The 16 Species of Azeroth Come to D&D

Tags author-mike-bernier D&D: World of Warcraft

Many different people call the world of Azeroth home. Some are native to its lands while others have settled there from far-flung worlds.

Let's explore the species that you can craft characters from in D&D: World of Warcraft!

Explore Azeroth Species

The Peoples of Azeroth

Dracthyr Andrey Kuzinskiy

Dracthyr

Neltharion the Earth-Warder, and one of the original Dragon Aspects, foresaw a world-shaking conflict and set out to create soldiers for that war. He blended together the essence of dragons and the adaptability of the mortals spreading across Azeroth, creating the dracthyr. Then he and the blue Aspect, Malygos, sealed them away in hidden creches in the Forbidden Reach and put them into a magical stasis, where they remained for nearly twenty millennia. The return of Raszageth awakened them into a changed world.

Dracthyr shift freely between natural and visage forms, which allows them to interchange combat and more Humanoid appearances.

Draenei Serge Tsvelykh

Draenei

Sargeras, a corrupted titan, offered untold power to the three leaders of the eredar in exchange for their unquestioning loyalty. A vision came to one leader, who saw his people transformed into unspeakable demons in the ranks of the Burning Legion. With the help of the benevolent naaru, this leader shepherded his followers to safety just in time to escape the demonic transformations of their kin. The exiles vowed to honor the Light and are now known as Draenei—or "exiled ones".

Dwarf/Earthren Clint and Diana Cearley

Dwarf

The first dwarves were earthen who succumbed to the Old God Yogg-Saron’s curse of flesh and, after being put in a hibernative sleep, awoke to find themselves in a new world. They drifted west and settled in the snowy region of Dun Morogh. There, they carved out the proud city of Ironforge, which prospered for two thousand years on trade with the human city-states to the north.

Then the three powerful clans of Ironforge erupted into war as they vied for dominion of the mountain in the War of the Three Hammers.

Dwarf/Earthren

Earthen

The titans created the earthen eons ago in the Forge of Wills. Many of them became dwarves, but the rest continued their slumber.

In Khaz Algar they are stirred from stasis by a device called the Awakening Machine, which now lets them wake up free to pick their own path instead of taking orders from titans who are long dead. Their bodies are living stone infused with Azerite, the lifeblood of Azeroth itself.

Elves Clint and Diana Cearley

Elves

Millennia of conflict have sharply divided the elves of Azeroth.

Night elves forswore the use of arcane magic and cultivated a druidic society in the shadowed recesses of Ashenvale Forest; blood elves learned a technique to drain arcane energy from other living creatures once the Sunwell could no longer sustain them; high elves refused to use those techniques and live among the other peoples of the Alliance, with no nation of their own; the residents of Suramar were transformed by the energy of the Nightwell, becoming the nightborne; and void elves learned to control the shadows within themselves.

Forsaken Andrey Kuzinskiy

Forsaken

After the Third War, the Lich King's will faltered, and much of the Scourge was able to escape from under his control. Under the leadership of the banshee Sylvanas Windrunner, these renegades took the name of Forsaken and carved out a new existence in a world where no one welcomed them.

They are Undead, with their souls imperfectly attached to their bodies through magic. To them, traditional pain is a mere inconvenience, but the presence of the Holy Light is agony.

Gnome Clint and Diana Cearley

Gnome

Most of the mechagnomes created by titans eons ago succumbed to the curse of flesh, becoming gnomes and abandoning their assigned tasks, and eventually carved out the fortress of Gnomeregan in the mountains of Dun Morogh.

They became obsessed with developing radical new technologies and constructing marvels of mind-bending engineering.

Goblin Clint and Diana Cearley

Goblin

Keeper Mimiron discovered kaja'mite, a strange ore with magical properties, and the Keeper's experiments resulted in the creation of goblins from some unknown precursor species. Zandalari trolls eventually enslaved the goblins and forced them to mine the very ore that birthed them into existence.

Over the course of centuries, the goblins secretly used engineering and alchemy to craft weapons, traps, and explosives, then used every bit of it at once to throw the trolls off the island. They celebrated by turning on each other and forming cartels.

Haranir Clint and Diana Cearley

Haranir

Haranir are reclusive people who dwell in the magical forests of Harandar, a subterranean realm where the roots of the World Trees grow together. Their ancient druidic traditions connect them to the earth and teach them to protect those roots.

These secretive folk have long avoided even allowing other peoples to know of their existence, and are suspicious of strangers.

Human Clint and Diana Cearley

Human

Humans are descended from the vrykul of Northrend, who are in turn the result of the Old Gods' curse of flesh taking hold of the titan-forged iron vrykul. Born small and weak as a result of the curse, humans were often killed by their vrykul parents.

The survivors built an empire that split into the Seven Kingdoms: Alterac, Dalaran, Gilneas, Kul Tiras, Lordaeron, Stromgarde, and Stormwind far to the south.

Orc Serge Tsvelykh

Orc

Orcs descend from Grond, a living mountain shaped by the titan Aggramar. Though the orcs are the smallest and weakest of Grond's descendants, they possess a fierce intellect and strong sense of community.

After being tricked and transformed into a merciless, destructive force bound to the Legion's service, the orcs spent many years in internment camps, listless and lethargic, until a visionary young warchief named Thrall rose to lead his people in their darkest hour. Under his rule they broke the chains of demonic corruption and embraced their ancient heritage.

Pandaren Ignatius Budi

Pandaren

Pandaren settled around the Vale of Eternal Blossoms millennia before the Great Sundering. Wise and peaceful, they bound themselves to four Wild Gods called the August Celestials: Chi-Ji, Niuzao, Xuen, and Yu'lon. Then the mogu conquered them and held them for millennia, banning weapons and literacy alike. Trained by the monks to fight without weapons, the pandaren overthrew the mogu and formed an empire.

Two philosophies have guided pandaren life ever since. Huojin teaches direct action and holds that inaction is often worse than wrong action. Tushui teaches careful deliberation.

Tauren Caio Monteiro

Tauren

The tauren are descended from the yak-like yaungol, who ranged across Kalimdor while it was still one continent. The magic of the Well of Eternity reshaped these yaungol into the tauren. They roamed the plains of the Barrens for countless generations, hunting the mighty kodos and seeking the wisdom of their eternal goddess, the Earth Mother, until Cairne Bloodhoof befriended Thrall.

On the windswept mesa of Thunder Bluff, Cairne built a refuge where tauren of every tribe are welcome. His son Baine leads it now.

Troll Serge Tsvelykh

Troll

Trolls are among Azeroth's oldest peoples. From their earliest days, they revered the Wild Gods of nature, which they called loa, a name that later stretched to cover almost anything they were willing to serve. The first center of troll society was in the mountainous region of Zandalar, where trolls established the city of Zuldazar.

That empire is a ruin now, splintered back into tribes that still hold the old fortresses. Trolls average over seven feet tall, and their natural healing abilities are unmatched.

Vulpera Ilse Gort

Vulpera

Vulpera are small, fox-like people native to the deserts of Vol'dun. They travel in close-knit caravans, their wagons pulled by alpacas, scavenging supplies from across the dunes.

Despite their small stature, they are fierce and cunning in battle, bringing down any enemy foolish enough to underestimate them. For all that ferocity, the vulpera have long been terrorized by the serpentine sethrak.

Worgen Caio Monteiro

Worgen

The worgen curse originated among a sect of night elf druids called the Druids of the Pack during the War of the Satyr, over nine thousand years ago. The druids adopted a feral pack form inspired by the lupine Wild God Goldrinn, but they succumbed to the bestial rage of this form.

A rite called the Ritual of Balance helps Gilnean worgen control their transformation and keep a clear mind in their bestial form.

Roll for Azeroth

The vast array of peoples that make up the world of Azeroth each have their own story—some are eons long; others are more recent. D&D: World of Warcraft helps you craft heroes from these unique species, so you can recreate your main character, roll an alt, or devise a legendary hero the likes of which the world has never seen!

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