for all factions could take one to two months without Blizzard adjustments.

Familiar Activities in Undermine: World Quests, Rares, and More

Now that the basics are covered, let's talk about the familiar activities you’ll be engaging in throughout Undermine. If you’ve played previous expansions, most of these will feel pretty straightforward—World Quests, Rares, and special assignments all play a key role in your daily and weekly routine.

World Quests and Special Assignments

We all know how World Quests work, and Undermine is packed with them. Completing these will be one of your main sources of reputation, making them a high priority if you’re looking to increase your standing with your chosen cartel.

Alongside World Quests, you’ll also come across special assignment quests, which will reward you with an outdoor cache upon completion.

These priority caches are especially important because they contain valuable gear and new appearance unlocks. Since this new reputation system is the “hotness” of the patch, expect these caches to be a major part of your weekly grind.

Side Gigs and the Ring Fields

Now and then, you’ll encounter side gigs—small quests or activities that grant extra reputation and Valor Stem. Some of these tasks will take you to the Ring Fields, which is a new cutout zone located in the Ringing Deeps. This area offers its own unique set of activities and objectives, so keep an eye out for opportunities to venture there when needed.

Hunting Rares in Undermine

If you enjoy rare hunting, there’s plenty to look forward to. Undermine has a solid selection of rares to discover and farm, many of which provide reputation bonuses when defeated. Based on testing so far, these rares can be farmed daily, meaning you’ll have frequent chances to earn extra rep and rewards.

However, there’s a warband-wide limitation to keep in mind—you can’t use multiple alts to farm the same rares for additional rep. Credit is shared across your warband, so switching characters won’t grant extra reputation from the same rare kills.

Most of these rares and elite rares are spongy named mobs that don’t pose too much of a threat, unless your character is severely undergeared. If you’re properly equipped, you should be able to take them down with minimal trouble.

The Upcoming World Boss

Once Season 2 begins, a world boss will be introduced far to the north in Undermine. While we don’t have full details yet, this will likely be a major weekly objective, offering powerful rewards and another reason to keep up with your progression in the zone.

With these core activities in mind, let’s move on to some of the more unique features Undermine has to offer.

Navigating Undermine: Drive, Shipping and Handling, Surge Pricing

Undermine may not be a sprawling continent like other zones in World of Warcraft, but it makes up for it with density. The entire zone is about the size of Suramar City, packed with twists, turns, multi-level alleyways, and hidden shortcuts that create a chaotic yet immersive urban environment.

To help you navigate this bustling goblin metropolis, the game introduces the Drive System—an ultra-fast mount with vehicle physics that allows you to zip across the zone while engaging in quick jobs.

The Drive System: Your High-Speed Goblin Transport

Unlocked through early questing, the Drive System essentially functions as a speedy, vehicle-based mount that lets you participate in jobs and mob-chasing activities across Undermine.

How It Works

• While driving, you can pick up and complete jobs all across the zone.
• Some tasks are simple package deliveries, while others are all about street justice—basically, high-speed brawls in the middle of the city.
• If driving isn’t your thing, you can speak to a specific ogre NPC who allows you to customize your ride and obtain a Caddy Collar—an item that lets you start and stop jobs even when you’re not using Drive.

Drive Jobs and Reputation

• A weekly quest may ask you to complete a number of Drive Jobs, which grants a significant reputation boost.
• You can start jobs at any time with the click of a button, whether you’re driving or using the Caddy Collar on foot.
• Completing these jobs rewards Valor Stones and Resonance Crystals, though the amount is quite modest.

Alongside these regular Drive Jobs, Surge Pricing Events create another opportunity to boost rewards and reputation.

Surge Pricing: Timed City-Wide Events

Surge Pricing is a zone-wide event that happens every hour on the 30-minute mark (e.g., 1:30, 2:30, 3:30, etc.).

• During Surge Pricing, all players in the area contribute to a progress bar by completing Drive Jobs.
• The higher the collective progress, the better the final reward cache for everyone involved.
• You may also find a weekly quest that asks you to complete jobs during Surge Pricing.

If you want to maximize your efficiency, it’s a good idea to line up your weekly quest with a Surge Pricing event, knocking out both at the same time.

S.C.R.A.P. Heap: The Ultimate Goblin Scavenger Hunt

Another major event in Undermine is S.C.R.A.P. Heap—a quirky resource-gathering event that lets you dig through piles of junk for valuable loot.

How to Participate in S.C.R.A.P. Heap

• One Scrap Heap event spawns at a time and is marked on the map.
• To start the event, speak to the Scrap NPC at the location.
• Once started, you’ll have five minutes to dig through trash and collect various items.
• Players can donate up to 1,000 gold to activate a digging robot, which helps speed up the process.

Rewards and Rare Finds

As you dig, you’ll collect items such as:

• Empty cans (common junk)
• Vintage cans (rare finds that can be turned in for loot boxes and cosmetics)
• Special rewards like Valor Stones, Crest Fragments, and even a pet

While the activity starts off slow, upgrading your Renown unlocks better vendor options and boosts to make scavenging more efficient. Eventually, you’ll find more valuable scrap, making this a great casual farming activity.

Occasionally, Scrap Heap events will be interrupted by environmental hazards, such as:

• Enemy NPCs attacking
• Fires breaking out that need to be put out

When one Scrap Heap event ends, another spawns elsewhere, allowing players to keep the farm going if they want.

C.H.E.T.T. List: The Weekly To-Do Task Generator

The C.H.E.T.T. List is a unique feature in Undermine that allows players to earn extra rewards by completing a variety of randomly generated tasks.

Unlocking the C.H.E.T.T. List

• Requires Renown 13 with the Cartels of Undermine.
• Can be accessed via C.H.E.T.T., a machine on the second floor of the Incontinent Hotel.
• Generates a list of tasks, which can be completed for rewards.

How It Works

• The list contains random objectives, including:
• Regular zone activities
• World PvP challenges
• Delve missions
• Completing tasks grants immediate rewards, usually Valor Stones.
• After completing at least four tasks, you can turn in the C.H.E.T.T. List for a large bonus reward.
• Players can only turn in one list per week, but there may be ways to obtain additional lists.

If you’re looking for a structured way to farm Valor Stones, the C.H.E.T.T. List provides weekly goals with some flexibility.

Nab Those Major Rewards From Undermine’s Cartels

The cartels aren’t your only problems in WoW The War Within patch 11.1. If you want to make sure you’re well-prepared for the challenges in this patch, you should know which are the best dungeon sets for patch 11.1.