What's new in WoW: Forever

Launch and the beta

1. WoW: Forever launches on November 4, 2026. It is its own game, separate from retail WoW and Classic Era.
2. The beta runs from September 17 to October 21, 2026 in two phases: Phase 1 capped at level 20, Phase 2 (from October 1) at level 30. Blizzard has said the beta stops at 30.
3. Beta access was a free opt-in with no guaranteed spot. The Skyborne Epic Pack and the Warcraft Forever Collection guarantee a spot.
4. Beta characters don't carry over to launch. Use the beta to try classes and learn the new dungeons.

Rulesets, not realms

There is no realm list. You pick a ruleset when you make a character, and you can't change it later.

What rulesets change for you

1. You can only group, trade and mail with characters on the same ruleset and the same faction.
2. Battlegrounds can mix players from Normal, PvP and Roleplaying (not Hardcore).
3. Your collections and Legacy points are shared across Normal, PvP and Roleplaying.
4. Characters have two names instead of one, since there are no realms to keep names unique.
5. Ask your guild which ruleset it plays on before you level a character.

Playing with other people

1. No shared mob tagging: like Classic, the first player or group to hit a monster gets the kill. Group up to share it.
2. Recent Allies: players you grouped with get a special name colour when you meet them again, so it's easy to group again.
3. Campfires: build a camp that holds up to three crafted objects. Each profession's object gives a buff that lasts one hour. Camps are meant to be a place where players gather.

Characters and classes

1. A new race, the Skyborne, can join either faction. See The Skyborne and Zephras Isle.
2. Six new race and class pairs: Dwarf Shaman, Undead Paladin, Human Hunter, Orc Mage, Troll Warlock and Gnome Priest.
3. Every race now has two active and two passive racial abilities.
4. Talents have been reworked, with new talents arriving in Phase 2 and many old buff talents now built into the class.

Legacy points (account-wide)

1. Legacy is an account-wide system with three trees: Professions, Adventure and Resourcefulness.
2. You start with 16 of 65 points at launch and set them up per character.
3. Choices include a bigger rested experience cap, more scarce materials, or no reagents for spells.

Gear and items

1. Hit and critical strike chance are now one stat for all attacks. Expertise has been added.
2. Caster weapons carry bonus spell damage, and trinkets are now unique.
3. Some items work better against certain creature types or in certain kinds of zones.
4. Over 600 new recipes. Food got small experience buffs and longer durations.
5. Transmog: appearances from soulbound dungeon loot unlock for everyone in the group (not epic raid loot). You can turn transmog off.
6. Mounts cost about what they did in The Burning Crusade: the riding skill is the main cost.

New dungeons

Level ranges from the beta and early guides. Only some are open in the beta.

Tips

• New zones too: Zephras Isle (Skyborne start, 1 to 12), Riverglades (about 35 to 45) and Shen'dralas.
• Find a group for the new dungeons on the Dungeon Finder.

Sources

• Icy Veins: Rulesets replace realms
• Icy Veins: No shared mob tagging
• Massively OP: BlizzCon 2026 deep dive panel
• Icy Veins: Phase 2 of the beta
• Warcraft Tavern: Forever dungeons