View source for Allied race

{{Race links}}
[[File:Allied races.jpg|thumb|Void elf, Lightforged draenei, Nightborne, Highmountain tauren]]
[[File:Allied races2.jpg|thumb|Zandalari troll, Mag'har orc, Dark Iron dwarf, Kul Tiran human]]

'''Allied races''' are a type of playable [[race]] introduced with ''[[World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth|Battle for Azeroth]]'' that can only be unlocked and used after fulfilling certain in-game requirements.

==Description==
[[File:Welcome Back Weekend.jpg|thumb|A [[void elf]] battling a [[Highmountain tauren]]]]
Allied races are, from a design point of view, alternate versions of the main races. They mostly use the skeleton of an existing race but altered and with a different model. They also have their own [[racial trait|racial abilities]]. Allied races get a full character kit including their own [[emote]]s, [[flirt]]s, [[Jokes|funnies]], exertions, and so on.<ref>[http://www.mmo-champion.com/content/7148-Nov-6-Hotfixes-Dev-Interviews-Heroes-PTR-Overwatch-PTR-Build-Blue-Posts-DLC-606 MMO-Champion: Nov 6 Hotfixes, Dev Interviews, Heroes PTR, Overwatch PTR Build, Blue Posts, DLC #606]</ref> All current allied races are variants of a previously playable race, with the exception of vulpera, which are only goblins in build.

===Recruitment===
{{For|recruitment questlines|Allied race recruitment quests}}
Each race is associated with an achievement in order to unlock. These requirements are account wide, not character bound, so players can earn each requirement on different characters on different realms and still unlock the allied race. After a player meets the requirements for a given race, they must head to their faction's embassy - [[Alliance]] players can recruit them from the [[Stormwind Embassy]], and [[Horde]] players from the [[Orgrimmar Embassy]]. They will be given a quest chain that, upon completion, will grant them the ability to create a new character for that allied race, which will start at level 10. Upon reaching level 50 without using a [[Character Boost|level boost]] or [[Recruit-A-Friend]] boost, they are rewarded with a [[heritage armor]] set.

Allied race recruitment quests can't currently be repeated, but there could be an option to repeat them in the future.<ref>[https://www.mmo-champion.com/content/8402-Live-Developer-Q-A-with-Game-Director-Ion-Hazzikostas Live Developer Q&A with Game Director Ion Hazzikostas]</ref>

===History===
The first four allied races were recruited as a direct result of the events of ''[[World of Warcraft: Legion|Legion]]'', originating from the [[Broken Isles]] and [[Argus]]. Another four are part of the story in ''[[World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth|Battle for Azeroth]]''. Allied races are not a ''Battle for Azeroth''-exclusive feature, however.<ref>[http://www.wowhead.com/news=284967/liveblog-of-the-june-14-battle-for-azeroth-beta-q-a-with-ion-hazzikostas Battle for Azeroth Beta Q&A with Ion Hazzikostas]</ref>

[[Mag'har orc (playable)|Draenor orcs]] were first announced by [[Ion Hazzikostas]] on January 30 2018.<ref>[https://www.mmo-champion.com/content/7373-Battle-for-Azeroth-Developer-Q-A MMO-Champion - Battle for Azeroth Developer Q&A]</ref> On March 15, they were confirmed to be named "Mag'har orcs".

The [[Kul Tiran (playable)|Kul Tiran humans]] were first announced by Ion Hazzikostas on March 15 2018.<ref>[https://www.mmo-champion.com/content/7440-Developer-Q-A-with-Ion-Hazzikostas-Battle-for-Azeroth Developer Q&A with Ion Hazzikostas - Battle for Azeroth]</ref>

Mag'har orcs and [[Dark Iron dwarf (playable)|Dark Iron dwarves]] are available after completing the ''Battle for Azeroth'' [[War Campaign]]. The Kul Tiran humans and [[Zandalari troll (playable)|Zandalari trolls]] were recruited later in the expansion after they respectively join the Alliance and the Horde.<ref>[http://www.wowhead.com/news=283326/bfa-press-event-talanji-cinematic-8-0-pre-patch-maghar-and-dark-iron-unlock-sche BFA Press Event - Talanji Cinematic, 8.0 Pre-Patch, Mag'har and Dark Iron Unlock Schedule]</ref>

[[Vulpera]] and [[Mechagon mechagnome|Mechagnomes]] were announced as new Horde and Alliance allied races respectively in [[Patch 8.3.0|patch 8.3]].<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kc0oaxj5P80 8.3 Developer Content Update Preview]</ref>

==List of allied races==
[[File:Allied races all.jpg|thumb|10 unlockable allied races.]]
;{{Alliance}} Alliance
*{{Race|Void elf (playable)|[[Void elf (playable)|Void elves]]}} — [[You Are Now Prepared!]]
*{{Race|Lightforged (playable)}} — [[You Are Now Prepared!]]
*{{Race|Dark Iron dwarf (playable)|[[Dark Iron dwarf (playable)|Dark Iron dwarves]]}} — [[Ready for War (Alliance)]]
*{{Race|Kul Tiran (playable)}}s —  [[A Nation United]] and [[Tides of Vengeance (achievement) (Alliance)]]
*{{Race|Mechagnome (playable)}}s —  [[The Mechagonian Threat]]

;{{Horde}} Horde
*{{Race|Nightborne (playable)}} —  [[Insurrection]]
*{{Race|Highmountain (playable)}} —  [[Ain't No Mountain High Enough]]
*{{Race|Mag'har (playable)}}s — [[Ready for War (Horde)]]
*{{Race|Zandalari (playable)}}s — [[Zandalar Forever! (achievement)]] and [[Tides of Vengeance (achievement) (Horde)]]
*{{Race|Vulpera (playable)}} —  [[Secrets in the Sands]]

==Classes==
Class balance on factions is more linked to lore than equality.<ref name="QA" /> It was also stated that there are no plans to give [[hero class]]es to allied races in ''Battle for Azeroth'', but in the future the door is open to it.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2905&v=AUik9-2ygS8 Battle for Azeroth Live Developer Q&A – April 26, 2018, 48:25]</ref> All the allied races will receive access to [[death knight]]s starting in ''[[World of Warcraft: Shadowlands|Shadowlands]]'', with those who pre-purchased the expansion able to create them in [[patch 8.3.0]].

{{Class by allied race}}

==Future allied races==
*There are no immediate plans for [[Wildhammer dwarf|Wildhammer dwarves]], but it is possible in the future.<ref>{{Ref web|url=https://www.pcgamesn.com/world-of-warcraft/wow-battle-for-azeroth-races|title=How Blizzard are preparing WoW for Battle for Azeroth <nowiki>|</nowiki> PCGamesN|author=Elliot Gardner|date=2018-05-03|accessdate=2018-06-13}}</ref>
**In ''Shadowlands'', playable dwarves will be able to apply Wildhammer tattoos.
*[[Murloc]]s<ref>{{Ref web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9Xauyuhzcw&t=17m53s|title=Battle for Azeroth Developer Exclusive Interview Q&A! - Method (17:53)|work=YouTube|date=2017-11-11|accessdate=2018-07-16}}</ref> and [[blood troll]]s<ref>{{Ref web|url=https://us.battle.net/forums/en/wow/topic/20765087985?page=1#16|title=Blood Troll Allied Race - World of Warcraft Forums|author={{Blizz|Ornyx}}|date=2018-06-12|accessdate=2018-07-08|quote=''Just to clear the confusion, there was a small segment in yesterday's E3 interview with IGN in which we weren't entirely clear - but we want to clarify that Blood Trolls are not currently planned as an Allied Race.''}}</ref> are not planned as allied races.
*[[High elf|High elves]] are not planned as an allied race. At [[BlizzCon 2017]], when asked if they could be a future allied race, [[Ion Hazzikostas]] said that "[[Blood elf|blood elves]] are pretty much high elves, and [[Void elf|void elves]] are pretty much another flavor of high elves". He also stated that there was no obvious population center for them to come from, as they had been assimilated in other cultures.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkdTS_8Y61Q&feature=youtu.be&t=1078 Ion Hazzikostas and Jesse Cox: BlizzCon 2018 (17:58)]</ref> In a Developer Q&A, when asked why they had thus decided to give the Alliance void elves instead of high elves, Hazzikostas elaborated that the fantasy of the "fair-skinned, blonde-haired, majestic elf" kind was already fulfilled by blood elves. Giving that race to the Alliance would also have blurred the lines between factions. Void elves allowed them to give a unique and distinct "flavor of blood elves" to the Alliance.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUik9-2ygS8&feature=youtu.be&t=2780 Ion Hazzikostas: High Elves and Void Elves (46:20)]</ref>

===Speculation===
{{Speculation}}
:''For other new race speculations, see the [[race ideas]] article.''
<!-- This is for races with substantial evidence or hints that they could be planned as an allied race. This is not for literally every single humanoid race that could become playable, see the ''[[Race ideas]]'' page for this. -->
*The inclusion of Horde-friendly [[San'layn]] during the [[War Campaign]] may lead to playable San'layn.

==Notes and trivia==
*An allied race character can be boosted with the [[Character Boost]] service but will not receive their [[heritage armor]] set. Using the [[Race Change]] service to turn a character into an allied race will prevent the obtention of the armor as well.
*NPCs that call the player by their race originally referred to allied races using their full allied race name, such as "Highmountain tauren" or "Lightforged draenei". This was later changed so they use only the race name, such as "Tauren" or "Draenei".
*Before the introduction of the allied race system in [[patch 7.3.5]], the term had occasionally been used in various other contexts:
**In a 1995 interview, [[Bill Roper]] used "allied races" to refer to the various new races introduced in ''[[Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness|Warcraft II]]'' as allies of the [[human]]s and [[orc]]s ([[high elf|elves]], [[dwarf|dwarves]], [[gnome]]s, [[goblin]]s, [[ogre]]s, and [[forest troll|trolls]]).<ref>{{Ref web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGubpJxMr3s&t=33m55s|title=Bill Roper interview 1995 (33:55)|author=Blizzard Archive|publisher=YouTube|date=2012-05-05|accessdate=2020-05-30}}</ref>
**The [[patch 1.5.0|patch 1.5]] notes used the term to refer to other races in a player's faction.<ref>{{Ref web|url=http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/underdev/implemented/1p5.html#2|title=WoW -> Info -> Under Development -> Implemented -> Patch 1.5|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20091107215015/http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/underdev/implemented/1p5.html#2|archivedate=2009-11-07}}</ref>
**In a ''[[World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria|Mists of Pandaria]]'' promotional video, [[Chris Metzen]] used the phrase "allied races" to refer to the [[Alliance]]'s allies on [[Kalimdor]].<ref>{{Ref web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZCfBiMq424&t=1m17s|title=Blizzard Devs Discuss the Mists of Pandaria Release (01:17)|author=World of Warcraft|publisher=YouTube|date=2012-09-24|accessdate=2019-12-24|quote=''The Horde armada has cordoned off Kalimdor so the Alliance fleets are coming in to break through and support their allied races on Kalimdor.''}}</ref>
*With the addition of the four first allied races in patch 7.3.5, the number of available character slots per realm was increased from 12 to 16.<ref>{{Ref web|url=https://twitter.com/WarcraftDevs/status/958801157148864512|title=WarcraftDevs on Twitter|date=2018-01-31|accessdate=2019-12-24|quote=''The update that enables four additional character slots per server is now available! You'll need to restart WoW to allow the Blizzard Battle.net App to pick up the update.''}}</ref> In [[patch 8.0.1|patch 8.0]] it was increased again from 16 to 18 to make room for [[Mag'har orc (playable)|Mag'har]] and [[Dark Iron dwarf (playable)|Dark Irons]].<ref>{{Ref web|url=https://twitter.com/WarcraftDevs/status/997587864308277248|title=WarcraftDevs on Twitter|date=2018-05-18|accessdate=2019-12-24|quote=''In Battle For Azeroth, the per-realm character limit will be going up from 16 to 18 to make room for the two new Allied Races (Dark Iron dwarves and Mag’har orcs).''}}</ref> With [[patch 8.1.5]], the character slot limit per realm was removed entirely, though the total account limit remained at 50 characters.
*According to game director [[Ion Hazzikostas]], allied races will always come out in pairs to begin with so that both factions have an equal number of available races, but in the long run the developers are open to the possibility of adding one-off allied races if it makes sense for the story.<ref name="QA">{{Ref web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aN0MSAzupjw&t=3m32s|title=Battle for Azeroth Live Developer Q&A w/ Ion Hazzikostas 3/15/2018|author=World of Warcraft|publisher=youTube|date=2018-03-15|accessdate=2019-12-23}}</ref>
*In 2013, [[MMO-Champion]] user "shoc" created a [https://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/1415502-Sub-Race-Photoshop-Mockups forum thread] in which they showcased various mockups for "subraces", including several ideas that later became playable as allied races (Mag'har orcs, Dark Iron dwarves, [[Mechagon mechagnome|humanoid mechagnomes]]). They also introduced the idea of slim humans based on the [[Forsaken]] rig and beefier humans, two concepts that were eventually realized with the nation of [[Kul Tiras (kingdom)|Kul Tiras]].
*There are no new allied races planned for the launch of ''[[World of Warcraft: Shadowlands]]''.<ref>{{Ref web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlOwrv8YKEg&t=25m30s|title=BlizzCon 2019 Interview: Steve Danuser & Frank Kowalkowski - Story and Systems <nowiki>|</nowiki> The Lost Codex|author=The Lost Codex|publisher=YouTube|date=2019-11-05|accessdate=2019-12-24}}</ref>
*Allied races won't be able to start in [[Exile's Reach]] as they already have their own starting areas and begin at level 10.<ref>[https://worldofwarcraft.com/en-us/news/23380363 Shadowlands: Adventure Awaits in the New Starting Experience]</ref>
*Kul Tirans are the only allied race to use a completely unique animation skeleton. The next closest race, Zandalari, have many unique animations but are still ultimately a modified night elf skeleton.
*Due to not being introduced until after ''[[World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King|Wrath of the Lich King]]'' and lacking their own representation in the [[Argent Tournament]], the allied races use their respective [[core race]] choice after completing [[The Aspirant's Challenge]]. For example, after finishing the quest, [[Zandalari troll (playable)|Zandalari troll]]s continue with [[A Valiant Of Sen'jin]].
*Prior to [[patch 9.0.1]], unlocking allied races required reaching {{Rep|Exalted}} [[reputation]] with that [[race]]'s associated [[faction]]. For example, unlocking [[Vulpera (playable)|playable Vulpera]] required [[The Voldunai (achievement)]].

==Gallery==
<gallery mode=packed>
Void elves Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Void elf (playable)|Void elves]]
Lightforged draenei Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Lightforged draenei (playable)|Lightforged draenei]]
Dark dwarves Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Dark Iron dwarf (playable)|Dark Iron dwarves]]
Kul Tiran Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Kul Tiran (playable)|Kul Tirans]]
Mechagnome Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Mechagnome (playable)|Mechagnomes]]
</gallery>
<gallery mode=packed>
Nightborne Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Nightborne (playable)|Nightborne]]
Highmountain tauren Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Highmountain tauren (playable)|Highmountain tauren]]
Mag'har orc Allied Race.jpg|[[Mag'har orc (playable)|Mag'har orcs]]
Zandalari troll Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Zandalari troll (playable)|Zandalari trolls]]
Vulpera Heritage Armor.jpg|[[Vulpera (playable)|Vulpera]]
</gallery>

;Official art
<gallery mode=packed>
Blizzcon - Kul Tiran 1.jpg|[[Kul Tiran (playable)|Kul Tirans]] as shown at [[BlizzCon 2017]]
Nayoung Wooh.jpg|Void elf, Lightforged, nightborne, and Highmountain
New Allied Races Ready to Recruit.jpg|Dark Iron vs. Mag'har
Welcome Back Weekend 2.jpg|Zandalari vs. Kul Tiran
Zandalari and Kul Tiran by Frenone.jpg|Kul Tiran vs. Zandalari
Battle for Azeroth - Concepts - Feral Druids.jpg|Concept art for Zandalari and Kul Tiran [[Cat Form|cat forms]]
Vulpera vs Mechagnome wallpaper.jpg|Vulpera vs. mechagnome
</gallery>

==Patch changes==
*{{Patch 9.0.1|note=
**Allied races no longer require {{Rep|Exalted}} [[reputation]] to begin their unlock questlines.
**Allied race characters now start at level 10 (was 20).}}
*{{Patch 8.3.0|note=Added Mechagnome and Vulpera allied races.}}
*{{Patch 8.1.5|note=Added Kul Tiran and Zandalari troll allied races.}}
*{{Patch 8.0.1|note=Added Dark Iron dwarf and Mag'har orc allied races.}}
*{{Patch 7.3.5|note=Added Void elf, Lightforged draenei, Nightborne and Highmountain tauren allied races. Pre-order of ''Battle for Azeroth'' required.}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Races}}

[[Category:Races| ]]
[[Category:Game terms]]
[[Category:Legion]]
[[Category:Battle for Azeroth]]

[[es:Raza aliada]]