[Forever Beta 1.60.1.69913] DXR capability query returns rt:None on native Windows (RTX 4090)

Support Bug Report
1

SYSTEM
Native Windows 11, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 24GB (Ada), driver 32.0.16.1656 (20-Aug-2026), DirectX 12, i9-13900K. No overlays, no mods. Forever Beta build 1.60.1.69913.

SUMMARY
Ray Traced Shadows are unavailable in the Forever Beta (“Unsupported for graphics related reasons” on Fair/Good/High). The same PC, same driver, same GPU enables Ray Traced Shadows normally in Classic Anniversary. The Forever client’s GPU capability query reports no ray tracing support where the Anniversary client reports DXR 1.1.

EVIDENCE: gx.log, both clients, same machine, ~10 hours apart

Forever Beta:
Adapter 0: “NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090” 24GB family:Ada type:Discrete location:1 driver_date:20-Aug-2026 driver_ver:32.0.16.1656 vendor:0x10de device:0x2684 dx11:true dx12:true
GpuInfo: sm:dx_6_0, rt:None, vrs:2, bary:1, mesh:1 pull:1

Classic Anniversary:
Adapter 0: “NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090” 24GB family:Ada type:Discrete location:1 driver_date:20-Aug-2026 driver_ver:32.0.16.1656 vendor:0x10de device:0x2684 dx11:true dx12:true
GpuInfo: sm:dx_6_0, rt:DXR 1.1, vrs:2, bary:1, mesh:1 pull:1

Adapter lines are byte-identical. Only the rt field differs.

LAYERS RULED OUT

  1. Driver/hardware: Anniversary enables Ray Traced Shadows on this exact system.
  2. Error path: gx.log shows no error or failed call around detection. The query returns None silently.
  3. Live CVar: SetCVar(“shadowRt”,1) reads back 0 (clamped).
  4. Config file: pre-seeding SET shadowRt “3” in Forever’s Config.wtf (copied from the working Anniversary config) is discarded at launch; the settings UI still shows all levels unsupported.
  5. ClientSettings gates: ClientSettings_RAY_TRACING_BY_API_MASK and ClientSettings_RAY_TRACING_BY_GPU_CATEGORY exist in both builds, both unset; GetCVarInfo shows no value and all flags false in both. Anniversary enables RT with that same unset state, so these entries are not the difference.
  6. GxCompatOptionalGpuFeatures = 1 in Forever.

CONCLUSION
The regression is in the Forever build’s DXR capability detection itself, not in user settings, config, driver, or hardware. Present in 1.60.1.69913; the same symptom was reported on 1.60.1.69893, so it has persisted across at least one build.

EXPECTED
Forever should detect DXR 1.1 on this system as Classic Anniversary does, and Ray Traced Shadows should be selectable.

RELATED
Same rt:None pattern under Wine/Proton on RTX 4080 and RTX 5090 (both with retail/Anniversary detecting DXR 1.1 on the same machine): [Forever Beta 1.60.1.69893] DXR incorrectly detected as unsupported under Wine/Proton
Native Windows RTX 3080 report: GitHub ClassicWoWCommunity/forever-bugs issue #16.

2

Similar:

I’m seeing two graphics-feature problems in the current WoW: Forever Beta on an MSI GeForce RTX 4090 SUPRIM LIQUID X 24G using the current NVIDIA 617.14 driver.

WoW: Forever Beta build: 1.60.1.70009

1. Ray Traced Shadows

Ray Traced Shadows are unavailable in Options → Graphics. Every quality level displays:

“Unsupported for graphics related reasons”

Forever’s Logs\gx.log reports:

9/25 20:39:31.882  [0] GpuInfo: sm:dx_6_0, rt:None, vrs:2, bary:1, mesh:1 pull:1

On the same PC, same RTX 4090, same Windows installation, and same NVIDIA 617.14 driver, Retail reports:

9/25 20:51:01.601  [0] GpuInfo: sm:dx_6_0, rt:DXR 1.1, vrs:2, bary:1, mesh:1 pull:1

Forever therefore reports no ray-tracing capability (rt:None) on hardware that Retail correctly detects as supporting DXR 1.1.

2. Variable Rate Shading

Forever also refuses to enable either Standard or Aggressive VRS. Both options display:

“Unsupported for graphics related reasons”

However, Forever’s own GPU capability line correctly reports:

vrs:2

This appears to be a different failure from DXR: the Forever client successfully detects VRS Tier 2 support but nevertheless rejects both VRS modes in the graphics UI.

I have verified the normal VRS/graphics prerequisites:

  • Graphics API is DirectX 12
  • Optional GPU Features are enabled
  • MSAA is not enabled
  • GPU is an RTX 4090
  • NVIDIA driver is 617.14
  • Retail on the same machine correctly detects DXR 1.1
  • Both Retail and Forever report vrs:2

Restarting Forever does not change the behavior.

Steps to reproduce

  1. Launch WoW: Forever Beta.
  2. Open Options → Graphics.
  3. Inspect Ray Traced Shadows.
  4. Observe all RT quality levels are unavailable with “Unsupported for graphics related reasons.”
  5. Inspect VRS Mode.
  6. Observe Standard and Aggressive are also unavailable with the same message.
  7. Exit Forever normally.
  8. Inspect _classic_beta_\Logs\gx.log.
  9. Observe:
rt:None, vrs:2
  1. Launch Retail on the same PC.
  2. Inspect Retail’s Logs\gx.log.
  3. Observe:
rt:DXR 1.1, vrs:2

Expected behavior

Forever should detect the RTX 4090 as supporting DXR 1.1 and allow Ray Traced Shadows.

Since Forever already detects VRS Tier 2 (vrs:2), Standard and Aggressive VRS should also be available when the normal graphics prerequisites are satisfied.

Actual behavior

  • Forever reports rt:None and disables Ray Traced Shadows.
  • Forever reports vrs:2 but nevertheless disables both VRS modes.

This appears specific to the Forever graphics/rendering path rather than the GPU, Windows installation, or NVIDIA driver, since Retail is running on the exact same machine and correctly reports rt:DXR 1.1.