The Best Race and Class Combos in WoW: Shadowlands

Since its debut back in 2004, World of Warcraft has become the standard for online fantasy games. From frothing orc warriors carving their way across the unending battlefields to vigilant night elf druids prowling their ancient forests as wardens, the many denizens of Azeroth take up arms in a myriad of ways, looking to carve out a portion of the world as their own.

But with so many possible race and class combinations, it becomes hard to figure out which one will most help you shine when you answer your own calling. Today, we’re covering the WoW best class and race combos for the latest expansion, Shadowlands.

Let’s get started!

WoW Best Race and Class Combos: Alliance

We’ll begin our list with the Alliance, the champions of justice and order in Azeroth. They fight to preserve their homeland against the invasive Horde and their army of vile monsters — joining the fight with the perfect specialization under your belt may help you drive away the forces of evil and protect the people you love.

1. Humans

Humans are the faces of the Alliance and the most relatable race of them all (except for you lizard people out there). Thanks to a passive that grants an additional boost to all secondary stats, they’re one of the best races in WoW and a solid pick for pretty much any class. Additionally, their Will to Survive manifests as free stun cleanse, allowing them to escape situations that would doom most. 

As the diplomats of the Alliance, the Humans enjoy a 10% boost to reputation gains, reducing the amount of time spent on reputation grinds! 

Strengths:

• 2% additional secondary stats (crit, versatility, haste, and mastery) from all sources
• Free stun cleanse on a 3-minute cooldown
• 10% boost to all reputation gains and stacks with event bonuses

Class Recommendation:

• Any class — The secondary stat boost benefits every class and specialization no matter the situation, making Humans a universally safe choice. The free stun cleanse also makes them one of the best PVP races in WoW, as it allows you to choose a different trinket as opposed to the standard crowd-control cleanse trinket. 

2. Kul Tirans

As the foremost sailors of Azeroth, the Kul Tiran Humans have rejoined the Alliance under Lady Jaina Proudmoore. They are more than ready to bring their nautical experience and toughness to bear (and perhaps enjoy a drink or ten along the way). With a boost to versatility and the ability to regenerate a portion of damage taken, Kul Tirans make excellent front-line fighters with a powerful Haymaker to stun and knockback a foe in brawls.

Strengths: 

• 1% boost to versatility and resistance to frost and nature damage
• When taking damage, regenerate 2% of it over 4 seconds, fantastic for tanks
• Powerful knockback and stun on a 2.5-minute cooldown
• 10% faster swim speed for kiting enemies in the water

Class Recommendation:

• Any tank — Thanks to their innate regeneration for a portion of damage taken and their versatility buff, Kul Tirans make excellent tanks, healing and reducing damage taken. Additionally, their Haymaker serves as a handy repositioning tool in mythic dungeons, as it’s sometimes imperative to move an enemy out of a pool on the ground that buffs them.

3. Dwarves

Rugged and stalwart mountaineers, the Dwarves have served as faithful members of the Alliance for years. The time spent in their icy mountain homeland has given them resistance to frost damage and a knack for seizing critical moments. By calling upon their stone-born ancestry, the Dwarves can activate their all-in-one cleanse, Stoneform, to remove all poison, disease, curse, magic, and bleed effects from themselves as well as bolster their physical defenses.

Strengths:

• 2% bonus to critical strike damage and healing
• 1% resistance to frost damage
• Powerful all-in-one cleanse and reduce physical damage taken by 10% for 8 seconds on a 2-minute cooldown.

Class Recommendation:

• Hunter — Due to the sheer importance of critical strikes for Hunters in Shadowlands, the 2% boost to critical damage can make a substantial difference in your damage output, especially over a long fight. Additionally, your Stoneform cleanse covers the one defensive flaw in all Hunter’s immunity ability — DoT removal. Plus, you get to live out the opening cinematic for WoW that featured a Dwarf Hunter!

4. Dark Iron Dwarves

Once servants to the Firelord Ragnaros, the formerly estranged cousins of the Dwarves of Ironforge now stand arm-in-arm with their brethren, harnessing their craftsmanship and experiences for the Alliance. Having spent their entire life in the volcanic depths of Blackrock Mountain, the Dark Irons move quicker while indoors and are more resistant to physical attacks. In contrast to their regular Dwarven counterparts, their all-in-one cleanse, Fireblood, drastically bolsters their primary stat for each effect removed, giving them a window of opportunity to blow away their enemies if timed properly.

Strengths: 

• 1% reduced physical damage taken
• Move 4% faster indoors
• Powerful all in one cleanse and boost primary stat by 600 for each effect removed for 8 seconds on a 2-minute cooldown, amazing burst potential if used at the right time

Class Recommendation:

• Warrior — While the reduced physical damage is nice, Dark Iron Dwarves output a massive amount of damage if they use Fireblood properly. By charging into the heart of a fray and intentionally being targeted with as many DoTs as possible, a Dark Iron Warrior can take advantage of their defensives to stay alive while popping their cleanse and skyrocketing their primary stat through the roof for a few seconds. During that window, they can devastate the enemy with their arsenal of instant abilities and tear any opposition asunder.

5. Night Elves

Night Elves are the iconic purple forest-dwelling elves of Azeroth, the first Druids, and the most ancient race amongst the Alliance. Due to their long lifespan, the Night Elves have accrued an array of racial passives that give them 1-2% buffs. Examples include reduced nature damage, increased dodge chance on physical attacks, faster move speed (both while alive and dead), and haste or critical strike (depending on if it’s night or day on the server). 

Their most powerful racial feature is Shadowmeld, which allows them to disappear from combat while staying still. This ability is incredibly useful for stealth-based classes, as it allows them to slip back into the shadows. It can also be used at higher levels of play to cancel a hostile targeted ability by disappearing a moment before the cast is completed.

Strengths:

• 2% boost to movement speed and dodge chance on physical/ranged attacks
• 1% boost to haste/critical strike depending on night or day (respectively) and resistance to nature damage
• 75% faster ghost form to get back to the fight quicker
• Shadowmeld to dodge a targeted ability at the last moment or to drop combat (especially powerful for stealth classes to reenable stealth) on a two-minute cooldown

Class Recommendation:

• Demon Hunter — Besides being the only Alliance race that can play as a Demon Hunter, the Night Elves’ passives line up quite nicely with the Demon Hunter’s need for additional mobility and innate tankiness. With Shadowmeld as an emergency dodge button, a good Demon Hunter will be able to make full use of all the Night Elf racials.
• Rogue/Feral Druid — Shadowmeld opens up a massive window of opportunity for these two stealth-based classes, as neither one can re-enter stealth without popping a major cooldown or disengaging from all combat for six seconds straight. By activating Shadowmeld and then immediately entering their conventional stealth, both Rogues and Druids have another chance to capitalize off their powerful stealth-based abilities and passives, which can easily make or break a situation in PvP battles.

6. Void Elves

Former Blood Elves shunned for seeking to wield the Void’s powers, the newly formed Void Elves found refuge in the Alliance. They seek to prove that they are the masters of their newfound power under Alleria Windrunner’s guidance. With the power of the Void flowing through them, Void Elves periodically enhance their damage and healing and can tear a rift in space to teleport to and reposition themselves during combat. Additionally, they do not suffer any pushback on their spell casts from taking damage, turning them into one of the most potent caster races.

Strengths: 

• 1% resistance to shadow damage
• Periodically increase damage and healing by 5% for 12 seconds
• Spell casts are not delayed by damage, incredibly useful for casters
• Open a rift at a location and teleport to it at will on a 3-min cooldown

Class Recommendation:

• Any caster — Frankly put, Void Elves may be the best caster race in the game solely due to avoiding spell pushback when taking damage. Whether in PvE or PvP, something is always trying to kill you, and not having to worry about a delayed spell is a massive boon. The teleport can be a bit tricky to use at first, but mastery can help casters escape many perilous situations and kite their enemies to death. Plus, the 5% damage and healing buff are always welcome.

7. Gnomes

Inquisitive, tiny, and cute (according to some, at least), the gnomes bring mechanical expertise to the Alliance. As is befitting of a race that’s always moving from one magical and mechanical project to the next, they benefit from a bonus to haste and reduced arcane damage. Having learned to escape the consequences of failed experiments, gnomes can utilize their Escape Artist ability to cleanses all immobilization and slow effects. Additionally, their Expansive Mind passive grants them a boost to their resource pool, allowing them to utilize their abilities a bit more than other races.

Strengths:

• 1% boost to haste and resistance against arcane damage
• Free immobilization/slow cleanse on a 1-minute cooldown
• 5% additional maximum resource bar (perfect for mana heavy casters)

Class Recommendation:

• Any healer — One of the hardest limitations on healers at end game content is running out of mana partway through the fight. With the additional 5% mana pool, Gnomes can stave this situation off for a bit longer, using their haste boost to heal injured allies even faster. Additionally, their slow cleanse can be the difference between life and death with so many prevalent instant-kill mechanics.
• Arcane Mage — As one of the few remaining DPS specializations that have to manage their mana pool, Gnomes’ additional 5% can go a long way. This is especially true when combined with Arcane’s Mastery: Savant, which increases the amount of mana dependent on your mastery stat.

8. Mechagnomes

The technologically augmented relatives of the Gnomes have joined up with the Alliance after reconnecting with their fleshy kin and disposing of their maddened former king. With the latest gizmos integrated into their bodies, the Mechagnomes collect data during a fight to steadily amplify their combat parameters with a failsafe to heal themselves should their health fall too low. They can also summon holograms to distract their enemies and buy themselves enough time to heal and escape as needed.

Strengths: 

• Gain 50 to your primary stat every 5 seconds in combat up to 8 times.
• Heal 15% of your max health after falling below 20% once every 2.5 minutes
• Deploy two holograms to distract your enemies on a 3-minute cooldown

Class Recommendation:

• Death Knight — Yes, you read that right. Since Death Knights have very few means of escape, they typically keep the battle going until one side is completely defeated, meaning that you’ll often get the full benefit of Combat Analysis up to 400 of your primary stat. As your self-sustain isn’t always available, the Emergency Failsafe heal can be a lifesaver.

9. Draenei

Next on our list of WoW best class and race combos? The Draenei.

Refugees from their homeworld of Argus, the Draenei are no strangers to conflict and do all they can to prove their dedication to their new allies in the Alliance. Having undergone so many hardships, they’ve coalesced their resolve into a Heroic Presence, granting themselves a large chunk of their primary stat and a resistance to shadow damage. Having been blessed by the Light-aligned Naaru, all Draenei can also heal a friendly target, including themselves, for a portion of their own max health.

Strengths:

• Strong single target heal equivalent to 20% of caster’s max HP on a 3-minute cooldown
• 1% resistance against shadow damage
• 24 boost to primary stat at max level (the equivalent of 2-3% stat up)

Class Recommendation:

• Shaman — As the first Alliance race that could become Shamans, the Draenei’s racials are relatively straightforward and greatly benefit the Shaman. Having Gift of the Naaru on standby next to their standard heals dramatically improves their survivability, and Shaman scale particularly well with the Dranei’s primary stat.

10. Lightforged Draenei

Soldiers of the Light who have turned their very own bodies into weapons, the Lightforged have tirelessly battled the Void across space. Recently reunited with their brethren in the Alliance, the Lightforged have taken up the same banner in pursuit of justice. As instruments of the Light, they can call down a powerful artillery strike on an enemy’s position, causing an explosion of light that damages enemies and heals allies.

Strengths: 

• 1% resistance to holy damage
• Explode in light upon death, damaging enemies and healing allies within 8 yards
• Artillery strike on an enemy’s position on a 2.5-minute cooldown, especially strong for tanks

Class Recommendation:

• Paladin — Unsurprisingly, Lightforged make for excellent paladins (especially aesthetically). As they’re usually in the heart of the fray, the explosion on death will often hit your enemies, and the artillery strike’s AoE damage strongly complements a Paladin’s relentless Divine Storm AoE.

11. Worgen

Once cursed and driven mad, the lycanthrope denizens of Gilneas have regained their sanity and serve faithfully to repay their debt to the Alliance for restoring their minds. By calling upon their feral instincts, Worgen can boost their speed for the extra edge in hunting down their prey. Their innate Viciousness gives them an additional chance to strike critically, and the circumstances of their creation reduce nature and shadow damage taken.

Strengths: 

• On-demand 40% speed buff for 10 seconds on a 2-minute cooldown
• 1% boost to critical strike chance
• 1% resistance to nature and shadow damage

Class Recommendation:

• Druid/Rogue — Besides thematically fitting as beasts stalking their prey, the Worgen racials unfortunately do not provide too much extra power.

12. Pandaren

Having been caught up in the conflict between the Alliance and the Horde, the Pandaren who align themselves with the Alliance continue to honor their cultural values and traditions as they face their brethren in combat. As true gourmands, Pandarens gain twice the stat bonuses from the Well-Fed buff and take less fall damage thanks to their extra padding. Following their culture’s focus on martial technique, all Pandarens are capable of a Quaking Palm, incapacitating a target for a few brief moments and giving them breathing room to plan the rest of the fight.

Strengths: 

• Double stat bonuses from food buffs
• Take less fall damage, opening up paths that would be too dangerous otherwise
• 4-second incapacitate on a 2-minute cooldown, great for creating distance or taking a moment to heal up

Class Recommendation:

• Monk — The Pandaren were the original Monks, so it’s no surprise to find that they’re the best race for Monk players. This is largely because Quaking Palm synergizes so well with the Monk’s playstyle. Players can incapacitate their target long enough to get off a few quick heals and buy time for cooldowns to reset. Having a doubled food buff can be huge, as monks benefit tremendously from versatility stacking.

WoW Best Race and Class Combos: Horde

Honor and order may be noble pursuits, but they mean nothing to those who have been shunned and denied their freedom. The Horde is made up of races that fight for their place in Azeroth — choosing the right combination may give you the skills you need to claim your rightful home.

Read on to discover the best races for each class WoW’s Horde has to offer.

1. Orcs

If you’re looking to play one of the best WoW races within the Horde, you can’t go wrong with Orcs.

Once slaves to a series of different masters, the Orcs have broken free of their chains, embracing their warrior roots to carve out their own destiny. By channeling their Blood Fury, casters and melee classes alike can boost their damage with a surge of rage. Their natural Toughness allows them to shrug off the worst effects of stuns and get back into the fight sooner, making them a hardy foe in PvP. Additionally, the Orcs’ command of minions and beasts is second to none, making their deadly creatures even more dangerous.

Strengths:

• Substantial damage boost for 15 seconds on a 2-minute cooldown
• 20% reduced stun duration
• 1% boost to damage done by pets

Class Recommendation:

• Warlock — Despite Orcs typically being associated with melee classes, Warlocks manage to get the most mileage from the Orcs’ racial abilities. Having your pet(s) do enhanced damage is a constant boon while the damage boost from Blood Fury synergizes well with cooldowns. The stun reduction is incredibly beneficial in PvP situations and will help a Warlock stay alive just long enough to use one of their escape spells. All this adds up to make Orcs the best race for Warlock characters.

2. Mag’har Orc

The remnants of the orcish clans from the alternate Draenor, the Mag’har barely managed to escape the fanatical crusade of the zealous Lightbound. Now on Azeroth, the Mag’har fight to reclaim their honor and carry on their ancestors’ teachings. With their Savage Blood, they can shrug off magical ailments quicker while calling upon their ancestors to grant them a boon to one of their secondary stats. With their history of riding and beast taming, the Mag’har travel quicker on mounts and have toughened their pets to endure more damage to tackle the threats in their new home.

Strengths:

• Boost a random secondary stat by 125 for 12 seconds on a 2-minute cooldown
• 10% reduction to duration of hostile poisons, diseases, and curses
• 10% boost to all pets’ health and mounted speed

Class Recommendation:

• Hunter — With the boost to their pets’ health, Mag’har Orcs have an easier time going solo, as their pets will be able to survive the onslaught just that much longer. Thankfully, Hunters are one of the more versatile classes and benefit greatly from having any of their secondary stats boosted, helping to mitigate the randomness of their Ancestral Call. Additionally, since Hunters are more likely to be targeted by debilitating effects to prevent kiting, reducing the duration of those hostile effects can come in handy more often than not.  

3. Undead

Blighted, cursed, and forsaken by their former loved ones, the Undead were tentatively accepted into the Horde. Though viewed with suspicion by their new allies, the Undead tirelessly work to find their purpose in a world that scorns them and treats them as monsters. Unfortunately, using Cannibalize on their fallen enemies to restore health and mana doesn’t help their case. The Touch of the Grave lingers on them as well, allowing them to steal vitality from their enemies with each attack. Unlike the mindless dead, the Undead can manifest their will to break out of mind-altering effects.

Strengths:

• Can cannibalize a humanoid/undead corpse to heal 35% of health and mana over 10 seconds (or until interrupted) on a 2-minute cooldown
• 1% resistance to shadow damage
• Remove all charm, fear, and sleep effects on a 2-minute cooldown
• Attacks and damaging spells can drain a target for around 2k damage to heal yourself

Class Recommendation:

• Shadow Priest — With an emphasis on sustaining yourself through your spells already, Shadow Priests find the self-sustain damage from Touch of the Grave to be highly synergistic with their kit. By fearing their targets away, the Undead Priest can use the window of opportunity to cannibalize a corpse safely for a quick boost.
• Rogue — With the Rogue’s flurry of rapid attacks, Touch of the Grave will proc rather often. Additionally, the self-cleanse of mind-altering effects covers a rogue’s weakness at being CC’ed during an inopportune time when they just about to get the kill.

4. Tauren

With deep shamanistic roots and a strong respect for nature, the Tauren stand tall as one of the Horde’s most noble races. Known for their Brawn and Endurance, the Tauren can hit harder and take more hits in turn. Their arrival on the battlefield is heralded by their War Stomp, which staggers and stuns all nearby foes.  

Strengths:

• 2% boost to critical damage and healing
• 1% resistance to nature damage
• AoE stun on five targets for 2 seconds on a 1.5-minute cooldown
• 1440 extra hp at level 60

Class Recommendation:

• Warrior — As befitting of their stature, Taurens make the best race for Warriors in WoW. Their higher health naturally helps in the center of a fight, and the AoE stun that Tauren have can make for a deadly combination with a Warrior’s Heroic Leap. The enhanced critical damage and healing also come into play when using a Warrior’s sustain damage abilities, turning an already strong ability into an even deadlier one.

5. Highmountain Tauren

Following their ancestors’ footsteps and venturing beyond their homeland, the Highmountain Tauren have found kinship with their distant cousins in the Horde. With their experiences as Mountaineers, the Highmountain boost their versatility as they Bull Rush through their foes, knocking all caught in the way prone. Their Rugged Tenacity keeps them in the fight even longer, as they take a flat amount of reduced damage. 

Strengths:

• 1% boost to versatility
• Flat reduction of damage, scaling with your stamina
• Charge forward and knockdown all enemies hit for 1.5 seconds on a 2-minute cooldown

Class Recommendation:

• Any tank class — Due to the synergistic nature of versatility and Rugged Tenacity‘s respective damage reduction, Highmountain Tauren make for excellent tanks. As tanks naturally have higher stamina, the bonus reduction from Rugged Tenacity becomes particularly pronounced. Additionally, the repositioning and CC value of their Bull Rush can also be a lifesaver, particularly when multiple enemies are about to get off a sequence of powerful attacks.

6. Trolls

Having lost their home and been driven to the brink of destruction, the Darkspear tribe of Trolls found hope once more after being rescued by Thrall. In gratitude, they have pledged their allegiance to the Horde and fight as furiously as the berserkers of old. Naturally nimble, Trolls can shrug off movement-impairing effects quicker than others before Berserking to finish their foes off as quickly as possible. Additionally, their infamous Regeneration allows them to continue naturally healing during combat.

Strengths:

• Boost haste by 15% for 10 seconds on a 3-minute cooldown
• 10% boost to health regeneration and 10% of total health regeneration continues in combat
• 20% reduction to duration of movement impairing effects

Class Recommendation:

• Druid — With a strong focus on keeping pace with their enemies’ movements, Druids benefit from the Trolls’ resistance to slowing effects. The ability to boost their haste helps maximize Druids’ windows of opportunity to dump all their abilities out. Any Druid can also briefly switch to bear form and take advantage of the regeneration abilities to a far greater effect than other races can. Together, this makes them a natural fit within the WoW best class and race combos.

7. Zandalari Trolls

Members of the largest Troll capital, the Zandalari find themselves on a quest for revenge after the Alliance attacked their city and slew their king. Allying themselves with the Horde to stand against threats from threats both familiar and not, the Zandalari march forward with the blessings and protections of their Loa spirits to prove why they are the mightiest Troll empire. 

All Zandalari Trolls have a powerful Regeneratin’, allowing them to fully heal themselves over a few seconds if they can focus. Additionally, they may choose from a variety of Loa’s blessings to aid them in combat in different ways but must be prepared to commit to their choice for some time.

Strengths:

• Channel for 6 seconds to fully restore your health on a 2.5-minute cooldown
• Choose from one of 6 different Loa to augment your playstyle on a 5-day cooldown (healing, self-sustain, movement speed, apply a DoT, additional armor, boost critical strike)
• Slow fall for 2 minutes on a 15-minute cooldown

Class Recommendation:

• Paladin — The Zandalari are considered the best race for Paladin in the game, and it’s all thanks to Regeneratin’. By activating the paladin ability Divine Shield, Zandalari Trolls can safely and efficiently get the full benefit of Regeneratin’ to fully heal themselves, on top of all of the other Paladin heals. Additionally, the Loa blessings are varied enough that there is always a desirable choice for any specialization of Paladin.

8. Blood Elves

Haughty, proud, and horribly addicted to arcane energy, the Blood Elves have found stability and a future in the Horde. Betrayed by their former prince, the Blood Elves nearly succumbed to their addiction before their font of power, the Sunwell, was restored. Now they wield the arcane power flowing through them, stripping their enemies of buffs and restoring their own resources. Additionally, their affinity for the arcane has empowered their chance to strike critically and resist arcane damage.

Strengths:

• 1% boost to critical strike chance and resistance to arcane damage
• Purge one beneficial effect off all enemies in an 8-yard radius and restore 3% of your mana, 15 energy/rage/focus/fury, one holy power/chi, or 20 runic power on a 2-minute cooldown

Class Recommendation:

• Demon Hunter — Aside from being the only Horde race that can become a Demon Hunter, the Blood Elves’ ability to purge an enemy of their buff is incredibly useful on a class that is relentlessly hunting their target and can quickly get within range of any target. The additional free fury is also quite nice and lets you continue the hunt. 

9. Nightborne

Unchanged for thousands of years, the Nightborne are some of the most ancient elves who refused to abandon the arcane arts. Forced to seek aid from outsiders, the Nightborne have chosen to ally themselves with the Horde and confront the future head-on. With their natural Arcane Affinity, it comes as no surprise that they boost all magical damage and resistance to arcane damage. If surrounded, the Nightborne are capable of an Arcane Pulse, infusing an arcane DoT and slowing nearby enemies.

Strengths:

• 1% boost to all magical damage and resistance to arcane damage
• Apply a DoT to all nearby enemies and slow them by 50% on a 3-minute cooldown

Class Recommendation:

• Any caster class — Unsurprisingly, one of the most magically driven races makes for potent spellcasters. Their boost to magic damage is a clear advantage, and their AoE slow helps deal with large packs of enemies and works as an emergency kiting tool to get yourself away from danger. Consider the Nightborne if you’re seeking the best race for mage in WoW.

10. Goblins

Greedy and calculating (but mostly greedy), the Goblins who have joined up with the Horde saw an opportunity for safety and profit. Time is Money for the goblins, exemplified by their boost to haste.

Their affinity for explosives is made manifest in two racial abilities, Rocket Barrage and Rocket Jump. The first bombards an enemy with a small burst of damage, while the second one functions as a handy repositioning tool. Thankfully, neither one can backfire as most Goblin inventions do. As an added bonus, all gold-based purchases will be discounted at the best possible price!

Strengths:

• 1% boost to haste
• Fire rockets at an enemy for a burst of damage on a 1.5-minute cooldown
• Jump forward to reposition for free on a 1.5-minute cooldown
• Always get the best gold discount from vendors

Class Recommendation:

• Death Knight — While the haste buff and free missile barrage are quite nice, it’s the Rocket Jump ability that’s of particular interest to Death Knights. As arguably the least mobile class in the game, having a repositioning tool is invaluable to any Death Knight and can easily be the difference between life and death.

11. Pandaren

The Pandaren who choose to align themselves with the Horde reject their traditions in favor of their cause. Horde Pandarens enjoy the same bonuses as their Alliance counterparts — twice the stat bonuses from the Well-Fed buff, less fall damage, and the incapacitating Quaking Palm.

Strengths: 

• Double stat bonuses from food buffs
• Take less fall damage, opening up paths that would be too dangerous otherwise
• 4-second incapacitate on a 2-minute cooldown, great for creating distance or taking a moment to heal up

Class Recommendation:

• Monk – We covered the benefits of Pandaren Monks in the Alliance section above, but suffice to say that the Pandaren’s racial bonuses and the Monk’s class abilities work very well together.

12. Vulpera

The tiny nomadic fox-folk are no strangers to hardship but pride themselves on always returning a favor. With Horde’s recent aid towards their people, the Vulpera have committed themselves to repaying that debt and have joined up. With their Bag of Tricks up their sleeves, they can choose to blast their enemies with a nasty surprise or top off a couple of their friends. Their Nose for Trouble also helps prevent them from being caught off guard and shrug off a portion of their enemy’s first hit. Additionally, as befitting a nomadic tribe, the Vulpera can set up what is basically a second custom hearth point anywhere in the outside world!

Strengths:

• 1% resistance to fire damage
• First hit from an enemy is reduced by 5% of your maximum health
• Either heal an ally or damage an enemy for a small burst of damage on a 1.5-minute cooldown
• Second custom hearth spot (as long as it’s outside) on a 1-hour cooldown

Class Recommendation:

• Shaman — The Bag of Tricks is a nice little bonus to any Shaman’s playstyle, serving as a bit extra damage or healing. The real value comes from the damage reduction from the first hit, as Shamans don’t have too much in the way of defensive abilities. Getting obliterated in a single hit is a genuine threat, but with this passive, Shamans get a small window to cast an ability that might just save their life.

The High Ground View

That’s it for our breakdown of the WoW best class and race combos within the Alliance and Horde! As a reminder, the racial abilities are more for lore and flavor — the combat advantage is usually nothing more than a 1-2% stat bonus and an occasional utility spell. You can make any race and class combination work as long as you put in the time to learn your class, so choose whichever combination promises you a fun and immersive experience.

Please drop your favorite combinations in the comments below, and subscribe to our email list for more guides.

Happy gaming!

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