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Warlock or Warrior: Which Should You Play in WoW Forever?
Pick the Warlock if you want easy, low-downtime leveling and good gold. Pick the Warrior if you want to tank dungeons and raids, or play strong geared melee.
Warlock vs Warrior verdict
3 Warlock 1 Warrior 2 even
For most players the Warlock wins. It levels faster, solos elites with a demon tanking and farms gold without stopping.
The Warrior wins dungeons as a tank. Raids and PvP are even: Warriors are the main tanks and strong melee, and Warlocks bring strong ranged damage and Fear.
Warlock vs Warrior: head-to-head comparison
| Category | Warlock | Warrior |
|---|---|---|
| Leveling speed | Winner Dots, drain, pet tanks: the grinder class with almost no downtime. | Rough at first; take it slow, keep gear current. Arms with a slow two-hander for most. |
| Solo play | Winner Strong solo. Voidwalker tanks while your dots work. | Not a natural solo class. Almost no self-healing is the main weakness. |
| Dungeons | Good DPS with Bane of Havoc splash; still just damage in the end. | Winner Protection is the classic tank: Instant groups, and healers love you. |
| Raiding | Even Ranged DPS with burst in Destruction or sustain in Affliction. | Even Tanks are always needed, and Fury scales hard once hit gear arrives. |
| PvP | Even Excellent in 1v1: fear, dots and drain-tanking win long fights. | Even Strong in PvP. Arms with Mortal Strike and the Spearing Strike dismount: the classic duelist. |
| Gold farming | Winner Almost no downtime plus free mounts: the farming machine. | Kills things dead, but no travel edge and real downtime between pulls. |
Playing Warlock in this matchup
Warlocks level as Affliction with damage over time spells, a Voidwalker to tank and Drain Life with Life Tap.
At 60 Affliction gains Pandemic, Wrack and Soul Siphon, Destruction has Incinerate and Bane of Havoc, and Demonology keeps its buff with Demonic Pact.
Where the Warlock falls short
You only deal damage, and there are many pets and spells to manage.
Playing Warrior in this matchup
Warriors level slowly, building Rage by fighting and eating after most pulls. Victory Rush helps early on.
At 60 Protection is the main raid tank, Fury dual-wields with Bloodthirst and Reckless Swings, and Arms uses Mortal Strike.
Where the Warrior falls short
Leveling is the slowest of any class, and Fear and slows shut you down in PvP.
How WoW Forever's talent changes shift this matchup
Warriors changed on 2 November: 80% Defensive Stance threat, a 15 second Slam cooldown, Revenge scaling with Attack Power, and Reckless Swings and Improved Whirlwind in place of Raging Blows.
Warlocks had their main changes earlier in testing and got the general damage increase at launch.
Which should you pick: Warlock or Warrior?
- You want the smoother leveling of the two, without debate.
- Almost-no-downtime grinding is your love language.
- A pet tanking for you from early on sounds like a plan.
- Free mounts and cheap travel appeal in a new economy.
- You want strong PvP tools without standing in melee range.
- You can manage dots, pets and threat without drama.
- You want to tank: Instant dungeon groups, and healers love you.
- The Arms duelist playstyle calls: Mortal Strike, slow them, end them.
- You accept rough early levels for a bigger endgame payoff.
- Orc stun resistance, huge in PvP, or the huge race menu appeals.
- You prefer rage and steel to mana bars and cast times.
- Almost no self-healing sounds like a fair price for glory.
Warlock and Warrior race options
Warlock has 5 race choices and Warrior has 10. Races marked new could not play the class in Classic Era. See the racials guide for what each race brings.
| Faction | Warlock | Warrior |
|---|---|---|
| Alliance | Human, Gnome | Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome, Skyborne High OrderNew |
| Horde | Orc, Undead, TrollNew | Orc, Undead, Tauren, Troll, Skyborne WindshaperNew |
Plan your Warlock or Warrior build
Plan your points before paying for a respec. Open the Warlock talent calculator or the Warrior talent calculator, or try a starter build for your preferred role. The class picking guide compares all nine classes if you are still undecided.
Warlock vs Warrior: common questions
Is Warrior really that bad to level?
It is the slowest class to level until you have good weapons. Victory Rush and a healer friend make it much easier.
Which is better for dungeons?
The Warrior, as a tank. Warlocks compete with many damage dealers for spots.
Warlock or Warrior for PvP?
They are even. Warlocks Fear and drain, and Warriors use Intercept, Berserker Rage and Mortal Strike.
Which one makes more gold?
The Warlock. It grinds without stopping to rest.
Which races can play Warlock and Warrior in WoW Forever?
Warlock: Human and Gnome on the Alliance; Orc, Undead and Troll on the Horde. Warrior: Human, Dwarf, Night Elf, Gnome and Skyborne High Order on the Alliance; Orc, Undead, Tauren, Troll and Skyborne Windshaper on the Horde.
What is the best leveling spec for Warlock and Warrior in WoW Forever?
For leveling from 1 to 60, play Affliction Warlock or Arms Warrior. On our leveling tier list, Warlock is S tier and Warrior is B tier. Each class leveling guide has a talent path from level 10 to 60.