WoW Forever's launch notes: more damage for every class, Shank for Rogues, Lava Burst removed

2026-11-03 · ForeverDB

Blizzard's last development notes before launch raise damage across all classes, rework Rogue, Paladin and Druid talents, remove Blessing of Salvation and change training costs, bags and respawns.

Kaivax posted the last development notes before launch on 3 November at 03:20 UTC, in the same forum thread as every beta update. They cover what changed since the beta's last full update on 15 October, and they repeat the racial changes from 26 October so the list is complete. They're long: every class changes, some heavily.

The game client is still build 1.60.1.70707, the one our data comes from. Most of these changes reach the game from Blizzard's servers, so our talent calculator and class pages don't show all of them yet (the Rogue trees most of all). We'll update them as the launch changes reach the game files. Until then, where our pages and these notes disagree, trust the notes.

More damage, and tougher creatures to match

So over the last two weeks, we’ve raised damage on classes across the game, and have increased the health of higher level creatures to compensate. Kaivax, Community Manager

Blizzard says it had tried to keep each class close to its Classic power budget, so every new ability had to cost something elsewhere, and some iconic abilities ended up feeling weak. It also says it won't make big tuning changes before the raids open next month, apart from bugs and serious outliers, and plans a large tuning pass once players are past level 30.

Changes for everyone

• Many talents no longer have a lower chance to trigger from low-rank spells. Blizzard is the exception: a rank learned more than 12 levels below your level still has a reduced chance to trigger Arcane Concentration, Frostbite and Fingers of Frost.
• New spells are no longer added to your action bars when you learn them.
• Training costs were evened out: most abilities learned at the same level cost the same, and training everything from 1 to 60 now costs between 206 and 207 gold for every class. Warlocks pay less to allow for their pets' Grimoires.
• Bags no longer equip themselves into empty bag slots: you put them on yourself.
• Creatures respawn faster in low-level zones, fastest in the starting zones, and the rates fall as you level. Blizzard will slow the low-level zones back down once the launch rush settles.
• Every race now has the right base stats. Blizzard's example: Tauren Warriors start with +5 Strength over Human Warriors (it was +2). The fix covers both Skyborne too.
• Roots from procs now have diminishing returns: Frostbite, Entrapment, Improved Wing Clip, Counterattack and Improved Hamstring.
• The quitter debuff now lasts 40 seconds (it was 5 minutes), and Throw uses its 0.5-second windup instead of your throwing weapon's speed.

Threat without Salvation

Paladins lose Blessing of Salvation, Mass Salvation and Revoke, and Blessing of Light is gone too. Tanks get more threat to make up for it:

• Druid Bear Form and Dire Bear Form: threat bonus up from 50% to 115%.
• Warrior Defensive Stance: up from 30% to 80%, and Defiance now gives 7/13/20% (was 5/10/15%).
• Paladin Righteous Fury: trained at level 10 (was 16), with 33% more threat from everything and another 90% from Holy damage.

Class by class

Rogue

• New: Shank at level 24 (5 Energy, 10-second cooldown): an off-hand strike for 50% weapon damage that can't miss and gives 15 Energy (rank 2 at 44 gives 25).
• New: Poised at 18. Out of combat at full Energy, your next Energy ability costs 10 less.
• Deadly Poison's and Instant Poison's attack power scaling doubled.
• Assassination: Mutilate moves to row 7 and hits harder (90% weapon damage, was 75%). Venom moves up to row 5 and now boosts your poisons for 6 seconds after a Shank. Seal Fate and Relentless Strikes changed, Murder is gone and Blood Splatter is new.
• Combat: Improved Eviscerate is now Coup de Grace, Dual Wield Specialization is a 2-point talent for 25/50% off-hand damage, and Flash of Steel and Composure are new.
• Subtlety: the new row 7 talent is Death Mark, a finisher that stores part of your damage (Garrote and Rupture at twice the rate) and releases it after 6 seconds. Boot Knife and Quick Getaway are new; Thousand Cuts, Quietus and Cutthroat are gone. Hemorrhage and Ghostly Strike no longer deal far too much damage with a dagger.

Paladin

• Holy: Oath of Light is a new row 4 talent that boosts your healing on one sworn ally, and Boundless Light adds 15/30% Holy Shock crit chance on everyone else. Holy Power now raises your critical heals' size, not their chance. Divine Precision is 2 points for 4/8% hit with Holy spells.
• Protection: Shieldsworn is the new 31-point talent: 4 seconds off Holy Strike's cooldown, and Holy Strike hits with your shield. Holy Shield moves up to row 5, Swift Judgement now unleashes your Seal straight away, and Stoicism is new. Templar's Bulwark is now a Magic effect that can be dispelled.
• Retribution: Unsealed Wrath is the new 31-point talent. Conviction now gives 2/4/6% crit to all spells and attacks, Two-Handed Weapon Specialization adds Holy damage and cuts your threat, and Vengeance stacks to 5.

Druid

• Cat damage up: Shred 200% weapon damage (was 155%), Claw 140% (was 110%), Ravage 435% (was 350%), and Rip, Rake, Ferocious Bite and Pounce about 25% higher. Starfire's base damage is up about 40%.
• Poised at 32, as for Rogues. Lacerate is now a Feral talent, and Ferocious Bite has a new rank 1 at level 24.
• Feral has two 31-point talents: Primal Bite for Bears (replacing Berserk) and Shifting Power for Cats. Moonkin Aura and Leader of the Pack again give crit to all types of attack.
• Restoration: Bloom replaces Gift of the Earthmother (a heal for 100% of your Spirit when your Rejuvenation or Regrowth runs out), Wild Growth now has a 3-second cast, and Swiftmend only consumes your own Rejuvenation or Regrowth.

Shaman

• Lava Burst is removed. Elemental gets Call of Thunder instead (5% crit for Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning), Lightning Overload triggers 10/20/30% of the time (was 3/7/10%), and Elemental Mastery is now Lightning Mastery.
• Lightning Bolt's top rank hits 80% harder. Chain Lightning now has a 2.5-second cast, and shocks are back to Classic Era damage.
• Enhancement: Stormstrike deals 150% normalised weapon damage on a 6-second cooldown, Mental Dexterity gives up to 150% of your Intellect as attack power, and Maelstrom Weapon triggers twice as often.
• Restoration: Riptide is now healing over time only, at about 40% less Mana on a 12-second cooldown.
• Totemic Projection is now Totemic Call, which brings your totems to you, on a 30-second cooldown.

Hunter

• Aimed Shot's bonus damage up about 110%, Arcane Shot's base damage up about 30%, and Serpent Sting hits harder.
• Aspect of the Hawk and Trueshot Aura give more ranged attack power on every rank.
• All traps now share one 30-second cooldown. Hunter's Mark no longer stacks from different ranks, and rank 4 no longer gives less than rank 3.
• Barrage and Sniper Shot hit harder, Lightning Reflexes gives up to 15% Agility, and Pathfinding moves to row 3.

Mage

• Arcane Blast now gives 12% of your Intellect as spell damage per stack (was 15%), but each stack raises the cost by 100% (was 175%) and lasts 18 seconds. Arcane Focus is gone, folded into Frost's Precision (2/4/6% spell hit).
• Frost: Piercing Ice is removed, and Ice Barrier now adds 15% Frost damage for a minute when cast, plus 5% while it holds. Ice Lance shares an 8-second cooldown with Fire Blast and does 300% damage to frozen targets again. Frost Blast is removed.
• Fire: Incineration goes to 5 points for 10% crit, Critical Mass back to 3 points for 6%, and Improved Fireball is now Accelerant.

Priest

• Binding Heal leaves the Holy tree. Holy Binding takes its place: when you Flash Heal someone else, you're healed for 50% of it, with no threat.
• Shadow Word: Death now costs you 30% of your maximum health when it doesn't kill (was 10%), but nothing when it misses. Cure Disease and Abolish Disease no longer take you out of Shadowform.

Warlock

• Wrack's spell damage scaling doubled, and its damage now grows with your level: about 86 a second at 60, up from 36.
• Shadow and Flame now gives 4/8/12/16/20% Fire or Shadow damage, up from 2/4/6/8/10%.
• Pets get 2 health per point of your Stamina (was 7.5), and Drain Soul gives Soul Shards from damage far less often.

Warrior

• Slam's cooldown is 15 seconds (was 18), and Two-Handed Weapon Specialization gives 2/4/6% damage (was 1/2/3%).
• Fury: Reckless Swings and Improved Whirlwind are new, Flurry gives 10/20/30% attack speed over 3 points, and Bloodthirst now needs Death Wish.

Races, controllers and the world

The racial changes are the ones Blizzard posted on 26 October, now confirmed together: our write-up of the final racial changes has them all. Controller support is now complete for all major gameplay and menus, and the notes list a long run of quest fixes, including an experience reward for "Holy Diver" in Darkshore and less experience from Gloomrise Hatchlings in Mulgore.

Sources

• WoW Forever Beta Development Notes, updated November 2 (Kaivax, Blizzard)
• WoW Forever Beta Development Notes, 27 October addendum: racials (Kaivax, Blizzard)