Who are the Skyborne?

On 5 October 2026 Blizzard released a video called Skyborne Lore & Abilities. It is the fullest look yet at the new race in WoW: Forever. The Skyborne call themselves the shen'dorei.

They are high elves, exiled from the kingdom of Eldre'Thalas nearly 10,000 years ago. Classic players know the ruins of Eldre'Thalas as Dire Maul, in Feralas. The exiles fled Kalimdor under threat of execution and crossed an uncharted ocean to Zephras Isle.

When their pursuers caught up, the Spirit of the Four Winds lifted their mountain refuge into Skywall, one of the elemental planes. The Skyborne stayed there, hidden, protected by elemental magic and the wind spirits who gave them a safe haven.

Dee gliding off a white stone tower on a floating island in the clouds, with a Skyborne elf waving and a sailed airship drifting past.
Every Skyborne learns to step off the tower. Walk on Air turns the fall into a glide.

Why the Skyborne are leaving Skywall now

The wind spirits have vanished. Without them, the magic that keeps Skywall safe is breaking down. Blizzard's announcement adds that ancient structures are failing and communities on Zephras Isle are becoming isolated.

You play a new generation of Skyborne, pushed to look beyond the only home they have known. Zephras Isle is the starting zone for levels 1 to 12, and its quests tell how the shen'dorei arrived there, how they survived, and what now threatens it.

Windshapers or High Order: what the choice means

Before you leave, you decide what saving Skywall should look like. The Windshapers believe the Skyborne owe their survival to the spirits. They want to repay that debt, restore the balance of Skywall and bring back the elementals that protected it. Windshaper Skyborne join the Horde.

The High Order wants independence instead. They descend from the Highborne scholars of Eldre'Thalas and want to master the magic of Skywall themselves, so the Skyborne never again depend on anyone. High Order Skyborne join the Alliance.

The faction you pick at character creation changes the Skyborne quests you see and the classes you can play. Both sides can be warriors, hunters, rogues and druids, with new druid forms made for the race. Only the Horde side can be a shaman, and only the Alliance side can be a mage.

Walk on Air, the Galestrider and the Skycutters

Early on, Myriaal Mistwake teaches you to use Walk on Air. The lesson is simple: step off the watchtower. Every Skyborne has Walk on Air. Activate it, jump, and you glide down for 10 seconds instead of falling, so a cliff edge can be a shortcut, not a dead end.

Each side also has its own racial. Windshapers get Skysight, an elemental blessing that raises run speed by 10 percent. High Order get Read Ley Line, which raises health and mana regeneration by 100 percent. Both get 1 percent haste and 5 percent more damage against elementals.

The race's own mount is the Galestrider, a crane. The beta client lists four Galestrider colors at level 40 and swift versions at level 60, but Blizzard has not said how you get them. Skycutters are the airships that carry the shen'dorei between planes and bring the new generation to Azeroth.

Customization, and the question about the models

Character creation adds face and body tattoos, feathers woven into the hair, and hair colors and styles only the Skyborne have. Blizzard's announcement lists ten faces and nine skin colors for each body type, from sky blue to peach to darker tones. A barber shop in the cities can change the look later for a fee.

Blizzard teased more news about the Skyborne models on 5 October, after the video: "Stay tuned for more info to come regarding Skyborne models!" The reply did not announce a specific model change.

To play a Skyborne you need the Skyborne Heroic Pack, the Skyborne Epic Pack or the Warcraft Forever Collection. Wowdee will keep a Skyborne's faction, class options and Zephras Isle quests in one plan, so a second Skyborne on the other side starts with the right list.

Still to come

Not yet settled by our sources or tested in game:

  • What Blizzard says about changes to the Skyborne models.
  • How to earn each Galestrider, and what it costs.
  • Whether Skycutters are something you ride, or only part of the story.
  • The Windshaper and High Order quest chains on Zephras Isle, step by step.

Sources

Beta notes are dated because Forever is still changing.