Save me Kevin Costner.

I’m late to the game as far as garrison bodyguards go. I just never felt like I needed one. That’s the beauty of rolling as a Death Knight. You kill things. Things don’t kill you.

The true sweetness of using bodyguards is unlocking their level three ability. Leorajh, for example, becomes a mobile garrison mission table. Now that’s pretty damn handy, which is why I decided that I’d have him bodyguard Deathrokk while he worked on the Draenor flying meta achievement.

The dps that a bodyguard brings to the table isn’t anything to sneeze at either. Three thousand more dps is three thousand more than you had before. Unless you’re running with Delvar Ironfist (Alliance) or Vivianne (Horde). Viv is a beast from what I’ve heard. She/he is the kind of tandem you want rolling with you when you’re leveling up through Draenor.

I’ve got a  level 91 warrior that I may take to 100 and use to score another gold garrison before Blizzard closes up the factory. Picking up a bodyguard would be a nice change to running solo. So once Deathrokk finishes up his Flying meta achievement, I may bust out the warrior and use the steps below to buff up a bodyguard to becomes some kind of useful.

1. Build the Barracks – You automatically start with this one.
2. Find a follower with the Bodyguard trait – Vivianne is one of the first quests you get after establishing your garrison. You’re sent to Ashran, visit some of the locals, and then you get Viv as a follower. If she’s really the dps machine as advertised, life’s about to get much more interesting.
3. Talador – You’ll probably be around level 94 by the time you get the garrison quest that sends you to Talador. Your bodyguard will become useful very soon.
4. Follow the Chain – Once in Talador, follow the quest chain that rewards the Comprehensive Outpost Construction Guide and follower Miall / Morketh Bladehowl. The quest series are relatively similar across factions:

• The Quarry Quandary
• In Ared’s Memory/ Unleashed Steel
• Out of Jovite
• Iridium Recovery
• Gas Guzzlers
• Going to the Gordunni
• Dropping Bombs
• Supply Recovery, Prized Repossessions, Punching Through
• The Lord of the Gordunni
• The Only Way to Travel

5. Get the Plan, Man – Once you have the guide, fly back to Ashran and exchange it for the Level Two Barracks Blueprints. Once the prints are in your bag, learn them.
6. Start Building – Go back to your garrison, open the architect table, and upgrade the Barracks.
7. Hire Your Muscle – Once the Barracks is upgraded take the bodyguard follower (Vivianne in this case, or anyone else you have at this point who happens to have the Bodyguard trait) and click the ( + ) to assign them to the barracks. Go to the barracks and this new follower should be chilling out front. Click on them and chose “I need some muscle”.

That’s it. Oh, wait there’s one more thing.

8. You Know About Shrinkage, Right? – There’s nothing more annoying than trying to loot a corpse and repeatedly click on your bodyguard. You can fix that by purchasing a “Bodyguard Miniaturization Device” for 250 garrison resources. The vendor will be in your barracks. Clicking on this will shrink your bodyguard for an hour, letting them roll out the deeps while not being a nuisance.