After BlizzCon 2026: every WoW date to know

Live Q&A: Thursday, September 17

Blizzard collected player questions during BlizzCon, and members of the modern WoW and World of Warcraft: Forever development teams answer them live. Blizzard says the stream goes deeper on the BlizzCon reveals and on what comes next for both games.

• Modern WoW: 10:00 a.m. PDT.
• World of Warcraft: Forever: 10:30 a.m. PDT.
• Where: Warcraft on Twitch and Warcraft on YouTube. The VOD stays up after the stream.
• Blizzard's announcement: Watch the World of Warcraft Live Q&A September 17.

How to get into the Forever beta (September 17 to October 21)

There are two ways in, and one edition that does not include it.

• Free chance: opt in on the World of Warcraft: Forever page. An opt-in is not a guaranteed invite.
• Guaranteed: the Skyborne Epic Pack or the Warcraft Forever Collection, both on the Battle.net Shop.
• Not included: the Skyborne Heroic Pack.
• Help: Blizzard's Beta Access support article.

The Forever calendar, from beta to launch

Every date below is from Blizzard's Forever page and its pre-purchase announcement.

• September 17 to October 21: the beta.
• October 20: Invite-A-Friend launch codes start arriving by email. A code lets a friend play Forever without a subscription from November 4 to November 11.
• October 27 to November 3: early name reservation, for up to three characters.
• November 4 at 3:00 p.m. PST: global launch. Forever is included with a World of Warcraft subscription or Game Time.
• January 11, 2027: the last day the limited-time Warcraft Forever Collection is on sale.

Forever editions, compared

You do not need an edition to play: Forever comes with a WoW subscription or Game Time. The upgrade editions add the Skyborne race and extras, and all three are on the Battle.net Shop. Contents are from Blizzard's pre-purchase announcement and Collector’s Edition post.

• Skyborne Heroic Pack: the Skyborne race and their Zephras Isle starting experience, Early Name Reservation, the Cerulean Prideclaw ground mount (the riding skill is bought in game), Shen'dorei Skyseer's Garb, the Veteran Adventurer's Rucksack, the Shen'dorei Windwell toy, Skyborne housing decor for modern WoW, and one Invite-A-Friend Launch Code.
• Skyborne Epic Pack: everything in the Heroic Pack, plus beta access from September 17, 30 days of Game Time added on November 4, more Veteran Adventurer inspired cosmetics, tabards, pets for your Forever collection, and two more Invite-A-Friend Launch Codes.
• Warcraft Forever Collection (limited time, through January 11, 2027): everything in the Skyborne Epic Pack, plus Warcraft III: Reforged, the Warcraft III Reforged: Forsaken Kingdom campaign, and Forsaken and Human figurine decor for housing in modern WoW.
• Collector's Edition, from the Blizzard Gear Store: a 13-inch Dwarf and Bear statue, a Zephras Isle mousepad, art prints, collectible pins, a companion journal, and a Warcraft Forever Collection digital code.
• Forsaken Kingdom on its own: Warcraft III Reforged: Forsaken Kingdom is also sold separately on the Battle.net Shop.

What Forever is

Forever is a new permanent version of World of Warcraft that sits alongside modern WoW and Classic. It is set after the events of Warcraft III Reforged: Forsaken Kingdom and before Molten Core, in the early Year 1 period before Kazzak reopened the Dark Portal. Players return to the original continents, level to 60, and keep progressing through new stories and updates.

See it in Blizzard's New Horizons cinematic trailer and the Forever What’s Next panel recap.

New places in Forever

From Blizzard's Found Photos panel recap: Forever expands the original level 1 to 60 world instead of replacing it.

• The Riverglades: a new mid-level zone, roughly the size of Stranglethorn Vale, with nearly 200 quests.
• Zephras Isle: home of the Skyborne (the shen'dorei, or hidden people), Forever's new playable race, and their starting experience.
• Mount Hyjal: one of Forever's new zones, with Zephras Isle and the Riverglades.
• New ship routes: Stormwind Harbor to Auberdine, Menethil and Southshore, and a Tanaris route to Powderfuse Port.
• Forsaken Paladins: they begin at Bandarion Keep in the Whispering Wood and earn an epic mount quest at level 60.

New systems in Forever

From Blizzard's Deep Dive panel recap:

• Rulesets instead of realms: Normal, PvP, Roleplaying or Hardcore.
• Hardcore: a character that dies can transfer to another ruleset.
• Names: two parts, unique per region.
• Professions: more than 600 new recipes.
• Camping: a Basic Campfire holds up to three crafted objects, one per player, on a one-hour cooldown.
• Legacy System: account-wide. Each character can spend up to 16 Legacy Points at launch, out of up to 65 that can be earned, and the Legacy Reward Track adds cosmetics such as the Spectral Bear Cub.

Midnight's roadmap for 2026 and 2027

Blizzard showed this roadmap in the Midnight What’s Next panel. It places each update in a season rather than on a date, and Blizzard notes that content and timing are subject to change.

• Autumn, update 12.1.5: Labyrinths, the Kith'ix campaign and mini raid, Aqir invasions, Hallow's End updates and reputation warbandification.
• Between autumn and winter, update 12.1.7, Echoes of the Worldcore: Talebound, story and quests, Lorewalking: Thrall, Turbulent Timeways and Winter Veil updates.
• Winter, Patch 12.2, Eclipse: see the breakdown below. Season 3 starts with it.
• Between winter and spring: the expansion reveal for The Last Titan.
• Spring, update 12.2.5: the Soulstorms world event, story and quests, and transmog updates, including the end of armor type restrictions on transmog.
• Between spring and summer, update 12.2.7: story and quests, a Midnight recap, and Lorewalking, professions and Midsummer updates.
• Summer: World of Warcraft Remix: Wrath of the Lich King.

Patch 12.2: Midnight: Eclipse, feature by feature

Eclipse is Midnight's final major content update. The roadmap puts it in winter, with no exact date yet. Players confront Xal'atath directly as she reaches for the Worldsoul. Watch Blizzard's Eclipse reveal trailer, Threshold.

• New zone: the Mantle Vault.
• New dungeon: Thraegar's Stand.
• New lair: The Gearhold.
• New raid: The Worldcore.
• Legendary: Midnight's Edge, a caster weapon.
• New Paladins: Night Elf, Forsaken and Troll characters can take the class.
• Season 3: starts shortly after Eclipse launches, with a new Mythic+ rotation and changes to Delves. Astalor Bloodsworn is the new Delve Nemesis.
• Also in the patch: new Delves and housing updates.

Talebound, feature by feature

A new PvE action RPG mode for modern WoW, from Blizzard's Talebound post.

• Arrives with: Echoes of the Worldcore, update 12.1.7 on the roadmap.
• Stories: four at launch, each with its own settings, enemies and bosses.
• Classes: Slayer, Inquisitor and Witch.
• Movement: every class can double jump, dodge and guard.
• Hub: Quillgrave, a lantern-lit village between adventures.
• Vendors: the Arcanist, Scribe, Outfitter and Antiquarian.
• Preview: an early version comes to the PTR in October.

The Last Titan

The Last Titan is the final chapter of the Worldsoul Saga and a return to Northrend. Blizzard says more will be revealed early next year, after the events of Eclipse, and the roadmap places that expansion reveal between winter and spring. More in Blizzard's BlizzCon 2026 news round-up.

New on the Battle.net Shop this week: the Abyssal Crown Collection

Blizzard's newest WoW shop release dresses characters in Azshara's corrupted regalia (Blizzard’s announcement). Buy the whole set or single pieces:

• Abyssal Crown Collection: both transmog sets and both mounts in one bundle.
• Azshara’s Darkscale Raiment and Azshara’s Deepscale Raiment: the two transmog sets.
• Zothwing Darkseeker and Zothwing Deepseeker: the two mounts, shared across all present and future modern WoW characters.

Not announced yet

Blizzard has not published these dates. They go on our home page calendar when it does.

• Exact dates for Echoes of the Worldcore (12.1.7) and Patch 12.2, Eclipse. The roadmap gives seasons only.
• The start date of Season 3.
• The exact October date for the Talebound preview on the PTR.
• A release date for The Last Titan.

Sources

Everything above comes from Blizzard's own posts, pages, roadmap and trailers.

• Watch the World of Warcraft Live Q&A September 17
• World of Warcraft at BlizzCon 2026 News Round-Up
• World of Warcraft: Forever
• Pre-Purchase World of Warcraft: Forever Upgrades
• Pre-Purchase the World of Warcraft: Forever Collector’s Edition
• World of Warcraft: Forever Deep Dive Panel Recap
• World of Warcraft: Forever Found Photos Panel Recap
• World of Warcraft: Forever What’s Next Panel Recap
• World of Warcraft: Midnight What’s Next Panel Recap
• Tales Take a Dark Turn in Midnight’s Talebound
• Corruption Calls with the Abyssal Crown Collection