Best Designed Specs in the History of the Game

[Zka]

Most fun I had with
WoD gladiator
Legion disc
MoP blood DK
1.11 frostmage

[PassingBy]

WoTLK Death Knights were something beautiful, the REAL dks from WC3, and sadly we'll never see something like that in game anymore. Had so much fun I miss that everyday.

MoP had most of the best class design ever: destro locks, brewmaster, mistweaver, unholy and feral (all hail snapshotting), disci, beastmaster and survival etc. While some specs were at their peaks during WoD, it was an improvement from MoP model.

The icy touch spam build was stupid though.
Other than than ye.

[Deleted]

Arf there are many...

But if I have to chose then (not ordered):

1- MoP Boomkin
2- Cata/MoP Hpal
3- MoP Warlock Affli
4- MoP/Warlord MW Monk
5- Cata Survival/ UH DKs Cata/Warlord

So many more could make the list (Like actual SPs, many past version of SP, Sub Rogue MoP...) but Since I had to chose 5 I decided to put the ones I had the most fun with.

[Volitar]

Firelands Ele Shaman
7.0 Fire Mage (7.1 already ruined it)
7.0 Windwalker
BRF Resto Shaman
HFC Arcane Mage
MOP Enh Shaman
WOD Enh Shaman
MOP Prot Paladin
Cata Spriest
MOP Fury
MOP Survival
ICC Marksmen

Couple that I really enjoyed playing but I don't know if I can call them well designed
2.4.3 Ret Paladin
3.3.5 Fire Mage
HFC Disc
MOP Disc

Lots more too, this thread is fun

[derpkitteh]

This 100 times this.
The pure joy when the heart of that freaking robot in Ulduar dropped and you went ham on it.
Blood DPS was so much fun.

They should've never introduced the freaking dual wield frost and kept frost the tanking spec.
Leaving blood and uh as the dps ones.

the heart did drop, i did go ham, and i was a contributer to getting my guild wiped by killing the heart and triggering hard mode.

[Aggrophobic]

MoP was the pinnacle of class desigen in my opinion.
At least for the classes I play/played - Warrior, hunter, warlock.

I have fond memories of Wrath and Cata as well (when it comes to class design) but I would not say that they were as good as in MoP.

Both WoD and Legion are huge disappointments when it comes to class desigen. Legion did some classes ok but it's still nowhere near MoP, Cata or even Wrath.

[callipygoustp]

Wrath Ass Rogue

[Forsay]

3.3 Shadow priest

[dakalro]

yeah warlocks doing like 30% more then anything else is balance

Even disregarding the stupid balance due to gear, MoP warlocks were really fun. I've played all 3 specs in ToT (quit to burn-out after Ra'den) and enjoyed all of them, before the trinket and before they were stupidly OP in SoO.

[Deleted]

2.1 Balance
3.1 Demonology
MoP Demonology
MoP Destro
3.3 Affliction
WotLK Blood dps
Legion WW
Legion Disco
Vanilla Destro
Vanilla Priest

[Lightbull]

1. Legion Elemental Shaman
2. Legion Elemental Shaman
3. Legion Elemental Shaman
4. Legion Elemental Shaman
5. Legion Elemental Shaman

[Deleted]

1) 3.1 arms warrior '
cya

[wholol]

You're all confusing specs when they were strong dps wise as "good design", good design doesn't necessarily mean good output.

If I had to say some example of this it would be:

-TBC frost mage shatter playstyle was the most fun design for the frost mage i've seen ( no I never mained a mage ).
-WOTLK affliction gets the cake ( hated the soulswap spamming that came from later expansions tbh).
-MOP destro for sure.
-Legion SP ( not talking about the numbers, playstyle wise its more fun than it's ever been ).
-MOP ele sham.
-Legion balance druid( feels smoother than any other expansion ).
-Yes I like casters

[Deleted]

MoP Affliction and Demonology, easily best ever and no it's not cause of busted numbers, both specs were so much fun.
MoP elemental and boomkin were also numero uno.

[ro9ue]

Really? Do you even play dk? I main unholy dk and i can tell you the spec has many glaring issues...absolutely reliant on legendary bis bracers to feel fluid and competitive numbers wise, often has problems with resource capping, has had problems with your only runic power dump: death coil, hitting like a wet noodle and just beeing ignored in the rotation for both aoe and single target, and also got hurt alot by the removal of the 1 sec gcd it had in mop, to name some big ones.

Yeah and I disagree. Feel free to post your own list.

- - - Updated - - -

You're all confusing specs when they were strong dps wise as "good design", good design doesn't necessarily mean good output.

Yeah, point of the thread was really mechanics, not just numbers.

[Mawnix]

Frost DK has always been my go-to. If only we didn't have shit scaling.

[Fkiolaris]

This is purely in terms of gameplay (and not numbers), as in how much variety and interesting options the specs had both in rotations and utility:

1) Destro in 5.4: best range dps spec I have played in any MMO: interesting rotations when trying to maximise dps and a lot of interesting tools to deal with many situations
2) Feral druid in WotLK/ Cata: proper bearcat with good off-heal/cc utility, the best and only proper "druid" spec in the game imo
3) Frost DK in Cata/MoP: yes, simple dps rotation, but it knew what it wanted to be (bar scaling): a slow but bursty plate dps with amazing survivability and good utility
4) Sub rogue in Cata/MoP: endless possibilities for plays from all the tools at your disposal

[RobertoCarlos]

Subtlety in Cata, MoP, and WoD (all 3 versions were quite similar to each other with some relatively minor differences)

As for the worst designed spec in the game, look no further than Subtlety in Legion where our genius class designer Celestalon, Lord of Tablets himself, decided that "we are going to reduce the complexity of Sub to make it appeal to a wider audience" (actual quote from alpha forums)

Yeah great job taking Shadow Dance, easily the most exciting cooldown in the entire game, and turning it first into a stupid passive and then into just another forgettable button that you press rotationally

Great job also pruning poisons, bleeds, gouge, garrote, shiv, preparation, premeditation, etc.... you know all the unique utility that made us feel like we were playing a rogue instead of some generic button mashing 223 223 223 melee..........

This is what happens when people who only understand dps rotations and spreadsheets are put in charge of class design.

Nice thread idea. Then saw this post and it had too much truth it got me in the feels.

#Pleasenomoretabletplayingdevelopers

[hablix]

I think Legion Holy Priest is in a pretty excellent spot. I love the idea of my standard healing spells powering up a couple massive heal bombs. The only weak area is the Heal spell.

[Regalbeast]

Marks and BM Hunter in BC.

Feral Druid in Cata.

Survival Hunter in MoP.

Frost DK in WoD.

Enhance Shaman in Legion.