Countdown to Forever: 5 – Will Warlocks Summon Their Potential?

With Forever launching on November 4, we’re looking at how each class performed during beta, how players received their changes from Classic, and how they are shaping up for the Forever launch and level 60.

Check out all our series:

• 8: Druid
• 7: Mage
• 6: Shaman
• 5: Warlock (You’re here!)

The info below was written based on our experiences during beta and feedback from our Warlock writer, Abide.

Affliction Warlock

By the time we reach level 30, Affliction already feels really good to play, with instant Corruption icon Corruption, Siphon Life icon Siphon Life, and Nightfall icon Nightfall. Sustain is one of the spec’s strengths, with both Drain Life icon Drain Life and Siphon Life replenishing your health, which you can then spend with Life Tap icon Life Tap. Nightfall procs are just the cherry on top, making the spec feel very complete and well-rounded.

The one issue that Affliction faces is simple: too many things going on. When you start fighting a new enemy, there’s a chore list to do. It works well with long-lived enemies, like dungeon and raid bosses, but can be frustrating against short-lived enemies, making you feel like you aren’t contributing as much.

One of the biggest changes from Classic is that DoTs now have the ability to crit, and Pandemic icon Pandemic increases the damage of those crits as well.

For endgame, the situation is uncertain due to the new capstone, Wrack icon Wrack, not being able to be tested during beta. When you’re not busy applying DoTs, there’s a choice. You can go with the regular build, which uses Shadow Bolt icon Shadow Bolt, or invest in the new capstone, Wrack, giving you a drain to build around instead, while buffing your other Shadow DoTs.

Affliction Warlock Guide by Abide

Demonology Warlock

During beta, Demonology felt very engaging, with an active rotation that juggled several spells and DoTs, while managing your demon. Searing Pain icon Searing Pain becomes an interesting spell in Forever, allowing you to further increase your Demon’s damage via Demonic Brand icon Demonic Brand, with the risk of increasing your threat significantly.

The biggest change Demonology found in Forever is Demonic Pact icon Demonic Pact, which allows you to keep your current demon while still benefiting from Demonic Sacrifice icon Demonic Sacrifice from another demon. Right now, you can expect to sacrifice your Imp for increased Shadow damage and bring out your Succubus as your main pet. This change makes Demonology play more into the “master of demons” fantasy than it ever did in Classic.

When reaching max level, you can expect your rotation to flow around maintaining Brand with Searing Pain while refreshing your DoTs and filling time with Shadow Bolt. With your pet dealing a significant part of your damage, keeping your Succubus safe is an active task, helped by Demonic Energies icon Demonic Energies.

Demonology Warlock Guide by Abide

Destruction Warlock

Destruction in Forever plays a lot into the Fire Destruction fantasy. The build focuses on hard casts that feel very rewarding to finish and scale exceedingly well with gear. The new capstone, Incinerate icon Incinerate, gives you an actual Fire spell filler strengthened by Immolate icon Immolate.

However, during beta, Destro wasn’t complete, without enough points to reach Incinerate. Conflagrate icon Conflagrate, Shadowburn icon Shadowburn, and Bane of Havoc icon Bane of Havoc were available, and you could get some points into Shadow and Flame icon Shadow and Flame, but no Fire filler.

At 60, the game plan changes, with Destro favoring a pet-less approach by sacrificing the Succubus for extra Fire damage. While Incinerate deals massive damage, the rotation still includes Corruption and Bane of Doom icon Bane of Doom/ Bane of Agony icon Bane of Agony together with Immolate. Shadow and Flame make both schools worth casting, as Conflagrate buffs your Shadow damage, while Shadowburn buffs Fire damage.

One issue Destro has when compared to other specs is the movement penalty. Since a large part of your damage comes from Incinerate, the spec suffers greatly when moving, having only Conflagrate and Shadowburn as instant casts.

Destruction Warlock Guide by Abide

Tomorrow Preview

With Forever, will Warlocks burn the land and reduce their enemies to ash? Or will the demons they try to subjugate overrun them?

Tomorrow: Priest! See you then!