Name reservation

• The window is 27 October to 3 November 2026, Pacific time. Blizzard has not published the hour it opens.
• It comes with any Forever upgrade pack. A subscription on its own does not include it.
• You can make up to three characters in that week. Names go to whoever takes them first.
• Every character has a first and a second name, and the full name has to be unique in your region.
• The characters are made in the game, so you need Forever installed. More on the download.
• Everyone starts playing at the same time: 4 November 2026 at 3:00 p.m. PST.

Every date Blizzard has given between now and the first raids. On this page the next one is marked as it comes up.

1. 20 OctInvite-A-Friend codesLaunch codes that come with the upgrade packs start arriving by email. They let a friend play from 4 to 11 November without a subscription.
2. 21 OctThe beta endsBlizzard's dates for the beta are 17 September to 21 October.
3. 27 OctName reservation opensUp to three characters, first come, first served. Blizzard has not said what time.
4. 3 NovName reservation closesThe last day to make a reserved character.
5. 4 Nov · 3:00 p.m. PSTReleaseOne moment for every region. Reserved and new characters both start at level 1.
6. 9 DecNew raids unlockFrom Blizzard's What's Next panel.

Release is one moment for the whole world, so the local time depends on where you are. US clocks go back on 1 November, so release falls in Pacific Standard Time.

Blizzard's wording is that early name reservation is "included with any upgrade purchase." Forever itself comes with a World of Warcraft subscription or Game Time; the packs are optional extras on top, sold in the Battle.net shop.

The packs also carry cosmetics, a mount and housing decor; Blizzard's pre-purchase post has the full list. Prices vary by region, so check the shop rather than a guide.

1. Have an upgrade pack on the account you play on. If you have more than one World of Warcraft account, check which one the pack went to.
2. Install Forever. It is a separate game from the World of Warcraft you may already have. The next section covers this.
3. From 27 October, launch Forever and make your characters. Up to three: race, class, looks, and a first and second name.
4. Pick a ruleset you will stay on. There is no realm list in Forever. Every character belongs to a ruleset (Normal, PvP, Roleplaying or Hardcore), you can only group with players on your own, and moving means a new character. The ruleset guide has a picker if you are undecided.
5. Wait for release. Your names are held, and your characters enter the world with everyone else at 3:00 p.m. PST on 4 November.

What Blizzard has not said yet. I would rather tell you what is open than guess:

• The hour the window opens on 27 October.
• Whether the Skyborne can be made during the window, or only from release.
• Whether you choose your ruleset on the reservation screen. It is likely, since every character belongs to one, but Blizzard has not shown the screen.
• Whether deleting a reserved character frees its name for someone else.

Hardcore is the one ruleset you can be sure is not in the window: Blizzard says it opens after release.

• It has its own entry. During the beta, Blizzard's instructions were to pick "World of Warcraft: Forever Beta" from the Game Version menu above the Play button, under "In Development", and install it. Retail World of Warcraft, Classic and Anniversary each keep their own install.
• The beta install may not be the one you play. The beta ends after 21 October. Blizzard has not said whether that install turns into the release version, or when a pre-download starts.
• Name reservation happens inside the game. The characters are made in the character creator, so expect the release version to appear in that same Game Version menu by 27 October. When it does, install it.
• Clear the space now. Blizzard's World of Warcraft requirements ask for a solid state drive with 128 GB available. Blizzard has not published a separate figure for Forever, so that is the number to plan around.
• Your beta character will not be waiting for you. Nothing Blizzard has posted says beta characters carry over.

Blizzard's own first step for the beta is worth repeating: update your graphics drivers before you install.

Every character in Forever has two names, like a first name and a family name. My beta Warlock was Dlonem Youtube: first name Dlonem, second name Youtube. Blizzard's rules for them:

• The full name is unique within your region. North America, Europe and the other regions are each one pool, and there are no realms, so a name taken on one ruleset is taken on all of them.
• First names can repeat. Two players can both be Asha, as long as their second names differ.
• Second names can be shared. Blizzard's own example is three characters called Asha, Thalen and Mira Brightvale. A shared second name works as a family for your alts, or as a theme for a group of friends.
• Both parts are checked together against the naming rules, so splitting a banned word across the two names does not get it through.
• You can hide your second name in the world: Game Menu, Options, Nameplates, then the checkbox for My Secondary Name. It still shows in chat.
• If a name is taken, try another combination, or use the random name generator in the character creator.

Picking names before the window. Write down your first choice for each character and two backups, so a taken name costs you seconds and not your spot. If you want matching second names across your characters or your friends, agree on them now: the second name is the part people will see on all of you.

Tick these off as you go. The page remembers them in this browser, and nothing is sent anywhere.

Checked on 13 October 2026 against Blizzard's posts and my own beta footage. Details can change before release; Blizzard's posts are the final word.

• Blizzard: Pre-purchase World of Warcraft: Forever upgrades (the reservation window, three characters, the packs, the beta dates, launch codes and the release time)
• Blizzard: Create a name of your own in WoW: Forever (two-part names, uniqueness, hiding the second name)
• Blizzard: The World of Warcraft: Forever beta now live (the Game Version menu and install steps)
• Blizzard Support: World of Warcraft system requirements (128 GB on a solid state drive)
• Blizzard: What's Next panel recap (the 9 December raids)
• Blizzard: Choose your ruleset in World of Warcraft: Forever (rulesets and Hardcore after release)
• My beta stream (the pictures)

World of Warcraft is a trademark of Blizzard Entertainment. This is a player's guide, not an official Blizzard page. Screenshots are from my own stream.