DPS Rankings / Tier List – Phase 5 / Blackwing Lair – Season of Discovery (SoD)

DPS rankings and tier list for BWL, phase 5 in WoW Classic Season of Discovery, with Fury Warriors, Fire Mages, and Feral Druids at the top of the list but there are also quite a few dps classes and specializations that are not far behind.

	Fury Warrior	Fire Mage	Feral Druid	Ranged Hunter	Mutilate/Saber Slash Rogue
	Fire Warlock	Shadow Priest	Shadow Warlock	Balance Druid	Enhancement Shaman
	Elemental Shaman	Melee Hunter	Retribution Paladin
	Arms Warrior	Frost Mage
	Arcane Mage

1. Fury Warrior (S Tier)
2. Fire Mage (S Tier)
3. Feral Druid (S Tier)
4. Ranged Hunter (S Tier)
5. Mutilate Rogue (S Tier)
6. Fire Warlock (A Tier)
7. Shadow Priest (A Tier)
8. Shadow Warlock (A Tier)
9. Balance Druid (A Tier)
10. Enhancement Shaman (A Tier)
11. Elemental Shaman (B Tier)
12. Melee Hunter (B Tier)
13. Retribution Paladin (B Tier)
14. Frost Mage (C Tier)
15. Arms Warrior (C Tier)
16. Arcane Mage (D Tier)

Phase 5 of the Season of Discovery features many balance changes, and rune modifications, along with a plethora of new items and sets that became available with the release of Blackwing Lair, The Crystal Vale, and Zul’Gurub. Such changes result in performance variations showcased by many classes, with some of the stronger specializations from the previous phase having their spots completely altered. Furthermore, with the addition of the new raid sets and brand new class-specific epic items, the performance in Phase 5 of many of the specializations is much more gear-dependent, with some specializations having stronger bonuses than others.

Similarly to how things worked in Phase 4, Phase 5 of Season of Discovery features some of the famous specializations such as Fire Mage, Fury Warrior, and Feral Druid maintain the top spots while others such as Elemental Shaman occupy different spots than expected. Furthermore, some specializations such as Retribution Paladin or Melee Hunter are extremely hard to tie to a single tier, as they showcase varied performances, with some of the top contenders on the logs even overpowering S-Tier specializations such as Feral Druid or Ranged Hunter. This implies that some specializations, even if generally viewed as weak, can achieve top performances in the right conditions.

Additionally, Phase 5 seems to have a specific different approach when compared to the previous phases. While the previous phases were either dominated by casters or melees, Phase 5 has somewhat uniformized the damage output of the majority of the Damage Dealer Specializations. While certain specializations are in a league of their own, the other specializations seem extremely close to one another based on their overall damage output. This overall change emphasizes player skill more than the class/specialization itself, as the fine line between the specialization tiers blurs even further.

This DPS Ranking List is based on the currently available information that can be observed on Warcraft Logs, along with all the current changes based on the recent patches and hotfixes.

Additionally, due to the Human Error component and the individual player skill involved in high-end PvE content, Tier A through B is highly relative, with only a few select specializations ranking higher than others based on the current adjustments made by the hotfixes.

S-Tier

The S-Tier represents the most powerful classes in the current meta – those with the highest damage and utility. These specializations are usually recruited in larger numbers due to their outstanding performance.

Fury Warrior

The moment of glory has finally arrived with the launch of Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, as Fury Warriors reach their peak potential, turning themselves into absolute monsters and showcasing a spectacular overall Damage Output. In terms of balance changes, Fury Warriors retain most of the changes they received in Phase 4, with only one addition to their kit, the removal of the GCD of Rampage, allowing them to initiate their burst sequence far more easily.

Most of the damage dealt by Fury Warriors in Phase 5 is thanks to the new Tier 2 sets, with both variants providing overpowered effects.

The Draconic set empowers them by quite a considerable amount, with the 4-item set bonus and 6-item set bonus providing a massive damage boost! Since they can easily trigger free Slam casts, they can effectively spam Bloodthirst now while also being able to make the most of the newly empowered Heroic Strike. On the other hand, the Core Forged Set grants equally powerful bonuses, although they force Fury Warriors into a consistent “Stance Dancing” state to maintain their damage-enhancing buffs.

While they don’t gain a cool new epic weapon like the other classes do in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, the raw damage output presented by Fury Warriors in both Single-Target and AoE encounters remains truly astonishing.

As for their utility, Warriors still grant Rallying Cry and Valor of Azeroth, providing a valuable raid defensive tool and a precious World Buff, just like in Phase 4.

Fire Mage

Dethroned only by the godlike Fury Warriors, Fire Mages retain their phenomenal spot in the S-Tier, representing the most powerful caster specialization in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery. Not only that the improvements they received in Phase 4 still stand tall in Phase 5, but they also received a few balance changes that further improved their performance.

Fire Mage is by far the best-performing Mage Specialization, and certainly the best Caster DPS specialization in the game at the current moment. Their playstyle changed a bit since Balefire Bolt was improved to stack only up to 5 times instead of 10 times, allowing them to perform the rest of their rotation in peace without having to worry about spending too much time casting the ability and missing on Fire Blast casts and Hot Streak procs. Albeit this change was not received well by all Mages due to the loss of Molten Armor, the players quickly adapted to the new playstyle, showcasing some truly incredible numbers in both Blackwing Lair and Zul’Gurub.

Phase 5 also brings a few new goodies to Fire Mage in the form of the new T2 Draconic set which is exclusively dedicated to the Fire Specialization! Although the playstyle that the new set involves forces Fire Mages to alternate between Frostfire Bolt and Fireball to maximize the damage output, which many players consider somewhat annoying. Alternatively, Fire Mages may also choose to use the new Core Forged set which can be very powerful if they choose to retain the Molten Armor build.

Furthermore, Fire Mages receive one of the most powerful new epic weapons, Staff of Inferno, which allows them to proc the effect of Improved Scorch AoE by using Blast Wave, effectively empowering themselves and other casters in AoE encounters.

Besides its new powerful Single-Target performance, Fire Mage still deals a great amount of damage in AoE encounters by using Living Bomb. In terms of utility, Fire Mage still brings Improved Scorch, which is one of the most powerful Fire Damage buffs for other classes available.

Feral Druid

If we named them the “Kings of the Jungle” in Phase 4, in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery we can proudly call them the “Prowling Terrors”, as Feral Druids not only maintain their S-Tier spot but improve upon their former spectacular performance. In terms of balance changes, Feral Druids retain most of the changes they received during Phase 4, with Rake and Rip still performing amazingly. Sadly, they also received a nerf to Elune’s Fires which hindered Rip, although it didn’t seem to impact their overall performance by much.

Phase 5 introduced two new fully viable sets for Feral Druids, the Draconic set and the Core Forged set. Both are extremely powerful, with the latter being tailored more for overall utility, having the same effects as the T1 set from Phase 4. The former is more Damage-oriented, providing some truly interesting effects. The 4-item set bonus and the 6-item set bonus from the Draconic are especially powerful, allowing Feral Druids to have insane burst windows.

However, while both sets are powerful on their own, crafty druids quickly found out that they could combine the two sets and acquire both 4-item set bonuses, resulting in some incredible damage outputs!

Furthermore, Feral Druids have received an astonishing epic weapon that can be compared to Sulfuras, Hand of Ragnaros, namely Rae’lar. Their new epic weapon is so strong, that Feral Druids simply can dish out incredible damage without even having to attain any new weapon from Blackwing Lair or Zul’Gurub, with the weapon being easily acquired and representing their BiS.

In terms of utility, Feral Druids retain the same utility they had in the previous phases. They specifically bring Wild Strikes, Mangle, and Faerie Fire (Feral), which are highly valued by most Physical Damage Dealers. Since Bleed Damage is much more often encountered in Phase 5, Mangle is especially powerful in this phase of the Season of Discovery.

Ranged Hunter

While Ranged Hunters were initially presented as one of the worst specializations at the beginning of Phase 4, they quickly turned the page around and rose all the way to the top of the DPS charts. In Phase 5, this trend continues, albeit somewhat differently. They manage to maintain outstanding damage output, although their capabilities depend largely on the player and the encounter itself, as they sometimes manage to pass other specializations such as Fire Mage or Feral Druids whereas sometimes they are right below them on the damage meters.

In Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, both the Survival and Marksmanship specializations make a full comeback, with both benefiting from the various changes that occurred in the previous phase! Lock and Load and  Resourcefulness remain irreplaceable in any Ranged Hunter’s kit while Chimera Shot still represents their most powerful single-target ability.

Phase 5 also brought a few impactful balance changes, providing both nerfs and buffs to Hunters:

• Lone Wolf: The bonus damage from this rune has been decreased to 30% (was 35%).
• Trueshot Aura grants the Hunter that activates it 50/75/100 additional Ranged Attack Power based on rank.

In terms of item sets, the Core Forged set has the same weak bonuses as the original T1 set which is tied to Aimed Shot while the new Draconic set has quite some interesting effects which involve maintaining a dynamic rotation for a 10% damage increase while also improving Serpent Sting by a considerable amount.

Ranged Hunters also gain a set of epic swords that they may use to improve their overall Critical Strike, Kestrel and Peregrine. However, those weapons are not as impactful for Ranged Hunters as they are for Melee Hunters.

Lastly, Ranged Hunters bring all the same utility tools that they provided in the previous phase as well, with Trueshot Aura and Heart of the Lion particularly standing out!

Mutilate Rogue

Rogues stay strong in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, as they now maintain their spot among the top S-Tier specializations! While they maintain most of the changes related to the runes they received back in Phase 4, they did receive quite some hefty nerfs for all of their builds in Phase 5. As a result, the Mutilate Rogue Build, the Backstab/Ambush Build, and the Saber Slash Build all suffered quite a lot. Luckily, Occult Poison I received a buff that allows Mutilate Rogue to dish out even more Magic Damage while also increasing the Magic Damage of most of their allies, with the poison no longer empowering Holy Damage.

Nerfs:

• Slaughter from the Shadows: Now increases the damage of Backstab and Ambush by 50% to non-players (was 60%).
• The Carnage rune now increases damage done by Rogues to targets with their Bleed effects by 8% (was 20%).

In terms of the new sets that they receive, Mutilate Rogues and  Saber Slash Rogues will find the Core Forged set to be the better option as it presents the same bonuses as the Tier 1 set, meaning potential multiple Mutilate casts while Backstab/Ambush Rogues will benefit more from the new Draconic set which allows them to have extremely powerful burst sequences.

Furthermore, all Rogue Builds receive one truly amazing new epic weapon which serves as their BiS for the entirety of the phase, namely Dream Eater. As this weapon introduces a new energy regeneration component, Phase 5 allows Rogues to mitigate some of the huge nerfs they received.

Nevertheless, even with the present nerfs, all builds perform quite extraordinarily, fitting well in the S-Tier. While their damage output might be considerably lower than expected until they get their hands on the proper equipment, their damage skyrockets once they reach closer to their BiS.

From a utility perspective, Rogues finally bring a few unique effects besides their typical crowd-control effects! Occult Poison I is a new attraction that grants Rogue a very potent utility tool that can empower all Magic Damage-based specializations except for Holy Damage. They also gain access to other special poisons such as Atrophic Poison, Numbing Poison, and Sebacious Poison, providing similar effects to Thunder Clap, Demoralizing Shout, and Sunder Armor.

A-Tier

The A-Tier represents strong DPS specializations that offer a great amount of damage and utility, but not offering the best possible damage output. They will be found in almost every raid group and it will be common to see more than one of each.

Fire Warlock

Fire Warlocks find themselves in the same spot that they were in the previous phase, with Phase 5 maintaining most of the changes that occurred in Phase 4. However, Fire Warlocks have a huge reason to rejoice, as Incinerate now increases Fire damage by 40% compared to its previous 25% version! This has greatly increased the overall damage output of every Fire Warlock, especially when considering how Backdraft, Incinerate, and Chaos Bolt remain their core tools while they also keep the improved Conflagrate and Decimation rune mechanics.

However, Fire Warlocks find themselves in a similar spot with Shadow Priests and Affliction Warlocks, being plagued by the new situation of Phase 5 where a lot of classes seem to have similar performances at various gear differences. This means that they tend to fall in line with those specs, no longer having a clear and distinguishable difference in damage outputs. Based on logs, Fire Warlocks tend to perform very similarly to Shadow Priests and slightly better than Shadow Warlocks (Affliction), depending on the encounter.

In terms of tier-set bonuses, Fire Warlocks will only benefit from the Core Forged set! While the 2-item set and 4-item set bonuses are not particularly strong when compared to other specializations or classes, the 6-item set bonus is quite powerful, allowing Decimation to be triggered regardless of the target’s HP.

Furthermore, Phase 5 provides Fire Warlocks with a new epic weapon that has quite a unique interaction! The Scythe of Chaos allows Fire Warlocks to further enhance their Fire Damage by sacrificing their Imp. Luckily, the weapon also allows Warlocks to gain a proc which can be used to instantly resummon their demons, meaning that that Fire Warlocks won’t have to worry about potential DPS loss due to losing their “Machine Gun Imp.”

Lastly, in terms of utility, they bring all of the utility that they gained in Phase 4, with a small change in which Mark of Chaos no longer increases Holy Damage, meaning that Shockadins or Retribution Paladins will heavily suffer as a consequence.

Shadow Priest

Shadow Priests find themselves in quite a decent spot in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, retaining their position in the A-Tier. Their overall effects and mechanics remain the same as the ones they received in Phase 4, although some balance changes have modified their overall performance and utility quite considerably.

They maintain most of the empowered effects they received in Phase 4 such as Vampiric Touch and Pain and Suffering but they now gain an empowered Despair effect which not only allows DoT effects to critically strike, but also increases the critical strike damage of all the the rest of their spells too! This massive buff has made Shadow Priest compete and even overcome classes such as Warlocks and even in some cases Fire Mages, depending on the encounter itself.

Sadly, while their damage got buffed in Phase 5, Shadow Priests lost a considerable amount of healing they could provide to their allies, with Vampiric Embrace now only providing a 15% healing if the proper talents are selected compared to its previous 30% version.

In terms of tier set bonuses, Shadow Priests have two interesting sets they can choose from, with both the Draconic set and the Core Forged set providing valuable bonuses. Shadow Priests can choose between both sets depending on the playstyle they favor, as one set involves a mechanic with Spirit Tap that can increase all Shadow Damage by 25% while the effect is active, and the other set has a mix of utility and damage-enhancing effects, enhancing Mind Flay and allowing them to heal from Shadowform.

As for utility, Shadow Priests bring the same effects they brought in the previous phases, with the most impactful addition being Vampiric Touch.

Shadow Warlock

Affliction Warlocks, better known as “Shadow Warlocks,” retain quite a powerful position in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, landing themselves in the A-Tier! While their performance has shifted throughout the entirety of Phase 4, in some cases being the top DPS on the meters and in others being the middle of the pack, they are expected to slowly climb again on the meters in Phase 5.

They keep all of the changes that occurred in Phase 4, with Phase 5 presenting them with an improved set specifically designed for them and a balance change that acts as a great quality-of-life improvement. The specialization plays mostly the same, with Unstable Affliction, Everlasting Affliction, and Pandemic being core runes that shape its identity. However, Shadowflame received a major quality-of-life improvement, now allowing Warlocks to correctly maintain the Shadow Vulnerability stacks without the Shadowflame effect having to fall off first.

The current performance showcased by Shadow Warlocks on Warcraftlogs makes them quite hard to place on the tier list, as their damage outputs seem to be all over the place. In some cases, their damage aligns with the one of Shadow Priests and Fire Warlocks while in others they manage to completely obliterate both of them in terms of performance. As it currently stands, their performance is largely related to individual player skill and the amount of gear they acquire, with the encounter itself also playing a huge role into how they perform.

In terms of possible tier sets, they may use the Core Forged set for the 4% increased chance to trigger Nightfall, although the Draconic set is the obvious better choice as it empowers periodic damage and the overall damage of Shadow Bolt based on the active DoTS on the target.

Furthermore, Phase 5 provides Shadow Warlocks with the same new epic weapon that Fire Warlocks can use, allowing them to empower themselves through an interactive effect! The Scythe of Chaos allows Shadow Warlocks to sacrifice their Succubus or Incubus to increase their overall Shadow Damage. However, the effect only lasts 15 seconds, with Warlocks gaining a proc that can be used to instantly resummon their demons after the effect ends.

Lastly, in terms of utility, they bring all of the utility that they gained in Phase 4, with a small change in which Mark of Chaos no longer increases Holy Damage, meaning that Shockadins or Retribution Paladins will heavily suffer as a consequence.

Balance Druid

Deceptively strong is what truly describes Balance Druids in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, as the general performance they showcase on the current Warcraftlogs can be considered both great and bad at the same time. When looking at top contenders, Balance Druids seem to perform amazingly, placing themselves among the top caster specializations such as Warlocks, Priests, and in some cases, even Mages. However, in other cases, their performance is average, with their overall damage output being the middle of the pack.

Balance Druids retain most of the changes that occurred in Phase 4 of Season of Discovery involving Moonkin Form and Elune’s Fires, with Phase 5 bringing one additional change, a massive buff to Dreamstate! Dreamstate will now always trigger from Starsurge casts, while also increasing the overall Arcane Damage received by the target by 20%. This buff considerably raises the overall performance of Balance Druid, raising it from its previous mediocre iteration. However, they also receive somewhat of a nerf which can be considered more of a balance change, with Dreamstate and Stormstrike’s Nature Damage increasing effects no longer stacking with one another.

In terms of tier-set bonuses, Balance Druids are among the luckiest specializations in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, as they gain access to the new powerful set bonuses offered by the Draconic set, which solves the issue they had with the previously available weak tier set bonuses. Additionally, they also receive a new epic weapon just like the other specializations, Gla’sir, which helps them in both Single-Target and AoE encounters.

Lastly, their great utility and off-heal capabilities are what makes them shine more and the devs seem to want to emphasize that further. Their unique Moonkin Form continues to be a great addition to Caster-oriented groups, especially as many casters heavily rely on Critical Strike Chance.

Enhancement Shaman

Enhancement Shamans find themselves in an odd position in Phase 5, as they received some huge buffs but their overall performance is tied to the encounters themselves. They keep a spot in the A-Tier, but the overall damage output consistency they display is somewhat questionable. On the higher-end brackets of Item Level, Enhancement Shamans seem to position themselves close to the S-Tier specializations, in some cases even beating all the other A-Tier specializations. On the other hand, at lower Item Level brackets and in cases where the parses are middle-tier at best, Enhancement Shaman seems to be performing awfully, making the specialization a wildcard which is defined by skill, gear, and most importantly the encounter itself.

Compared to the huge nerfs they received back in Phase 4, Enhancement Shamans received overall buffs in Phase 5, with Mental Dexterity now offering increased Attack Power based on Intellect by 100% and by Spell Power by 35%, bringing Enhance/Spellhance back to its former glory! Sadly, Enhancement Shamans still can’t use Chain Heal or Healing Wave with Maelstrom Weapon.

Their overall rotation remains the same as it was in the previous phase of Season of Discovery, with most of their damage coming from Melee Swings, Windfury Weapon, shock spells, and weaved-in Lightning Bolt/Chain Lightning.

In terms of item sets, Enhancement Shamans share a similar condition with Feral Druids, being able to mix both the Draconic and Core Forged sets to acquire multiple benefits. Multiple variations are viable, however, a combination of 6 items from the Core Forged set and 2 items from the Draconic set seem to offer the best performance so far.

Additionally, in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, Enhancement Shamans sadly have no epic weapons specifically made for them, with Elemental and Restoration Shamans receiving a cool shield instead.

Enhancement Shamans currently provide the same utility that Elemental Shamans/Restoration Shamans provide, bringing vast bonuses to their allies, especially since their totems’ range is massively buffed by the tier-set bonus. Additionally, since Shamanistic Rage is now a baseline ability, Shamans also have a very powerful mana regeneration tool that they can grant their allies.

B-Tier

The B-Tier represents mediocre damage specializations. They are still considered viable, as they do a decent amount of damage, but they typically cannot compete with the A-tier specs on the damage meters. However, in many cases they provide valuable raid buffs that make them worth bringing anyway, as their utility makes up for their deficiency in raw damage.

Elemental Shaman

Elemental Shamans in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery can be described in a single word, “Auch.” Compared to their previous version in Phase 4, the current iteration seems to be all over the place. While players expected Elemental Shamans to be one of the top dominating caster specializations, the reality is that their damage output falls in line with most other B-Tier and A-Tier specializations, being a victim of the “Harmonized Damage Outputs” we mentioned in the beginning. In some cases, their damage output is even below the normal threshold, being considered as low as a C-Tier specialization.

Their performance can certainly be impressive in some encounters while in others, their damage simply blends in with other specializations, drawing almost no attention to themselves whatsoever. Most of the huge buffs they received back in Phase 4 still apply in Phase 5, however, they also received some overhauls and nerfs that dampened their overall performance.

• Power Surge: This rune has been slightly redesigned. Flame Shock periodic damage can no longer make the Shaman’s next Chain Heal instant, and Riptide periodic healing can no longer reset the cooldown on Lava Burst and Chain Lightning and can no longer make those spells instant.
• Burn: This rune now requires Flametongue on the main hand weapon to grant its spell damage. It also now grants 1 spell damage per Intellect (was 2 spell damage per level).

Luckily for them, the new Draconic Tier 2 set provides some very strong bonuses that may restore some of their former lost glory. The entire set revolves around Elemental Focus, which also received a slight adjustment, improving their overall damage output by quite a considerable percentage. Additionally, they also receive a cool new epic shield thanks to the introduction of the new class-related epic items in Phase 5, Terrestris, which provides quite an impressive array of buffs.

Elemental Shamans currently provide the same utility that Enhancement Shamans provide, bringing vast bonuses to their allies, especially since their totems’ range is massively buffed by the tier-set bonus. Additionally, since Shamanistic Rage is now a baseline ability, Shamans also have a very powerful mana regeneration tool that they can grant their allies.

Melee Hunter

The situation hasn’t changed for the better with Melee Hunters in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, as the issues they went through in Phase 4 seem to persist. Their placement on the DPS meters is still awkward at best, as they seem to be extremely inconsistent from encounter to encounter. Additionally, Phase 5 introduces even more changes to their playstyle, with the dev team seeming to try as best as they can to balance the specialization in an impactful way. The issue with Melee Hunters is that their overall performance is highly related to the skill of the player, with most logs from Warcraftlogs suggesting that Melee Hunters are often in the middle of the pack.

They retain most of the changes that occurred in Phase 4, but they receive a large amount of buffs to some of their abilities:

• Cobra Slayer: The chance for Mongoose Bite to activate from this rune is now 10% and accumulates 10% per time it fails to activate (was 5%). Also, bonus damage on Mongoose Bite is now 45% of Attack Power (was 40%).
• Flanking Strike: The chance for Flanking Strike to trigger has been increased to 50% (was 33%) and grants 8% Melee damage increase per stack (was 5%).
• Wyvern Strike: The damage has been increased to 140% (was 100%). In addition, its damage over time effect has been increased to 80% of Attack Power over its duration at rank 3 (64% at rank 2 and 48% at rank 1).

As for their tier-set bonuses, the new Draconic Tier 2 set is specifically made to synergize with the new changes made to Wyvern Strike, however, they may also use the Core Forged set, even if it seems to be less effective. Alternatively, some Melee Hunters found out that a combination of both the Draconic set and the Core Forged is a viable option, which seems to improve the overall damage output a bit more than either set alone.

Melee Hunters receive two epic weapons in Phase 5, Kestrel, and Peregrine, which can be considered a very strong addition to their overall damage capabilities. However, unlike other classes/specializations, those weapons are far from BiS, placing Melee Hunters in quite a weak position.

Lastly, Melee Hunters brings almost all the same utility tools as the other Hunter Specializations.

Retribution Paladin

Retribution Paladins in Phase 5 find themselves in a rather peculiar spot as their performance can be seen as all over the place. Some logs suggest that they are among the top DPS specializations while others place them at the bottom. If we specifically look at the 95th percentile when looking at both Zul’Gurub and Blackwing Lair, their position tends to be either at the middle of the pack or in the lower ends. However, in some cases, their damage output is astonishing, reaching numbers as high as some of the top specializations such as Ranged Hunter or Feral Druid. Because of this, it can be stated that Retribution Paladins’ performance in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery is highly tied to individual player skill, especially as the “Seal Twisting” mechanic is largely at play.

Retribution Paladins retain most of the changes that occurred in Phase 4, with Phase 5 bringing no balance changes specifically tailored to them. They keep the overhauled Exorcist, The Art of War, and Seal of Martyrdom while still dealing most of their damage through melee attacks.

In terms of set bonuses, Retribution Paladins are in for an actual surprise. Whereas many have claimed that “Seal Twisting” will be completely irrelevant in Season of Discovery, the devs brought us a surprise by implementing the “Seal Twisting” concept into the tier-set bonuses themselves. The bonuses allow Retribution Paladins to unleash multiple seals at once with Judgement while also retaining multiple seal effects for a limited amount of time after swapping a seal. While some will be overjoyed by this, others will surely find it frustrating as opposed to the Exorcism spam playstyle they were used to.

The combination of the new Draconic set which allows them to maintain their Seals after using Judgement and the “Seal Twisting” provided by the Core Forged Set places Retribution Paladins in an extraordinary spot gameplay-wise. However, the damage output resulting from the build is extremely tied to the skill of the player, often resulting in varied damage outputs as a result. This is the main reason why the current logs are very different than the Retribution Paladin sims we’ve seen on sites such as Github.

Additionally, the new epic weapon they receive, Truthbearer, has an effect that increases their Attack Speed, further facilitating their “Seal Twisting” potential. The issue, however, is that at the current time, there are not many logs with players that have complete sets, so a precise estimation of their full potential is yet impossible.

As for utility, Retribution Paladins bring almost all the same utility spells that the other Paladin Specializations bring, with the addition of Aura Mastery which fits their playstyle the best when considering the alternatives.

C-Tier

The specializations that make up the C-Tier are on the weaker side of the DPS spectrum. They can still be considered viable, occasionally offering useful buffs and debuffs, and can very often be very fun to play. However, you aren’t likely to be on the top places of DPS meters with these specs, and you won’t have the easiest time finding a raid group, as they aren’t in high demand.

Frost Mage

Compared to Phase 4, Frost Mage seems to struggle in Phase 5, as it lands itself in the C-Tier. The major issue that can be observed with Frost Mages at the current moment is the inconsistency they have in terms of damage output, with two new builds emerging that seem to be very reliant on RNG. The Frostfire Bolt, Overheat, Burnout, and Hot Streak meta remains strong, although a new build based on Deep Freeze, Fingers of Frost, and Frozen Orb also emerged which seems to be performing almost identically.

The specialization retained all the changes that occurred in Phase 5, being affected only by the Balefire Bolt change which is not so impactful. The only beneficial change for them is the addition of the Core Forged set which seems to be specifically designed for Frost Mages as they can use it to trigger Fingers of Frost more often. They may also use two pieces of the Draconic set to empower Frostfire Bolt even further.

However, the inconsistent damage when compared to Fire Mages or other similar caster specializations puts them in a hard place, as in some encounters they seem to fare better than specializations such as Enhancement Shamans. Elemental Shamans or Melee Hunters while in others they fall behind miserably.

In terms of utility, Frost Mage brings the same utility that all Mage Specializations can, albeit they can also bring Improved Scorch if they choose to do so, just like a Fire Mage.

Arms Warrior

Phase 5 brings a clear distinction between Arms and Fury Warriors, as Arms seems to be performing far worse than Fury Warrior, alongside all the other Melee Damage Dealer Specializations, landing itself in the C-Tier. While Phase 5 brings the exact same changes for both specializations, with the majority of the changes being tailored toward the rune themselves, the reality is that the Arms Talent Tree is completely overwhelmed by the Fury Talent Tree, with Fury performing spectacularly by comparison when looking at Arms.

While most changes from Phase 4 are still present, the Mortal Strike build is simply not cutting it, with most of the damage dealt by Arms Warriors being represented by Deep Wounds, Overpower, and Melee attacks. Even if the new Tier 2 set, 2-piece bonus, benefits Arms Warriors a bit more than Fury Warriors thanks to the Rend reset, Fury Warriors simply seem to perform better. It is yet unclear if this is specifically related to player skill or not, however, even the top performers in the Arms category are struggling to keep up with other Melee DPS specializations.

As it stands in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, Arms Warriors have a far better chance of performing in PvP encounters rather than PvE encounters, especially with how useful Mortal Strike is.

Their utility remains the same as the one provided by Fury Warriors, still granting Rallying Cry. if they are not brought to a raid for the damage itself, the Valor of Azeroth ability still adds a lot of value for the raid group in the absence of Fury or Protection Warriors who might have provided the buff instead.

D-Tier

Simply put, specs in the D-tier are considered to be not viable. They can be fun to play, but you will struggle to get invited to raids when playing one of these, and you may even find yourself getting kicked from groups, as your damage will be really bad.

Arcane Mage

Arcane Mage seems to be forever doomed to the D Tier in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, as the specialization found itself in the same spot during the previous phases as well.

While the changes from Phase 4 seemed to give Arcane Mage a bit of hope, the reality is that the newly introduced Draconic and Coreforged Tier 2 sets heavily influence Arcane Mage towards a pure support/healer specialization. The new T2 sets revolve themselves around empowering all the supportive abilities and effects such as Temporal Beacon, Regeneration, Mass Regeneration, and Chronomantic Healing while the only real DPS change for Arcane Mage is the Draconic T2 4-item set bonus which allows Arcane Blast to have a higher chance of proccing Missile Barrage.

Furthermore, in Phase 5, Arcane Mage had no balance changes in favor of optimized DPS, meaning that it remains stuck with what it received in Phase 4. The only changes which pertain to Arcane Mage are the following two changes, which are directly aimed towards Mage Healers:

• Regeneration: Mana cost reduced by approximately 35%.
• Mass Regeneration: Mana cost reduced by approximately 35%.

Luckily, Arcane Mages still seem to have control over their Mana Pool thanks to all the Refreshment effects available, meaning that they don’t have to worry about “Mana Starvation” states consistently.