WoW TBC Anniversary Release Date, Pre-Patch and Full Phase Schedule for 2026
The TBC Anniversary release date was February 5, 2026, at 3 PM Pacific time, when The Burning Crusade went live on the WoW Classic Anniversary servers. The pre-expansion patch arrived on January 13, 2026. Phase 2 followed on May 14 and Phase 3, with Black Temple and Mount Hyjal, on August 27, 2026. The expansion is included with a WoW subscription.
What is WoW TBC Anniversary?
It’s The Burning Crusade, replayed on the Anniversary servers that Blizzard opened for WoW Classic’s 20th anniversary. Those servers started with the original game in late 2024, and in early 2026 they moved on to the first expansion: Outland, level 70, Blood Elves and Draenei, flying mounts and the raids that defined 2007.
So this is the third time TBC has gone live. The original came out in January 2007, TBC Classic arrived in 2021, and the Anniversary version in 2026. Players who skipped the 2021 run, or who want a fresh start on new servers, are the main audience (and judging by launch-week queues, there were plenty of them).
What did TBC add on top of the original game? A lot. The level cap rose from 60 to 70, Outland opened as a new continent, Blood Elves joined the Horde and Draenei joined the Alliance, and flying mounts arrived for level 70 characters. Jewelcrafting became a new profession, heroic dungeons gave max-level players a reason to keep running five-player content, and rated arenas brought a new kind of PvP. All of that is part of the Anniversary version too.
When was the TBC Anniversary release date?
February 5, 2026, at 3 PM Pacific time, worldwide at the same moment. Since it was a single global unlock, the local time depended on where you live:
| Time zone | Local launch time |
|---|---|
| Pacific (PST) | February 5, 15:00 |
| Eastern (EST) | February 5, 18:00 |
| UTC | February 5, 23:00 |
| Central Europe (CET) | February 6, 00:00 |
| Moscow (MSK) | February 6, 02:00 |
Put simply, European players got the expansion at midnight, which explains the late-night queues on EU servers that week. The same single-moment unlock applied to the later phases as well, so every date in this article is a Pacific-time date. If a future unlock lands after 3 PM Pacific, Europe and Asia should add a day.
TBC Anniversary pre-patch release date
January 13, 2026. Blizzard’s announcement on Blizzard News gave that date for the pre-expansion patch, which brought the two new races, Blood Elves and Draenei, before Outland itself opened. Players had a little over three weeks to level new characters and prepare (Blood Elf Paladins suddenly everywhere, as you’d expect).
Before that, Blizzard offered free character transfers from the Anniversary servers to Classic Era servers, from November 25, 2025 to January 12, 2026, for anyone who wanted to keep playing the original game instead of moving on to TBC.
TBC Anniversary phase release dates for 2026
TBC Classic content comes in phases, each opening new raids. Here’s how 2026 has gone so far:
| Date | Event | Main content |
|---|---|---|
| January 13, 2026 | Pre-expansion patch | Blood Elves and Draenei |
| February 5, 2026 | Expansion launch | Outland, level 70, flying |
| February 17, 2026 | Arena Season 1 | Rated arenas |
| February 19, 2026 | Phase 1 raids | Karazhan, Gruul’s Lair, Magtheridon’s Lair |
| May 14, 2026 | Phase 2 | Serpentshrine Cavern, Tempest Keep |
| August 27, 2026, 3 PM PDT | Phase 3 | Black Temple, Mount Hyjal |
Look at the gap: raids in Phase 1 unlocked two weeks after launch, not on launch day. That gap gave players time to reach 70 and gear up in dungeons before Karazhan opened, and it kept the very first days about leveling rather than racing to raid.
How long did each TBC Anniversary phase last?
Longer than in 2021, so far. Phase 1 raids opened on February 19 and Phase 2 arrived on May 14, which gave Phase 1 about 12 weeks. Phase 2 then ran from May 14 to August 27, close to 15 weeks. That pace leaves time for slower guilds to clear content before the next tier lands, which, to be fair, is what a lot of players asked for after the faster 2021 schedule.
If the pattern holds, each new phase gets a few months. It’s not a promise, just the rhythm Blizzard has followed this year (and a decent rule of thumb for planning alts).
Which raids are in each TBC Anniversary phase?
The same raids as the original expansion, grouped the same way. Each phase adds these raids, with their sizes:
| Phase | Raid | Size |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Karazhan | 10 players |
| 1 | Gruul’s Lair | 25 players |
| 1 | Magtheridon’s Lair | 25 players |
| 2 | Serpentshrine Cavern | 25 players |
| 2 | Tempest Keep | 25 players |
| 3 | Black Temple | 25 players |
| 3 | Mount Hyjal | 25 players |
| Later | Zul’Aman | 10 players |
| Later | Sunwell Plateau | 25 players |
Karazhan is the odd one out in Phase 1: a 10-player raid that most guilds run every week alongside the 25-player content. In practice, it’s also where new characters start their raid gear today, even with Black Temple open, because the bigger raids expect some gear before you walk in.
What comes after Phase 3? Next TBC Anniversary release dates
The last TBC raids. In the original expansion, Zul’Aman and Sunwell Plateau came after Black Temple, and they’re the remaining content for the Anniversary servers too. No exact dates yet. Blizzard’s 2026 Classic roadmap only gives windows.
Honestly, the safest assumption is “later in 2026 or after”, with each phase announced a few weeks before it goes live. Want to plan around it? Watch Blizzard’s news page, because that’s where every phase date so far has been announced first.
Is TBC Anniversary free with a WoW subscription?
Yes. Blizzard says the expansion is included with every WoW subscription or Game Time at no extra cost. You don’t buy The Burning Crusade separately.
What you can buy are optional packs. The Heroic Pack adds cosmetics: a Netherdrake flying mount, a Phase-Hunter ground mount, a whelpling pet, an Exodar toy and a Naaru-themed hearthstone effect. The Epic Pack includes all of that plus a level 58 character boost and 30 days of Game Time. The boost is the part people actually care about, since it skips most of the old-world leveling and drops you at the Dark Portal.
What time do new TBC Anniversary phases go live?
So far, always at 3 PM Pacific. The expansion launch, the Phase 1 raid unlock and Phase 3 all used that time, with one global unlock for every region. Phase 3 fell in summer time, so the conversion differs from February’s:
| Time zone | Phase 3 unlock (August 27, 2026) |
|---|---|
| Pacific (PDT) | 15:00 |
| Eastern (EDT) | 18:00 |
| UTC | 22:00 |
| Central Europe (CEST) | 00:00 on August 28 |
For European raiders, that means new content arrives at midnight, and the first real raid night is usually the evening after. Plan the first clear for the next day, not for unlock night, unless your guild enjoys raiding at 1 AM.
How do you get ready for the current TBC Anniversary phase?
Level to 70 first, then work on attunements and dungeon gear before raiding. With Phase 3 live, the raid ladder runs from Karazhan up to Black Temple, so a new character has a lot of catching up to do.
- Pick your professions early; the useful TBC ones, like Engineering, take time and gold to level.
- Run heroic dungeons for badges and gear, which still matter in later phases.
- Join a guild that runs older raids too, since Karazhan and Gruul are still the first steps.
- Check your class’s role in the current phase; some specs shine in Black Temple more than in Karazhan.
Leveling tips for WoW in general are in our guide to leveling up in World of Warcraft. And for the bigger picture of every expansion and Classic launch, see our timeline of World of Warcraft release dates.
Can you skip the TBC leveling?
Two ways. The official one is the level 58 boost from the Epic Pack. The other is a ready character: we currently list an EU Anniversary Hunter at level 70 with 2200+ gear score on our WoW character page, with an active subscription. Buying a character is against Blizzard’s terms, so treat it as a decision with real risk, not a shortcut without one.
Real talk: for most players, the boost plus a few weeks of dungeons is the cleaner route. Either way, Phase 3 is the best time in a while to join, because a lot of guilds are rebuilding rosters for Black Temple.
How is TBC Anniversary different from the original Retail game?
Completely separate. Retail World of Warcraft is on its current expansion, Midnight, which launched on March 2, 2026, while the Anniversary servers replay the 2007 expansion with its original systems. One subscription covers both, but characters, gold and progress don’t move between them. Curious about the Retail side? Our page on the Midnight release date covers that launch. For what it’s worth, many players run both: Retail for the new story, TBC Anniversary for the old raids with friends. That double life is half the fun of the TBC Anniversary release date this year.
FAQ
What was the WoW TBC Anniversary release date?
On February 5, 2026, at 3 PM Pacific time, worldwide at the same moment. In Central Europe that was midnight on February 6.
When was the TBC Anniversary pre-patch?
January 13, 2026. It added Blood Elves and Draenei before the expansion launched.
When did Phase 1 raids open in TBC Anniversary?
On February 19, 2026, two weeks after launch: Karazhan, Gruul’s Lair and Magtheridon’s Lair. Arena Season 1 began on February 17.
When did Phase 3 start in TBC Anniversary?
On August 27, 2026, at 3 PM PDT, with Black Temple and Mount Hyjal.
Is TBC Anniversary included with a subscription?
Yes. The expansion is included with every WoW subscription or Game Time. Optional Heroic and Epic packs add cosmetics, and the Epic Pack includes a level 58 boost.
When will Sunwell Plateau come to TBC Anniversary?
Blizzard has not announced an exact date. Its 2026 Classic roadmap gives launch windows for the later phases.
