World of Warcraft Expansion Tier List
Aside from Dragonflight, there are now eight expansions that can be played as part of the basic subscription. That’s a lot to navigate, and unless you’ve been there during their releases, you can’t really tell if they are good or bad. As not all of them offer the same quality of gameplay and content. Thus, here comes a WoW expansions tier list that will give you some ideas of what to expect.
The list is subjective, and the ranking is mostly based on how fun the expansions were at the time. You can use this information to many ends. It is as much a concise guide to the story chapters as an insight into the history of WoW. With that being said, the lower tiers of this WoW patch & expansion rank can basically be skipped from playing.
SHADOWLANDS (D)
Shadowlands sold faster than any other expansion before. But that doesn’t mean it’s a solid sign of success. One of the biggest problems is the plot. The alternative reality and time shenanigans sound intriguing, especially for old players who have lots of memories with WoW. Yet, the game becomes more and more disappointing towards the end with its retcons, lore-breaking, and strange plot decisions.
The design and environments look excellent, but some of them are insufferable. The Maw and Torghast to many people were a joyless chore without much payoff. The good things, such as new mounts, loot, and some story ideas, are in the minority.
WARLORDS OF DRAENOR (C)
The WoD was released in 2014, and it’s considered the first bad expansion Blizzard has ever made. Much of it was full of curious ideas but ultimately unfinished. There was simply no content besides raids and garrisons throughout the active phases. They were fun, but also the only forms of entertainment.
With few quests to go around, it seemed they put too much focus on garrisons. In fact, that is the main target of criticism. They dominated much of the chapter, and it felt like you were doing nothing but managing your settlement and raiding occasionally. That’s why it’s so low on the WoW expansions meta.
BATTLE FOR AZEROTH (B)
BfA came out right before Shadowlands, and it is honestly not bad. It gets a poor reputation for not delivering a fantastic story proportional to the hype. The plot was full of odd choices, unfinished arcs, and a general lack of cohesion. The high point was Sylvanas, who became a genocidal maniac for no apparent reason.
There were still plenty of good elements, like allied races, dungeons and large parts of the main story. The gameplay novelties, like island expeditions and warfronts, were flawed but ultimately fun. You can still enjoy BfA if you relax and avoid focusing on the downsides.
CATACLYSM (B)
Cataclysm is a controversial one. It went very well and had many good additions all the way until the last raid, Dragonsoul. The mob and boss encounters and locations were dull. The final boss, the Madness of Deathwing, was especially disappointing due to being a pushover.
The rest was brilliant, and Cata could be a confident A-tier material if not for the Dragonsoul. The introduction of Transmog at that time was a stroke of genius. Many zones were altered dramatically, improving in both content and appearance. It deserves at least a B-tier on any WoW expansions ranking.
MISTS OF PANDARIA (A)
MoP is praised widely for being a new take on the story of World of Warcraft. It took place on Pandaria, a new continent that looked nothing like the hellish landscapes from previous chapters. Instead, Blizzard made something fresh in the shape of a colorful Asia-inspired environment inhabited by humanoid pandas.
The newly-added Pandaren were the first race available for both Horde and Alliance. The quests, world bosses, raids, and dungeons flowed very smoothly. Together, they offered a fun and engaging adventure that didn’t really have any major flaws.
LEGION (A)
Legion was the sixth expansion, and it made up for Warlords of Draenor. It’s considered the best “late” expansion and was unimaginably welcome at the time. The story was nostalgic through and through, but in a good way. The same applies to the raids, quests, and bosses, which were terrific.
The adventure revolved around the Burning Legion again, which seems to be the lucky theme for the devs. The raids, artifact weapons, and demon hunters were all very well-received. It is overall an excellent expansion and a must-play.
BURNING CRUSADE (S)
To be clear, the Burning Crusade is the smallest expansion Blizzard ever introduced. In terms of scale, it loses completely. Back then, however, it was a phenomenal step. It was the first such update — released 2.5 years after the original came out. They added new content, far better than what the Vanilla had.
New marvelous locations were introduced, and longer, more interesting raids were added. PvP became a thing with plenty of modes and nuance. The devs also revamped plenty of old systems, such as pets, talents, and specializations. It was also the first time WoW players get to see the flying mounts in action.
WRATH OF THE LICH KING (S)
WotLK is the best WoW expansion, hands down. Millions of players got WoW specifically to play it and see what happens to Arthas in the end. And it’s not like it was some cash grab to get Warcraft fans to play the MMORPG en masse. It was excellently written.
Northrend was massive and full of content, and Naxxramas was the biggest raid until that point — by a long shot. The arc of the Lich King largely ended on a satisfying note, putting Arthas out of his misery and stopping the Scourge. In the end, it was the first enormous expansion Blizzard had ever made, and that is a crucial foundation.
SUMMARY
This is the ranking of all fully closed content chapters. Dragonflight is not on the list because it’s still ongoing. When it’s done, you might search for a WoW expansion tier list update to see how the positions changed. Maybe some DLCs will look worse or better by comparison.
And if you ever need WoW boost services for Dragonflight, the WotLK Classic, or other activities, we’ll be happy to help.
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