Choosing a race Introduction . If you ' re new to the game , you ' re faced with a lot of choices . The most important of these choices are without a doubt what class you want to be . Then , along with choosing a faction , you must choose a race . One thing you should know before starting this process is that , unlike a class , your race and faction are not set in stone . As of September 2 , 2009 in the US and September 17 2009 in the EU , players may now choose to change their Faction for a fee of $ 30 . 00 in the Account Management Page . Also , as of October 27 , 2009 for US and EU , players may now also change races for a fee of $ 25 . 00 in the Account Management Page . See the Faction Change service and the Race Change service pages for more in - depth information on the two services . What is a race ? Well , in " World of Warcraft " , there are two factions : the Alliance and the Horde . Each faction currently has 6 race options to them . The races for the Alliance are the dwarves , gnomes , humans , night elves , draenei , and the worgen . The races for the Horde are the orcs , tauren , trolls , undead , blood elves , and the goblins . Pandaren are available for both factions ( ) . Click on an individual link for in - depth information on each specific race . Choosing a race . Each of these races has unique racial traits and certain playable classes available to them . These racial traits and class options help them to accomplish their goals in the world . Racial trait s , also known as " racials " , can be either passive or active . Characters can only talk , group , and create guilds with players from their own faction . Certain zones and cities in the world are also friendly to one faction while hostile to the other . Additionally , certain quests can only be completed by members of one faction and not the other . The tables below outline which player class is available to a race ( denoted by X ) . Starting areas . The zone you begin in depends on your race ( unless you are a death knight , a demon hunter , or monk ) . The Blood Elf and Draenei starting areas ( Eversong Woods and Azuremyst Isle , which were added in , and can only be accessed with , the expansion ) , are generally agreed to provide a smoother , more enjoyable leveling experience with better - designed rewards . However , any race can level in any starting zone of the same faction , you ' ll just have to hoof it over there . You ' ll probably want to reach level 5 where you start and then travel to the new zone . The Goblin and Worgen starting areas ( Kezan and the Lost Isles for goblins and Gilneas for worgen ) were added with expansion Patch 4 . 0 . 1 , and have a more tightly linear , narrative flow through the first several levels . These starting areas are essentially instances that are specific to these races and make use of phase shifts as the player progresses through the content . As a result , other races in the same faction are not able to access these starting areas . In addition , unlike in other starting areas ( besides Pandaren ) , Worgen and Goblin players must complete their starting zones before entering the wider WoW universe ( including PvP battlegrounds ) , often emerging at level 12 or 13 . The Pandaren starting area is actually a gargantuan , floating turtle island added with the expansion . Like the goblin and worgen starting areas , the Wandering Isle is effectively a giant instance and they must complete a starting experience " and " choose a faction ( or ) before venturing into the rest of the world . Racial traits . As mentioned above , different races have different racials . The importance of these traits is arguable ( and they can change from expansion to expansion ) , but they do help distinguish them beyond physical aspects . However , if they did not exist , you might ask what would be the difference between races ? Well , the answer is this : It is recommended that you choose a race according to what makes you most comfortable and based on a variety of factors only known to you . However , there are cases where having the right racials can be a life saver , depending on your class ; see the Racial Traits for a full list .