WoW Forever: Best Race for Every Class (Beta Racials) 

World of Warcraft: Forever launches on November 4, and the beta has been running since September 17. If you’re planning your main, picking the best race in WoW Forever is a more open question than it has been at any point in Classic’s history. Blizzard rebuilt every racial: each race now has two active abilities (one combat cooldown, one utility tool) and two passives. The old weapon skill bonuses are gone, and several races picked up damage cooldowns they never had.

That means the old answers (Orc warrior, Human rogue, Undead for anything PvP) deserve a second look. Below is our pick for every class on both factions, based on the racials as they appear in the beta right now.

A note on the numbers: Cooldown lengths for the new active racials haven’t been published yet, and a few values already differ slightly between data sites. Blizzard can change any of this before launch. Treat these picks as a solid starting point, and expect us to update this guide as the beta moves on.

Quick Picks: Best Race per Class

Warrior

Alliance: Human for DPS, Dwarf for tanking. Sword Specialization now gives a flat 2% crit chance while you wield a sword. That’s double what Dwarves and Orcs get for maces and axes, and it’s always on. Will to Survive, an instant stun break, is a big deal in PvP. If your best weapon turns out to be a mace or an axe, switch your pick to Night Elf: Elune’s Light gives 10% crit for 15 seconds, and warriors turn crit into rage.

For tanks, Dwarf wins. Stoneform makes you immune to bleeds and poisons and cuts physical damage taken for 8 seconds, which works like an extra defensive cooldown.

Horde: Orc for DPS, Tauren for tanking. Blood Fury (10% more attack power for 15 seconds), 1% crit with axes, and 20% shorter stuns make Orc the safe pick it always was. Tauren tanks get 5% more health and War Stomp, an AoE stun that buys breathing room when a pull goes wrong.

Paladin

Alliance: Dwarf for Holy and Protection, Human for Retribution. Holy paladins traditionally heal with maces, and the new Mace Specialization adds 1% crit to spells, not just melee swings. Stoneform is a panic button that plate healers and tanks will press every raid. Retribution wants Human for the same reason warriors do, assuming you get a good two-handed sword.

Horde: Undead, the only option. Undead Paladin is the first Horde paladin in the vanilla setting and one of the headline new combos in Forever. The kit fits well for PvP: Will of the Forsaken breaks fear, charm and sleep, which are exactly the effects that shut down a healer. Expect to see a lot of them.

Hunter

Alliance: Night Elf. Elune’s Light (10% crit for 15 seconds) is the strongest damage racial available to Alliance hunters, and Quickness adds a little dodge and 2% run speed. For leveling and farming, Dwarf is a strong alternative: Big Game Hunter adds 5% damage against beasts, and a lot of the open world is beasts. Human hunters are new in Forever, but their racials do little for a ranged class.

Horde: Troll. Berserking (10% haste) plus Beast Slaying (5% damage against beasts) covers both raiding and farming. Orc is close behind thanks to Blood Fury’s attack power boost and shorter stuns in PvP.

Rogue

Alliance: Human. Rogues use swords for much of the leveling curve and in many gear setups, so a permanent 2% crit is hard to beat. Will to Survive also decides a lot of rogue-vs-rogue fights. If you’re a dagger rogue, Night Elf is the better choice: Elune’s Light works with any weapon, and Shadowmeld is still useful for open-world ambushes.

Horde: Orc for PvE, Undead for PvP. Blood Fury and Axe Specialization give Orcs the better damage package. In PvP, Will of the Forsaken remains the best answer to warlock and priest fears. One change to note: in Forever it’s an instant break, no longer a short immunity.

Priest

Alliance: Gnome for PvE, Human for PvP. Healing in a vanilla-style game is a mana game. Gnomes get 5% more maximum mana from Expansive Mind, plus Eureka!, which makes the next three spells cheaper and 10% stronger. Gnome priests are new in Forever, and on paper they’re the best raid healers on the Alliance side. In PvP, Human’s stun break outweighs everything else, and The Human Spirit (5% more Spirit) still helps with mana regeneration.

In Classic, some priest spells depended on race, most famously the Dwarf-only Fear Ward, which made Dwarf the default raid priest. According to Icy Veins’ beta class data, Fear Ward is available to priests of every race in Forever. Blizzard hasn’t confirmed that officially yet, but if it holds, the old reason to roll a Dwarf priest is gone.

Horde: Troll for PvE, Undead for PvP. Berserking’s haste means more heals in the moments that matter. Undead’s fear break is still the best defensive racial for a Horde priest in battlegrounds.

Shaman

Alliance: Dwarf, the only option. Dwarf Shamans are the other headline combo, and the racials fit nicely: Stoneform against melee pressure, and Mace Specialization’s 1% crit for both Enhancement and Restoration, which both use maces a lot.

Horde: Orc for Enhancement, Troll for Elemental and Restoration. Blood Fury and Axe Specialization look tailor-made for a two-handed-axe Enhancement shaman. Casters get more from Troll: Berserking speeds up everything, while Blood Fury’s 10% spell power only boosts the part of a spell’s damage that scales with spell power. Tauren (5% more health) and Horde Skyborne (1% haste, plus Skysight for 10% run speed) are fine choices if you prefer their look.

Mage

Alliance: Gnome. 5% more maximum mana and Eureka! both add damage for a class that regularly runs out of mana, and Escape Artist works like a second Blink in PvP. Human gets interesting if Forever has good caster swords, because Sword Specialization adds 2% crit to spells as well. Alliance Skyborne mages get 1% haste and Read Ley Line, which doubles health and mana regeneration out of combat.

Horde: Troll for PvE, Undead for PvP. Orc mages are new, and Blood Fury now boosts spell power, but for the reason explained under Shaman, haste wins for casters. In PvP, Undead’s fear break decides too many matchups to pass up.

Warlock

Alliance: Gnome. Eureka! and a bigger mana pool help any caster, and Escape Artist gets you out of warrior slows and frost nova roots, the warlock’s biggest PvP weakness. Human is the alternative, with its stun break and 2% crit if you’re wielding a sword.

Horde: Troll for PvE, Undead for PvP, Orc as the all-rounder. Troll warlocks are new in Forever, and Berserking makes them the raid pick. Orc deserves a mention: Shatter Curse grants immunity to curses and reduces magic damage for 8 seconds, a neat counter to enemy warlocks.

Druid

Alliance: Night Elf for Feral, Skyborne for Balance and Restoration. Cat damage leans heavily on crit, which makes Elune’s Light the strongest burst option. Casters get more from Skyborne: permanent haste is exactly what a Moonkin or healer wants, and Read Ley Line doubles regeneration between pulls (it can’t be used in combat). Skyborne druids are new, and so is the Walk on Air glide, which is simply fun in the open world. Skyborne require a paid pack, so if you don’t want to spend extra, Night Elf is the free alternative.

Horde: Tauren for Feral, Skyborne for Balance and Restoration. 5% more health is a meaningful passive for bear tanks, and Plainsrunning’s speed buildup (up to 30%) helps with long travel on foot. Caster druids get the same haste argument as on the Alliance side.

What Changed From Classic Racials

• Weapon skill is gone. Human, Dwarf and Orc weapon specializations now give crit chance instead: 2% with swords for Humans, 1% with maces for Dwarves and axes for Orcs. They apply to spells too.
• Night Elves get Elune’s Light (10% crit for 15 seconds). Quickness now also adds 2% run speed.
• Gnomes get Eureka!, and Expansive Mind now raises maximum mana, rage and energy by 5% instead of Intellect.
• Tauren finally get Plainsrunning, and Endurance now adds 1% hit on top of 5% health. Cultivation grows bonus herbs anyone can pick.
• Undead: Will of the Forsaken is now an instant break instead of a short immunity. Touch of the Grave is new.
• Orcs get Shatter Curse, and Hardiness now shortens stuns by 20%.
• Trolls keep Berserking and get Rapid Regeneration (50% of maximum health over time) as a new active.

New Race and Class Combinations

Six race/class combos are new in Forever:

• Human Hunter
• Dwarf Shaman
• Gnome Priest
• Orc Mage
• Troll Warlock
• Undead Paladin

The new Skyborne race is available to both factions and starts on the Zephras Isles. Skyborne can play Druid, Hunter, Rogue and Warrior on both sides, plus Mage on the Alliance and Shaman on the Horde. They can’t be Paladins, Priests or Warlocks. Both versions share Walk on Air, Wind Blessed (1% haste) and Elemental Insight (5% more damage to elementals). Alliance Skyborne get Read Ley Line, Horde Skyborne get Skysight. One catch: Skyborne aren’t included in the subscription. You need the Skyborne Heroic Pack ($29.99) or a bigger pack to play them.

FAQ

What is the best race in WoW Forever?

It depends on your class and on PvE versus PvP. For raw PvE damage, Troll is the strongest all-rounder on the Horde side, while Night Elf and Human share that role for the Alliance. For PvP, Human (stun break) and Undead (fear break) are still the top picks.

Can Horde players be Paladins in WoW Forever?

Yes, but only as Undead. Orcs, Tauren and Trolls can’t be Paladins.

Which classes can the Skyborne play?

Druid, Hunter, Rogue and Warrior on both factions, Mage on the Alliance and Shaman on the Horde.

Will racials change before launch?

Possibly. This guide reflects the beta, which runs until October 21. We’ll update the picks if Blizzard changes any values.

Sources: Blizzard’s beta announcement, racial data as catalogued by Icy Veins and Method, and the race/class list from Warcraft Tavern. Key art: Blizzard Entertainment.