Warcraft III Reforged: Forsaken Kingdom Gameplay Trailer Showcases a 30-Hour RTS-RPG Campaign

Blizzard has released the gameplay trailer for Warcraft III Reforged: Forsaken Kingdom, offering a closer look at the first new official Warcraft III campaign in more than two decades. The expansion is available now and takes players back to the final days of Lordaeron, where they will witness the destruction of one kingdom and help establish another beneath its ruins.

Rather than following a single structure throughout its approximately 30-hour runtime, Forsaken Kingdom is divided into two noticeably different experiences. It begins with a more traditional sequence of real-time strategy missions before expanding into a softer, more open-ended campaign built around exploration, persistent heroes and RPG-style progression.

The campaign requires Warcraft III: Reforged and is being sold separately from the free Patch 3.0 update released alongside it.

The Last Days of Lordaeron Returns to Classic Warcraft III Design

The opening portion of Forsaken Kingdom is titled The Last Days of Lordaeron. This four-mission prologue follows the Capital City Guard as Prince Arthas returns to his homeland after claiming Frostmourne and surrendering himself to the Lich King.

Players experience the kingdom’s collapse from a perspective that was largely absent from the original campaigns. Instead of controlling Arthas and the invading Scourge, they are placed among the soldiers and survivors caught in the catastrophe.

The prologue uses the traditional linear structure associated with classic Warcraft III. Players construct bases, gather resources, command armies and complete objectives across carefully designed individual maps. Its locations include the capital of Lordaeron, the sewers that will eventually become the Undercity, Andorhal and the ruins of Stratholme following its infamous culling.

This makes the prologue more than an extended tutorial. It establishes the state of Lordaeron immediately before the Forsaken begin creating their own identity and provides a conventional RTS introduction before the campaign starts experimenting with a different format.

The Main Campaign Expands the Rexxar Formula

Following the prologue, Forsaken Kingdom shifts into a three-chapter campaign inspired by The Founding of Durotar, the bonus campaign starring Rexxar from Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne.

Blizzard describes this portion as a “soft-open” single-player RPG experience. That distinction is important: it is not being presented as a seamless open world, but its maps, progression systems and mission structure give players considerably more freedom than a standard linear campaign.

The gameplay revolves around persistent heroes who can travel through larger environments, undertake quests, discover equipment and gradually develop their abilities. The campaign introduces an expanded inventory system with dedicated gear slots, alongside hero talents and items that can change how individual characters function in battle.

These systems should make decisions made between encounters almost as significant as tactical choices during combat. A new weapon, talent or piece of equipment could strengthen a hero’s existing role or create a different approach to later objectives. Since progression carries forward, experimentation is not confined to a single mission that resets once completed.

Blizzard estimates that the complete experience contains around 30 hours of gameplay and nearly an hour of in-game cinematics. The actual duration will naturally depend on difficulty, exploration and how much optional content each player pursues, but the stated length places Forsaken Kingdom much closer to a complete expansion campaign than a short collection of bonus missions.

New Heroes Anchor the Rise of the Forsaken

The story follows the Forsaken as they break free from the Scourge, attempt to secure the ruins of Lordaeron and begin transforming the city beneath the former capital into the Undercity.

Two new characters occupy central roles. Garek Bandarion is a recently raised Forsaken warrior still confronting the reality of his undeath, while the Dark Ranger Anya provides another perspective on the emerging faction. Their journey intersects with Sylvanas Windrunner and several familiar figures from the history of Lordaeron.

The returning cast includes Grand Apothecary Putress, Varimathras, Sally Whitemane, Renault Mograine, Kel’Thuzad, Ras Frostwhisper and Baron Rivendare. Arthas also plays an important role in the events surrounding Lordaeron’s destruction.

Beyond showing how the Forsaken secured their territory, the campaign has been designed to address lingering pieces of Warcraft history. It explores how a collection of newly liberated undead developed into a functioning society, why the Scourge did not simply reclaim Lordaeron and how some of the Undercity’s most recognizable characteristics came into existence.

The Forsaken Paladin Introduces a New Support Style

One of the most important gameplay additions is the Forsaken Paladin, the first new Tavern hero introduced to Warcraft III multiplayer in more than 20 years. Although the character appears alongside the campaign, the multiplayer hero is available to every Warcraft III: Reforged owner through the free Patch 3.0 update and is not locked behind the paid expansion.

The Forsaken Paladin combines initiation, healing, defensive support and magical disruption. Righteous Fury allows the hero to charge into combat, damage a target and slow nearby enemies. Sacred Aura grants magic resistance to surrounding friendly units, strengthening armies against spell-heavy opponents.

Consecration produces an immediate area-of-effect heal for allies while damaging enemies. Friendly undead units do not receive the healing, but they are also protected from its damaging effect. This creates an unusual tactical restriction for a hero likely to appear frequently alongside undead forces.

His ultimate ability, Cleansing Fire, heals and strengthens allies while stunning enemies, dispelling effects and inflicting additional damage on summoned units. Together, these abilities make the Forsaken Paladin a flexible battlefield controller rather than a straightforward undead copy of the Human Paladin.

The 24-Unit Selection Limit Changes Army Management

Patch 3.0 raises the unit selection limit from 12 to 24, addressing one of the most restrictive parts of controlling larger armies in the original game.

This does not increase the overall population cap or allow players to produce more units than before. Instead, it changes how many units can be selected and commanded simultaneously. Players can move a larger portion of an army without constantly alternating between multiple control groups, which should make expansive campaign battles more manageable.

The change may be particularly valuable in Forsaken Kingdom, where persistent heroes, summoned creatures and mixed groups of units could otherwise create considerable control-group pressure. Experienced players can still divide their forces for precise positioning, but more of the army can now be handled as a single formation when detailed micromanagement is unnecessary.

Definitive Edition Graphics Rebuild the Battlefield

The gameplay trailer also highlights the new Definitive Edition visual mode included with Patch 3.0. Blizzard says the update rebuilds more than 600 units while refreshing structures, environments, lighting and visual effects.

The developers have placed particular emphasis on readability. Units are intended to retain clear silhouettes and recognizable faction identities even when several armies collide. That focus is especially relevant to Warcraft III, where being able to identify heroes, spellcasters and priority targets quickly has a direct effect on gameplay.

Campaign environments also benefit from updated fog, dynamic lighting, greater verticality and day-night transitions. The tools used to build these locations are being made available through the World Editor, allowing custom-content creators to incorporate similar visual features into their own maps.

Players who prefer the older presentation can continue using Classic graphics. Classic and Definitive users remain compatible, preventing the visual choice from dividing multiplayer or custom-game communities.

Community Creators Helped Shape the Expansion

Blizzard has openly acknowledged the influence of the Warcraft III custom-campaign community on Forsaken Kingdom. Developers consulted creators associated with projects such as Chronicles of the Second War: Tides of Darkness, Warcraft III: Re-Reforged, Acolyte of Life and Sunken City.

That influence can be seen in the emphasis on large campaign maps, bespoke progression and systems extending beyond the original campaign framework. The World Editor has kept Warcraft III active for decades, and the new expansion appears to draw from lessons learned by creators who continued experimenting with the game while official campaign development remained dormant.

Forsaken Kingdom Is Paid, but Patch 3.0 Is Free

Forsaken Kingdom costs $29.99 in the United States and requires ownership of Warcraft III: Reforged. Players without the base game can purchase a combined package for $49.99, while pricing may vary by region.

The campaign purchase grants access to The Last Days of Lordaeron prologue, all three chapters of the main campaign and its associated story content. Patch 3.0 remains free for existing Reforged owners and includes the Definitive Edition graphics, the Forsaken Paladin multiplayer hero, the expanded unit-selection limit and other improvements.

An internet connection, Battle.net account and the Battle.net desktop application are required to play.

With two campaign formats, persistent hero progression and more than 30 hours of planned content, Forsaken Kingdom represents Blizzard’s most significant return to Warcraft III storytelling since The Frozen Throne. Its gameplay trailer suggests an expansion built to preserve the original game’s RTS foundations while exploring systems that the community has spent years pushing beyond their original limits.