Fire Mages have finally gathered their power and are terrible on unleashing awe-inspiring critical strikes on their foes, all while sitting on their rightful throne in the S-tier. It took us a while, but were finally here, back at the top spot. However, in Classic, we have to play on the last patch of the expansion, which sees Bloods DPS nerfed to being completely lackluster. Retail WoW has a plethora of activities to explore outside of raids and dungeons. The raid itself features a good balance of single-target, cleave, and AoE fights, so specs that excel at different types of damage will all get their turn in the spotlight. High DPS in both PvE/PvP Glad Viable (I plan on hitting 2400 top 1% at WoTLK Launch) Unfortunately, this one is redundant, since every single spec of the ubiquitous Warlock class will be applying it automatically. Most Mages will swap to Fire here for this reason, and many guilds will start stacking Fire Mages. However, with the right gear, they really start to take off and are often at the top of the damage meters in many fights. These are known for their straightforwardness, and they're one of the most versatile . Meanwhile, our Battle Shout no longer stacks with Blessing of Might, so our utility has seen an overall nerf, which puts the last nail on our titanic coffin. This is further compounded by the fact that Destruction has virtually non-existent utility in WotLK the only Destruction-exclusive utility we have is Replenishment (Improved Soul Leech), which is also offered by significantly stronger specs. They perform slightly better during earlier phases than Combat Rogues due to the nature of the shorter fights, but on longer fights and fights with cleave, Assassination Rogues fall a bit behind. Their single target and cleave damage is often unparalleled near the end of the expansion and is often at the top of DPS charts. To get the most out of the spec players will want to be equipping the very best gear available for each equipment slot, also known as Best in Slot, or simply BiS.Players will be able to find some of this gear starting on January 17th and will be able to find the loot in Ulduar on January . Coupled with the increased haste and on-demand no cost interrupt effect, they can provide plenty of utility besides the normal Death Knight utility spells available to all the specializations. Blizzard reworked them dramatically in WotLK and, for a short period afterwards, Ret was wildly overpowered. Our damage is not that far behind Survival and, starting in Phase 3, we completely blow their damage out of the water thanks to the abundance of armor penetration. We also have the same strength that MM Hunters have: nearly all of our abilities are instant, so we fare far better than other ranged DPS specs when a fight demands that we move. One aspect that Feral Druids benefit from is extreme survivability, not only through shapeshifting into a bear for an overall higher health pool, but also due to powerful defensive spells such as Barkskin. All jokes aside, Blizzard played a bit of a prank on Affliction Warlocks here: the Tier 10 sets (KelThuzads Regalia) 2-set bonus buffs pets, which Affliction doesnt care too much for, and the 4-set bonus buffs 3 of our DoTs by 10% which is nice for Affliction, but nowhere near as big as what some of the other classes are getting in this tier. While not reaching the top of the DPS meters, theyll typically be very highly competitive, while still offering some incredibly strong utility. This class has been changed a lot in WotLK Classic: Seals can last 30 minutes and aren't removed when a Judgment is cast. However, if we take into account their pure damage output both single-target and AoE as they approach their BiS gear, they will be completely overshadowed by many other caster specializations, potentially dropping as far as the mid to low parts of the C-Tier. In addition to this, the composition of the group will also affect the maximum performance of any particular class. Still, this isnt a very big issue, and many raids will elect to bring multiple Fire Mages in Phase 4, as having ranged damage dealers putting out this much DPS is a godsend. Phase 2 greets Unholy Death Knights with a big grin, granting them spectacular boons. Subtlety is in the same boat as Frost is for Mages the majority of its talents are tailored for PvP, so in the D-tier it remains. Besides their spectacular damage, Unholy Death Knights also grant a high amount of utility through different spells such as Death Grip and talents such as Ebon Plaguebringer, helping their raid by providing displacement, a magical damage-increasing debuff, and many more effects. How could that even happen? some may ask, since barely anything changes for Fury in the expansion. Even my mug has armor penetration on it? You wont be reaching the top spots of the DPS meters as a Boomkin, but youll be doing very well anyway, and everyone in the raid will love you for your utility. Combat Rogues find themselves just a few spots below their Assassination Rogues brethren once again in the second phase of the expansion. Probably the biggest weakness of an Enhancement Shaman is their extremely low survivability, especially due to the high amounts of AoE damage that happen during a standard fight. This is thanks to the hybrid damage they produce, both from their own attacks and that of their pets. Making gold in World of Warcraft can be tough, especially in the Wrath of the Lich King expansion. A Tier: Demonology Warlock (Demo) is a very fun class to play. WotLK Classic Best Class To Play - Paladin One of the most powerful classes in Wrath of the Lich King is the Paladin especially the prot paladin. This is mainly due to their enormous potential for scaling, especially when acquiring vast amounts of Haste. Maybe youre not sure if you want to play your old main or try out something new and exciting. Another reason why Arms Warriors find themselves in the top D-Tier low C-Tier is due to Feral Druids and Combat Rogues completely annihilating their role and obliterating their Bleed buff. Youll top damage at the start of fight as you Bladestorm a couple of enemies, and then go back down to the bottom of the DPS meter. Simply put, specs in the D-tier are considered to be not viable. Download the client and get started. In this expansion, players are introduced to a harsh new world with high-level enemies and challenging quests. Beast Mastery Hunters continue to be the weakest spec thats still considered viable though barely so, as our damage is completely uninspiring. B Tier: Balance Druids (Boomkin) provide some of the best AoE damage in the game but their single-target damage is lackluster in comparison. Holy Paladins are no doubt the best healer in the whole WOTLK Classic because of their abilities, especially the Beacon of Light. Despite our Tier 10 set (Frost Witchs Battlegear) having 2 very decent set bonuses, we just lack the single-target damage necessary to keep up with others, and our AoE & cleave is still sub-par. Unlike many of the other ranged DPS specs, they arent really penalized by having to move, as most of their spells are instant cast anyway which is a very big bonus in TotC, with many of the fights requiring frequent movement. Feral utility is basically unchanged compared to TBC. They have dropped from S to A-Tier. And a temporal discombobulator! We still have access to a thousand different totems, but almost none of our buffs are now Shaman-exclusive. 3. Nevertheless, they can confidently say that they will bring tons of damage in every possible fight, especially with the Tier 8 item set bonus (since the new Ulduar will have an emphasis on AoE-heavy fights). World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King Classic Franchise: Warcraft Platform: PC Released: 2022-09-26 Developer: Blizzard Publisher: Activision Genre: MMORPG Multiplayer: Online Multiplayer. Since Ulduar has been reverted to its Pre-Nerf state, a Boomys AoE damage will be in high demand, especially in fights such as Freya, Mimiron, and Yogg-Saron! Were not quite as strong as some of the big boys above us, so raids likely wont heavily stack Unholy DKs, but it wont be uncommon to see 2-3 in a raid, as our formerly Frost comrades switch to Unholy. They also provide a lot of utility to the raid, but those buffs are also provided by stronger classes. However, they find themselves in a way better spot compared to the first phase of the expansion. There are no specific fights where Assassination Rogues thrive, as they always must be close to their targets, and they mainly specialize in single-target damage. With armor penetration found all over Phase 3 gear, Frost DKs get to deal an ungodly amount of single-target damage, meaning they are highly favoured by the meta. To help you avoid leveling up a class you ultimately don't like, we've pieced together a WoW WotLK healer tier list to quantify the best healer in WotLK Classic. Our single-target damage is top-tier and our AoE is amazing, theres no doubt about that, but our cleave damage isnt quite as good as some of the other specs in the S-tier hence our position near the bottom of the S-tier. However, the increase from those buffs pales in comparison to the damage potential that the other 2 specializations, Assassination and Combat would provide. As there is no actual way to freeze a raid boss, this mechanic can simply not occur. The Divine Sacrifice is arguably one of the best damage mitigation abilities, which is also why the Protection Paladins is in the S-Tier. While none of their buffs are unique to the specialization, like all druids, they provide a wide range of other buffs and utilities to the group. While those things are certainly true, and Arms is, indeed, a very potent cleave spec, the unfortunate reality is that our Tier 10 set (Wrynns Battlegear) has thoroughly unimpressive bonuses, which do absolutely nothing to patch up our atrocious single-target damage. Furthermore, in WotLK a lot of different specs can do very well with good gear and a skillful player behind them! Cant Decide What Class To Play In WotLK Classic? As a result, most Warriors will likely be switching to Fury in this phase, after theyve gotten a few upgrades and a 2nd powerful two-handed weapon. Frost Mages cause terror on their enemies inside battlegrounds and the arena but, unfortunately, their reign of terror does not extend beyond PvP, as theyre an awful PvE spec. Affliction has great single-target damage, thanks to our high damage-over-time and Drain Souls new execute-like component. The spec wont be putting out quite as much damage as Ferals with their Swipe (Cat) spam, but with superior single-target damage, they remain extremely competitive within this tier. Mages get two seriously powerful set bonuses out of the new Tier 8 set (Kirin Tor Garb) obtainable in Ulduar, and Arcane gets great use out of both of them. Shadow Priests find themselves in a tougher position compared to the other caster specializations in Phase 2. Show 124 Comments Yet, our damage is the worst in the game, plainly put both single-target & cleave. Last thing classic needs is more Pallys, lol. The reason for Mage being good with WOTLK Gold Farming is their Massive Pull of Eternals or Elementals in one pull. Seeing how thats the last phase in the game, however, you can roll a Frost DK and not regret it at all. But, their good cleave damage, coupled with their extensive utility, largely justifies their raid spot. They excel at shorter fights and single-target fights but their AoE is not the best. Click the name specialization in the table below to quickly jump to the section that explains the reasoning for their placement. The best WoW Classic race for each class By Jennifer Allen, Sarah James published September 26, 2022 What race will you play in Wrath Classic? It doesnt help that both of the Tier 9 sets (Khadgars Regalia) set bonuses are significantly more beneficial for Fire than they are for Arcane. Regardless, our damage is more than fine, and Misdirection is a massive boon for any raid, so it wont be hard to find a spot as an MM Hunter we just wont be stacked as much as some of the specs above us will. Affliction Warlocks retain the S-Tier mark, becoming utter monsters in terms of both Single-Target and Area-of-Effect damage. With this spell, they are able to output very similar damage to Unholy Death Knights, and we all know that Unholy Death Knights have long held the title of AoE Kings. Thus, they earn first C-Tier spot, with a possible argument for them being low B-Tier. They boost Ferals single-target damage a ton but, more importantly, they allow Feral Druids to produce astonishing AoE damage to levels other specs simply cannot reach. ago. However, they maintain a solid damage output, even if they do not benefit from a powerful execution tool. Destruction Warlocks are widely used for their Blood Pact during fights such as Freya, The Iron Council, and Algalon, greatly aiding the raid by offering vastly improved survivability. For example, armor penetration is very rare in Phase 1 gear. Unlike other scaling DPS specs, which typically dont become strong enough until Phase 3 or 4, Combat Rogues immediately propel to the top of the DPS meters starting in Phase 2 with the Ulduar raid, and remain S-tier to A-tier for the rest of the expansion. Seems like preg paladin can be pretty insane for soloing content but DK (even in 3.3.5) is great too. To rank them, put both Shadow and Disc Priests into the S-Tier when it comes to general performance throughout Wrath of the Lich King. After getting a glimpse of the S-tier, Combat Rogues are unfortunately knocked down to the upper echelons of the A-tier in Phase 3. In the end, both specs have the potential for tremendous amounts of damage, and it really depends on player skill as much as the specialization itself. Here you can find Guides, News, Tools, Forums, and more for WoW Classic, TBC Classic, WotLK, and Shadowlands! Their single-target damage is good, great even, entirely capable of keeping up with some of the big boys, hence our position in the A-tier. So keep that in mind and don't give your character up if you find it at the very bottom of the Wrath Classic tier list. While the spec has access to Fan of Knives (as the other Rogue specializations), it has no talents to make it stronger. They can be fun to play, but you will struggle to get invited to raids when playing one of these, and you may even find yourself getting kicked from groups, as your damage will be really bad. A titan has fallen. One of the bigger surprises is that the Frost Death Knight is currently slightly above middle-of-the-pack, compared to the S-Tier from the original rankings. He is also an avid Volleyball player and friend to all dogs. Undead. Also, Judgments have been completely reworked. Its unlikely that they will use any more than 1, though, so make sure you communicate with your other Warlocks if one of you has to respec. Luckily, the more items they acquire, the more they can mitigate this weakness. Their damage is very dependent on their pet staying alive. At Warcraft Tavern were huge fans of World of Warcraft. Just kidding were, of course, referring to the Icecrown Citadel, featuring the final battle against Arthas, the Lich King himself. If youre interested in playing a class / spec that can alternate between a tank and DPS, try Feral theyre very powerful damage dealers. Survival Hunters benefit from a high health pool and quite sturdy defensive stats, due to them stacking as much Agility as possible. Near the beginning of the expansion they are average at best but in later phases, they are top-tier cleaving machines. This spec shines as a tank instead, due to a plethora of self-healing and mitigation abilities which give it a distinct edge over other specs when it comes to tanking. Feral Druids find themselves in a rather tough spot, mostly due to the difficulty of the specialization itself. Moreover, Divine Storm is limited to only damaging up to 4 targets meaning theyre great in those cleave fights, but not so much in AoE fights. They have a number of specialization unique buffs and still provide a vast array of Paladin utilities as well. Shadow Priests are a mixed bag in Phase 3. We currently see Demonology Warlocks on top as the #1 DPS, basically matched by another familiar S-Tier face: Affliction Warlock. 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