Affliction Warlock Battleground Blitz Guide — Midnight Season 1

Affliction is a mid-tier Warlock spec for Battleground Blitz currently, due to the mediocre damage output potential of the spec.

You can choose three of the following PvP talents. The two mandatory choices are the most essential, with the third being switched out depending on the matchup.

Jinx causes your curse abilities to cost a Soul Shard, but also applies Corruption and Agony. This talent is mandatory to help lower the amount of globals you need to maintain your DoT effects.

Bloodstones is a new talent which replaces your Healthstone with Bloodstone, which increases your Haste by 20% instead of healing you. This can be taken against teams or matchups that are not focusing you.

Rot and Decay causes your Shadow Bolt, Drain Life, and Drain Soul abilities to extend the duration of your DoTs on the target. This talent helps to reduce the globals required to maintain your DoT effects.

Impish Instincts reduces the cooldown of your Demonic Circle: Teleport by 3 seconds when you take Physical damage with an internal cooldown of 5 seconds. This in synergy with Abyss Walker makes this PvP talent a very good pick against melee teams who target you.

Nether Ward allows you to reflect all magical spells for the next 3 seconds. This is a good option vs double caster teams where you might not need Impish Instincts.

In Battleground Blitz, Affliction Warlock primarily focuses on dealing as much spread damage as possible. Crowd control is not a focus, and dealing as much damage as possible in team fights is an Affliction Warlock's strength. If left alone, Affliction Warlocks can deal some of the highest DPS output of any class and rot the enemy team.

Affliction Warlocks should not defend a base and should try to avoid small scale skirmishes, instead opting for big team fights.

Affliction Warlocks should attempt to stay at max range and focus on dealing as much damage as possible rather than pushing in to melee range. Applying DoTs to the entire enemy team and then casting Haunt should be your goal. Additionally, casting your burst rotation of Haunt, Unstable Affliction, and Dark Harvest on priority kill targets such as the enemy flag carrier or kill target to maximize pressure.

In Battleground Blitz, there is no dampening effect. As such, burst damage and crowd control or running healers out of mana through damage are the ways to score kills and pull ahead. Affliction does not have any great CC and should generally avoid casting any unless necessary.

Shadowfury and Howl of Terror are good to use on cooldown; however, Fear should only be used in desperate situations. Focusing on dealing damage is much more important.

When playing a defensive role such as on Temple of Kotmogu, applying Curse of Exhaustion to players to slow them (which will also apply dots through your PvP Talent Jinx) is recommended to assist your orb carrier in kiting.

Affliction mainly offers utility in the form of Demonic Gateway and Healthstone. Casting a Create Soulwell often is a good idea, as well as positioning your Demonic Gateway preferably between Z-axises to give your team a positional advantage. For example, between the river in Twin Peaks or from the lower to upper level in the flag room.

Affliction Warlock is very weak defensively and can die pretty fast when targeted, so it is important to position at max range in order to avoid being swapped to as easily. Remember to place a Demonic Circle in the far back, as well as insurance to drag enemy melee deeper if you are chased. Additionally, Warlocks can now use 3 charges of Healthstone in combat, and this should be empowered by Soulburn.

Affliction Warlocks have some of the worst mobility in the game, and therefore should avoid being a flag carrier. Instead, protecting the flag carrier or participating in team fights is a much better alternative. While protecting your team's flag carrier, spamming Curse of Exhaustion on every enemy helps to peel them and allows you to stay ahead as you will likely not be targeted.

At the start of a Capture the Flag map, you should follow your team and join the team fight, setting up a Demonic Circle and dealing as much damage as possible until you win or lose the fight. When your flag carrier brings the flag through mid, protecting them by peeling with damage and Curse of Exhaustion.

Before a Resource Race battleground starts, you should decide with your team which base you should focus on first.

As an Affliction Warlock, you should never be defending as the spec is very weak in 1v1 scenarios. Instead, look to follow your team and join the team fight. Set up your Demonic Circle in the back and focus on dealing the most damage you can.

Again, it is important to follow your team into the big fight, which usually takes place at the flag in the middle. Join the team fight and deal as much damage as you can until one side takes the edge. Remember, on a map like this, you can opt to take Shadow Rift in order to synergize with any knock effects on your team to win the mid fight.

Ranged DPS specializations will always be the best orb carriers on Temple of Kotmogu. Although Affliction is generally not a good flag carrier spec, Temple of Kotmogu can be an exception. Being able to set up port upstairs and jump into the centre to gain more points and Demonic Circle out of danger while your DoTs deal damage makes Affliction not a bad choice.

Additionally, Affliction Warlock with Curse of Exhaustion and applying your DoTs due to Jinx makes it a very good orb candidate.

If your team does not wish you to pick up an orb, treat this as any other battleground and focus on dealing as much damage as possible. Remember to Curse of Exhaustion on enemy players chasing after your orb carriers.

The stat priority for Affliction Warlock in PvP is as follows:

1. Intellect
2. Versatility
3. Haste
4. Critical Strike
5. Mastery