A fan has theorized what could be the next allied race for World of Warcraft, with some convincing anecdotal evidence to prove their case. World of Warcraft: Dragonflight lands on November 28, 2022, with many fans hopeful that the expansion signals a positive turn for the franchise after mixed reception for the current expansion, Shadowlands.
Between public test realms, data-mining, and the Dragonflight pre-patch having already dropped, there aren't many secrets left for fans to uncover about the upcoming content. Of course, the biggest addition will be the new hero class/race combo, the Dracthyr Evoker: a highly mobile, mail-wearing hybrid ranged DPS and healing class. But the ancient Dracthyr may not be the only race pledging their allegiance to either the Horde or the Alliance in World of Warcraft: Dragonflight. The Battle for Azeroth expansion, which shipped in 2018, brought with it the Allied Race system, where players could unlock alternate forms of the main races. Races like the Nightborne and Mechagnomes, which had existed in the game world for years, were finally made playable, fully stocked with unique racial abilities, emotes, and heritage armor.
Since the addition of allied races, fans have speculated about where the feature could go next, as well as petitioned to have their favorite races from the game made playable. In a video posted on November 26, 2022, TikTok user donalddoesit shows what may well be the first step in Blizzard implementing the next round of allied races in World of Warcraft. The video shows the updated model for the gnoll race, which got a substantial facelift with the release of the Dragonflight prepatch. The model's animations and interactions seem too carefully detailed for the race to remain exclusive to NPCs. The TikTok user also references World of Warcraft lore, which supports the theory that the gnolls may opt to join The Horde, given their grievances with The Alliance.
An official forum post by Blizzard on July 18, 2022, confirmed that no new allied races are currently planned for World of Warcraft: Dragonflight's future, but it is still open to using the system when it makes sense. Obviously, the focus will want to remain on the Dracthyr as the expansion launches, but after a few raid tiers and several content patches, the time might be perfect for reintroducing allied races. A Reddit post from April 2022 speculated that the updated models for Dragonflight are using character rigs from playable races, with the gnolls articulating suspiciously like the Worgen race from the alliance. Since all previous allied races have utilized pre-existing character rigs from playable races, this may be another hint at what Blizzard has planned.
Until more is known for certain, fans can only speculate and hope for their favorite non-playable races in World of Warcraft to be added as allied races. With the release of the Dracthyr in World of Warcraft finally breaking the mold on Blizzard's stance of all the playable races having full transmogrification capabilities, anything is possible.
World of Warcraft Dragonflight launches for PC on November 28, 2022.