Warlock Class Overview
Warlock is the master of the Dark Arts. In Mists of Pandaria, Warlocks are the premiere
caster, with three specs that are not only all very powerful, but they also feel very unique,
fun and extrememly rewarding when played correctly. Warlocks also bring some of the best
utility in the game with Curse of the Elements,
Demonic Gateway and more.
Warlock Class Overview — Mists of Pandaria Classic
Warlock is a powerful class, able to draw from many different magics to summon and control many types of
demons to do their bidding. They come with the ability to choose between three powerful specializations, all of
which are used to assault their foes with lethal damage. Warlocks also bring raid wide movement with
Demonic Gateway,
as well as very important curses like
Curse of the Elements to afflict enemies with deadly debuffs, as well as
conjuring very helpful items to aid your raid members in combat, such as
Create Healthstone and
Ritual of Summoning.
Warlocks in Mists of Pandaria underwent a dramatic overhaul, turning one of WoW’s darkest caster classes into a
mechanically distinct and visually explosive powerhouse. MoP Classic is where each spec becomes its own. Demonology got completely
reworked and is all about constantly shifting in and out of your Metamorphosis Demon Form, Affliction gets crazy
DoT control with the revamped
Soul Swap and Destruction is the ONLY Spec that can even
cast
Immolate or
Incinerate and has a spell called
Fire and Brimstone that turns your powerful single target
spells into Aoe spells.
From unique spec specific resources, to completely revamped talents and glyphs, Warlocks in MoP Classic definitely stand out with some of the most refined design Blizzard has ever implemented.
Core Changes in MoP Classic
- Spec-Unique Resources:
Burning Embers (Destruction),
Demonic Fury (Demonology), and revamped - and far less annoying - Soul Shard system (Affliction).
- Talent System: Completely redesigned; one talent every 15 levels, offering flexible and situational choices, with all three specialization sitting in a very good spot throughout the expansion.
- Glyph Overhaul: Major and Minor Glyphs revamped to focus on utility and flavor, meaning far less to your build than ever before.
- New Warlock Abilities: Demonic Gateway, Unending Resolve, Dark Bargain, and a ton of new spec-specific spells.
- Visual Enhancements: Each spec received unique spell effects for core abilities, making most Warlock spells look better than ever.
Warlock Specializations
Warlock are able to choose from three specializations: Affliction, Demonology, and Destruction.
Affliction
Masters of damage-over-time spells, Affliction Warlocks use powerful spells like, Agony,
Corruption, and
Unstable Affliction to damage their enemies overtime, while using the new
Malefic Grasp to make those DoT's
hit even harder. Soul Shards are now an Affliction only resource that you have to manage along with your
mana. They’re generated from
Drain Soul and also have a 10% chance on each
Corruption tick, but only from
ONE source of
Corruption. These Soul Shards on your most important spells like
Haunt and
Soulburn.
Demonology
Demonology was completely reworked and is now all about managing your new Demonology only resource Demonic Fury and spending it
properly. This is generated from your damage spells and your demon's special attack. You need
Demonic Fury in order to be in
Metamorphosis. It costs some of this resource to cast your spells while in Demon Form and you slowly lose
Demonic Fury
while you're in your Demon Form as well. Demonology's gameplay revolves around constantly weaving in and out of
Metamorphosis to
cast your most powerful spells.
Destruction
Destruction Warlocks wield fire and brimstone. Literally, our new and biggest ability is Fire and Brimstone,
which turns all your single target spells and turns them into AoE spells. You build up the Destruction only, new resource
Burning Embers to unleash devastating
Chaos Bolts. High burst damage, great cleave, and explosive visuals
make it a fan favorite.
How Viable is Warlock in MoP Classic?
Warlock is extremely viable and a highly sought-after class for all of MoP Classic. Warlocks will
consistantly be one of the premiere damage dealers throughout the entire expansion. You will have no issues
at all finding a spot in any raid purely for your damage output and the ability to stack multiple Warlocks.
As a Warlock you will be able to swap between specs freely, filling any role the raid needs in terms of
single-target, multi-target, cleave or AoE damage. Warlock comes packed with a plethora of demons that
bring not only damage, but also their own utility, as well as the large toolkit of utility spells the
warlock brings itself with things like
Demonic Gateway,
Ritual of Souls,
Ritual of Summoning,
Curse of the Elements, a battle res with Create
Soulstone and much more. Warlocks will be in high
demand for all PvE content.
Best Races for Warlock
Best Horde Races for Warlocks
Any Horde race except Tauren can be a Warlock. Orc and Troll
are the best choices thanks to Blood Fury and
Berserking.
- Orc:
Blood Fury for Spell Power burst,
Command for pet damage, and
Hardiness for PvP stun resist.
- Troll:
Berserking for 20% Haste on a 3-min CD.
- Goblin:
Rocket Jump (mobility),
Time is Money (+1% Haste).
- Undead:
Will of the Forsaken — excellent for PvP.
Best Alliance Races for Warlocks
Any Alliance race besides Draenei and Night Elf can be a Warlock. Gnome and
Humans are the best choices thanks to the 1% Expertise/Hit they get from their
Racials Shortblade Specialization and
Sword Specialization.
- Gnome:
Shortblade Specialization = +1% Expertise (Hit).
- Human:
Sword Specialization = same benefit as Gnome.
- Worgen: +1% Crit,
Running Wild = free Sprint.
- Dwarf:
Stoneform — PvP utility.
Gearing and Stats
Warlock can only wear Cloth, as it's always been. They can also use Daggers, one-handed Swords and
staves. While you will typically being using a one-handed weapon paired an offhand, you may find yourself using
a Staff frequently.
All three specs want pretty much the same stats. Intellect being the main stat that should be on every piece of gear. After that you want to make sure you that obtain Hit cap(15% or 5100 Hit Rating). This will ensure that non of your spells miss. The secondary stats will depend on your specialization, but they're all pretty close to each other.
Warlock Addons and Macros
Addons and Macros can greatly improve your quality of life while playing. Listed below are some of our recommendations on Addons and Macros to help get the most out of your time playing the game.
Changelog
- 15 Jun. 2025: Page added.
This Guide has been written by Crix, a long time tester for Ashes of Creation, with over 1,000 hours playing the game, and a majority of the time being spent on Mages. He is in the guild Enveus and hosts multiple PvP Tournaments. You can find his Ashes of Creation guides on YouTube and his stream on Twitch.