Like Raptor Mounts? Spend some time on the Isle of Giants!

Ahhh mounts, who doesn't love em? Mounts, pets, titles, vanity items - they're the only things in game that will truly last patch after patch, and with each new expansion. Today I'm not going to talk about rare spawns, I'm just going to blab a little about some of these new mounts I'm loving in patch 5.2. Specifically - the Raptor mounts!

In patch 5.2 there were four new raptor mounts introduced to the game. All four of these mounts can be obtained by spending some time on Jurassic Park the Isle of Giants. Killing the dinosaurs on the isle will land you stacks and stacks of Giant Dinosaur Bones, which can ultimately be used to purchase Reins of the Bone-White Primal Raptor. This mount looks very similar to the Ivory Raptor, an Old School Ride that was taken out of the game in patch 1.4.

Bone-White Primal Raptor (Thank you to Arelae and Rickoutragos for posing for me!)

The larger, more difficult to kill dinosaurs drop more bones. For example, a Primal Devilsaur will land you anywhere between 35-45 bones, whereas a much easier to kill Young Primal Devilsaur will get you between 11-13 bones. Once you've collected 9,999 bones you can turn them in to Ku'ma <The Bone Collector>, to complete the quest A Mountain of Giant Dinosaur Bones. You'll find Ku'ma in a cave on the western side of the island. The quest reward is the previously mentioned sexy Bone-White Primal Raptor. You'll also receive a feat of strength called I've Got 9999 Problems but a Bone-White Primal Raptor Ain't One.

The larger dinosaurs have more health and deal a lot more damage, and will therefore require a group to kill. Their younger versions should be soloable by most classes depending on your gear. While farming for bones, it is very likely that at some point you will come across a Primal Egg. This egg will hatch into a Cracked Primal Egg  in three days time and will contain one of three different mounts: Reins of the Green Primal Raptor, Reins of the Red Primal Raptor or Reins of the Black Primal Raptor.

Primal Eggs can drop off of any dinosaur mob on the island. They have a higher chance to drop off of the larger mobs than the young ones though. The egg is unique, so once you have one in your bag you cannot  loot another one until the one you have hatches. The color mount that you will receive from the egg is completely random, and it is possible to see the same color more than once. I received my first Primal Egg from a Primordial Direhorn Hatchling, which I pretty much farmed exclusively. When the egg dropped, I had killed enough dinosaurs to collect 1,321 Giant Dinosaur Bones.

My first egg contained Reins of the Green Primal Raptor (pictured below). This guy kind of looks like an un-armored version of the no longer obtainable Swift Razzashi Raptor - the one mount I desperately wanted and farmed for but was never able to obtain before being taken out of the game pre-cataclysm. This guy's no substitute, but he's still pretty awesome looking.

Green Primal Raptor

Anyone who is familiar with the Savage Raptor TCG mount should notice the incredible similarities between it and the Red Primal Raptor. I'll admit, I was a little disappointed to find out that they looked so incredibly similar. The only difference between the two seems to be the saddle and reins color. Below you can see the Savage Raptor (left) and Red Primal Raptor (right) standing side-by-side for comparison. I personally think they should have made the Red Primal Raptor a little more, gee I dunno...red. Meh, oh well. At least bronze is in the red family.

Savage Raptor and Red Primal Raptor

I think my favorite of the three possible mounts from the cracked egg is the Black Primal Raptor (pictured below). He's got such purty blue eyes! ^-^ This mount looks fairly similar to the Venomhide Ravasaur mount obtainable by Horde characters for completing the quest They Grow Up So Fast.

Black Primal Raptor (thanks Reinoverall for posing for me!)

Primal Eggs can also be obtained from a couple of other sources outside of farming dinosaurs. The Shiny Pile of Refuse that drops from Oondasta, and Treasures of the Thunder King (from bosses in Throne of Thunder)  also have a small chance to contain an egg.

Ultimately, I really do like all of these new raptor mounts. Yes, even the Red Primal Raptor. As someone who plays predominantly Alliance, it's nice to have some more choices when it comes to raptor models now. I also love the fact that they are unarmored and feather-free. Don't get me wrong, some of the armored ones look fantastic - it's just that I REALLY like the less-frilly look.