This guide is in a beta test stage. It has been tested. But there are many things that could cause problems - from missing video drivers to unsupported screen resolutions. If you experience any problems, please contact us via Discord. We will try to support you. Please find the link in the "Important link" section on this page.
For Mac users: This tutorial is for Windows users. If you are using a Mac, you can follow the instructions including the section "Installing addons and script". Everything beyond that point won't work on Mac, as the required tool Autohotkey isn't available for that plattform. You'll have to complete the remaining steps with sighted help or OCR and screen readers instead.
What to expect
This guide will enable a blind person to set up and play World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade Classic - the Anniversary version (WoW TBC, game version 2.5.6) - autonomously. We've developed an ingame addon called Sku for that.
Setting everything up should require 30 minutes to 1 hour (depending on your internet connection, machine, etc.). Upon completing all the steps in this guide, you'll be in the game and ready to go. There's no sighted help required. But it might be helpful or speed up the process.
Our community is there to support you on your first steps. Contact us via Discord:
https://discord.gg/AzFwTDmpbk
You will find voice channels as well as text channels for questions and contacts.
There are already Sku users (blind and sighted) in different realms. Many of them are happy to support you on your first steps.
U.S. realms:
No recommended realms or guilds at the moment. Please ask on our Discord server.
EU realms:
Alliance: Lakeshire (Deutsch/German), Gilde "Flügel an Flügel)
Horde: Everlook (Deutsch/German)
Alliance: Pyrewood Village (English)
Horde: Mirage Raceway (English)
What we expect
Keep in mind that the Sku addon was build with a lot of effort from awesome people. Up to this point, developers, route creators and test players have spent 12 months to bring World of Warcraft to blind players. It will take several more months to finish the project.
We are happy to hear your feedback. If you would like to test the game and report bugs or problems, you are welcome to do so. However, please do not expect all content to be available. Some specific parts of the game, like PvP, will most likely not be available to you.
Please try to provide an adequate feedback. We are really looking forward to active contributions!
Installation and setup
To play WoW TBC as a blind person, the following steps are required. They are detailed in the next sections:
Create a Battlenet account
Sign up for a WoW subscription
Download and install WoW
Install the addons and scripts
Select a realm and create a character
Configure the game
Play
Create a Battlenet account
Battlenet is a general service provided by Blizzard (the developer of WoW). It is required to play WoW. So you need to create a free Battlenet account. Proceed as follows:
Open the account creation page:
https://account.battle.net/creation/flow/creation-full
Follow the steps on that page to create an account.
Tip: The site may check if you are a bot. You need to solve a captcha, There is an audio version for that challenge. Look for a "Use an audio challenge" button.
After you've created an account, you are automatically logged in to Battlenet and redirected to the "ACCOUNT OVERVIEW" page, showing your profile.
After account creation you are automatically logged in to Battlenet and redirected to the "ACCOUNT OVERVIEW" page, showing your profile.
(https://account.battle.net/overview)
Subscribe to WoW
Now, on that page (https://account.battle.net/overview) you need to sign up for a subscription to the game. This is how it works:
There is a menu on the left. Select "GAMES & SUBSCRIPTIONS" or navigate to the following URL:
https://account.battle.net/games
First of all, you need a WoW account. It's not the same as the Battlenet account you've created earlier. The Battlenet account is for all Blizzard games and services. The WoW account is for WoW only. Select "CREATE STARTER ACCOUNT".
Select "Europe" or "Americas & Oceania" for the region. The region depends on where you are located. Be aware that you can't change that region later on. You are bound to that region. The regions are fully separated. You can't play on EU realms if your subscription is for the "Americas & Oceania" region and vice versa. The appropiate region for your location should be selected by default.
Once you've selected the region, click on "Create account".
At the top of the page you will find a new section named "GAME ACCOUNTS" with a section labeled "World of Warcraft (WoW1)", "Europe" or "Americas & Oceania" (depending on your region), "Starter Edition". Select "ADD SUBSCRIPTION" to the right of that section.
Select "Continue" to agree to the privacy policy. (That step may or may not be required, depending on your location.)
You are automatically redirected to a page showing the available subscriptions. There are "1 month - $12.99 / month" and 3 or 6 months. If you choose 3 or 6 months, you will prepay for 3 or 6 month and save a total of three or six dollars. If you would like to give WoW a try, you probably want to choose "1 month - $12.99 / month". That subscription can be cancelled on a monthly basis.
It seems to be challenging to find the correct option using a screen reader. Therefore, you may need sighted assistance for that step. But it definitely is doable without help.
Tip: Google Chrome seams to be the best for this. If you're using NVDA; go into focus mode by pressing NVDA plus space, then tab to the subscription you want, you may have to press your NVDA and left mouse button to rute the mouse then click it, do this by pressing the left mouse button on the keyboard. You then have to tab to the link and press enter.
After you have selected "1 month - $12.99 / month", select "Subscribe now", enter your payment details, and follow the remaining steps of the subscription process.
Download and install WoW
Once you have created your Battlenet account, and your WoW account, and subscribed to WoW, you need to download and install the game:
Open the Blizzard game download page:
https://www.blizzard.com/en-us/download/
Download "World of Warcraft". That will start the download of the file "World-of-Warcraft-Setup.exe".
Run "World-of-Warcraft-Setup.exe" to start the installation.
That will start the installation of the Battlenet client. Using that client, you will install and start the game later on.
Wait for the Battlenet client to be installed and launched. Then log in using your Battlenet account.
The installation of the WoW game client will start automatically. Select "Start installation". There might be some popups. Just confirm them until you are in the Battlenet app.
The Battlenet app has automatically started installing the regular WoW version (retail). However, we are playing the Classic Anniversary version of WoW - The Burning Crusade (2.5.6). In the Battlenet app, find "World of Warcraft Classic" and, in the dropdown menu below "Game Version", select the Anniversary version of The Burning Crusade (2.5.6). Then select the "Install" button right below the dropdown.
Review the installation options, and select "Start Installation".
The "Install" button in the Battlenet app will change to "Installing". The installation is about 7 GB and may take some time. At some point the button in the Battlenet app will change from "Installing" to "Play".
At that point select "Play" and the game will launch.
Wait for the game to be launched (as soon as you hear music it is launched). Then quit the game (with ALT + F4). You need to complete some more steps in order to play!
Install the Sku addons and the login tool
The easiest way is the Sku Installer - a small, screen-reader-friendly Windows program that does the whole setup for you. It finds your World of Warcraft folder, downloads Sku together with all required companion addons, copies everything into place, switches on the game settings Sku needs, and also installs the WoW Login Tool (with a bundled AutoHotkey and a desktop shortcut). Here is how:
Download the Sku Installer from the Sku download page:
https://sku75.github.io/Sku-WoW-Addon-TBC/
Run it. When Windows asks, allow it to run as administrator.
Choose your voice language pack, leave the recommended options ticked (including "Install the WoW Login Tool"), and activate "Install / Update Sku". The installer downloads and copies everything and tells you when it is done.
That is it - the addons, the required game settings, and the WoW Login Tool are all set up. A "WoW Login Tool" shortcut is placed on your desktop and in the Start menu.
Prefer to install by hand (or you are on a Mac, where the installer and AutoHotkey are not available)? Follow the manual installation guide linked on the download page instead.
One step still happens inside the game: after installing, the Sku addons have to be enabled once (sighted help). Start the game, at the character screen press ESC, open the menu, choose "AddOns", tick all the Sku addons (they may show red as "out of date" - that is fine), tick "Load out of date AddOns" at the top, and choose "Reload UI". After the reload Sku speaks. Test with SHIFT + F1: the Sku menu opens and announces "Navigation"; ESC closes it.
Select a realm and create a character
Start the game
You need to start the game again.
The Battlenet app probably still is open. If not, launch it.
Check that the Anniversary version of The Burning Crusade (2.5.6) is selected in the dropdown menu below "Game version" in the Battlenet app.
Select "Play" right below the dropdown. The game will be launched.
Start the mouse script
To select a realm and create a character you need the WoW Login Tool. Start it from the "WoW Login Tool" shortcut on your desktop (the Sku Installer placed it there).
The WoW Login Tool has a voice prompt. On the very first start it runs a short spoken setup: you choose the voice, the language, the region and the game version with the arrow keys and ENTER. Your answers are saved, so this happens only once.
Then it says Paused. It silently waits for the game to be started and launched. If it detects the WoW game window the WoW Login Tool automatically switches to Login mode.
It says, Login Mode. That means that the tool is now in login mode, and will assist you with logging into the game, realm selection, and character creation.
Note: It would be helpful to read/listen to the next steps on another device (tablet, smartphone, whatever is available). The WoW Login Tool will be activated every time the WoW window gets focused upon. It pauses whenever the WoW window loses focus (for example, if you're switching to this page to listen to the next step). If the tool is in the middle of an action when the WoW window loses focus, it stops that action safely within about a second; you can also abort a running action yourself with ALT + F1. On every new activation (if you're switching back to the WoW window) it starts with the main menu again, so steps you had already reached in the menu have to be navigated to again. Reading/listening to the steps on another device would avoid that. Alternatively just read all the steps and complete them without leaving the WoW window.
The tool performs an initialization and automatically gets you to the character selection screen of the game. While the tool is processing, you will hear a sound. Wait for that sound to stop. Do not move the mouse, press any key or switch to other windows until processing is completed.
After a while the sound stops and the script says "Main menu". Then you can use the tool to select a realm.
Tip: If something goes wrong, then the tool will try for 60 seconds to recognize the WoW window (you'll hear a sound indicating the script is doing something.). Then the tool stops (the sound stops) and asks you to restart the client and try again. On some machines such issues were solved by starting the WoW client first and then starting the script.
There are more information and troubleshoting steps in the readme.txt file in the WoW Login Tool folder.
Select a realm
The first step is to choose one of the available realms (that will affect which other players you will meet) and to create a character.
Press RIGHT to enter the submenus of the audio menu. There use the up and down arrow keys to browse through the submenus. The submenus are: Select character, Log in with selected character, Create character and Change realm.
You need to select a realm first. Go to Change realm and press RIGHT to enter the submenu of Change realm. There you will find a list of languages (these are the languages for available realms). Select a language and move right to the submenu of the selected language. That submenu contains a list of all realms in that language. Select a realm. Then press ENTER to choose it.
The WoW Login Tool gets active and selects the new realm. It reads the realm list live from the screen, so you hear the actual realm names. You will hear the sound again. Don't do anything until the tool has completed the process. Do not move the mouse. Do not press any key. Just put your hands in the air. :) If you really need to stop the tool mid-action, press ALT + F1.
Create a character
Now you need to decide whether you would like to play Horde or Alliance. Your race depends on this. The race dictates the faction you become a member of in the game. Alliance includes Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome, and Draenei, and Horde includes Orc, Undead, Tauren, Troll, and Blood Elf.
Once the tool has changed your realm, you are back in the menu at Select character. You don't have a character yet and have to create one first. Press DOWN to get to the menu item Create character.
Go right to the submenu. There you need to select the gender. Then go right again to select a race.
Select a race and go right again to the submenu. Now select your class. The available classes depend on the selected race. Browse through the available classes with your up and down arrows. If you want, press LEFT to go back one menu level, select another race, and check out the classes for that race. Browse around to see what classes are available with each race. Then select a race and a class and press ENTER.
Tips for selecting races and classes:
For the beginner, a casting healer is very helpful. That would be Priest or Druid.
Melee classes like Warrior, Rogue and Paladin are not that suitable for a beginner.
You can't change the race and class of the character later, but you can always create more characters with other races and classes.
Again, wait for the tool. It will create the character and ask you to enter a character name. Type your desired name and press ENTER. The script will check if that name is available and valid. If it is not, you will have to enter a new name and press ENTER again. That continues until the name is available and valid. If the game shows a message (for example that the name is already taken), the tool reads it out loud. Then the tool actually creates the character and you end up back in the audio menu.
Tips on character names:
They must not contain the same letter three times or more consecutively.
They must not contain spaces.
They are not case sensitive. The first letter automatically is uppercase, all others are lowercase.
Once you have created your character, it appears in your character list. The tool reads the list straight from the screen with the real character names, levels and classes - for example "1: Anna, level 1 Priest" - so you always hear exactly which character you are choosing.
Once you have created your first character, you can enter the game world with that character.
In order to enter the world with your first character, you first need to select it. Go to Select character, then right, and then select your character by its announced name. Then press ENTER.
The script will select that character, and automatically switches to the Log in with selected character menu item. That is what you want to do. Just press ENTER to select the option.
Now you are entering the game world with your new character. The tool says Play Mode, and will now be in play mode. If that doesn't happen, you can always press ALT + F1 to switch between login and play mode.
There will be an introduction video playing, and you should hear a narrator. As soon as the narrator ends, you will find yourself in the game world at the starting location of your race.
Configure the game
The Sku Installer already switched on the game settings Sku needs. Two things are still worth doing yourself: set the key bindings to Sku's recommended defaults, and adjust the volume. First, the key bindings, via the Sku addon:
Press SHIFT + F1 to open the Sku audio menu.
That main audio menu is your go-to place for all the important activities in the game. All the things that only sighted people can do are available to you via that audio menu. So you will need SHIFT + F1 for the Sku audio menu all the time.
The Sku audio menu works the same way as the audio menu you've used to create your character a few minutes ago. You can use DOWN and UP to move around in the current menu level, RIGHT to go down one menu level, and LEFT to go up one menu level. Use ENTER to select/activate/use the current menu item.
Press DOWN to move to Core and use RIGHT to enter its submenu.
Press DOWN to Game key binds and RIGHT to enter its submenu.
Open Reset all (the first item) with RIGHT, then choose Really reset? (no further warning) with ENTER. This applies Sku's recommended WoW game key layout (WASD movement, targeting, action bars).
Go back with LEFT to the Core menu, move to Sku key binds, RIGHT, and reset those to default the same way. This activates Sku's own key bindings.
Then close the Sku audio menu with SHIFT + F1 or ESCAPE.
Now your key bindings are set to the standard Sku key bindings. More information on the audio menu and the key bindings can be found in the next chapter.
As a last step, you can personalize settings in the Sku addon. The most important one is the volume:
Open the audio menu with SHIFT + F1.
Open the audio menu with SHIFT + F1, then the Settings menu, then the Audio settings.
There you will find the volume options: Total volume, Sound effects volume, Music volume, Environment volume and Dialog volume. Open one, use UP and DOWN to choose a value from 0 to 100, and press ENTER to set it.
Set the total volume so you can comfortably hear the audio menu, and keep sound effects audible next to Sku's speech. (You can turn the music on and off with CTRL + M.) If you cannot find an option, use the settings search at the top of the Settings menu and type "volume".
Then close the audio menu with ESCAPE.
You are done. Now you are truly ready to play.
Play
Here is a first steps video tutorial from Nils. It shows how to play the game and use the Sku addon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3SZoQeOZ7M&list=PLcLfgUsgZkMjVqBI1z_vtITlOelGDf0Aq