No. In WoW Forever you can't move a character from PvE to PvP, or between any of the other rulesets. You make a new character on the ruleset you want instead. Here's how the rules work, and the one exception.
Key takeaways
- You can't transfer a character between rulesets in WoW Forever. To play on a different one, you make a new character there.
- Forever has rulesets, not realms: Normal, PvP, Roleplay and Roleplay PvP. Hardcore is coming after launch.
- A Hardcore character that dies can move to another ruleset, including PvP. Nothing moves into Hardcore.
- On PvP you can only make characters for one faction.
- Blizzard hasn't announced a paid transfer or a faction change for Forever.
Can you transfer from PvE to PvP in WoW Forever?
No. You just make a new character. Blizzard's ruleset announcement says players can't freely hop between rulesets, and that to play under a different one, they'll need to create a new character in that ruleset.
That goes both ways. You can't move from Normal to PvP, and you can't move from PvP back to Normal if you get fed up with being ganked. Whatever ruleset you made your character on is where it stays.
So it's worth picking carefully before you put hours in. Our PvP or PvE guide goes through the choice.
What rulesets are there in WoW Forever?
There are four live now:
- Normal: the PvE ruleset. You only fight other players if you choose to.
- PvP: open-world PvP. Players from the other faction can attack you outside the safe areas.
- Roleplay: Normal rules, for players who want to roleplay.
- Roleplay PvP: PvP rules, for roleplayers.
Hardcore is the fifth. Blizzard says it will become available sometime after launch, with no date yet.
Forever doesn't have a realm list. You pick a ruleset when you start instead. Characters get two names rather than one name tied to a server, which is part of why server transfers don't exist in Forever at all.
Can you have characters on more than one ruleset?
Yes. Nothing stops you making characters on Normal and on PvP. Each one just lives on the ruleset you made it on. So if you can't decide, you can try both and see which you stick with, as long as you don't mind levelling twice.
The one limit is faction on PvP, covered below. On Normal and Roleplay you can have characters on both sides.
What if the ruleset you want is greyed out?
That's a different problem. On launch night, rulesets were greyed out or showed as temporarily unavailable while the servers filled up. It isn't a transfer issue and it doesn't mean the ruleset is closed for good. Wait and try again, and see the ruleset unavailable guide for what to do in the meantime.
Did we switch rulesets when we rerolled?
No. My group started on Horde and then swapped to Dwarf and Gnome on Alliance, and we stayed on the same ruleset. We're too lazy for PvP. Zac actually wants us to play PvP, but I just don't think we're going to bother.
Swapping faction meant new characters anyway, so ruleset transfers never came into it for us. If you're thinking of doing the same, the swap costs you your levels and gold, but your old characters are still there to go back to.
Is PvE still worth it if other players can get you killed?
Yeah, I'd still pick PvE. On launch week, in the wendigo cave in Dun Morogh, another player died with wendigos on him and they came straight onto me and my brother. We both died.
But whilst your own team can heck you up, at least the other team can't. Even in PvP, your own team can drag mobs onto you and kill you. PvP just adds the other faction on top.
Can a Hardcore character transfer out?
Yes, but only after it dies. Blizzard says Hardcore characters will be in a fully enclosed ecosystem, but if one dies, that character can transfer to another ruleset, including PvP.
It only goes one way. Nothing from Normal, PvP or the Roleplay rulesets can move into Hardcore. So if Hardcore is what you're after, that means waiting for it. Any character you level now on another ruleset can't be moved in later.
Blizzard hasn't said whether the move after death is free or paid, or how you trigger it. Hardcore isn't live yet, so nobody has done it.
Can you play both factions on the PvP ruleset?
No. On the PvP ruleset, you can only make characters for one faction. Once you have characters on one side there, you can't make any on the other.
Blizzard's announcement doesn't say whether that's per account or per region, or whether it covers Roleplay PvP too.
That's not the same as the "faction unavailable" message from launch night. Soon after launch, Horde creation on PvP was paused to balance the population, and Blizzard's support team told players it hoped they'd be able to make a Horde character soon. That one is temporary. If that's the message you're seeing, see the faction unavailable message.
Is there a paid character transfer in WoW Forever?
Not that Blizzard has announced. Its written ruleset post doesn't mention one, and there's no price or date anywhere.
The picture isn't completely clear, though. In a developer Q&A in September, a developer was reported as saying you wouldn't be able to move to a different ruleset without a character transfer service. That leaves the door open to one later. Blizzard's written word is still the one above: make a new character.
Blizzard's support page on paid transfers already rules them out for its other classic-style versions, such as Season of Discovery and Classic Hardcore, and doesn't mention Forever at all. Developers have also said there are no plans for the WoW Token or paid character boosts in Forever.
Can you change faction in WoW Forever?
Not yet. Blizzard hasn't announced a faction change for Forever. The faction change price you'll see online is for the main game, not Forever.
So if your friends are on the other faction, you'll need a new character to join them. That's what we did.
What happens to your old character?
It stays where it is. You keep it, along with its level, gear and gold, and you can log back into it whenever you want.
My Horde character, Totem, is kept as an alt. I might play through it. I've managed to earn nearly 3 gold on it already.
If you're rerolling, don't delete your old character in a hurry. It costs you nothing to keep it, and if the rules change later, you'll still have it.
FAQ
Can you transfer from PvE to PvP in WoW Forever?
No. You make a new character on the PvP ruleset.
Can you transfer from PvP to PvE in WoW Forever?
No. Characters stay on the ruleset they were made on.
Is there a paid transfer in WoW Forever?
Blizzard hasn't announced one, and its ruleset post says to make a new character instead.
Can you move characters between servers in WoW Forever?
No. Forever uses rulesets instead of servers, and characters can't move between rulesets either.
Can dead Hardcore characters transfer?
Yes. Blizzard says a Hardcore character that dies can move to another ruleset, including PvP. Hardcore isn't live yet.
Can you play Horde and Alliance on the PvP ruleset?
No. On PvP you can only make characters for one faction.
