Updated for 4.3
The extra two points can be used to either pick up Inner Sanctum or complete Mental Agility.
Note: Some aspects of this guide may not apply to your character until higher level. If are interested in getting your character to max level quickly, take a look at this leveling guide.
Glyphs come in three varieties, Prime, Major and Minor. Prime glyphs enhance core aspects of your class and generally provide the greatest benefit of the three types.
Major Glyphs, while not quite as powerful as Prime Glyphs, are still useful and continue to provide a myriad of benefits.
Minor Glyphs often times provide small quality of life improvements or visual changes, such as the Glyph of Shadow Form for priests which makes the character more visible through Shadow Form. However, a few are known to provide more significant benefits such as the warrior glyph of Berserker Rage.
Prime Glyphs:
Major Glyphs:
Minor Glyphs:
Here are your highest priority abilities.
Keep your DoT effects active at all times. To take full advantage Empowered Shadow if you’re about to lose the buff, reapply your DoT’s immediately before it fades, however only do this if your DoT’s are about to fade.
When a target is at 25% or below you should use Shadow Word: Death before Mind Blast if you have 0 Shadow Orbs. If you have 1 orb or more use Mind Blast first.
AoE Rotation
It’s useful to target a friendly target such as the tank when using Mind Sear as this avoids the need to recast the spell that might occur if you were targeting a hostile mob and it died mid-channel.
Cooldowns
The most important aspect of managing your cooldowns as a damage dealer is making certain to use them whenever they’re avaliable. Don’t be afraid to use them during any fight, even against trash mobs, as the higher the uptime you have with them, the greater your overall damage will be so long as you aren’t using them when a fight is about to end.
The only time to hold off on using your cooldowns is when you’ll be unable to attack the boss due to fight mechanics, such as during Morchok’s Black Blood of the Earth ability or when Hagara is about to cast Water Shield and become immune to all damage.
Melee DPS will have to watch out for this more than ranged, as they are far more vulnerable to situations where an encounter requires constant movement or the boss is utilizing some form of AoE attack that makes fighting in melee range impossible.
Intellect > 17% Spell Hit > Haste > Mastery > Critical
Intellect:
Intellect increases spell damage and maximum mana, making it your most important stat.
17% Spell Hit:
Spell hit is increased by hit rating and spirit. 17% is the suggested value to aim for as once you reach it your spells can no longer miss bosses, allowing you to avoid any loss of damage, wasted mana and cast time for no gain.
Haste:
Haste decreases the cast time of spells, making them faster, and increases the rate at which DoT’s tick.
Mastery – Shadow Orb Power:
Shadow Priest Mastery increases the damage done by their shadow orbs.
Critical:
Critical rating increases the chance for your spells to critically hit.
Reforging
When reforging gear, it’s important that you look to reforge from your least effective stat into the most effective for whatever gear goal you are currently aiming for. See our stat priority list for more information.
17% Spell Hit > Haste > Mastery
The most important stat to check for when reforging your gear is 17% spell hit, the point at which your spells can no longer miss. You’ll want to always check and make certain that you’ve achieved this before reforging into other stats such as Haste and Mastery.
Once you’ve reached 17% Spell Hit your next most important/valuable stat is Haste, followed by Mastery.
Gems
- Red – Brilliant Inferno Ruby
- Blue – Purified Demonseye
- Yellow – Reckless Ember Topaz – Artful Ember Topaz
- Meta – Burning Shadowspirit Diamond
Unless a socket bonus offers intellect, it’s more effective to gem for pure intellect and ignore the bonus.
Enchantments
- Main Hand: Power Torrent
- Off-Hand: Superior Intellect
- Helm: Arcanum of Hyjal
- Shoulders: Greater Inscription of Charged lodestone
- Cloak: Enchant Cloak – Greater Intellect
- Chest: Enchant Chest – Peerless Stats
- Bracers: Enchant Bracer – Speed – Enchant Bracer – Mighty Intellect
- Gloves: Enchant Gloves – Haste
- Belt: Ebonsteel Belt Buckle
- Leggings: Powerful Ghostly Spellthread
- Boots: Enchant Boots – Haste
Our class guides for whichever class you’re playing:
Death Knights – Druid – Hunter – Mage – Paladin
Priest – Rogue – Shaman – Warlock – Warrior
The GotWarcraft Gold Guide
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