World of Warcraft: Forever no longer has classic realms. Instead of picking a server, you choose a ruleset, and every player in your region on that ruleset shares one mega-realm. That makes playing together easier, because nobody ends up on the "wrong server" any more. In return there are new rules you should know before your first character, or your group may end up on different sides.
Three things have to match
To quest, run dungeons and raid together, everyone has to play in the same region, on the same ruleset and in the same faction.
| What | Options | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Region | Europe, Americas & Oceania, Korea, Taiwan | Each region has its own mega-realms. |
| Ruleset | Normal, PvP, Roleplay, Roleplay PvP, later Hardcore | Groups only exist within one ruleset. |
| Faction | Horde or Alliance | Horde and Alliance cannot form a group. |
The rulesets differ like this:
- Normal: adventuring and fighting monsters come first; fighting other players is your choice.
- PvP: enemy players can attack you at any time.
- Roleplay: strict naming and behaviour rules for playing in character.
- Roleplay PvP: roleplay rules combined with constant PvP risk.
- Hardcore: death is permanent. The ruleset arrives after launch.
All rulesets and regions at a glance are in rulesets and regions.
The one-faction rule on PvP
On the PvP ruleset you can create characters for one faction only. Your first character there decides whether you play Horde or Alliance; an alt on the other side is not possible on that ruleset. On Normal, Roleplay and Hardcore, on the other hand, you can play both factions.
On top of that there is a faction balance: if one side becomes much bigger than the other, Blizzard can temporarily limit the creation of new characters for that faction. The approach is known from Season of Discovery. For groups this means: decide before the first person creates a character. Whoever comes late may otherwise face a locked faction. What you can do then is in the troubleshooting guide.
A ruleset is a lasting decision
You cannot freely move a character to another ruleset. To play somewhere else, you start a new character there. The only exception concerns Hardcore: if a character dies there, it may move to another ruleset, including PvP.
Not everything is tied to the ruleset. Collections and Legacy points are account-wide across all rulesets. Hardcore is the exception: progress from other rulesets does not count there, while progress, collections and rewards from Hardcore can become available on other rulesets. How Legacy works is explained in the Legacy guide.
Only one thing crosses rulesets: battlegrounds can bring together players from different rulesets. Hardcore stays separate here as well.
Worlds on the mega-realm
A single mega-realm would be hopelessly overcrowded in popular places. Forever therefore spreads players across several worlds that run side by side. You notice this when you are in a party with friends and still cannot see them: you are in different worlds.
In that case the game offers to refresh your world. Accept the prompt to move to your party's world. This only works out of combat, so find a quiet spot first. Don't plan the switch in the middle of a quest with enemies nearby, or you will have to wait until the fight is over.
Names and language
Every character has a two-part name. The combination has to be unique in your region, and it is first come, first served. You can hide the second part above your character in the nameplate options, but it stays visible in chat. So give your friends your full name so they can find you.
Under Game Menu > Options > Languages and Social you also set your preferred online language. That way you are more likely to meet players with the same setting. It applies to all characters on your account and can only be changed again after 24 hours.
Organising your guild and dates
Forever has no in-game calendar. You have to arrange dungeon and raid dates outside the game. We have two tools for that:
- The raid planner collects sign-ups, keeps a waitlist and can be filtered by region, ruleset and faction.
- The guild finder shows guilds by raid days, time, role, class, ambition, language, faction and ruleset.
For your raid setup, the raid comp planner shows missing buffs and debuffs.
Checklist for your group
- Agree on region, ruleset and faction together before anyone creates a character.
- On PvP, remember: the first faction applies to every further character there.
- Exchange full two-part names.
- If party members are invisible, accept the world refresh out of combat.
- Put your dates in the raid planner, since there is no in-game calendar.
Frequently asked questions
Can I group with friends on a different ruleset?
No. Parties, dungeons and raids only work within the same ruleset. Only battlegrounds can bring together players from different rulesets, Hardcore excepted.
Can Horde and Alliance play together?
No. Horde and Alliance cannot form a group, not even on the Normal ruleset.
Can I move my character to another ruleset later?
No, there is no free switch. To play somewhere else, you create a new character there. The only exception: a Hardcore character that died may move to another ruleset.
Why can't I see my party even though we are grouped?
You are probably in different worlds of the mega-realm. Accept the prompt to refresh your world; this only works out of combat.