Change report
WoW Forever launch patch notes checked: every Nov 2 class change is live, tank threat included
Blizzard's Nov 2 notes raise class damage and rebuild Rogue, Warrior and Shaman. Checked against the launch client, build 70790, and the live servers on launch night: every class change is in, tank threat included.
Nov 3, 2026Updated Nov 4, 2026Checked against build 1.60.1.707906 min read
Blizzard posted its launch notes on Nov 2, two days before WoW Forever opens. They raise damage for every class, rebuild the Rogue, Warrior and Shaman trees and change half the racials. We read every class, racial and world line against the client, first build 70755 and then the launch client, build 70790 (Nov 4), and against the changes the live servers sent on Nov 3 and on launch night, which the game applies on top of its files.
In short, every class change in the notes is in the game. The launch client brought the Feral Druid and Starfire damage, and on launch night the servers sent the last piece, the tank threat increases.
Why classes hit harder now
Blizzard says holding each class to Classic’s power budget “meant that every new element we added needed to come at the expense of something else.” So in the last two weeks it “raised damage on classes across the game, and have increased the health of higher level creatures to compensate.”
It also says the classes stay as they are for a while. Apart from bugs and outliers there’s no big tuning before the raids open on December 9, then “a large tuning pass” once players are past level 30.
In the files
Paladin. Every new talent is in build 70753: Oath of Light, Boundless Light, Stoicism, Shieldsworn, Turn Evil and Unsealed Wrath as the new 31-point Retribution talent. Salvation, Mass Salvation and Revoke are gone, and Righteous Fury now adds 33% to all threat on top of the 90% for Holy damage. The notes leave out that Holy Shield moved 10 levels earlier, rank 1 at level 30 for 100 mana, with a new rank 4 at 60.
Druid trees reshuffled. Heart of the Wild and Furor swap trees, Bloom replaces Gift of the Earthmother, Lacerate becomes a one-point Feral talent from level 25, Predatory Discipline is new, Berserk is gone, and Ferocious Bite has a new rank 1 at level 24. Wild Growth now takes 3 sec to cast. Swiftmend’s tooltip says it consumes your Rejuvenation or Regrowth; Blizzard added on Nov 3 that it doesn’t, and the word will be fixed. The notes don’t mention that Shifting Power’s cooldown halved to 8 sec, and Primal Bite hits harder but comes at levels 40, 50 and 60.
Mage. Arcane Blast stacks cost 100% more mana (was 175%) and last 18 sec, Ice Barrier gives 15% Frost damage for a minute, Ice Lance does 300% to frozen targets and Winter’s Chill adds 20% per stack to Cone of Cold. Frost Blast is gone from the trainer, though four tooltips name it.
Priest. Shadow Word: Death now hits you for 30% of your health when it fails to kill, and Holy Binding replaces Binding Heal.
Rogue and Druid get Poised. Poised (Rogue, level 18; Druid, level 32) takes 10 Energy off your first ability after you’ve waited at full Energy out of combat.
Hunter traps share one 30 sec cooldown, fire and frost alike.
Every racial line matches, with one exception:
| Race | What changed |
|---|---|
| Dwarf | Earth Fury becomes Artisan’s Precision: +1% hit with spells and attacks |
| Human | Ruthless +1% crit (was 2%), Human Spirit +10% Spirit (was 5%) |
| Orc | Savage removed, Command back (+5% pet damage), Blood Fury on a 2 min cooldown |
| Skyborne | Wind-Blessed Haste 2%, Read Leyline 50% regeneration for 15 sec, Attuned and Charged for an hour |
| Tauren | Plainsrunning 2% per stack up to 60%, but no longer on a mount; Endurance is health only |
| Troll | Berserking lasts 15 sec |
| Undead | Touch of the Grave every 15 sec (was 25) |
The exception is Skysight, below. All of it is on the races page.
Live on the servers
These came from the servers, not the files, so you won’t find them by reading the client alone.
- Rogue rebuilt. Shank is in: 5 Energy, 50% off-hand weapon damage, 15 Energy back (25 at rank 2). Blood Splatter, Composure, Flash of Steel, Quick Getaway, Boot Knife and Death Mark are in the tree, and Murder, Quietus, Cutthroat and Thousand Cuts are gone. Mutilate does 90% weapon damage, up from 75%.
- Warrior rebuilt. Reckless Swings and Improved Whirlwind are in, Flurry has 3 ranks, and Slam’s cooldown is 15 sec. The notes don’t say that Raging Blows is gone: Improved Whirlwind took its place.
- Shaman. Lightning Bolt’s top rank does 353 base damage, up from 196. Chain Lightning takes 2.5 sec and hits harder, the shocks are back to Classic’s numbers, Stormstrike does 150% on a 6 sec cooldown, and Call of Thunder replaces Lava Burst. Riptide costs less, has a 12 sec cooldown and no longer heals up front.
- Hunter. Aimed Shot’s top rank adds 350 damage (was 166), Arcane Shot and Serpent Sting hit harder, Sniper Shot doubles, Barrage is 5/10/15% and Lightning Reflexes 3/6/9/12/15%. Aspect of the Hawk (20 to 110) and Trueshot Aura (20 to 100) are back up, undoing most of the Oct 28 cut.
- Paladin. Vengeance stacks 5 times, and Two-Handed Weapon Specialization now raises Holy damage too.
- Warlock. Wrack scales twice as well with spell power and grows with level, and Shadow and Flame is 4/8/12/16/20%.
The servers also changed things the notes leave out. Spearing Strike does 75% weapon damage (was 40%), Lingering Rage now delays the Rage decay after combat by 2 to 10 sec, the Warrior’s Two-Handed Weapon Specialization is 2/4/6%, and the top-rank Rogue poisons carry more charges (Instant Poison VI 250, up from 175).
New in the launch client: Druid damage
Build 70790 reached the client on launch day, and it holds the Druid changes the servers hadn’t sent:
- Feral: Shred does 200% weapon damage (was 155%), Claw 140% (110%) and Ravage 435% (350%). Rip, Rake, Ferocious Bite and Pounce hit about 25% harder: Pounce’s bleed is 31 a tick at rank 3, up from 25. Rend and Tear is 3/6/9/12/15%.
- Balance: Starfire does 40% more base damage on every rank, 533 at rank 7, up from 381.
The attack power part of the Feral increase isn’t in the files, so only the base damage is confirmed. Besides that, the launch client mostly writes into its files what the servers were already sending. Keys such as the Brittle Key and the Stone Key now go on your keyring.
Live on launch night: tank threat
The launch client still had the old threat numbers. The data the servers sent on launch night, Nov 4, has the new ones:
- Bear Form adds 115% threat (was 50%).
- Defensive Stance adds 80% threat (was 30%), and Defiance 7/13/20% (was 5/10/15%).
Where the notes and the game disagree
- Skysight: the notes say 15% speed for 15 sec. The game gives 15% for 30 sec.
- Natural Instinct: the Druid talent that moved from column 1 to column 4 is Natural Reaction.
- Throw: the notes promise a 0.5 sec windup. The files changed it from a 0.5 sec cast to instant, so the windup, if there is one, is in server code.
What changes for everyone
- Training from 1 to 60 now costs 206 to 207 gold for every class, and spells of the same level cost the same. Warlocks pay less to make up for their pets’ grimoires. Trainer prices are set on the servers, so this is Blizzard’s number.
- New spells no longer go onto your action bars on their own. About 1,400 class spells gained a new setting in this build, which is most likely that change.
- Bags no longer equip themselves. Drag each one into a bag slot.
- Spells of a lower rank no longer lower your talent procs, except Blizzard, which keeps the penalty for ranks more than 12 levels below you.
- Respawns are faster at launch, fastest in the starting zones, and Blizzard will slow them once the rush settles.
The WoW Forever talent calculator has every new tree, the server’s changes included. Everything else for tomorrow is on the WoW Forever launch checklist.
Questions
What changed in the WoW Forever launch patch notes?
Blizzard's Nov 2 notes raise damage for every class and give higher-level creatures more health to match, rework Rogue around a new ability, Shank, rebuild the Warrior and Shaman talent trees, reshape the other trees, change several racials, make class training cost about 206 to 207 gold from 1 to 60, stop bags equipping themselves and stop new spells going onto your action bars.
Are the WoW Forever Nov 2 changes live?
Yes. The launch client, build 70790, and the data the live servers sent on launch night have every class and racial change in the notes: the Feral Druid damage increases, Starfire, and the threat increases for Bear Form (115%), Defensive Stance (80%) and Defiance (7/13/20%).
Did WoW Forever buff class damage before launch?
Yes. Blizzard raised damage across the game and gave higher-level creatures more health to compensate. On the live servers, Lightning Bolt's top rank does 353 base damage instead of 196, Aimed Shot's top rank adds 350 instead of 166, and Stormstrike does 150% weapon damage on a 6 sec cooldown.
Will WoW Forever change classes after launch?
Blizzard says that apart from bugs and serious outliers it doesn't plan big tuning changes before the raids open in December. It expects a large tuning pass once enough players are past level 30.