What is WoW Forever Skyborne?
The Skyborne are the new playable race in World of Warcraft: Forever — descendants of Highborne exiles who once lived in Skywall. They start on Zephras Isle (level 1–12) and, uniquely, choose whether to join the Horde or the Alliance at character creation. Every fact below is stated by Blizzard; open questions are listed at the bottom rather than guessed.
Skyborne at a glance
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Starting zone | Zephras Isle |
| Level range | 1–12 |
| Faction | Chosen at character creation — Horde or Alliance |
| Horde side | Windshaper Skyborne (gains Shaman) |
| Alliance side | High Order Skyborne (gains Mage) |
| Unlock requirement | At least the Skyborne Heroic Pack (not the base subscription) |
Which classes can Skyborne play?
Four classes are shared by both factions; Shaman is Windshaper-only (Horde) and Mage is High Order-only (Alliance), exactly as Blizzard lists them.
| Class | Windshaper (Horde) | High Order (Alliance) |
|---|---|---|
| Warrior | ✓ | ✓ |
| Hunter | ✓ | ✓ |
| Rogue | ✓ | ✓ |
| Druid | ✓ | ✓ |
| Shaman | ✓ | — |
| Mage | — | ✓ |
Skyborne racials
| Racial | Type | Effect | Faction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walk on Air | active | Glide downward through the air for 10 seconds. | Both |
| Wind Blessed | passive | +1% increased melee, ranged and spellcasting Haste. | Both |
| Elemental Insight | passive | Damage dealt to Elementals increased by 5%. | Both |
| Skysight | active | Elemental Blessing increasing run speed by 10%. (Windshaper / Horde only.) | Windshaper |
| Read Ley Line | active | Activate a ley line to gain 100% increased Health and Mana regeneration. (High Order / Alliance only.) | High Order |
Customization options
| Option | Count |
|---|---|
| Face options (Body Type 1) | 10 |
| Hair styles (Body Type 1) | 21 |
| Hair colors (Body Type 1) | 11 |
| Ear lengths | 3 |
| Eye colors | 9 |
| Facial hair options (Body Type 1) | 13 |
| Face tattoo options | 4 (2 colors) |
| Body tattoo options | Zephyr and Wayfinder (2 colors) |
| Druid forms | New Skyborne-specific forms (Bear, Cat, Travel, Moonkin shown) |
Should you play Skyborne?
If you want the newest experience and a character that chooses its own faction, yes. The Skyborne are the only race in Forever that is not tied to a faction up front, and their start zone is a brand-new level 1–12 experience. The trade-off is that playing one requires at least the Skyborne Heroic Pack, so it is not available on the base subscription alone. Pick your faction with your friends in mind — the choice happens at character creation. See the full class split on the Skyborne classes page and the mechanics on Skyborne racials.
Open questions (not announced)
We list these rather than guess a number:
- Exact cooldowns and durations for Walk on Air, Skysight and Read Ley Line (only Walk on Air's 10 seconds is stated).
- Whether the Skyborne faction choice can ever be changed after character creation.
- Full stat values for Wind Blessed and Elemental Insight beyond the 1% Haste / 5% damage stated.
- Whether Skyborne get a unique mount or only the Collector's Edition Cerulean Prideclaw.
- The complete Druid form set (Tree of Life form has not been shown).