The Best Place for Unholy is Ranged Str DPS

[Hellrime]

Very few people play unholy DKs, they crop up when someone sims them at the top of dps charts for a while and then most of them drop off the face of eternity. I was one of those people, I liked unholy, it was my first DK DPS spec, and I always thought thematically it was the most fun of all the DK specializations. However, I've always ended up playing other specs, since WoTLK there's very little reason to be unholy, when frost does everything it does better and easier.

Unholy is a very clunky spec, it's been very powerful in PvP, but for very bad reasons. It's an auto-fire option, you macro your stuff together, you pick your moment and you eat heals, while your pets murder someone, you get to concentrate almost entirely on control, because roughly 50-60% of your full burst dps is entirely automated. I don't think that's a good way to setup any class.

PvE tends to see fewer unholy DKs, because their ramp up time and general inability to do fast, on demand burst always hamstrings them. No raid bosses just let you sit on them and beat on them anymore, so if unholy does 5% more damage than frost, frost will probably in real performance, have roughly 10% higher dps, simply because of ease of target switching and a lot less ability to screw up.

Why I'm going over this, is that I actually think the current unholy setup, would work fabulously as a ranged dps class, since the clunkiness and annoyance of things like dark transformation, would then be offset by ranged capabilities and an ability to set up fights better, since there'd be so much less running around (it's usually not the melee who burst for 1 million dps at the start of a fight). Some abilities and mechanics would need to be modified to balance PvP, but I think DKs would be made a much more robust class with a ranged option.

The original DKs were casters, so if unholy is supposed to be the specialization in the vein of the WC2 DKs, with abilities like raise dead, death and decay and death coil at the forefront, why not take it all the way? Branch out the class, add more gameplay options. Plus DKs have felt kind of ignored, since we haven't even gotten a real tanking overhaul (Or well, a real anything overhaul in a very long time), this would be a great way to bring some energy back to the class.

I'd love to see my DK using ranged scourge strikes and whatnot, not to mention, there's just always too much melee :P

IMO this is a horrible, horrible idea and one I hope never pops into the Developer's heads. I've played Unholy since day 1 of WotLK and would be absolutely devastated if it switched to ranged. The reason you see so many Frost players is due to a couple reasons, a.) Argue all you want about it, the spec is easier to play, b.) the majority of the playerbase have no minds of their own, so they follow the trend. I laughed my ass of when I got into an Ordos pug and there was this Frost DK going on about how Frost is the best dps and that he could beat any Unholy dps, even tried to give me advice "Unholy is fail bro, you should do Frost", then I beat him by, not exaggerating, 100k dps. Whispered back to him "Hmm, maybe you're right....". The more difficult spec to play will ALWAYS lose out to the easier/more popular spec amongst the masses, especially with the returns for both simming so close. To many it just isn't worth the extra effort.

[tru]

Celestion has already talked about some complaints on talents "its to late to do an overhaul" type bullshit so nice idea dont expect any real changes to unholy until next xpac both dps specs will be nearly identical and boring since wrath.

[Razorice]

4.0 DW Unholy AKA the Death Coil machinegun.

[Samsarathedk]

@TS I raid as unholy and love it, I do not find the play style to be clunky at all. Kindly do not make the assumption that just because you do not enjoy the play style that others do not. Thanks

[zoomgpally]

I think that would be...pretty cool. DoTs and some direct damage and several ghouls, lots of magical AoE and damage amplification.

Agree.
Also about time some other class than druids get to have both ranged dps and tank spec.

As for the gear: In WoD all plate gear has int AND str, which one is active depends on what your spec uses.
A holy paladin in full int gear will suddenly have full str gear after respeccing to prot or ret.

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@TS I raid as unholy and love it, I do not find the play style to be clunky at all. Kindly do not make the assumption that just because you do not enjoy the play style that others do not. Thanks

What if everything was just the same but had 30 yards range, without changing rotation or stats at all?
note: stat prio will probably change anyway with expansion

[Kuja]

I would approve it if unholy DKs could cast death spells from their runeblade from range. Though wouldn't make much sense for a STR class. Unless the runeblade has to be raised before a spell can be channeled, and it could be heavy.

[zoomgpally]

I would approve it if unholy DKs could cast death spells from their runeblade from range. Though wouldn't make much sense for a STR class. Unless the runeblade has to be raised before a spell can be channeled, and it could be heavy.

So make it int, plate gear got int or str depending on spec.

[Deleted]

Even tho the idea of necromancer in WoW sounds attractive the idea of it is quite opposite of the class - a heavy armored undying dude wearing big badass two hand rune sword, obliterating his foes with its brute power and necromantic powers. I just can't see myself playing my DK (which is Draenei to look even more bigger and badass) standing out of the melle range swinging my swords, than standing away from harm's way stacking with the ranged like a clothie pussy as they are

I dont know. If i wanted to spam death coils and send my pet to do my job, i would rather spec my mage in frost and spam my frostbolt(death coil) casualy while wearing my shiny plate and showing off my big big sword that i will not use as intended
To be honest this will be way way too similar to warlock.

[Samsarathedk]

Agree.
Also about time some other class than druids get to have both ranged dps and tank spec.

As for the gear: In WoD all plate gear has int AND str, which one is active depends on what your spec uses.
A holy paladin in full int gear will suddenly have full str gear after respeccing to prot or ret.

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What if everything was just the same but had 30 yards range, without changing rotation or stats at all?
note: stat prio will probably change anyway with expansion

Death Knights are a MELEE class not a ranged one. Leave us how we are meant to be. A hard hitting plate MELEE class.

[Saxtorph]

I think they are as likely to make Unholy DK a ranged spec as they are to give hunters back their melee abilities.