You are thinking about starting to play World of Warcraft again or for the first time? In our beginner’s guide, we will tell you everything you need to know to start in WoW!

With over 20 years of existence, World of Warcraft is a classic in the MMORPG genre. It’s no wonder that players have taken a break of several years after once checking it out.

If you want to dive into World of Warcraft now, you might find a very different game than what it was a few expansions ago. We want to provide you with a little guide here and explain what you need to know when you start with World of Warcraft.

You can watch the trailer for the current WoW addon here:

What does World of Warcraft cost?

Many players are initially confused about the costs involved with World of Warcraft. Do you have to buy all the expansions? Is there still a subscription model? Can you earn game time in other ways?

The base game with old expansions is free. First and foremost: To start with World of Warcraft, you do not need to buy a “box” version of the game or a game license. As soon as you create an account, it is upgraded directly to include the latest expansion, “Dragonflight”. Only the newest expansion, The War Within, needs to be purchased. But you can also wait until you reach level 70 to see if you enjoy the gameplay.

Subscription costs remain. To play WoW, a subscription is still necessary. This costs €13 per month – if you commit to a longer subscription, it becomes slightly cheaper per month, and you receive a pet or other rewards every few months. If desired, you can earn your game time with in-game gold. However, the gold price fluctuates greatly here. This option is only worthwhile for heavy players and auction house speculators who charge other players for in-game goods.
For newcomers, it is not realistic to cover the subscription costs with in-game gold.

Costs of The War Within. The latest expansion, The War Within, was released on August 27, 2024. To access these features, which are now “current content”, the expansion must be purchased. Currently, the standard version costs €50.

In short: WoW costs €13 per month. The current expansion The War Within costs an additional €50.

Choosing the server

When starting WoW, choosing a server is the first task. But on which server should you play? It’s best to orient yourself based on the server your friends play on.

Your friends are on different servers? No problem! You can now create groups in WoW that can play across servers. Even if you are playing on “Die Aldor” and your friend is on “Azshara”, you can have adventures together. This is also possible across factions, at least in dungeons and raids. Only in the open world can Alliance players not play with Horde players, or only very limited.

You should only consider RP servers if you really plan to engage in role-playing – that is, to act out a character within World of Warcraft. If you cannot relate to this, you should avoid RP servers.

In short: The choice of server is secondary. Just avoid “empty” servers or RP servers if you do not want to engage in any RP.

Progress on multiple levels

At the time of the “Classic” version of World of Warcraft, there was a clear stratification of character progress. After visiting dungeons, there were only raids left to further develop the character. This required 40 coordinated players and a lot of time.

Now, things are very different in WoW. Although there are still raids that yield the best loot the fastest, there are also numerous ways for players with less time or a more spontaneous evening schedule to notice progress repeatedly.

Mythic+ as an endless challenge for established groups: Dungeons (or “instances”) at max level have many different difficulty levels. The last one, the “Mythic+” mode, is even endless and gets harder the better your performance is. With this, the value of the reward left by the final boss also increases. At the end of the week, there is also an extra reward based on the hardest dungeon you have conquered.

PvP as a source of equipment: If you prefer to smash other players, you will also be regularly rewarded in PvP. Winning battlegrounds or fighting in the arena consistently yields equipment pieces – these are generally of higher quality for successful players.

Solo play as an alternative: If you want to play an evening “by yourself” without groups and players, you can do that as well. World quests lure you with always attainable rewards that even have a chance of an unexpected upgrade. Since The War Within, there are also the Depths – these are small dungeons that you can complete alone with an NPC by your side and have multiple difficulty levels. Similar to Mythic+, as the difficulty increases, so does the value of the loot.

In short: Every type of player can experience constant progress in World of Warcraft. There is always a reward within reach that further improves the character.

PvP has become fairer

The PvP system of World of Warcraft has been significantly overhauled several times. Where once you could score with normal equipment, now a PvP gear is almost required. Fortunately, solid starter equipment can be earned in a short time.

Depending on whether you aim for rated or unranked matches in battlegrounds and arenas, you will have a different gaming experience. While in the arena matchmaking ensures you usually encounter similarly strong opponents, this is often unbalanced in battlegrounds – but the increased chaos can also make it that much more fun.

If you want to engage in PvP in the open game world, you must first activate the new war mode in a capital city. But beware! In war mode, you will only encounter other players who are also looking for fights. There is thus a constant threat.

In short: PvP in WoW has become fairer and better, but also significantly more complex. However, if you never want to engage in PvP, you can completely avoid it.

The first steps: Leveling, leveling, leveling!

When you start fresh with World of Warcraft and want to proceed as “effectively” as possible, you should focus on a single character that you can level to the maximum level as quickly as possible. Once you have a character at level 80, it’s much easier to catch up with other characters since you can support them with gold and resources from the first character.

You currently level the fastest through quests in World of Warcraft, occasionally supported by a visit to a dungeon to complete the missions there as well. Basically, there is no “wrong way” to go.

Almost all areas in the game scale, they adjust to the level of the character. If an area eventually doesn’t provide experience anymore, there’s always the next mission that lures the character into a new zone. Alternatively, a look at the world map also helps, as it indicates what level is suitable for each area.

In short: Focus on one character that you want to play. Leveling alone is a bit tedious, but it goes quickly with dungeons or a friend by your side.

Find yourself companions!

Although you can have a lot of fun in World of Warcraft alone, the game is more enjoyable with companions. If you have no acquaintances in your friend circle who also play, you might find it a bit difficult to get started.

Thanks to the new “Community” feature, there is now an easy way to meet like-minded people and embark on adventures in Azeroth with them.

Alternatively, you can create a guild or join existing ones. When looking for guilds, there is a tool within the game that can help you. But perhaps you can also meet other players in the open world with whom you have fun and then start a guild together.

The last tip: Have fun and don’t be afraid!

More important than all the things mentioned above is a basic rule: A new MMORPG is most enjoyable when you take the time to discover everything yourself. You shouldn’t let yourself be rushed by friends just to be able to reach max level as quickly as possible if you’d rather explore the world at your own pace. Take all the time you need. World of Warcraft offers more content than most other MMORPGs due to 20 years of game development.

This much content can feel overwhelming and create the thought that you can never accomplish everything. Partially, that is true, but it is also not important. To play with friends, essentially only the max level and solid equipment is necessary, which can be quickly earned.

All those small “side activities” in World of Warcraft, like pet battles, collecting toys, titles, or achievements, are numerous fillers and long-term goals. They enrich the game world and offer countless possibilities – but this should not scare anyone away.

In short: Play the game as you see fit. Whether following guides or just curiously marching into the world. The most enjoyable experience comes from playing at your own pace. If you still need ideas for class selection, we have the best classes for beginners and returners in WoW here.
We hope this little guide has eased your fears about getting back into World of Warcraft.

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