Blizzard is taking a more hands-on approach to class balancing in Mists of Pandaria (MoP) Classic than in any previous Classic expansion—perhaps only rivaled by Season of Discovery. Although the game launched balanced around its final patch, Blizzard has been actively reworking specs to ensure every specialization feels relevant from the very beginning.
This dynamic tuning approach means some specs are receiving early buffs, with potential nerfs later as gear power increases. Importantly, all class tuning is PvE-only and won't affect instanced PvP. Buffs are also spec-specific—even if multiple specs share the same abilities, changes only apply to the targeted one. Today, we're breaking down the current state of all classes to see which specs are rising to the top—and which are falling behind—in MoP Classic so far.
🛡️ Warrior
Protection Warriors are thriving early on, with increased Shield Barrier power and strong utility. While they take more damage than some tanks, they offer high active tank damage and group utility, perfect as an off-tank in top guilds.
Arms remains the go-to DPS thanks to strong single-target output and insane AoE burst with Bladestorm and Bloodbath. It also retains powerful banners and Rallying Cry.
Fury received buffs to auto attack damage and Enrage duration, but it remains crit-dependent and not yet optimal. Blizzard may buff it further in Tier 14.
✅ Verdict:
Prot = Surpassing expectations
Arms = Top-tier DPS
Fury = Watch for later buffs
✝️ Paladin
Paladin was underwhelming before these changes, but now, every spec is much stronger.
Retribution got huge buffs:
+10% on all Holy Power generators
+20% on Templar's Verdict
This finally gives them the DPS edge they needed for raid viability.
Holy received massive quality-of-life and healing buffs:
Crusader Strike now always hits
Flexible ranged/melee mechanics
Devotion Aura is now a 20% raid-wide damage reduction
Increased mana regen and stronger Mastery shields
Protection received survivability buffs with Sanctuary and Sacred Shield.
✅ Verdict:
Massive win for Paladins. All three specs are now raid-viable.
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☠️ Death Knight
Blood DKs now enjoy better Outbreak uptime (30s CD) but lost minion scaling with Vengeance—nerfing crazy damage stacking. Still strong main tanks.
Frost DK got massive buffs:
Howling Blast hits harder
Obliterate and Soul Reaper now scale with Mastery
This means Mastery stacking is now optimal, and Frost is much stronger
Unholy DK remains solid and unchanged. It will perform well in most content
✅ Verdict:
Frost DK = Big winners. Blood & Unholy = Already great.
🏹 Hunter
Survival saw a slight nerf:
-7% Explosive Shot damage
Affects single-target
Marksmanship got:
+10% Steady Shot, Aimed Shot
+15% Barrage, Chimera Shot
Now considered the top Phase 1 spec, though Survival is still close.
Beast Mastery – No changes yet, still underperforming.
✅ Verdict:
Play Marksmanship for optimal DPS early on.
🌩️ Shaman
Elemental: +10% Lightning Bolt damage
Enhancement: Stormstrike weapon damage buff
Both were already solid DPS specs.
Resto Shaman took big nerfs:
-25% Healing Rain output
Chain Heal falloff introduced
Riptide costs 15% more mana
Ancestral Guidance nerfed hard: from 60% → 20% smart healing
✅ Verdict:
DPS specs slightly buffed. Resto Shaman is still viable, but not stackable.
🥋 Monk
Mistweaver is possibly the most buffed healer:
+48% Enveloping Mist
+68% Eminence healing
+22% Revival healing
Better mana efficiency
Now among the best throughput healers in MoP Classic.
Windwalker now gets a smoother opener via Mastery change—Tiger's Eye Brew is buffed, and stacks build faster.
Brewmaster randomly got +25% Blackout Kick damage. Already strong, now even stronger.
✅ Verdict:
Huge win for Mistweaver. Monk specs are now solid and competitive.
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🗡️ Rogue
Few changes overall.
Combat:
-20% energy cost on Sinister Strike
Better cooldown planning via Combat Insight UI addition
Assassination: +5% overall damage
Subtlety remains top for single-target. Combat shines in cleave fights.
✅ Verdict:
All specs are usable; combat and subtlety are the most compelling based on the situation.
🐻 Druid
Balance: +10% damage, improved Shooting Stars proc chance
Feral: Regains Nature's Swiftness for big bleed procs
Restoration: +5% healing across the board
Guardian:
Maul costs 20 Rage (down from 30)
+5% all damage
Still behind other tanks, but improving.
✅ Verdict:
Feral and Resto will see most play. Boomkin and Guardian still need help.
🔥 Warlock
Affliction:
+50% Malefic Grasp and Drain Soul damage
Haunt, Corruption, and Agony buffed
Now excellent in multi-target and execution phases
Demonology:
+43% Wild Imp
+25% Hellfire, Immolation Aura
+50% Chaos Wave, +33% Doom
Great AoE and hybrid potential
Destruction: Still good even without changes
✅ Verdict:
All three specs are now viable. Warlocks are spoiled for choice.
❄️ Mage
Fire:
Buffs to Combustion and Pyroblast
Critical Mass now boosts crit chance x1.5 instead of x1.3
More crits + more damage = easier early scaling
Arcane:
+29% Arcane Blast, +19% Arcane Barrage
Lower mana costs
Massive single-target buffs
Frost: No changes, still solid
✅ Verdict:
Arcane is the most improved, though the fight-dependent split between Frost and Arcane is expected.
✝️ Priest
Shadow: +5% damage, +18% Shadow Word: Pain
Better, but still favors multi-target encounters.
Holy: Massive buffs
Echo of Light ticks every 1s (was 3s)
Divine Hymn heals up to 50 players
Holy Word: Sanctuary +60%, Serenity +40%
Chakra cooldown reduced to 10s
Still has mana issues, but healing throughput is vastly improved
Discipline: Nerfed
Atonement healing from 90% → 70%
Divine Aegis shields -10%
Divine Star nerfed
Spirit Shell now lasts 15s (was 10s)
Still strong due to overpowered cooldowns like Power Word: Barrier and Pain Suppression.
✅ Verdict:
Holy = Big winners
Discipline = Nerfed but still required
Shadow = Niche but decent
Final Thoughts
Blizzard's balancing strategy in MoP Classic focuses on buffing the underperformers instead of nerfing the strong. Tanks are all doing well, and healing diversity is finally encouraged. Instead of stacking Discipline Priests and Resto Shamans, raids now benefit from a varied healing roster.
For once, this might be the Classic expansion where you play what fits your style best, not just what's strongest on paper. With ongoing tuning, no spec will stay overpowered forever, and you'll likely be swapping specs throughout the expansion.
You're playing a class, not just a spec—so pick the class that fits you and enjoy the journey.
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