Whelgar Excavation Site Dungeon in WoW: Forever — What We Know

Update, October 20, 2026: Blizzard's dungeon overview gives all nine ranges: Hall of Thanes 13–18, Ruins of Lordaeron 15–20, Excavation Site 24–29, City of Dalaran 28–33, The Drowned City 35–40, Krol'dok Stronghold 40–45, Alcaz Prison 48–53, Blackmaw Hold 55–60, Shaper's Terrace 58–60. On the beta, October 1: the Excavation Site in the Wetlands (levels 24–29 per Blizzard's dungeon overview of October 20) is open on the WoW: Forever beta since the level-30 update; the City of Dalaran dungeon comes in a later build. Runs on the beta today: Forever Beta Dungeon Run.

The Excavation Site: Wetlands is one of the nine new dungeons in World of Warcraft: Forever, built above Whelgar's Excavation in the Wetlands of the Eastern Kingdoms. Blizzard confirmed it at BlizzCon on September 12, 2026, and Forever launches November 4, 2026. Wowhead's demo screenshots place it in the Novice tier next to the Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep. Its boss list and loot have not been published yet.

Excavation Site: Wetlands — quick facts

Game version	World of Warcraft: Forever (the third WoW experience, alongside Modern and Classic; often called Classic+)
Location	Above Whelgar's Excavation, Wetlands, Eastern Kingdoms
Official name	Referred to by Blizzard as an Excavation site above Whelgar's Excavation; the demo achievement reads "Excavation Site: Wetlands"
Tier hint	Novice "Spelunker" achievement, with Ragefire Chasm, Hall of Thanes, Wailing Caverns, The Deadmines, Shadowfang Keep and a dungeon called Rath'mael
Level range	Not published — the Novice grouping suggests low-level, but Blizzard has not given numbers
Bosses and loot	Not published
Available from	November 4, 2026, 3 p.m. Pacific (per Blizzard's roadmap)
Beta	September 17 – October 23, 2026, capped at level 30 (Skyborne Epic Pack or Warcraft Forever Collection)

A note on the name: searchers type "Whelgar excavation dungeon", but Whelgar's Excavation itself is the outdoor dig site you already know from the Wetlands. In Forever, a new instanced dungeon sits above that dig. Blizzard's panel recap describes it as an Excavation site above Whelgar's Excavation, and the Spelunker achievement Wowhead photographed at the demo calls it Excavation Site: Wetlands. Both names point at the same instance.

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What level is the Wetlands excavation dungeon?

Blizzard has not published a level range for it. The only clue is that it appears in the Novice Spelunker achievement together with Ragefire Chasm, Wailing Caverns, the Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep, all low-level dungeons in the original game. Hall of Thanes, the one Novice dungeon with an official range, is 13–18. Treat any specific number you see elsewhere as a guess until Blizzard prints one.

Because Forever has no level scaling, the dungeon will have a fixed intended range like every other instance in the game. The Wetlands as a zone has always been a mid-20s leveling area, which is consistent with a Novice-tier placement, but that is inference, not confirmation.

Is it tied to the Explorers' League?

Whelgar's Excavation has long been a dwarven dig, so people naturally search for an Explorers' League dungeon in Forever. Blizzard's announcement did not describe the dungeon's story, bosses or which faction runs the dig, so we cannot confirm an Explorers' League connection. It fits the setting, but until the boss list or quest text appears, keep it filed under unknown.

What are the other new Forever dungeons?

Nine new dungeons ship at launch. Hall of Thanes sits beneath Ironforge (13–18, Alliance, Horde can enter). Ruins of Lordaeron is the Horde mirror (15–20, Alliance can enter). City of Dalaran covers 28–33. Drowned City is a troll ruin off Stranglethorn Vale and Blackmaw Hold is a furbolg city. Three dungeons serve the 40–60 bracket: Alcaz Prison, Shaper's Terrace and Krol'dok Stronghold. Every original Classic dungeon returns as well, spread across the Novice, Experienced and Master Spelunker achievements.

Can I play it in the beta?

The Forever beta ran September 17 to October 23, 2026, with play capped at level 30 and access through the Skyborne Epic Pack or the Warcraft Forever Collection. Blizzard has not said which dungeons are open in the beta. If the Excavation Site is a low-level instance, as the Novice grouping suggests, it would fall inside the level 30 cap, but that is not a confirmation that it is testable.

If you would rather clear it with a vetted human group on launch week instead of pugging a brand-new instance, PewPewShop offers an Excavation Site Dungeon Run (Wetlands) from EUR 29, or a Forever Dungeon Run for any dungeon from EUR 23, as launch orders until November 4 — play-together with experienced players, no bots, no cheats.