When the game will not start
Azeroth Survivors not loading: what the game’s messages mean
The game runs at wow.aethus.pl. When it will not start, its page says why on screen before anything else happens. Read that message here. The quoted lines are the game’s own, and each step is what the game’s page says to do next.
Check this browser
The game checks 2 things before it starts: whether the browser offers WebGPU, and whether it can get a graphics card. This button checks the same 2 things and downloads nothing from the game.
Nothing is sent anywhere. The check looks at this browser only; the game’s server is a separate question.
The message on the screen
Find the words the game shows. The quoted line in each message is the game’s own; the steps under it are what the game’s page says next.
This browser has no WebGPU
"This browser has no WebGPU. The world needs it: use a current Chrome, Edge or Safari (Linux Chrome: enable chrome://flags/#enable-unsafe-webgpu)."
The browser cannot show the 3D world, so the game stops before it starts.
- Open the game in a current Chrome, Edge or Safari.
- On Chrome under Linux, turn on chrome://flags/#enable-unsafe-webgpu, then restart the browser.
- If it still says it, the Windows version needs no WebGPU.
WebGPU found no usable graphics card
"WebGPU found no usable graphics card."
The browser has WebGPU but could not get a graphics card for it. The rest of the game’s message says the same as the steps below.
- Turn on "Use graphics acceleration when available" in chrome://settings/system or edge://settings/system.
- Update the graphics driver.
- On a laptop with 2 graphics chips, set the browser to the dedicated one: Windows Settings > System > Display > Graphics > Chrome (or Edge) > High performance. Then restart the browser.
- chrome://gpu shows why WebGPU is disabled.
- The Windows version needs no WebGPU.
The graphics card stopped responding
"The graphics card stopped responding to the game (WebGPU device lost: …)."
"The phone's graphics driver crashed while the game was preparing a shader (WebGPU device lost: …)."
The browser lost the graphics device. The picture freezes or goes black, and the game cannot carry on in that tab.
- Reload the page.
- If it repeats on a laptop with 2 GPUs, set the browser to the dedicated one and restart it.
- On a phone, the same message names the driver crash: reload, and if it repeats use a desktop browser or the Windows version.
Too many people are playing!!!
"Too many people are playing!!! Join our Discord or download the game for Windows!!!"
The game’s server has reached its daily request limit. Nothing is wrong with your computer.
- The Discord and the Windows download in the message still work while the limit is full.
- Wait and reload, or use the Windows version.
- The game gives no waiting time.
- Take the download from wow.aethus.pl, not from another site.
Fake website detected!
"Fake website detected! Azeroth Survivors is free at its real page: wow.aethus.pl"
The game runs only at its own page. A copy on another site, or a page that frames it, does not start.
- Open wow.aethus.pl directly.
- If you played on the copy, the message offers a "Download your save" button. Save the file.
- On the real page, open Options › Saves › Import Save and pick the file.
- This site links Azeroth Survivors and does not frame it.
The game failed to start in this browser
"The game failed to start in this browser (…)."
The game stopped with an error while it was starting. The text in parentheses is the reason, and it decides which message above applies.
- Read the text in parentheses before changing anything.
- If it names WebGPU, read the 2 WebGPU messages above.
- If it says HTTP 429, the daily request limit is the cause. Read the "Too many people" message.
- Keep the exact text when you ask for help.
A black screen with no message
The first visit is still downloading the game’s files, or the browser lost the graphics device. A black canvas is not always a fault.
- Keep the tab open and give the first visit time; later visits reuse what the browser kept.
- If a message appears, read it here.
- If it stays black after a long wait, reload once; if it repeats, try another browser or the Windows version.
Progress and saves
The browser keeps your progress in its own storage, and the game writes it to a file when you ask.
"Your progress (heroes, the zones each class has opened, gear, talents and the codex) as a file: to keep a copy, or to carry it to another computer or browser."
Clearing the site’s data, a private window, or another browser starts fresh.
Export the file before you change browser, clear data or move to another computer.
- Open Options › Saves.
- Choose Export Save. The browser downloads the file.
- On the other browser, open the same screen and choose Import Save.
- Pick the file.
"Importing a save replaces all of your progress with the one in the file."
The same screen keeps the last 5 hourly backups:
"Every hour you play, the game keeps a backup of your progress (the last 5). Import one to go back to it."
"That is not an Azeroth Survivors save file."
Pick the file you exported, not another file.
"That save file is damaged or was edited, and cannot be read."
The game rejects a damaged or edited save. Use another export or one of the hourly backups.
Lag and the graphics settings
The game’s own Graphics screen names the settings that cost frame rate. The words under each name are the game’s, in this page’s language.
| Setting | The game’s words |
|---|---|
| Terrain Distance | Changes how far you can see terrain. Decrease to improve performance. |
| Environment Detail | Controls how far you can see objects. Decrease to improve performance. |
| Spell Detail | Controls the detail level of spell effects. Decrease to improve performance. |
| Weather Intensity | Controls the intensity of weather effects. Decrease to improve performance. |
| Render Scale | Draws the 3D world at a fraction of the window's resolution, or larger than it. Below 100% trades sharpness for frame rate; above 100% smooths edges at the cost of frame rate. |
| Multisampling | Smooths the jagged edges of the 3D world at some cost in frame rate; your graphics card may offer less than asked. Takes effect the next time the game starts. |
On a laptop with 2 GPUs, the dedicated-GPU setting from the graphics-card message above applies here too.
The damage meter is a switch on the Interface screen: Show Damage Meter. If you cannot find it, the AddOns page shows the switch and its views. The damage meter and the addons
Phones and gamepads
The game has touch controls. On most phones the first tap goes fullscreen and holds landscape where the browser allows it. On an iPhone a page cannot go fullscreen or lock the orientation, so turn the phone sideways; the browser bars stay.
A phone’s graphics driver can crash while the game prepares a shader. The game says so and asks for a reload; if it repeats, use a desktop browser or the Windows version.
Options › Gamepad
"Left stick moves, right stick turns the view, A jumps, bumpers and triggers zoom, Y opens stored level-ups. Changes apply at once."
Every key the game uses is on the first-run guide: How to play
The Windows version
The game’s page links a Windows download for machines whose browser cannot run it. That version needs no WebGPU.
The archive is about 755 MB and comes from wow.aethus.pl only. A copy on another site is not the game.
macOS, Linux and the Steam Deck
The developer ships a Linux version for x86_64 machines. Take it from the game’s download, or from the download channel in its Discord. Unpack it and start the game; it updates itself the way the Windows version does. On a Steam Deck, switch to Desktop Mode first, then take that same Linux version.
The developer ships no macOS version. The Mac version in the guides channel of the game’s Discord is a player’s and comes with a readme of its own. This page has not tried it. On a Mac, the version the developer ships is the one in the browser: open wow.aethus.pl in a current Safari or Chrome.
If none of this works
The game’s community is on Discord, and the game’s own page links to the invite.
Say what the screen says, word for word, and which browser and system you used. For a graphics crash, the browser’s console has a report of the shader the browser was building.
Beyond the check above, this page cannot see your browser or the game’s server. It can quote the words the game prints.
What a mark buys and how a piece gets its stars are on the gear pages: Boss gear
The keys and what the co-op lobby says when it turns you away are on the first-run guide: How to play
The game’s Discord (opens in a new tab)The game’s page (opens in a new tab)
Questions
Why does the game say my browser has no WebGPU?
The game uses WebGPU to show its 3D world. A current Chrome, Edge or Safari has it; Chrome under Linux needs chrome://flags/#enable-unsafe-webgpu. The Windows version needs no WebGPU.
What does "WebGPU found no usable graphics card" mean?
The browser has WebGPU but could not get a graphics card for it. Turn on graphics acceleration, update the driver, and on a laptop with 2 chips choose the dedicated GPU for the browser. chrome://gpu says why it is off.
What does "Too many people are playing" mean?
The game’s server has reached its daily request limit. Nothing is wrong with your computer. The message’s Discord and Windows download still work, and the game gives no waiting time.
Does the Windows version need WebGPU?
No. The archive is about 755 MB and comes from wow.aethus.pl; it runs without the browser’s graphics feature.
Will I lose my progress if I switch browsers?
The browser keeps progress in its own storage. Export it first at Options › Saves › Export Save, then Import Save on the other browser. Importing replaces all progress, and the game keeps the last 5 hourly backups.
Can I play on a phone?
The game has touch controls. On most phones the first tap goes fullscreen and holds landscape; on an iPhone a page cannot go fullscreen, so turn the phone sideways. A phone driver can crash while preparing a shader; reload if it does.
Is this the same game the tier list ranks?
No. The browser game at wow.aethus.pl is the original; this site ranks a fan rebuild with its own numbers. This page helps with the original, and the rebuild’s numbers are on the class pages.
Where these words come from
The facts on this page come from the game’s page at wow.aethus.pl and the code that starts the game (build f31d0e03e3ac), read on 2026-11-01. The words on its Options, Saves and Graphics screens come from the game’s own text in this page’s language. The game prints the launch messages in English in every language; this page quotes them word for word and explains them here. The Windows archive was 755 MB on that day. The Linux and Mac paths come from the game’s Discord, read on 2026-11-04: the developer’s own download and notes, and guides posted there for the Steam Deck and the Mac. The fan rebuild this site ranks has its own numbers. They are on the class pages, and nothing here measures it.