Blizzard has announced nine new dungeons for World of Warcraft: Forever, spread from level 13 to 60. Use the announced levels to pick a run for your group, then check its quests and entrance in beta. The show-floor preview below is separate from the confirmed dungeon list.
The nine new dungeons
Blizzard's What's Next panel recap names the nine instances, and the official forums carry the level bands Blizzard is using. The level bands are confirmed; complete quest and loot guides are not yet available in these sources. Locations and setting notes below come from the recap and current preview coverage. Their proximity to faction capitals is a travel consideration, not a confirmed faction lock.
| Dungeon | Levels | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Hall of Thanes | 13-18 | Beneath Ironforge | On the Alliance side of the world. Panel coverage describes Dark Iron intruders and undead in the halls. |
| Ruins of Lordaeron | 15-20 | Tirisfal Glades, above the Undercity | On the Horde side of the world. The Forsaken push back into the ruined capital against remaining Scourge and a necromancer. |
| Excavation Site: Wetlands | 24-29 | On top of Whelgar's Excavation, Wetlands | Called "a mysterious excavation site above Whelgar's Excavation" in the recap; panel coverage ties it to the Explorer's League. |
| City of Dalaran | 28-33 | Alterac Mountains | The barrier is down and the city is restored but not under control; the Kirin Tor need help. |
| The Drowned City | 35-40 | Coast of Stranglethorn Vale | A sunken troll ruin. The recap points to naga and pirates around it; it was playable on the BlizzCon 2026 show floor. |
| Krol'dok Stronghold | 40-45 | Riverglades | Ogres, with Twilight's Hammer influence described in panel coverage. Blizzard corrected its band from the earlier 40-55 listing. |
| Alcaz Prison | 48-53 | Alcaz Island, off Dustwallow Marsh | A prison where naga have moved in on the Defias inmates. |
| Blackmaw Hold | 55-60 | North Azshara, behind the furbolg gates | A furbolg city, with "unsettling corruption" in its depths according to the recap. |
| Shaper's Terrace | 58-60 | Un'Goro Crater | The recap calls it titan mysteries in Un'Goro. |
The original Classic instances are still part of the game: they remain alongside the nine new ones, and the Deep Dive recap says every dungeon drop was re-examined and hundreds of new drops were added. The new dungeons are additions to the same ladder, not replacements.
Picking a level for your run
Blizzard's table gives each dungeon a lower level and an upper level — the range it "will be for". Use those bands for planning, not as proof of the minimum level to zone in. The announcement does not specify entry requirements, keys or attunements.
If you see a different number somewhere else, check the forum post first. BlizzCon materials listed Krol'dok Stronghold at 40-55 and Blizzard corrected it to 40-45, so use 40-45 when planning that run.
Filling a level band
- 13-20: The Hall of Thanes and Ruins of Lordaeron. Both sit inside or next to a capital city, making them convenient early runs for the nearby faction.
- 24-33: Excavation Site: Wetlands, then City of Dalaran up in the Alterac Mountains.
- 35-45: The Drowned City in Stranglethorn, then Krol'dok Stronghold in the new Riverglades zone. You can reach Riverglades by the Steamwheedle boat route that the Found Photos recap describes, so plan travel time into your first run there.
- 48-60: Alcaz Prison, Blackmaw Hold and Shaper's Terrace. These are the runs you take into your 50s, with Shaper's Terrace sitting at the cap.
Bring the quests instead of planning an XP grind
Experience inside dungeons was deliberately reworked. Principal designer Kris Zierhut, speaking at BlizzCon:
"The amount of XP you get from killing monsters in dungeons, we brought way down. But we made the amount of XP for completing dungeon quests much, much, much higher. So your first run through a dungeon is amazing. You get tons of XP. You get great rewards. But going back over and over and over again isn't the best way to go."
For leveling, prioritize a run with quests to finish. Pick up the dungeon's quests before or during the first pass, finish them, and treat the second and third visit as loot and profession runs rather than a leveling plan. If someone in your group missed the chain, run their quests with them; if you want raw experience, Blizzard's own advice is the outdoor zones instead.
Dungeons also still feed professions: the Deep Dive says advanced Blueprint recipes drop from specific dungeon bosses, on top of the reworked gear.
Getting five people to the door
- Meeting stones do not summon. They exist at dungeon entrances, but they cannot pull players across the world; they feed a Looking for Group listing instead. Tim Jones and Mike Nuthals described the intent as protecting the downtime before a run.
- Keep a Warlock available. Warlock summons can save late arrivals the trip.
- Plan the walk. Ironforge and the Undercity make the two lowest dungeons convenient. Azshara, Alcaz Island and Un'Goro can take more travel; arrange where to meet before the group is full.
What has actually been played
The Drowned City has been played publicly; beta testing is level-limited:
- BlizzCon show floor: The Drowned City was playable, and the hands-on preview describes a layout that starts linear and opens into a large space, mobs in tight packs with patrols, a water section, and two of its bosses, Zul'Alai and Zin'aka. The preview notes heavy tank damage and an enrage near death on Zul'Alai. Treat that as a show-floor build, not a finished route.
- Beta: testing opened September 17 with a level-20 cap that Blizzard plans to raise to 30 later; the beta launch announcement lists the Hall of Thanes and Ruins of Lordaeron among the opening-week content. The test is not a full level 60 run, so see beta access and the testing limits before planning your group around a higher-level dungeon.
What still needs checking in beta
The cited sources do not give us complete quest pickups, entrance requirements, maps or loot tables for the new dungeons. Show-floor boss observations help with a preview, but not with a tested route or loot priority list. Check those details in-game before promising your group a particular reward.
After launch
The roadmap puts the first raid unlock on December 9, with two new dungeons, more quests and a new legendary questline in the spring update. The panel recap also lists "dungeon quests" among the updates it intends to keep adding after launch. Raid formats, tier pieces and the first-tier planning questions are on the raid overview and raid composition guide; the reworked dungeon drops and the new stat rules belong with itemization.
