Blizzard's Planet Azeroth EP. 1: Bill Bailey's comedy tour of the starter zones
· ForeverDB
Blizzard's first Planet Azeroth episode is a mock wildlife documentary with Bill Bailey touring Elwynn Forest, Durotar, Tirisfal Glades and the Barrens. It's jokes, not Forever news, and no class abilities come up. We checked every place and faction it names against the Forever client.
Corrected 5 November 2026: we wrote that the beta's level cap was 60. The beta stopped at level 30 (it opened at 20 and went up to 30 on 1 October); 60 is the cap of the live game, which launched on 4 November.
This is an official World of Warcraft video, posted on Blizzard's YouTube channel on 28 October 2026. It's a comedy nature documentary narrated by Bill Bailey, so most of it is jokes about low-level creatures, not Forever news. The place and faction facts below come from the Forever client (build 1.60.1.70755).
Blizzard has started a new series, Planet Azeroth, with Bill Bailey narrating a straight-faced wildlife documentary about the places you grind through on the way up. The first episode walks the starter zones and takes the mickey out of Timber Wolves, boars, Murlocs, Kobolds and their candles, sleepy peons and the Barrens chat. There's no Forever news and no class changes in it, but every zone and faction it names is in the Forever client, so here's how they line up.
The short version
- A comedy nature documentary narrated by Bill Bailey, touring the starter zones. No Forever news, no class abilities.
- Every zone and faction he names is in the Forever client and matches Classic. None is marked new for Forever.
- He visits Elwynn Forest and Crystal Lake, Durotar and the Valley of Trials, Tirisfal Glades (which he calls Lordaeron), and the Barrens past Ratchet.
- The jokes are about creatures and the Barrens chat, which the zone and faction data don't cover, so there's nothing to check there.
- The table below checks every place and faction against the client.
Claim by claim
| Claim | Blizzard says | The client says | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Azeroth | "This is Azeroth. And welcome to World of Warcraft." The whole world. | The top-level world map in the client, UI map 947. | Agrees |
| Elwynn Forest | The human starting zone, "home to the Timber Wolf". | A zone in the client, UI map 1429, spelled Elwynn Forest (the captions drop an n). Not new in Forever. | Agrees |
| Crystal Lake | A tranquil lake with the clearest waters "in all of the eastern kingdoms", full of Murlocs. | A named area in the client inside Elwynn Forest, id 18. | Agrees |
| Eastern Kingdoms | Crystal Lake's waters are among the clearest in the eastern kingdoms. | The continent grouping in the client, UI map 1463. | Agrees |
| Durotar | "Another place for new beginnings", where orc peons work (and nap). | A zone in the client, UI map 1411. Not new in Forever. | Agrees |
| Valley of Trials | The orc starting area, where peons are "absolutely determined to stay asleep". | A named area in the client inside Durotar, id 363. | Agrees |
| Tirisfal Glades (he calls it Lordaeron) | "Once the verdant heartland of the human kingdom of Lordaeron", now where the undead start. | The undead starting zone is in the client as Tirisfal Glades. Not new in Forever. | Agrees |
| Ratchet | "The port town of ratchet" in the Barrens. | A faction in the client: a Steamwheedle Cartel goblin town, a neutral haven in the Barrens. | Agrees |
| The Barrens | A sun-baked savannah with Kodo Beasts, Bristleback Quilboar and the infamous Barrens chat. | A zone in the client, UI map 1413. Not new in Forever. | Agrees |
| Barrens chat | "The Barrens Chat. It's the WhatsApp group from hell." | A general chat channel, not something the zone and faction data list. | Can't check |
| The Horde | Orc peons do the logging and hauling, and keep falling asleep. | A faction in the client; peons are NPCs, not in the data checked here. | Agrees |
| Hogger | A pun to close: "a walker, a jogger, or a. …Hogger." | The Elwynn Forest gnoll; a mob, not in the zone and faction data checked here. | Can't check |
Every place and faction checked against the Forever client (build 1.60.1.70755).
The zones he visits
The episode opens in Elwynn Forest, the human starting zone, and treats the Timber Wolf, the Stone Tusk Boar, the Crystal Lake Murlocs and the Kobolds with their candles as rare wildlife. Every one of these zones is in the Forever client, the same as Classic, and none is marked new for Forever. Crystal Lake and the Valley of Trials show up as named areas (ids 18 and 363); Elwynn Forest, Durotar and the Barrens are full maps.
This is Elwyn Forest, home to the Timber Wolf. Blizzard, World of Warcraft: Forever | Planet Azeroth EP. 1 (ft. Bill Bailey) (0:23)
Fed by mountain springs, its waters are said to be among the clearest in all of the eastern kingdoms. Blizzard, World of Warcraft: Forever | Planet Azeroth EP. 1 (ft. Bill Bailey) (1:57)
The Barrens and its chat
From Durotar and the Valley of Trials the tour drops down past Ratchet into the Barrens, with Kodo Beasts, Bristleback Quilboar, and the joke everyone saw coming: the Barrens chat. Ratchet is a real faction in the client, a Steamwheedle goblin town and neutral haven in the zone. The chat channel is not something the zone and faction data cover, so there's nothing to confirm there.
The Barrens Chat. It's the WhatsApp group from hell. Blizzard, World of Warcraft: Forever | Planet Azeroth EP. 1 (ft. Bill Bailey) (5:35)
The Hogger joke
It ends back in Elwynn Forest with a pun on Hogger, the gnoll every new Alliance player remembers. He's a mob, so there's nothing in the zone data to check, but the client does still have Elwynn Forest for him to prowl.
Whether you're a walker, a jogger, or a. …Hogger. Blizzard, World of Warcraft: Forever | Planet Azeroth EP. 1 (ft. Bill Bailey) (6:24)
What we have, and what we don't
Every zone the video visits is in the Forever client.
- We have the maps: Elwynn Forest, Durotar, The Barrens and the Eastern Kingdoms, plus Crystal Lake (area 18) and the Valley of Trials (area 363) as named areas.
- We have the factions: Ratchet, the Steamwheedle goblin town, and the Horde.
- We have the undead starting zone: Tirisfal Glades, which the video calls Lordaeron. It's in the client, the same as Classic.
- We don't have the creatures: the Timber Wolf, Stone Tusk Boar, Murlocs, Kobolds, orc peons, Duskbats, Kodo Beasts and Bristleback Quilboar aren't in the zone and faction data we checked, so there's nothing to say about their Forever stats here.
- Barrens chat and Hogger are a chat channel and a mob, not entries in this check's data.
- You can visit, though: these are all low-level Classic zones, open to new characters from the start.
Sources
- World of Warcraft: Forever | Planet Azeroth EP. 1 (ft. Bill Bailey) (World of Warcraft, YouTube)
- Elwynn Forest (Maps)
- The Barrens (Maps)
- Ratchet reputation (ForeverDB)