Why should I play this class. . .Priest?

For most people (I will admit, me included) the first word you think of when the word Priest is mentioned is heals. Since the beginning of Wow, priests have been the premium healing class in the game. That will always be what they are known for, but blizzard has done a good job evolving them into more solo-friendly characters.

Solo:
Strengths: Depends on spec. Priests obviously have solid self-healing abilities and with shield and inner fire (do yourself a favor if you're soloing, macro a self-only shield), they have a decent amount of durability relative to other casters. If specced into shadow, they can deal impressive single target damage with little downtime. Shadow priests function very similarly to affliction warlocks.

Weaknesses: Multiple mobs are a major problem. Priests lack any real AOE damage and they don't have the variety of DoTs to handle groups like warlocks. Also, like all casters, they are inherently squishy and since most priests will stack +int, +spirit and +spellpower, this weakness is magnified.

Group:
Strengths: Depends on spec. Priests generally are either caster DPS or Healing. Shadow priests bring a lot to groups from a mana regeneration standpoint. If specc'd into Holy they offer extemely solid single target and group heals.

Weaknesses: While priests in both shadow and Discipline are capadble of healing, a lot of players (myself included) refuse to run with "off spec" healers. This is not as much from a mechanical lack of healing ability (unless they're a total n00b and try to heal in shadowform), but more an experience standpoint. Generally, players without experience healing lack skill in it, so having abilities to heal with no skill in their use is almost as bad as not having abilities. This is not to say shadow priests are incapable of healing, but from an armory check, how can someone know?

PvP:
Strengths: Depends on their spec. Holy and Discpline priests should avoid doing anything other than healing in PvP. Shadow priests can be difficult for casters and melee alike due to solid single target DPS and mana drain abilities. Also priests have both mind control and fear which can be useful tools in PvP.

Weaknesses: See above. Shadow priests have tools for PvP, other specs really don't.

Specs:
Holy: If you want to heal instances, holy is the way to go. It is what it says it is, heavy on PvE healing, not so great at anything else. Although priests do get a number of cool Holy damage spells, this line doesn't do much for them so it will be harder to level with than the other 2.

Discipline: Discipline is a good middle ground between Holy and Shadow. It gives a good balance between soloing and healing. Discipline mainly focuses on increasing stats and efficiency. This is also a very commong secondary spec for remaining talent points.

Shadow: Shadow is the main choice for soloing and caster DPS focusing priests. As I said previously, shadow is very similar to affliction warlocks. Shadow gives access to more powerful DoTs and mana and health draining along the tree. It is capable of very respectable single target DPS, however it lacks the AOE abilities of the other caster classes.

Most people think of priests as walking healbots, which isnt necessarily the case. All priests can heal to an extent, and if that's your goal, priest is a good class choice. If you are looking for a DPS class with some utility and off-healing abilities, it is harder to find better than shadow priest. However, if you mainly want to DPS, there are other classes that offer a better mix of abilities.

Why should I play this class. . .Mage?

Swords and armor not for you? Rather blast your opponents from afar or maybe make them look ridiculous by turning them into cutesie little critters? Look no further, the mage is for you. Mages have the best overall selection of AOE damage in the game and also benefit from a selection of unrivaled utility. They are a solid choice for PvE, PvP, and public transit.

Solo:
Strengths: Damage. Mages have a large variety of damage effects, preferrence will depend on spec. Mages also have a wide variety of kiting abilities, giving the mage time to put some distance between themselves and mobs. Also, mages are one of the strongest AOE grinding classes in the game. One other solo benefit of the mage is the ability to quickly travel anywhere a teleport has been learned. This makes travel between areas extremely fast and convenient and is something no other class can do.

Weaknesses: Durability and down time. Mages have two resources that are of pretty limited supply: health and mana. Unfortunately, they are highly dependant on casting so the mana will be used up fairly quickly. Also, since they are incapable of wearing any but the weakest armor, although talents later in the game can help with absorption, any damage they take will eat into their health pool fairly quickly. This causes them to have a lot of downtime between mobs, normally eating and drinking.

Group:
Strengths: Damage and utility. Sheep (or penguin if you picked up the glyph) is one of the best CC abilities in the game and is welcome in any group setting. Mages are also one of the few classes that can remove curses. And everyone loves being ported out of an instance instead of having to burn their hearthstone. Oh, and it goes without saying they have powerful single target and AOE damage.

Weaknesses: Mana dependancy. Although there are talents to make them more efficient, it is a constant balancing act for the mage to keep up the most efficient damage for the situation.

PvP:
Strengths: Kiting and burst damage. There are multiple PvP mage builds which basically boil down to almost instant death. If a mage sees you at range before you see them, there's a very good chance you're dead before you realize it. Also, mages have many tools to keep melee classes from getting to them through their many kiting abilities.

Weaknesses: Durability. The counter point to a mge being able to one shot most other classes is that they themselves are one of the easiest classes to one shot kill in the game due to low armor and a general lower priority on stamina stacking. One you have gotten into melee range mages really have little defense to a melee assault.

Specs:
Arcane: This tree focuses on efficiency and adds some powerful utility to the mage's arsenal. It is a very good choice as a primary spec or secondary. Most casters will at least try to get the ability to clearcast as there is no spell as efficient as a free spell. CriticalQQ has recently run a blog about Arcane as a powerful PvP spec, I will bow to his superior theorycrafting abilities for specifics on that one.

Fire: If you ever played the original Warcraft (I'm talking orcs and humans, not vanilla Wow), the dwarf said "I love blowing things up!" Well, switch the dwarf to a gnome, put him in some robes and thats the fire mage. Nukes, both single target and AOE are what this spec is about. If you are getting one shotted, it was probably a fire mage, or someone at least specced into fire.

Frost: If fire is all about damage, frost is all about effects. Extra kiting, freezing opponents in place, adding critical strike chance to frozen opponents, faster cooldowns on kiting abilities, thats what the frost tree specializes in. If you are planning on soloing at all, frost is a very solid choice.

The mage class is not without faults. If you don't know what you're doing it is very easy to get overwhelmed, die a lot, and give up on the class. It is not a class for the novice warcraft player. Still, for those who can level one, they posess almost un-rivaled utility and power. Mages have some truly unique abilities and a good mage can always find a spot in an instance run or raid group. And, if all that doesnt appeal to you, you can always be a Wow travel agent and open portals for people for a fee.

Why should I play this class. . .Warrior?

I have a love/hate relationship with the warrior class. On one hand, they are capable of decent damage, can take punishment and are generally fun to play. On the other hand, more than any other class they are incredibly gear and consumable dependant be it bandages, potions or food. Can a class be both frustrating and rewarding at the same time?



Solo:

Strengths: Warriors have a number of abilities for dealing damage (duh, they're warriors, right?), and they can use any weapon under the sun one-handed or two handed. Specced correctly they are capable of respectable melee damage and their plate armor gives them strong defense. They also have unique abilities to close distance and finish fights quickly.



Weaknesses: Consumable dependant. It is very easy to get overwealmed because although warriors can deal damage effectively to multiple mobs, they can't self heal so it becomes a battle of attrition. A poorly prepared warrior will eventually lose, repeatedly. Potions, bandages and food are must haves. Another facet of this is downtime. Warriors have a period after fights where they have to eat, bandage, etc and this leads to frequent, substantial downtime.



Group:

Strengths: Depends on spec. They are premium tanks with many varied abilities, strong aggro management perfectly suited for main or off-tanking.



Weaknesses: DPS warriors are not a strong choice for groups being inferior to deathknights and rogues in the melee DPS category. They lack crowd control abilties in general, although they have some abilities to stop fleeing mobs and casters, they are comparatively weak in this area. In summary, if you have a non-tank warrior in the group, they're a weakness. Protection warriors suffer from the sole weakness of having to build up rage to generate threat, so fights have to open slightly slower to allowe them to build up threat.

PvP:

Strengths: Depends on spec. DPS warriors can generate excellent burst damage. They also have good intercepts and abilities to break fear. They have tools at their disposal to counter casters and melee opponents, they are a strong PvP class.

Weaknesses: Although they do have good abilities to close distance, their abilities lack range as a whole and their damage dealing is melee based so they are generally ineffective at range. Also, although they have great capabilities for burst damage, much of this relies on rage which is not generally available immediately. Protection warriors, although tough to kill, are a PvE spec and should not be used in PvP.

Specs:

Protection: This is the tanking tree. It is one of the most useful and well rounded tanking trees in the game. It offers solid mitigation, a multitude of options for pulling aggro, and due to recent patches, usefulness in AOE situations. Protections warriors are extremely useful as either main or off tanks due to their mechanics.

Fury: This warrior tree revolves around critical strikes, both giving and receiving. It has abilities to regain health and increase damage. This is also mainly the tree which specializes in dual wielding. The ending talent in this tree allows the use of a two handed weapon in each hand.

Arms: This tree has numerous abilites generally involving the use of a single two-handed weapon. It allows easier and more efficient use of some of the warriors' main countering abilities and is good against solo or group mobs.

Warriors are really a mixed bag. It is possible to get solid DPS from them at the expense of downtime, although the DPS they put out is generally not as solid as the caster classes, and since they're taking damage generally, they are requiring more down time. I can't reccomend a warrior for leveling unless you want to tank. DPS warriors are frustrating to level and even more frustrating to try to find groups with. Bottom line, they make some of the best tanks in the game, always have since Wow was released. They are a passable option in PvP. If you are looking for more than that, look elsewhere.

Why should I play this class. . .Warlock?

The Warlock. Probably one of the most hotly contested classes since the inception of Warcraft, for the majority of the time the game has been in existance, they have been called overpowered. They are. They are one of the few classes in Warcraft with few weaknesses, although unlike the Paladin, they are restricted to one role only. And they also benefit from a free mount.

Solo:
Strengths: The Warlock has a number of strengths. First of all, they are one of only three classes to employ a pet, which if used correctly allows the user plenty of time to get prepared while the pet takes damage. They offer a number of abilities which reduce downtime being able to drain both health and mana, and can convert their own health into mana. They have multiple fear abilities if situations get too difficult. Lastly they have the ability to store their souls and basically get a free resurrection. The Warlock is undoubtedly one of the most powerful classes in the game in solo play.

Weaknesses: Looking for solo weaknesses in the warlock is like looking for blemishes on a supermodel. They're there, but they're hard to find. They can't AOE as well as a mage and multiple mob pulls could become a problem. They are casters so are restricted to cloth armor and although they normally have the highest stamina of any caster, are squishy compared to the non caster classes.

Group:
Strengths: Soul stone is great for making sure the caster can rez if the group gets killed. They have strong sustained damage and AOE abilities. They also have very strong CC abilities, depending on the mobs being faced and the pet the Warlock is employing.

Weaknesses: Again, few to speak of. Fear if used at inappropriate times can be a nightmare for groups. Can pull aggro if it is not managed effectively. CC may not be usable at all times, depending on mob types.

PvP:
Strengths: DoT, DoT, DoT, DoT, Fear, repeat. It sucks, its cheap, anyone who's ever pvp'd has been hit by it, but it is effective. Oh, and the succubus can charm you. And they have an instant fear that ALSO drains life. Yeah, they're still overpowered in pvp.

Weaknesses: Depending on spec, they lack burst damage. They also are cloth wearers and a few good hits will take them out. If you can resist their fear effects, you can lay the hurt on them.

Specs:
Affliction: This is the main PvP spec for Warlocks. It increases abilities to apply DoTs on targets and drain health. This gives affliction buids very little downtime as they can convert health to mana, then drain the health from mobs (this is what is commonly referred to as "drain tanking"). This build also offers buffs to the already powerful seed of corruption, one of the more powerful AOE spells in the game if used correctly.

Demonology: Strong pets = strong warlock. This spec increases the effectiveness of the warlock's pets. It also offers a unique summon: the felguard. The felguard is like having a DPS warrior duoing with the warlock, except it is under control of the warlock and never rolls for loot. The only drawback of this line is the 51 point talent. Although turning into a demon is cool in concept, the power has a lot of weaknesses and another summon (*cough* Doomguard *cough*) would have been more appropriate.

Destruction: sometimes, you just want to blow sh*t up. For those times, spec destro! Destro locks produce excellent DPS, being slightly more bursty than the other warlock varieties. It is what it is, pure destructive spell damage. Its the "if brute force doesnt work, you're just not using enough" theory of casting. The drawback of this line is that it suffers from slightly more down time than the other two lines.

If you ever thought "I really have no desire to heal or tank, I just want to level and PvP" the warlock is a very solid choice. They are the most durable casters in the game, produce solid DPS in any spec and offer very solid utility in solo PvE, group PvE, and PvP.

Why should I play this class. . .Paladin??

A class that is near and dear to my heart, the first class I ever played in world of Warcraft, and the class that I have the most alts of: the Paladin. Paladins are the melee/healer class of Wow. They can wear the heaviest armor in the game and have considerable talents for both healing and melee burst damage. They are also one the classes in Wow that receive a free mount (the others being warlock, death knight, and somewhat the druid).

Solo:
Strengths: The paladin's biggest strength is survivability. Between plate armor and their ability to heal, paladins have arguably the most survivability of any class in the game. They also offer a "bubble" which makes them immune to damage for a period of time and only serves to increase their already considerable survivability. Specced correctly (there are a variety of ways to do this), they are also one of the most effective AOE grinding classes in tha game. This can be a very fast and efficient way to either get drops (marks, motes, whatever) or experience.

Weaknesses: the paladin has two major weaknesses: range and speed of killing. The paladin has very limited capability to pull from range or attack ranged mobs. Also, the speed and efficiency killing single mobs is severely lacking. AOE grinding improves this as generally three mobs can be killed in approximately the same time it takes to kill one. Still, single mobs will be frustrating, and/or inefficient compared to other classes.

Group:
Strengths: Paladins can be among the most valuable members in any group depending on their spec. They are the best multi-mob tank in the game, providing solid aggro generation to multiple mobs with solid mitigation. They can also be powerful single target healers with splash healing to other group members via talents and/or inscriptions. Specced for DPS they are capable of solid burst damage. They also have a wide variety of buffs to distribute which are helpful to everyone in the group

Weaknesses: Specced as holy their AOE healing is lacking. They lack mana regeneration to general aggro if they are not being directly attacked (for an off-tank role). They must be in melee range to DPS effectively. They are also relatively weak in crowd control abilities (they have a stun ability, but it is on a cooldown and may not be available when necessary).

PvP:
Strengths: Again, survivability. Given their heavy armor, healing and mitigation abilities, paladins can be a very frustrating kill. They also can have strong damage reflection abilities if protection specc'd so warriors will have a tough time taking them down.

Weaknesses: Very weak against ranged damage. No ranged attack abilities to speak of, no ability to slow down or stop fleeing opponents apart from stun. Very weak against fear and CC abilities. Unfortunately for most classes in the game, paladins are a big target and although frustrating, an easy kill. The lone exception is full retribution whose burst damage makes them dangerous.

Specs:
Protection: This is the Paladin tanking spec. It offers considerable buffs to stamina and armor. It also allows the paladin to be aomng the best AOE grinders in the game. From a solo or group PvE standpoint this is a very strong choice whose only weaknesses are in PvP and lack of burst damage.

Holy: This is a powerful single target healing spec. This spec also allows for some burst damage at the cost of efficiency and AOE grinding although not as effectively as protection. This is a very good spec for group PvE, given the current state of Wow, healers are in extremely high demand. Also fairly weak in PvP outside of Arena.

Retribution: Powerful burst DPS, this spec removes the slow killing weakness of the other paladin specs at the cost of true healing and tanking ability. This spec also inscreases the classes already present stun ability. While this class is capable of generating considerable aggro to fill a tanking role in an emergency, it is not a good selection as either a tank or healer.

Summary:
The paladin is one of the true hybrid classes in Wow able to fill tank, healer, or DPS roles capably. If you are looking for a class to play that can contribute to a group or solo grind, this is a great class. Beware PvP servers though as the main weakness of this class is in PvP.