Class

Hunter

Officially confirmed: Confirmed by an official Blizzard source.Coming soonLast verified October 2, 2026

Ranged combatants with a trusted animal companion, specializing in Beast Mastery, Marksmanship or Survival.

The Hunter class crest
Hunter class crest from Blizzard’s World of Warcraft Hunter page.© Blizzard Entertainment · Source

Details

Armor type
Not officially confirmed by Blizzard.
Confirmed roles
Damage
Resources
Mana
Specializations
Beast Mastery · Marksmanship · Survival
Abilities & talents
14 confirmed changes (below)

Specializations

  • Beast Mastery

    The Hunter specialization built around pet-focused play.

    Role: not officially stated

  • Marksmanship

    The Hunter specialization built around ranged precision.

    Role: not officially stated

  • Survival

    The Hunter specialization supporting trap and melee-oriented builds.

    Role: not officially stated

Race availability

What’s different from Classic?

Only changes Blizzard has published. Abilities and talents can still change during the beta.

  • Aimed Shot

    Baseline ability · Level 20

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: Baseline for all Hunters.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Traps

    Baseline ability

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: Usable in combat with a 30-second cooldown; Frost and Fire traps have separate cooldowns.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Multi-Shot / Arcane Shot

    Baseline ability

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: Multi-Shot now shares a cooldown with Aimed Shot; Arcane Shot no longer does.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Scorpid Sting

    Baseline ability

    Classic: Reduced the target’s Strength and Agility.
    Forever: Reduces the target’s chance to hit by 2%.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Pet scaling

    Pet

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: Pets gain stats from the Hunter’s gear and can no longer receive stat-increasing player buffs.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Pet family abilities

    Pet

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: Every pet family has one unique ability, and every family can learn Bite or Claw and Dive or Dash.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Summon Hawk

    Talent · Beast Mastery Hunter

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: New 16-point talent summoning a Hawk for 18 seconds; up to 2 Hawks at once.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Lone Wolf

    Talent · Marksmanship Hunter

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: New 11-point talent: 20% increased damage while no pet is active.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Sniper Shot

    Talent · Marksmanship Hunter

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: New 31-point shot with a 45-yard base range that deals more damage than Aimed Shot.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Lacerating Strikes

    Talent · Survival Hunter

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: New 31-point talent: Mongoose Bite also causes a Bleed.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Wyvern Sting, Killer Instinct, Improved Feign Death

    Removed talent · Survival Hunter

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: Combined into the new Resourcefulness talent.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Sniper Shot

    Talent · Marksmanship Hunter

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: Has a 45-yard range and increases the range of your next 3 shots within 10 seconds by 10 yards. October 1 beta build.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Pet Aggressive mode

    Pet

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: Aggressive mode is back, under the Pet tab of the spellbook. October 1 beta build.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

  • Tame Beast

    Pet

    Classic: Not described in the official source.
    Forever: No longer works on Beasts higher level than the Hunter. September 24 beta build.
    Official source ↗Confirmed

Pet family abilities

  • Bat: Sonic Blast

    Damage and spellcasting slow on the target.

  • Bear: Swipe

    Damaging attack that hits 3 targets.

  • Bird of Prey: Mine!

    Damage and disarm the target.

  • Boar: Charge

    Charge to and immobilize the target, gaining Attack Power on the next pet attack.

  • Carrion Bird: Demoralizing Screech

    Damage nearby enemies and reduce their melee Attack Power.

  • Cat: Prowl

    Stealth, increasing the damage of the next attack from Stealth.

  • Crab: Pinch

    Damage and slow the target’s movement.

  • Crocolisk: Dismember

    Damage and reduce the target’s healing received by 50%.

  • Fox: Trickster’s Dance

    Increases the pet’s dodge chance and attack speed for 12 seconds.

  • Gorilla: Thunderstomp

    Damages enemies in an area.

  • Hyena: Tendon Rip

    Movement slow and Bleed over time.

  • Raptor: Savage Rend

    Bleed over time on the target.

  • Scorpid: Poison

    Stacking damage over time.

  • Spider: Web

    Immobilize the target and deal damage over time.

  • Tallstrider: Dust Cloud

    Reduces the target’s armor.

  • Turtle: Shell Shield

    Reduces damage taken and attack speed for 12 seconds.

  • Windserpent: Lightning Breath

    20-yard range damaging attack.

  • Wolf: Furious Howl

    Increases party members’ melee Attack Power.

What Blizzard has confirmed

Class updates

1 confirmed
  • Every class is being revisited with new abilities and talent updates designed to preserve the feel of the original game.[3] (confirmed)

Talents

2 confirmed
  • Talents unlock at level 10 with the familiar structure: one-point milestone talents at 11, 21 and 31 points, plus a new 16-point milestone.[2] (confirmed)
  • Dual Specialization becomes available at level 40.[2] (confirmed)

Strengths and limits

1 confirmed
  • Hunters have one combat role, damage, and the longest range of any class, but ranged abilities are unavailable within 8 yards and they cannot Stun or Interrupt.[2] (confirmed)

Pets

1 confirmed
  • Foxes are added as a new pet family.[2] (confirmed)

More official images of Hunter

  • Painted art of a night elf hunter with a bow
    Hunter class artwork from Blizzard’s World of Warcraft Hunter page. The character shown may be a race that is not playable in Forever.© Blizzard Entertainment · Source
  • Hunter talent window with Beast Mastery, Marksmanship and Survival trees
    Hunter talent trees, from the Hunter and Druid class deep dive.© Blizzard Entertainment · Source

Related

Change history

  1. · Added

    Added from official Blizzard source(s).