Warlords of Draenor blog post explains how followers work

The latest in a series of World of Warcraft blog posts on garrisons in the upcoming Warlords of Draenor expansion looks at followers, the handy gang of folks who will move in, follow you around (the clue is in their name), and generally do your bidding.

A sprawling, swanky home base isn't much use (or fun) without some people around to give it that lived-in feeling, and also to make you feel like you're actually in charge of something. Thus, in World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor, you will have followers, who will begin to take up occupancy in your garrison once you've established a barracks. You can collect as many as you like, although garrisons will only "operate properly" with a population of 20, or 25 if your barracks are level three; fortunately, followers can be made inactive, which will allow you to keep them around while still maintaining a manageable population.

Followers come in three qualities, Uncommon, Rare, and Epic, which will limit their specific abilities and traits: An Uncommon follower will have one ability and one trait, a Rare follower gets one ability and two traits, and an Epic brings two abilities and three traits to the table. All followers can be upgraded to Epic after they hit level 100, gaining randomized traits and a second ability as they progress.

Traits and abilities determine what you'll do with your underlings: Those with a specific Profession bonus can be assigned to buildings devoted to that particular profession, while those more suited for fighting can be sent out on missions. Once you've gained a level two Tavern, you'll also be able to take advantage of a "headhunter" in order to request new follower with specific abilities or traits. Followers can be purchased or gained by completing Garrison missions or quests in certain Draenor zones, and a handful, like Nat Pagle, can only be attracted by doing "great deeds in the field of their expertise."

The full breakdown of followers is up now at Battle.net. If you missed the previous blog entries on garrisons, you can also take in the first part, an overview, and the second part, on garrison buildings. World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor launches on November 13.