The Ransacked Caravan

Quest Giver: Hidalgo the Master Falconer at Explorers’ League Outpost

Objective: Use the Trained Rock Falcon to recover 5 Fjord Turkeys.

Quick Facts

• Type: Item-use collection
• Faction: Alliance only
• Prerequisite: Trust is Earned
• Follow-up: Falcon Versus Hawk
• Chain Position: 2 of 4 in the Falconry questline

Walkthrough

1. Accept quest from Hidalgo (he gives you a Trained Rock Falcon cage).
2. Collect Fjord Grubs from Loose Rocks near camp (you need at least 5, one per turkey).
3. Head west along the road to the crossroads at [69, 65].
4. Look for the ransacked caravan wreckage with dead NPCs and loose turkeys.
5. Target a Fjord Turkey and use the falcon cage from your inventory.
6. The falcon flies out, captures the turkey, and returns it to the cage.
7. Repeat for 5 turkeys total.
8. Return to Hidalgo with the cage.

Critical: Feeding Your Falcon

Hidalgo warns you repeatedly: “Remember to feed the falcon!”

Here’s how it works:

• Each capture automatically consumes one Fjord Grub from your inventory.
• If you have no grubs, the falcon will kill and eat the turkey instead of capturing it.
• Collect at least 5 grubs before heading to the crossroads.

You don’t need to manually feed the falcon; just have grubs in your bags and the falcon handles the rest.

Hazards: Dragonflayer Ambushers

About 50% of the time you capture a turkey, a Dragonflayer Ambusher (level 70) will spawn and attack you. These vrykul were hiding near the caravan wreckage, waiting to ambush anyone who came to investigate.

The ambushers aren’t difficult to kill, but be ready for combat. If you want to avoid the fight, move away quickly after each capture.

Tips

• Pet Classes (Hunters, Warlocks, Death Knights): Set your pet to PASSIVE before capturing turkeys. If your pet attacks the turkey, it will kill it before the falcon can capture it. Players have lost turkeys to overenthusiastic ghouls and wolves.
• Efficient Grub Collection: Grab all the grubs you need BEFORE heading to the crossroads. The rocks near Hidalgo’s camp respawn quickly.
• Extra Grubs: Collect a few extra grubs in case your falcon misses or you accidentally kill a turkey.

Achievement Opportunity: Friend or Fowl?

The crossroads is the best location in the game for the Friend or Fowl? achievement, which requires killing 15 turkeys within 3 minutes.

Why this spot works:

• Fast respawns: Turkeys respawn almost instantly (roughly 15 seconds).
• High density: Plenty of turkeys in a small area.
• Easy kills: Turkeys are low-health critters.

Warning: Upon completing the achievement, all nearby turkeys will turn hostile and swarm you. This is a scripted event meant to be funny. You won’t die, but you’ll take a beating from angry poultry. Relogging resets them to neutral.

Macro for achievement:

/target Fjord Turkey

/cast [your instant cast spell]

Story Context

Hidalgo reveals his backstory:

“I was leading a caravan here from Valgarde that was attacked by Dragonflayers. I was the only survivor of that ambush. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make it back here with the cargo of fjord turkeys.”

The Dragonflayer vrykul set up a patient ambush, killing the entire caravan escort and then waiting to see if anyone would return. The turkeys escaped during the chaos and are now wandering loose. Your falcon training doubles as a recovery mission.

Upon completion, Hidalgo acknowledges the threat: “Clever fiends. And patient too! We need to stop underestimating our enemy. Those vrykul are deadly hunters!”

Fun Fact: Cooked on Death

If a turkey dies (whether from your falcon eating it, your pet attacking it, or you killing it for the achievement), it immediately transforms into a cooked turkey model. Blizzard’s artists couldn’t resist the visual gag.

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.