Best Races for Warriors in WoW

In this guide, I’ll go through what I feel are the best races for warriors. 

This is based on racial traits and how this can help them in PvE or PvP. 

So, put your sword and shield down and let’s get into this. 

What Races Can Be Warriors in World of Warcraft?

It can be a hard decision picking a race no matter what class you want to play.

Warrior is one of the hardest due to the amount of options you have. 

In WoW every race can be a warrior. This is with the exception of Dracthyr, but they might even be able to be one in the future…

Plenty of options are good but too many and you could be overwhelmed. 

Below you’ll see all the races that you can pick as a Warrior in WoW.

I’ve split them into the factions in case you have a preference. 

Alliance	Horde
Human	Orc
Gnome	Undead
Dwarf	Tauren
Night Elf	Troll
Draenei	Blood Elf
Worgen	Goblin
Void Elf	Pandaren
Lightforged Draenei	Nightborne
Dark Iron Dwarf	Highmountain Tauren
Kul Tiren	Mag’har Orc
Mechagnome	Zandalari Troll
Pandaren	Vulpera

So with 24 races to choose from, there’s plenty of choice.

It’s worth noting that each race does have unique traits and these can impact their effectiveness as a warrior. 

Below we’re going to look into what the best races for Warriors in world of warcraft are for different gaming situations.

Best Warrior Races for PvE

If you prefer to play PvE, questing and going through the story.

There are some warrior races that you might want to consider. 

Now it’s worth noting that there is no “best”, a lot of it is down to personal preference. 

Below are what I think are the best warrior races for PvE in WoW based on ability traits.

Human

First up we have Humans, and they are one of the more popular choices when it comes to playing a warrior in PvE.

If you want a well-rounded character that is suitable in most situations, humans are a good option.

They have a passive trait called The Human Spirit.

This helps to give the secondary stats a small boost.

Night Elf

Night Elves can make for a great race when it comes to Warriors, specifically with PvE gameplay.

They have an ability called Shadowmeld, this allows them to drop out of a fight, lose aggro and avoid damage.

This is only for a short period of time but can be a great way of surviving a tough battle. 

It’s worth noting that this ability is really only going to be effective if you’re playing solo.

In a group, if you play a tank you certainly don’t want to suddenly lose aggro as your group will be dead. 

A passive trait that they also have is Quickness.

This increases dodge, which could be very useful. Even more so for a fury warrior that tends to be a little more squishy than protection. 

Undead

One of the things that always irritates me is being feared or charmed.

Thanks to their Will of the Forsaken, they’re able to break away from these and other crowd control abilities. 

If you play as a Protection Warrior, you’ll know that keeping your health up is important for survivability.

The healers should be keeping you alive but sometimes they might not be able to. 

The undead race have a passive trait called Cannibalize, this helps to increase health regeneration by 300%. (Very useful in a tight spot.)

Best Warrior Race for PvP

Warriors have often struggled when it comes to PvP, whether its arenas or battlegrounds.

If you want to dominate your opponents, you might want to see if you can give yourself that edge.

Below are what I think are the best races for warriors in WoW for PvP;

Orc

Orcs had to make the list, just look at them and you can see they’re a force to be reckoned with.

Blood Fury is an active racial trait that helps to increase their attack power.

They also have a passive trait called Hardness that stops stuns and some other crowd control, perfect for in PvP. 

Human

Humans have made the list again for PvP, however for different traits. 

The first trait is passive and it’s called Every Man for Himself. 

This breaks you free from crow control, perfect for PvP as many do tend to try and use stun or fear a lot. 

Will to Survive is the second trait and this helps to increase PvP resilience.

Dwarf

Dwarves are well-known for being mighty warriors, who despite their size can pack a punch.

They might be an option if you’re into PvP due to their Stoneform ability.

This ability helps with their resilience as it removes any bleed, poison or diseases based effects. 

Tauren

I see a fair few people playing Tauren as a warrior and it’s pretty obvious why.

First of all they’ve got a passive ability called Endurance.

This ability increases their maximum health, great for any warrior but even more helpful to a protection warrior.

Another useful ability is War Stomp. This not only stuns but can also interrupt.

As you can see some really useful traits if you’re looking to become a warrior and do some PvP.

Best Warrior Race for Lore/Roleplaying

The lore behind Warcraft is massive and goes back over 19 years.

Over this time it’s built some incredible side stories to enjoy whilst questing. 

If you’re looking for the best warrior race for lore, leveling or to play on a RP server, below are the ones I would recommend. 

If you’re interested in the history of warriors, you’ll know how iconic the orcs are.

This makes the Orcs one of the best warrior races for lore. 

Many of its leaders were mighty warriors, such as Grommash Hellscream, Origam Doomhammer and the legendary Varok Saurfang.

When you think of famous Orc warriors, a name that will come to mind is Grommash Hellscream.

He was incredibly important when it came to defeating the Burning Legion, as well as helping to lead the Warsong Clan during the invasion of Ashenvale. 

More recently, he also played a key role during the Warlords of Draenor.

During the second war, the Warchief of the Horde was Orgrim Doomhamer.

He was responsible for the Alliance losing at the Battle of Blackrock Spire. During the third war he played an important role to found the new Horde. 

A key figure in the Hordes history and specifically a Warrior is Varok Saurfang.

Some of the major events he was a part of was Siege of Orgrimmar, Battle for Lordaeron and Shadowlands.

Like many warriors he is known for his sense of honor and loyalty to the Horde. 

As well as Orcs, Humans also claim to be one of the best warrior races in World of Warcraft and for good reason. 

Since the beginning, they’ve played an important role in the game’s story and the history of Azeroth. 

We’ve seen humans involved in most of the conflicts such as the wars against the Orcs, the Scourge and the Burning Legion. 

Just like the Orcs, the humans have some legendary warriors such as Varian Wrynn and Lothar. 

If you’ve played World of Warcraft at all then you’ll have heard of Varian Wrynn. He fought against not only the Horde but the Burning Legion and many threats to Azeroth. 

In fact Varian embodies much of what a warrior is in the Alliance. Honorable, seeks justice. 

When it comes to the best warrior race based on the lore, humans and orcs make for a great choice. 

Best Looking Race for Warriors

When it comes to the best looking race for warriors in World of Warcraft, this is going to be very subjective.

It’s going to vary from person to person, depending on the style of play you like. 

Below are what I’d go for and what seems to be very common; 

Human

Humans are probably one of the most common, just because when you think of a warrior they tend to be a classic choice. This doesn’t make them boring or all human warriors look the same.

There is a lot of customization from things such as hair and facial hair, so you can create a very unique human warrior that looks very powerful. 

Orc

Warriors are typically intimidating, since Orcs are muscular and look very imposing they make for great choices.

They can also stand out due to their impressive tusks and facial features. 

Tauren

I’ve been seeing more and more Tauren warriors and simply because their appearance fits what you imagine a Warrior to be.

With their impressive horns and large size, they can strike fear into any foes on the battlefield. 

Dwarf

What dwarves lack in height they make up for in their tough and sturdy appearance.

They really stand out against the rest thanks to their impressive beards and stature.

You can really make your dwarf unique thanks to the personalization options. 

Gnome

Perhaps not the best race when it comes to traits and passive abilities but for fun, the Gnome makes for a great choice.

Imagine running around Azeroth as a Gnome wielding two massive 2-handed swords. 

Remember, there is no definitive best looking race for warriors.

Simply because it’s down to what you personally feel. 

World of Warcraft features a great amount of customization, so you can create a Warrior that suits your personal tastes. 

Best Races For Warriors in WoW Classic

With the launch of WoW Classic, it brought back some reasons as to why race selection might be more important. 

In retail it’s more down to personal preference with some slight benefits.

In WoW Classic these racial traits can impact your character more. 

Here are what I feel are the best races for warriors in WoW Classic. 

Human

Human warriors have a racial trait called Sword Specialization. This gives them an extra +5 weapon skill when using swords.

With this skill your chance to get a critical hit with swords increases by 1%. 

One of the annoying things about PvP is when enemies use stealth.

Luckily humans have Perception Ability. This will help increase their stealth detection. 

Orcs

Like with retail, Orcs are a great race to play as a warrior in WoW Classic. T

hey have a racial trait called Blood Fury.

This will increase attack power for a short time. Very useful as it helps to increase the amount of damage done. 

Orcs are also a good option when it comes to PvP, due to a 25% resistance to stun effects. Ideal for stopping pesky rogues. 

Dwarves

A great racial trait that Dwarves have is Stoneform.

This skill is incredibly powerful as it removes all poison, disease, curse and blood effects.

Not only that but it reduces the amount of damage you take by 10% for 8 seconds. 

Fan of ranged weapons? Dwarves have a +10 racial bonus to their gun skill. (I miss the ability for Warriors to use ranged weapons in retail because of this bonus!)

Tauren

Another member of the Horde that makes for a great race is Tauren.

They have a much higher base health pool than other races, this can really help with survivability for your warrior.

Even more worth it if you play protection. 

You can even increase base health by 5% with the Endurance racial trait. 

Taurens also have a racial trait called War Stomp. This stuns nearby enemies for 2 seconds,ideal for a bit of crowd control. 

In WoW Classic there is a warrior race for any type of gameplay.

Whether you want to increase damage with the humans Sword Specialization or tank with a Tauren thanks to their increased health pools. 

What Races Should You Avoid As A Warrior In WoW?

As mentioned at the start of this guide, you can play as a warrior with any race.

Some races you might want to avoid being if you want to be a warrior, simply because the traits dont give them additional benefits. 

Although remember in retail these are very small, so won’t impact 99% of people. They really only impact pro raid groups, so still play whatever race you want. 

Here are some races that are generally not recommended for Warriors; 

Trolls

Trolls have a great passive trait that helps to regenerate their health.

Useful in some situations and for some classes but not as beneficial for Warriors.

They do also have their Berserking trait which can provide some defensive benefits but not enough for warriors, as they tend to take on a lot of incoming damage. 

Undead

One thing that can impact warriors a lot are fear or charm effects.

Undead have an ability known as Will of the Forsaken, which breaks free of these effects.

This can encourage players to pick this race but it offers no combat benefits.

There are no abilities to improve survivability or increased damage. 

Although the traits might be useful if you do focus just on PvE and specifically play Solo.

Goblins

It would be pretty amazing to see Goblins carrying a huge shield or 2 handed swords.

The problem is Goblins offer no combat benefits to Warriors.

They do have their Rocket Jump trait, which gets them out of the way in the battlefield but that’s about it. 

If you want to make the most of your race when it comes to playing a warrior, you want to pick one that has racial traits that benefit the warrior class.

Even though it doesn’t make a massive difference, a bit of extra damage or survivability can really help. 

Races like Humans, Orcs, Dwarves and Tauren are popular choices, simply because of the combat benefits they do provide. 

Final Thoughts

You hopefully now have a better understanding of the best races for Warriors in World of Warcraft.

This guide should give you some ideas on what race to choose for your next character.

However, keep in mind that if you’re playing the retail version of WoW, the race you choose may not make a significant difference.

Your play style and the way you want to experience the game is entirely up to you.

After all, World of Warcraft is an adventure, and you should play whatever race you feel like playing.

So go ahead and choose the race that resonates with you the most, and enjoy your journey in Azeroth!