Before we get this blog post a-startedddd, let’s get this out of the way. This particular part of the game has been re-tuned roughly a dozen times since it’s hit the servers, and it’s only been live for 3 weeks. I’m going to discuss in general terms so hopefully it stays relatively accurate for a while, but don’t be surprised if it’s the exact opposite from what I say here if you’re reading this from far in the future. Also, don’t get all pissy because I got 70 XP and you got 75 XP for the same freaking THING Liopleurodon, you SCREECHING NOOB, GOD. Clear?
Alright.
When 5.2 dropped, among other fantastic pet developments, Blizzard also added the ability to get player XP through pet battles. Like everything else in the game, this can be very quirky.
There are a few rules of thumb which have stayed consistent thus far.
1 – *ALL* the pets on your team must be within 3 levels of the pet you’re killing in order to get XP. Yes, even if you just have your level 25 terrible turnip in the back row just in case and never ever use him, your character will not get XP.
2 – You must win the fight or you don’t gain any XP, even if you kill or trap a couple pets before you lose. This also applies in PVP.
3 – The amount of XP is dependent both on your level and the level of the pets you’re fighting. This post has been a wall of text with no pictures, so here’s a level 2, 15, and 85 characters fighting the same level (ie, lvl 2) pets:
So, the XP you get is dependent on your character’s level. But, it’s also dependent on the level of the pets you’re fighting, AND the level of your pets vs the pets you’re fighting. From here on out, we’ll use the level 85, because flying mounts are a thing.
I got 5.9K xp using my level 3s against level 2s. In the next screenshot, I used level 25s and a level 24 against a level 23, and in the following one, I kept them all at or below the level of the pets I was fighting.
The interesting part here though, is that it seems like there’s only so high you can go with XP. For level 85s, you will get a maximum of 87,149. The range of pet levels you’re capped out seems fairly wide.
Yes, you do get XP from tamer battles too.
To contrast Major Payne’s 25s, I was fighting 18s in Hellfire Peninsula, which is a couple dozen levels beyond gray mobs for a level 85. The gap may be even larger though. I didn’t get a chance to do further testing, as in the process of pet fighting, a fel reaver sneaked up on my poor little unplayed alt.
You may want to send flowers.
BattlePetRoundup.com 
I still can’t decide whether this is a viable way to level – I tried it but there was too much running around for my liking. Still, I’ve been enjoying it when the option arises!
I don’t think it’s viable per se, but it gives a reason to do pet battles as you level. Before the change they were a fun diversion as you leveled, but largely pointless unless you find a super rare pet that some level 90 wasn’t camping (and really, when does THAT ever happen). Now, it’s a bit less than you’d get killing an even-level mob, and takes a while even when you’re stomping the yard with high level pets. I’m not sure whether guild perks, monk XP bonuses or heirlooms apply, but you definitely don’t get any extra rested XP.
Of course, this doesn’t count the time for like a day when they were bugged out and you could hit level 89 in 8 hours or whatever.
i think 85-90 might be viable, 89-90 took me 3hr 15m in vo4w using 2 pets with devour and 1 flying pet, 80-85% of pets you come up against will be critter.
– miss out on gear but you can buy pvp gear at 90 to boost ilvl
– lack of gold from quests, drops
+ Flawless and critter battle stone
+ Pet battles are more fun
i have 11 90’s next goal 22 : )
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