# So I want to get back into World of Warcraft, and start from the beginning **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** video-games-e-games\ **Created:** [November 12, 2024, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174 "2024-11-12T22:25:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2024, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/1 "2024-11-12T22:25:24Z")
The thread title says it all-- I want to play WoW and start all over again, from the beginning, by rolling a new toon and going from there. Do I have to buy a “base” game (for lack of a better choice of words) and just buy each xpac individually, starting with [whatever the first one was, lo these many years ago] as I advance? Or does the latest expansion include all of the previous content? ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2024, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/2 "2024-11-12T22:44:47Z")
You don’t have to buy the current expansion (_The War Within_) to play content up to the current, so there’s a lot of content available. You primarily need to purchase game time at approximately $15 per month. There is “free to play” but it’s hugely constrained, particularly because characters are level capped to 20 instead of 70 if you didn’t buy the current expansion or 80 if you did, and most social and economic features are disabled. ---
**Author:** ![Yodalicious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yodalicious/32/8195_2.png) [@Yodalicious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yodalicious)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2024, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/3 "2024-11-12T22:44:56Z")
I did this a few years ago. The base game comes with the current expansion, and all past ones. You may not know this, but you can play as many toons as you want, up to level 20 for free. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2024, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/4 "2024-11-12T22:57:03Z")
If you want to truly go for the nostalgia aspect, you can also choose one of the “classic” servers (part of the same subscription). They turn back time to one of the earlier expansions, focus more on the lower levels, and also add a few twists (in the “season of discovery” mode). Otherwise if you jump back into the “current” main WoW, you’re surrounded by people who have a bunch of accumulated playtime with a focus on the newer content and endgame experience. It’ll be pretty different than that magic when WoW first came out and everyone was moving through the starter zones roughly together. ---
**Author:** ![Palooka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/palooka/32/2902_2.png) [@Palooka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palooka)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/5 "2024-11-13T21:26:08Z")
The new 20th Anniversary edition Classic servers announced today sound pretty good with features like faction balancing, massive populations, and an openness to quality of life changes. That’s what I’d do if I was going to start over. (Which I want to do more than anything, but recognize that’s a bad idea for me.) ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/6 "2024-11-13T22:02:25Z")
To maybe restate what’s already been said, there are two version of WoW right now: “retail” and “classic.” Any retail WoW subscription will include all of the expansions up to the one before the current expansion. For an additional charge, you can add the current expansion (The War Within). This is the game that most players will be playing. The game has a feature called “Chromie Time” where you can level a character up though any of the previous expansions. You also get access to classic WoW with a retail subscription. There are several variants at this point – “vanilla” WoW is the game as it existed just prior to the first expansion, there are also vanilla servers for “hardcore” players where dying is permanent and “season of discovery” which is vanilla WoW with some new content added. There are also classic servers for content up through the Cataclysm expansion. Be forewarned that some of these servers are completely dead. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/7 "2024-11-13T22:03:39Z")
> [@Palooka](#): > > The new 20th Anniversary edition Classic servers Wow, that sounds awesome! More info here: [WoW Classic 20th Anniversary Realms Information - WoW Classic General Discussion - World of Warcraft Forums](https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/wow/t/wow-classic-20th-anniversary-realms-information/2007834) That might just get me to try it again too. Any interest in a small Doper Classic guild? ---
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/8 "2024-11-13T22:06:11Z")
> [@flurb](#): > > You also get access to classic WoW with a retail subscription. There are several variants at this point – “vanilla” WoW is the game as it existed just prior to the first expansion, there are also vanilla servers for “hardcore” players where dying is permanent and “season of discovery” which is vanilla WoW with some new content added. There are also classic servers for content up through the Cataclysm expansion. Be forewarned that some of these servers are completely dead. I’ve been confused by the Classic servers - are there separate servers by expansion? Like, can I play on a vanilla server or a Burning Crusade server, if I prefer those time periods, or are all servers just progressing like they did historically, currently to Cataclysm? ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/9 "2024-11-13T22:09:05Z")
There are vanilla-only classic servers, but only the most recently released classic expansion (currently, Cataclysm) has its own servers. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/10 "2024-11-13T22:38:17Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > Any interest in a small Doper Classic guild Not for me, thanks. I’m pretty well past any kind of nostalgia for stuff I thoroughly and completely did when it was new. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/11 "2024-11-13T22:45:24Z")
I’ve played through on the original classic server (before it went to BC and onwards). It’s fun, and full of nostalgia, but you have likely forgotten the endless grind to get enough gold to buy your skills, to buy a mount, to get even functional gear, and that outside a handful of classes, how difficult it is to do on your own. It’s endless, even if there was a small guild to help. I am still a current player in WoW (retail), and if you need help, I can absolutely help spot bags, cash, and carries if needed, but I stopped with the Classic servers because of all the work. And the people there run from “old fogies” like me that played since Vanilla was live and are generally helpful, to people who pop in from retail and try to play the game _that_ way. 🤢 For the record, the last two expansions (Dragonflight and now World Within) are a lot better, and some things have finally made in back into the game like useful talent trees. I have a current but very quiet thread for them. > [@World of Warcraft: Dragonflight & {Dragonflight and Beyond}](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-of-warcraft-dragonflight-dragonflight-and-beyond/975061): > > So, anyway, it seems a semi-tradition to create a new WoW thread for a new expansion rather than necro one of the old ones, thus the above. We’re less than two weeks from going live, and the new Class/Race (or RCC for Palladium fans) combo is live and leveling, as is the new UI and talent system. So far, the UI and Talent system are IMHO a huge step in the right direction, although they are equally IMHO a work in progress. Since those pieces went live last week, there’s been at least 4 micro … Anyway, if you pop into retail, most of my active characters are on Wyrmrest Accord, which has plenty of active population. If you go classic, as suggested upthread, check the server population, and be prepared for a LOT of hours of grinding. Best of luck! ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/12 "2024-11-13T23:00:03Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > I’ve played through on the original classic server (before it went to BC and onwards). It’s fun, and full of nostalgia, but you have likely forgotten the endless grind to get enough gold to buy your skills, to buy a mount, to get even functional gear, and that outside a handful of classes, how difficult it is to do on your own. It’s endless, even if there was a small guild to help. In vanilla I was a paladin, one of the classes that gets their epic mount via a quest rather than having to grind the then-princely sum of 1000 gold for one. It still took a month or two of farming thorium and selling imperial plate armor on the auction house to raise enough cash for the mats the quest required. And playing paladin in vanilla was the closest thing to hard mode that game had. Lowest DPS of any class, no ranged attacks, only one AOE, no taunts, and a slow-ass heal. At best you were a third wheel in any group that’d take you unless they REALLY wanted your buffs or they wanted wipe insurance via Divine Intervention. Fortunately, by the time WOTLK came out paladins were much better at tanking and I could find a group at the drop of a hat. ---
**Author:** ![Palooka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/palooka/32/2902_2.png) [@Palooka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palooka)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2024, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-i-want-to-get-back-into-world-of-warcraft-and-start-from-the-beginning/1010174/13 "2024-11-19T01:16:33Z")
They’re announced further QoL features: dual spec, instant mail, no debuff limit on bosses, and (experimentally) faction balanced instances/layers/whatever.