Summoning the Charger quest chain

Summoning the Charger is a quest chain wherein an alliance paladin earns a summonable very fast (epic) land mount. This quest was effectively removed from the game with as Lord Grayson no longer offers the Divination Scryer which is required to summon Darkreaver.

Prelude

 * This quest is optional. The impatient may go directly to Lord Shadowbreaker in Stormwind.

You've heard rumors of them. You may even know someone who has one. And Light help you, you are even envious. The Charger. A mount par excellence, inferior to none.

Brandur Ironhammer, your mentor in Ironforge directs you to Lord Grayson Shadowbreaker, the premier paladin in Stormwind City. Lord Shadowbreaker, Brandur says, will guide you through the process of getting a charger of your own.

You venture forth, with an eagerness you haven't felt since you were newly recruited. In the Cathedral of Light, Grayson Shadowbreaker confirms it. He warns you, though, that the trials you will undergo are not for education - you are beyond the need for that - but to save your future companion from that same evil you have been fighting for so long.
 * Grayson Shadowbreaker sets you on two separate sets of tasks. Both must be completed to venture on to the final task.

Exorcising Terrordale
Your first task is to secure High Priest Rohan's Exorcism Censor. Your need is worthy, but so is the High Lord's. Leaving him bereft is unjust, so you are prompted to make a donation to cover the costs of a replacement.

You are more than willing to sacrifice, donating a great deal of gold. More, in fact, than is strictly required for the replacement of the Censer.

Your sacrifice does not go unrewarded. High Priest Rohan gives you the Censer and his blessings for your donation. Rohan directs you to return to Lord Shadowbreaker, to learn how you are to put this Censer to use.

The area of the Eastern Plaguelands known as Terrordale quakes under the assault of tormented spirits. Shadowbreaker wants you to travel there, and render judgement upon the spirits, lifting the seige, at least in part.

In Terrordale you find areas where the land itself shows the strain of the spirits' assault. You wield the Censer, forcing spirits to appear before you. You render the judgement of the Light upon them, and dissipate a great many of them.

Returning to Stormwind to report back to Grayson Shadowbreaker, you are told that you will soon be facing none other than the Death Knight, Darkreaver.


 * You must, however, complete the barding task as well, before you are ready to face him.

The Blessed Barding
Your mount will require armor, given your line of work. And not just any armor, either...

Lord Grayson Shadowbreaker sends you to Grimand Elmore, in the Dwarven District of Stormwind City. His work is among the finest in the world, and won't be cheap or easy.

Grimand confirms your fears... Not only will you have to bring to him many exotic items for the construction of the barding, but his fee is not small either. To fill his needs, you need not only to employ the services of an herbalist, a miner, and an alchemist, but you find need to venture into the heart of Stratholme, seeking out unlooted (and unsullied) stores of holy water.

On the plus side, you also get a saddle and stirrups for free...
 * 150 gold, 6 Arcanite bars, 10 Arthas' Tears, 40 Runecloth, as well as the 5 Stratholme Holy Water are required of you for the barding.

Returning to Shadowbreaker, you are directed to find a spirit suitable to bless Elmore's work. One such spirit resides in Dire Maul, you are told, a prisoner of a corrupt Treant, Tendris Warpwood.
 * and

Freeing the spirit is not enough, though. You are told you will need to soothe it as well. And for that, you need to speak with Merideth Carlson in Southshore.

Speak with her you do, a conversation you will remember for a long time. Meredith, it seems, has been thought crazy for so long that she's gone a little around the bend, as it were. Enriched Manna Biscuits, sold by the Argent Dawn quartermasters, are key to the manna-enriched horse feed she makes. But she wants the Silver Hand pay... PAY, I say... and since you're asking for this, it's you who hands over yet more gold.

Spirit-horse chow in hand, you then venture into the depths of Dire Maul. You battle your way through Tendris' servants, and face the rotter itself, in all its mouldering terror. It is unequal to the might of you and your companions, though, and is soon felled.

Returning to the park you'd seen a short time ago, you find the Ancient Equine Spirit waiting. It accepts your offer of the feed, and after a bit indicates that you should put the barding on its back.


 * Meredith charges you for the feed, and you will be paying the Argent Dawn another  and change for the original biscuits.  You must be at least  with the Argent Dawn to complete this.

You place the barding on the back of the spirit. It glows slightly, and you can sense magic at work. Then, the barding is once again stowed away. The spirit has blessed it.

You return to Grayson Shadowbreaker with the now-blessed barding. He tells you that there is but one last item to be prepared before you face your final challenge.

Soul of a Charger

 * You must have completed both the Censer and Barding chains before you can start this.

The Censer you used earlier is to form the base of a scryer. In fact, the scryer is almost complete. There are two items still needed for it, though: an Azerothian Diamond, and a Pristine Black Diamond. Both hard to find.

Sacrifice is seldom easy, but you do this eagerly. Returning with the opposed diamonds, Shadowbreaker tells you of your final goal as he completes the Scryer.



The Death Knight Darkreaver rides the soul of a once-noble charger. Your task is to defeat Darkreaver, freeing his mount's soul.

In the once great citadel of Caer Darrow lies the dungeon that is the Scholomance. You brave the specters and revenants inhabiting the place, and arrive at the Great Ossuary. Defeating Rattlegore is simply a prelude to the much more difficult challenge facing you.

You set up the scryer, and summon forth and dispatch many, many accursed spirits before finally winkling Darkreaver out of hiding. The battle is epic, the conclusion glorious. You separate the charger's soul from the remains of Darkreaver, and return it to the beast, judging the charger redeemed.

It willingly submits to your placing the blessed barding upon its back, lifting the burdens of its past from it.

Accumulated costs

 * - (Grand total)
 * 5 Stratholme Holy Water
 * 10 Arthas' Tears
 * 40 Runecloth
 * 6 Arcanite Bars
 * 20 Enriched Manna Biscuits ( for five at Friendly, for five if you are Honored; or total)
 * 1 Azerothian Diamond
 * 1 Pristine Black Diamond

Rewards
You will learn:

Summon Charger

Along the way, you will have directly earned: and the corresponding 'spillover' increase in other alliance factions (including the Stormwind and Ironforge ones).
 * +850 Ironforge reputation
 * +1350 Stormwind reputation