WoW: Do You Need Shadowlands To Play Dragonflight?

Wondering whether you need Shadowlands expansion to play Dragonflight expansion in WoW? Read our guide to find out.

Popular MMO RPG World of Warcraft is getting its ninth expansion later this year called Dragonflight. This new expansion is all set to add four new zones to the game, a new playable race, and class, and plenty more nuances to entice both new and veteran players.

World of Warcraft: Dragonflight launches on 28th November 2022, and many fans have been wondering whether they will need Shadowlands, the game’s previous expansion, to play Dragonflight.

Dragonflight Doesn’t Work Without Shadowlands

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You can’t play Dragonflight without owning Shadowlands expansion in World of Warcraft. (Picture: Blizzard)

Sadly, you can’t play WoW: Dragonflight without playing/owning the Shadowlands expansion. While this might seem disappointing, if you’re a new player, you would probably want to play through other expansions first. 

If you do own Shadowlands, you can pre-purchase Dragonflight right now on all platforms.

For those unaware, you could play WoW for free until you reach level 20. After that, you will have to buy the base game or its expansions alongside a monthly subscription service to play the game. 

WoW Subscription Tier List

WoW has four subscription tiers.

They are:

  • 1 month: $14.99
  • 3 months: $13.99/month
  • 6 months: $12.99/month
  • 12 months: $12.99/month

Wow: Dragonflight Editions & Prices

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WoW: Dragonflight comes in three different editions. (Picture: Blizzard)

The Dragonflight comes in three different versions:

Base Edition ($49.99)

  • Dragonflight expansion
  • Drakks (pet)

Heroic Edition ($69.99)

  • Everything included in the base edition
  • Murkastrasza (Pet)
  • Tangled Dreamweaver (Flying Mount)
  • Dragonflight-Level Character Boost (Level 60)

Epic Edition ($89.99)

  • Everything included in the heroic edition
  • Timewalker Hearthstone (Visual Effect)
  • Diadem of the Spell-Keeper (Head-Slot Transmog)
  • Wings of Awakening (Back-Slot Transmog)
  • 30 days of Game Time

That’s everything you need to know before pre-ordering WoW: Dragonflight expansion.


For more World of Warcraft news, be sure to check out our dedicated section or some of our WoW Guides & Tutorials below:

Dragonflight Guides – Primal Storms EventContent RoadmapPlay On Steam DeckRaid ScheduleDracthyr Evoker ClassDragon Isles ZonesMax Level & Progression PathCrafting OrdersDragonridingEditions & Bonuses | 

WotLK Classic Guides – Best Death Knight BuildsRetribution Paladin PVEHerbalism LevelingPvE Beast Mastery Hunter DPSShadows of DoomCold Weather FlyingFire Mage PvEFlying Carpet 

Holiday Events – Hallow’s EndFeast of Winter Veil  

Featured image courtesy of Blizzard Entertainment.