Blizzard flipped the World of Warcraft: Forever beta live on September 17, 2026, and the two dungeons in the Week 1 slate — Hall of Thanes (levels 13–18) and Ruins of Lordaeron (levels 15–20) — are the first genuinely new Forever group content anyone outside Blizzard can play. If you got into the beta, they are the highest-value thing to test before the level-20 cap boxes you in. This guide covers exactly when to run each dungeon, what the level ranges mean for your route, and why nothing you earn in there survives to launch.
Quick answer (TL;DR): WoW Forever's Week 1 beta ships two new dungeons — Hall of Thanes for levels 13–18 and Ruins of Lordaeron for levels 15–20 — alongside the new Skyborne race, Zephras Isle, and all zone content up to level 20. The beta cap starts at level 20 and rises to 30 later in the test. More zones, dungeons, and the new battleground unlock as the beta continues through October 21. Beta progress does not carry to the November 4 launch.
What dungeons are in the WoW Forever beta right now?
Per Blizzard's official beta announcement, the Week 1 testing slate is deliberately narrow so testers hammer the early game hard. Here is exactly what is playable:
| Content | Level range | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Hall of Thanes (new dungeon) | 13–18 | Week 1 |
| Ruins of Lordaeron (new dungeon) | 15–20 | Week 1 |
| Skyborne race + Zephras Isle | 1–12 start | Week 1 |
| All zone content | up to 20 | Week 1 |
| Additional zones, dungeons, new battleground | — | Later in beta |
Blizzard was explicit about the cap: "When the test begins, the level cap will be set to 20 and will be raised to 30 later in the beta," and "Additional zones, dungeons, and the new battleground will open for testing as the beta continues" (Blizzard, "The World of Warcraft: Forever Beta Now Live," 2026-09-17).
That is the whole reason both Week 1 dungeons sit at the top of the leveling band. At a level-20 ceiling, a 13–18 and a 15–20 dungeon are the only group content you can reach — Blizzard is stress-testing the exact instances the earliest launch-day pack will hit first.
When should you run Hall of Thanes vs Ruins of Lordaeron?
The two dungeons overlap by design, but the tuning windows are different. Play them in level order and you get a clean gearing curve rather than fighting under-leveled.
- Hall of Thanes (13–18) — your first stop. Enter it the moment a group hits ~13. Because it caps out at 18, running it right at 13–15 gives the best relative loot; wait until 18 and the rewards are already falling behind your quest greens.
- Ruins of Lordaeron (15–20) — the closer. It shares the 15–18 window with Hall of Thanes, but its top end (20) is the beta's whole ceiling until the cap lifts. Save it for 17–20 and it doubles as your endgame content for the first stretch of the test.
If you are grouping with friends, the practical route is: quest to ~13, clear Hall of Thanes once or twice, quest to ~17, then farm Ruins of Lordaeron to 20 while the cap holds. That is the same 1–20 loop Blizzard flagged as the Week 1 stress-test band, and it mirrors how the launch race will look on November 4 when everyone starts at 1 simultaneously.
Does anything from the beta carry over to launch?
No. This is the single most important thing to understand before you sink hours into a beta dungeon farm. Characters, gold, professions, and any progress you make in the beta are wiped when the test ends on October 21 — nothing transfers to the November 4 launch. The beta exists to test the content and the servers, not to give anyone a head start.
That has a real consequence for anyone planning their launch prep: the Week 1 dungeons are worth running to learn the pulls, the boss mechanics, and the loot tables, not to bank gear or gold. When Forever goes live, you start from zero like everyone else — on fresh realms, with a fresh economy and no catch-up mechanic. The knowledge you take out of Hall of Thanes and Ruins of Lordaeron is the only thing that follows you.
That fresh-economy reset is exactly why the 60g mount wall and the early dungeon-gearing grind hit so hard at launch. There is no confirmed WoW Token for Forever and no way to move gold in from other Classic modes, so the players who move fastest through the early dungeons on day one are the ones who prepped their approach — and, if they want a buffer, banked spendable gold on a live realm beforehand.
How the beta unlock schedule works
Blizzard is drip-feeding content, not opening the whole game at once. Week 1 is the 1–20 band and the two dungeons above. From there:
- The level cap rises from 20 to 30 later in the test, which will open higher-level zone content and, eventually, more dungeons.
- Additional zones, dungeons, and the new battleground unlock "as the beta continues."
- A "Server Slam" is planned — Blizzard will open the servers for several hours so anyone can jump in during that window, even without a standing invite. Details are still to come.
- The beta runs through October 21, the last full day of testing, before Blizzard begins final launch prep.
So if you are past the Week 1 dungeons and hitting the level-20 wall, that is expected — the next batch of content is gated behind the cap increase, not something you are missing.
How to get into the WoW Forever beta
Two paths, and one of them trips people up constantly:
- Opt-in selection — sign up at the official WoW: Forever site. Invites go out in waves throughout the test; if you are picked, your Battle.net account is already flagged and the beta client shows up under the "In Development" version drop-down in the Battle.net app.
- Digital bundle purchase — the Skyborne Epic Pack ($59.99) and the Warcraft Forever Collection ($79.99) include beta access. The physical Collector's Edition does too.
The trap: the $29.99 Skyborne Heroic Pack does NOT include beta access. Only the Epic Pack, the Collection, and the Collector's Edition do. Do not buy the $30 pack expecting to get into the beta — you won't. (Full breakdown in our guide on which WoW Forever pack actually includes beta access.)
To install: run the Battle.net app, pick World of Warcraft, choose World of Warcraft: Forever Beta from the Game Version drop-down under "In Development," and install. Blizzard notes eligible bundle buyers may see "minimal delays of up to 30 minutes" and may need a launcher restart before access appears.
Note: the fastest way to confirm you actually have access is to log in to your Battle.net account and check that a World of Warcraft: Forever beta license is attached under Your Game Accounts. Blizzard has flagged phishing attempts around beta invites — never trust an emailed "invite" link; verify on the account page.
Get ready for the fresh-realm launch
The beta teaches you the dungeons; it doesn't bank anything. When Forever launches on November 4 on fresh realms, the early grind — 1–20 zone content, the two Week 1 dungeons, and the long climb to the 60g mount — is a hard reset for everyone at once. If you want a head start on the one thing you can prepare, that is spendable gold on a live Classic Era realm before the fresh economy locks everyone to zero.
Racing to be ready for the Forever fresh start? Bank your buffer on Classic Era now, before the launch-day gold rush:
- WoW Classic Era Gold — top up your Classic Era bankroll while the market is calm.
- WoW Classic Era services — leveling and carry support for the live Classic realms.
FAQ
What dungeons are in the WoW Forever beta? Two new dungeons are in the Week 1 beta slate: Hall of Thanes (levels 13–18) and Ruins of Lordaeron (levels 15–20). Additional dungeons unlock later in the beta as the level cap rises and more content opens.
What level do you need to enter Hall of Thanes and Ruins of Lordaeron? Hall of Thanes is tuned for levels 13–18 and Ruins of Lordaeron for levels 15–20, per Blizzard's official beta announcement. Run Hall of Thanes first, then Ruins of Lordaeron as you approach the level-20 beta cap.
Does WoW Forever beta progress carry over to launch? No. Characters, gold, professions, and all progress are wiped when the beta ends on October 21. Nothing transfers to the November 4 launch, which starts everyone on fresh realms with a fresh economy.
What is the WoW Forever beta level cap? The cap starts at level 20 and Blizzard will raise it to 30 later in the test. Higher-level zones and dungeons unlock alongside that cap increase.
How do I get into the WoW Forever beta? Opt in on the official WoW: Forever site and wait for a wave invite, or buy a bundle that includes access — the Skyborne Epic Pack ($59.99), the Warcraft Forever Collection ($79.99), or the Collector's Edition. The $29.99 Skyborne Heroic Pack does not include beta access.
When does the WoW Forever beta end? The beta runs through October 21, 2026 — the last full day of testing before Blizzard begins final preparations for the November 4 launch.
