The Forever Open: How to Enter the $100K WoW Forever Duel Tournament

What the Forever Open is

The Forever Open is a community tournament, not a Blizzard event. Streamers Tips Out, Esfand and Xaryu run it on the WoW Forever beta, with Raider.IO handling sign-ups, and it’s open to anyone who has beta access. Everyone duels on a level 30 Horde character made for the event.

It started as a $50,000 tournament. On 28 September TimTheTatman added another $50,000, which doubled every prize.

Key dates

The beta itself runs until 21 October, so the tournament fits in its last week.

Prize pool

Because every class has its own winner, you don’t need to play the strongest class to win money. You need to be the best player of the class you pick.

The character rules that catch people out

• Brand new character. It has to be created after registration opened on 27 September. An older level 20 character doesn’t count, even if it’s Horde.
• Horde, on the PvP ruleset. On the PvP ruleset, Blizzard only lets an account make characters for one faction. If you already made an Alliance character there, you can’t make a Horde one.
• Last name Foreverpvp. WoW Forever names have two parts, and the tournament fixes the second part so every entrant is easy to find.
• 15 gold entry fee, paid at check-in. Keep it in your bags.
• You stream your own duels on Twitch, YouTube or Kick, and keep the recording.

Banned consumables and buffs

• Magic Dust and Slumber Sand.
• Every protection potion: Fire, Nature, Frost, Arcane, Holy and Shadow.
• World buffs.
• Buffs from other players only count if they last at least 2 minutes.

A banned item found at a check means disqualification. Duels start 20 yards apart, without mounts, after a 10-second countdown.

Picking your class

All nine classes can enter on the Horde side. WoW Forever’s new race and class combinations matter here: Orc Mage, Troll Warlock and Undead Paladin are all new, and the Undead Paladin is the Horde’s way into the Paladin prize.

At level 30 the usual favourites are classes with control and a way to reset a fight: Priests with healing, Fear and Mana Burn; Hunters with Freezing Trap, Scatter Shot and their pet; and Mages with Polymorph and Frost Nova. The class reworks and the new talent milestone mean no one can be sure yet, so pick what you play best. Remember that each class has its own $5,555 winner.

A plan to be level 30 by 17 October

From registration to the level deadline you have about two and a half weeks. Leveling 1–30 on the beta is very doable in that time, as long as you start early rather than in the last few days.

1. Make the character today. Last name Foreverpvp, Horde, PvP ruleset. Then register on Raider.IO before 4 October, while it’s on your mind.
2. Level through the week. Group quest drops now have bad-luck protection, so questing with a friend no longer means fighting over drops.
3. Run a dungeon or two in the late teens. Ruins of Lordaeron sits right on the Horde path and gives good gear for the level. See our dungeons guide.
4. Save 15 gold for the entry fee, plus money for your level 30 abilities.
5. Practise duels in the last week. Duel as many classes as you can, especially your own class, since that’s who you’re up against for the class prize.