What is the best race for Paladins in WoW Forever? Paladins can be only three races - Human, Dwarf and Undead - and Blizzard's October 26 racial changes hit two of them: Humans lose half their crit (2% to 1%) but double their Spirit, and Dwarfs swap 2% critical damage and healing for 1% hit. We re-ran Holy and Retribution in all three races. Human is still the best race for Paladins, but by much less than before - especially for Holy.
Best race for Paladins in WoW Forever: the short answer
- Holy Paladin: Human (714.8 HPS in raid gear), only +0.6% over no racials - down from 735.3.
- Retribution Paladin: Human (410.9 DPS), +0.9% over no racials.
- Dwarf now adds nothing in raid gear for either spec; Undead's Touch of the Dead isn't simulated.
- Paladin races in WoW Forever: Human, Dwarf and Undead.
The October 26 racial changes for Paladins
From Blizzard's October 26 development notes:
- Human: Ruthless 1% crit (was 2%); The Human Spirit 10% Spirit (was 5%).
- Dwarf: Earth Fury (2% critical strike damage and healing) removed; Artisan's Precision adds 1% hit with spells and attacks.
Undead doesn't change.
How we tested every Paladin race
Every number comes from our own sim engine - the same one behind our rotation simulator and spec rankings - with the October 26 racial changes put in. Each spec wears its own BiS List gear (Raid List or Dungeon List) at level 60, or our standard level 30 gear, uses our default talents and fights a boss three levels higher for 60 seconds, 1,000 times per race. We also ran every spec with no racials at all, so each race's bonus can be measured on its own. Numbers are DPS for damage specs and HPS (healing per second, healing a tank and a five-player party, no overhealing) for healers. Protection is left out: our tank number is effective health, and racials aren't part of it.
Best race for Holy Paladin
Human is still first, but the gap is small: 714.8 HPS against 710.8 for Dwarf and Undead. Before October 26, our Human Holy Paladin healed for 735.3. With 2% crit it could afford a stronger mix of spells in our sim - more Flash of Light - and with 1% it falls back to the same plan as a Paladin with no racials. The doubled Spirit helps mana between fights more than inside a one-minute sim.
Dwarf now adds nothing for Holy: heals can't miss, so 1% hit does nothing, and the critical healing bonus is gone.
- Level 60, Raid List gear: Human 714.8, Dwarf 710.8, Undead 710.8
- Level 60, Dungeon List gear: Human 383.0, Dwarf 379.6, Undead 379.6
- Level 30: Human 117.5, Dwarf 115.9, Undead 115.9
Best race for Retribution Paladin
Human again (+0.9%), down from 414.7 to 410.9 DPS. Dwarf's 1% hit adds nothing in raid gear, where our Retribution Paladin is already at the hit cap, but at level 30 it ties with Human (64.2 DPS).
- Level 60, Raid List gear: Human 410.9, Dwarf 407.2, Undead 407.2
- Level 60, Dungeon List gear: Human 306.7, Dwarf 303.5, Undead 303.5
- Level 30: Human 64.2, Dwarf 64.2, Undead 63.6
Best race for Protection Paladin
Our tank sims measure effective health and don't include racials, so we can't rank Protection races with numbers. Dwarf's 1% hit makes your attacks, and so your threat, a little more reliable; neither Human nor Undead has a racial in the October 26 notes that adds health or armor.
What our sims don't show
- Not simulated: Undead's Touch of the Dead, whose damage Blizzard hasn't published. Undead may be a little better than these numbers show.
- Utility: defensive racials and Dwarf's Big Game Hunter (+5% against Beasts) don't count against a single boss.
Sources
- WoW: Forever Beta Development Notes - Racial Abilities and Traits Tuning (Blizzard, via MMO-Champion, October 26, 2026)
- Forever Upgrades sim engine: Holy and Retribution Paladin in every allowed race, with and without racials, WoW: Forever build 1.60.1.70532 data, 1,000 fights of 60 seconds (October 27, 2026)
- Our October 17 racials article