WoW Forever Undead Paladins Lead Normal-Realm Rankings

In 2004, the rules were wonderfully simple. Paladins belonged to the Alliance, Shamans belonged to the Horde, and the idea of an undead holy warrior wandering through Tirisfal Glades would probably have earned you some very suspicious looks. Especially from the living.

Twenty-two years later, the Forsaken have apparently decided that dying should not prevent anyone from pursuing a respectable career in religious warfare. And judging by the first population figures from World of Warcraft: Forever, players rather like the idea.

According to Raider.IO's population tracker, Undead Paladins are the most common race-class combination on WoW Forever's Normal realms. In the November 13 snapshot, 140,937 registered characters belong to this combination, representing 7.3% of the approximately 1.92 million characters tracked across Normal realms worldwide.

For a class that was completely unavailable to the Horde in original Classic, that is quite a remarkable debut.

WoW Forever Undead Paladins Top the First Rankings

The figures become even more interesting when we look at the competition. Human Paladins occupy second place with 5.6% of registered Normal-realm characters, followed by Dwarf Shamans at 4.3%. The latter is another new combination, and another reminder that Blizzard has enthusiastically rearranged some of Warcraft's oldest faction traditions.

Perhaps the most surprising figure is that Undead characters account for 49.7% of all registered Paladins on Normal realms. That does not mean nearly half of all players have chosen an undead holy warrior, of course. Raider.IO tracks characters rather than unique players, and its population data excludes characters below level 10. These are community-tracked character statistics, not official Blizzard subscription or active-player figures.

There are also important differences between server types. On roleplaying realms, Human Paladins lead the rankings with 7.2%, while Undead Paladins account for 5.4%. And although Undead Paladins lead the Normal-realm combinations, Humans remain slightly ahead of Undead in overall racial popularity on those realms, at 18.9% compared with 18.7%.

These early figures reveal an interesting preference, but they do not explain why players are making those choices. We previously explored the six new race-class combinations introduced in WoW Forever. Now we can see how enthusiastically at least one of them has been adopted.

Why Forsaken Paladins Are Such an Interesting Addition

Part of the attraction could simply be novelty. For more than two decades, the relationship between Paladins and the Horde was complicated, particularly in the original Vanilla era when the class belonged exclusively to the Alliance. An Undead Paladin creates an entirely different character fantasy, combining the powers of a holy warrior with the rather less conventional appearance of somebody who has already attended their own funeral.

Blizzard has also given the combination a proper place in Warcraft history. According to the official Forever lore presentation, the Forsaken Paladin storyline continues from Warcraft III: Reforged's Forsaken Kingdom campaign. These former holy warriors struggle to find acceptance among their own people, with Bandarion Keep in the Whispering Wood of Tirisfal Glades becoming an important location in their story.

Even their epic mount quest follows a different philosophy. Where Alliance Paladins traditionally pursue Redemption, the Forsaken follow Retribution. Considering what happened to Lordaeron, that distinction seems entirely understandable.

Gameplay may also contribute to the class's appeal. Blizzard has been working to make Protection and Retribution Paladins more viable, while giving Holy Paladins new offensive possibilities. The developers have also revised racial abilities throughout Forever's development, including changes to several familiar Horde racials. However, none of these adjustments proves why individual players have selected Undead Paladins.

The real test will come over the next several weeks. Creating an Undead Paladin because the idea is entertaining is one thing. Leveling that character through Azeroth, surviving the dungeon grind and eventually finding a raid group is another. As our guide to choosing a WoW Forever main explains, this is still a game where the journey to level 60 requires a considerable investment of time.

For now, the statistics tell an amusing story. Blizzard has given players the opportunity to combine the Holy Light with one of Azeroth's most unfortunate medical conditions, and a remarkable number of characters have embraced the idea.

Somewhere in the Eastern Kingdoms, the Scarlet Crusade must be absolutely furious.