Your race is the first decision you make in WoW Forever and the hardest one to undo. This guide won't crown a "best race", because nobody knows yet: the game isn't out and most racials were only seen in the BlizzCon demo. What it will do is help you narrow things down fast and show which racials matter for what you want to play. Every data point comes from our race pages, sources included.
Quick answer
Decide in this order:
- Faction. Horde and Alliance can't group up under any ruleset. If you're playing with friends, their faction decides.
- Class. Not every race can play every class. Paladins are limited to three races and Druids to four.
- Racials. Blizzard says they're tuned to give similar offensive power; the real difference is utility (breaking a stun, gliding, regenerating mana).
- Looks and starting zone. You'll stare at this character for hundreds of hours. Torn between two? Pick the one you like looking at.
Still can't decide? Let the race and class randomizer choose for you.
All 10 WoW Forever races and their classes
Forever has Classic's eight races plus the Skyborne, who count twice because they pick a faction at character creation. Classes in bold are ones that race couldn't play in Classic.
| Race | Faction | Classes | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Human | Alliance | Warrior, Paladin, Hunter, Rogue, Priest, Mage, Warlock | 7 |
| Dwarf | Alliance | Warrior, Paladin, Hunter, Rogue, Priest, Shaman | 6 |
| Night Elf | Alliance | Warrior, Hunter, Rogue, Priest, Druid | 5 |
| Gnome | Alliance | Warrior, Rogue, Mage, Warlock, Priest | 5 |
| Skyborne (High Order) | Alliance | Warrior, Hunter, Rogue, Druid, Mage | 5 (new race) |
| Orc | Horde | Warrior, Hunter, Rogue, Shaman, Warlock, Mage | 6 |
| Undead (Forsaken) | Horde | Warrior, Rogue, Priest, Mage, Warlock, Paladin | 6 |
| Tauren | Horde | Warrior, Hunter, Shaman, Druid | 4 |
| Troll | Horde | Warrior, Hunter, Rogue, Priest, Shaman, Mage, Warlock | 7 |
| Skyborne (Windshapers) | Horde | Warrior, Hunter, Rogue, Druid, Shaman | 5 (new race) |
Humans and Trolls are the most flexible, with seven classes each. Tauren are the most restricted. The full matrix, with icons, is on the races page.
Racials at a glance
Blizzard confirmed that every race has two active and two passive racials. It has only published official details for Dwarves and Undead; the rest were seen in the demo and reported by Wowhead and Method. Expect changes once the beta opens on September 17.
| Race | Active | Passive |
|---|---|---|
| Human | Will to Survive, Perception | Sword Specialization, The Human Spirit |
| Dwarf | Stoneform, Find Treasure | Mace Specialization, Big Game Hunter |
| Night Elf | Elune's Light, Shadowmeld | Quickness, Wisp Spirit |
| Gnome | Escape Artist, Eureka! | Expansive Mind, Engineering Specialization |
| Skyborne (High Order) | Walk on Air, Read Ley Line | Wind Blessed, Elemental Insight |
| Orc | Blood Fury, Shatter Curse | Axe Specialization, Hardiness |
| Undead | Will of the Forsaken, Cannibalize | Underwater Breathing, Touch of the Grave |
| Tauren | War Stomp, Cultivation | Plainsrunning, Endurance |
| Troll | Berserking, Rapid Regeneration | Beast Slaying, Regeneration |
| Skyborne (Windshapers) | Walk on Air, Skysight | Wind Blessed, Elemental Insight |
What each one does, with icons, is in the "All racials" table on the races page.
Pick your race by class
Once you know your class, the list gets much shorter. Here's what each class allows in Forever:
| Class | Alliance | Horde |
|---|---|---|
| Warrior | All | All |
| Paladin | Human, Dwarf | Undead |
| Hunter | Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Skyborne | Orc, Tauren, Troll, Skyborne |
| Rogue | Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome, Skyborne | Orc, Undead, Troll, Skyborne |
| Priest | Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome | Undead, Troll |
| Shaman | Dwarf | Orc, Tauren, Troll, Skyborne |
| Mage | Human, Gnome, Skyborne | Orc, Undead, Troll |
| Warlock | Human, Gnome | Orc, Undead, Troll |
| Druid | Night Elf, Skyborne | Tauren, Skyborne |
A few things worth knowing per class, based on the racials as they currently stand in our data:
- Paladin. For the first time, both factions have Paladins. On the Horde side it's Undead only, and they also get their own questline and an epic level 60 mount. Dwarves bring Mace Specialization (more crit with a mace) and Stoneform, which now reduces Physical damage. Humans bring Sword Specialization.
- Shaman. Dwarves are the only Alliance option. The Horde has four; Windshapers Skyborne are the only ones with Wind Blessed (+1% haste).
- Druid. Skyborne get their own bear, cat, bird travel and moonkin forms. Night Elves bring Elune's Light (+10% crit for 15 sec) and Shadowmeld; Tauren bring War Stomp and Endurance (+5% health and +1% hit).
- Mage and Warlock. Mages have three races per faction; Warlocks have two on the Alliance side and three on the Horde side. The Orc's Blood Fury also boosts Spell Power, the Troll's Berserking speeds up casting, the Gnome's Eureka! makes your next three spells cheaper and stronger, and Expansive Mind adds 5% maximum mana. The High Order Skyborne's Read Ley Line doubles health and mana regeneration.
- Priest. Gnome is the new Alliance option. If running out of mana worries you, look at The Human Spirit (+5% Spirit), Expansive Mind (Gnome) and Cannibalize (Undead), which now restores mana too.
- Warrior, Rogue and Hunter. Almost every race works. Weapon specializations (Human swords, Dwarf maces, Orc axes) only matter if you use that weapon. Humans can be Hunters for the first time.
Once you've settled on a race and class, plan your build in the talent calculator.
Pick your race by what you care about
In the Deep Dive panel, Blizzard said racials are tuned for similar offensive power while each race keeps its signature utility. If that holds, your race won't decide who does the most damage; it decides which problems you solve best. All of this may shift during the beta.
PvP
In PvP, the racials that matter most get you out of crowd control or put it on your opponent:
- Will to Survive (Human): removes stuns.
- Will of the Forsaken (Undead): removes Fear, Charm and Sleep. Note that in Forever it no longer grants immunity to them.
- Stoneform (Dwarf): removes Bleeds, Poisons and Diseases, grants immunity to them and reduces Physical damage taken for 8 sec.
- Escape Artist (Gnome): brief immunity to Roots and Snares.
- Shatter Curse (Orc): immunity to Curses and Banes and reduced Magical damage taken for 8 sec. Hardiness cuts stun durations by 20%.
- War Stomp (Tauren): stuns nearby enemies for 2 sec.
- Perception (Human) and Shadowmeld (Night Elf): one detects stealth for 20 sec; the other hides you while you stand still.
Which crowd control matters most depends on who you're fighting, and nobody will know that until real matches are played.
Raids and dungeons
In group content, what counts is offensive cooldowns and anything that keeps you from running dry:
- Active offensive racials: Blood Fury, Berserking, Elune's Light and Eureka!
- General passives: Wind Blessed (Skyborne, +1% haste) and the weapon specializations.
- Against specific enemy types: Elemental Insight (Skyborne, +5% against Elementals), Beast Slaying (Troll) and Big Game Hunter (Dwarf), both against Beasts. How useful they are depends on the bosses, which haven't been revealed.
- Resources: Expansive Mind, The Human Spirit, Cannibalize and Read Ley Line.
The first raids open on December 9. Until then, any raid racial ranking is a guess.
Leveling
From 1 to 60, what you notice most is time spent sitting or running:
- Less downtime: Rapid Regeneration and Regeneration (Troll), Cannibalize (Undead) and Read Ley Line (High Order Skyborne).
- More speed: Skysight (Windshapers Skyborne, +10%), Quickness (Night Elf, +2%), Plainsrunning (Tauren, faster the longer you keep moving) and Wisp Spirit (+75% while dead).
- Quality of life: Walk on Air to glide down, Find Treasure, Underwater Breathing and Cultivation, which grows herbs you can pick without Herbalism.
Looks, lore and starting zone
Every Classic starting zone gets new NPCs, quests and small story moments, so starting as a Human in Elwynn Forest or a Tauren in Mulgore isn't a straight replay of 2004 (starting zones page). The Skyborne start in their own zone, Zephras Isle, levels 1 to 12.
The Alliance also gets a new Stormwind Harbor – Auberdine ship route, so Humans, Dwarves, Gnomes and Night Elves can meet up early without a long trek.
If the name matters as much as the face, the name generator builds a first name and surname for each race.
Playing with friends
Forever has no realms: you pick a ruleset (Normal, PvP, Roleplaying and, after launch, Hardcore). You can only group with people on the same ruleset and in the same faction. Blizzard was clear that Horde and Alliance stay separate. Before you create your character, ask your group which faction and ruleset they're going with. More in No realms: rulesets, Hardcore and surnames.
What changed from Classic
Coming from Classic? Here's what no longer works the way you remember (compared against Classic Era client data):
- Six new combinations: Human Hunter, Dwarf Shaman, Gnome Priest, Orc Mage, Undead Paladin and Troll Warlock. Blizzard says more will come in future updates, with no date.
- One format for everyone: two active, two passive. In Classic, Humans and Trolls had five racials with only one active; Dwarves and Undead had two and two; everyone else had one active and three passive.
- Racial resistances are gone (Dwarf Frost Resistance, Night Elf and Tauren Nature Resistance, Gnome Arcane Resistance, Undead Shadow Resistance), along with Diplomacy (Human), Command (Orc), Gun Specialization (Dwarf), Throwing Specialization and Bow Specialization (Troll).
- Weapon specializations now give crit, not weapon skill. In Classic they added 5 weapon skill; in Forever, a percentage of spell and ability critical chance. And Mace Specialization moves from Humans to Dwarves.
- New racials: Will to Survive (Human), Big Game Hunter (Dwarf), Elune's Light (Night Elf), Eureka! (Gnome), Shatter Curse (Orc), Touch of the Grave (Undead), Plainsrunning (Tauren) and Rapid Regeneration (Troll).
- Official changes to familiar racials: Stoneform reduces Physical damage instead of raising Armor, Find Treasure stacks with other tracking, Will of the Forsaken no longer grants immunity and Cannibalize now restores mana too.
Every race page opens with a "Classic → WoW Forever" table covering these differences.
The Skyborne: one race, two factions
The Skyborne are the only new race. You pick a side at character creation, and that side decides one class and one racial:
- High Order (Alliance): can be a Mage and gets Read Ley Line.
- Windshapers (Horde): can be a Shaman and gets Skysight.
Both can be Warriors, Hunters, Rogues and Druids, and both share Walk on Air, Wind Blessed and Elemental Insight.
There's one requirement no other race has: you need the Skyborne Heroic Pack or a higher edition to unlock the race and its starting zone. Wowhead reports a $29.99 price. Forever itself comes with your subscription, so if you don't want to pay extra, the other eight races are all there. The full story is in our Skyborne article.
Still unconfirmed
- Official racial text for eight races (everyone but Dwarves and Undead), plus several numbers that only fansites report for now.
- Whether the beta changes values. It opens September 17 and is the first real look at client data. We'll update the race pages.
- Whether the Skyborne are playable in the beta. See our beta guide.
- When the extra race/class combinations Blizzard has promised will arrive.
- Whether Forever will offer race or faction changes. We haven't found any official announcement, so choose as if it's permanent.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best race for PvP in WoW Forever?
There's no reliable answer yet: the game isn't out and almost every racial comes from the demo. For PvP, the standouts are the ones that break crowd control: Will to Survive (Human, stuns), Will of the Forsaken (Undead, Fear, Charm and Sleep, no longer with immunity), Stoneform (Dwarf), Escape Artist (Gnome) and Shatter Curse (Orc).
What is the best race for raids and dungeons in WoW Forever?
Blizzard says racials are tuned for similar offensive power. The active offensive ones are Blood Fury (Orc), Berserking (Troll), Elune's Light (Night Elf) and Eureka! (Gnome). Raids open December 9 and values may change before then.
Which races can play the most classes in WoW Forever?
Humans and Trolls, with seven classes each. Dwarves, Orcs and Undead follow with six. Tauren are the most limited, with four: Warrior, Hunter, Shaman and Druid.
Which race and class combinations are new in WoW Forever?
Six: Human Hunter, Dwarf Shaman, Gnome Priest, Orc Mage, Undead Paladin and Troll Warlock. On top of that, every Skyborne combination is new, since it's a new race. Blizzard has said more combinations will come later.
Do you have to pay to play Skyborne?
Yes. The race and its starting zone require the Skyborne Heroic Pack or a higher edition; Wowhead reports a $29.99 price. The other eight races come with the subscription.
Can I play with friends on the other faction in WoW Forever?
No. Blizzard confirmed that Horde and Alliance stay separate and can't group up. You can also only group with characters on the same ruleset (Normal, PvP, Roleplaying or Hardcore).
Are WoW Forever racials final?
No. Blizzard has only published details for Dwarves and Undead; the rest were seen in the BlizzCon demo and may change during the beta, which opens September 17.
Still undecided?
Let the race and class randomizer pick a valid combination for you. Already sure? Open your race's page on the races page and find a name in the name generator.
