Playing WoW Forever with friends: what to agree before launch

To play WoW Forever with friends, you need the same ruleset and the same faction. That's the rule Blizzard repeats everywhere, and getting it wrong means starting again, because you can't freely move between rulesets. Sort this before anyone makes a character.

Agree on these first

Ruleset: Normal, PvP, Roleplay or Roleplay-PvP. Hardcore comes later. Cross-ruleset grouping isn't supported. See choosing a ruleset.
Faction: Horde and Alliance can't group. On the PvP ruleset you can only make one faction on your account, so the first character decides. See can't create a Horde character.
Preferred Online Language: this is account-wide, with a 24-hour cooldown. Set the same one so you land among the same community. Whether it can split you from friends isn't stated, so we'd match it anyway.
Race: this sets where you start. Blizzard says race determines your starting location.

Starting together

Skyborne start on Zephras Isle for levels 1 to 12 and need the Heroic Pack or higher. So a Skyborne and a friend on the base game don't start together, and Blizzard doesn't list a shortcut.

In Classic the pairs were Dwarf and Gnome, or Orc and Troll, while Human, Night Elf, Tauren and Undead each started alone. Forever may keep that, but it's Unverified, so check at character creation.

Does party play slow you down

Confirmed from Blizzard's 8 October notes:

Experience from low-level enemies is worked out per player, as in Classic Era.
If one party member is far above the enemy's level, nobody in the party gets experience. So a high-level friend can't power you through a zone for experience, and no level scaling evens things out.

Layers and getting split up

Blizzard's notes refer to "world instances". On 1 October it listed a known issue where changing party makeup could move players between them, and later said party leaders should no longer be moved. Beta players describe being moved automatically, with no way to pick one, but that part is Unverified.

If you can't see a friend after grouping, re-form the group and give it a moment. That's our suggestion, not Blizzard's.

Finding a dungeon group

Blizzard's notes mention a Group Finder with postings, which can also set up voice chat through Discord or in-game voice. Beta reports say it doesn't form the group or teleport you, so you travel there together. The dungeons in order list shows what fits your level.

If a friend hasn't subscribed

Heroic and Epic pack owners have Invite-A-Friend codes that let a friend play free from 4 to 11 November.

What's worth doing together

Set up a campsite. A Basic Campfire takes up to three features from nearby players, one each, so a group with different professions gets more from it.