How to play WoW Forever: a beginner's guide to your first steps

What do you need to play WoW Forever?

A WoW subscription or Game Time is the whole entry fee. Shop upgrades only add extras like Skyborne, early name reservation and cosmetics.

Getting started, step by step

1. Install it through the Battle.net app

Forever runs on Windows and Mac and installs through the Battle.net desktop app. The live game can't be installed before November 4, so until then upgrade owners only get the beta client. Keep 128 GB free on an SSD.

2. Pick your region

There are no realms, but regions still exist: Americas & Oceania, Europe, Korea and Taiwan. WoW has no Global Play, so characters stay in their region. Check the Region / Account menu above the Play button before you make anyone.

3. Choose a ruleset instead of a realm

You pick Normal (PvP only when both players opt in), PvP (open-world fighting) or Roleplaying. Hardcore arrives after launch. There's no free ruleset hopping; to play on another one, you roll a new character there.

4. Pick a first and last name

Names have two parts and the surname is required. Names are unique region-wide, so one taken on RP is gone on PvP too. Any upgrade lets you reserve names for up to 3 characters from October 27 to November 3.

5. Faction, race and class

Horde and Alliance still can't group, so match your friends. Six race and class combos are new: Gnome Priest, Human Hunter, Dwarf Shaman, Orc Mage, Troll Warlock and Undead Paladin. Skyborne pick a side at creation: Horde side gets Shaman, Alliance side gets Mage.

6. Classic or Enhanced on first launch

First launch asks you to pick Classic or Enhanced. Classic turns off quest tracking and transmog, though appearances still get collected.

7. Starting zones and leveling

Each race starts in its classic home zone, and spots like Valley of Trials and Shadowglen got new quests and NPCs. Skyborne start on Zephras Isle (levels 1–12). The cap is 60 and a normal mob still takes about 10–15 seconds to kill solo.

First dungeons: The Hall of Thanes (13–18) and Ruins of Lordaeron (15–20). One difficulty only, no heroic mode.

Systems new players should know

Legacy

Legacy Challenges award account-wide Legacy Points, which each character spends in its Professions, Adventure and Resourcefulness trees, up to 16 at launch. The Well Rested perk boosts how fast rested XP builds and how much you can bank.

Camping and professions

Campsites give rest, vendors, repairs, profession stations and 1-hour buffs. Professions get 600+ new recipes, and most food adds a small XP buff.

Mounts

The gold goes into riding training now, and you get a mount when you learn it. No flying.

Addons and built-in tools

Addons work, with the Midnight API's in-combat restrictions. A built-in damage meter and Cooldown Manager cover the basics without them.

WoW Forever dates

FAQ