WoW Classic Anniversary Phase 4 launch date, and what to expect

The WoW Classic Anniversary servers are about to enter a new era of content with Phase 4, launching in May 2025. Primarily content for level-capped players, there is a familiar raid on the way, world bosses, and even an event in the world, where something sinister stirs out in the desert sands. Those who played the original vanilla World of Warcraft will remember what occured there, as it led to the first major world-changing event the game received: the Gates of Ahn’Qiraj.

Thankfully, you don’t have to wait long for Phase 4 of the WoW Classic Anniversary servers, since the gates to the new content open on the week of May 1, 2025. A significant amount of content will be available — here’s what will unlock next.

What’s coming in WoW Classic Anniversary Phase 4?

After the weekly maintenance on the WoW Classic Anniversary servers, for the week of May 1, 2025, Phase 4 will kick off, with quite a bit of content. Whether you like fishing, World Bosses, raiding, or simply questing, there’s will be work for you to do in the wilds. Here’s what awaits:

Zul’Gurub (20-player raid)
Tier 0.5 Class Armor Sets (Dungeon Set 2) now available
The Dragons of Nightmare (World Bosses)
Stranglethorn Fishing Extravaganza
The Stirring of the Silithid

I'll never forget grinding ZG when it debuted, with my guild back on the Rexxar server (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Perhaps the biggest part of Phase 4 content is Zul’Gurub, World of Warcraft’s 20-person raid in Stranglethorn Vale, east of Lake Nazferiti. You’ll farm reputation with the Zandalari Tribe by turning in important items, and face off against a total of 10 bosses, though there are technically 13.

The Edge of Madness encounter offers a boss out of a pool of four that changes weekly. We imagine it will still require a Gurubashi Mojo Madness potion from an Alchemist to trigger the event.

High Priest Arlokk
High Priest Jek’lik
High Priest Mar’li
High Priest Thekal
High Priest Venoxis
Bloodlord Mandokir
Jin’do the Hexer
Gahz’ranka
Edge of Madness (Each available once weekly): Gri’lek, Hazza’rah, Renetaki, Wushoolay
Hakkar

In addition to the Turtle Polymorph spell for Mages, which can drop off of Gahz’ranka, you can pick up a pair of incredibly rare mounts: The Swift Razzashi Raptor and Swift Zulian Tiger mounts.

In addition, WoW Classic Anniversary Phase 4 lets players farm their Tier 0.5 Class Armor Sets. Head to Deliana in Ironforge (Great Forge) or Mokvar in Orgrimmar (Valley of Wisdom) to start the quest to unlock this great gear.

If you’re more into World Bosses, the Dragons of Nightmare will be available at the portals at the Great Trees, guarding the Emerald Dream. These are incredibly dangerous fights, so you should go with a full raid party. There’s a portal in Duskwood (Twilight Grove), The Hinterlands (Seradane), Feralas (Dream Bough), and Ashenvale (Bough Shadow).

Something less casual, but still competitive, is the Stranglethorn Fishing Extravaganza tournaments. When it’s time, you’ll see goblins visit both Ironforge and Orgrimmar, inviting you down to Stranglethorn Vale to do some fishing!

Finally, something lurks in the desert of Silithus. The Silithids hives have awakened, and players can aid the Cenarion Circle in a series of quests down in the region to learn more about these deadly creatures. The Twilight Hammer cult is also lurking, so something is certainly amiss in Silithus. All of this great WoW Classic Anniversary content kicks off soon, on May 1, 2025, when Phase 4 begins.

Check out our other WoW Classic guides and features

About the author

Jason is an Esports and Gaming journalist at Sportskeeda holding an amazing 11 years of experience under his belt. Having put out 4000-plus articles and amassing over 12 million reads for Sportskeeda, he is among the company’s most experienced writers. Jason holds a Bachelor's degree in English from UNC Pembroke and was inspired to become a gaming journalist very early on in life after reading Nintendo Power.

Jason is a jack of all trades when it comes to gaming journalism. He’s a key writer in Sportskeeda's MMO department, but he also likes to help out in other categories, like streamers, RPG, card games, and whatever else is needed. A solo gamer at heart, Jason's favorite titles include Earthbound and Dragon Warrior.

Jason places high value on accuracy and relevance in his write-ups. He achieves this with thorough research to sift facts from rumors. One of the biggest highlights of his career is his interview with Canadian pro wrestler Kenny Omega about his inclusion in the Like a Dragon game series. He is also good friends with journalist Kazumo Hashimoto, who he admires for the kind of stories he works on and his deep ethics.

A true cinephile, one of Jason’s primary hobbies involves enjoying cinematic experiences. He also loves reading, be it fiction or manga, when not working. Additionally, he streams on Twitch and posts his gaming insights on YouTube.

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Edited by Jason Parker