Classes
What type of hero will you be? This is one of the first questions you’ll answer when playing World of Warcraft. In the AIE guild we feel you should play any and all classes that fits your play style. Choosing your class will be one of the biggest decisions that you will make at the start of the game. Each race has its own list of class options available to it. Your class will define what weapons and armor you can use, as will as what abilities, powers, skills, and spells you will be given as you progress through the game.
Also be aware that some class will offer you specialize talents that you can later choose from on your talent tree. There are also class sets that you can collect. The class set will improve a character when they have reached the level cap. Most dungeon and raid sets are made up of armor items designed specifically for the class; however, faction rewards sets also include trinkets and neck pieces.
But, always remember that it doesn’t matter what class you chose as long as you are willing to stand by it and don’t give up.
General
This is information that is useful to all players, regardless of the class they play.
Brief summary of each class
Druids are the keepers of the world and masters of nature with a diverse array of abilities. They are powerful healers, capable of curing poisons and raising fallen comrades in the thick of battle. Druids also command nature’s wrath, calling down ranged blasts of energy, summoning swarms of insects, or entangling their foes in the earth. But druids are also masters of the wild, able to shapeshift into a great bear, cat, or even sea lion, gaining their powers in combat or travel. Druids are a diverse class with a variety of playstyles, capable of filling any role. Druids are versatile hybrids with various shapeshift forms in which they can tank like a warrior (Bear Form), stealth and fight in melee like a rogue (Cat Form), heal like a priest (normal or Tree Form), and cast spells like a mage (normal form or Moonkin Form). As such they are the only class that can fill all 4 main roles. However, unlike other hybrids, druids do not perform several roles at once but instead shift between roles. With talent specialization, Druids can excel at any of their playable roles in a group and/or raid.
Hunters are deadly marksmen, capable of bringing their enemies down from a distance with bows or rifles. Skilled survivalists, they can track enemies or lay traps to damage and entrap their foes. Hunters also possess a primal connection to the beasts of Azeroth, capable of taming and training them to keep as loyal guardians. Wearing light to medium armor, hunters can also dual wield weapons in combat, fighting beside their pets in battle. Hunters are the only class that can effectively use ranged weapons (e.g. bows or guns) as a primary source of damage. Very adept at kiting, they have plenty of tools to allow them to avoid melee combat, where they are fairly weak. Hunters may tame many varieties of beasts to serve as combat pets, which along with an array of scouting, tracking, and survival abilities make them excellent solo characters.
Mages wield the elements of fire, frost, and the arcane to destroy or neutralize their enemies. They are a robed class that excels at dealing massive damage from afar, casting elemental bolts at a single target, or raining destruction down upon their enemies in a wide area of effect. Mages can also augment their allies’ spell-casting powers, summon food or drink to restore their friends, and even travel across the world in an instant by opening arcane portals to distant lands. Mages are ranged magic damage dealers with very powerful direct and area effect damage spells, but weak armor and health. They also feature a variety of utility spells, including crowd control, teleportation and group portals to capital cities, and conjuration of food and water. Mages are reliant on mana for almost all of their abilities.
Guardians of the Holy Light and defenders of the Alliance, paladins bolster their allies with holy auras and blessing to protect their friends from harm and enhance their powers. Wearing heavy armor, they can withstand terrible blows in the thickest battles while healing their wounded allies and resurrecting the slain. In combat, they can wield massive two-handed weapons, stun their foes, destroy undead and demons, and judge their enemies with holy vengeance. Paladins are a defensive class designed to outlast their opponents. A hybrid class focused on defensive melee skills and healing abilities, paladins have very strong group support and buff abilities. They may wear heavy plate armor and carry shields like a warrior, but are also efficient healers, which combine to produce their renowned durability in combat. With talent specialization and equipment selection, paladins can fill the role of tank, offtank, or healer, and excel when called upon to spot-fill all these roles in a group setting. They can even sacrifice themselves to provide wipe recovery when needed. With the release of the Burning Crusade, Paladins are no longer exclusive to the Alliance. Blood elves (Horde) can now play as Paladins.
Priests are the masters of healing and preservation, restoring their wounded allies, shielding them in battle, and even resurrecting their fallen comrades. While they have a variety of protective and enhancement spells to bolster their allies, priests can also wreak terrible vengeance on their enemies, using the powers of shadow or holy light to destroy them. They are a diverse and powerful class, highly desirable in any group, capable of fulfilling multiple roles. Priests are the quintessential healer, and easily the most versatile class in that role, though they may also specialize to become powerful offensive casters. Priests have a wide variety of healing utility spells, along with a few tricks, helpful and otherwise, such as Power Word: Fortitude, Mind Control and the almost always-useful Dispel Magic. Besides their numerous healing spells, they can choose to pursue Shadowy arts, gaining the ability to assume a temporary Shadowform, increasing damage while sacrificing all but their vampiric healing abilities.
Rogues are a lightly armored melee class capable of dealing massive damage to their enemies in a flurry of attacks. They are masters of stealth and assassination, passing by enemies unseen and striking from the shadows, then escaping from combat in the blink of an eye. Rogues can also craft poisons that damage or cripple their enemies, reducing their effectiveness in battle. Groups will find rogues valuable, for not only do they deal massive damage, but they can open locked doors or chests, and disarm hidden traps as well. Rogues excel at dealing melee damage and incapacitating their foes, particularly low health and low armor targets such as casters. Stealth gives them a tactical advantage and allows them to start a fight on their own terms. Other important abilities include lockpicking and the creation and handling of poisons. Also, a huge power is the Rogue’s ability to stun and incapacitate for a large period of time. This, paired with the rogue’s high Damage gives him a huge edge over his opponent. Rogues do not use mana for their combat abilities. Instead they use energy and generate combo points which are used to execute finishing moves.
Shaman are the spiritual leaders of their tribes and clans. They are masters of the elements, using spells and totems that heal or enhance their allies in battle while unleashing the fury of the elements upon their foes. Shaman can wear medium armor, and even wield massive two-handed weapons in combat. They are a versatile class that can wade into battle, restoring their allies while hurling elemental bolts of lightning at their enemies. Shamans are one of the most versatile classes in the game as they can switch seamlessly from offensive caster to healer to melee DPS as needed, though at later levels they often specialize in one of these roles. Shamans can make good support characters, with the ability to step in and fill any role that may be lacking at the moment. Their high burst damage and healing also make them quite good at PvP. They are able to drop stationary totems on the ground which provide a variety of effects, many of which are useful (although minor) to the entire party. They are unique in that they can provide complete wipe recovery by self-resurrecting and then resurrecting the rest of the party. With the release of the Burning Crusade, Shamans are no longer exclusive to the Horde. Draenei (Alliance) can now play as Shamans.
Warlocks are masters of shadow, flame, and demonic power. They are a robed class that excels at plaguing their enemies with disease or curses, hurling bolts of fire or shadow energy across the battlefield, and summoning demons to aid them in combat. While warlocks are powerful casters that deal damage from a distance, their demonic powers can also protect or support their allies in battle, or even summon other players from across the world using ritual magic to conjure portals. Warlocks enslave demons and call upon dark magic and curses to dominate and destroy their foes. Like hunters, warlocks employ combat pets, but these are summoned demons rather than tamed beasts. They are primarily ranged magic damage dealers with a focus on damage over time in addition to nukes and AoE, but lack the extreme burst damage capabilities of a mage. Demon pets and fear spells give them a variety of tactical options, and they have several utility spells and abilities, including summoning party members and creating healthstones and soulstones.
Warriors can be a raging berserker or an iron-clad juggernaut, capable of withstanding tremendous attacks while protecting their allies from harm. They have a wide variety of attacks that do everything from cripple their enemies, to dealing massive amounts of damage in a single retaliatory blow, and enhancing their allies’ fighting ability with battle shouts. They excel at fighting multiple opponents at once, gaining rage from every blow dealt or received to unleash their attacks. Warriors are a versatile class with a variety of play-styles to choose from. Warriors are close-combat fighters and usually fill the role of primary tank (or in some cases there are offtanks, only if there are more then two enemies at once in a raid, i.e the small Garr look alikes in MC), as they are able to withstand and inflict fierce physical punishment and have the most versatile means of attracting and disabling mobs, keeping aggro off other characters. They can also contribute very strong melee DPS when needed. Warrior abilities use rage, which is generated by dealing and taking damage, but decays over time while not in combat. Warriors are highly gear dependent, as their ability to deal and take damage is controlled directly by the quality of their weapons and armor.