Rejoice! Demon Hunter is already playable in-game, but not clear enough, apparently.

[Katchii]

Still trying to wrap my brain around the idea of the OP, that a Warlock, a being whose entire existence revolves around demons and demonic power and the control of both would be the same thing as a Demon Hunter, whose entire existence revolves around hunting, finding, and killing demons.

Also Illidan, may have started out as a Demon Hunter, but after absorbing the Skull of Gul'dan and consorting with demons, more resembled a warlock than a Demon Hunter. He embodies the whole sad trite cliche' that eventually you become that which you fight so hard against.

If the Demon Hunter class were to be based on Illidan, it would be the pre-TBC, pre-imprisonment Illidan, not the one we fight against in TBC....Illidan in TBC is essentially a more badass Kanrethad Ebonlocke, with big glowing DH Glaives.

I'd like to see a Demon Hunter class, the class design and theme sounds awesome, especially considering it would fit into the Burning Legion Narrative perfectly; I'll let Blizzard deal with how it gets implemented, I honestly don't really care.

[Teriz]

So are you maintaining that it is impossible for any other way to have a Demon Hunter in lore? Because if that's your conclusion, you're simply wrong.
You're making the case that because we sacked Naxxramas and it had a training wing for Death Knights that no Death Knights could now exist. Then Blizzard created Acherus: the Ebon Hold.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but can't the Lich King simply resurrect DKs at will?

Meanwhile, DHs need to be trained, and supposedly the training is so brutal that few survive it.


The fact that we exterminated the lot of them and Illidan himself doesn't bode well for their comeback.

[Thimagryn]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but can't the Lich King simply resurrect DKs at will?

Meanwhile, DHs need to be trained, and supposedly the training is so brutal that few survive it.


The fact that we exterminated the lot of them doesn't bode well for their comeback.

It doesn't bode well for the Legion-allied Demon Hunters trained during TBC, no.

[Skayth]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but can't the Lich King simply resurrect DKs at will?

Meanwhile, DHs need to be trained, and supposedly the training is so brutal that few survive it.


The fact that we exterminated the lot of them and Illidan himself doesn't bode well for their comeback.

We exterminated 4 Demon hunters from Azeroth (with illidan) And a bunch of new recruits... does not seem that their numbers would be depleted...

Only 4.

Pretty sure their are plenty more demon hunters out in Azeroth.

Prior to Cata, we only saw Maiev, and all the wardens we killed in wc3. So... then we got a large faction of jailors in cata =\

[Thimagryn]

Circular reasoning at its best.

[Skayth]

Doesn't change that we knew there were Death Knights all over Northrend. We have been all over Azeroth and in the whole of it there have been at most 3 Demon Hunters, 4 if you include the POSSIBILITY that Altruis came back from Outland. (Which has yet to be seen.) And please, go on about how you know exactly how Demon Hunters are trained. After all, it's not like five blood elves attempted it and only one managed to succeed- Oh wait, that's exactly what happened.

Illidan sat in Outland for SEVERAL YEARS and only successfully trained a handful of Demon Hunters. Tell me more about how it doesn't take long to train them.

- - - Updated - - -



And not a single one is playable. Coincidence?

4 years of training since tft... not long in terms of hey be a demon hunter.

Did I not say that in an earlier post about the 5 be dhs? Did I not? Illiterate much?

Hmmm... because we could have been training for a lot longer than 1 day old dks? Time is irrelevant in wow. Have you not understood this?

Yea, none became playable... because cata did not have a "new class" Could DHs be a faction of npc? sure. Could they be a playable class if the expansion calls for a new class? yes.

So please... tell me more how you do not understand lore of the demon hunter, that they are outcasts, and train in secret, only a few coming out to help. Tell me, where is this Dark Embrace? I do not see it in the azeroth, except for one ghost dh. There should be alot more, based on the information in the quest. Oh right... its secret. =.=

[Teriz]

It doesn't bode well for the Legion-allied Demon Hunters trained during TBC, no.

Yeah, the Illidari weren't allied with the legion.

- - - Updated - - -

We exterminated 4 Demon hunters from Azeroth (with illidan) And a bunch of new recruits... does not seem that their numbers would be depleted...

Only 4.

Pretty sure their are plenty more demon hunters out in Azeroth.
\

What if we killed Arthas in Naxx before he could create more Death Knights? You really think there would be a DK class after that?

And before you answer, keep in mind that if Blizzards goal is to make DHs a class Illidan and all his Illidari wouldn't be dead, and Warlocks wouldn't have DH abilities.

What's funny about this is that other class concepts have none of these problems.

[Perpetuus]

Is the Dark Embrace (Telarius was their herald) related to the Illidari? How much do we know of the Dark Embrace? Can a story evolve from it that could bring about more demon hunters?

[Thimagryn]

Yeah, the Illidari weren't allied with the legion

They're not allied with the Alliance and Horde either, so why are do they matter? They're just Demon Hunter NPCs, unrelated to a possible DH class, which can come from any number of sources.

I don't find any past lore relevant in the matter of Demon Hunters as a playable class. The playable Death Knights had very little to relate to any of the lore presented in WoW prior to Wrath of the Lich King. The only thing that mattered was the Ashbringer leading to breaking the hold the Lich King had on them. That was a complete retcon anyways, as Darion Mograine never existed at that point, and players had their own Corrupted Ashbringers.

Besides, we know Illidan will be coming back. If he gets a redemption story, then we could have newly trained Demon Hunters. I'm not saying this will happen, just that it's possible.

[Skayth]

Yeah, the Illidari weren't allied with the legion.

- - - Updated - - -



What if we killed Arthas in Naxx before he could create more Death Knights? You really think there would be a DK class after that?

And before you answer, keep in mind that if Blizzards goal is to make DHs a class Illidan and all his Illidari wouldn't be dead, and Warlocks wouldn't have DH abilities.

What's funny about this is that other class concepts have none of these problems.

Yea but we didnt.

And Illidan, we do not know how he is coming back. Hell, he could be alive right now and we wouldnt know it. The point I am trying to make is, Illidan is a single demon hunter. Thats it. Killing 4 demon hunters out of potentially 50 demon hunters. If blizzard wants him back, they will have him back. If blizzard wants us to bring him back, then we will. We dont know how we dont know when. Hell, they could have brought illidan back immediately after his "death" for all we know, or we could not have even killed him. Do you know? no. do i? no.

The Illidari are not all full fledged demon hunters. Matter of fact, it is the least amount, with 5 demon hunters total by the end of the expansion, with a bunch of trainees. And you forget about the Azeroth's demon Hunters, under the guise of the Dark Embrace.

Blizzard can do what they please, and if they want dhs, they will bring them. The lore is there to simply do it.

[JasonWuzHear]

The only thing to keep in mind when arguing about future classes, future lore, and future implementations is

What does Blizzard want?

There are clues in game, there are clues in tweets, and there are clues based in simple logic. Use those clues to figure out for yourself what it means. Some clues are more valid than others.

We don't need to argue what can and can't happen, it's all up to Blizzard. Arguing that Demon Hunters will be implemented because they CAN be implemented wastes as much time as arguing that they CAN'T be implemented.

[Talen]

Who says demon hunters do not use plate? or mail? I am serious.. who? Rpg book? Oh right, uncanon. -.- nothing in lore that says they cannot wear heavy armor.

Illidan doesn't even wear a chestpiece, his helm is a piece of cloth and his pants aren't exactly held stopped from flowing in the wind by metal. And he is the steretypical DH in game, the character who defines the look.
He isn't exactly heavily armored.

A demon hunter has a heavy emphasis on combat. Melee Combat. They are not range.

Do they have ranged attacks? Yes or no?
If the answer is "yes", does it stand to reason they can and will be able to use those atacks to attack from outside melee range? Yes or no?

I am annoyed they did not make me a damn tank in the damn revamp.

Demon Hunters are a tank capable class.

But is that alot of the dh? god no.

Many DHs in game - including Illidan - end up tanking for the player. Illidan has the tanking move "Evasion" and a taunt. The Glyph itself turns the Demon Form into a mini tank including such abilities as a taunt. While people keep insisting the DH is a melee DPS class, in games it's presented as a tank. It melees, it does damage, it has survival moves and a taunt.

So yes - that is "a lot of the dh".

People are simply wrapped up in the fact that locks have meta. thats it. A meta that was given lore away from the demon hunters meta.

If you actually examine the issue, you'll see that it goes waay beyonf Meta.

Look at the Warlocks Challenge armor. Remind you of anyone?
Look at the name of the Glyph of Demon Hunting. Sound familiar.?
Have a Warlock use Meta....what does he make you think of?
Examine the list of abilities in game DHs show us...Curses, Shadowfury/bolt, Meta, Immolation, demon pets. Who else has those abilities?
Ever examine the Talent list for Warlocks? Ever see who was originally there? True..Illidan was removed but his very presence shows how far Blizzard have linked DHs to Warlocks.

The reality is, they can easily make a dh class, just like any other class, and have it tread on none of the grounds of a warlock. People with a little imagination can see that.

Do Warlocks have a theme and identity strongly linked to demons? I'd say yes.
Do Demon Hunters have a theme and identity strongly linked to demons? I'd say yes. It's part of their name.

Does this make it impossible to design a class that doesn't tread on a Warlock? No. For example, I wouldn't associate a D3 style DH with Demons ; she is a class who simply focusses on hunting demons. The issue there is that she also is NOT a WoW style DH. She doesn't have the abilities, or look, or feel or theme. What this means is that there is actually very little point in bring such a class into the game and simply calling it a DH; that wouldn't give players the WoW style DH that is wanted. If all you want is a class of any design to be called Demon Hunter, you may as well just add a questline or achievement to grant you the title.

But if you want an Illidan style DH....Warlocks have that right now. They just need Dual Wield. Sure, they won't be as effective without a dedicated melee rotation, but they 'd have the look, the abilities and the theme.

Does this mean we can never get a Illidan style DH in game? No - but the only reason that sees likely for them to do so would be if their marketing data suggests such a high demand for the class as a standalone class that it overrides the other issues.

However, much as it remains possible for Blizzard to do so, I simply do not consider it likely that Blizzard has any intention of bringing the class in as a standalone class. There is too much crossover with Warlocks for that to be a viable choice. Sure, I could see Blizzard capable of working around even issues such as Meta or the class theme/identity. IMO, however, while there isn't any one single factor that would kill the DH class dead, what does essentially kill the idea is ALL of theme combined.

Its the extensive shared move list alongside the theme alongside the iconic Metamorphosis alongside the design direction thats lasted several years alongside the armor that makes Warlocks look like Illidan alongside the general look alongside....

The core point is simple....when Warlocks already have 90%+ of everything that makes a Demon Hunter a Demon Hunter, what point is there in adding DHs as a new class?

What do you need to do to warlocks to make them DHs?
Give them the DW skill; add Warlocks to the Glaives; add a blindfold to their face graphic, allow NElfs to be Warlocks. Will this make them effective in a DPS/tanking role? No..but it gets DHs into the game. Effectiveness would be possible..it'd just require work over and above the minimum.

What do you need to add a standalone DH class?
New animations, new spell list, dedicated tier, PvP and other armor designs, a balanced and workable rotation, class balancing, the addition of NPCs into the gameworld and likely a major reworking of the warlocks to prevent too much homogenity. All this in addition to what you give Warlocks.

EJL

[Thimagryn]

What do you need to add a standalone DH class?
New animations, new spell list, dedicated tier, PvP and other armor designs, a balanced and workable rotation, class balancing, the addition of NPCs into the gameworld and likely a major reworking of the warlocks to prevent too much homogenity. All this in addition to what you give Warlocks.

EJL

That's what's needed for any new class. So you believe Blizzard can't make a new class because it's too much work? I don't really see your point. It seems like the basis of your entire thread is not proving Demon Hunters won't happen, but trying to come up with excuses that work against the inclusion of.. anything new. You seem to hate change.

It doesn't take much to apply all of your arguments to any new class idea. And you'd still be wrong in believing Blizzard is incapable of doing it.

[TS26]

I love how people are using lore to prove that DH won't happen.

This is blizzard we're talking about. They could add power rangers and still find a way of bending lore to support it.

[Talen]

That's what's needed for any new class.

Yes...and NONE of it is needed to make DHs a Warlock offshoot and only some of it is necessary if they decide to make it effective and viable.

What do Warlocks need to allow them, in game, to step into the role of a Demon Hunter. The ability to dual wield. Then they can stand in melee range and auto attack, casting spells, using abilities and transforming as they see fit.

If you wanted to address the look even more, you'd make NElfs able to be Warlocks, allow Warlocks to use the glaives and add a blindfold. You might even give a flavor ability such as Spectral Sight.

If you wanted to make them viable and effective in the melee role, you'd add a couple of strikes and address the rotation for that role.

But to simply have them BE Demon Hunters? All they really need is Dual Wield. Even then, you could argue that DW isn't really needed and that...for all intents and purposes...Warlocks already are DHs. They might not be effective but they already have everthing that makes a DH a DH.

EJL

[Jtree]

What if we killed Arthas in Naxx before he could create more Death Knights? You really think there would be a DK class after that?

And before you answer, keep in mind that if Blizzards goal is to make DHs a class Illidan and all his Illidari wouldn't be dead, and Warlocks wouldn't have DH abilities.

If we killed Arthas in Naxx, there couldn't have been a Wrath of the Lich King expansion, now could there? Unless Blizzard decided they really wanted a Northrend/undead expansion, then they would have made new villains, and a new "in" for the DH class.

For Demon Hunters, their prototype is dead, but the hook, fighting the Burning Legion, can still be important in the future of WoW. There are other factors scattered around keeping the DH potential alive:
-Blizzard is talking about, for good or ill, bringing Illidan back.
-It's suggested in the warlock green fire quest that Illidari demons remain in Outland. For all we know, some small number of his demon hunter disciples remain as well.
-Altruis has had plenty of time and levels to work with since we were leveling in Nagrand.
-Feronas Sindweller emerged in Felwood during Cata, showing that there is still some kind of Demon Hunter presence in Kalimdor.

What's funny about this is that other class concepts have none of these problems.

On the other hand, no other class concept has so much lore, presence, and fame. Not your tinkers, or my dragonsworn, or the time walkers that might be getting teased in the new patch. Illidan's return and a demon hunter class would draw a hell of a lot more attention from former players than any other story Blizzard could possibly add, IMO.


There was some discussion about the potential demon hunter population, and whether it could feed a playable class. But thinking about it, I don't believe that matters a lot to Blizzard. Look at the recent races. Roll a pandaren, and you set out on a very individual journey to save the Wandering Isle, a story that leaves no room for another Pandaren to have done the same things and then join a faction afterwards.

Likewise, my level 14 goblin mage I haven't logged on to for two years is the hotshot junior executive of the Bilgewater cartel, and all those other goblins running around raiding and PvPing are his subordinates.

A DH hero class could easily have a storyline suggesting the player is one of a small group of successful trainees who made it through the process and then has found their way back to their factions, and into raiding guilds. Personal story-wise, the only other player DHs that matter are the ones in your guild or arena team, the rest are as ridiculous as those guys who claim to have killed the same boss as you and gotten the same gear.

As an aside, after making this argument, I need to drop half my opposition to those who want playable high elves. Population numbers don't matter much when it comes to making something playable in game. It'd still be a bad idea to recycle an entire race to the other faction, though.

...the possibility for them to exist is there. This is something we should all be agreeing about. Yet your argument speaks otherwise, because you are assuming that everyone who wants to see a Demon Hunter playable class expects it to happen.

Gonna lay it out for you. We WANT to see the Class, but we aren't EXPECTING it to happen. We simply believe there is possibility and room for them to exist and be their own class. This has nothing to do with proving that it will happen, it's not anyone's goal here despite what you believe.

And as long as there are people who are making up reasons on why it can't or won't happen, we're going to shut down those arguments. There is nothing that proves Blizzard can't or won't make it happen. Just like there is no proof that it will happen. If it happens, it happens, if not, then not. You can't make up reasons to prove otherwise. We are not Blizzard.

This. This so much.

[Thimagryn]

Yes...and NONE of it is needed to make DHs a Warlock offshoot and only some of it is necessary if they decide to make it effective and viable.

What do Warlocks need to allow them, in game, to step into the role of a Demon Hunter. The ability to dual wield. Then they can stand in melee range and auto attack, casting spells, using abilities and transforming as they see fit.

If you wanted to address the look even more, you'd make NElfs able to be Warlocks, allow Warlocks to use the glaives and add a blindfold. You might even give a flavor ability such as Spectral Sight.

If you wanted to make them viable and effective in the melee role, you'd add a couple of strikes and address the rotation for that role.

But to simply havem BE Demon Hunters? All they really need is Dual Wield. Even then, you could argue that DW isn't really needed and that...for all intents and purposes...Warlocks already are DHs. They might not be effective but they already have everthing that makes a DH a DH.

EJL

This boils down to saying "I don't want to see new classes, I'd rather see 4th specs". If you simply state that as your opinion instead of making up reasons, I wouldn't have to challenge every one of your baseless claims.

1) It would be less likely to give Cloth-based Spellcasters a dual-wielding melee spec than creating a new melee-centric class. This is proven by:
2) The presence of melee classes that share Specs/Themes with cloth-based Spellcasters. Priests and Paladins have Holy, Mages and Death Knights have Frost. Prior to the Death Knight, Frost was a Mage-only spec. They were able to create a new Melee Frost spec that did nothing to hinder either class' identity or mechanics. I don't see why they would not be able to create a Demonology melee spec for Demon Hunters.

So no, it would not be better to accomplish your idea any more than it would for a new class. We can agree that the DH as a new class is unlikely to happen, but to propose that Warlocks will become dual-wielding Melee is simply against the design direction of World of Warcraft. Besides this, the biggest case against Demon Hunters is too many melee specs in the game. Suggesting that a melee spec for a Warlock is better than a new class is preposterous.

[toomes211]

I've played a warlock for a long, long time in World of Warcraft. I started it originally when BC came out, rolling up and playing it as my alt, as I raided on my warrior primarily tanking. When 3.0 was released and warlocks summarily received metamorphosis for the first time, I immediately went out and tried the new form, and I remember being incredibly excited about looking exactly like illidan in black temple, who i'd tanked before on my warrior.

Time went by, and my warlock was shelved until cataclysm for the most part. My guild needed a ranged DPS, I had a level capped lock, and it seemed to work. I joked to my raid off and on about how I was illidan! Hiding as a goblin to disguise myself until I could return and take over azeroth. I did this because by now we had practically all the memorable demon hunter powers: Metamorphosis, immo aura, and until it was taken away, mana burn/drain.

When MoP came out and my warlock stayed my main, I made the same conclusion OP did - I was, for all gameplay intents and purposes, a Demon Hunter in my demonology spec.

You might be curious where I'm going with this. I've read most of the 44 pages of this thread, (Yes, it took me a few hours but I did it.) And I find that the main reason people think that Warlocks aren't demon hunters is because of our inability to use melee as a main spec, or evasion tank as it were. I can see your points - playing a warlock doesn't really feel like playing a demon hunter.

But that begs the question, could we make a demon hunter class without treading on the numerous toes of warlocks, rogues, and monks? If we could, would we even want to? The design problems that are the primary reason the class will never be made are numerous and difficult to counter. We already have an overabundance of melee DPS in the game - and it's clear for WC3 that the demon hunter would have at least two melee specs, and probably one tank spec.

Moreover, with the addition of the monk class we have filled our hole of tanks and leather users. A -fourth- leather user while we still have the lunacy of only ONE spec using int plate, two classes using mail armor, and one class using all three ranged types of weapons in the game makes practically no sense whatsoever.

On top of that, how do we treat the trademark abilities demon hunters had that we've given to warlocks? Do we let both classes keep them? If not, who gets them? Warlocks, because we've become accustomed to our demon form after having it for three expansions? Demon hunters, because they had it 'first'? Not to mention the arsenal of ancillary moves that are demon hunter inspired or copied, including but not limited to immolation aura, demonic slash, and fury ward.

There's also lore complications. Demon hunters are dedicated to their cause. They did not lightly choose their path to hunt and kill demons - going so far as to face near certain death in training and blinding themselves so they may focus on demons exclusively. (As a side note, the blinding provides another unique challenge to class design. How do you justify a class that can only 'see' demons fighting any other enemy?) These soldiers against the legion take their duty very seriously, seeing their cause above and beyond anything else. They hunt demons first and foremost, anything else is secondary.

This brings around my final point. If warlocks have subsumed and learned the abilities of demon hunters, but don't share their zeal in the cause, are they really that different? Granted, they are casters and not melee, but outside of that they use all the same abilities. Is this justification for a new class, or are Demon Hunters just another flavor of warlock not fully represented as a playable class? Some food for thought.

Please, be constructive in replies. I love to hear feedback that's not "Lol ur wrong DH is tite."

[Talen]

This boils down to saying "I don't want to see new classes, I'd rather see 4th specs". If you simply state that as your opinion instead of making up reasons, I wouldn't have to challenge every one of your baseless claims.

On the contrary. But Demon Hunters, as a class, have issues that make their inclusion as a standalone class problematic.

Not least of which is the simple fact that Warlocks already have everything that makes Demon Hunters...Demon Hunters. They aren't viable in the melee role, but they still have everythigng that makes DHs DHs.

IMO, it is difficult to justify the creation of a brand new class when we realise that class is effectively already in game. That puts Demon Hunters in a VERY different category than, for example, Bards,Tinkers or Wardens.

Now, I'll grant you that your own personal vision of a DH isn't in game. But that isn't really important. I'll even grant that as meleers Warlocks aren't viable. Buta s far as gameplay and class design is concerned...DHs are in the game now. If you really want to, a Warlock can don his Illidan based Challenge armor with the tattoos and horns, equip a sword and the Glyph and run around playing Demon Hunter all day, using many of the same spells and abilities DHs in game already use.

1) It would be more difficult to give Cloth-based Spellcasters a dual-wielding melee spec than creating a new melee-centric class.

Do you know what would be required to make the Warlock a dual wielding meleeing spec? Dual Wield.

That's it. Ok....you also want the DH to be a viable melee spec. So yes...that would require a bit more work. How much more work would depend on the direction they took....for example, would you need AGI Cloth or spell conversion gear if you simply treated the combat abilities as melee ranged spells? With the weapons themselves being mainly visual? You know - a bit like how the GoDH works now. No, you wouldn't. You'd simply balance the spell and rotation around what you want. And if some of those spells have a melee animation....

[2) Multiple melee classes share Specs/Themes with cloth-based Spellcasters. Priests and Paladins have Holy, Mages and Death Knights have Frost.

No...they share a school of magic.

So no, it would not be easier to accomplish your idea any more than it would to create a new class. We can agree that the DH as a new class is unlikely to happen, but to propose that Warlocks will become dual-wielding Melee is simply against the direction of World of Warcraft. The biggest case against Demon Hunters is too many melee specs in the game. Suggesting that a melee spec for a Warlock is better than a new class is preposterous.

And one of the problems is not enough tanks. Why do you assume a class that is repeatedly portrayed as having a tanking role will be DPS?

As it is...if we want DHs in game we have a choice.

We can either design a new class with all the extras that entails...or we can give Warlocks Dual wield.

EJL

[Thimagryn]

@ toomes211

The Demon Hunter Class

Many of us want to see is the Demon Hunter properly represented in World of Warcraft as a playable class. The reasons differ among fans, but it boils down to a few main reasons, in my opinion.

1) Popularity

The Demon Hunter is an iconic class in Warcraft. Illidan is instantly recognizable worldwide, one of the biggest faces of Warcraft alongside Arthas and Thrall. The design aesthetic of the tattooed, blind Night Elf stands out among the classic fantasy tropes we find throughout the series. The class hasn't been around for a long time, but it has definitely made its mark in the Warcraft universe. Even someone who had rudimentary knowledge of Warcraft could point out a Demon Hunter. It should be simple to say, people want to play a Warglaive-wielding badass.

2) Identity

I would not be opposed to having Warlocks become Demon Hunters if Blizzard made it so. I would welcome it just as any other change, such as allowing new race/class combos in Cataclysm. This being said, I would rather see them as their own class, or not included at all before that happened. The reasoning is simple - Demon Hunters have their own identity.

Beyond visual design, there is one thing makes them instantly memorable - the fact that they have made great sacrifices to gain power to fight evil. Unlike any other hero or class in the game, they have made irreversible changes to their bodies and souls. This is something that is iconic to the class, and we wish to see it honoured if they become playable.

Imagine suggesting Death Knight as a playable Spec for an existing class. Say the idea was for Death Knights to be a Paladin spec, because in lore they were corrupted Paladins. Shadow priests worked out fine, so 'Shadow Paladins' could work too, right? But no matter how you cut it, Death Knights are undead, and it would be impossible to represent their irreversible nature through a spec. This is also what makes Demon Hunters unique, they are beyond 'mortal'.

3) Theme

Demons play a huge part in Warcraft's history. They are the reason Medivh opened the Dark Portal, the reason the Orcs became warmongers, the reason the Scourge was created, and most importantly the reason why the world was torn apart during the War of the Ancients. While there have been other villains throughout the course of history, none have the high-standing impact that the Demons do. With each new Warcraft game, we have been exposed to more and new types of demons. They're a persistent threat to the entire world of Azeroth.

Lets face it, we know the Legion will be coming back. It's inevitable that they will be invading again, and that we will be taking the fight to their doorstep. In context to all that is and will be happening, the Demon Hunter fits in the best with a Legion-centric expansion.


What Demon Hunter fans expect

I've explained why we want to see Demon Hunters as their own class, now I will address the other half of the argument; what we realistically expect.

With so much debate in support of a Demon Hunter class, it is easy to view the enthusiasm as an expectation. This is a mistaken notion. What we want to see is not what we expect to happen. Ultimately our goals are the same as any others, to see classic Hero represented in WoW. The Death Knights got their way in Wrath of the Lich King. The next most identifiable class in Warcraft 3 is without a doubt the Demon Hunter. We simply want them to have a greater presence in WoW.

Warlocks are spellcasters who have delved into the dark arts. They are summoners. Even if they have the same motivations as a Demon Hunter, they will still represent different values. If Blizzard does decide to make Warlocks become Demon Hunters (or vice versa), then that's fine; but until that happens they are not the same class. We, as Demon Hunter fans, see a clear line of separation between the two classes. It is a very jarring notion to assume that they are the same because of similarities; the way one might say a Paladin is a Priest because of Holy spells.

The Demon Hunter will not exist

I don't believe the Demon Hunter will be in World of Warcraft in any playable form. The main reasons I have seen are:

1) No room for more Melee. There is a clear saturation of melee classes in the game, and we certainly do not need more.
2) Potential for new themes. We should be seeing something that hasn't been covered by existing classes.
3) Filling in the gaps. Whatever the class may be, it should fill the design needs of Blizzard. If another Int Plate user or Physical Ranged class is what's needed, then it should be made.

These are a few of the main reasons why I think that Demon Hunters are simply not plausible.

The Demon Hunter can not exist

And this leads us to why we fans are still here.

While there are many of us who don't think this will happen, there are others who are making the argument that Demon Hunter class could or should not exist. I personally believe that anything is possible, and Blizzard has shown us time and time again that they can make any concept work. They have made Blue space goats/pre-demons a core part of the Alliance. They allowed the Elves to join the Horde. They've made the Scourge Death Knights playable for both factions. They've even created an entire expansion about Pandas. The idea that anything can not happen because it hasn't happened yet is a fallacy.

We can try to follow the patterns as closely as we try, but we won't get any closer to predicting the next expansion, or the next race, or even the next class. Simply said, Blizzard is unpredictable. We can get close to the mark by following the patterns, but ultimately Blizzard can throw us all on a loop at any given time. I do believe the Tinker currently has the best chance at becoming a reality, but even then we have had just as much hint for a Timewalker/Dragon-based class or again, the Demon Hunter. Only time will prove what classes will become a reality.