When you first venture into the Vale of Eternal Blossoms, it’s hard to miss the majestic-looking cloud serpent known as Alani. As a rare, you’ll notice an interesting debuff called Nimbus Shroud inhibiting you from attacking her. No matter where you are in the Vale, you’re bound to run into her as she flies around the entire zone if you stay in one place long enough.

Alani

Loh-Ki is a lone NPC who may be found at the top of Ruins Rise. As you approach, he appears to be in a deep meditative state although he is happy to share the tale of the Vale when asked.

Legends tell of a great battle that took place in this very vale, turning the golden fields to crimson with the blood of many brave monks. The armies of Lei Shen the Thunder King, emperor of the mugu, fought brutally, but were eventually overcome. For days following the fall of Lei Shen, the vale was shrouded in a cloud of the deepest black. Summoned by Lei Shen in his final moments, the otherworldly storm blanketed the vale with rainfall and struck jagged spears of lightning into the hills. The blood of of the fallen was washed away by the storm and carried to Whitepetal lake, turning the waters to a deep red. With it’s final breath, the storm struck the centre of the lake, igniting the very water itself. The lake burned with a crimson hue for many days. When the blaze subsided, a cloud serpent hatching could be seen flying around the centre of the lake. It’s scales sparked with storm and fire, and where it flew, great clouds of formed in the sky. My people named it Alani, the Stormborn.

People who have read George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series or watched Game of Thrones will immediately recognise the references to Daenarys Targaryan – the mother of dragons or Daenerys Stormborn.

Alani flies very close to both capital cities so it will be interesting when people start engaging her on live. There is also a quest that references her child Milau as you progress through the Golden Lotus dailies.

To interact with this beauty, you will need to create a Sky Crystal fused from ten skyshards. Without it, you won’t be able to remove the cloudy protections of Alani. The shards drop from level 90 quest mobs (both normal and elite), particularly in the Vale but appear to drop from other areas as well. She drops the Thundering Ruby Cloud Serpent when killed.