Quick facts about the Forever name error
The error is a known launch-week bug, and Blizzard has a fix for it. The details below are all from Blizzard's own posts and Wowhead's reporting on them.
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- What went wrong: Blizzard said the name check was "overly restrictive". Ordinary names containing the letters c-o-n were rejected.
- The fix: it rolls out with the next restarts in each region. After your region restarts, players who saw "That name is restricted" can try again.
- Reservation window: After a delay, EU names opened around 12:40 p.m. PDT and NA around 1:05 p.m. PDT on October 27 (per Wowhead; the plan was 18:00 CET and 1:00 p.m. PDT). Korea and Taiwan opened October 28 at 07:00 local time. The window closes November 3.
- Limit: up to three characters in total across all rulesets during Early Name Reservation.
- Who can reserve: accounts with the Skyborne Heroic Pack, Skyborne Epic Pack, Warcraft Forever Collection or Collector's Edition.
- Name format: a main name plus a mandatory second name. Names are unique per region across every ruleset, and they're first come, first served.
| Likely cause | How to recognise it | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The over-strict filter bug | A harmless name gets rejected, often one with "con" somewhere inside it | Wait for your region's restart, then enter the same name again |
| A word the naming policy blocks on purpose | The name contains something offensive or against the policy, even as part of a longer word | Pick a different name, because a restart won't change this result |
| One half of the full name trips the check | The error appears even though one half looks harmless | Change one half at a time to find out which part is being flagged |
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Forever Secondary Skills: Cooking, First Aid & FishingAll three secondary skills to 300 on your character.from 282 EURGet it doneWhy does Forever block normal names like ones containing "con"?
The filter was matching letter strings inside names, so it caught words that only happened to contain a flagged sequence. Blizzard used "c-o-n" as its example, which means many common names and fantasy names were caught too.
The name itself was never the problem. Once the restart in your region has gone through, the same input should be accepted unless someone else has already taken it.
Could I lose my name while waiting for the fix?
Yes. Forever names are first come, first served and are not guaranteed. A name is also unique across every ruleset in your region, so a player on any ruleset could take it before your retry.
The real risk is being slow after the restart, not the bug itself.
Is the error about the first name or the second name?
Forever needs both a main name and a second name. If you get the error, change only one half and submit again. Whichever change makes the error disappear tells you which part was being flagged.
This is useful after the fix too. If one half is still refused after the restart, the cause is probably the naming policy, not the bug. Waiting won't help in that case.
How many characters can I reserve, and on which rulesets?
You can reserve up to three characters in total across every ruleset, not three per ruleset. For example, two characters on PvP leave you one for Normal, Roleplaying or Roleplay-PvP.
The three-character cap only applies to Early Name Reservation. Once the game launches on November 4 at 3 p.m. Pacific, the normal character rules apply.
My Roleplay ruleset vanished on Oceanic servers. Is that the same bug?
No. Blizzard reported a separate bug for players on Australian servers. If you create Normal or PvP characters first, the Roleplay and Roleplay-PvP rulesets can disappear for any later characters.
The workaround is to create your Roleplay or Roleplay-PvP characters first. Blizzard has said an urgent fix is in progress.
Once your name is secured, the next step is November 4. If you'd rather have a vetted human player help with the climb to 60 or the first dungeons, PewPewShop's Forever leveling help starts from 9 EUR and begins at launch, in the order orders arrive.
Frequently asked questions
What does "That name is restricted" mean in WoW: Forever?
The game's name check rejected your name. During the first days of Early Name Reservation, the usual reason was a bug: Blizzard admitted the check was overly restrictive and blocked harmless names, such as ones containing "con". A smaller share of cases are names that break the naming policy, and those stay blocked after the fix.
When will the WoW: Forever name check bug be fixed?
Blizzard said the fix comes with the next restarts in each region. Once your region has restarted, you can enter the same name again and it should be accepted, as long as nobody else has claimed it in the meantime. Early Name Reservation stays open through November 3, so there is still time to retry.
How long does WoW: Forever name reservation last?
Early Name Reservation runs from October 27 until November 3, 2026. It was scheduled for 18:00 CET in Europe and 1:00 p.m. PDT in North America on October 27 (it opened late after technical problems, per Wowhead) and 07:00 local time on October 28 in Korea and Taiwan. The game launches on November 4 at 3 p.m. Pacific.
How many names can I reserve in WoW: Forever?
You can reserve up to three characters in total, shared across all rulesets: Normal, PvP, Roleplaying and Roleplay-PvP. You need the Skyborne Heroic Pack, Skyborne Epic Pack, Warcraft Forever Collection or Collector's Edition on that account. The three-character limit applies only to the reservation period.
Are WoW: Forever names unique per realm?
Forever has no realms. You choose a ruleset instead. Names are unique per region across every ruleset, so a name taken on PvP can't be used on Normal in the same region. Each character needs a main name and a mandatory second name. Names are first come, first served.