shadow warlock - pearsoncmg.comptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com/.../wowchar_warlock_shadow_lr.pdf · shadow...

SHADOW WARLOCK30 AFFLICTION 21 DESTRUCTION

Known to most players as the SM/Ruin build, this spec grants you to power to nuke, and nuke hard. This build is all about massive Shadow Bolts and crits, utilizing the power of Shadow Mastery and Ruin. It also relies on DoTs for the Nightfall proc.

REQUIRES 5 POINTS IN AFFLICTION TALENTSREQUIRES 5 POINTS IN AFFLICTION TALENTS

This talent is shows its worth in long encounters where you might run out of mana. Two points here give the ability a 20% boost to the mana awarded when using Life Tap.

IMPROVED LIFETAP 2/2


With fi ve points here, your drain abilities have a 70% chance to ignore interrupt effects that decrease the cast time of such spells. This is used as more of a stepping-stone in this build than anything.

FEL CONCENTRATION 5/5


All your Affl iction DoT spells range is increased by 20% by using this talent. Especially useful in PVP where targets are mobile.

GRIM REACH 2/2

Every time your Corruption spell deals damage, it has a 4% chance of granting you an instant Shadow Bolt. Since this build is focused around massive Shadow Bolt hits and crits, this talent is invaluable.

NIGHTFALL 2/2

Max out this talent to make your Corruption spell an instant cast, allowing to you better use that time on other spells with cast times.

IMPROVED CORRUPTION 5/5

Five points in Suppression gives your Affl iction spells, namely Corruption, a 10% greater chance to hit. Since Corruption is usually always up on your targets for Nightfall procs, this talent is quite useful.

SUPPRESSION 5/5AFFLICTION TREE

3/3

2/2

5/5

2/2

5/5

2/2

5/5 5/5

Since this build is meant for maximum damage, every point that increases damage counts. This talent gives a 6% bonus to the damage dealt by Curse of Agony.

IMPROVED CURSE OF AGONY 3/3


Meant mainly as a stepping-stone to your fi nal goal in this tree, Siphon Life also grants an extra DOT spell that heals you a fair amount as well.

SIPHON LIFE 1/1


This talent increases all shadow damage dealt by 10%. Obviously, this talent is highly valuable in this build, as it makes your Shadow Bolts hit even harder and Corruption tics deal more.

SHADOW MASTERY 5/5

1/1

●●3

0 A

FFLI

CTI

ON

21 D

ESTR

UC

TIO

N

DESTRUCTION TREE

1/1

2/2

1/1

5/5

5/5REQUIRES 5 POINTS IN DESTRUCTION TALENTSREQUIRES 5 POINTS IN DESTRUCTION TALENTS

Bane is an extremely useful talent to this build, as it lowers the casting time of your Shadow Bolt by a half a second. Over long battles this talent really shines.

BANE 5/5

REQUIRES 10 POINTS IN DESTRUCTION TALENTSREQUIRES 10 POINTS IN DESTRUCTION TALENTS

Devastation is a fl at increase to your critical strike chance with Destruction spells by 5%. Obviously a powerful talent for this build as it gives you a chance to hit much harder with your Shadow Bolts.

DEVASTATION 5/5

Picking up this talent grants a new ability that allows you to cast an instant spell that deals heavy shadow damage on opponents. Using this spell requires a Soul Shard, but should your opponent die from this, you will receive the Soul Shard back again. Shadow Mastery affects the damage dealt here as well, making it even more effective at fi nishing off opponents. It is quite useful in PVP if utilized correctly.

SHADOWBURN 1/1


While your Shadow Bolts using this spec may hit hard, you must use AoE at times. Intensity decreases the chance that damage will interrupt you during a channeled cast of Destruction spells by 70%.

INTENSITY 2/2

Destructive Reach adds 20% to the range at which you can cast your Destruction spells. This is a great talent for PVP, as you can take down runners more effectively at greater ranges.

DESTRUCTIVE REACH 2/2


One of the major staples of this build, Ruin increases the critical strike bonus damage of your spells by 20%. Crits now hit amazingly hard and deal an incredible amount of damage.

RUIN 1/1

5/5

Extra damage is good. Improved Shadow Bolt, when you land a critical strike with a Shadow Bolt, increases the damage dealt from the next four sources of shadow damage by 20%. This effect can be used by multiple casters.

IMPROVED SHADOW BOLT 5/5

2/2

SH

AD

OW

WA

RL

OC

K

STRENGTHS OF THIS TEMPLATE

Gigantic hits and crits; Shadow Bolts crit much harder now and can take down targets in PVP before they have a chance to heal when followed up by a Nightfall proc or Shadowburn. This build is meant for pure single target damage, and it does it quite well.

ROOM FOR FLEXIBILITY

The only real room for fl exibility here is taking from one tree and adding your points to the Demonology Tree until you reach Demonic Sacrifi ce. Picking up this talent allows you to sacrifi ce a pet for a buff upon yourself. Should you choose to sacrifi ce the Succubus, your Shadow damage is increased by 15%. However, you most likely must get rid of Shadow Mastery to go this route.

EQUIPMENT

Most of the utility provided by this build comes from your spells and crits actually landing, and thus requires a fair amount of spell hit gear. Focus second on damage gear. There is plenty of equipment that specifi cally adds to shadow damage, and it adds it in great quantities. Defi nitely keep your eye out for it.

Finally, pick up cloth with crit percent on it, but do not sacrifi ce too much hit and damage for it, since a resist cannot crit. Most damage gear comes with a crit or a hit anyways later in the game.

FINAL NOTES

To really get the most out of this build you sacrifi ce some survivability and mana pool, but in return you gain unimaginable power with your spells. In the end, it makes sense that a class that deals with the denizens of the abyss must become weaker in one area to gain strength in another.

Make no mistake however, in PVE your damage will be fantastic and in PVP you can and will kill most targets before a Fear or Seduce ever wears off.

●●3

0 A

FFLI

CTI

ON

21 D

ESTR

UC

TIO

N

shadow warlock - pearsoncmg.comptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com/.../wowchar_warlock_shadow_lr.pdf · shadow...

Documents