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Step 1
Hit level 80. You cannot zone into Naxxramas below level 80. Even if you could, you wouldn’t want to. Naxxramas presents some very real challenges, not the least of which is gear. You must have a decent gear level and skills to enter Naxxramas and walk out alive.
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Step 2
Read up on your class. While recent nerfs (reductions in difficulty) to the game have made raiding easier than ever for casual players, it is still vitally important to know your class well before you enter a raid such as Naxxramas. Read some blogs, troll the WoW forums, check out ElitistJerks; do whatever you have to in order to become intimately familiar with your class.
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Step 3
Gear up. You can’t just hit level 80 and expect to get invited to a Naxxramas run. While you will probably have run some instances (dungeons) before you hit level 80, you will need a minimum level of gear to run Naxx successfully. This varies by class, but running at least a few higher-level instances such as Halls of Lightning and Caverns of Time: Culling of Stratholme is strongly recommended.
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Step 4
Run some Heroics. Not only will Heroic-difficulty instances prepare you for the realities of raiding, they will get you a lot of good loot. While being decked out in Heroic gear is not a prerequisite for a successful Naxx run, it goes a long way toward making raids less painful. While not all Heroic Dungeons will be useful for certain classes, Emblems of Heroism can be used to purchase quality gear for all classes.
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Step 5
Do your homework. Raiding is quite a bit different from normal instancing. Boss fights are more complex and require a greater degree of teamwork and situational awareness. Knowing where you are and where you should be is absolutely essential. Researching boss fights before you go is also very important to ensure you are being as beneficial to the raid as possible. Many of the bosses in Naxxramas have complex strategies that are difficult to learn simply by reading about them or being told about them. Specifically, Heigan the Unclean, has a dance that must be performed exactly if you wish to survive the fight. Check www.wowwiki.com and YouTube for boss strategies and videos.
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Step 6
Be prepared. Make sure your gear is repaired, you’re stocked on consumables (reagents, potions, water, food, flasks, etc) and that you are on-time. Simply being read to go at the appointed time goes a long way toward a successful raid.
