WoW PvP Weekly Grind: Reset & Rewards Explained

In World of Warcraft, the PvP weekly grind resets every Tuesday during weekly maintenance, and your progress toward the weekly Conquest cap, Honor rewards, and the Vicious War Cycle is recalculated at that time. You earn Conquest from rated PvP (arenas, battlegrounds, and solo shuffle) up to a weekly cap, and Honor from all PvP activities, which is uncapped but resets in the sense that the weekly quests and vault progress refresh. This article explains exactly how the reset works, what rewards you get, and how to make the most of your weekly PvP time.

Formula

The core calculation is simple: Conquest remaining = Weekly cap − Conquest earned so far. The cap itself is not a fixed number; it starts at a base value (often around 1,500 for the first week of a season) and grows by a fixed amount each week (for example, +250 per week) until it reaches a seasonal maximum. The formula for the cap on any given week is:

Cap = Base cap + (Week number − 1) × Weekly growth

Where:

• Base cap – the cap in week 1 of the season (varies by patch, typically 1,500–2,000).
• Week number – the number of the current season week (1, 2, 3, …).
• Weekly growth – the amount the cap increases each week (usually 250–300).

The calculator above lets you estimate how many hours you need to reach the cap based on your current progress and average Conquest per hour. The “Conquest per hour” output is simply the remaining Conquest divided by your planned playtime.

Worked Example

Suppose it’s week 4 of the season. The base cap is 1,500 and weekly growth is 250, so the cap is 1,500 + (4−1)×250 = 1,500 + 750 = 2,250. You have already earned 800 Conquest this week. You plan to play 5 hours. Using the calculator:

1. Enter Playtime = 5 hours.
2. Enter Current Conquest earned = 800.
3. Enter Weekly Conquest cap = 2,250.
4. The calculator shows Conquest remaining = 2,250 − 800 = 1,450.
5. Conquest per hour = 1,450 / 5 = 290 Conquest per hour.

That means you need to average 290 Conquest per hour to hit the cap in your 5-hour session. Rated arena wins give roughly 150–250 Conquest per win (depending on rating and bracket), so this is achievable if you win consistently.

Background: How the Weekly Reset Works

WoW’s weekly reset occurs every Tuesday at the same time in each region (e.g., 7:00 AM PST for NA, 7:00 AM CET for EU). At that moment, several PvP-related things happen:

• Your Conquest cap is updated to the new weekly value (if the season is still ramping up).
• Your Conquest earned counter resets to 0, so you can earn a fresh batch.
• The Great Vault (the weekly chest) becomes claimable for the previous week’s progress, and a new week begins.
• Weekly quests such as “A Call to Battle” (win 4 battlegrounds) or “Supply from the Front” (earn 1,000 Honor) reset.
• The Vicious War Cycle progress (the seasonal mount/achievement track) does not reset, but your weekly contribution toward it does.

Honor itself is not capped; you can farm it endlessly. However, the weekly quests that reward Honor are once per week, and the Great Vault requires Conquest or Honor earned during that specific week.

Rewards: What You Actually Get

Your weekly PvP rewards come from three main sources:

• Conquest gear – You buy gear from the PvP vendor using Conquest points. Each piece has a cost (e.g., 1,600 for a weapon, 1,200 for a chest). The weekly cap limits how fast you can get this gear, so you can’t fully gear in one week.
• Great Vault – At the end of the week, the Vault offers one PvP item based on your best weekly performance. Winning 1, 3, 5, and 7 rated matches gives you 1, 2, 3, and 4 choices respectively. The item level scales with your rating (e.g., 1,600 rating gives a higher ilvl than 1,400).
• Honor gear – Honor is used to buy lower-ilvl PvP gear and upgrades for Conquest gear. It’s uncapped, so you can grind it all week, but the gear is a stepping stone, not the end goal.

Additionally, the Vicious War Cycle (the seasonal PvP track) gives you cosmetic rewards, gold, and eventually a mount at a certain rating. This track does not reset weekly, but you earn progress by winning rated matches.

How to Choose Your Weekly Goals

Not every player needs to hit the Conquest cap. Your goals should depend on your time and rating:

• Casual player (1–2 hours/week) – Focus on winning 1 rated match to get 1 Great Vault choice. That’s the highest value per time spent.
• Regular player (3–5 hours/week) – Aim for 3 wins (2 Vault choices) and try to earn as much Conquest as possible, but don’t stress about the cap.
• Hardcore player (10+ hours/week) – Hit the cap every week to maximize gear progression. Also complete weekly Honor quests for extra Honor.

Remember that the Conquest cap increases weekly, so if you fall behind, you can catch up later because the cap is cumulative in the sense that you can earn up to the current cap, but you can’t earn more than the cap in a single week. In practice, the cap is designed so that you can’t get fully geared in one week, but you can catch up over several weeks.

Common Problems and Misconceptions

Here are the most frequent questions players have about the weekly grind:

• “I didn’t get my Conquest cap reset!” – The cap resets, but the number you see in the UI might not change if you had already earned less than the new cap. The cap is a maximum, not a target you must reach.
• “Can I earn Conquest from unranked battlegrounds?” – No, only rated PvP (arena, battlegrounds, solo shuffle) gives Conquest. Unranked gives Honor only.
• “Does my rating affect the cap?” – No, the cap is the same for all players. Rating affects the item level of gear you can buy and the Great Vault rewards, not the cap.
• “If I don’t play for a month, do I lose the cap?” – No, the cap continues to increase weekly. When you return, you can earn up to the current cap, but you can’t earn the missed weeks’ worth in one go – you still have the same weekly limit.

Comparison: PvP vs PvE Weekly Grind

PvP and PvE weekly grinds are similar in structure but differ in pacing and rewards:

• PvP – Conquest cap is a hard limit; you can’t farm more than the cap per week. Gear item level is tied to your rating, so you must improve to get better gear.
• PvE – Mythic+ dungeons have an unlimited loot chance (with diminishing returns), but the Great Vault requires 1, 4, 8, and 10 runs for 1–4 choices. Raid bosses drop loot once per week per difficulty.

PvP is generally faster to gear if you win consistently, but the cap prevents you from out-gearing everyone. PvE allows unlimited farming but each boss/dungeon has a weekly lockout. Many players do both to fill the Great Vault faster.

Costs and Time Investment

The main “cost” of the PvP weekly grind is time. Here’s a rough estimate of what you’ll need:

• Great Vault (1 choice) – 1 rated win, usually 10–20 minutes in arena, 20–40 minutes in rated battlegrounds.
• Great Vault (4 choices) – 7 rated wins, which could take 2–4 hours depending on win rate.
• Conquest cap (full) – If you win 50% of matches, expect 8–12 hours of rated PvP in a week. That’s a significant time commitment.

There’s no gold cost for PvP gear beyond the initial purchase (which uses Conquest, not gold). Honor upgrades cost Honor, which you earn from any PvP activity. The only real cost is your time, so plan accordingly.

Safety and Accuracy Notes

The numbers in this article (base cap, growth, item costs) are based on typical WoW season patterns and may change with each patch. Always check the in-game UI for the exact current cap and costs. The calculator above uses the formula you input, so it’s accurate for your numbers, but the cap value you enter must come from the game. Don’t rely on third-party sites for the cap; use the in-game Conquest tab or the Great Vault tooltip.

Frequently Asked Questions

When exactly does the weekly reset happen? The reset is every Tuesday at 7:00 AM PST (10:00 AM EST) for NA, and 7:00 AM CET for EU. Your region’s reset time is fixed, and it’s the same for PvP and PvE.

Can I earn Conquest after hitting the cap? No, you cannot earn more Conquest once you hit the cap. The game stops awarding it, and you’ll see a message that you’ve reached the cap. You can still earn Honor and rating.

Does the Conquest cap carry over if I don’t play? No, the cap resets to the new weekly value. If you don’t play, you don’t accumulate “unused” cap. You just have a fresh cap the next week.

What’s the fastest way to earn Conquest? Solo shuffle and 2v2 arenas tend to give the most Conquest per hour because matches are short and you get Conquest for wins (and sometimes for losses in shuffle). Rated battlegrounds give more per win but take longer.

Do I need a high rating to get good rewards? Yes, the item level of Great Vault rewards and the ability to upgrade Honor gear to higher ilvls depends on your rating. A rating of 1,800 gives better gear than 1,400. The Conquest cap is the same, but the gear quality scales.

Can I do the PvP weekly grind on multiple characters? Yes, each character has its own Conquest cap and Great Vault. If you have alts, you can grind on each, but the time investment multiplies. Many players focus on one main for PvP.

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in t | Playtime (hours) | h | 5 | 0 | 168
in c | Current Conquest earned | - | 0 | 0 | 10000
in cap | Weekly Conquest cap | - | 1500 | 0 | 10000
out rem | Conquest remaining | - | cap - c | 0
out perh | Conquest per hour | /h | (cap - c) / t | 1