Highlights
- World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Classic launches new zones and increases the level cap to 85 on May 20.
- PVP season 9 starts May 28, with new battlegrounds and arenas for competitive players.
- Three new raids await players on May 30 with Cho'gall, Nefarian, and Al'Akir as foes.
Weeks after the launch of the pre-expansion patch, World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Classic shared when players can begin leveling up in new zones such as Deepholm, and when the new PVP and raid seasons will kick off. In line with previous expansion releases, World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Classic started its launch in waves, with players now able to experience the remade Azeroth.
In the original release of World of Warcraft's third expansion, Cataclysm's pre-expansion patch brought new spells and talents for players to test out ahead of the expansion's release in December 2010. However, an exclusive elemental assault event on capital cities was absent from Cataclysm Classic, which provided players with an additional way to get weapons and armor ahead of the expansion. However, the pre-expansion update for Cataclysm Classic changed the face of Azeroth in the wake of Deathwing's return, with a rework of all zones at and below level 60. A few class and race combinations not previously available in WoW Classic, such as the Tauren Paladin and the Night Elf Mage, are now ready for players to try.
World of Warcraft Classic Makes Leveling Even Easier in Season of Discovery
Leveling in Season of Discovery is already much faster than normal, but World of Warcraft Classic just made it even easier than it was before.
However, level 80 players will soon be able to advance their characters further. According to Blizzard, the full launch of World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Classic begins on Monday, May 20, at 6:00 PM Eastern globally, with separate waves on May 28 and May 30 for the PVP season and the opening of the expansion's first raid tier. The new zones players can explore in Cataclysm Classic's release include Mount Hyjal, Vashj'ir, Deepholm, Uldum, and the Twilight Highlands. In addition to the new zones, nine dungeons will be available on normal and heroic difficulties for 5-player teams, including heroic-level reworks of The Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep dungeons.
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Classic Launch Schedule (May 2024)
- New zones and level 85 cap will go live on Monday, May 20, at 6:00 PM Eastern.
- PVP season 9 begins Tuesday, May 28, following the weekly reset maintenance window.
- Cataclysm Classic's first raid tier starts on Thursday, May 30, at 6:00 PM Eastern.
One week after the release of the new Cataclysm Classic zones, PVP Season 9 will commence on Tuesday, May 28, following the weekly reset in World of Warcraft. The new season will also include additional battlegrounds and arenas for PVP-focused players to compete in. Two days later, on May 30 at 6:00 PM Eastern globally, players who reach the new level cap of 85 can take on three new raids on 10-player and 25-player difficulties. The Bastion of Twilight, Blackwing Descent, and Throne of the Four Winds are the respective domains of some of World of Warcraft's most dastardly foes; Cho'gall, Nefarian, and Al'Akir the Windlord.
Compared to the original launch of Cataclysm, an ambitious World of Warcraft roadmap revealed the release cadence of Cataclysm Classic would be much faster. All in all, a busy time in Azeroth awaits players at the end of May.
World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft is an incredibly successful MMORPG that has been going strong for almost two decades. It's one of the highest-grossing franchises in history and is widely considered the most popular MMORPG ever made.
