also, underperforming by what metric? In low level content BM is the best spec, period. BM usually sims very poorly but because you can actually execute it to at least 70% efficiency it tends to dominate when other people are struggling to eke out 50% of their theoretical performance.
If people thought that the ultimate casual spec, reaching as far back as vanilla, would be gutted in the way SV was, you're high.
On topic though, SV has been a dot heavy spec for its last ranged iterations and I don't think you can just bandage marks to be SV. Old explosive, trap, sting was a fairly different damage profile and I do wish it would make a return, but if it doesn't, it's whatever... I no longer main hunter so idc tbh.
Melee SV as of BFA though, kinda has taken up its own identity and whilst I would vastly prefer having MoP/WoD SV, I would miss BFA/SL/DF SV if it were gone.
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i mean, no not really, how does surviving = tank? Surviving is laying down in a corner and pretending to be dead
there are no cloth tanks either, armour class means absolutely nothing, never did.