Paladin talent calculator

Quick answer: Paladin is a much better class in WoW Forever than it ever was in Classic. Retribution levels well and finally has a real damage rotation, Protection is a proper tank from level 10 with Righteous Fury and a taunt through Seal of Fury, and Holy is still one of the strongest healers in the game, now with Oath of Light and Light's Vigil. Paladins can also be Undead on the Horde side for the first time.

Is Paladin good in WoW Forever?

Yes, and it's one of the biggest glow-ups in Forever. Classic Paladins were famous for one thing: healing and handing out blessings. In Forever, every spec plays the way it should. Ret has Holy Strike, Unsealed Wrath and Champion of the Light, Prot has Templar's Bulwark, Shieldsworn and a real taunt, and Holy got new tools like Oath of Light, Infusion of Light and Light's Vigil.

A few classic quirks are gone. Blessing of Salvation, Mass Salvation and Blessing of Light were removed, so you're no longer the raid's buff bot. Judgement no longer eats your seal, blessings last a full hour, and Consecration is something every Paladin learns at level 20.

At a glance:

• Roles: melee damage (Retribution), tank (Protection), healer (Holy)
• Best leveling spec: Retribution
• Hardest part: mana while leveling, and slow kills before your talents come online
• Best for: players who want to be hard to kill, love plate armour, and like being useful in every group

Paladin strengths and weaknesses

Strengths:

• Very hard to kill. Plate armour, Divine Shield, Divine Protection, Lay on Hands and self-heals mean Paladins rarely die while leveling.
• Wanted in every group. Blessings, auras, Cleanse and an emergency heal make you useful even as Retribution.
• Three real roles. Tank, heal or deal damage, and switching is easy because your blessings and heals work in every spec.
• Great at fighting undead and demons. Exorcism, Holy Wrath and Turn Undead make some zones and dungeons a breeze.

Weaknesses:

• Mana while leveling. Retribution leans on mana for seals, Judgements and Consecration, so you'll drink more than a Warrior or Rogue.
• Few ways to escape. You can't outrun anything, so you rely on surviving instead of escaping.
• Slow early kills. Until Holy Strike, Seal of Command and Champion of the Light come online, fights take a while.

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What's new for Paladins in WoW Forever?

• Holy Strike (level 6): an instant strike for 50% weapon damage plus Holy damage on a short cooldown. The backbone of every spec.
• Seal of Fury (level 10): adds Holy damage to your swings, and with a shield it also gives you a small absorb. Judging it deals Holy damage and briefly taunts. Yes, Paladins finally have a taunt.
• Righteous Fury at level 10 (was 16): 33% more threat from everything and 90% more from Holy damage.
• Judgement no longer consumes your seal, so you can judge and keep swinging with the same seal.
• Consecration is baseline at level 20, and it hits the first 4 enemies in it hard.
• Templar's Bulwark (Protection): a shield worth 100% of your maximum health for 8 seconds.
• Swift Judgement (Protection): a second Judgement with its own cooldown.
• Shieldsworn (Protection capstone): Holy Strike hits with your shield and triggers your block talents.
• Oath of Light (Holy): swear an oath to one ally to boost your Holy Light, Flash of Light and Holy Shock on them.
• Light's Vigil (Holy capstone): your next Holy Shock on the target has no cooldown and also heals their party.
• Unsealed Wrath (Retribution capstone): your swings store copies of your active seal, and switching seals cashes them in. Seal twisting is back, on purpose this time.
• Salvation, Mass Salvation and Blessing of Light were removed.

Which Paladin spec should you pick?

Retribution (melee damage). The leveling spec, and a genuine damage dealer at 60. You swing a two-hander, keep your seal and Judgements going, hit Holy Strike on cooldown and use Champion of the Light to turn Intellect into spell damage. It's tough to kill and heals itself between pulls.

Protection (tank). One of the most complete tanks at launch. Righteous Fury at 10, a taunt through Seal of Fury, Holy Shield, Reckoning and a huge Templar's Bulwark shield make Prot great in dungeons, and Consecration makes it excellent at holding packs.

Holy (healer). Big, efficient single-target heals, now with more group healing thanks to Light's Vigil. Holy Light with Illumination and Holy Power crits feels as good as ever, and Oath of Light makes your tank healing even stronger.

Best Paladin leveling build in WoW Forever

Level as Retribution with a Holy dip.

Retribution Leveling Build (20/0/31)

Talent order, roughly:

1. Benediction (5) first, for cheaper instant spells and abilities.
2. Improved Judgement (2), Conviction (3) for 6% crit, and Sanctified Judgement (3) for mana back on every Judgement.
3. Seal of Command, Pursuit of Justice (2) and Vindication.
4. Sacred Arbiter and Two-Handed Weapon Specialization (3).
5. Repentance and Vengeance (3), then Champion of the Light (5).
6. Unsealed Wrath at level 40.
7. Finish in Holy: Divine Strength (5), Improved Seals (5), Reverence (2), Purifying Power (2), Holy Conduit (2), Divine Precision (2) and Spiritual Focus (2).

Key levels to look forward to:

• 1: Holy Light and Seal of Righteousness.
• 4: Judgement and Blessing of Might.
• 6: Holy Strike, Seal of the Crusader and Divine Protection.
• 10: Seal of Fury, Righteous Fury, Lay on Hands and Blessing of Protection.
• 14: Blessing of Wisdom.
• 20: Consecration, Exorcism, Flash of Light and Blessing of Kings.
• 30: Seal of Light.
• 34: Divine Shield.
• 38: Seal of Wisdom.
• 40: your Retribution capstone, Unsealed Wrath.
• 44: Hammer of Wrath.
• 50: Holy Wrath.

How to level as Retribution: put up your seal, open with Judgement, then auto-attack and press Holy Strike on cooldown. Judge again whenever it's ready (your seal stays up, it just needs refreshing every 30 seconds), and use Consecration when you pull more than one enemy. Use Exorcism on undead and demons, which is a free big hit. Between pulls, top yourself up with Flash of Light instead of eating, and keep Blessing of Might or Blessing of Wisdom on yourself depending on whether you're short on damage or mana. Sanctified Judgement and Seal of Wisdom fix most mana problems.

Retribution guide: rotation and tips

• Seals: Seal of Command for damage, Seal of the Crusader to judge for more damage, and Seal of Wisdom or Seal of Light for sustain.
• Unsealed Wrath: your swings store copies of your active seal, up to 3. Swap to a different seal and land a hit to make every stored copy try to activate at once. Swapping between Seal of Command and Seal of Righteousness is the classic way to make it pop.
• Holy Strike on cooldown, especially with Sacred Arbiter, which makes it hit 20% harder and refreshes your Judgements on the target.
• Champion of the Light turns up to 60% of your Intellect into spell damage and makes Hammer of Wrath cast 1 second faster. Use Hammer of Wrath on anything under 20% health.
• Vengeance stacks up to 5 times after crits, so keep swinging to keep it rolling.
• Two-handers only. Two-Handed Weapon Specialization adds 6% Holy and Physical damage and lowers your threat by 20%.

Protection guide: threat and survival

Protection Build (0/34/17). It takes Templar's Bulwark, Holy Shield, Reckoning, Iron Creed and Shieldsworn, with Benediction and Conviction from Retribution.

• Before the pull: Righteous Fury, Seal of Fury and a shield on.
• Threat: Judgement and Swift Judgement on cooldown, Holy Strike (Iron Creed adds 30% threat and Shieldsworn shortens its cooldown by 4 seconds), and Consecration for packs.
• Taunting: judge Seal of Fury to pull an enemy off a friend.
• Shieldsworn: Holy Strike now strikes with your shield, which triggers your Holy Shield damage and your other block talents.
• Survival: Holy Shield for 30% more block, Templar's Bulwark for a massive absorb, Improved Righteous Fury for 9% less damage taken, and Divine Protection or Divine Shield for emergencies. Bulwark and the bubbles share Forbearance, so space them out.
• Reckoning stores extra attacks after blocks and crits against you, so big hits turn into big threat.

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Holy guide: healing priority

Holy Build (31/12/8). It takes Oath of Light, Holy Shock, Boundless Light, Illumination, Holy Power and Light's Vigil, plus Divine Intellect and Templar's Bulwark from Protection.

Healing priority:

1. Oath of Light on your main tank, all fight long. It boosts your Holy Light, Flash of Light and Holy Shock on them.
2. Flash of Light for steady, cheap healing.
3. Holy Light for big heals. Infusion of Light makes it a second faster after a Holy Shock or Flash of Light crit.
4. Holy Shock for instant heals. Thanks to Boundless Light, it crits much more often on players who don't have your Oath.
5. Light's Vigil before heavy damage: your next Holy Shock on that player has no cooldown and heals their whole party.
6. Divine Favor for a guaranteed crit when it really counts, and Lay on Hands for a full heal in a disaster.

Tips:

• Illumination refunds mana on heal crits, and Holy Power makes those crits heal 50% more, so crit is a big stat for you.
• Downrank Holy Light and Flash of Light to save mana in dungeons.
• Cleanse is part of your job, and Purifying Power makes it cheaper.

Seals, auras and blessings

• Blessings last an hour, and Greater Blessings cover everyone of one class. Kings for raids, Might for melee, Wisdom for casters.
• Auras: Devotion Aura for tanks, Retribution Aura for packs, and resistance auras for those fights.
• Seals: you can only have one seal active, and Judgement no longer removes it.

Mana management for Paladins

Mana is the one thing that slows Paladin leveling down, so it's worth getting right:

• Seal of Wisdom (level 38) gives your swings a chance to restore mana. Swap to it when you're running low between fights.
• Sanctified Judgement returns 60% of the mana cost of the seal you judge, so every Judgement is close to free.
• Blessing of Wisdom on yourself restores mana every 5 seconds. Use it instead of Might when you're drinking too often.
• Reverence (Holy) lets 30% of your mana regeneration keep going while you cast, and Benediction makes instant spells 10% cheaper.
• Flash of Light is your most efficient self-heal. Downrank it while leveling.
• Lay on Hands heals you to full and also restores mana to the target. Keep it for emergencies.

Paladin weapons and gear

• Retribution: a slow two-handed weapon. Seal of Command, Holy Strike and Judgement all scale with weapon damage, and slow weapons hit harder per swing.
• Protection: a one-handed weapon and a shield. Blocking is at the heart of Prot, since Holy Shield, Redoubt, Reckoning and Shieldsworn all reward it.
• Holy: a one-hander with healing or Intellect stats, plus a shield or off-hand.
• Armour: you can wear plate from level 40. Mix plate and mail until then, prioritising Strength and Stamina for Ret, and Intellect for Holy.

Paladin leveling tips

• Keep your seal up and judge on cooldown. Judgement no longer consumes your seal, so it's free damage.
• Heal between pulls with Flash of Light instead of eating, and drink when your mana runs low.
• Seal of Wisdom and Blessing of Wisdom fix most mana problems.
• Pull two at a time with Consecration once you have it at 20. Your plate and self-heals can handle it.
• Exorcism on undead and demons is a huge free hit.
• Divine Protection or Divine Shield let you survive a bad pull and heal back up.
• Do your class quests. They give some of your best early gear and abilities.

Paladin dungeon tips

• Protection: pop Righteous Fury, pull with Judgement, drop Consecration in the middle of the pack, then Holy Strike and Swift Judgement between your auto attacks. Use Seal of Fury's Judgement to taunt anything that runs at your healer.
• Holy: keep Oath of Light on the tank, Cleanse poisons, diseases and magic, and use Flash of Light for most healing. Save Holy Light for big hits.
• Retribution: put Blessing of Might on melee and Blessing of Wisdom on casters, and help with heals when things go wrong. A quick Flash of Light on the tank often saves a wipe.
• Everyone: Blessing of Kings for the whole group, and Devotion Aura when the tank is taking a beating.

Best stats for Paladins

Most guides agree on roughly these priorities:

• Retribution: weapon damage first, then Strength, hit and crit, then Intellect (Champion of the Light turns it into spell damage).
• Protection: Stamina, armour, defense and block, then hit and Strength for threat.
• Holy: healing power, Intellect and crit (for Illumination and Holy Power), then mana regeneration.

Best race for Paladin

• Human (Alliance): The Human Spirit and a strong crit racial. A great all-rounder.
• Dwarf (Alliance): Stoneform removes bleeds, poisons and diseases. Fantastic for tanking and PvP.
• Undead (Horde): new in Forever, and the first Horde Paladin race. Will of the Forsaken breaks fear, charm and sleep, which is a big deal in PvP.

Best professions for Paladin

• Mining and Blacksmithing: craft your own plate and weapons while leveling.
• Engineering: great PvP and tanking gadgets.
• Herbalism and Alchemy: potions for long fights and raids.
• First Aid and Cooking: cheap healing, and stat food.

Paladin PvP tips

• Divine Shield makes you immune to everything for 12 seconds. Use it to reset a fight, not just to survive.
• Hammer of Justice stuns, Repentance incapacitates humanoids, and Blessing of Freedom frees you or a friend from slows.
• Blessing of Protection saves a friend from physical damage, but they can't attack while it's up.
• Unyielding Faith and Stoicism shorten fears, stuns and charms on you.
• An Undead Paladin with Will of the Forsaken is very hard to lock down.

Common Paladin mistakes

• Using a build from before the 2 November changes. Lots of beta videos show old talent rows.
• Playing it like Classic and re-casting your seal after every Judgement. Judgement doesn't consume it any more, so just refresh it when its 30 seconds run out.
• Tanking without Righteous Fury on.
• Using Divine Shield, Divine Protection and Templar's Bulwark back to back. They share Forbearance.
• Leaving your mana to chance. Use Seal of Wisdom and Sanctified Judgement while leveling.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best Paladin spec in WoW Forever?

For leveling, Retribution. At level 60, Holy is one of the best healers in the game, Protection is a strong tank from level 10, and Retribution is a real damage dealer with Unsealed Wrath and Champion of the Light.

Can Paladins tank in WoW Forever?

Yes. Righteous Fury is learned at level 10 and adds 33% threat (90% more from Holy damage), Seal of Fury gives Paladins a taunt through Judgement, and talents like Holy Shield, Templar's Bulwark and Shieldsworn make Protection a complete tank.

Was Blessing of Salvation removed in WoW Forever?

Yes. Blessing of Salvation, Mass Salvation and Blessing of Light were all removed. To compensate, Blizzard raised the threat of tanking specs.

Can Undead be Paladins in WoW Forever?

Yes. Undead Paladin is one of the new race and class combinations in WoW Forever, and it's the first Horde option for the class. Alliance players can choose Human or Dwarf.

Does Judgement consume your Seal in WoW Forever?

No. Judgement unleashes your active seal without removing it, so you keep the seal's effect on your swings. Protection's Swift Judgement adds a second Judgement with its own cooldown.

What does Unsealed Wrath do?

Unsealed Wrath is the Retribution capstone. Your melee attacks store copies of your active seal for 15 seconds, up to 3 times. Hitting with a different seal active then gives each stored copy its normal chance to activate.

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