The TLDR edition :

If you want to play free, and with Malaysians (but in a sea of Chinese speaking community,  go WoW Taiwan. There's a guide)

If you plan to play from scratch in USA/ EU / Oceania, you'll need to fork out nearing RM500 (especially if you go for digital deluxe edition) . For Base game + related expansions + time card. If you set up subscription in advance the cost balloons up (because you pay upfront) to nearing 700 or so.

If you plan to play in the USA/EU/Oceania, have a friend use "recruit a friend" feature. That way you get an extra 30 days on top of your 30 days (from the Base game) with lots of powerlevel services freebies from Blizzard that you and your friend will DEFINITELY enjoy since the new expansion is coming out in two weeks time and you'll need all the advantage you can get

sorry, look at the post below.
this is correct. I forgot that its now a cheaper bundle. OR, play WOW Taiwan, where you only need to pay for subsription fee (no need to buy expansion and base game)
okay lah, i've been doing the shitty ring quest for 2 months ++, now need 33 tomes and 25/25 treasures on naval missions.. /facepalm GG.com goodbye ring