Ak'Anon is the gnome city built into a great cavern at the edge of the Steamfont Mountains, a whimsical warren of guild halls, a zoo, a central lake and mechanical clockwork constructs that serve as guards, merchants and guides. It is the starting city for gnomes of all classes and doubles as a light hunting zone thanks to the Mines of Malfunction and malfunctioning clockworks in its depths. King Ak'Anon rules the city and gives his name to the primary gnome faction.
Getting thereAk'Anon connects only to the Steamfont Mountains, which sprawl outside the city gates and link onward toward Lesser Faydark. There is a single zone line, with an evacuation point near the entrance.
EnemiesNewcomers fight decaying gnome skeletons, rats and low-level constructs near the entrance, then progress to malfunctioning clockworks, mechanics and evil gnome necromancers in the mines and northern tunnels. The clockwork city guards and the king's mechanical bodyguards are high level and defend the inner city.
Notable NPCs
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King Ak'Anon
named mob
The gnome king who rules the city from his throne and anchors the King Ak'Anon faction, protected by powerful clockwork guards.
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A Clockwork Guardian
named mob
High-level mechanical constructs that guard the inner city and king and are dangerous to low-level players.
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A Mechanic
named mob
A clockwork worker in the mines associated with gnomish tinkering component drops such as sprockets.
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Baxok Curhunter
guildmaster
The Warrior guildmaster who trains fighting gnomes in the city.
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A Clockwork Banker
banker
A mechanical banker that stores players' coin and items.
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A Clockwork Merchant
merchant
Mechanical vendors throughout the city sell weapons, armor, spells and tradeskill supplies.
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Library Mechanamagica Trainers
guildmaster
Enchanter, magician and wizard guildmasters who train and sell spells in the gnome library.
Dangers
The clockwork city guards and the king's bodyguards are far too strong for newcomers and enforce city security aggressively. In the mines the evil gnome necromancers and malfunctioning clockworks can overwhelm careless low-level players, and wandering onto bad King Ak'Anon faction turns the whole city hostile.
Tips
Keep to the entrance areas and Mines of Malfunction for safe leveling and avoid the high-level clockwork guards near the throne. Gnome tinkerers can gather sprockets and parts from clockworks and mechanics, and banking, training and spell shopping are all handled by the city's mechanical NPCs.
Zone data is early and community-sourced, so confirm details in-game.