Warlock Specializations: Affliction

(Orlandelli, 2012) ©2014 Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

This post will be the first of a series that elaborates on the three types of warlock specializations: Affliction, Demonology, and Destruction. By now you should be familiar with the basic warlock spells and talents, which were covered in earlier posts. The majority of Affliction attacks are based on damage-over-time spells and channeled draining abilities. We will add onto the universal spellbook with these new abilities and see which spells are affected (and sometimes replaced) by your specialization choice. 

What are Soul Shards?

Secondary resources are an essential part of the what makes specializations so special—no pun intended. As magic users, warlocks already have a main resource for their power called mana. Each spec introduces their own type of secondary resource; the Affliction spec adds Soul Shards to the warlock arsenal. A warlock may have up to four Soul Shards at a time; they are used to power up and unlock certain spells and abilities.

Although mana can be replenished by using potions and refreshments, Soul Shards' lone source of regeneration is through the use of two spells: Corruption and Drain Soul; you will have to wait until learning Nightfall before taking advantage of Corruption's replenishment ability. Being aware of these spells will help you control the usage of various spells that benefit from using Soul Shards.

Burning souls

Soulburn accounts for the majority of your usage of soul shards. Its ability to modify various spells amplifies your gameplay by adding attack, healing, and utility enhancements.

Here is a list of non-Affliction spells affected by using Soulburn:

• Any demon pet summoned will be instantly cast; this can be useful in emergencies during PvE and PvP.
• Drain Life and Harvest Life have improved healing, so use them when when all your other heals are on cooldown.
• Health Funnel increases its pet healing as well as temporarily reduces damage taken by your pet; Soulburn makes this spell much more viable than its basic version.
• Fear becomes an instant cast, fearing the target for 3 seconds; this becomes a useful tool during PvP matches.
• Both Curse of Enfeeblement and Curse of the Elements are given an area of effect buff, so pay attention to which target you initially cast your curse on for efficient spreading.
• Unending Breath allows the target affected to walk on water until damaged; useful when traveling in certain Battlegrounds; also, it can help when farming or fishing around Azeroth.
• Teleporting with Demonic Circle now gives a temporary movement buff; you are likely to see most use of this buff in PvP.

Other Affliction spells

The last two spells that Soulburn amplifies are Affliction-only abilities: Soul Swap and Seed of Corruption. Using Soul Swap with Soulburn makes spreading your DoT spells easier, so take advantage of it when dealing with difficult targets simultaneously. Seed of Corruption improves with an AoE effect added to its final seed detonation; pay attention to which target you apply this on during battle.

The only other spell that uses Soul Shards as a resource is called Haunt. Not only does Haunt cause direct damage, but it also buffs any DoT damage placed on its target. Using this as an opening attack spell helps ramp up your damage early in a fight.

The following fill out the rest of Affliction's lineup of spells:

• Unstable Affliction's silencing counter against dispels makes it useful during PvP matches.
• Rain of Fire is great against mobs of enemies during instances and PvP bouts.
• Curse of Exhaustion helps when you want to keep your enemies from reaching you, or slowing them down during a retreat.
• Agony is a unique spell since it increases its damage output the longer it has been applied on the target affected.
• You want to use Malefic Grasp after applying all your other DoTs to your targets; ramping up each damage tick gives a big boost in dps.
• Improved Fear helps control your enemy even more during battle, and can be used effectively in PvE and PvP scenarios.
• Mastery: Potent Afflictions adding 25% damage to certain spells is a welcome addition, especially with it being a passive ability.
• Dark Soul: Misery helps increase your speed of attack for a short burst of time; this can be useful when attempting to finish off an enemy, so planning when to use this cooldown is important.

References

Orlandelli, A. H. (2011). Lifemistress Tanagra [Image]. Retrieved from http://us.battle.net/wow/en/media/artwork/trading-card-game/series5?view=tcg-series5-032

World of Warcraft. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://us.battle.net/wow/en/

Wowhead. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://wowhead.com/

Harper, E. (2014, February 12). Stats 101: Your character's resources and attributes. WoW Insider. Retrieved from http://wow.joystiq.com/2014/02/12/stats-101-your-characters-resources-and-attributes/

Affliction Warlock DPS Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities (WoW MoP 5.4). (2013, November 20). Icy Veins. Retrieved from http://www.icy-veins.com/affliction-warlock-wow-pve-dps-rotation-cooldowns-abilities

World of Warcraft®: Mists of Pandaria®

©2012 Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. All rights reserved. Mists of Pandaria is a trademark, and World of Warcraft, Warcraft and Blizzard Entertainment are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.