Classic Protection Paladin Tank Spec, Builds, and Talents

If you were looking for leveling builds, please refer to our leveling guide for Paladins.

This is the default build that you will take as a Protection Paladin. Unlike other builds in WoW Classic, Protection has no room for personal preference or change at all. This build maximizes survivability and threat generation with every point, and there are no other possible options that would be a gain to take.

This build is 11/31/9. The 11 points in Holy are required since you must take Consecration for the AoE damage and threat generation, which is a critical part of your rotation. Divine Strength and Improved Seal of Righteousness are also substantial threat generation increases, and are required talents. The 31 points in Protection are necessary to take Holy Shield at the bottom, which is your most important ability as a Protection Paladin. With the 9 points that you have left, the best option is to go for Benediction and Deflection in the Retribution tree. Protection suffers heavily from Mana issues, and better Mana efficiency on your skills is worth taking. The parry chance from Deflection is better than any other talent not taken in the Protection tree, making it a good place for your final points.

While you are leaving behind several good talents in Protection such as Guardian's Favor, you simply do not have the points to spare. Playing Protection is an uphill battle, and you need to be using the best possible build with good consumables to have a chance at competing with other tanks. This specialization is not for the faint of heart, and you should be prepared to maximize your gameplay at every opportunity.