Affliction Warlock DPS Stat Priority — 12.0.5

The stat priority for a Affliction Warlock is as follows:

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

It is worth noting that our secondary stats are relatively close to each other in value, so prioritizing item-level is generally considered the best approach, especially as you approach hitting diminishing returns on the stat value you gain. A more balanced stat distribution is preferable to stacking the two best stats to the point where they diminish in value.

It is strongly recommended to utilise SimulationCraft/Raidbots to determine possible upgrades more accurately.

Diminishing returns on secondary stats mean that once you break a specific threshold (shown below) for each stat, the amount of rating of that stat required to equal one percent will increase slightly. This does not mean that you need to entirely avoid these stats once you go over these thresholds, as they are not hard caps.

In practical terms, it does not have much of an impact, as our recommendations and tools like SimulationCraft/Raidbots are already accounting for it.

Your stat priority directly impacts your gem, enchant, and consumable choices, and you can find recommendations for all 3 on our dedicated page below.

Intellect is your primary stat. You should look for this stat in all of your upgrades. It provides you with Spell Power, which increases the damage of your spells.

Mastery, through Mastery: Potent Afflictions increases the damage of your DoTs ( Agony, Corruption, Seed of Corruption, and Unstable Affliction) and Malefic Rapture. Mastery does not affect your pets or Soul Shard generation at all.

Haste influences the cast speed of your spells and increases the number of ticks from your DoTs. This decreases the ramp-up damage from Agony as well. Haste also reduces the global cooldown and scales with your pets. Since an increased number of DoT ticks also results in more Soul Shards, we can look at Haste as the stat that has the most effect on our resource generation.

Critical Strike increases your chance to critically hit with all spells and abilities.

Versatility is a flat-out damage done increase and damage taken reduction.