WoW Forever Races Guide: Class Combos & Racial Changes
All ten WoW Forever races and the classes each can play, the six new race and class combinations, and the racial changes from Blizzard's deep dive and beta notes.
WoW Forever has ten playable races: the eight Classic races plus the new Skyborne, who come in a Horde version (Windshaper) and an Alliance version (High Order). Six new race and class combinations open up, including Undead Paladin, Dwarf Shaman, Human Hunter, Gnome Priest, Orc Mage and Troll Warlock, and every race's racials were reworked into two active and two passive abilities.
Every WoW Forever race and its classes
Here is the full list from Blizzard's character creation page. Race decides your starting zone, your look and your racials; class decides how you play.
WoW Forever races and available classes
| Race | Faction | Classes | New in Forever |
|---|---|---|---|
| Human | Alliance | Hunter, Mage, Paladin, Priest, Rogue, Warlock, Warrior | Hunter |
| Dwarf | Alliance | Hunter, Paladin, Priest, Rogue, Shaman, Warrior | Shaman |
| Night Elf | Alliance | Druid, Hunter, Priest, Rogue, Warrior | None |
| Gnome | Alliance | Mage, Priest, Rogue, Warlock, Warrior | Priest |
| High Order Skyborne | Alliance | Druid, Hunter, Mage, Rogue, Warrior | New race |
| Orc | Horde | Hunter, Mage, Rogue, Shaman, Warlock, Warrior | Mage |
| Undead | Horde | Mage, Paladin, Priest, Rogue, Warlock, Warrior | Paladin |
| Tauren | Horde | Druid, Hunter, Shaman, Warrior | None |
| Troll | Horde | Hunter, Mage, Priest, Rogue, Shaman, Warlock, Warrior | Warlock |
| Windshaper Skyborne | Horde | Druid, Hunter, Rogue, Shaman, Warrior | New race |
Every race except the Skyborne is included with a subscription or Game Time. The Skyborne need the Heroic Pack or a higher upgrade; our launch guide lists the editions.
The six new race and class combinations
- Undead Paladin (Horde): the Horde's first Paladins. Their story begins at Bandarion Keep in the Whispering Wood of Tirisfal Glades, and at level 60 Forsaken Paladins earn their epic mount in the name of Retribution, while Alliance Paladins ride in the name of Redemption. Cannibalize now restores mana as well as health, which suits a mana user.
- Dwarf Shaman (Alliance): Alliance Shamans for the first time. Stoneform now reduces Physical damage taken, and Earth Fury adds critical damage and healing.
- Human Hunter (Alliance): opens the top leveling class in our tier list to Humans. Ruthless gives 2% crit chance.
- Gnome Priest (Alliance): Eureka! now also benefits Power Word: Shield.
- Orc Mage (Horde): Shatter Curse now dispels Curses and Banes and lowers magic damage taken.
- Troll Warlock (Horde): Regeneration's health regeneration bonus was doubled to 20% in the beta.
The practical result is that both factions now have both hybrid tanks and healers: Alliance gets Shamans, Horde gets Paladins. Blizzard even lowered the Warrior Battle Shout bonus because both factions now bring Shamans and Paladins to groups.
How racials changed in WoW Forever
Blizzard's Deep Dive says every race now has two active and two passive abilities, reworked to be stronger and more distinct without pushing every race toward the same strengths. The clearest example is the end of the old weapon skill racials. Those passives became flat crit bonuses that are not tied to a weapon type, and gear now gives weapon skill in smaller amounts.
Racials are also tracked by the new Cooldown Manager, and Blizzard's Hunter and Druid deep dive confirms Shadowmeld, War Stomp and Walk on Air work while a Druid is shapeshifted.
Confirmed racial changes by race
This table lists only the racials and values Blizzard has published, mostly from the October 16 beta notes, which said racial abilities were updated. It is not a complete list of every racial.
WoW Forever racial changes confirmed so far
| Race | Confirmed racials and changes |
|---|---|
| Human | Ruthless: 2% crit chance, replacing Sword Specialization. The notes also name a Human ability called Will to Survive. |
| Dwarf | Stoneform reduces Physical damage taken instead of raising armor. Earth Fury: 2% critical damage and healing, replacing Mace Specialization. Find Treasure can also find extra items in most chests. |
| Night Elf | Quickness now stacks with other movement speed increases. Shadowmeld works in Druid forms. |
| Gnome | Eureka!: abilities cost 10% less Mana, Rage or Energy, now an 8 second buff with no charges, also benefits Power Word: Shield, does not affect periodic effects. |
| High Order Skyborne | Read Ley Line (regeneration), Walk on Air (90 second cooldown), Wind Blessed (3% haste), Elemental Insight (5% damage to Elementals). |
| Orc | Savage: 1% crit chance, replacing Axe Specialization. Blood Fury cooldown raised to 3 minutes. Shatter Curse dispels Curses and Banes and reduces magic damage taken by 5%. |
| Undead | Cannibalize restores health and mana, and cannot be used while immune to Physical damage. Touch of the Grave was adjusted to trigger more consistently, and its Touch of the Dead effect has a 30% chance for casters and 20% for Paladins, Rogues and Warriors, with a 25 second internal cooldown. Will of the Forsaken does not work under Scatter Shot. |
| Tauren | Endurance: 2% critical damage and healing (was 1% hit). Plainsrunning adds 3% mounted speed but needs steady movement. Cultivation cooldown cut to 15 minutes. War Stomp cooldown cut to 90 seconds. |
| Troll | Regeneration health bonus raised to 20% from 10%. |
| Windshaper Skyborne | Skysight (movement speed), Walk on Air, Wind Blessed and Elemental Insight. |
Tauren Cultivation is a herb racial: the beta notes give each herb a player level requirement equal to its gathering skill divided by 5, with herbs above 300 skill at level 60. The Skyborne kit is covered in full in our dedicated Skyborne guide.
Race options for every class
Which races can play each class
| Class | Alliance races | Horde races |
|---|---|---|
| Warrior | Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome, High Order Skyborne | Orc, Undead, Tauren, Troll, Windshaper Skyborne |
| Paladin | Human, Dwarf | Undead |
| Hunter | Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, High Order Skyborne | Orc, Tauren, Troll, Windshaper Skyborne |
| Rogue | Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome, High Order Skyborne | Orc, Undead, Troll, Windshaper Skyborne |
| Priest | Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome | Undead, Troll |
| Shaman | Dwarf | Orc, Tauren, Troll, Windshaper Skyborne |
| Mage | Human, Gnome, High Order Skyborne | Orc, Undead, Troll |
| Warlock | Human, Gnome | Orc, Undead, Troll |
| Druid | Night Elf, High Order Skyborne | Tauren, Windshaper Skyborne |
Which race should you pick?
These are our picks, not Blizzard's, based only on the confirmed effects above. Final numbers can still move at launch.
- Physical damage dealers: Human (Ruthless, 2% crit) and Orc (Savage plus Blood Fury) are the clean damage choices. Tauren Endurance now adds critical damage, and War Stomp on a 90 second cooldown is a strong escape.
- Healers: Dwarf and Tauren Earth Fury and Endurance add critical healing, and Gnome Eureka! works with Power Word: Shield.
- Casters: Troll Regeneration and Undead Cannibalize cut downtime while leveling, and Skyborne Wind Blessed adds haste.
- Druids: Night Elf Shadowmeld, Tauren War Stomp and Skyborne Walk on Air all work in forms, so pick by faction and looks.
- Gatherers and explorers: Tauren Cultivation for herbs, Dwarf Find Treasure for chests and Tauren Plainsrunning or Windshaper Skysight for travel.
Faction matters more than racials. Horde and Alliance cannot group, and you can only play with people on your ruleset, so pick the side your friends and guild are on. For class choice, our best class to level tier list ranks all nine.
WoW Forever services
WoW Forever Powerleveling
- Any Range 1-60
- Launch-Day Start
- Riding & Gear Add-ons
WoW Forever Leveling Bundles
- 4 Bundle Tiers
- Cheaper Than Separate
- Endgame Ready
WoW Forever Hourly Driving
- Pay Per Hour
- You Pick the Focus
- Solo or Group
WoW Forever Dungeon Bundle
- 36 Dungeons
- Self-play or Piloted
- Loot Is Yours
WoW Forever races FAQ
How many races are in WoW Forever?
Ten: Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome and High Order Skyborne for the Alliance, and Orc, Undead, Tauren, Troll and Windshaper Skyborne for the Horde.
What are the new race and class combinations in WoW Forever?
Gnome Priest, Human Hunter, Dwarf Shaman, Orc Mage, Troll Warlock and Undead Paladin, plus the new Skyborne race with its own class list.
Can Alliance play Shaman in WoW Forever?
Yes, through the Dwarf. Dwarf is the only Alliance race that can be a Shaman; High Order Skyborne cannot.
Can Horde play Paladin in WoW Forever?
Yes, through the Undead. Forsaken Paladins have their own story at Bandarion Keep in Tirisfal Glades and an epic mount quest at level 60.
Did racials change in WoW Forever?
Yes. Every race now has two active and two passive racials. Weapon skill racials became crit bonuses, Stoneform now reduces Physical damage and Cannibalize also restores mana.
Related guides
Choose your class with the best class to level tier list, then follow its class guide, such as the Paladin leveling guide for Undead Paladins or the Shaman leveling guide for Dwarf Shamans. The WoW Forever leveling guide covers each starting zone, and the launch guide has the editions and dates. Need help with class quests? See WoW Forever class quests.