WoW: Forever Leveling Guide: Zones by Level, 1-60

The first thing to know about leveling in WoW: Forever is that nobody official has told you where to go. Blizzard's posts name the new zones and give level ranges for the nine new dungeons, but the only zone they attach a level range to is Zephras Isle. Wowhead says it outright on its Forever world map: the game's data "doesn't give its zones a level range." So every zone-by-level table you find, this one included, is a fansite's reading of where each zone's quests and enemies sit. This guide puts the two biggest lists, from Icy Veins and Wowhead, next to each other so you can see where they agree and where they don't. Then it covers what actually changes your leveling speed. If you are still in your starting zone, our beginner guide to the first 10 levels comes first.

The Riverglades, one of Forever's new zones, in Blizzard's press screenshot.

Blizzard does not publish zone levels

Only one zone has a level range from Blizzard: its starter guide puts Zephras Isle, the Skyborne starting zone, at levels 1 to 12. Its dungeon post gives a range for each new dungeon. The rest comes from fansites:

• Icy Veins published "Here's Every Zone from 1 to 60" on November 9. Its numbers are recommended ranges in round figures.
• Wowhead's Forever world map gives its own ranges, which it describes as "where each zone's content sits." These are less round: Elwynn Forest is 5-10, Stranglethorn Vale 30-44.

Zones do not scale to you. Icy Veins says Forever zones "don't scale with your level" the way retail's do. Blizzard's starter guide makes the same point indirectly, telling new players to "watch the level of nearby enemies when you leave the road." A zone that is too high will hurt.

Levels 1 to 20 by race

Your race picks your starting zone. Icy Veins pairs each one with a neighbouring second zone, and Wowhead's database lists every one of those second zones as belonging to the same faction:

Skyborne are the odd case. Per Warcraft Wiki, Alliance Skyborne leave Zephras Isle by airship and land in Dalaran in the Alterac Mountains. Horde Skyborne land at Skywatcher Plateau in Mulgore, the zone Icy Veins pairs with the Barrens. Alterac is not a level 12 zone: Icy Veins rates it 30-40 and Wowhead 27-39. An Alliance Skyborne should treat Dalaran as a place to pass through and head for one of the 10-20 zones in the table above. Our beginner guide covers Zephras Isle itself.

Two new dungeons sit at the top of this bracket. Blizzard lists the Hall of Thanes, under Ironforge, at 13-18 and the Ruins of Lordaeron, above the Undercity, at 15-20. Each one is easy to reach for one faction and deep in enemy territory for the other.

Every zone by level range

Forever's Eastern Kingdoms map, as hosted on Warcraft Wiki.

Here are the zones past the starting areas, ordered by where they start. Ranges are Icy Veins first, then Wowhead. Where the two differ by more than a couple of levels, the note says so. Icy Veins marks Redridge, Duskwood and the Wetlands as Alliance zones, while Wowhead's database lists all three as contested. Both list every other zone in the table as contested.

Read the table as a set of choices, not a route. Icy Veins notes that you can switch to another zone of the right level if you are playing with a friend or just prefer it.

Forever's Kalimdor map. Shen'dralas, a new zone, sits southeast of Desolace, between Feralas and Mulgore.

The four new zones

Zephras Isle (1-12). The Skyborne start here, per Blizzard. Anyone can visit by the airships from Dalaran or Mulgore, per Warcraft Wiki, whether or not they bought a Skyborne pack.

Riverglades (35-45). Warcraft Wiki and Wowhead's zones guide both give 35-45, and Wowhead's map 36-44. Warcraft Wiki places the zone east of the Badlands and Burning Steppes, and Wowhead puts it on the eastern coast next to both. The Alliance hub is Farholde Keep and the Horde hub is Rog'mar, and each has a flight master, per Warcraft Wiki and Wowhead. Powderfuse Port has a new boat to Tanaris: Warcraft Wiki's Riverglades page lists the route as Powderfuse Port to Steamwheedle Port. The zone's dungeon, Krol'dok Stronghold, is 40-45 per Blizzard.

Shen'dralas (no range published). Warcraft Wiki places it in central Kalimdor, southeast of Desolace and between Feralas and Mulgore. The wiki adds that you can walk in from Desolace through the Valley of Bones. Neither gives it a level range. Blizzard's starter guide mentions it only as somewhere "later adventures may lead you." Until a source puts a number on it, judge it by the enemies you meet.

Shen'dralas in Blizzard's press screenshot. Its level range is still unpublished.

Mount Hyjal (60). Warcraft Wiki and Wowhead both list it as a level 60 zone. It also holds two of Forever's raids, which open December 9. Our raids and endgame guide covers those.

The nine new dungeons by level

Blizzard's dungeon post gives these ranges and locations. The returning dungeons, from Ragefire Chasm to Stratholme, are listed in Warcraft Wiki's Forever table. Its ranges and Wowhead's differ on several of them, in a few cases by five levels or more, so they are left out here.

City of Dalaran needs an attunement questline first. Blizzard says Alliance players start it with "An Alarming Request" from Emissary Jacques in Southshore. Horde players start with "Key to the City" and "Prison Break-In" from Magus Wordeen Voidglare in Tarren Mill. Both towns are in Hillsbrad Foothills, a 20-30 zone, so pick the quests up while you are there.

Dungeon XP: two changes to know

Dungeon XP has already changed twice since launch, and both changes affect how you level.

1. November 9: +50% from dungeon kills. Blizzard raised the experience from every enemy kill in dungeons by half. Our November 9 hotfix breakdown has the rest of that list.
2. November 13: no XP for trivial kills in a group. Blizzard's running hotfix page now says that killing dungeon enemies "awards zero experience to all party members" if an enemy's level is trivial to one or more of them. A friend at level 60 who carries you through a dungeon well below their level costs everyone in the group the kill XP. Go with players near your level.

Rested XP and other XP boosts

Rested experience is in Forever. Blizzard's Legacy post and its Deep Dive panel recap both describe a perk that raises the rested cap and speeds up how fast rest builds. We have not found a Blizzard figure for Forever's base rest rate or cap, so we are not quoting Classic's here. Log out in an inn or a city and treat whatever rest you have as a bonus.

What we can confirm for Forever:

The campfire is the glue. Blizzard says you sit by a campfire briefly to become rested, which is what lets you receive campsite buffs, and its Deep Dive recap calls the fire a natural place to refresh food buffs. The professions guide lists every profession's camp object. The beginner guide covers the Cozy Sleeping Bag's two-hour scavenger hunt, which you can start at level 14.

Blizzard's other leveling advice is to keep your Hearthstone handy and learn flight paths as you pass flight masters. The Legacy perk Frequent Flier makes flights cheaper and faster.

Level 25, 40 and 48 milestones

Level 25: the Legacy System. Blizzard says most players unlock it when their first character reaches 25, though reaching 150 in a non-gathering primary profession or exploring the whole world map also counts. Reaching 25, 45 and 60 on each class earns a Legacy Point. Each character can spend up to 16 points at launch. Two perks speed up leveling directly: Well Rested (above) and Talented, which lets you unlock talent points up to 5 levels sooner than normal.

Level 40: riding. Wowhead and Icy Veins agree that riding unlocks at 40 and that Apprentice Riding costs 100 gold from your race's riding trainer. Your first 60% speed mount is free with the training: Icy Veins says it is bundled with the riding skill, and Wowhead says the mount vendor gives it to you through a quest. Wowhead says reaching Honored with your race's faction gets a 10% discount. Paladins and Warlocks get a class mount at 40 instead, from a class quest, per Wowhead. Blizzard's November 9 hotfix confirms the Warlock one is a quest, "Summon Felsteed". Level 40 is also when Dual Specialization opens, covered in our classes guide, so plan for both costs.

Level 48: quest gold. Blizzard's November 10 hotfix made most quests from level 48 up also reward gold. Forever does not convert XP to gold for level 60 quests, so there is no reason to save quests for later. Turn them in as you go. The gold-making guide has the details.

What this guide does not cover

• A quest-by-quest route. Forever has more than 1,000 new quests, per Warcraft Wiki. A step-by-step route would need an in-game playthrough we have not done, and Blizzard is still posting hotfixes every few days.
• The returning dungeons' exact levels. Warcraft Wiki and Wowhead disagree on most of them, some by five levels or more.
• Shen'dralas' level range. Nobody we checked has published one.
• Leveling speed numbers. We found no Blizzard figure for total XP to 60 or for base rested XP in Forever, and we are not going to borrow Classic's.