AzerothCore vs Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead

A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted game servers options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.

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FeatureAzerothCoreCataclysm: Dark Days Ahead
CategoryGame ServersGame Servers
LicenseAGPL-3.0CC-BY-SA-3.0
LanguageC++C++
Setup difficultyHardMedium
Min. RAM4,096 MB512 MB
Deploymentdocker, bare-metalbare-metal, binary, source
GitHub stars★ 8,732★ 12,896
First released20172013
Replacesofficial WoW serversNetHack

Why pick each one

Choose AzerothCore if…

  • Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
  • First-class Docker support for quick deployment
  • Mature project with 8.7k GitHub stars
  • Written in C++
AzerothCore details

Choose Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead if…

  • Enormous depth
  • Active development
Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead details

Frequently asked questions

Is AzerothCore or Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead better?

Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider AzerothCore if its specific feature set fits your needs better.

Are AzerothCore and Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead free and open-source?

Yes. AzerothCore is licensed under AGPL-3.0 and Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead under CC-BY-SA-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.

Can I run AzerothCore and Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead with Docker?

AzerothCore: yes. Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead: check the project docs for container support.

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