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The Warcraft 30th Anniversary Direct brought a ton of exciting announcements, as the franchise celebrated three decades in players’ hands. As part of that, they broke down much of what 2025 will look like for World of Warcraft.
As Blizzard continues its drive towards greater transparency on their plans for the beloved MMO, they have detailed exactly what new content next year will include. Aside from a couple of very noticeable mysteries, this is the furthest ahead that the player base has ever been able to look with any confidence.
Next year is set up to be a busy one, with several major patches planned in the run-up to the full reveal of Midnight, the next expansion. Here’s everything you need to know about the 2025 WoW roadmap.
WoW: The War Within 2025 roadmap explained
Patch 11.0.7
Starting in 2024, this patch takes players to the Siren Isle. As well as a ton of new story content and rewards, the Turbulent Timeways event is returning. First introduced in Dragonflight, it includes several consecutive weeks of Timewalking dungeons, with all of the associated rewards to collect.
Players will also get access to Cyrce’s Circlet, an upgradeable ring that should work in a similar way to the Cloak of Infinite Potential from WoW Remix: Mists of Pandaria. Lastly, all of WoW’s usual holiday content comes to the fore once again.
Plunderstorm returns
WoW’s only ever attempt at making a Battle Royale is back, after a successful run the first time around. This time, players will have access to an associated store to purchase their rewards, rather than having to level through the Renown system.
Patch 11.1
Likely arriving in late Winter of 2024, Patch 11.1 is where Season 2 of The War Within will start. Known as Undermine(d), this update introduces the titular new zone, as well as new raid, The Liberation of Undermine and new dungeon Operation: Floodgate.
There will also be some additions to the existing Delve offering and players will be able to join one of four Goblin Cartels. Whether this will be similar to Shadowlands much-maligned Covenant system is unclear, but the developer is well aware of fan feeling and should be able to approach this in a different way.
Patch 11.1.5
Those who were playing during Battle for Azeroth will remember the Horrific Visions of N’Zoth and they are back once again to drive the community mad. Though N’Zoth has been defeated, The War Within’s focus on the Void does serve as a ripe breeding ground for what was a popular mode in its first run.
This patch also includes a new piece of content known as Nightfall (nothing to do with Destiny). What exactly that will look like is unclear at this stage, though it could be this expansion’s megadungeon or a more extensive repeatable activity.
Patch 11.1.7
Arriving in late Spring, this smaller patch brings Turbulent Timeways back again, as well as new content, system updates, quests and story features.
Patch 11.2
Serving as the start of Season 3, Patch 11.2 is as big as the community would expect. Though exact details are yet to be confirmed by Blizzard, it includes a new zone, new World Events, a new raid, a new dungeon and changes to the Warband system and Brewfest.
Midnight expansion reveal
Likely happening sometime in August 2025, Blizzard is planning a full reveal for the next expansion – Midnight. The story has remained remarkably hidden in the months since its confirmation at Blizzcon 2023, though it will serve as the next step in a wider narrative that makes up The Worldsoul Saga.
Patch 11.2.5
Another more minor update, Patch 11.2.5 will come with all of the expected system updates and improvements needed within the context of earlier patches. It will also mark the 21st Anniversary of the MMO, presumably with some celebrations and rewards for players to collect.
Patch 11.2.7
This Patch could well serve as the narrative setup for the release of the next expansion, depending on whether Blizzard decides to pursue a Patch 11.3. With the accelerated expansion cadence, that is unlikely and 11.2.7 would be the perfect opportunity the bridge the gap between The War Within and Midnight.
Mysterious rune
At the very end of the road, after the release of 11.2.7, is a mysterious runic symbol. Though we have see Blizzard do this before (when they used the skull and crossed bones to hint at Plunderstorm), this is unlikely to be a timed activity.
Instead, the leading theory is that this could mark the arrival of the player housing Hearthstone. Blizzard confirmed player housing in the 30th Anniversary Direct, though that isn’t expected until the release of Midnight, so the timelines don’t quite line up.
In any case, that’s all there is to know about the roadmap so far. As more is revealed, we will update this guide to reflect all of the confirmed next steps for World of Warcraft.
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