Tip Guide for Destruction Warlocks

[Brauhm]

I've noticed some misinformation, so I wanted to clarify. To start, I'm Brauhm and am currently doing okay as destro. I'm in the top 97% if I'm not bad and dying in fights. https://www.warcraftlogs.com/ranking...6351912/latest For some evidence.

Regardless, I have a few tips to help you out! Things I didn't see in the guide here.

1. Backdraft must never start with a Chaos Bolt followed by another Chaos Bolt
- Why? When you have backdraft up, you have the ability to cast the following options:

• Incinerate, Incinerate, Incinerate
• Incinerate, Chaos Bolt, Chaos Bolt
• Chaos Bolt, Incinerate, Chaos Bolt
• Chaos Bolt, Incinerate, Incinerate
• Chaos Bolt, Chaos Bolt

Casting two chaos bolts immediately doesn't give you full dps from the buff because you get two spells casted within the haste buff, not three. Even when using havok the extra hasted Incinerate is worth more than getting the Chaos Bolts ASAP. Try it out!

2. Always use every charge of your Dimensional Rift when you have either Bloodlust or haste procs, they scale the best with haste and DO get extra ticks during their duration. They dynamically update with your procs so don't worry about the old snapshotting mechanic.

3. Reverse Entropy is too important.

The list above? That can only be done with Reverse Entropy. Trying it with Cataclysm or Mana Tap means that you'll often not have enough haste to get three spells off per backdraft application. This is a significant DPS loss (I'd theorize about 10% but I don't have solid numbers to back it up in a raid situation).

4. Ask me questions! I used to raid a lot in Cataclysm and wrote a few guides here. Since I think I'm doing well playing destruction I'd love to help anyone who has any questions and I'd love to learn too! If you have any tips, put them here!

[Orwell7]

Good tips, thanks!

(I think you swapped Eradication and Reverse Entropy)

[Deleted]

I've noticed some misinformation, so I wanted to clarify. To start, I'm Brauhm and am currently doing okay as destro. I'm in the top 97% if I'm not bad and dying in fights. https://www.warcraftlogs.com/ranking...6351912/latest For some evidence.

Regardless, I have a few tips to help you out! Things I didn't see in the guide here.

1. Backdraft must never start with a Chaos Bolt followed by another Chaos Bolt
- Why? When you have backdraft up, you have the ability to cast the following options:

• Incinerate, Incinerate, Incinerate
• Incinerate, Chaos Bolt, Chaos Bolt
• Chaos Bolt, Incinerate, Chaos Bolt
• Chaos Bolt, Chaos Bolt, Incinerate
• Chaos Bolt, Incinerate, Incinerate
• Chaos Bolt, Chaos Bolt

Typo I guess?

Those tips should be included in the main guide for easier access.

[Gaidax]

Yes, he meant Reverse Entropy. Without that you miss out quite a bit with Backdraft.

[ineedacent]

Hi, i'm just a casual destruction player. Been playing warlocks for a couple of expansions now. Mostly i've been playing destruction.
Now, mostly im trying to figure out is what to use for purely single target fights from the following talents.
-> Roaring Blaze or Backdraft
-> Service or Sacrifice
-> Soul conduit or Channel Dooomfire

Also, i wanted to know how at what % of haste should i aim for at least. I sit at 22% haste at the moment.
Added this link so you can look at my stats and gear if you'd like http://eu.battle.net/wow/character/silvermoon/Koouos/

[immaburnyou]

Hi, i'm just a casual destruction player. Been playing warlocks for a couple of expansions now. Mostly i've been playing destruction.
Now, mostly im trying to figure out is what to use for purely single target fights from the following talents.
-> Roaring Blaze or Backdraft
-> Service or Sacrifice
-> Soul conduit or Channel Dooomfire

Also, i wanted to know how at what % of haste should i aim for at least. I sit at 22% haste at the moment.
Added this link so you can look at my stats and gear if you'd like http://eu.battle.net/wow/character/silvermoon/Koouos/

I've only done the fights on normal so far but you can look at this to see what talents I run for every fight.
https://www.warcraftlogs.com/ranking...0739904/latest

I'm at 22% haste or so

[Delia]

That are interesting tips, but isn't roaring blaze better DPS overall?

According to Brusalk's guide, Backdraft is better single target until >50% haste, at which point roaring blaze starts to overtake under perfect conditions. Most players likely don't have 50%+ haste, so Backdraft is the go to single target DPS talent in that row.

On fights where you can consistently cleave with Havoc, Roaring takes precedent as you get double the benefit.

Would like to point out that it also just purely depends on how much haste you have.

Sometimes during trinket procs (Chronoshard) or during BL you can easily get 3 Chaos Bolts off during each backdraft.

Backdraft actually gets a shorter duration with more haste, the amount of spells you can get off is always roughly the same. The exception being if you get a haste proc *after* you already have the backdraft buff. For instance, if you cast Conflag, it gives you backdraft, and then Chronoshard procs, you'll get more casts off, since Backdraft doesn't retroactively get shorter from the proc. However if you get a Chronoshard proc, then cast conflag, your backdraft buff will be shorter to compensate for the extra haste, and you likely won't get any additional casts off.

[Tweetster]

Great post Brauhm!
My question would be, can anybody shed any light as to where to spend my artifact points?
I'm seeing some posts stating that they spend points on two weapons, say destro & demo, is this the ebst thing to do?
Or should I concerntrate on just spending all my points in the Destro weapon because I'm more than happy to play Destro & Aff (maybe not aff right now) rather than Destro & Demo...

Any help would be much appreicated.

[Brauhm]

Typo I guess?

Those tips should be included in the main guide for easier access.

Thanks for catching my typo! Yes I did not mean to put that as something you can do haha

- - - Updated - - -

Yes, he meant Reverse Entropy. Without that you miss out quite a bit with Backdraft.

Yes I did mean Reverse Entropy. I'm still trying to keep up with all the new passives after coming back from MoP. (Do I miss those Chaos Bolts? Yes I do.)

- - - Updated - - -

Great post Brauhm!
My question would be, can anybody shed any light as to where to spend my artifact points?
I'm seeing some posts stating that they spend points on two weapons, say destro & demo, is this the ebst thing to do?
Or should I concerntrate on just spending all my points in the Destro weapon because I'm more than happy to play Destro & Aff (maybe not aff right now) rather than Destro & Demo...

Any help would be much appreicated.

Personally, I'd only recommend spending points into a spec if you're going to play it for a specific raid encounter. Otherwise, I just keep my off spec's leveled "just in case" but I don't put many points into them. Currently my main Destro weapon is level 21 and my others are ~17.

- - - Updated - - -

According to Brusalk's guide, Backdraft is better single target until >50% haste, at which point roaring blaze starts to overtake under perfect conditions. Most players likely don't have 50%+ haste, so Backdraft is the go to single target DPS talent in that row.

On fights where you can consistently cleave with Havoc, Roaring takes precedent as you get double the benefit.



Backdraft actually gets a shorter duration with more haste, the amount of spells you can get off is always roughly the same. The exception being if you get a haste proc *after* you already have the backdraft buff. For instance, if you cast Conflag, it gives you backdraft, and then Chronoshard procs, you'll get more casts off, since Backdraft doesn't retroactively get shorter from the proc. However if you get a Chronoshard proc, then cast conflag, your backdraft buff will be shorter to compensate for the extra haste, and you likely won't get any additional casts off.

All of this information is 100% correct. Roaring blaze is great for multitarget fights where you can reliably get a full 23 second immolate off with compounded roaring blaze stacks. In addition, at 50% haste your conflagration CD is very low, letting you get 4 conflagration casts off during a single immolate.

[Mapex]

Adding to point #1: you almost always want to do CB -> Incinerate -> CB as opposed to Incinerate -> CB -> CB after using Conflagrate to trigger Backdraft.

The reason is because you can precast spells at the last tick of the current spell's cast, but you won't be able to precast a second CB after your first CB if the first CB is going to leave you with less than two Soul Shards. Instead you want to precast Incinerate. While Incinerate is casting, you may gain more Shards via Immolate, Soul Conduit/Soulsnatcher, or some other similar proc, which then allows you to precast your second Chaos Bolt, but if you don't generate any Shards you have enough time to precast a second Incinerate instead.

So in short, after using Conflagrate to trigger Backdraft, you want to CB -> Incinerate -> CB (Incinerate if you lack shards) against a single target or when using Havoc to cleave.

[HeroicMythic]

I see your stats:

Crit: 15.85%
Haste: 33.30%
Mastery: 52.36%

I thought mastery was horrible. Do you have on purpose that much mastery or can't you get rid of it?

[Mapex]

Mastery isn't horrible: it's actually one of the most substantial boosts to your damage compared to all of the other stats as it's a multiplier to your damage.

The problem is that it's unreliable as hell: your Chaos Bolt can hit for 350k one time, 460k another time, and 290k the third time. That swing of damage sucks terribly, especially during time critical moments when you have to burn an add down.

That said, yes, Mastery is EVERYWHERE: I have been sitting at 65-75% Mastery for weeks (~20% crit and haste) just because I can't get crit/haste gear to drop. It forces me to take Backdraft and Reverse Entropy and either Wreak Havoc or Fire and Brimstone to have even a remotely good enough time, but when the RNG aligns and I land a 500k+ Chaos Bolt on two enemies simultaneously it feels amazing.

[Brauhm]

Adding to point #1: you almost always want to do CB -> Incinerate -> CB as opposed to Incinerate -> CB -> CB after using Conflagrate to trigger Backdraft.

The reason is because you can precast spells at the last tick of the current spell's cast, but you won't be able to precast a second CB after your first CB if the first CB is going to leave you with less than two Soul Shards. Instead you want to precast Incinerate. While Incinerate is casting, you may gain more Shards via Immolate, Soul Conduit/Soulsnatcher, or some other similar proc, which then allows you to precast your second Chaos Bolt, but if you don't generate any Shards you have enough time to precast a second Incinerate instead.

So in short, after using Conflagrate to trigger Backdraft, you want to CB -> Incinerate -> CB (Incinerate if you lack shards) against a single target or when using Havoc to cleave.

So I actually disagree but not for the reasons you're mentioning. while you're definitely right that you can precast and you want to space out your chaos bolts, starting off with a chaos bolt might be the only option (looking at you heroic deathglare tentacles) because you need immediate high burst.

However, I would say that just for getting the hang of how your soul shards work and how your soul shard management works, definitely go with CB > incin > CB until you get the flow of being able to make decisions on the fly (such as needing 300k damage right now).

- - - Updated - - -

I see your stats:

Crit: 15.85%
Haste: 33.30%
Mastery: 52.36%

I thought mastery was horrible. Do you have on purpose that much mastery or can't you get rid of it?

So while it seems like I have a lot of mastery, I really don't. My mastery rating is at about 3.3k but my crit raiding is at about 3.7k. Contrary to popular belief, mastery isn't a bad stat. It's very rngesus and it can definitely screw you over, however, its average distribution tends to be favorable more often than not.

I stack enough crit that with my relics my immolate has a 66% critical strike chance. This is a massive boost to shard generation but stacking crit after this point sees pretty heavy diminishing returns (I've already guaranteed crits for 2/3 of my ticks but I can't guarantee my last until 100% crit) so I like mastery to give me some oomf and damage reduction while raiding.

- - - Updated - - -

So considering backdraft:

A. What do you do if you happen to find yourself at 4 shards with conf on (long cd) and no backdraft up?
Would you just CBx2 or would you wait for conf (5 shards) to do Backdraft:CB,Inc,CB ?

B. Often I find during my opener I'll start with 4 shards, and once I did my Backdraft:CB,Inc,CB I still end up having left 2-4 shards.
Do I simply cast an unbackdrafted CB (or 2) again for the eradication buff or wait for backdraft?

A. I hard cast CB if at any point I am at 4 shards to eliminate shard capping. CB even unhasted is a DPS gain over incinerate and capping on shards (and losing a shard proc) is a DPS loss hands down.

B. That's a personal choice. If you're at 4 I recommend hard casting a CB until under 3 shards and then spamming incinerate until you get back up to 4 shards or you have a backdraft proc. There's a great guide stickied at the top of the thread on the priority list of destruction warlocks and it's pretty reliable.

[bio347]

You get a lot of mastery per point, and also start at 24% base. It's basically impossible to get lower than 40-50% mastery unless you've been supremely lucky with drops.

[Turturin the Warlock]

the more haste you have, the worse reverse entropy gets, because the .5 sec cast reduction is reduced by haste as well. I like backdraft/mana tap/CDF for single target personally, they also increase your mobility since two instant casts get added to your rotation (Life Tap and Mana tap)

Typically the idea is to get a CDF and CB or two CB's during backdraft. if you cant do that then the incin x2 , CB combo still works. And you want to prioritize using CDF on cooldown over using it during backdraft.

[discoslice]

I have been picking the Cataclysm/F&B combo for some sweet AoE dps. I figured Cata was a good ability since it applied Immolate to all the trash (Immolate is beefed up by our Artifact traits.) But, are picking both gimping myself too much for the bosses? I notice I do like 200k dps usually with this combo on most heroic 5-mans and EN normal. I also do GrimSac almost all the time.

Can you comment on these talents and which you prefer?

[Brauhm]

the more haste you have, the worse reverse entropy gets, because the .5 sec cast reduction is reduced by haste as well. I like backdraft/mana tap/CDF for single target personally, they also increase your mobility since two instant casts get added to your rotation (Life Tap and Mana tap)

Typically the idea is to get a CDF and CB or two CB's during backdraft. if you cant do that then the incin x2 , CB combo still works. And you want to prioritize using CDF on cooldown over using it during backdraft.

You are 100% correct however it doesn't really start to trade off until you have about 50% haste on your gear. For my fights, I would never use mana tap nor CDF because it messes up the flow of the rotation (for me anyway). But if its working for you, more power to you!

- - - Updated - - -

I have been picking the Cataclysm/F&B combo for some sweet AoE dps. I figured Cata was a good ability since it applied Immolate to all the trash (Immolate is beefed up by our Artifact traits.) But, are picking both gimping myself too much for the bosses? I notice I do like 200k dps usually with this combo on most heroic 5-mans and EN normal. I also do GrimSac almost all the time.

Can you comment on these talents and which you prefer?

Personally I don't like the use of cataclysm unless I have an add fight where I can get at least half the duration of immolate off. By using F&B only, all you sacrifice is the 12% damage after chaos bolt (which is a lot) but you're not sacrificing the mana regen nor the reduced chaos bolt time for single target, allowing you to still get three spells of per backdraft. Also, incinerate with F&B will most likely always be your most damage done anyway, so while cataclysm is good, I personally don't like it.

[Breaque]

Any recommendations with trinket BIS ?

Atm , i think flat stat trinkets aren't near good as the damage proc ones.

[jy03154586]

my quest: if I cast portal before lust or haste proc, does portal get buffed with haste?

[Renal923]

my quest: if I cast portal before lust or haste proc, does portal get buffed with haste?

Yes it does.

Snapshotting doesn't exist for pets (which the portals are considered) so they will dynamically update to the new stats. I prefer to wait till it pops personally, just because I'm like that, but you don't have to.