At the "Deep Dive" panel on September 13, Blizzard rebuilt racials for every Classic+ race: each race now has two actives and two passives, elemental resistances are gone, and the weapon skill bonus turned into ability and spell crit. Cooldowns were named for the first time — and they reshape the PvP lineup.

What's changed for everyone

• Elemental resistances are gone: Frost Resistance (Dwarf), Nature Resistance (Night Elf and Tauren), Arcane Resistance (Gnome), Shadow Resistance (Undead).
• Weapon specialization no longer grants weapon skill — it's now a bonus to ability and spell crit. Simple: hold the matching weapon type in your hands.
• Each race has exactly two actives and two passives — and Blizzard named the cooldowns for the first time. Before the panel, those were the biggest blind spot when picking a race for PvP.

If you're picking a race for PvP

Alliance. Dwarf is the main defensive race: Stoneform (3-minute cooldown) clears bleeds, poisons and diseases, grants immunity to them after the clear, and cuts physical damage by 10% for 8 seconds. Humans got Will to Survive — a dispel of crowd-control effects they haven't had since Classic, effectively bringing back the Wrath of the Lich King trinket "Every Man for Yourself". Plus Perception — detecting stealth, 20 seconds. Night Elf is the Alliance's main offensive race: the new Elune's Light (+10% crit for 15 seconds) opens a damage window the race has never had, and Shadowmeld has been reworked (numbers TBD).

Horde. Undead lost its signature: Will of the Forsaken no longer grants a five-second immunity — it just dispels Fear, Sleep and Mind Control on a two-minute cooldown. Undead PvP players are no longer safe from being feared again. Tauren received a new active, War Stomp — an AoE stun up to 5 targets in an 8-yard radius for 2 seconds: the only such crowd-control in the game. Orc swapped Hardiness: instead of a random chance to "shake off" stuns entirely, it now steadily reduces their duration by 20% — no jackpot, but predictable.

If you're picking a race for caster

The strongest. Orc: Blood Fury now grants +10% attack power and spell power for 15 seconds with no healing penalty. In Classic it only worked in melee, so casters got nothing out of it; now warlocks and shamans benefit. The catch: Orc hunters and warlocks lost Command (+5% pet damage), so the race's position has slipped for them.

The most versatile. Gnome: Expansive Mind used to give +5% intellect — now it gives +5% to the maximum of any resource: mana, rage or energy. It's a nerf for mages and warlocks, but for the first time there's a reason to roll a Gnome warrior or rogue. Plus Gnomes got two combat actives: Eureka! (next three abilities cheaper and 10% stronger; cooldown not named) and Escape Artist (dispels roots and snares).

Caster leftovers. Undead's Cannibalize now restores 7% health and mana every 2 seconds for 10 seconds — a noticeable bump for casters on long fights. Plus the passive Touch of the Grave, with a 5% chance to drain health through spells — the only piece of the caster kit Undead still has intact, and the only real reason to roll an Undead caster today. Humans get +2% crit with swords and +5% Spirit (the passive Human Spirit).

If you're picking a race for melee

Tauren gets what might be the most practical passive on the list — +1% hit (a melee in Classic needs 9%, and every percent comes out of other stats). Plus Cultivation (herbs without Herbalism) and +5% health. Troll got a mixed bag: Berserking was cut from "10% to 30% depending on health" down to a flat 10% — a nerf for the low-health builds that lived off it; in exchange, they get Rapid Regeneration, restoring 50% health. And Troll is still the only race with no weapon specialization at all — both "Bow Specialization" and "Thrown Specialization" are removed. Orc lost Command, but the Blood Fury buff for melee is still there. Dwarves kept the passive Mace Specialization (+1% crit) and got Big Game Hunter — the former Troll "Beast Slaying", +5% damage to beasts.

In practice

• Undead stopped being a must-pick for PvP — without the Will of the Forsaken immunity it's just a dispel on a two-minute cooldown.
• Dwarf is now Alliance's main defensive race, Night Elf its main offensive one.
• Orc got stronger for shamans and casters, but lost ground for hunters and warlocks.
• Tauren has the most practical passive thanks to hit; Gnome is finally useful for warrior and rogue.
• If you're picking a race for a specific role, it's worth reconsidering right now: everything tied to weapon skill has changed meaning, and Undead's iconic PvP windows are closed.

What's still unnamed

Cooldowns and durations for Eureka!, Shatter Curse, Plainsrunning and Rapid Regeneration; for Elune's Light the duration is known (15 seconds), but not the cooldown. Plainsrunning's behavior in combat. Exact numbers for Shadowmeld. Skyborne racial durations. All this comes from the playable demo; numbers may change by the November 4 release.