Havoc Demon Hunter DPS Spec, Builds, and Talents — Dragonflight 10.0.7
On this page, you will find out the best talents for each tier for your Havoc Demon Hunter in World of Warcraft — Dragonflight 10.0.7. We also have default talent lists for various types of content, such as raiding or Mythic+. If you play with Warmode on, we have your PvP talents covered as well.
Talents can be freely changed whenever you are out of combat in Dragonflight,
and no longer requires you to be in a rested XP area (such as an inn or capital
city), nor do you need to use Tome of the Still Mind /
Codex of the Still Mind.
You can also save different loadouts to swap between combinations
on the fly quickly.
Talent Cheat Sheet for Havoc Demon Hunters
Havoc has a lot of talent options that allow you to tailor your damage profile depending on the encounter style or fight timings. That said, there are generally two builds that come out on top: one focused on single-target output and another focused on AoE/Cleave. Linked below are examples of each of these:
- Single Target Eye Beam Focus: BEkAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAkASIlI0SSkkINRAAAAAAAQSQapQSSBRaJRSSSSiA
- AoE Throw Glaive Focus: BEkAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIJJJJSJItkERi0aRAAAAAAAIJBRKkElQSaJBSQCB
Single Target Talent Build
You can easily import the talent tree below into the game with the 'Copy Export String' button in the talent tree calculator:
The single-target build has a heavy focus on Metamorphosis
uptime via
Cycle of Hatred and
Shattered Destiny, allowing
for more
Eye Beam and therefore
Demonic activations. This
is paired with the left-side options that add extra Crit scaling via
Know Your Enemy, and leads into
Essence Break for a powerful
medium cooldown burst window. This also still has a healthy amount of
Cleave and AoE in the mix, so it is not exclusively all-in on one damage
profile which is a benefit. It does, however, take the movement-related
talents surrounding
Momentum because of how much power they
bring.
AoE Talent Build
The AoE build, on the other hand, sacrifices the Metamorphosis uptime
benefits in exchange for significantly greater
Immolation Aura damage
and adds the
Throw Glaive talent package into the mix. It caps these out
with
Any Means Necessary to convert these into Mastery scaling effects
and provides both good sustained and burst AoE at a variety of target counts while
still keeping some priority damage. It also takes the
Momentum package
as a way to path through to
Know Your Enemy and
Essence Break.
Raiding
While the above builds can be slotted into most encounters depending on what is required, some more bespoke tools may be required on some bosses. You can check out specific tips and builds for each of the Vault of the Incarnates encounters below:
Mythic+
Mythic+ can potentially require a mix of specific AoE and Single-Target talents, depending on affixes and other variables. If you want more detailed advice about the selections (especially those relating to Utility), check out the dedicated page below:
Havoc Demon Hunter Talents Explained
Many Havoc talent choices add additional abilities into the rotation or alter how you would play due to shifted priorities and synergy between certain abilities. We recommend you look at our rotation page linked below for more details.
Below, we will explain each of the key talents that are present on the tree, and the reasons for taking them, but for a list of all of the abilities and effects available to Havoc, you can use our Spell summary page:
Havoc Demon Hunter Spec Talents
To start with, we will look at the Spec tree's core talents on each row. These are overwhelmingly throughput focused, and as such, focus on building your damage delivery methods:
Key Havoc Tier 1 Talents: Rows 1-4
Ability | Explanation |
---|---|
![]() |
Removes the need to actively generate via ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
Taken in every build and forms the core of keeping ![]() |
![]() |
Leans in further to ![]() |
![]() |
Provides additional generation via Soul Fragments and a way to generate them in combat. Typically taken in single-target due to pathing. |
![]() |
Usually only taken in single-target focused builds as it is pressed less frequently when pathing down the right side of the tree for AoE. |
![]() |
Given the other talents on the Havoc tree and the general leaning to
Critical Strike, this gives additional benefits to ![]() |
![]() |
Provides additional Fury from ![]() |
![]() |
Taken for AoE-focused builds that take later ![]() |
![]() |
A utility option that can be costly as the tree is tight on points, but provides a potent survival tool should an encounter demand it. |
The first 4 rows have a handful of key talents, such as First Blood,
but mostly exist to set up the building blocks of where you will go
deeper in the tree and the abilities you focus on. The way you path
through here will often decide which sides of the tree you can efficiently
access, so decisions here are important.
Key Havoc Tier 2 Talents: Rows 5-7
Ability | Explanation |
---|---|
![]() |
Provides an additional (but short) burst window at the start of
an encounter and following ![]() |
![]() |
Adds further benefit to casting ![]() |
![]() |
Adds benefit to each ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
The key early building block to set up the ![]() ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
Provides a good path through to single-target options that further
improve ![]() |
![]() |
Adds a pure single-target component to ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
Guarantees your ![]() |
![]() |
Required to path through to the single-target ![]() |
![]() |
Causes ![]() |
![]() |
Adds a significant damage increase to ![]() ![]() |
Rows 5-7 form a lot of the core rotation, rounding out which abilities are essential to focus on and how the rotation cycle works with your mid-range cooldown abilities and effects. A lot of these talents are taken in blocks and dictate which of the final rows you have access to.
Key Havoc Tier 3 Talents: Rows 8-10
Ability | Explanation |
---|---|
![]() |
The enemy spawned (and then killed) by this will generate a Demon Soul and thus grants 20% damage for 20 seconds, making this a strong overall talent for all situations. |
![]() |
A good ability in all situations, but a costly point to reach, so is usually
only taken when points are spare (usually at the cost of ![]() |
![]() |
Powerful damage in all situations, adding bonus damage component to each
of your ![]() ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
Increases the damage of your next ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
Predominantly single-target focused, significantly reducing the cooldown
of ![]() |
![]() |
Adds further damage to your ![]() |
![]() |
Adds a Mastery scaling component to ![]() |
![]() |
Deals excellent AoE damage, funneling your Critical Strikes into
a large explosion at the end. Works well with the other ![]() |
![]() |
Converts the majority of non-Chaos abilities into Chaos, allowing it to scale with 80% of your Mastery bonus. It works especially well in AoE situations, and makes Mastery one of the two dominant stats. |
![]() |
Causes Critical Strike to scale significantly better, increasing the damage dealt when you do, and is taken in almost every build. |
The final 3 rows contain some potent effects that increase Havoc's scaling potential, how the rotation fundamentally flows, and what target counts it is most effective at. You will almost always want a full 10 points spare to spend down here, as each point here is at a premium.
Havoc Demon Hunter Class Talents
Below, we will look at the Class tree talents, dividing them up between those that are used for Throughput (and the reason why), Defense/Mobility and finally, Utility:
Throughput Demon Hunter Class Talents
Ability | Explanation |
---|---|
![]() |
Adds a high Fury generation tool that works well with ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
Increases the Fury cap to 120, allowing more room to generate without overcapping and is always taken. |
![]() |
A solid additional AoE damage cooldown that is easy to access at the start. |
![]() |
Increases the target count of ![]() |
![]() |
Pairs well with the other ![]() |
![]() |
Reduces ![]() |
![]() |
Almost always taken over ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
Adds a secondary damage (and healing) effect to your ![]() |
![]() |
Deals a heavy amount of burst damage to both your target and enemies around
it, alongside being a charge. It can also be converted to Chaos damage via
![]() |
The majority of these talents are always taken as there is a limited number of points that can be spent on the tree that purely affect damage - which is the aim of the game for Havoc.
Defense/Mobility Demon Hunter Talents
Ability | Explanation |
---|---|
![]() |
Adds an additional charge to ![]() ![]() |
![]() |
Causes Mastery rating to increase your movement speed, providing free additional, passive movement at all times. |
![]() |
Additional passive healing for a single point that is generally worth grabbing on top of Havoc's other good self-healing options. |
![]() |
Passive Leech that is enhanced during ![]() |
![]() |
Strong passive magic damage reduction that is also required pathing to get to throughput talents, so it is always taken. |
![]() |
Flat additional max Health that is a strong boost to passive survival. Can be awkward to access on the tree, but is recommended in all situations when possible. |
Havoc has some good options for both Mobility and Defense on top of its baseline toolkit within the tree, and as these are usually recommended to grab alongside the throughput talents in most of your builds.
Utility Demon Hunter Talents
Ability | Explanation |
---|---|
![]() |
Mostly required pathing and while niche has some applications in certain dungeons as enemies will not engage in combat while under the effect. |
![]() |
Additional range on your interrupt is a nice quality of life boost. |
![]() |
Should the content you are doing require a dispel, this is a good
pickup both being at range and having the option to take ![]() |
![]() |
A quality of life talent that allows you to fire Sigils at your target instead of aiming them, alongside a duration increase to the effects. This can be useful if you need help to use them efficiently. |
![]() |
AoE stun that is taken in any situation where they are needed (for example Mythic+). |
![]() |
In most situations where you need the AoE stun, some cooldown and cost reduction to go alongside it is a nice pickup. |
![]() |
Provides an AoE stop for enemy crowd control and is usually a good pickup but can be awkward to path to. |
![]() |
Allows you to convert ![]() |
![]() |
Powerful point-blank raid cooldown that is almost always taken. |
![]() |
Reduces the cooldown of ![]() |
Many of the above tools are niche enough that they are selected based on the content you are doing if they are deemed necessary. The tree is flexible, has enough extra points to access most of these without much issue, and can tailor your build based on your group composition or needs.
PvP Talents (War Mode)
"War Mode" is an optional feature that enables open-world PvP encounters that confer some benefits when active:
- Grants access to PvP talents in the open world.
- 10% increase in World Quest rewards at max level.
- 10% more experience gained while leveling.
- Earn Conquest Points which can reward gear every week.
With the benefits of War Mode for leveling and PvE content, it is recommended to enable the feature to maximize your leveling and rewards at the maximum level. However, you will open yourself up to open-world PvP, so be aware of hostile enemy players who could interfere with you; this is a risk you will have to decide on your own if you want to take.
If you are interested in doing PvP as a Havoc Demon Hunter or want to know the basics of Havoc PvP gameplay and decision-making, check out our dedicated PvP guide.
Havoc Demon Hunter War Mode Talents
In this section, we will rank the PvP talents for leveling and playing in open-world PvE scenarios.
Havoc Demon Hunter PvP Talents
Generally, the selections are made to optimize your ability to kill enemies faster, increasing your pace when moving through content.
Chaotic Imprint will always buff Chaos damage dealt, such as
Chaos Strike and
Eye Beam. Also great to pair with talents such as
Soulrend due to the conversion to magic damage, causing
Throw Glaive to deal significantly more damage.
Unending Hatred is just free additional Fury generation as you will frequently be taking damage in the open world.
Sigil Mastery reduces the cooldown of sigils, such as
Sigil of Flame and
Elysian Decree, which can be a small DPS gain if these talents are taken.
Alternatively you can take Blood Moon for a small bit of extra
self-healing, or
Rain from Above as an emergency disengage tool.
Reverse Magic,
Detainment,
Cover of Darkness,
Cleansed by Flame and
Glimpse all have minimal uses in
PvE, due to it being very focused on crowd control tools or pressuring
enemy players into spending more resources than they would otherwise want
to.
Changelog
- 20 Mar. 2023: Reviewed and updated for Patch 10.0.7.
- 24 Jan. 2022: Reviewed and updated for Patch 10.0.5.
- 11 Dec. 2022: Reviewed for Dragonflight Season 1.
- 28 Nov. 2022: Updated for Dragonflight launch.
- 24 Oct. 2022: Updated for Dragonflight Pre-Patch.
More Demon Hunter Guides
Guides from Other Classes
With our usual writer, Wordup, being unavailable for an indefinite period of time, this guide has been updated for Dragonflight by Shadarek, who currently raids in top 50 US guild Resonate-Bleeding Hollow.
- Dragonflight Patch 10.0.7 DPS Log Rankings for Vault of the Incarnates: Week 1
- AWC & MDI Dragonflight Season 1 Global Finals Start March 31st
- Earn 6 Heroic Difficulty Loot Pieces During the 6-Week Timewalking Marathon
- The Most Popular Specializations for Mythic+ in Dragonflight Season 1 (Week 15)
- Patch 10.0.7 Launch Meme Roundup
- An Overview of New Character Titles in Patch 10.1
- Blind Eye Options Available for All Races in Patch 10.1
- Vicious War Snail Mount in Patch 10.1