WoW Forever Protection Warrior — Guide (Beta Test)
viewsAbout the Class
This guide is based on the World of Warcraft: Forever beta and covers gameplay up to level 20. The talents and combat tips are starting recommendations based on the trainers and talents available in the beta. They will be refined as testing continues.
Protection Warrior is the front line: your shield reduces incoming damage while you build threat and keep several enemies on you at once. The specialization suits players who like to tank, take apart dangerous packs, and turn defense into a resource.
The 
Shield Specialization and Master of Defense talents are all about that: blocks, dodges, and parries give Rage back, so there is almost no downtime as Protection.
Victory Rush unlocks at level 20: a free strike after a kill that restores 10% of your maximum Health.
Strengths
- Your shield and Master of Defense turn incoming damage into Rage, so your buttons are almost always available.
Revenge costs next to nothing and generates a lot of threat.
Thunder Clap gets cheaper with the talent and works in Defensive Stance — it is your main button for packs.
Battle Shout boosts the Attack Power of the whole group.- Groups are happy to take you into dungeons: tanks are in short supply early on.
Weaknesses
- Single-target damage is noticeably lower than that of the other specializations, which means solo kills take longer.
- Heavy dependence on your weapon and shield.
- Victory Rush is only available from level 20.
- No way to speed up or get out of combat:
Charge only works out of combat and only in Battle Stance. - At low levels, Rage builds slowly, especially at the start of a fight.
Stat Priority
- 1Weapon Damage
- 2Hit
- 3Strength
- 4Agility
- 5Armor
- 6Stamina
- 7Critical Strike
Talents
Talent Notes
All 11 points go into the Protection talent tree and are built around Rage generation.
- Shield Specialization 5/5 — increases your block chance, and the blocks themselves grant extra Rage. You take it first and foremost for the Rage.
Improved Thunder Clap 3/3 — reduces the cost of Thunder Clap. It now works in Defensive Stance as well, so the cheaper version is great for packs in dungeons.
Improved Bloodrage 2/2 — more Rage from Bloodrage. At low levels, Rage runs short right at the start of a fight, and this talent fills that gap.- Master of Defense 1/2 — a 50% chance to gain 5 Rage when you dodge or parry with a shield equipped. Together with Shield Specialization, it provides a steady flow of Rage.
Ability Priority
- Keep Battle Shout active at all times, and use Bloodrage whenever it is available, ideally between fights
- Open with Charge: it only works out of combat and only in Battle Stance, so switch back to Defensive Stance right after the charge
Demoralizing Shout on non-casting enemies reduces their damage and saves you Health between fights- Victory Rush after a kill — the effect lasts 20 seconds, so don't wait
- Revenge — only after a block, dodge, or parry. It costs little and generates a lot of threat, so press it whenever it is available
Sunder Armor once or twice at the start of the fight. Against multiple targets, spread the stacks evenly so you hold threat on all of them
Don't spend Rage on finishing blows: if the enemy is almost dead, let your auto-attack finish the job and save your Rage for the next fight.
Fighting Multiple Enemies
Thunder Clap with the talent is your main tool for picking up a whole pack. 
Cleave hits a second nearby target, but it replaces your auto-attack and generates no Rage. Demoralizing Shout reduces incoming damage when you have several enemies on you at once. All of this costs Rage, so use these as needed rather than back to back.
Important Abilities
Shield Block and 
Disarm
Stances
Your stance determines which abilities are available to you and grants its own bonus. You can switch stances mid-combat, but all of your Rage is lost when you do — until you learn 
Tactical Mastery and strengthen it with the Improved Tactical Mastery talent.
Battle Stance — the main stance for questing and damage: Charge and 
Overpower only work in it.
Defensive Stance — unlocked after the class quest at level 10. Reduces damage taken and dealt by 10%, increases threat by 30%, and gives access to Shield Block and Disarm.
Best in Slot (BiS)
There is no BiS list for the beta yet. Forever has completely reworked dungeon loot and item stats, so Classic gear lists don't apply, and specific level 20 items will appear here once their sources are known. The best gear is expected to drop in dungeons and be crafted through professions, primarily Blacksmithing.
Stat allocation works differently too: sometimes an uncommon item turns out stronger than a rarer one. Compare items as a whole, not by quality and level.
For now, follow one simple rule: a shield and a one-handed weapon are your main set, but keep a two-handed weapon on hand for fights where damage matters more than defense.
Enchants, Gems, Consumables
ConsumablesCampfire Bonuses
Forever introduces a camp system: a campfire grants certain bonuses to everyone nearby. They don't stack with their player-cast counterparts, and in the open world they are weaker than the raid versions. The ones a Warrior benefits from:
Also worth mentioning is the Camp Tent from Leatherworking: it grants a bit of Rested experience, which speeds up leveling slightly.
Best Race
- Escape Artist removes slow effects and briefly grants immunity to new immobilizing effects — useful in both PvP and dungeons.
- Eureka! increases the damage of your next three abilities by 10% and reduces their Rage cost by 40%, so it works as an extra damage cooldown.
- Expansive Mind increases your maximum Rage by 5%.
- Engineering Specialization makes engineering devices more reliable — especially valuable if you pick up this profession.
- Blood Fury increases Attack Power by 10% for 15 seconds: a strong damage cooldown while leveling.
- Axe Specialization grants 1% Critical Strike chance with axes, so axes are worth more to an Orc than other weapons.
- Hardiness reduces the duration of stuns by 20%.
- Shatter Curse removes curses, briefly grants immunity to them, and reduces magic damage taken.
Best Professions
The best combo while leveling: Mining supplies Blacksmithing with ore, and Blacksmithing fills empty slots with weapons and armor. Don't chase every recipe — compare the result with what you are already wearing, and spend materials only on real upgrades.
A strong alternative, especially for a Gnome with their racial specialization. Once Blacksmithing has given you the items you need, you can replace it with Engineering. Don't drop Mining too early, though: first gather enough ore to level both professions.
Cooking gives you your own food and saves gold, and any food that grants a buff now also gives 5% more experience. Fishing pairs with it and supplies the ingredients.
Author
Fouren
Fouren has been playing World of Warcraft for over 15 years. He is an active player with 12 Cutting Edge achievements under his belt, and has reached the top 1% and 0.1% multiple times on various classes. His main classes are healers, particularly Holy Paladin.
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