How do you start a guild in WoW Forever?

It works as in Classic. Buy a Guild Charter from a guild master in a capital city, get other players to sign it, then hand it back to register the guild, and design its tabard. Forever's client has its own charter and tabard, and charters worked on the beta. The price and the number of signatures are set on Blizzard's servers; in Classic they're 10 silver and nine signatures, and Blizzard hasn't said Forever changes them.

How much does it cost to start a guild in WoW Forever?

Blizzard hasn't given Forever's price. In Classic a Guild Charter costs 10 silver from a guild master.

Does WoW Forever have a guild bank?

Not on the beta as of Oct 5, and not in the client as of build 70291. The guild bank's window is in the files, but its code loads only in TBC and later versions, and Forever isn't one of them. Forever does add two bank messages Classic Era's client lacks, one of them barring self-found characters, so a bank may come later. Blizzard hasn't announced one.

Can you rename a guild in WoW Forever?

The client carries a guild rename that loads for Forever and not for Classic Era. The Guild Master asks an NPC for a new name and pays for it, there is a waiting period before the next rename, and a fresh rename can be reversed for a refund. Blizzard hasn't announced it or its price, and its text allows for the feature being switched off.

Is there a Guild Finder in WoW Forever?

The client carries the Guild Finder, opened with /guildfinder or /gf, with text Classic Era's client shares. Testers haven't said whether it works on the beta.

Are GDKP raids allowed in WoW Forever?

Not in North America or Europe. Blizzard bans them there, mainly because, in its words, they overtake the traditional guild structure and push new players toward buying gold. Clay Stone told 4Gamers Taiwan the ban covers only those two regions, as it did in Season of Discovery and on the Anniversary realms.

Guilds · WoW Forever · build 1.60.1.70450

WoW Forever guilds

Guilds in WoW Forever start as Classic's did, from a signed Guild Charter, and Blizzard built much of Forever around them: a 10-player and a 20-player raid in every tier, layering that keeps guildmates together, and a ban on GDKP in North America and Europe to protect guild raiding. There is no guild bank yet, though the client adds a paid guild rename that Classic Era doesn't have.

What's in Forever, and how we know

Feature	In the game files	On the beta	Source
Guild charters	YesForever has its own copies of the Guild Charter and Guild Tabard	YesWorking from day one, when a bug briefly let charters register unsigned	Blizzard's beta known issues, Sep 18
Guild bank	NoThe bank's window is in the client, set to load only in TBC and later versions, which leave out Forever	NoNo guild bank as of Oct 5	Bhfior, Oct 5
Guild rename	YesA paid rename at an NPC, set to load for Forever and not for Classic Era	Not knownNot reported either way	Its text allows for the feature being switched off
Guild Finder	YesThe finder and /gf, with text Classic Era's client shares	Not knownNot reported either way	Whether the servers switch it on is up to Blizzard
Guild events in the calendar	YesCreate Guild Event, in a calendar set up for Forever	YesGuilds create events and invite people through it	GuideMMO, Sep 18
Guildmates on your layer	Server sideLayering runs on Blizzard's servers	YesBlizzard's "familiar faces" layering puts you with guildmates and friends	Blizzard podcast, Sep 24
Guild levels and perks	Nothing newOnly old text that Classic Era's client carries too, and Era has no guild levels	NoA guest on Shobek's stream, introduced as a developer, doesn't think they exist	Shobek's stream, Sep 16

"In the game files" reads Forever's interface code and text in build 1.60.1.70450 against Classic Era's. Code that loads for Forever shows a feature is built, not that the servers switch it on.

Starting a guild

Find a guild master in a capital city and buy a Guild Charter. Name the guild on it, get other players to sign it, then hand the signed charter back to register the guild, and design a Guild Tabard. Forever made its own copies of both items, and charters worked from the beta's first day, when a bug briefly let them register with no signatures at all.

The charter's price and how many signatures it needs are set on Blizzard's servers. In Classic it's 10 silver and nine signatures, and Blizzard hasn't said Forever changes either. Classic's guilds hold up to 1,000 members; on Shobek's stream a guest introduced as a developer said he'd write down the idea of raising that cap for Forever's large realms.

The guild bank and the guild rename

Testers found no guild bank on the beta, and the client agrees. The bank's window sits in Forever's files, but its code is set to load only in TBC and later versions, and Forever isn't on that list. Forever's client does add two bank messages Classic Era's lacks, one saying a bank isn't available to a character and one barring self-found characters from it, which leaves room for a bank later. Blizzard hasn't said.

The guild rename is set to load for Forever and not for Classic Era. The Guild Master asks an NPC for a new name, pays for it and waits out a cooldown before renaming again, and can reverse a fresh rename for a refund. The client doesn't give the price, and Blizzard hasn't mentioned the feature.

From the game files (build 70450).

Raiding as a guild

10
Barrow DeepsEight bosses beneath Mount Hyjal
Dec 9
20
Hyjal Summit13 bosses, the largest of the three
Dec 9
40
Onyxia's LairOnyxia alone, with extra tier pieces
Dec 9

Blizzard promises a 10-player and a 20-player raid in every tier, so a small guild never runs out of raids, and the path runs from dungeons to 10-player raids to 20. A 40-player raid won't come every tier; Onyxia is the first. There is no flexible raid size, and tier pieces drop across all three raids, which nudges a guild to run more than one size. GDKP raids are banned in North America and Europe, because, Blizzard says, they overtake guild raiding and push new players toward buying gold. Clay Stone told 4Gamers Taiwan the ban doesn't reach other regions.

From Blizzard's Sep 12 roadmap and Sep 17 developer Q&A.

Hardcore and self-found guilds

On Hardcore, a guild leader who dies must name a new one before releasing. Blizzard listed it among the guild tools Hardcore needed, and Forever's client already carries the prompt that asks the dead leader to type in a successor. Self-found characters can't use a guild bank. Hardcore opens after launch, with no date yet.

From Blizzard's Sep 15 Hardcore panel and the game files (build 70450).

Questions

How do you start a guild in WoW Forever?: It works as in Classic. Buy a Guild Charter from a guild master in a capital city, get other players to sign it, then hand it back to register the guild, and design its tabard. Forever's client has its own charter and tabard, and charters worked on the beta. The price and the number of signatures are set on Blizzard's servers; in Classic they're 10 silver and nine signatures, and Blizzard hasn't said Forever changes them.
How much does it cost to start a guild in WoW Forever?: Blizzard hasn't given Forever's price. In Classic a Guild Charter costs 10 silver from a guild master.
How big can a guild be in WoW Forever?: Classic's guilds hold up to 1,000 members, and nothing says Forever's differ. On Shobek's stream a guest introduced as a developer said he'd write down the idea of raising that cap for Forever's large realms. Blizzard hasn't announced a change.
Does WoW Forever have a guild bank?: Not on the beta as of Oct 5, and not in the client as of build 70291. The guild bank's window is in the files, but its code loads only in TBC and later versions, and Forever isn't one of them. Forever does add two bank messages Classic Era's client lacks, one of them barring self-found characters, so a bank may come later. Blizzard hasn't announced one.
Can you rename a guild in WoW Forever?: The client carries a guild rename that loads for Forever and not for Classic Era. The Guild Master asks an NPC for a new name and pays for it, there is a waiting period before the next rename, and a fresh rename can be reversed for a refund. Blizzard hasn't announced it or its price, and its text allows for the feature being switched off.
Is there a Guild Finder in WoW Forever?: The client carries the Guild Finder, opened with /guildfinder or /gf, with text Classic Era's client shares. Testers haven't said whether it works on the beta.
What raids can a guild do in WoW Forever?: Barrow Deeps for 10 players, Hyjal Summit for 20 and Onyxia's Lair for 40, all open from Dec 9. Blizzard promises a 10-player and a 20-player raid in every tier, so a small guild always has a raid. There is no flexible raid size, and tier pieces drop across all three raids.
Are GDKP raids allowed in WoW Forever?: Not in North America or Europe. Blizzard bans them there, mainly because, in its words, they overtake the traditional guild structure and push new players toward buying gold. Clay Stone told 4Gamers Taiwan the ban covers only those two regions, as it did in Season of Discovery and on the Anniversary realms.