PvE Demonology Warlock

PvE Demonology Warlock

The Mists of Pandaria expansion refocuses the Demonology build for Warlocks around their Metamorphosis ability, creating a spec that alternates between building and spending their new Demonic Fury resource. Demo Locks expand their control of powerful demon minions as well, and gain the ability to tank in a limited capacity. This guide will cover how to build, gear, and play this unique build in all of MoP Classic’s endgame PvE content. Be sure to use the menu below to navigate to other sections of the guide, which is broken down into multiple pages.

Changes in Mists of Pandaria

The Warlock in Mists of Pandaria is one of the most highly regarded examples of class design in all of World of Warcraft. Each of its three specializations has received an overhaul, with a newfound emphasis on their uniqueness and class fantasy. For Demonology, that’s your connection to demons, including your ability to transform into one.

A lot of the spells will be familiar if you played Cataclysm, but there’s a new rhythm to the build with the removal of Metamorphosis‘s cooldown. Now you’ll be alternating between building Demonic Fury in your caster form and spending it in your demon form. You also gain the ability to summon a small army of minions with Wild Imps and Grimoire of Service.

Your mobility will be stronger than ever with Burning Rush, a new talent that lets you sprint indefinitely – although it drains your health to do so. You also have your Demonic Circle, and you can even spec into Kil’jaeden’s Cunning for the ability to spam your main filler spell on the go.

Keep in mind that we will see class tuning from Patch 5.4.8 right from the beginning in MoP Classic. This will make the early phases play out a little differently than they did in the original Mists of Pandaria. Many old guides and data sets from the original version of the expansion will no longer be accurate for this reason.

demonology warlock specialization window

Strengths & Weaknesses

round check mark symbol with transparent background free png Strengths

  • Good Mobility
    You won’t feel like the slowest member of your group anymore with the addition of Burning Rush (as long as you’re careful not to accidentally burn to death). You also get Demonic Leap as Demonology, which has a short cooldown but costs Demonic Fury to use. Your Demonic Circle: Summon + Demonic Circle: Teleport combo give you the ability to instantly cross the battlefield, and Demonic Gateway does the same for up to 5 players at a time.
  • Excellent Group Utility
    Warlocks have always been desirable in groups for their unique utility. You have a valuable raid debuff in Curse of the Elements as well as an equally valuable buff in Dark Intent. You have lots of tools for kiting and crowd control and you can battle rez with Soulstone. Your Ritual of Summoning can round up wayward teammates as easy as “123.” The Healthstones from your Create Soulwell can be invaluable for progression. Each of your demon pets also brings some utility of their own.
  • Capable of Tanking
    That’s right, Warlock Tanks are an actual thing in MoP Classic. You won’t be able to main tank a raid, but you will be able to handle some adds when needed or even lead a group through dungeons. All of this is made possible by the Glyph of Demon Hunting, which gives you Dark Apotheosis, a special half-demon form that makes you sturdier and gives you access to some new abilities – plus some cool purple wings.

round cross mark symbol with transparent background free png Weaknesses

  • Hybrid Tax
    With Glyph of Demon Hunting, you are officially a hybrid, and that means that you pay the price of being a bit less effective in your primary role. When Dark Apotheosis is active, you’ll do less damage. Even without using the glyph, you’re unlikely to compete with Affliction or Destruction Warlocks for DPS outside of burst AoE, especially as the expansion progresses.
  • High Complexity
    While you don’t have as many DoTs and procs to watch out for as Affliction Warlocks, Demonology is very reliant on careful timing. A poorly timed Metamorphosis is going to rob you of a lot of damage. It takes experience to learn how much Demonic Fury you need to pool and when to save your Molten Core procs or spend them. There’s also the fact that you can tank, which is a whole separate role to learn if you choose to do so.
  • Ramp Reliant
    The Metamorphosis cycle requires ramp up time to build Demonic Fury, and can leave you feeling behind on short fights or when there’s a burst window that you aren’t prepared for. You also don’t have Affliction’s tools for spreading your DoTs, so they have to be reapplied every time you switch to a new target.

Best Races

Wow Alliance Crest Alliance

The best Alliance race for Demonology Warlocks in Mists of Pandaria is achievement character gnome maleachievement character gnome male Gnome due to their Expansive Mind and Shortblade Specialization racial abilities. Since Intellect no longer increases your mana pool, Expansive Mind is one of the few ways you can add to your mana pool in MoP Classic. Shortblade Specialization will help you reach the lofty 15% Hit cap as long as you are using a Dagger or Sword.

Horde

The best Horde race for Demonology Warlocks in Mists of Pandaria is achievement character troll maleachievement character troll male Troll because of their Berserking racial ability, which acts as an extra Haste cooldown. icon - orc maleicon - orc female Orc is not far behind with the extra pet damage from Command.

 

About the Author

Luxrah

I've been playing World of Warcraft on and off since vanilla, usually as a healer or caster and often as a guild leader. I play both retail and classic. I also love RPGs, sandboxes, and sims.
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