Best Horde Starting Zones, Ranked

In World of Warcraft, Horde starting zones include Durotar for the Orcs and Trolls, Mulgore for the Tauren, and Tirisfal Glades for the Undead. Though it’s possible to travel between these zones if you don’t like the one you started out at, most players tend to finish their starter zone before moving onto greener pastures (quite literally, for Orc and Troll players tired of the desert).

The best Horde starting zone really comes down to whether you prefer the grassy, American-inspired scenery of Mulgore or the dark, gloomy, and downright scary setting of Tirisfal Glades. Durotar is a great place in terms of the lore of the Horde, but in terms of the best Horde starting areas, it’s lacking some of the high points that Mulgore and Tirisfal come with.

Durotar

A Boring Starter Zone, But It Leads Right To Orgrimmar

• Races: Orc, Troll
• Continent: Kalimdor
• Nearby Zones: The Barrens, Stonetalon Mountains

Durotar is a rocky wasteland, essentially a swathe of orange-brown dirt and rock surrounding a road that leads all the way to Orgrimmar. Durotar is the starting zone for the Orc and Troll races, but like Dun Morogh for the Alliance, it’s just not that interesting compared to the other Horde starting zones of Mulgore and Tirisfal Glades.

Now, Orgrimmar is the best Alliance capital city bar none, thanks to its convenient location near Zeppelins that connect to the Eastern Kingdoms. But if you are looking for a fun leveling experience with interesting quests and a more varied terrain that won’t burn into your eyes, avoid Durotar.

If you play as an Orc or Troll and don’t want to level in Durotar, finish the Valley of Trials starting zone then take the Zeppelin to Tirisfal Glades, on the eastern side of the gate of Orgrimmar.

Mulgore

Gorgeous Plains & Scenery Inspired By America’s Natural Environments

• Races: Tauren
• Continent: Kalimdor
• Nearby Zones: The Barrens, Stonetalon Mountains

Based on American landscapes and taking inspiration from Native American culture, Mulgore is a calm, verdant plain with mesas rising into a sunny sky. Compared to the dusty desert that is Durotar, or the dark fantasy vibes of Tirisfal Glades, Mulgore is a real treat for the eyes.

Thunder Bluff is a great capital city because it’s easy to traverse and understand where everything is. Orgrimmar can be confusing, though Thunder Bluff’s location is not quite as convenient as Orgrimmar’s.

Mulgore is definitely the brightest and most peaceful Horde starting zone, and if you don’t mind playing as a Tauren and being sent to a high-level area of the Crossroads after you’re done, Mulgore might just be your next favorite zone in WoW.

Tirisfal Glades

A Gloomy, Oppressive Experience – But There’s Nothing Like It

• Races: Undead
• Continent: Eastern Kingdoms
• Nearby Zones: Silverpine Forest, Hillsbrad Foothills

Tirisfal Glades is, by most accounts, one of the oppressive starting zones in WoW. It’s far from the rest of the horde, Undercity is a visually gorgeous mess, and Tirisfal Glades itself a dark, gloomy, and haunted Forest with grotesque abominations, dark magics, and the ruins of the once-kingdom of Lordaeron.

Horde players who choose to play as an Undead or level here may be shocked by the contrast to the other starting zones – while Tauren, Orcs, and Trolls are busy building the Horde and fending off Quillboar and the like, Undead get much more nuanced, much more interesting stories.

For example, an early quest in Brill tasks the player with poisoning both a captured Scarlet Crusader and a captured Dwarf with a new version of the Plague of Undeath, begging the question of whether the Forsaken still have their humanity. On the other hand, you discover an undead who doesn’t know about the Forsaken, and recruit him to rejoin his old friends from life in undeath.

The Forsaken offer the best-written quests and the most compelling stories in the early levels, and the vibes of Tirisfal Glades (with the default Death music playing at all times) makes for one of the most unique starting experiences in WoW.