World of Warcraft: Forever: What to Do Before November 4

Quick answer:

1. World of Warcraft: Forever launches on November 4, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. Pacific: one worldwide moment, not a midnight-local launch. Our release time guide has the clock for every time zone.
2. You need an active World of Warcraft subscription or Game Time. Blizzard says the game is included with both, so you do not need a separate purchase to play on launch day.
3. Reserve your character name between October 27 and November 3. Early Name Reservation requires a digital upgrade pack or the Collector’s Edition, and names go first come, first served.
4. Install it yourself before launch night. Blizzard’s own steps: download the Battle.net desktop app, pick World of Warcraft, select World of Warcraft: Forever in the Game Version menu above the Play button, then Install.
5. Update your graphics drivers and check your GPU. Blizzard’s floor is AMD Graphics Core Next 1 (2012), NVIDIA Maxwell (2014) or Intel Skylake (2015), or something newer. Our system requirements guide lists the cards that work and the ones that do not.
6. Choose your ruleset before you log in. Normal, PvP and Role-Play are open on day one. Hardcore arrives later.
7. Know what is not in the game on launch day. The three level-60 raids (Barrow Deeps, Hyjal Summit and Onyxia’s Lair) unlock on December 9, five weeks after launch.

Blizzard has published enough of the launch to plan around it: a single unlock moment, a name-reservation window with regional start times, a download routine, a hardware floor, a set of rulesets, and a raid date that lands five weeks after everybody gets in. Here is what each of those means for the week before launch.

When does World of Warcraft: Forever launch?

Blizzard’s pre-purchase notice gives one worldwide moment: November 4, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. Pacific. That is a single unlock for every region, so our release time guide can hand you the clock in every zone instead of guessing from a store countdown. The date also sits on our release calendar.

The game is a PC launch through Blizzard’s own Battle.net store. Blizzard’s launch announcements describe a Battle.net release and name no console version, and the game has no Steam store page, so there is no Steam Deck rating and no Steam Cloud sync for your character. Everything happens on the PC client you install through Battle.net.

How do you get access to World of Warcraft: Forever?

Blizzard says World of Warcraft: Forever “is included with an active World of Warcraft Subscription or Game Time.” A subscriber or someone who buys Game Time is playing on November 4 without another purchase.

On top of that, Blizzard sells three optional digital upgrades: the Skyborne Heroic Pack, the Skyborne Epic Pack and the Warcraft Forever Collection. According to Blizzard’s Collector’s Edition announcement, those packs bring benefits such as the Skyborne race and the Zephras Isle starting experience, beta access, Early Name Reservation, 30 days of Game Time and in-game cosmetics.

The physical Collector’s Edition is a different thing: a 13-inch Dwarf and Bear statue, a Zephras Isle mousepad, art prints, collectible pins, a companion journal, and the Warcraft Forever Collection digital code, which unlocks the Skyborne Epic Pack alongside Warcraft III: Reforged and Warcraft III Reforged: Forsaken Kingdom. Two practical notes from Blizzard: the current restock is expected to ship and be delivered in February 2027, after launch, and there is a strict limit of one copy per household on the Blizzard Gear Store. Blizzard also says some digital purchases made before you redeem the Collector’s Edition code can earn a Battle.net Balance credit if you redeem by December 31, 2027. Our pre-purchase guide covers what each pack actually includes.

How do I reserve my character name?

Early Name Reservation is Blizzard’s pre-launch window for claiming a character name before the queue opens to everyone else. It runs October 27 through November 3, with a different start time per region.

The rules matter as much as the dates. You can create and reserve up to three characters in total across all rulesets, so two on PvP leaves one for Normal or Role-Play. Names are handed out first come, first served and Blizzard says they cannot be guaranteed. You also need a purchase: the reservation applies to the specific WoW account that bought a World of Warcraft: Forever digital upgrade or the Collector’s Edition.

How do I install World of Warcraft: Forever?

Blizzard publishes a short “Prepare to Launch” list, and it is worth following before launch night rather than at unlock:

1. Make sure your graphics drivers are up to date.
2. Download and install the Battle.net desktop app.
3. Open the app and let it update.
4. Select World of Warcraft from the games list.
5. In the Game Version menu above the Play button, select World of Warcraft: Forever, then start the installation.
6. Once installation finishes, select Play and choose your Ruleset.
7. Create up to three characters with the names you reserved.

Step five is the one people miss: the download is its own entry in the Game Version menu, so leave room for it before launch night.

Which ruleset should I pick?

Blizzard is not sending everyone into one shared world. World of Warcraft: Forever splits Azeroth into rulesets: Normal, PvP and Role-Play, and each one runs its own large ecosystem for grouping, dungeons, raids and community. Hardcore joins the lineup sometime after launch, so if that is the one you want, you are starting later than the rest of us. Our rulesets guide explains what each one changes.

What is in the game at launch, and what arrives later?

The open world, the dungeons and the professions are the launch content. Blizzard’s dungeon overview lists nine new five-player dungeons for characters from level 13 to level 60.

The raids are the part that is not in the game on day one. Blizzard’s raid overview puts all three at December 9, for level 60 characters only.

Profession-wise, Blizzard added a Camping system that turns the Cooking profession’s Cooking Fire into a Basic Campfire. Nearby players can rest there and pick up camp features contributed by other professions (a blacksmith’s Sharpening Wheel adds Strength, a tailor’s Faction Banner adds Spirit, a herbalist’s Incense Candle adds Intellect), and you need to sit or craft for at least a minute to benefit. Starter campsite items need profession skill level 20; the strongest ones need level 140 and drop from dungeons and raids. Our earlier look at the class design covers how the classes work.

We converted Blizzard’s four regional name-reservation times into UTC to see who gets first pick of the names: Europe opens at 17:00 on October 27, North America at 20:00, Korea at 22:00 and Taiwan at 23:00. That is three hours between Europe and North America and one hour between North America and Korea, so if your preferred name is unusual, the European window genuinely matters. We also lined the launch content up against the raid date: nine dungeons spread from level 13 to level 60 are there on November 4, and the three raid encounters wait 35 days, on December 9. For the first month of the game, the ladder is open-world quests, dungeons and professions rather than raid progression.

Frequently asked questions

When does World of Warcraft: Forever unlock in my country?

3:00 p.m. Pacific on launch day, the same moment everywhere. Our release time guide converts that to your clock.

Do I need a Battle.net account?

Yes. The Battle.net desktop app and a WoW game account are the only way in. Blizzard’s installation steps and the beta access codes both require one.

Can I play World of Warcraft: Forever on PlayStation or Xbox?

Blizzard’s launch announcements describe a Battle.net PC launch and name no console version, so there is nothing to pre-order or pre-load on PS5 or Xbox Series X|S.

Is there a Steam version or Steam Deck support?

No. Blizzard sells the game through its own Battle.net store, there is no Steam store page, and therefore no Valve Steam Deck rating and no Steam Cloud sync for your characters.

Do I need the Collector’s Edition to play?

No. The Collector’s Edition adds the physical statue, mousepad, art prints, pins, journal and the Warcraft Forever Collection digital code. It is for display and for the extra digital extras, not for access to the game.

What happens if I miss the name reservation window?

Blizzard’s notice covers October 27 to November 3, says names are first come, first served and cannot be guaranteed, and does not promise anything after the window closes. Reserve early if the name matters to you.

Which professions can I learn in World of Warcraft: Forever?

You can learn all three secondary professions (Cooking, Fishing and First Aid) plus two primary professions. The gathering primaries are Skinning, Mining and Herbalism; the crafting ones include Alchemy and Blacksmithing.

Are the raids available on launch day?

No. Barrow Deeps, Hyjal Summit and Onyxia’s Lair all unlock on December 9 for level 60 characters, according to Blizzard’s raid overview.

Edited by Kerwin Stewart, Editor-in-Chief · How we report