WoW: Forever rulesets and Roleplay-PvP

Key facts at a glance

World of Warcraft: Forever replaces realm selection with rulesets: Normal, PvP, Roleplaying and Hardcore.
New as of October 22, 2026: a Roleplay-PvP ruleset arrives at launch on November 4 and is planned for Early Name Reservation from October 27.
Groups, dungeons and raids only work within the same ruleset; battlegrounds mix all rulesets except Hardcore.
On PvP you can only create characters of one faction, and Hardcore arrives sometime after launch.
Collections and Legacy Points are account-wide, and a preferred online language helps you meet players who share it.

The rulesets at a glance

Instead of picking a specific realm, WoW: Forever players choose a ruleset that works like one large shared ecosystem. The options are:

Normal: the baseline experience, with PvP only when you opt in.
PvP: more danger and open-world conflict in contested territory.
Roleplaying: for players who want to dive deeper into the fantasy of Azeroth.
Roleplay-PvP: added in the October 22 update and arriving at launch on November 4.
Hardcore: death is permanent; this ruleset arrives sometime after launch.

Ruleset selection with Normal, PvP, Roleplay and Hardcore in World of Warcraft: Forever — WoW: Forever asks you to pick a ruleset rather than a realm.

Blizzard also plans to make Roleplay-PvP available for Early Name Reservation when it begins on Tuesday, October 27. Our name reservation news covers the details.

Playing together and switching

Each ruleset is its own space. Groups, dungeons and raids only work with players on the same ruleset, while battlegrounds can include players from other rulesets – except Hardcore. Horde and Alliance still cannot group together.

You cannot freely hop between rulesets; to play elsewhere, you create a new character there. If a Hardcore character dies, it can transfer to another ruleset, including PvP. Collections and Legacy Points are account-wide; Hardcore progress can carry over to other rulesets, but not the other way around.

On PvP, Blizzard will manage faction balance similar to Season of Discovery, temporarily limiting new characters for one faction when needed. You can only create characters for one faction on PvP, while Normal, Roleplaying and Hardcore allow both. See our classes and races page for every combination.

Preferred online language

A language preference helps you meet players who share it. Open the Game Menu (Escape), choose Options, then Languages and Social under System, and pick your Preferred Online Language. The setting is account-wide and can only be changed once every 24 hours.