Congratulations to Iron Yogurt for reaching max level, making them our 1st The War Within Iron Team Challenge champions! Iron Yogurt comprises of Hammeriron, a Orc Hunter and Ironrumble, a Orc Shaman. 
Here is their story:
What names should we use for you both in this blogpost?
You can refer to me as Hammer.
I’m Rumble and I played IronRumble for this challenge. My main character is a Night Elf Druid named Rumblerawr, Alliance side, who began as a Darkspear Troll during the Cataclysm. I changed factions recently when I moved servers to play with friends because Stormrage NA is an Alliance dominant server, my Troll became NE Not that any of that matters these days.
What was the /played time for your character?
My character, Hammeriron, clocked in at 1 day, 20 hours, 21 minutes, and 3 seconds.
Ironrumble-Stormrage /played 1 day, 18 hours, 45 minutes, 0 seconds.
Is this your first max-level challengers?
Yes, this is my first max-level challenger character.
Ironrumble-Stormrage NA is my first max-level challenger.
Why did you choose this challenge to play?
We were playing the Classic Anniversary and wanted to try something different. My wife suggested we level in Retail with a Classic-style approach. I remembered reading about the Iron Challenge and thought it sounded like a fun and unique test of our skills.
We all know there is a bit of a resting period between seasons in Retail, we went over and experienced Classic Anniversary, but that failed to keep our attention. For me, I was there (insert titanic meme ‘it’s been 84 years’) when it was Vanilla and the nostalgia turns to “I miss my QoL changes!” xD Getting back on Retail, our guild is quiet during this between seasons lull and while I have slowly been grinding out the Meta Achieve for Battle for Azeroth (Jani was my favorite Loa!). Hammer and I wanted something to do together and to keep us entertained and a break from another grind. We were brainstorming and I had mentioned, what if we made brand new toons in Retail, but pretended like it was classic and restricted ourselves to certain criteria? He said, ‘hm.’ A little while later he informed me about your challenges and that there was an Iron Team Challenge!
What race/class/spec did you and your teammate choose, and why?
I went with a Hunter because it’s the class I’m most familiar with. The simple rotation and the ability to have pets tank damage made it a solid choice. My wife, Rumble, chose a Shaman, likely for its versatility and healing abilities.
Ook, so here’s how that duo was born – I assessed that the two were both Mail wearers. The Hunter would have a tanking pet and the Shaman would get heal spells and Lust in their toolkits regardless of what spec. Hammer chose to go Beast Master Hunter because he has mained that class and spec before, I chose the Enhancement Shaman. It felt very strong and gave me an opportunity to hit things because the Hunter spells are so fast, waiting to cast as Elemental left me wanting. I always take a shine to Horde side characters and the Orcs have a decent racial and we both love the /whoa emote and we wanted to level together so we both chose the same race. Since Stormrage NA is a dominantly Alliance server it also gave us an opportunity to not feel crowded or rushed in the Alliance towns and leveling questing areas.
What path did you take to level, and why? 
We started as Level 1 Orcs in Durotar and then moved to the Northern Barrens. After that, we ventured into Ashenvale since it’s mostly Horde-controlled now. From there, we sailed to Northern Stranglethorn and decided to backtrack through starter zones, completing quests in Mulgore and Tirisfal Glades.
Rumble wisely reminded me that the portal to Undercity could lead to disaster since it’s destroyed, so we took a flight path from Stranglethorn to Brill instead. Afterward, we leveled in Silverpine Forest before moving into The War Within zones at 70. We hit Level 80 while turning in Critical Pressure. That fight was intense—we used all our cooldowns and Bloodlust. Dying at 79 would have been heartbreaking!
We chose to level in the Valley of Trials versus the new leveling zone that requires you to do a dungeon instance as part of the tutorial. When it was time to choose a timeline we went with the Cataclysm for that Classic flavor we were going for and the Retail QoL we missed so much in the Anniversary Classic Classic. Once we started a zone we did try to complete it as much as we felt possible without putting the achievement at risk. Durotar, including Echo Isles, into Northern Barrens through the quest lines that bring you to the Crossroads and then on into Ashenvale. In Ashenvale we did the major Horde side quest lines and the Zoram strand, but we steered clear of Maestra’s Post and the road into Darkshore. We took the Zeppelin from Orgrimmar to Grom’gol in Stranglethorn where we quested the entire zone, skipping the little raptor quest in Bambala – going into Zul’Gurub is nothing to be casual about. Wrapping things up with Hemet Nesingwary’s hunt, we did a large amount of the quests in Hardwrench Hideaway, but I believe Hammer has mentioned those Goblins and their “100% reliable, maybe?” inventions and gadgets definitely give you a pause when death isn’t just an inconvenience. As we approached level 50 and then onward to 60 we really needed to begin strategizing for survival knowing that the item level of the gear allowed would cap at 60 and item level 362, weapons capped at 60 and 322 (as far as I could find). Hammer had an amazing idea to scout out the beginning zones for the other Horde races so we went on an adventure! First to Mulgore, homeland of the Tauren, starting in Bloodhoof Village we completed the majority of the zone and then headed back across the great sea this time by boat from Ratchet (where we also quested and told those pirates what was what). We then took the flight path from Booty Bay on into Brill because I was sure that seeing as we had not max leveled and were in the Cataclysm timeline that portal was dangerous and have been resurrected far too many times in different lifetimes at the Brill Graveyard and I was not taking any chances. There weren’t any quests for us in Tirisfal Glades Undead starting zone, so we moved into Silverpine and quested there until finally reaching level 71 when Chromie sent us back to the current time line and Thrall asked us to use the teleportation scroll and meet him in Silithus. I reminded Hammer frequently that ‘slow and steady wins the race’. The struggle is real when you get so close to the end and the xp bar slows down to a crawl. We stuck it out and stayed calm and collected in Khaz Algar although anticipation and excitement tried to get the better of us. We patiently went from World Quest to Bonus Objective whilst questing as safely as possible. We were able to complete a few of the more dangerous quests on the list of ones you may want to avoid during an Iron Man challenge, because we are an Iron Team and were able to make light work of them, together.
Did you have any close calls while leveling?
A few! But with Rumble’s healing and our careful use of cooldowns, we managed to stay alive. Our motto was always “slow and steady.” Anytime we sold items to a vendor, one of us would joke, “I’m selling” or “I’m using your vendor.”
Interestingly, this wasn’t our first challenger team. We initially created a team called We Go Moo, Level 1 Taurens. Unfortunately, we lost that run at Level 27 when Rumble accidentally equipped a green item. Our second attempt ended during a Wrath timeline leveling session when we accidentally pulled too many mobs at a farm.
We most certainly did, there were a few moments where Hammer’s turtle Koopa sadly perished, I shifted gears and spammed out some Healing Surge and Healing Stream Totem until our shelled friend was revived. Sometimes I would pull aggro and panic would ensue, but fast reactions and learning when NOT to dps can be a vital nugget of knowledge! We also played it very safe, if the quest seemed dangerous or the mob had too many hard hitting abilities we just avoided it and didn’t take any chances. The entire time during the challenge there is a tense awareness that getting too comfortable could bring it all crashing down. This will definitely keep you on your toes and those close calls need a few moments to recover from and slow you down right away.
Do you have any advice for aspiring Iron Team challengers?
Beware of goblin quests—don’t trust anyone asking you to “test” something for them!
Use the forums for quest and mob warnings, but remember those lists are guidelines, not absolutes. If you trust your team, you can tackle more challenging content.
Work together and take it slow. The motto “slow and steady” is key.
Visit the auction house often to pre-purchase upgrades—it gives you goals beyond leveling.
Don’t be afraid to revisit starter zones. With maxed-out greys, you’ll have a 55% damage reduction and can nearly one-shot mobs.
Try playing without addons if you use any for an additional challenge!
If you’re using your mount to repair/sell stuff, make sure you opened the vendor before you right click (that’s how I equipped that green in our first attempt with our Taurens).
I chose to do this challenge with ZERO addons, this ensured I didn’t accidentally use guild repairs, nothing would be auto-equipped or miss anything due to ui errors etc. It also kept me on my toes because I wasn’t depending on GTFO to warn me if I was standing in bad. I needed to keep my attention on the task at hand.
Keep good communication, take breaks, stay hydrated and well fed (irl only) because it can become tedious. Make sure your partner is after similar goals and you both have similar strategies going in. If your partner is a ‘Leroy Jenkins’ type I wouldn’t recommend this challenge.
Use cooldowns on cooldowns and defensives when needed.
The auction house, once you have some money under your belt, is a very good idea. Know what you’re shopping, these items are grey and white, use the filter tools to help you find the best items for the best prices. Do not let those price gouging take all your precious golds and don’t be afraid to stock up on future levels, your options are limited and the gear caps at level 60 item level 362.
Most importantly, have fun and press W! Take all things in moderation, even WoW Challenges!
Are you planning any future challenges?
We’re thinking about trying the Green Team challenge next. After Iron, it might feel like a breeze with access to greens and whites.
I might be convinced to try Green Team, it might feel like cheating after Iron Team! I’m excited and empowered to try more challenges and look forward to it! Thanks again for the ideas and platform to, not only complete it and provide the guidelines but, celebrate our achievement along with us! \o/ <3
Congratulations once again to Iron Yogurt on becoming our 1st The War Within Iron Team Challenge champions, and best of luck with your future challenge adventures.