Taming Ban’thalos in Legion

Post has been updated to reflect the hunter changes in Legion. The same basic strategy as before holds true, but since we no longer have Distracting Shot, we’ll use Concussive Shot to pull Ban’thalos instead.

Taming Ban’thalos has always been a bit of a challenge. He spawns up in the sky above the Sanctuary of Malorne, so you need to be on a flying mount to engage him. Second, he’s neutral, so you need to get his attention somehow. Third, you need to not die from fall damage once you do get his attention.

At level 100, he poses another interesting challenge. How do you aggro him without killing him?

Back in Cataclysm, the taming challenge involved a strategy which was basically: tag Ban’thalos by attacking him, then tame him without dying. At level 100, however, this strat no longer works because even if you take off all of your gear and punch him, there’s a chance that could still kill him. Instead, you need to use Concussive Shot an ability which a lot of hunters may not even have on their action bars…Distracting Shot. This shot will cause Ban’thalos to get angry with you while not damaging him.

How to Tame Ban’thalos at Level 100

This process is surprisingly easy once you know what to do.

1. Fly up next to him (make sure you’ve already dismissed your current pet)
2. Dismount, then immediately hit him with Distracting Concussive Shot
3. Disengage just before you hit the ground
4. Start spamming Tame Beast
5. Celebrate

To make the whole taming process easier, here’s a macro you can use specifically for Ban’thalos. If you’re not sure how to create a macro, check out this macro how-to.

/dismount
/cast Concussive Shot
/stopattack
/stopattack
/script UIErrorsFrame:Clear()

This macro takes care of your dismount, casts Distracting Concussive Shot and prevents you from accidentally getting off any auto shots that would kill him. It works like a charm.

The only other thing you need to watch out for is the ground (and other players, if you’re on a PvP server). Remember to Disengage before you hit the ground or you might be visiting the Spirit Healer.

Taming rare pets can be a stressful experience due to the length of time you may have to wait in order to catch one, plus there’s usually the ever-present competition from other hunters, along with d-bag Ret Paladins and Death Knights lurking about – hoping to jack up your tame. When the time comes, and you’re staring down at the rare spawn trophy pet you’ve been waiting patiently for, you may lose your wits.Being prepared with a macro and a strategy should help you find success.

I happened to be in the Sanctuary of Malorne a few weeks ago when Ban’thalos spawned right in front of me. Being the overly-excited noob that I am, I went right up to him and tagged him with an auto-shot – only to watch his majestic feathery ghostliness land in a limp pile on the earth below. Major /facepalm moment.

The last time I had tamed this pet was ages ago, and I wasn’t quite putting out the damage of a decently geared level 100. In my haste to tame Ban’thalos, I sorta forgot about that… This time around, Ban’thalos was not prepared and neither was I.

Having a game plan that involves a macro and a strategy should help you find success.

And again…don’t forget to dismiss your pet before you fly up to greet Ban’thalos.

Happy Hunting and Good Luck!