Of Keys and Cages

Quest Giver: Father Levariol at Westguard Keep

Turn-in: Father Levariol at Westguard Keep

Objective: Collect Gjalerbron Cage Keys from vrykul at Gjalerbron and use them to free 10 Gjalerbron Prisoners.

Quick Facts

• Type: Kill for keys + interact with cages (10 prisoners freed)
• Faction: Alliance only
• Prerequisites: All Hail the Conqueror of Skorn! and Stop the Ascension!
• Parallel Quest: Dealing With Gjalerbron
• Follow-up: Sleeping Giants (offered via whisper from Mage-Lieutenant Malister upon turn-in)

Walkthrough

1. Accept the quest from Father Levariol at Westguard Keep.
2. Travel north to Gjalerbron, the vrykul fortress in the mountains of northern Howling Fjord [36, 19].
3. Kill Gjalerbron vrykul (Warriors, Runecasters, Sleep-Watchers, and other mobs in the area). Loot Gjalerbron Cage Keys from their bodies.
4. Find prisoner cages scattered throughout Gjalerbron. Use a key on each cage to free the prisoner inside.
5. Free 10 prisoners total.
6. Return to Father Levariol at Westguard Keep.

Tips

• Low Key Drop Rate: This is the primary frustration of this quest. Keys do not drop from every kill, so expect to kill considerably more vrykul than the 10 you need for prisoners. Having Dealing With Gjalerbron active at the same time helps because every kill contributes to both quests, regardless of whether a key drops.
• Watch for the Big Key: There is a small chance of getting a larger key that opens the cage in the center of Gjalerbron, which releases approximately 5 prisoners at once. If you get lucky with this drop, it dramatically speeds up completion.
• Cage Locations: Cages are spread across Gjalerbron’s multiple platforms and tiers. Don’t fixate on one area. As you clear mobs, check for cages nearby and open them as you collect keys.
• Key Before Cage: You need a key in your inventory to interact with a cage. Don’t waste time running to cages until you have keys ready.
• Don’t Go Underground Yet: The Waking Halls beneath Gjalerbron are part of the follow-up quest Sleeping Giants, not this one. Focus on the surface-level cages and mobs for now.
• Pick Up Attack Plans: While killing vrykul, watch for Gjalerbron Attack Plans to drop. This is a quest-starting item that begins a separate quest and can be completed during the same sweep.

Story Context

Father Levariol approaches this quest from a moral and theological perspective, putting him at odds with the more militarily-minded Captain Adams:

“The captain may not care, but from the little we know, the vrykul are conducting heinous rites in some sort of ‘awakening’ ritual up north in Gjalerbron. They’re using living sacrifices to fuel their unholy rituals!”

His compassion is inclusive: “<class>, you must put a stop to this! It matters not who or what is in those cages, they must be freed.”

And he adds a practical concern alongside the moral one: “The Light knows the last thing we need is more of those strange vrykul walking about, or worse yet, them wakening something even more evil!”

Upon completion, his gratitude is genuine but his language reveals limits: “Bless you, child! With your help, the Light shines even in the darkest of places. Please, take this as just compensation for your good deeds. I shall see to the salvation of those you freed; at least, those truly within the Light, and the Alliance, who returned here to the keep.”

That qualifier, “those truly within the Light, and the Alliance,” is revealing. Despite his stated compassion for all prisoners, Levariol still draws lines around who gets the full benefit of Alliance salvation.

What Happens at Turn-In

When you complete this quest, Mage-Lieutenant Malister whispers you: “<name>, I would have words with you.” He offers Sleeping Giants, which sends you back to Gjalerbron to descend into the Waking Halls beneath the fortress.

Accept this before heading out again so you can handle both underground and surface objectives in one trip if you still have other Gjalerbron quests to finish.

Lore Note: What Gjalerbron Actually Is

Gjalerbron (pronounced “Shalerbron”) is not just a vrykul village. It is the primary awakening facility for the vrykul race in Howling Fjord.

Thousands of years ago, the vrykul entered voluntary hibernation to stave off the Curse of Flesh. They left their homes, villages, and keeps vacant and slept for millennia, undisturbed even by the Sundering of the world. Now the Lich King’s necrolords are systematically awakening them, and Gjalerbron is where the process happens.

The “sacrifices” Father Levariol mentions are quite literal. The vrykul are fueling their awakening rituals with the life force of prisoners, captured from passing travelers, Alliance patrols, and anyone else unlucky enough to fall into their hands.

Every prisoner you don’t free becomes fuel for another awakened vrykul warrior.

This is also where Queen Angerboda is conducting the most important awakening of all: rousing her husband, King Ymiron, from his ancient slumber.

The quest chain that starts here leads directly to that confrontation at Winter’s Terrace on the north end of the fortress.

Cross-Expansion Connection: The Eternal Sleepers

After the war against the Jailer in Shadowlands, Muradin Bronzebeard reported that Gjalerbron is still half-filled with slumbering vrykul being slowly coaxed back to waking life by the remaining necrolords. The air around Gjalerbron stinks of foul magic and death from the frost wyrms patrolling overhead.

Your efforts here disrupted the process but did not end it entirely. The vrykul awakening continues, slowly, even without the Lich King’s direct oversight. Gjalerbron remains one of the most dangerous sites in Howling Fjord long after the events of WotLK.

Explore Howling Fjord’s hidden easter eggs, lore mysteries, and connections across Warcraft history in Vikstone’s Howling Fjord Chronicles, along with the complete quest storyline.