On November 23, 2023, at BlizzCon, a new global expansion for World of Warcraft was announced under the title The War Within, marking the tenth anniversary of the franchise. It is set to kick off the Worldsoul saga, delving into what lies within the depths of the planet Azeroth and what mysterious force calls upon heroes for aid. The continuation of this saga is expected in the following expansions: World of Warcraft: Midnight and World of Warcraft: The Last Titan.

The release date for The War Within is currently unspecified, but judging from the roadmap presented by Blizzard, it's expected to be towards the end of summer and the beginning of spring. The alpha testing of the expansion is just beginning, with beta testing set to start in the summer. Therefore, players currently don't have a wealth of information about what to expect in the next expansion and interesting details are being gathered piece by piece by fans of the series.

New Locations

In the storyline of World of Warcraft: The War Within, heroes will journey deep into Azeroth to find the mysterious source of power, as shown to players in the expansion trailer. Events lead defenders to a new, previously unknown territory called Khaz Algar, also known as Sector AR-938, located southeast of Kalimdor and west of Pandaria.

Here, heroes will have to find entrances to caves and mines and delve deeper underground into Azeroth, exploring new territories, flora, and fauna, encountering new enemies and allies, including representatives of a new race — the Earthen Dwarves. According to Blizzard's information, players will discover four new gaming zones: Isle of Dorn, The Ringing Deeps, Hallowfall, and Azj-Kahet. Each of these lands lies deeper than the previous one and holds many secrets.

Isle of Dorn — the surface of Khaz Algar, will serve as the starting location in The War Within. These lands feature massive mountainous regions with flourishing nature and are home to the Earthen race. The capital here is a city called Dornogal, which serves as a crossroads for both factions: the Alliance and the Horde.

The Ringing Deeps — an industrial zone beneath the surface of Sector AR-938. Accessible through the Coreway passage in Dornogal, the Ringing Deeps comprise a vast cave system inhabited by Machine Speakers. The Earthen race maintains the uninterrupted operation of the Titan machines.

Below lies Hallowfall — a vast cavern bordering an endless underground sea. On the cavern's ceiling sits a massive embedded crystal "sun" known as Beledar, serving as a source of energy, light, and warmth for the local fauna, promoting flora growth as if on the planet's surface. Hallowfall is populated by a civilisation of humans from the Arathi tribe.

This settlement emerged when some inhabitants of the Arathor empire left their homes and founded their kingdom overseas. Other people settled in the lands of Hallowfall during the schism after having visions of a falling star. These worshippers of light use the sacred power of their airships, which operate on fire, to travel through the cavern, reaching necessary locations.

Most of the time, they contend with various local monsters emerging from the underground sea, as well as with Nerubians emerging from Azj-Kahet. For years, the Arathi held back the Nerubian onslaught, but the power of Beledar fades, replaced by the power of the Void, which lures more and more new hostile creatures, plunging the Arathi into complete darkness. Only the lighthouses they built helped them resist the darkness.

Azj-Kahet — the deepest location beneath Khaz Algar, serving as the capital for the Nerubian community. Here, we'll see representatives of this race from a new angle, different from the Azjol-Nerub Nerubians, who were consumed by the Scourge. Players will encounter Nerubians in their original form and their state after years of mythological wars. In this zone, we'll visit the City of Threads, which is constantly being built upwards, demonstrating class division between the poorer inhabitants below and the richer supporters of Queen Ansurek. Azj-Kahet is dark but picturesque in its own way.

Expansion Features

Maximum character level — 80.

A new playable race - Earthen, artificial dwarves created by the Titans from living stone imbued with Azeroth's world soul.

Eight new dungeons and one raid, where Alliance and Horde representatives will work side by side to overcome those who threaten Azeroth. These dungeons include The Rookery, The Stonevault, Priory of the Sacred Flame, City of Threads, Cinderbrew Meadery, Darkflame Cleft, The Dawnbreaker, Old City.

A new mount flight system will replace the current one and be more similar to what was demonstrated in Dragonflight, making it more interactive and dynamic, with its levelling system.

Updated skill and talent trees, allowing for the creation of new class hero subtypes and a wider range of specialisations.

WoW: The War Within will also introduce the Warbands system, which will "unify" your alt characters into one "family," allowing for the spread of individual character traits across the entire account, including achievements, collectable items, the bank, and so on.

Delves — in the depths of the new lands, you and your friends can find many treasures awaiting you, but to do so, you'll have to defeat new bosses.