https://shadowpanther.net/Brushwood.jpg
I’ve recently taken a break from updating my Alliance Rogue Quest Completionist Guide (https://shadowpanther.net/questing.htm) to work on a little side project. I’d always wondered what was the best weapon a low level player could wield in Classic. Reading up on old comments about Brushwood Blade (https://classicdb.ch/?item=18957#comments), I was curious just how early one could possibly acquire it.
So I created a Night Elf in the Beta, and with the help of my higher level Rogue, I cleared a path through the Ban’ethil Barrow Den to get him to Oben Rageclaw while still at level 1. Unfortunately, Oben would not offer a quest. Same for level 2. But at level 3 he offered the prerequisite quest, The Sleeping Druid, which requires you to loot a Shaman Voodoo Charm from a Gnarlpine Shaman.
Armed with this knowledge, I semi-twinked a human Rogue for this experiment. I used the Dun Morogh mountain skip to pick up any exploration experience between Elwynn Forest and Teldrassil (which pushed him up to level 2) then killed some mobs until just reaching level 3. Then I hearthed him back to Stormwind City and trained in swords while equipping him with a Frostmane Shortsword, Lesser Healing Potions, Rough Sharpening Stones, Explosive Rockets and a mix of Handstitched and Worn Leather gear.
I then had him return to Teldrassil, pick up The Sleeping Druid quest just like before, and then got really lucky when the Shaman Voodoo Charm dropped off the 4th Gnarlpine Shaman outside the den (which is quite fortunate for that historically low drop rate quest item). I turned that quest in and got the follow up quest, Druid of the Claw. That quest required me to group up with another player to kill Rageclaw and use the Shaman Voodoo Charm on his body to finish the quest.
Alas, the combined experience from completing those two quests pushed me into level 4, which I’ve now confirmed to be the earliest possible level at which you can equip and wield this powerful 3.0 speed sword that straps across your back. Dueling outside Goldshire will never be the same.
So what does all this mean for practical purposes? Rogues who decide to upgrade their Worn Dagger via the “Gladius Grind” (grind 15 silver from the very beginning to quickly buy a Gladius and train One Handed Swords) can now head out to Teldrassil and immediately join a group heading into Ban’ethil Barrow Den to further upgrade to the mighty Brushwood Blade. Enjoy!