Eastern Kingdoms Advanced: Gold

Here are my findings on the Eastern Kingdoms Cup Advanced Gold races:

Eastern Plaguelands - Hard

A tight timer and a plethora of stuff to catch on make this one of the tougher races. At the start, use one Surge Forward to get through the first ring, then use the Skyward Ascent trick* as you're going through ring #2 to get you to ring #3 over the obstacles and with an extra burst of speed. Push hard, but you have to conserve a little vigor in the middle so you can be faster in the final third.

Gilneas - Moderate

This race is all about vigor management. Go too easy, and you'll miss the timer; go too hard, and you'll run out of vigor when you need it. Look for spots where you can use the Skyward Ascent trick*. I'm not sure it's strictly necessary, but I wasn't able to beat the very strict timer without using it two or three times in spots where the area was open and the rings were far apart.

Krazzworks - Easy

Use Skyward Ascent for the big ascent at the beginning and the small one at the end, but otherwise just use Surge Forward. The timer is fairly forgiving; a minor bump into an obstacle along the way won't necessarily ruin the run.

Twilight Terror - Easy

Don't push too hard until the U-turn across the lake; then you can be more aggressive with your speed. I didn't particularly have to save vigor for the steep incline at the end. The timer is forgiving.

Loch Modan - Easy

Leisurely timer. Push moderately hard throughout.

Dun Morogh - Hard

Timer is very tight, and there are trees and blind corners to contend with. Push only somewhat aggressively until the climb out of the quarry (which happens early on) and then push as hard as you can until the end. Fancy Skyward Ascent tricks* just fouled me up; I recommend only using Surge Forward except for the couple of spots where you actually need to ascend.

Searing Gorge - Easy

Go sliiightly less than full throttle for the first few rings, then hammer down the right of the way. The timer is generous.

Badlands - Easy

Vigor can be scarce at the very beginning and the very end, but you don't have to throttle down much to be fine. No Skyward Ascent tricks* needed, but you do have to use that ability on inclines.

Elwynn Forest - Moderately Hard

A tight timer, early vigor starvation, and a couple of blind turns make this one a little tricky. Conserve vigor early on, then go all out when you cross the river for the third time. Use the Skyward Ascent trick* both times you ascend above the trees. Avoiding obstacles isn't as hard as you'd think for a race set mostly inside the forest, but there are two blind left turns that can easily have you smashing into a tree trunk on the other side. The secret to both of these left turns is to take them as tight as you can. Do that, and you'll stay within a clear corridor. The final tricky bit is that the next-to-last ring is hidden above the treeline, and it's easy for a Skyward Ascent to fling you too high over it.

Redridge Mountains - Moderate

Vigor starvation and a somewhat tight timer are the challenges here. I couldn't do it without employing the Skyward Ascent trick* twice while going across the lake. Once I did that, I went from Silver to beating Gold by 4 seconds. The rest of it boils down to using Skyward Ascent in the conventional manner in the right spots and striking the right balance of vigor management.

Gurubashi Gala - Easy

If you go all out, you'll run out of vigor at key points, but don't slack off much -- push almost as hard as you can. You shouldn't need Skyward Ascent except once after ring 5 and possibly once at the end.

Deadwind Pass - Moderate

The bad news is that there is a lot of stuff you can get caught up on. The good news is that at least it's stuff you can see coming (unlike the trees in Durator or the posts in Azshara). It's also easy to get vigor-starved, but you can't be too leisurely about your pace either. Compensating for these challenges is a forgiving timer.

Blasted Lands - Moderately Easy

Spam Surge Forward as aggressively as you can until you get to Nethergarde Keep. Then ease up to conserve vigor (also to negotiate the trickiest turns) until you're clear of Dreadmaul Hold. Then floor it again until the end. There isn't a lot of wiggle room in the timer, but the hardest part is to keep from grounding yourself on little bumps. Once you learn the course well enough to avoid that, you should be fine. I only used Surge Forward on this course by the way, never Skyward Ascent, even on the inclines.

Booty Bay - Moderately Easy

The 15th ring has a bump right before it that I kept grounding myself on, and right afterward is a slightly tricky twist through a gate. Otherwise this one is straightforward. Push somewhat aggressively throughout. Timer is loose, although not as loose as some of these. No Skyward Ascent tricks* needed.

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* The "Skyward Ascent Trick" involves using Skyward Ascent to gain horizontal speed for a more sustained burst than Surge Forward can manage. To do it, quickly aim straight up, hit Skyward Ascent, and immediately aim horizontally again. It takes practice to hold an accurate course while doing this, but if you pull it off it converts the vertical momentum you normally gain with Skyward Ascent into considerable horizontal momentum.

To track this achievement: /run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18571)

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Eastern Kingdoms Cup Tracking Macros

Eastern Kingdoms Racing Completionist: Gold

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18942)

Eastern Kingdoms: Gold

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18568)

Eastern Kingdoms Advanced: Gold

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18571)

Eastern Kingdoms Reverse: Gold

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18574)

Eastern Kingdoms Racing Completionist: Silver

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18940)

Eastern Kingdoms: Silver

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18567)

Eastern Kingdoms Advanced: Silver

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18570)

Eastern Kingdoms Reverse: Silver

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18573)

Eastern Kingdoms Racing Completionist

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18939)

Eastern Kingdoms: Bronze

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18566)

Eastern Kingdoms Advanced: Bronze

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18569)

Eastern Kingdoms Reverse: Bronze

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(218572)

[toggler name="Copy Paste All" closed=true]/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18942)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18568)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18571)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18574)

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18940)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18567)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18570)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18573)

/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18939)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18566)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18569)
/run C_ContentTracking.StartTracking(2,18572)


[/toggler]

Just like the Kalimdor cup, this one is absolutely ruined by a handful of terribly designed courses.