Demonology Warlock WotLK Guide
Demonology Warlock DPS guide for WotLK 3.3.5a: rotation, cooldowns, the 0/54/17 talent build, glyphs, stat priority and BiS gear for ICC and Ruby Sanctum.
Demonology is the Warlock a raid asks for. Its damage is very gear-dependent, and it brings Demonic Pact, a spell power buff for the whole raid whenever your pet crits. That buff is why it is the recommended raid spec, even when its personal damage is close to the other two. It plays with a Felguard, and it has a strong burst in Metamorphosis.
This guide covers the priority, the cooldowns and the timing of Metamorphosis, the talents and glyphs we run, the stats to reach and the mistakes that cost the most. It is written for Icecrown Citadel 25 and Ruby Sanctum on 3.3.5a. The short overview is in the class guide.
1.How the Demonology Warlock plays
Demonology works with a priority and not a fixed rotation: Life Tap first, then Corruption, Immolate, your curse, Shadow Bolt and Soul Fire. Above thirty-five percent health, you cast Shadow Bolt, unless Molten Core procs, and then Incinerate is the better spell. Below thirty-five percent health, Decimation makes Soul Fire your main spell.
Timing is what the guides we read stress most. Keep Corruption up, because it feeds Molten Core, and use Demonic Empowerment on every cooldown, ideally with a macro. Use a Felguard and not an Imp: the damage and the spell power scaling are better overall.
2.Rotation and priorities
- Life TapKeep your mana up. Use it when it is needed.
- CorruptionKeep it up, because it feeds Molten Core.
- ImmolateKeep it up on the target.
- CurseThe right curse for the boss: Curse of the Elements if there is no Unholy Death Knight or Balance Druid, or Curse of Doom on a longer fight.
- Shadow BoltYour main spell above thirty-five percent health. With Molten Core, cast Incinerate instead.
- Soul FireBelow thirty-five percent health, with Decimation.
Do not clip a damage over time, and do not neglect Corruption: without it, Molten Core will not proc. The timing of your priorities matters more than the spells themselves.
3.Cooldowns and raid utility
Demonology has one large cooldown, and it has a rule for when to use it.
Your main burst cooldown. The guides we read use "the three minute rule": use it at the start only if the boss lives for three minutes or more, and otherwise save it for the thirty-five percent phase with Decimation.
Empowers your pet. Use it every time it is ready, and the guides we read use a macro for it.
Turns health into mana. It is a part of your normal priority.
A large damage effect after a delay. Use it on a longer fight, of a minute or more.
A debuff that increases the spell damage the target takes. Use it if no other class does.
Creates healthstones for the raid, and a soulstone is the resurrection insurance. Do both before the fight.
4.Talents and glyphs
Our recommended Demonology build is the 0/54/17 in the calculator, built around Demonic Pact, Metamorphosis, Summon Felguard, Molten Core, Decimation and Demonic Empowerment.
The major glyphs are Life Tap, Felguard and Quick Decay, with Metamorphosis as an alternative. The guide we read says the five percent extra overall damage from these is better than a five percent bonus to fire damage and critical strike.
Increases your spell damage by 10%, and your pet's criticals apply the Demonic Pact effect to your party or raid members. Demonic Pact increases spell power by 10% of your Spell Damage for 45 sec. This effect has a 20 sec cooldown. Does not work on Enslaved demons.
You transform into a Demon for 30 sec. This form increases your armor by 600%, damage by 20%, reduces the chance you'll be critically hit by melee attacks by 6% and reduces the duration of stun and snare effects by 50%. You gain some unique demon abilities in addition to your normal abilities. 3 minute cooldown.
Summons a Felguard under the command of the Warlock.
Increases the duration of your Immolate by 9 sec, and you have a 12% chance to gain the Molten Core effect when your Corruption deals damage. The Molten Core effect empowers your next 3 Incinerate or Soul Fire spells cast within 15 sec. Incinerate - Increases damage done by 18% and reduces cast time by 30%. Soul Fire - Increases damage done by 18% and increases critical strike chance by 15%.
When you Shadowbolt, Incinerate or Soul Fire a target that is at or below 35% health, the cast time of Soul Fire spell is reduced by 40% for 10 sec. Soul Fires cast under the effect of Decimation cost no shard.
Grants the Warlock's summoned demon Empowerment. Imp - Increases the Imp's spell critical strike chance by 20% for 30 sec. Voidwalker - Increases the Voidwalker's health by 20%, and its threat generated from spells and attacks by 20% for 20 sec. Succubus - Instantly vanishes, causing the Succubus to go into an improved Invisibility state. The vanish effect removes all stuns, snares and movement impairing effects from the Succubus. Felhunter - Dispels all magical effects from the Felhunter. Felguard - Increases the Felguard's attack speed by 20% and breaks all stun, snare and movement impairing effects and makes your Felguard immune to them for 15 sec.
When you use Life Tap or Dark Pact, you gain 20% of your Spirit as spell power for 40 sec.
Increases the Felguard's total attack power by 20%.
Your haste now reduces the time between periodic damage ticks of your Corruption spell.
Swap options if the fight asks for them: Glyph of Metamorphosis.
5.Stats, gems and gear
The priority is spell power, then the hit cap (seventeen percent), then spell haste, then critical strike. Demonology scales a lot with gear, so it is the most gear-dependent of the three Warlock specs.
Demonic Pact gives your raid a buff of about ten percent of your spell damage for forty-five seconds when your pet crits, so gear with more spell power helps your whole group. The best items are in the BiS list below.
- Hit
- Spell Power
- Haste
- Critical Strike
~368 rating typical raid (342 Draenei) · 446 absolute cap
Same fundamental spell-hit requirement as Affliction/Destruction.
Blood Fury adds +163 spell power, and Command (+5% pet damage) is a real gain for Demonology. Undead (Will of the Forsaken) and Blood Elf (Arcane Torrent) are the utility picks.
Expansive Mind (+5% maximum mana) for longevity; Human (The Human Spirit) as the minor alternative.
Bloodsurge, Kel'Thuzad's Blade of Agony
Shadow Silk Spindle
Corpse-Impaling Spike
Phylactery of the Nameless Lich
Charred Twilight Scale
Sanctified Dark Coven Hood
Sanctified Dark Coven Robe
6.Common mistakes
• Clipping a damage over time before its last tick.
• Poor timing of Metamorphosis, and using it before a predictable crowd control effect.
• Neglecting Corruption and losing Molten Core procs.
• Using an Imp instead of a Felguard.
• Forgetting Demonic Empowerment on cooldown.
7.On the bosses
Demonology is the raid choice on nearly every fight. A few notes:
The Warlocks receive a Hand of Protection on the pull, so the adds do not kill them. See the Icecrown guide.
Plan your Metamorphosis for the burst phases, and keep Corruption up.
Keep your damage over time effects up on the ground, and plan your movement for the air phase.
Use your burst in the phase where the boss is under thirty-five percent. See the Lich King guide.
8.Questions people ask
Because of Demonic Pact, which raises the spell power of the whole raid.
Felguard. It has better damage and scales better with your spell power.
At the start only if the boss lives three minutes or more, and otherwise in the thirty-five percent phase.
Seventeen percent spell hit.