WoW Retail - Mastering the Retribution Paladin in TWW
Today, we'll delve into the exciting world of the Retribution Paladin, the sacred crusader who wields two-handed weapons to deliver punishment in the name of the Light. If you're looking for a melee damage specialization with a divine touch, you've come to the right place!
The Retribution Paladin focuses on channeling sacred power to inflict devastating damage. Imagine them as a holy warrior, a champion of the Light who combines brute force with divine magic. It's not just about wielding a sword; it's about being a conduit of justice, a celestial avenger on the battlefield.
Its core mechanic revolves around the generation and consumption of Holy Power. Abilities like Blade of Justice and Judgment are the foundation, accumulating this power which is then released in explosive attacks like Final Verdict or Divine Storm. Each strike is a discharge of sacred energy, a reminder of the power that resides in the Light.
While mobility isn't their strongest suit, the Retribution Paladin compensates for this lack with an impressive array of group buffs, improving the survivability and damage of your allies. In addition, they possess solid defensive and healing capabilities, making them a valuable asset in any situation. Prepare to dominate the battlefield with a combination of strength, faith, and divine justice.
Stats
If you're looking to maximize your Retribution Paladin's potential, understanding stats is crucial. The primary stat, without a doubt, is Strength. Prioritize this above all others, as it directly impacts your attack power. The easiest way to increase your Strength is by equipping higher item level gear. In the early stages, focus on getting the highest item level gear available; secondary stats can wait. Only when comparing items of the same level, pay attention to the following:
Mastery, known as Grand Crusader's Judgment, is a fundamental stat for Retribution. It increases the Holy damage you inflict, especially with your Judgment ability. This ability has a chance to "bombard" the target with light, inflicting additional damage. The more Mastery you have, the higher the chance of this effect triggering and the more potent the damage inflicted. Judgment is essential: it generates Holy Power, our main resource, deals damage, increases the damage enemies take from our Holy Power abilities, and, as mentioned, provides us with the resource to unleash more powerful attacks.
Haste increases spell casting speed and attack speed. The higher your Haste, the higher your DPS (Damage Per Second) and the greater your combat efficiency. You'll be able to execute your ability rotation more quickly, generating and consuming Holy Power more fluidly.
Critical Strike increases the chance to inflict additional damage or healing. A high Critical Strike rating means your attacks and spells will have a higher chance to land critical hits, which translates to a significant increase in damage dealt and healing done.
Finally, Versatility offers a balance between attack and defense. It increases the damage and healing you inflict while also reducing the damage you take. This stat makes you a more well-rounded and resilient Paladin, capable of performing better in various situations. Remember to prioritize Strength, then Mastery, followed by Haste, Critical Strike, and finally Versatility, to optimize your performance as a Retribution Paladin.
Talents
The Retribution Paladin now has access to two new hero talent trees: Templar and Herald of the Sun.
Templar Paladins gain access to Hammer of Light, a powerful Holy Power spender ideal for burst windows. They will also summon Empyrean Hammers that rain down from the sky upon their enemies, automatically triggered by various spells and buffs. This tree focuses on direct and explosive damage.
On the other hand, Herald of the Sun Paladins specialize in damage over time (DoT) effects, with a focus on Dawnlight. These effects are also automatically triggered during cooldowns. Herald of the Sun also offers enhancements for Divine Storm and Hammer of Wrath, boosting sustained damage.
Both trees offer similar power. However, Templar has a slight advantage in both single-target and area-of-effect (AoE) damage due to significant mid-season buffs. Despite this small difference, both trees are viable and functional in any type of content, allowing players to choose the one that best suits their playstyle.
Cooldowns
Vengeance Shield is a crucial defensive tool for the Retribution Paladin. Its main function is to create a barrier of Holy Light that absorbs a considerable amount of damage for 10 seconds. This absorption provides you with a valuable window of survivability in critical moments.
But Vengeance Shield offers more than just simple mitigation. When the shield's duration expires or it is completely dissipated, it explodes, inflicting Holy damage to all nearby enemies. The damage inflicted is equal to the total amount of damage absorbed, making it a powerful offensive and defensive tool.
Integrating Vengeance Shield into your rotation is essential, especially when facing enemy damage spikes.
Rotation
For the Retribution Paladin, the Templar's Verdict talent is crucial in both raids and Mythic+. This guide breaks down the rotation, explaining which spells to use, when, and why.
- Execution Sentence: A celestial hammer strikes the target, increasing the damage they take from your abilities by 20% for 12 seconds. Its significant initial damage and damage amplification make it a priority.
- Hammer of Light (Templar's Talent): Replaces Wake of Ashes. Deals damage to nearby enemies and summons Hammers of the Righteous from the sky. Costs 5 Holy Power. It is fundamental in the Templar rotation, creating a resource management cycle by consuming the Holy Power generated by Wake of Ashes.
- Final Verdict (with 5 Holy Power): A powerful strike that deals massive Holy damage and can reset the cooldown of Hammer of Wrath, allowing you to use it against any target. It is the third priority, dealing great damage with 5 Holy Power and activating Hammer of Wrath even on enemies with more than 20% health.
- Wake of Ashes:Generates 3 Holy Power. It is used to generate resources and precedes the use of Hammer of Light.
- Divine Toll:Casts Judgment on up to five targets, dealing double damage and casting Judgment instantly every 5 seconds. It is a powerful cooldown for massive burst damage, especially against multiple targets. Use it when available (1-minute cooldown).
- Judgment:Deals Holy damage, increases the damage the target takes from your next Holy Power ability, and generates 2 Holy Power. Essential for resource management and dealing consistent damage. It is significantly enhanced when combined with Divine Toll.
- Blade of Justice: Deals Holy damage and generates 1 Holy Power. Useful for generating resources and maintaining the rotation.
- Hammer of Wrath:Used against targets with less than 20% health, dealing a large amount of Holy damage. Top priority in the execute phase.
- Final Verdict (with 3 or 4 Holy Power):Used to maximize damage when you do not have 5 Holy Power. Should only be used in this situation.
In Mythic+, the core rotation remains similar to the raid rotation, but with key talent adjustments and a focus on AoE.
Basic Rotation: Execution Sentence and Hammer of Light (with 5 Holy Power) are maintained. The main change lies in Holy Power management.
Talent Changes: Talents that enhance damage over time (DoT) effects like Divine Storm and Divine Hammer, as well as radiant damage abilities, are strengthened. Grand Crusader's Judgment and other radiant abilities can trigger a Holy Fire explosion, creating a Consecration and increasing area damage.
Divine Storm: Prioritize Divine Storm over Final Verdict or Hammer of Wrath as the primary Holy Power spender. Its damage is reduced on targets exceeding 5, but its AoE potential makes it ideal for Mythic+.
AoE Rotation: Similar to single-target, prioritizing: Wake of Ashes, Blade of Justice, and Divine Storm as the primary Holy Power spender.
Radiant Glory: This talent replaces Avenging Wrath with Crusade when using Wake of Ashes. Crusade increases haste and damage, and each Holy Power spent during Crusade further increases haste (up to 10 stacks). Additionally, Radiant Glory grants a chance to activate Crusade for 5 seconds with each Holy Power spent, allowing for passive activation.
Mythic+ vs. Raids: The rotation is similar, but with a greater emphasis on AoE abilities like Divine Storm. Wake of Ashes, Blade of Justice, and Hammer of Light are still used, with a focus on efficient Holy Power management in AoE situations.
Avenging Wrath vs. Crusade: In this Mythic+ configuration, Crusade and Radiant Glory replace Avenging Wrath. Crusade increases haste and damage, and Radiant Glory ensures regular activations without relying on the cooldown.
Strengths and Weaknesses
The Retribution Paladin offers an accessible playstyle, ideal for new players. Its learning curve is smooth, and mistakes are usually not catastrophic. Among its strengths are:
- Ease of Learning: Its rotation and mechanics are relatively simple, allowing for quick adaptation.
- High Defensive Capability: It possesses numerous defensive tools, both passive and active, such as Divine Shield and Divine Protection, which offer great survivability.
- Versatile Utility: Its utility abilities are valuable in various content, from dungeons to raids.
- Support and Self-Healing: It offers powerful options for healing itself and supporting group healing, providing flexibility to the team.
However, it also presents some weaknesses:
- Limited Mobility: Its main mobility tool is Divine Steed, which can hinder positioning in certain encounters.
- Redundant Utility in High-End Content: In highly demanding content, some of its utility abilities may become less relevant due to the presence of other classes that fulfill similar roles.
- Low Skill Ceiling: Once the basics are mastered, there aren't many complex nuances to learn, which can result in a less challenging progression for experienced players.