When you first start your character in this game, you’ll have to choose between two factions and several World of Warcraft races. Currently, there are a total of ten races in the game, with five for each faction. The Alliance has Dranei, Dwarves, Humans, Night Elves and Gnomes, while the Horde faction has Tauren, Blood Elves, Orcs, Trolls and the Undead. While there are more WoW races in the works, currently, these are the only options that are available.
The World of Warcraft race you select will have a large bearing on the skills and professions that you will have access to, as well as the available classes. For example, if you decide to play as a Night Elf, you can choose from the classes of Druid, Hunter, Priest, Warrior or Rogue. If you decide to roll as a Tauren, you would be able to select from Druid, Shaman, Hunter or Warrior. Each WoW race has specific attributes and inborn racial talents that will affect how they handle certain situations.
If you are looking for a versatile World of Warcraft race on the Alliance side, the human characters generally have the most available options. On the Horde side, the same is true of the Blood Elves. While your options are wide open when selecting your WoW race, you should keep in mind that specific races and classes are better at ranged warfare, or melee warfare. Elves are generally considered to be ranged warriors, while Trolls and Dranei are better at melee fighting. It is fun to experiment with the different races and character builds to see what you can come up with.