Customizing your warlock

Warlocks are casters, no doubt about it. While they have a large amount of versatility in the types, effects, and targets of the damage they deal, they are dependent upon mana and spell use. Regardless, they are damage dealers.

The warlock class is available to Gnomes, Humans, Orcs, Undead, and Blood Elves. Warlocks are effective in groups, but careful tweaking and specializing should be used for solo play because of their vulnerability to melee combat. To a limited extent, warlocks may heal themselves.

• Affliction strengthens your damage-over-time spells and effects, and is especially useful for slowly but surely weakening an enemy as a teammate lays down melee attacks.
• Demonology allows warlocks to summon and control powerful demons, with uses similar to the pets controlled by a hunter. This tree is great for solo play as it uses your demons as off-tanks, allowing you to attack while not being the center of attention.
• Destruction skills create warlocks who are similar to mages in that they command powerful, burst-damage-based spells. This group burns through mana quite quickly, though. A hybrid of skills from this tree as well as skills from the Affliction tree may be best.

Warlocks fill the damage-based caster niche of group play. Depending on whom else is in your group, one tree may make more sense than another. Regardless of which tree you choose, be careful with threat. Warlocks may have a decent amount of stamina, but they are not designed to take much physical punishment (they give it out!).

Soul shards

If you want to play a warlock, you should be ready to engage in slightly more micro management than is the case with most other classes. Warlocks can create shards from fallen enemies, and are reliant upon these to perform certain abilities (such as summoning their demons). This underscores the necessity of precise strategy with warlocks, as very little of their function could be described as "passive" play.

Burning ponies

Warlocks can summon their own flaming mounts! Aside from paladins, they are the only class that does not need to buy a mount seperately.

More warlock resources

To learn more about various aspects of warlock characters, check out the following links.

• WoW Wiki Warlock Guide
• Guide to Starting a Warlock
• Blood Pact (a warlock blog)