Skyborne

The Skyborne (shen'dorei), World of Warcraft: Forever's new playable race: elven exiles from the War of the Ancients living in Skywall, a Horde or Alliance choice at character creation, their classes, racials, Zephras Isle start and Galestrider mount, and the standard-definition models due in early 2027.

16:10 The Skyborne are the new playable race of World of Warcraft: Forever: a people of high elves, also called the shen'dorei, whose floating island home of Zephras Isle has been hidden for thousands of years in Skywall, the elemental realm of air. Blizzard introduced them at its What's Next panel at BlizzCon 2026, where it described a civilization in crisis, its air spirits vanished and its people divided between those seeking the wind spirits, those reclaiming their ancestors' arcane traditions, and those turning to darker powers. The Skyborne are not neutral: each player chooses at character creation whether a Skyborne joins the Horde or the Alliance, and that choice decides whether the character can be a Shaman or a Mage. Both sides can be Warriors, Hunters, Rogues and Druids. Every Skyborne begins on Zephras Isle, a starting zone for levels 1 to 12, and the race comes with the optional Skyborne upgrade packs. Testers have played the race in the beta since Sep 17, 2026, Forever launches on Nov 4, 2026, and standard-definition Skyborne models are due in early 2027.

Three blue-skinned characters with long pointed ears stand side by side on a mossy stone path: a man in brown, teal and gold leather armor, a woman with short pale hair in a cream top and breeches with purple leggings, and a woman with a flower in her lavender braid in a long cream and gold robe. Behind them are leafy trees, some with red leaves, a wooden arch and a stone tower with teal trim and a banner. — Three Skyborne, a man in brown and teal leather armor and two women in cream and gold, stand on a mossy stone path below red-leaved trees and a stone tower, in an official World of Warcraft: Forever press screenshot. Blizzard Entertainment

Quick facts

Also called	shen'dorei, "the Hidden People"
Origin	Rebels who fled Eldre'Thalas after the War of the Ancients
Home	Zephras Isle, anchored in Skywall
Starting zone levels	1 to 12
Faction	Chosen at character creation: Horde or Alliance
Horde Skyborne	Windshaper Skyborne: Druid, Hunter, Rogue, Shaman, Warrior
Alliance Skyborne	High Order Skyborne: Druid, Hunter, Mage, Rogue, Warrior
Racials	Walk on Air (90-second cooldown), Wind-Blessed (2% haste at launch), Elemental Insight, plus Skysight (Horde) or Read Leyline (Alliance), retuned on Oct 26, 2026
Attuned and Charged	Hour-long buffs from using the racial at a Ley Line or elemental convergence, doubling it; gone on entering a raid
Race mount	The Galestrider, a crane
New for the race	Druid forms, racials, customization, voices, dances
How to play one	Included in the Skyborne Heroic Pack and higher upgrades
Character models	HD at launch; standard-definition models due in early 2027

Origins

18:41 Blizzard told the Skyborne's history at its Found Photographs panel. They are high elves who call themselves the shen'dorei, or the Hidden People, and their story starts in the ancient kingdom of Eldre'Thalas, known in the game's present as Dire Maul. In the immediate aftermath of the War of the Ancients, a group of citizens rose against Prince Tortheldrin and his plans to draw ever more dangerous demonic energy to sustain the Highborne of the kingdom.

19:22 The rebels cost the prince dearly but their rebellion ended in defeat, and they fled Kalimdor to escape his wrath. After years pushing west across the open sea they ran aground on an undiscovered land ruled by primordial elemental spirits. With the prince's fleet close behind, the elves struck a bargain with a group of wind spirits, who lifted a huge part of the island into the sky to escape Azeroth entirely.

20:15 The wind spirits anchored the floating island in Skywall, and there, safe and hidden, the Skyborne spent thousands of years building a small but vibrant civilization in a corner of the elemental plane. Blizzard noted that the elemental plane has been part of Warcraft since the earliest games, and that Forever visits Skywall "through its slightly different lens".

21:09 Much like the high elves who settled in Quel'Thalas, the Skyborne changed over their long isolation: Blizzard describes them as more lithe and agile than their kaldorei ancestors, with the magic of the plane affecting their hair color, eye color and skin tone. When Forever begins, the wind spirits have suddenly vanished, and the ancient pylons that anchor Zephras Isle in Skywall are failing, leaving parts of the island in ruin and darkness.

Seen from low among tall grass, a figure with long pale teal hair, pointed ears and glowing eyes stands in a long dark robe with arms folded. Above and behind, huge gray stone plates edged in gold, one set with a glowing blue gem, hover over misty, translucent limbs, framed by trees with dark foliage, a building with a blue tiled roof and a violet sky. — A long-haired figure in a dark robe stands with folded arms beneath a towering form of floating stone plates and misty limbs set with a glowing blue gem, in an official World of Warcraft: Forever screenshot. Blizzard Entertainment

A blue-skinned woman with long pointed ears, glowing yellow eyes and short pale teal hair stands on a worn stone path in a cream and gold top and breeches, a dark short cape and purple leggings wrapped with gold bands. The blurred background shows huge trees, a building with a curved roof and sunlight breaking through haze. — A Skyborne woman with short pale teal hair and glowing eyes, in a cream and gold outfit with a short cape and purple leggings, stands on a stone path under hazy sunlight, in an official World of Warcraft: Forever press screenshot. Blizzard Entertainment

2:11 The race's opening cinematic in the show-floor build, captured by Bansherz on the BlizzCon floor, tells the same story in brief: a land of high elven exiles kept aloft in Skywall by air elementals who have now vanished, leaving a new generation of Skyborne to seek new allies and sources of magic to protect their home.

Horde or Alliance

16:39 "The Skyborne are not a neutral race," Blizzard said at the What's Next panel. At character creation players choose whether their Skyborne joins the Horde or the Alliance, and though both share a common ancestry, they no longer share a common vision for the future. Horde-aligned Skyborne embrace elemental traditions and work alongside the Earthen Ring, which grants access to the Shaman class. Alliance-aligned Skyborne pursue the arcane legacy of their ancestors and work alongside the Kirin Tor, which grants access to the Mage class. Both can play Warriors, Hunters, Rogues and Druids, including brand new Skyborne druid forms made for the race.

A tall man with pale skin, glowing eyes, long pointed ears and long blue hair in braids, with a short blue beard, holds a short wrapped staff and wears a green and cream top and cropped trousers with gold trim. Behind him, out of focus, are a blue wooden wagon with carved round windows and a lantern, and wooden scaffolding under a purple sky. At his feet the blue and gold Alliance lion crest and the red Horde emblem sit side by side with OR between them. — A Skyborne man with long blue hair and a short blue beard stands above the Alliance and Horde emblems joined by the word OR, in official World of Warcraft: Forever art. Blizzard Entertainment

22:00 The Found Photographs panel names the two sides. The Windshapers are the shamanistic spiritual leaders of Zephras Isle and ultimately side with the Horde; only Windshaper Skyborne may be Shamans, reflecting their deep connection with the elements and the departed wind spirits.

22:41 The High Order are more pragmatic and forward-thinking, see the departure of the wind spirits as a chance for the shen'dorei to be truly independent, and ultimately side with the Alliance. They descend from the Highborne magisters who joined the rebels, so only High Order Skyborne may be Mages.

A woman with pale skin, glowing blue eyes, pointed ears and wavy blue hair stands in a cream top and cropped trousers with gold trim, holding a square silver-framed object. Behind her, out of focus, are a stone tower with a curved roof, a building with a wave-shaped teal roof, a wooden bridge and a grassy slope. Six square icons line the bottom: a sword, a bow, green-glowing daggers, a clawed paw, a red emblem labeled Horde only and a flaming crystal labeled Alliance only. — A Skyborne woman with wavy blue hair stands on a path below a stone tower, with six class icons at her feet, the last two marked Horde only and Alliance only, in official World of Warcraft: Forever art. Blizzard Entertainment

23:11 A third faction is not playable. The Al'Aketh are a cult dedicated to Al'Akir the Windlord, whom the wind spirits rarely spoke of. Tempted by his power, they broke with Skyborne society, and with the wind spirits gone they have used the crisis to stoke fear and seize a large part of the island, a growing threat to its fragile peace. More on the zone is on Zephras Isle.

28:20 Bansherz, who picked the Horde side for a Hunter, explains the choice to viewers: the faction is picked at level one, before the character exists, rather than after a starting zone, and the two sides look pretty much identical, with one racial difference and different classes.

Racials

3:19 Blizzard listed the racials itself on Sep 22, 2026. Both sides share three: Walk on Air, a glide downward through the air for 10 seconds; Wind Blessed, 1% more melee, ranged and spellcasting haste; and Elemental Insight, 5% more damage to elementals. The Windshapers add Skysight, an elemental blessing that raises run speed by 10%, and the High Order add Read Ley Line, which activates a ley line for 100% more health and mana regeneration. In Blizzard's Skyborne video of Oct 5, a trainer named Myriaal Mistwake teaches the glide by telling new Skyborne to step off a tower: "Activate it, jump, and you can slow your descent, turning a fatal fall into a controlled glide."

15:52 Blizzard confirmed new racials for the Skyborne without listing them on stage at BlizzCon. Cajato, reading a community calculator built from the show-floor demo, lists four for the Horde's Windshaper Skyborne: Walk on Air, a 10-second glide on a 2-minute cooldown; a buff of 10% movement and mounted speed for 30 seconds, or 15 minutes near an elemental convergence; 1% melee, ranged and spell-casting haste; and Elemental Insight, 5% damage against elementals.

17:25 The High Order Skyborne share the glide, the haste and Elemental Insight. Their different racial increases health and mana regeneration by 100%, for 15 seconds, or for 15 minutes when a ley line is nearby, with a 2-second cast and a 2-minute cooldown.

21:27 Playing a Windshaper Hunter on the show floor, Bansherz describes the speed racial as a 10% movement speed buff lasting 30 seconds on a two-minute cooldown that also works when mounted, and points to the 1% haste as the other passive. Earlier in the stream Bansherz presses Walk on Air for the first time and plans to jump off a mountain with it.

The numbers changed twice before launch. The beta build of Oct 15, 2026 raised Wind Blessed to 3% haste, let Skysight and Read Leyline be cast while moving, cut Walk on Air's cooldown to 90 seconds (was 2 minutes) and added Ley Line and elemental convergence spawn locations in most Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor zones (Blizzard). Blizzard's launch pass of Oct 26 and 27 then set Wind-Blessed Haste at 2%, Read Leyline at 50% more regeneration for 15 seconds (100% while Attuned, an hour-long buff from using it at a Ley Line; not usable under Innervate) and Skysight at 15% movement speed for 15 seconds (30% while Charged, an hour-long buff from using it at an elemental convergence). Attuned and Charged persist through death and end on entering a raid (Blizzard; Races and Racials). Racials also work in Druid forms, Walk on Air included (Blizzard). As of Oct 30, 2026, Crix at Mobalytics ranks the race at the top for PvE and last for PvP, though its text still cites 3% haste; see Best Race for Each Class.

Customization

0:00 Blizzard promised the Skyborne new customizations, voices, dances and a wide range of visual options. Warcraft Tavern published a recording without commentary of the Skyborne character creation and animations in the BlizzCon build.

A man with pale peach skin, swept-back silver hair, a short white beard and long pointed ears stands on a cobbled street in a fitted green and tan outfit with copper trim. Behind him a doorway glows blue beneath a curled wooden lamp post with a hanging lantern, beside a woven basket and a wooden crate holding a basket of bread, under heavy wooden buildings with blue roofs and a round copper emblem on the wall. — A silver-haired Skyborne man in a green and tan outfit stands beside a basket and a crate under a lantern, among buildings with blue, wave-grained roofs, in an official World of Warcraft: Forever screenshot. Blizzard Entertainment

Blizzard's race article of Sep 22 counts the options. The first body type has ten faces, nine skin colors from sky blue to light peach and darker tones, 21 hairstyles, 11 hair colors, three ear lengths, nine eye colors, four eyebrow styles and 13 facial hair options; the second has ten faces, 25 hairstyles, ten hair colors and six earring styles in silver or gold. Both can weave colored feathers into the hair and choose face tattoos and two body tattoos, Zephyr and Wayfinder, each in two colors, and the race has its own voices, emotes and /dance. A barber shop in the cities can change the look later, for a little gold.

A blue-skinned woman with glowing orange eyes, long pointed ears and a lavender braid tucked with a pink flower stands in a floor-length cream, pale blue and gold robe with spiked gold shoulder guards. Out of focus behind her are a stone path, a tree with deep red leaves, a wooden arch and a stone tower marked with a blue swirl. — A Skyborne woman with a pink flower in her lavender braid wears spiked gold shoulder guards and a long cream and pale blue robe before a blurred stone tower, in an official World of Warcraft: Forever press screenshot. Blizzard Entertainment

17:20 At the What's Next panel Blizzard called the Skyborne "exactly the kind of story we want to tell" in Forever: "Something new, something exciting, and something that feels like it belongs in Azeroth."

Playing a Skyborne

1:19 At BlizzCon the show-floor demo let visitors play the start of the Skyborne's leveling journey, Blizzard said at the opening of its Deep Dive panel. The race and its Zephras Isle start are not part of the base game: the Skyborne Heroic Pack includes access to them, and so do the Skyborne Epic Pack and the Warcraft Forever Collection built on it. Forever itself comes with a World of Warcraft subscription or Game Time. The upgrades are covered on Upgrades and Editions.

A tall blue-skinned man with long pointed ears, dark swept-back hair, a short beard and glowing eyes stands on a cobbled road in cream, brown and teal leather armor with gold shoulder guards and heavy brown boots. Out of focus behind him are houses with curved teal roofs, a tree with yellow leaves and pale cliffs. — A bearded Skyborne man with dark hair and glowing eyes, in brown, teal and gold leather armor, stands on a cobbled road near houses with curved teal roofs, in an official World of Warcraft: Forever press screenshot. Blizzard Entertainment

24:15 Asked by a viewer how Bansherz feels about the new race being behind a paywall, the streamer says it depends on Blizzard's future monetization: as the streamer understands it Forever is not getting expansions, and the answer would change if a paid race were followed by some other paid content. Later in the stream Bansherz says that people had long wanted high elves and the Skyborne are "basically that". Other reactions are on Reception.

The Galestrider and the Skycutters

4:06 "Every new race needs a mount that feels wholly their own," Blizzard's Skyborne video says, and for the Skyborne that is the Galestrider, "a majestic crane" suited to the race's affinity with the air. The Skyborne reach Azeroth aboard Skycutters, airborne vessels that carry the shen'dorei between planes and bring the new generation down from Skywall.

Feedback and the standard-definition models

6:43 The Skyborne divided players once the beta opened. On the first WoW: Forever Podcast on Sep 24, Josh Greenfield compared the reaction to the arrival of the Draenei in The Burning Crusade, when he refused to call them Draenei for a year, and said it would be "disingenuous" to claim the team had not expected divided opinions.

12:42 Xaryu, a guest on the episode, heard both sides on his streams. Much of the criticism, he said, was about the blue skin, which reminded players of the Kyrian of Shadowlands, and about HD models in a world of standard-definition ones; as more people played the race, he was hearing it "less and less".

24:18 The Skyborne Druid forms drew much of the comment. Greenfield said the team had already scaled their textures down to match the classic look, but that the extra geometry of the models was something it could look at, and that the Skyborne were among the first things the team made, before it had settled on the range of fidelity that fits Forever.

A heavy four-legged Skyborne Druid form, covered in blue and white feathers, with a hooked black beak, glowing yellow eyes and a pale swirl on its flank, in official World of Warcraft: Forever art. Blizzard Entertainment

A lean, prowling Skyborne Druid form with a crest of dark blue feathers, a hooked black beak, glowing yellow eyes and dark claws, in official World of Warcraft: Forever art. Blizzard Entertainment

A Skyborne Druid form shaped like a tall blue and white bird, with dark antlers, a hooked beak, glowing yellow eyes and long tail feathers, in official World of Warcraft: Forever art. Blizzard Entertainment

On a parchment-colored background, a bulky creature stands upright on clawed purple feet, covered in white and blue feathers with wide feathered arms, tall dark antlers, a gray hooked beak open in a call and small red eyes. Round bronze ornaments with dark blue feathered tassels hang across its chest and shoulders. — A large upright Skyborne Druid form like a feathered owl, with tall antlers, an open beak and bronze discs hung with dark tassels across its chest, in official World of Warcraft: Forever art. Blizzard Entertainment

On Oct 7 Blizzard answered in an article. It has reworked the HD Skyborne Druid forms, removing "a bit of the softness", adding more detailed fur textures and adjusting the color saturation. And because the standard-definition option covers only the original races, Blizzard wrote that it had heard "the HD Skyborne can be jarring by contrast when placed in the same world as the SD models and world, and we agree": standard-definition Skyborne characters, Druid forms included, are in development and "arriving early 2027". Greenfield told the third podcast episode, on Oct 8, that they will come in the game's first major update. See Graphics and Visuals.

A gray sheet headed Before and After shows the same three creatures twice: a hulking feathered beast with a hooked beak, a long-tailed prowling beast with a striped body and a feathered crest, and an antlered bird. On the left they are bright, smooth sky blue and white; on the right the same models are a duller gray-blue with visible fur and feather texture, and the bird's antlers are paler. — Three HD Skyborne Druid forms before and after Blizzard's rework, the later versions with more detailed fur and feathers and less saturated blues, in an official World of Warcraft: Forever image. Blizzard Entertainment

Frequently asked questions

Are the Skyborne neutral? No. Blizzard says the Skyborne are not a neutral race: each Skyborne joins the Horde or the Alliance at character creation. Some early press reports called them neutral.

Which classes can Skyborne play? Warrior, Hunter, Rogue and Druid on both factions, Shaman for the Horde's Windshapers only, and Mage for the Alliance's High Order only.

Will the Skyborne have standard-definition models? Yes. Blizzard says standard-definition Skyborne characters and Druid forms are in development and arriving in early 2027; at launch the race has HD models only.

Where do Skyborne characters start? On Zephras Isle, a self-contained starting zone for levels 1 to 12 in Skywall.

Do I need to buy something to play a Skyborne? Yes. Access to the race and its starting zone is included in the Skyborne Heroic Pack, the Skyborne Epic Pack and the Warcraft Forever Collection; Forever itself comes with a subscription or Game Time.

What are Attuned and Charged? Skyborne buffs since Oct 26, 2026. Read Leyline used at a Ley Line grants Attuned (100% more regeneration instead of 50%), and Skysight used at an elemental convergence grants Charged (30% movement speed instead of 15%). Each lasts an hour, survives death and ends on entering a raid.

Are the Skyborne high elves? Blizzard calls them a race of high elves who call themselves the shen'dorei, descended from rebels of Eldre'Thalas.

Can other races use the Skyborne druid forms? Blizzard describes the new druid forms as created specifically for the Skyborne. Every race's abilities are compared on Races and Racials, and their classes on New Race and Class Combinations.

Sources

WoW Forever Beta Development Notes - Updated October 26, Blizzard Entertainment (Kaivax), World of Warcraft forums, Oct 26, 2026, with additions on Oct 27, 2026
WoW Forever Beta Development Notes, Blizzard Entertainment (Kaivax), World of Warcraft forums, Oct 15, 2026
World of Warcraft: Forever Class Deep Dives - Hunter and Druid, Blizzard Entertainment, 2026
WoW Forever Racial Tier List: Best Races for PvE and PvP, Crix, Mobalytics, updated Oct 30, 2026
WoW: Forever Meet the New Skyborne, Blizzard Entertainment, Sep 22, 2026
World of Warcraft: Forever- The Future of Skyborne Visual Updates, Blizzard Entertainment, Oct 7, 2026
World of Warcraft: Forever What's Next Panel Recap, Blizzard Entertainment, September 2026
World of Warcraft: Forever Found Photos Panel Recap, Blizzard Entertainment via Wowhead Blue Tracker, September 2026
Pre-Purchase World of Warcraft: Forever Upgrades and Begin Your Next Journey in Azeroth, Blizzard Entertainment, September 2026
Carve a New Path with World of Warcraft: Forever, Blizzard Entertainment, September 2026
World of Warcraft: Forever - What's Next Panel | BlizzCon 2026, World of Warcraft, Sep 13, 2026 (video)
World of Warcraft: Forever - Found Photographs | BlizzCon 2026, World of Warcraft, Sep 15, 2026 (video)
World of Warcraft: Forever - Deep Dive | BlizzCon 2026, World of Warcraft, Sep 13, 2026 (video)
WoW Forever Hunter: Every Talent, Classic Changes & Racials, Cajato, Sep 14, 2026 (video)
WoW Forever Skybourne Hunter leveling Stream Blizzcon Floor, Bansherz, Sep 15, 2026 (video)
WoW Forever Skyborne Character Creation & Animations (No Commentary), Warcraft Tavern, Sep 13, 2026 (video)
Skyborne Lore & Abilities | World of Warcraft: Forever, World of Warcraft, Oct 5, 2026 (video)
Unpacking Beta Launch ft. @Xaryu | Episode 1 - The WoW: Forever Podcast, World of Warcraft, Sep 24, 2026 (video)
Dive into Dungeons with Devs ft. @hammerdancegaming | Episode 3 - The WoW: Forever Podcast, World of Warcraft, Oct 8, 2026 (video)

Moments

World of Warcraft: Forever - What's Next Panel | BlizzCon 2026

World of Warcraft

16:10 The Skyborne are the new playable race of World of Warcraft: Forever: a people of high elves, also called the…
16:39 "The Skyborne are not a neutral race," Blizzard said at the What's Next panel. At character creation players choose…
17:20 At the What's Next panel Blizzard called the Skyborne "exactly the kind of story we want to tell" in Forever…

World of Warcraft: Forever - Found Photographs | BlizzCon 2026

World of Warcraft

18:41 Blizzard told the Skyborne's history at its Found Photographs panel. They are high elves who call themselves the…
19:22 The rebels cost the prince dearly but their rebellion ended in defeat, and they fled Kalimdor to escape his wrath…
20:15 The wind spirits anchored the floating island in Skywall, and there, safe and hidden, the Skyborne spent thousands of…
21:09 Much like the high elves who settled in Quel'Thalas, the Skyborne changed over their long isolation: Blizzard…
22:00 The Found Photographs panel names the two sides. The Windshapers are the shamanistic spiritual leaders of Zephras Isle…
22:41 The High Order are more pragmatic and forward-thinking, see the departure of the wind spirits as a chance for the…
23:11 A third faction is not playable. The Al'Aketh are a cult dedicated to Al'Akir the Windlord, whom the wind spirits…

WoW Forever Skybourne Hunter leveling Stream Blizzcon Floor

Bansherz

2:11 The race's opening cinematic in the show-floor build, captured by Bansherz on the BlizzCon floor, tells the same story…
28:20 Bansherz, who picked the Horde side for a Hunter, explains the choice to viewers: the faction is picked at level one…
21:27 Playing a Windshaper Hunter on the show floor, Bansherz describes the speed racial as a 10% movement speed buff…
24:15 Asked by a viewer how Bansherz feels about the new race being behind a paywall, the streamer says it depends on…

Skyborne Lore & Abilities | World of Warcraft: Forever

World of Warcraft

3:19 Blizzard listed the racials itself on Sep 22, 2026. Both sides share three: Walk on Air, a glide downward through the…
4:06 "Every new race needs a mount that feels wholly their own," Blizzard's Skyborne video says, and for the Skyborne that…

WoW Forever Hunter: Every Talent, Classic Changes & Racials

Cajato

15:52 Blizzard confirmed new racials for the Skyborne without listing them on stage at BlizzCon. Cajato, reading a community…
17:25 The High Order Skyborne share the glide, the haste and Elemental Insight. Their different racial increases health and…

WoW Forever Skyborne Character Creation & Animations (No Commentary)

Warcraft Tavern

0:00 Blizzard promised the Skyborne new customizations, voices, dances and a wide range of visual options. Warcraft Tavern…

World of Warcraft: Forever - Deep Dive | BlizzCon 2026

World of Warcraft

1:19 At BlizzCon the show-floor demo let visitors play the start of the Skyborne's leveling journey, Blizzard said at the…

Unpacking Beta Launch ft. @Xaryu | Episode 1 - The WoW: Forever Podcast

World of Warcraft

6:43 The Skyborne divided players once the beta opened. On the first WoW: Forever Podcast on Sep 24, Josh Greenfield…
12:42 Xaryu, a guest on the episode, heard both sides on his streams. Much of the criticism, he said, was about the blue…
24:18 The Skyborne Druid forms drew much of the comment. Greenfield said the team had already scaled their textures down to…