WoW Classic Survival Hunter Leveling Guide 1-60

Survival is a viable Hunter spec at level 60 for PvP, but is far worse than Beast Mastery for leveling. One of the main issues that you will run into is that you pet cannot hold threat well, and with Survival this problem becomes even more severe. For dungeons Survival can be good since you are not relying on your pet to tank, but your pet will be doing a large portion of your damage while leveling due to a lack of real stats, meaning Beast Mastery is also going to do the most damage. It is possible to level as a Survival Hunter, but know that it will be worse than Beast Mastery in almost every regard.

Move the slider below to make the guide update to your level!

This is a rough build that you could follow while leveling as Survival, but for the most part you can choose whatever you want. Improved Concussive Shot is an excellent choice if you think you will be PvPing while leveling in place of Efficiency, and Survival specifically has some great survivability and PvP options if you want to go that route. The critical talents to pick up are Lightning Reflexes, Killer Instinct, and Wyvern Sting for the damage and control.

Survival also brings more melee options than the other two specs. Deterrence, Counterattack, and Improved Wing Clip all give you more things to do in melee range, which can help you out both for leveling and in PvP. Attacking in melee will still be significantly worse than just using your bow, but you have the option.

1. Command your pet to attack the target;
2. Hunter's Mark;
3. Aimed Shot;
4. Auto Shot;
5. Serpent Sting;
6. Auto Shot;
7. Aimed Shot if you are fine on Mana;
8. Arcane Shot if you are fine on Mana;
9. Multi-Shot if you are fine on Mana;
10. Auto Shot until the enemy is dead.

The key from 1-10 is getting as many auto shots off as possible before the target reaches you. The best way to accomplish this is by kiting backwards, moving in between each shot. At level 8 Concussive Shot can help with this.

Do your class quest to get your pet. Once you have your pet, your kill speed and efficiency should become much better. Make sure you are careful with your threat, and try to let your pet tank whenever possible.

Multi-Shot is a powerful attack, but can cause you to pull aggro off your pet if you use it on multiple enemies. It is incredibly powerful, but losing auto shots from enemies running into your dead zone will be a bigger damage loss.

Feign Death is a great way to drop threat while fighting enemies. You can combine this with Aimed Shot or Multi-Shot to deal a burst of damage right before dropping threat to ensure your pet keeps aggro.

All Hunter specs benefit from upgrading the same skills, so our list of skills to buy from trainers is the same, regardless of the spec. For this reason, you will find that list in our general Hunter leveling page.

While leveling, you will want to always be on the lookout for ranged upgrades. Most of your damage will dome from Auto Shot, meaning a bow upgrade will increase your kill speed by substantially more than any other upgrade. Hunters also get a huge power spike when they complete their level 10 class quest and get a pet, which will be incredibly important for leveling. Below are links to our guides on Weapons and Class Quests for Hunters.

Well done on hitting maximum level in WoW Classic! Now that leveling is over, you can learn more about level 60 gameplay by reading our DPS Hunter Guide, which covers every facet of gameplay at 60 in detail.

The best individual pages to read through are as follows.

• The DPS Hunter Talent builds guide has the best builds for Level 60 covered. We propose builds for all specializations, with a focus on Beast Mastery for solo play and Marskmanship for raiding.
• Our PvP Hunter guide is where you can find PvP builds for all 3 specializations, as well as various tricks and tips for PvP combat.
• Goldmaking Guide for Hunters is a page with details on where / how to farm gold quickly as a Hunter when you are Level 60.
• The DPS Hunter Rotation guide is where you can read on how to optimize your PvE damage and how to prioritize your abilities.
• DPS Hunter Stats guide contains detailed information on all Hunter stats, including a list of their priority for damage dealing.
• Our Gear guide for DPS Hunters lists all the optimal pieces of gear that you will want to farm at Level 60, in order to optimize your damage.