World of Warcraft: Forever has a quest helper built in: quest markers and highlighted objective areas on your world map, and a minimap that points toward nearby objectives. If you are not seeing them, the usual reason is the Classic Experience Preset you may have picked on your first login, which switches them off; turn the quest points of interest and objective setting back on under Game Menu > Options, then make sure the quest is tracked in your Quest Log.
You do not need an addon for any of this, although many players add Questie on top. Below we cover what the built-in helper does, how each preset sets it, how to switch it on, why a marker can still be missing, and when Questie is worth installing, checked against Blizzard’s new player’s starter guide and development notes as of November 12, eight days after launch.
What the Built-In Quest Helper Does
Blizzard’s starter guide describes three pieces that work together:
- The quest tracker. “Accepting a quest adds it to your Quest Log which will show objectives automatically on your screen.” Blizzard’s October 8 notes also put each quest’s level requirement in the tracker, and quest types now show as text in the tracker, the Quest Log and quest dialogue.
- The world map. Press M “to open the world map and view quest markers and highlighted objective areas.”
- The minimap. It “also points toward nearby objectives.”
That is the modern World of Warcraft style of questing, added to the original level 1 to 60 world. Players who want the 2004 feel can turn the map help off and go by the quest text alone.
Why It Is Off: The Experience Preset
The first time you log in, Forever asks you to “Choose Your Experience Preset,” before you pick a ruleset. The two presets set the quest helper differently:
| Setting | Classic preset | Enhanced preset |
|---|---|---|
| Quest points of interest and objective blobs | Off | On |
| Character models | Standard Definition | High Definition |
| One-bag | Off | On |
| Screen layout | Classic | Centralized |
Blizzard describes the Classic preset as “a more original-style experience with less automatic guidance,” and that is exactly what goes missing: the markers and the shaded objective areas (“blobs”) on the map. The preset is a starting point, not a lock. Blizzard says “you can change its individual settings later under Game Menu > Options,” but also that “after your initial log in to the game, you will no longer see this screen,” so there is no going back to the preset picker. You change the setting itself.
How to Turn On the Quest Helper
- Press Escape to open the Game Menu, then select Options.
- Find the quest points of interest and objectives setting and switch it on. Blizzard’s guide names the setting but not the tab it sits on, so look through the interface and display settings if it is not on the first page.
- Close Options and press L to open your Quest Log. Select the quest you want and make sure it is set to Track. Blizzard warns that “not all of your quests might appear in the tracker,” so a quest you have not tracked can be missing from the screen even with the helper on.
- Press M. The tracked quest’s markers and objective areas should now show on the map, and the minimap will point the way when you are close.
If the tracker gets cluttered, Blizzard’s advice is to “open the quest log and untrack quests you are not currently pursuing.” To move the tracker or the minimap somewhere else on screen, use Edit Mode; our guide to moving your UI with Edit Mode shows how.
Why a Quest Marker Is Still Missing
- The quest is not tracked. Open the Quest Log and track it.
- That quest’s marker was missing or wrong at launch. Forever adds new and changed quests, and Blizzard has been filling gaps: its November 2 launch notes “added missing point-of-interest markers and adjusted incorrect ones on various quests,” and earlier beta notes added a map marker for the Barrens quest “The Principal Source.” If one quest has no marker, read its text; Blizzard’s own starter guide says quest text “often offers useful clues.” You can also report it in Blizzard’s WoW Forever Bug Report forum.
- An addon is drawing over it. Questie replaces the default tracker with its own, so with it installed, the markers you see are Questie’s. Type
/questie toggleto hide or show Questie’s map markers. - You switched between gamepad and keyboard. Blizzard’s October 8 notes say Edit Mode layouts “are now saved and loaded per ui type,” so the tracker can sit in a different spot in the gamepad UI than in the normal one.
Built-In Helper or Questie?
| Feature | Built-in quest helper | Questie |
|---|---|---|
| Install | None, just a setting | An addon you download and update |
| Objectives for quests in your log | On the map and minimap | On the map and minimap |
| Quest givers you have not met | Not part of Blizzard’s description | Marked with exclamation marks |
| Finding a trainer or vendor | Ask a city guard, who marks it on your map | /questie tomap plus the name |
| Updated by | Blizzard | The addon’s own team, every few days since launch |
For most players, the built-in markers are enough to finish quests. Questie earns its place if you also want quest givers you have not met marked on the map, which helps when you are hunting for experience in a zone you do not know. Our guide to using Questie covers installing it, the map icons and the commands, and our addon install guide shows where the files go. For the rest of our setup advice, see our best addons list and our beginner’s guide.
Every WoW Forever guide we have is on our World of Warcraft hub.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does WoW Forever have a built-in quest helper? Yes. Quest markers and highlighted objective areas show on the world map, the minimap points toward nearby objectives, and the tracker lists your objectives on screen.
Why don’t I have quest markers in WoW Forever? You probably chose the Classic Experience Preset, which turns quest points of interest and objective blobs off. Switch them on under Game Menu > Options.
Can I change my Experience Preset later? Not the preset screen itself, which only appears on your first login. You can change each of its settings, including the quest markers, in Options.
How do I turn off the quest helper? Switch off the quest points of interest and objective setting in Options. If you use Questie, /questie toggle hides its markers too.
Do I need Questie in WoW Forever? No. The built-in markers cover the quests in your log. Questie adds its own markers for quest givers and an NPC search.