Season of Discovery Destruction Warlock DPS Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities
On this page, you will learn how to optimize the rotation of your Destruction Warlock, in WoW Classic - Season of Discovery. We also have advanced sections about cooldowns, procs, and others in order to minmax your damage efficiency.
Rotation
Your main priority is to keep your curse up if it's your duty. Then keep your main damage over time spell, Immolate up on the target at all times, keep Conflagrate on cooldown, Chaos Bolt on cooldown and then use Incinerate as your filler. Make sure to use Shadowburn whenever you need to move and to finish the boss off.
- Make sure your Imp is summoned and buffed up, you have a Create Soulstone on a Healer and you have a Create Healthstone made.
- Precast Incinerate so that it lands on the boss right as the pull timer hits zero.
- Make sure your Imp is attacking.
- Apply Curse of Recklessness if you're the only Warlock in the Raid. If more than one Warlock and the other Warlock is Curse of Recklessness, then you can apply a damaging curse, but only if you're forced to moved from a mechanic and don't need to Life Tap. If those terms are met, Curse of Doom is better if the boss will last 60 seconds. If not, then use Curse of Agony
- Make sure your Summon Felguard is attacking.
- Cast Immolate and keep it up on the boss at all times.
- Cast Conflagrate and keep this on cooldown as much as you can.
- Cast Chaos Bolt and make sure to keep it on cooldown at all times. Make sure that you have your Incinerate buff before you cast this.
- Cast Incinerate as your filler.
- Cast Soul Fire once in execute range below 35%. This will be buffed up by one of your new runes Decimation.
- Make sure to occasionally cast Incinerate to keep up the Fire damage buff, as well as Backdraft
- Cast Shadowburn to finish the boss off. This ability costs a Soul Shard, so make sure you have one.
AoE Rotation
Destruction Warlock AoE is pretty simple. With the new rework to Lake of Fire, Rain of Fire is now instant cast with an 8 second cooldown. You just get your Fire buff up from Incinerate, then put down a Rain of Fire while running in, then Hellfire until you need to put down another Rain of Fire. Another option is much simpler and it's spamming Shadow Bolt while wearing the Shadow Bolt Volley rune. If you're engineering, make sure to throw a Dense Dynamite and also use a Goblin Sapper Charge.
- Cast one Incinerate to get the 25% Fire damage buff.
- Cast Rain of Fire.
- Cast Hellfire or Shadow Bolt Volley if you choose to cast that instead.
- Throw a Dense Dynamite and use a Goblin Sapper Charge if you are Engineering.
Spells
Below is a list of all spells you will find yourself using in Season of Discovery in order of what level you learn them. If you don't see a spell listed, then you won't need to use it.
- Incinerate — Your main filler spell from a Rune.
- Immolate — An ability that does Fire damage up front, then the rest is left over as a DoT. Keep this up as much as you can.
- Conflagrate — Your main spell. You'll keep this on cooldown. This consumes your Immolate, so make sure to put up another Immolate afterwards.
- Chaos Bolt — One of your main abilities. A hard hitting Fire spell that cannot miss and cannnot be resisted. Keep this on cooldown as much as possible.
- Searing Pain — A very short cast that deals fire damage and causes high threat. Becomes instant cast if you use rune Metamorphosis, which you won't be using, but still cast Searing Pain if the boss will die before your Incinerate will land and Shadowburn is on cooldown.
- Shadowburn — Used as a finisher or when moving during the boss encounter. Costs a Soul Shard.
- Shadow Bolt Volley — One of your main AoE Runes.
- Immolation Aura — One of your main AoE Runes.
Curses
Curse are the main priority for Warlocks. Raids will typically have a few Warlocks and each will have one of the main debuff curses; Curse of Recklessness, Curse of the Elements, Curse of Shadow and Curse of Agony. Only one Curse can be on the target per Warlock. However this has completely changed thanks to the new rune introduced in this phase called Mark of Chaos, all your Curses except Curse of Shadow and Curse of the Elements now apply the Mark of Chaos, reducing the target's magical resistances by 75 and increasing all spell damage taken by 11% while they remain cursed. This makes cursing rather easy since now you just put up Curse of Recklessness and then the magical debuff is covered. This is of course only if you take the rune.
- Curse of Agony — A DoT that last 24 seconds and ramps up, dealing most damage towards the end. Use this for damage if you don't have to put one of the main debuff curses up.
- Curse of Recklessness — Puts a debuff on the target, increases its attack power, but also reducing its armor. Should be maintained on the boss with full uptime, and has top priority in your list of curses.
- Curse of Weakness — Puts a debuff on the target that reduces the damage it does.
- Curse of the Elements — This makes the target take 8% increased Fire and Frost dmaage, as well as reduces their Fire and Frost resistances by 60.
- Curse of Shadow — This makes the target take 8% increased Fire and Frost dmaage, as well as reduces their Fire and Frost resistances by 60
Utility
Below is a list of all utility spells you will find yourself using in Season of Discovery in order of what level you learn them. If you don't see a spell listed, then you won't need to use it.
- Fel Armor — Surrounds the caster with fel energy, increasing spell damage and healing by 1 plus additional spell damage and healing equal to 50% of your Spirit. In addition, you regain 2% of your maximum health every 5 sec. Only one type of Armor spell can be active on the Warlock at any time. Lasts 30 min.
- Demon Skin — Puts a buff on you that increases your armor and gives you health every 5 seconds. Keep this on you at all times.
- Demon Armor — Same thing as Demon Skin, but stronger. Use this once you get it over Demon Skin.
- Death Coil — An instant cast spell that will cause your target to be horrified, and also heal you for the damage dealt.
- Life Tap — Turns your health into Mana. You will be using this a lot. You cannot kill yourself with this.
- Fear — Crowd control. Causes the target to run around in Fear. Used frequently while leveling, in dungeons and PvP.
- Drain Soul — Drains the targets soul for very little damage, but if you're draining the target and it dies, you gain a Soul Shard. This is the only way to get Soul Shards.
- Create Healthstone — Creates a stone that heals you.
- Health Funnel — A channeled spell that takes some of your health and transfers it to your demon
- Unending Breath — A buff that allows your friendly target to breathe underwater.
- Ritual of Summoning — Allows you, with the help of two others, to summon your party or raid members to your location.
- Drain Mana — A channeled spell that drains the targets Mana. Largely used in PvP.
Demons
Warlocks are one of two classes that can use pets. Demons are an integral part of being a Warlock and have many uses. Most of the time you will use the Imp to supply your party with Blood Pact, but there are niche times when you will use the other ones. A popular build uses a talent called Demonic Sacrifice, which sacrifices your pet in return for a powerful buff depending on which demon you sacrificed.
- Imp — Your main pet. It casts Firebolt and applies Blood Pact to your party, giving them Stamina. Also has Fire Shield and can Phase Shift so it doesn't die while in combat.
- Felguard — A Tanky Demon that charges and Cleaves. Does great damage, but loses out slightly to your Imp.
- VoidWalker — A tanky demon that will allow you to Sacrifice for a big absorb shield. Also has a taunt Torment and an AoE taunt Suffering.
- Succubus/Incubus — A squishy melee pet that has the ability to charm targets with Seduction.
- Felhunter — A felhound able to purge enemies and friendlies. Also able to interrupt spell casting.
Changelog
- 15 Dec. 2023: Guide updated.
More Classic Warlock Guides
More Season of Discovery Class Guides
Classic Dungeon Guides
Classic Profession Guides
Classic Reputation Guides
This guide has been written by Crix, an Admin and Mod in the Hardcore Community who has been playing since it started. He is also the Co-Admin of the Warlock Discord and long time Warlock player, as well as makes Warlock related content on YouTube for Warlocks and streams Warlock gameplay daily over at Twitch.
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