Your next adventure starts here.

An account for this realm

Your account belongs to Turtle WoW — Browser Realm. It is separate from accounts on other services; use the sign-in page for this realm.

Right in your browser

Play in your browser with nothing to install.

Your first steps

1. Sign in with your own account

   Open the sign-in page and use the account you have for this realm. Accounts from other services are separate.

2. Start in your browser

   Play in your browser with nothing to install.

3. Choose a character and textures

   Pick a race and class. HD textures start on; switch them off if you prefer. High Elves begin in Thalassian Highlands, Goblins on Blackstone Island.

Start in five steps

1. Open the home page and press Play now

   Go to the Turtle WoW home page. The Play now button opens the sign-in window on the same page.

2. Create your free account

   Choose Create account and enter an email address, a username (3–32 letters, digits, _ or -) and a password of at least 8 characters, or continue with Google or Discord.

3. Confirm your email

   Open the verification email and use its link or code. Then sign in.

4. Create your character

   Choose one of 10 races and a class. There are 59 combinations; the races and classes guide lists them all.

5. Enter the world

   You appear in your race's starting zone. Talk to the characters with a yellow exclamation mark above their heads to pick up your first quests.

Your first session at a glance

Your first hour

Follow the quests of your starting zone; they are designed to teach the game. Visit your class trainer every couple of levels to learn new abilities, and look for profession trainers when you reach the main town of your zone. Sell grey items to vendors to fund your training.

High Elves begin in Thalassian Highlands, where 56 quests cover levels 1 to 12. Goblins begin on Blackstone Island, with 35 quests for levels 1 to 9. Every other race begins in its classic home zone.

Choosing your race and class

Pick the role first. Warriors and Paladins hold the front line, Priests, Druids, Shamans and Paladins heal, and Mages, Warlocks, Hunters and Rogues deal damage. Hunters and Warlocks are the most forgiving for a first character because their pets fight beside them. Then choose a race you enjoy looking at for the next few hundred hours.

The new races start in new places: High Elves in Thalassian Highlands with the Alliance, Goblins on Blackstone Island with the Horde. Turtle WoW also allows pairings the original game did not, such as the Tauren Priest or the Orc Mage. All 59 combinations are listed in the races and classes guide.

From level 10 to 60

Levelling is at standard x1 speed, so plan to mix zones. Rested experience builds up while you are offline in a city or inn, so log out there. Around level 13 your first Turtle dungeon, Frostmane Hollow, opens; from 25 to 35 Dragonmaw Retreat, Windhorn Canyon, Crescent Grove and Stormwrought Ruins wait for groups. The new zones Balor, Northwind and Grim Reaches cover the late twenties and thirties, Gilneas the forties and fifties, and Tel'Abim, Moonwhisper Coast and Hyjal the run to 60. The zones and dungeons guide has the full table.

Rules of thumb for the middle levels

• Follow the quest levels. Quests a few levels above you are slow and dangerous; quests far below you give little experience. The zones and dungeons page lists the quest levels of every Turtle zone.
• Use your rested experience. Log out in a city or an inn, and you come back with bonus experience for your next session.
• Group for dungeons. Dungeons give gear and experience that solo questing cannot match. Frostmane Hollow opens at 13, Dragonmaw Retreat at 25 and Crescent Grove at 32.
• Visit your trainer. New abilities arrive every couple of levels, and from level 10 you spend talent points as well.

Playing with others

Join a guild early; it makes dungeons and the long middle levels much easier. On this realm Alliance and Horde characters can chat, group, join the same guild, trade and use the same auction house, so you can play with friends whatever faction they chose. Dungeon and raid lockouts reset at 04:00 server time.

Your first dungeon

Frostmane Hollow is the first Turtle dungeon: five players, entrance from level 13, enemies of level 13 to 16. Before you go, make sure your group has someone to take the hits (a Warrior, Paladin or Druid), someone to heal (a Priest, Druid, Shaman or Paladin) and three players to deal damage. Read the quests that lead into the dungeon; they explain why you are going and pay well when you come back.

Settings worth knowing

HD textures are on by default; switch them off if you prefer the original art or if your computer is older. Play in full-screen for the best view, and keep your browser up to date. Your characters are saved on the realm with your account, so you can continue from another computer.

When you reach level 60

Level 60 is where the Turtle content opens up in full. The last Turtle dungeons wait in the high fifties: Karazhan Crypt opens at 55, and the Black Morass and the Stormwind Vault at 58. At 60 you can enter Lower Karazhan Halls, a ten-player raid, and Emerald Sanctum, a forty-player raid, next to classic raids such as Molten Core and Onyxia's Lair. Alterac Valley, the largest battleground, takes players from level 51 to 60. Join a guild before you get there; raids need organised groups.