World Of Warcraft: Legion Zones Announced Along With Raids And Dungeons

World of Warcraft: Legion will take players to a new corner of Azeroth called the Broken Isles. During BlizzCon 2015, Blizzard detailed the key locations we'll visit here.

At the end of Warlords of Draenor, the orc warlock Gul'dan escaped to Azeroth to further the Burning Legion's plans. Now he has broken the ancient seals in the Tomb of Sargeras, paving the way for an invasion by his demonic masters.

Draenor will begin with a 40-player battle against the Legion. Horde and Alliance characters will fight alongside heroes like Varian Wrynn and Sylvanas Windrunner against the Legion. Presumably this is the same battle we saw in the new Legion cinematic trailer. This massive force will then try to assault the Tomb of Sargeras. If you're playing a boosted character, you'll also be treated to a separate introduction so you can get used to your character's skills.

If you made a Demon Hunter character, you'll start off on the prison world of Mardum. You will acquire your first powers and use them fight off demons and escape imprisonment. During this adventure, you'll find out what happened to Illidan after the events of The Burning Crusade.

Eventually all players will end up in the Broken Isles. Their main quest is to find the Pillars of Creation, ancient relics that could close the Legion's portal to Azeroth. Here are the seven zones you'll explore through the expansion:

• The Broken Shore: "You’ll start your adventure within the Broken Isles and find the Tomb of Sargeras here. The pitched battle that starts off your journey is bound to change not only you, but Azeroth itself."
• Val-sharah: "Within these densely forested lands, you’ll find the very heart of druidism. This is also the location of the Emerald Nightmare and where the demigod Cenarius first trained Malfurion Stormrage. You'll also find key locations such as the tainted world tree Shaladrassil, and the dungeon Black Rook Hold (an elven fortress that dates back to the War of the Ancients)."
• Azsuna: "This is home to the remnants of the ancient night elves ravaged by the wrath of Queen Azshara. It is a cursed land rife with many mysteries and serves as home to what remains of the Blue Dragonflight."
• Highmountain: "The location of one of the largest single mountains in Azeroth it is a rugged and beautiful terrain, that serves as home to three clans of the Highmountain tauren. They are a people with a highly evolved culture locked in a bitter struggle against savage drogbar that threaten their lands."
• Stormheim: "The land encapsulates the harsh beauty of this Vrykul home. Here, you’ll learn more about the vrykrul culture, including the origins of the mysterious val’kyr and the terrifying kvaldir. Along the way, you will contend with the vrykul God-King as he races to claim the zone’s Pillar of Creation on behalf of his Legion masters. This will take you into the very heavens where the greatest champions of the vrykul await to test your worth."
• Suramar: "All roads lead to Suramar, an ancient elven metropolis at the heart of the Broken Isles. The corrupted Nightwell fuels the nightborne elves and provides them the sustenance they need to survive. Those who are cut off from it live as nightfallen, their bodies wasting away as they search desperately for magical energy to sustain them. Atop the palace of Suramar, deep within the walls of the massive city, the warlock Gul’dan plots the next step of the Legion’s grand scheme…"
• Thal’dranath: "Much like Tanaan Jungle, this zone will become available a bit later in our story."

In an interesting twist, Legion's zones won't have set level ranges. Instead, the enemies you encounter and the rewards you earn will scale to your level. The same is true for the five dungeons available while leveling: Eye of Azshara, Neltharion’s Lair, Halls of Valor, Darkheart Thicket, and Violet Hold. The intent is to give players more freedom in how they level and also make it easier for them to group with friends.

Once players hit level 110, they can access five more dungeons: Vault of the Wardens, Black Rook Hold, Helheim, Suramar Noble District, and Suramar Catacombs. They can also journey into two raids. The Emerald Nightmare is a 7-boss raid in which players must defeat the corruption plaguing the world tree. The Grand Palace of Suramar, Gul'dan's base of operations, pits players against ten more bosses.

Legion is slated to launch next summer. The beta is expected before the end of 2015. Earlier this weekend Blizzard opened up pre-purchases, which come with a free level 100 character boost.