The best duo in WoW Forever pairs a class that deals damage with a class that can heal it. Warlock and Priest never stop to drink, Warrior and Shaman turn every pull into rage and Windfury procs, and Warlock and Druid stack so many damage over time spells that mobs die while you walk to the next one. Classes that are slow alone gain the most from a partner, while a Hunter, the fastest solo class, gains the least.
This tier list ranks more than twenty class pairs for leveling to 60 together, based on the beta builds up to October 15 and the duo tier lists of experienced levelers who played them on the beta. Below you will find the full ranking, the fastest pairs for questing, the best tank and healer pairs for dungeons, the strongest pairs for the PvP ruleset, and how shared quests, group experience and the Legacy System work when you level with a friend.
A good leveling duo is more than two strong classes. We ranked each pair on five things: how fast it kills, how rarely it stops to eat or drink, how safe it is when a pull goes wrong, whether it can tank and heal its own dungeon group, and how much the two players fight over the same gear. A pair of two damage dealers kills fast but sits down twice as often, which is why healer pairs dominate the top of the list.
The board below ranks each class by how much it brings to a duo. Priests, Shamans, Paladins and Warlocks top it because they make almost any partner better, while Hunters and Rogues bring the least, for different reasons: a Hunter does not need help, and a Rogue cannot give any.
The class ranking is only half the answer, because some classes work far better with one specific partner. The table ranks the pairs themselves, with the specs each player should use.
| Tier | Duo | Leveling Specs | Why It Works |
|---|---|---|---|
| S | Warlock and Priest | Affliction and Holy or Discipline | Endless Life Tap with a healer, three damage over time spells on every mob |
| S | Warrior and Shaman | Arms or Protection and Enhancement | Windfury Totem and Strength of Earth Totem on the Warrior, the Shaman heals between swings |
| S | Warlock and Druid | Affliction and Balance | Five damage over time spells at once and heals over time on the Warlock and its pet |
| S | Paladin and Shaman | Retribution and Restoration or Enhancement | Possible on both factions for the first time, the strongest world PvP pair |
| A | Paladin and Priest | Protection and Holy | The safest duo in the game and an instant dungeon group |
| A | Mage and Paladin | Frost and Protection | The Paladin holds the pack in Consecration while the Mage casts Blizzard |
| A | Warrior and Priest | Arms or Fury and Holy | Power Word: Shield and Renew keep the Warrior pulling |
| A | Warrior and Druid | Arms and Feral or Restoration | Mobile, flexible, can tank and heal any dungeon |
| A | Hunter and Druid | Beast Mastery and Feral | The Druid keeps pace with Aspect of the Cheetah and heals the pet |
| A | Hunter and Shaman | Beast Mastery and Enhancement | Ghost Wolf matches the Hunter's speed, Frost Shock stops anything that chases |
| A | Shaman and Druid | Enhancement and Feral or Restoration | Either one can tank or heal, both have fast travel forms |
| A | Rogue and Druid | Combat and Feral | Double Stealth, Leader of the Pack for both, a healer for the Rogue |
| B | Mage and Priest | Frost and Holy | Holy Nova adds to the Mage's AoE, but AoE farming is weaker than in Classic |
| B | Warrior and Paladin | Protection and Retribution or Holy | Better in dungeons than in the open world |
| B | Paladin and Warlock | Protection and Destruction or Affliction | The Paladin gathers packs while the Warlock casts Hellfire and Rain of Fire |
| B | Rogue and Paladin | Combat and Protection or Retribution | The Paladin holds aggro so the Rogue can Backstab |
| B | Double Mage | Frost and Frost | Rotating Ice Block and Blizzard, very fast and very risky |
| B | Rogue and Mage | Subtlety or Combat and Frost | Great crowd control and burst, no heals |
| C | Double Hunter | Beast Mastery and Marksmanship | Fast single target, hard to find dungeon groups |
| C | Hunter and Rogue | Beast Mastery and Combat | The pet tanks, but nobody heals |
| C | Double Rogue | Combat and Combat or Subtlety | Huge Backstab damage early and in PvP, constant eating |
| D | Rogue and Warrior | Combat and Arms | Two melee damage dealers, food after every second pull |
| D | Double Warrior | Arms and Protection | One Warrior takes the hits and the rage, the other waits |
Tiers here are about speed and comfort, not about whether a pair reaches 60. Any two friends who play together will still level faster than either of them would alone, because a duo makes better decisions, plays longer and almost never loses a fight to a bad pull.
Two classes in WoW Forever turn a healer directly into speed. A Warlock pays for its spells with health through Life Tap, so with a healer behind it the Warlock simply never runs out of mana. A Warrior gets rage from the damage it takes and deals, so the more it pulls, the harder it hits. Per beta reports, damage absorbed by Power Word: Shield now still gives a Warrior rage, which makes a Priest a better Warrior partner than in Classic.
In both pairs the damage dealer is the star and the healer supports it. A Priest that heals, keeps Renew up and fires its wand between heals levels faster than one that tries to deal damage, and since kill experience is split no matter who deals the damage, the healer loses nothing.
Which class to play when you level alone is covered in our WoW Forever best leveling class guide.
Questing is where a duo gains the most. Every quest objective counts for both players, quest item drops are spread between you, and the kill speed of two characters cuts the time per quest roughly in half. The pairs below are the fastest in the open world because they rarely stop between pulls.
The Warlock puts Corruption and Bane of Agony on a mob, the Priest adds Shadow Word: Pain, and the pair moves on to the next target while the first one dies. With Improved Corruption, Corruption becomes instant too, so you can keep three or four mobs dotted while you walk. The Priest keeps Power Word: Shield on the Warlock and lets it use Life Tap as often as it likes, and lets the Summon Voidwalker tank anything that reaches you. From level 10 this pair can play the whole game without sitting down.
Keep the Priest in a healing spec. Shadow adds damage but takes away the reason the pair works. If the Priest finishes a mob with Mind Blast now and then, it gets Spirit Tap for free mana regeneration.
This is the Warlock pair that kills fastest. A Balance Druid adds Moonfire and Insect Swarm to the Warlock's damage over time spells, so every mob carries five of them at once. The Druid heals the Warlock and its pet with Rejuvenation and Regrowth, can tank in Bear Form when something goes wrong and brings Rebirth for the worst pulls. Some testers rate it above Warlock and Priest, others below it. Both are top tier, so play the one you enjoy.
A Warrior with a healer is a different class. The Shaman plays Enhancement with a healing set in the bags, drops Strength of Earth Totem and later Windfury Totem on the Warrior, and heals when the Warrior pulls three mobs at once. The Warrior opens with Charge, uses Sweeping Strikes and Whirlwind on packs and heals itself with Victory Rush after each kill. With a healer behind it, many Warriors level as Arms all the way, and the Ravager from Scarlet Monastery is the weapon most of them will keep for a long time.
Windfury Weapon is a self buff from level 30, and the party-wide Windfury Totem comes a little later, at 32 per beta data. Since the October 15 build Strength of Earth Totem, Grace of Air Totem and Windfury Totem affect the whole raid, and Windfury Totem affects only players, not pets.
The Blizzard slow is weaker in Forever, which made solo AoE grinding on a Mage much riskier. A Protection Paladin fixes that. It gathers a pack, holds it in Consecration, and the Mage casts Blizzard and Arcane Explosion on top of it without having to kite. When the Mage pulls aggro, the Paladin uses Blessing of Freedom or Blessing of Protection, and the Mage brings Conjure Food and Conjure Water for both of you. Gear never overlaps, since one wants cloth and spell power and the other plate.
A Hunter levels so fast alone that most partners slow it down. A Feral Druid is the exception. In Cat Form it fights like a second pet, heals the Hunter and the pet between pulls, and keeps up with Aspect of the Cheetah thanks to its own speed. Expect the first ten levels to be slow, because the Druid has no forms yet.
The table sums up the fastest questing pairs and the weak spot of each.
| Duo | Questing Speed | Downtime | Weak Spot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warlock and Priest | Very fast from level 10 | Almost none | Both wear cloth, and their only crowd control is fear |
| Warlock and Druid | Very fast from level 10 | Almost none | The Druid is slow before level 10 |
| Warrior and Shaman | Fast, faster from level 30 | Low | Warrior movement speed, no stealth to skip mobs |
| Mage and Paladin | Very fast on large pulls | Low | Needs Protection talents on the Paladin, usually after level 25 |
| Hunter and Druid | Very fast from level 20 | Low | Slow until the Druid gets its forms |
Every dungeon group needs a tank, a healer and three damage dealers. A duo that brings the tank and the healer is in a group within seconds, picks the other three players itself and never waits for a Group Finder queue to pop. It also runs the dungeon at its own pace, because nobody in the group can leave and take the healing with them.
Dungeons pay well again on the beta. On October 8 experience from dungeon creatures rose by about 20%, after the extra experience from dungeon quests was cut in half on October 1. Elite mobs give more experience than normal ones, and in Classic groups of three or more got a group bonus that a pair does not. A tank and healer duo that adds one or two friends often clears faster than a full group of strangers.
| Duo | Who Tanks | Who Heals | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warrior and Shaman | Warrior | Shaman | Enhancement in the world, healing set in dungeons |
| Paladin and Priest | Paladin | Priest | The safest pair, no gear competition |
| Warrior and Priest | Warrior | Priest | Classic tank and healer, finds a group anywhere |
| Shaman and Druid | Either | Either | Swap roles when the group needs it |
| Warrior and Druid | Warrior or Druid | Druid | The Druid can tank too if your Warrior wants to deal damage |
| Warrior and Paladin | Warrior | Paladin | Two plate wearers, very hard to kill |
Shamans can tank dungeons in Forever, and Paladins now have a taunt of their own, so these hybrids give a duo more options than in Classic. Whatever you play in the open world, keep a tank or healing set in your bags. A Feral Druid or Enhancement Shaman that can switch gear for a dungeon gets invited first.
A Warlock is the best damage dealer to bring to your own dungeon group. Send the Warlock ahead to the entrance with one more player, and Ritual of Summoning brings the rest of the group there, which saves a long flight to dungeons far from your questing zone.
Prepare dungeon quests together before you travel. Most dungeon quests start outside the dungeon and cannot be shared, so both of you have to pick them up from the quest giver. The level ranges and quests for each dungeon are in our WoW Forever dungeons overview.
If your schedule does not allow a full leveling run with a partner, our WoW Forever leveling service can take any class to 60 for you.
On the PvP ruleset every contested zone is open conflict, and a duo levels in a much safer way than a solo player. A good pair can fight off three or four attackers, and most gankers simply look for a player who is alone. Two rules matter before you start: you can only create characters of one faction on your account on the PvP ruleset, and you can only group with players on the same ruleset. Agree on the ruleset and the faction before either of you creates a character.
For world PvP the best duos are the classic two versus two teams from the arena. They have a healer, crowd control and burst damage, and they cover each other's weaknesses.
A Warrior and Priest pair has one famous setup for world PvP: two dwarves with Stoneform, which removes poisons, diseases and bleeds and resists them for a few seconds.
Rulesets, factions and transfers are covered in our WoW Forever Normal vs PvP ruleset guide. For rankings of every spec at level 60, see our WoW Forever tier list.
Most of the speed of a duo comes from playing smart together, not from the class pair. These are the habits that save the most time.
Pick races that share a starting zone, so you can play together from level 1. Dwarves and gnomes start in Dun Morogh, orcs and trolls in Durotar, and humans, night elves, undead, tauren and the Skyborne each have their own zone. If you start apart, level to about 10 alone and meet in Elwynn Forest or Westfall for the Alliance and in The Barrens for the Horde.
The table lists a few popular pairs and the races that let both players start in the same place.
| Duo | Races That Start Together |
|---|---|
| Warlock and Priest | Human, gnome, undead, troll |
| Warrior and Shaman | Dwarf, orc, tauren, troll, Skyborne |
| Paladin and Priest | Human, dwarf, undead |
| Mage and Paladin | Human, undead |
| Rogue and Druid | Night elf, Skyborne |
| Shaman and Druid | Tauren, Skyborne |
If one of you is a tauren, the other gains from being one too, since Plainsrunning makes tauren faster in the open world and keeps the pair at the same pace.
Share every quest you can. Only quests that hand out an item at the start, quests from items and most dungeon quests cannot be shared. The quest log in Forever holds 40 quests, twice the Classic limit, so between the two of you there is room for every quest in a zone.
Forever does not change drop chances for quest items, but it spreads the drops more evenly in a group. Blizzard added a round-robin system: once one player loots a quest item, the next one usually goes to the partner, so you both finish at about the same time instead of one player waiting at 1 out of 10. If a quest still drags, give all the drops to one player, then let the other take the next quest like it. Some quests are simply not worth a long wait in a duo, and Forever has enough new quests to skip them.
Kills are not shared outside a group. Forever keeps Classic mob tagging, so the first player to hit a mob owns it, and a friend who is not in your group gets nothing from it. Group up before you fight.
Inside a group, both players get the full experience from every quest, but experience from kills is split between you. As in Classic, a group of two gets no group bonus, which only starts at three players. Quests therefore make up more of a duo's experience than kills do. A duo finishes zones quickly and can fall a few levels behind the next zone, so plan a dungeon or a short grind to catch up.
Since the October 8 build experience depends on your own level, not on the highest level in the group. Before that, a lower character lost experience when it grouped with a higher one. If one player is far above the mob, nobody in the group gets experience, so do not let one character run ahead.
Split the gathering and crafting between you, so nothing has to be bought. A typical setup is Herbalism and Alchemy on one player and Mining and Blacksmithing or Skinning and Leatherworking on the other, with Tailoring and Enchanting on whoever wears cloth. Both should learn First Aid and Cooking. Forever camps let several players add profession items around one campfire for extra buffs, so a duo with different professions gets more out of every camp.
The Cozy Sleeping Bag gives a short experience bonus after you rest in it. Log out together in an inn or a city so both characters build rested experience, and on the beta the Camp Tent from a Leatherworker topped up rested experience for everyone sitting nearby.
The Legacy System rewards duos too. Each class pays a Legacy Point the first time any character on your account reaches level 25 with it, such as Novice Mage or Novice Priest, and more at 45 and 60. A duo of two different classes earns those points for both accounts at the same time. The points are account-wide, but each character spends them on its own perks, so think about what helps a pair.
| Legacy Perk | Effect | Why It Helps a Duo |
|---|---|---|
| Permanence | Long party buffs and camp rest bonuses last 50% longer | Best on the buffer: Priest, Paladin, Mage or Druid |
| Thrill of Adventure | 1% health and mana per rank back over 10 seconds after a killing blow | Only the player who lands the blow gets it, so give it to the main damage dealer |
| Well Rested | Rested experience builds 4% faster per rank | Both players rest whenever you log out together |
| Talented | Talent points start one level earlier per rank | Gets key duo talents such as Improved Corruption sooner |
| The Quick and the Dead | Faster as a ghost, free helpful spells for 1 minute after a resurrection | The healer can bring the partner back without drinking |
| Frequent Flier | Flight paths cost 50% less and fly 20% faster | Saves gold and time on every trip to a dungeon |
Our WoW Forever alt leveling guide shows how to plan Legacy Points and rested experience across several characters.
These are the questions players ask most often before they pick a duo for launch.
Warlock and Priest is the safest top pick: it never stops to drink and can play from level 10 to 60 without sitting down. Warrior and Shaman and Warlock and Druid are just as fast, and Paladin and Shaman is the best pair for the PvP ruleset.
Yes, for almost every pair. Kill experience is split, but both players get full quest experience, kill faster and rarely die. Hunters gain the least from a partner, because they already level very fast alone.
Only in a group. Forever keeps Classic mob tagging, so a mob belongs to the first player who hits it. In a group, kill experience is split between you, and quest experience is full for each player.
Not every drop, but Forever spreads quest items between group members in turn, so both players finish a collection quest at about the same time.
A Shaman, for Windfury Totem, Strength of Earth Totem and heals. A Priest or a Druid is almost as good. Avoid a second melee damage dealer, because both of you will spend more time eating.
A Druid. It keeps pace with Aspect of the Cheetah, heals both the Hunter and the pet and can tank in Cat Form or Bear Form. A Shaman with Ghost Wolf is the second choice.
A tank and a healer: Warrior and Shaman, Paladin and Priest, Warrior and Priest or Shaman and Druid. You find the other three players in seconds and choose them yourself.
No. Horde and Alliance never group, and groups only form within one ruleset. On the PvP ruleset your account is also limited to one faction.
Playing two of your own accounts at the same time is allowed as long as you control each character yourself. Software that copies your key presses to the second game is not allowed.
Not anymore, per beta reports. Absorbed damage still generates rage in Forever, so Power Word: Shield no longer slows a Warrior down.
These guides help you pick a class, a ruleset and a route for launch.
