UNLOCK
December 9, 2026
The roadmap and announcement material point to this first raid window.
RAIDS / ENDGAME
WoW Forever Raids Guide: The Barrow Deeps, Hyjal Summit, and the December 9 Unlock
The named raid locations, player sizes, December unlock, and the official count conflict that still needs an answer.
STATUS / TIMELINE CONFLICT
The first raid window is known; the total count is not fully reconciled.
The ceremony recap describes two new raids, while the roadmap card lists Onyxia’s Lair, Hyjal Summit, and The Barrow Deeps at the December 9 unlock. The guide preserves both first-party signals.
QUICK REFERENCE
The short version
NAMED
Barrow Deeps / Hyjal
These are the two named new locations in the ceremony recap.
ROADMAPPED
Three at unlock
The roadmap also shows Onyxia’s Lair on the December card.
SIZES
10 / 20 / 40
Reported material associates different player sizes with the named raids; verify final formats in-game.
CONFIRMED DIRECTION
A raid plan built in stages
The announcement is enough to plan attention, not enough to plan a loot spreadsheet.
December 9 window
The roadmap places the first raid unlock on December 9, 2026. The ceremony recap frames the initial raid announcement differently, so staging remains worth watching.
The Barrow Deeps
This is one of the two raids named in the ceremony recap and is associated with a 10-player format in the roadmap coverage.
Hyjal Summit and Onyxia’s Lair
Hyjal Summit is named as a 20-player raid in the roadmap material; Onyxia’s Lair appears on the roadmap but its role in the count is unresolved.
OPEN RAID QUESTIONS
What a preparation guide still needs
Until Blizzard publishes encounter data, preparation advice should stay general.
Formats and lockouts
Exact player sizes, lockout timers, difficulty modes, and whether older 40-player raids remain unchanged are not fully documented.
Bosses and loot
No first-party boss rosters, loot tables, tier-set details, or attunement paths were found in the checked material.
2027 updates
Spring and Summer roadmap cards include additional raids and a revamped iconic raid, but neither the names nor exact dates are complete.
SOURCE TRAIL
Where these notes came from
We use official material first, then identify community reports and tools separately. A source link is a trail back to the evidence, not an endorsement of every claim on that page.