Skyborne — Race Guide

The Skyborne are the first entirely new playable race in classic Azeroth. They are an elven people from the Isle of Zephras, a floating scrap of land inspired by the element of air, the Thunderous Fury, and the legacy of the Highborne. The island serves as their starting zone for levels 1 through 12. This means the race will have an entry into the game separate from the other races, and players will be invited to complete a starting quest chain that tells who the Skyborne are and their history.

Thematically, the race is tied to the elements of wind and ley lines, which is reflected in its set of abilities.

The Skyborne do not belong to either faction. The people are neutral by origin, and the player chooses a side themselves during character creation. This choice determines three things: the name of the class branch, one racial ability, and one available class.

• The Alliance variant is called the High Order: these Skyborne share the philosophy of the Kirin Tor, and the Mage class is open to them.

• The Horde variant is the Windborne, who follow the power of the elements, and the Shaman is available to them.

That said, this is one race with a common ancestor, not two different peoples.

The set of classes shared by both sides:

• Warrior
• Hunter
• Rogue
• Druid

Paladin, Priest, and Warlock will not be available to the Skyborne at launch.

The Skyborne have four racial abilities: two active and two passive. Three of them are the same for the Horde and the Alliance, while one is unique and depends on the chosen faction.

Shared by both sides:

• Walk on Air, active — lets you glide down through the air for 10 seconds. This is not flight or ascent, only a controlled descent.
• Wind Blessed, passive — plus 1% to melee attack speed, ranged attack speed, and spell casting speed.
• Elemental Insight, passive — plus 5% damage against elementals.

Unique branch abilities:

• Read Ley Line for the Alliance, active — activates a ley line, increasing health and mana regeneration by 100%.
• Skysight for the Horde, active — grants a blessing of the elements that increases run speed by 10%.

The Skyborne have no separate racial talents: talents in Forever remain class-based.

The Skyborne are not part of standard subscription access. The only way to unlock the race is by purchasing the Skyborne Heroic Pack for $29.99 or any more expensive edition. The purchase grants early name reservation from October 27 through November 3: you can create and customize up to three characters and claim a name in advance.

The Heroic Pack itself does not grant access to the September beta — for that you need a higher-quality edition, such as Epic.

Skyborne druids receive exclusive sky-blue forms for the bear, cat, travel form, and owlkin. The Tree of Life form has not been shown yet.