PVE Affliction Warlock DPS Guide (WotLK 3.3.5a)

Welcome to the Affliction Warlock DPS guide for World of Warcraft Wrath of the Lich King 3.3.5a. In this guide, you will learn about playing an Affliction Warlock in a raid. The guide includes Talents, Glyphs, Gems, Enchantments, Add-ons, Gameplay & Skill rotation tips.

Talent Tree

Glyphs

Major Glyphs

• Glyph of Quick Decay
• Glyph of Haunt
• Glyph of Life Tap

Gems

Gems are situational and depend on the build and equipment. They are used to reach the required stat caps.

• Meta: Chaotic Skyflare Diamond
• Red: Runed Cardinal Ruby
• Yellow: Reckless Ametrine
• Blue: Use Purified Dreadstone if the socket bonus is more than 7 Spell Power. Otherwise, fill with Red Gems.

Enchants

• Head – Arcanum of Burning Mysteries
• Shoulder – Greater Inscription of the Storm
• Cloak – Enchant Cloak – Greater Speed
• Chest – Enchant Chest – Powerful Stats
• Bracers – Enchant Bracers – Superior Spellpower
• Gloves – Enchant Gloves – Exceptional Spellpower
• Waist – Eternal Belt Buckle
• Legs – Brilliant Spellthread
• Boots – Enchant Boots – Icewalker

Weapons

• Two-handed – Enchant Staff – Greater Spellpower
• One-handed – Enchant Weapon – Mighty Spellpower or Enchant Weapon – Black Magic

Rotation

Life Tap → Shadow Bolt → Haunt → Unstable Affliction → Corruption → Curse of Agony

Replace Shadow Bolt with Drain Soul when target HP is less than 25%

Don’t reapply DoTs earlier than needed. Spells like Corruption and Drain Soul remember the stats you have the moment you’ve cast them (even if the buffs wear off during the spell) – use that to maximise your damage. Your pet is Felhunter.

Stat Priority

Hit Rating -> Spell Power -> Haste -> Critical strike rating & Spirit

Spells require 17% to always hit the target. This number can be reduced by:

• Improved faerie fire (Moonkin) or Misery (Shadow Priest) – 3%
• Draenei racial aura – 1%
• Suppression – 3%

If you choose to pick Suppression, you will need only 11% of Hit (289 hit rating). Without it, you will need 14% (367 hit rating). Both cases assuming there’s a Moonkin or a Shadow Priest with you. [1% Hit = 26.23 Hit Rating]

Spell Power is the primary stat for the build as it improves the efficiency and damage output of all spells. It also converts partly into Attack Power and Spell Power of your pets.

Haste is another significant stat for Affliction Warlocks. It increases the number of spells you can cast in a certain period. Haste also reduces the tick intervals for Corruption spell with the help of Glyph of Quick Decay, which also increases the efficiency of Eradication talent at the same time. The soft-cap is 50% Spell Haste (1640 haste rating), which reduces the Global Cooldown to 1 second.

Critical strike rating is a secondary stat mainly because Affliction doesn’t have any big multipliers of critical strike damage. Additionally, Drain Soul, Curse of Doom, and Curse of Agony do not crit.

Spirit partially converts into Spell Power with Fel Armor & Glyph of Life Tap. The effect can be increased further with buffs like Blessing of Kings, Divine Spirit, and the Human Spirit racial passive.