Leveling in WoW Forever follows the old Azeroth route, but it is not a straight copy of Classic. Blizzard added more than a thousand quests, two new leveling zones for the 35–45 gap, a new starting race with its own island and nine new dungeons. This guide gives you the zones by level for both factions, the route we recommend per bracket and the rules that changed.
The beta stopped at level 30, so everything past 30 was first played at launch on 4 November. Ranges that sources still disagree on are marked; we update this page as the live game settles.
Before you start
- Pick a leveling build. Every spec page has a level-by-level talent order from 10 to 60. See the leveling tier list for the classes that level fastest, or open your class in builds.
- The quest log holds 40 quests instead of 20. Pick up everything in a hub; you can carry two zones at once.
- Open-world mobs below your level give less XP than in Classic (a few percent up to about 20%). Blizzard did this on purpose to balance food and camping XP buffs. Same-level mobs give the same as before, so stay in zones that match your level.
- Get a campfire going. Cooking teaches the Basic Campfire at skill 1, and camp rest and buff food add XP. See the camping guide.
- There is no level scaling. Zones keep fixed levels, just like in Classic.
Starting zones (1–12)
Forever starting zones carry you to about level 12, not 10, because each got dozens of new quests.
| Race | Faction | Start |
|---|---|---|
| Human | Alliance | Elwynn Forest |
| Dwarf, Gnome | Alliance | Dun Morogh |
| Night Elf | Alliance | Teldrassil |
| Orc, Troll | Horde | Durotar |
| Tauren | Horde | Mulgore |
| Undead | Horde | Tirisfal Glades |
| Skyborne | both | Zephras Isle |
Zephras Isle (Skyborne)
Zephras Isle is the new 1–12 island of the Skyborne, the new race. It is a sanctuary, so no PvP. You choose a faction at character creation: the High Order joins the Alliance, the Windshapers join the Horde. When you finish the island, the Valanaar Skydocks send you onward:
- Alliance: the east-dock skyship flies to Dalaran in Alterac Mountains. A portal in the Violet Citadel takes you to Stormwind, and the Deeprun Tram goes on to Ironforge.
- Horde: the west-dock skyship flies to Skywatcher Plateau in north-west Mulgore, a short run from Thunder Bluff and The Barrens.
Alliance route 12–30
| Level | Zones |
|---|---|
| 12–18 | Westfall, Loch Modan or Darkshore (whichever is closest to your start) |
| 18–21 | Redridge Mountains, then finish Westfall |
| 21–25 | Wetlands |
| 24–27 | Duskwood and Ashenvale |
| 27–30 | Wetlands (second visit), Hillsbrad Foothills, Duskwood |
Wetlands is the big Forever change in this bracket. More than 25 new quests around Thelgen Rock and Dun Algaz make it a full 21–30 zone, and the new dungeon Excavation Site: Wetlands sits right there. Dwarves and gnomes have their own new dungeon early on: The Hall of Thanes under Ironforge at 13–18.
Horde route 12–30
| Level | Zones |
|---|---|
| 12–16 | The Barrens (Crossroads) or Silverpine Forest |
| 16–21 | Northern Barrens |
| 21–25 | The rest of The Barrens, then Stonetalon Mountains |
| 25–28 | Ashenvale |
| 28–30 | Thousand Needles |
Undead and Horde players around Tirisfal have the new Ruins of Lordaeron above the Undercity. All its quests start at level 15. Ragefire Chasm under Orgrimmar and Wailing Caverns in The Barrens are the other early options.
Both factions 30–60
From 30 the two factions share most zones. Use the brackets as a menu: do the quests that fit your level, then move on.
| Level | Zones |
|---|---|
| 30–40 | Arathi Highlands, Stranglethorn Vale, Desolace, Alterac Mountains, Thousand Needles |
| 35–45 | Riverglades (new), Shen’dralas (new), Dustwallow Marsh, Badlands, Swamp of Sorrows |
| 40–50 | Tanaris, Feralas, The Hinterlands, Searing Gorge, Stranglethorn Vale (south) |
| 48–55 | Un’Goro Crater, Felwood, Azshara, Blasted Lands |
| 50–60 | Burning Steppes, Western and Eastern Plaguelands, Winterspring, Silithus, Mount Hyjal (new, late 50s) |
In Classic the mid-30s to mid-40s were the thinnest part of the route. Forever fills exactly that gap with two new zones.
Riverglades (about 35–45)
Riverglades is a contested zone in the Eastern Kingdoms, between Redridge, Burning Steppes, Swamp of Sorrows and Badlands. Blizzard calls it a “mid-30s to mid-40s” zone with close to 200 quests. Horde works out of Rogmar, Alliance out of Farholde Keep. A new ship links Steamwheedle Port in Tanaris with Powderfuse Port in Riverglades, which makes it easy to reach from Kalimdor. The outdoor ogre dungeon Krol’dok Stronghold (40–45) is inside the zone.
Shen’dralas (around 40–45, not official)
Shen’dralas is the new Kalimdor zone south of Desolace, reached through the Valley of Bones and bordering Mulgore and Feralas. Blizzard has not given it an official level range. Players and guides put it around 40–45, with some estimates as low as 38 and as high as 53. The Valley of Bones quests (Gelkis and Magram centaurs) need level 35 since an October change, so arrive at 35 or later.
Mount Hyjal (late 50s and 60)
Mount Hyjal is the new endgame zone. It also holds the raids Hyjal Summit (20 players) and Barrow Deeps (10 players). Treat it as a 55–60 zone and the place to finish the last levels if Winterspring and Silithus feel crowded.
Expanded old zones
Besides Wetlands, Desolace has new centaur quests and Azshara has many new quests, including the sealed furbolg gate, which now opens. Every starting zone got new quests too, so expect to see more yellow exclamation marks than you remember.
New dungeons by level
The nine new Forever dungeons fill the route from 13 to 60. The ranges below are the ones most sources agree on; disputed ones show both values.
| Dungeon | Where | Level |
|---|---|---|
| The Hall of Thanes | Ironforge (Alliance) | 13–18 |
| Ruins of Lordaeron | above the Undercity (Horde) | 15–20 (some list 15–22) |
| Excavation Site: Wetlands | Wetlands | 24–29 (some list 26–31) |
| City of Dalaran | Alterac Mountains | 28–33 |
| The Drowned City | Stranglethorn Vale | 35–40 |
| Krol’dok Stronghold | Riverglades | 40–45 |
| Alcaz Prison | Dustwallow Marsh | 48–53 |
| Blackmaw Hold | Azshara | 55–60 |
| The Shaper’s Terrace | Un’Goro Crater | 58–60 |
The Classic dungeons are all still there; see the dungeon list for levels, bosses and quests. Two changes matter for leveling: Razorfen Downs now opens at level 25 and Uldaman at 30. There is no dungeon queue, so groups form in chat or the group finder board, and you can enter at most 5 instances per hour.
XP rules that changed
- Dungeon quests: their bonus XP (the part above a normal quest) was cut by about half on 1 October.
- Dungeon mobs: XP from creatures killed inside dungeons went up by about 20% on 8 October.
- Lower-level mobs in the open world give less XP than in Classic; same-level mobs are unchanged.
- Grouping: if a party member is far above a mob’s level, nobody in the party gets XP from it. Don’t let a level 60 friend kill your mobs.
- Rested XP builds in inns and cities. The account-wide Legacy perk Well Rested makes it build faster and raises the cap.
- Launch tuning (3 November): quest XP adjusted on various quests, more health on higher-level mobs and faster respawns, fastest in the starting zones. Blizzard said it will slow respawns again once the launch rush is over.
- Class training from 1 to 60 costs about 206–207 gold for every class. Keep some money for skill ranks before you buy anything else.
Legacy perks that speed up alts
Forever has an account-wide Legacy system. The first character of each class to reach 25, 45 and 60 earns one Legacy point each time, and each character can spend up to 16 points on perks. The ones that matter for leveling (values at max rank, from the game files):
- Well Rested (5 ranks): rested XP builds 20% faster and the rested cap is 20% higher.
- Talented (5 ranks): your first talent point at level 5 instead of 10. The talent total stays at 51.
- Thrill of Adventure (5 ranks): 5% of your health and mana back over 10 seconds after each kill, so you rest less between pulls. Not in dungeons.
Plan your points in the Legacy calculator, which also has a ready-made leveling build.
Your second and third character level noticeably faster than your first.
Mounts and travel
- Riding: Apprentice Riding at level 40 (reported around 100 gold, first mount included), Journeyman Riding at 60. Paladins and Warlocks get their mounts from a level 40 class quest.
- No flying in Forever, and no summoning stones.
- New boats: Stormwind Harbor to Auberdine, Menethil Harbor to Southshore and Auberdine, and Tanaris to Riverglades.
- New flight paths in Riverglades and Mount Hyjal.
How long does 1–60 take?
Blizzard measured about 20 hours for 1–20 during the beta, before the 1 October XP cut. Projections for 1–60 currently sit at roughly 100–125 hours played for a first character. Experienced players with a good route, camping buffs and rested XP will be faster, and Legacy perks shorten every alt after that.
Next steps
- Builds for every class — leveling talent order from 10 to 60 on the live trees
- Leveling tier list — which specs level fastest
- Talent calculator — plan your own build with the level slider
- Professions — trainer-first leveling paths from 1 to 300
- Dungeons and raids — every instance with levels and bosses