Some of you may have seen the Skillcapped video on youtube where they made a tier list for solo pvp (bgs, duels, wpvp). It seemed to get quite positive feedback, and my impression is that many people are curious about this, as there isnt really much reliable info on this topic. While the Skillcapped video has a lot of good insight and many valid points, their ranking is quite heavily influenced by the whole 1vX factor, as they also take duels and wpvp into account.
As someone who has done a lot of random bgs, and also done arena on a fairly high level for a long time, I feel like Im in a good position to offer some more insights particularly with bgs in mind, and hopefully help you out if you’re searching for that new class/spec to enjoy.
First of all its very important to understand the fundamentals of how pvp works in different scales. For those of you who have done the southshore brawl, it should come as no surprise that a few specs stand out in mass scale pvp, in particular moonkins, and depending on expansion/season: mm hunter/mage/warlock. In other words: ranged classes thrive in big scale pvp. On the other side of the spectrum is ofc 1v1 and 2v2, where for the most part melee classes do better, with some exceptions.
The dynamics of how the fights differ in scale greatly impacts how well your spec will perform. And while bgs obviously are a lot more than teamfights, the first clash of the two teams will more often than not dictate how the game plays out. Which is why I’ll rate specs that greatly impact team fights higher than those who mostly stand out in 1v1 situations.
Other things to keep in mind: I have tried to use the current state of the game as a basis, while also reflecting the general trends throughout the course of wows history. Some outliers that appear way over the top atm (such as sub rogues) are most likely temporary cases and will hopefully be fixed soon. The reason why specs like sub, ret and mm feel out of line atm is the extremely fast pace. While these specs will still hopefully be viable after the pace slows down a bit, I wanna emphasize that they are generally not top tier bg specs and probably will suffer a tiny bit once we get further into the expansion. I have marked some specs with * indicating that they at this very moment would be in a tier or two above, but that I think they will eventually end up in the tier I’ve put them in.
Damage dealers
-
Tier 1
Warlock, moonkin, dk -
Tier 2
Warrior, mage, spriest, ele, dh -
Tier 3
Assa, sub*, bm/surv, mm*, enh, ret* -
Tier 4
Feral, ww*, outlaw
1 - Warlock and moonkin are unique in the sense that they bring both the highest overall dmg and are not very susceptible to interrupts. Top dogs in team fights. Locks are quite capable 1v1, and moonkins can in many cases get away from unfavourable encounters if needed. DK is an excellent well-rounded class that does good dmg in teamfights, has great survivability, excells 1v1, and is the best class for killing healers (except current sub rogues). Another thing that drastically changes the experience of playing a melee in bgs is your grip, rather than charge/leap. The benefit of getting your enemy into your group rather than the opposite is amazing. Moonkins mass root–>beam–>vortex with deep roots pvp talent is a gamebreaker in teamfights. And same with dks gripping enemy healers into stun abom and a billion interrupts. All these specs are quite self-sufficient.
2 - These specs can generally contribute close to the above specs in big fights, but require healers to a much greater extent and have more explicit weaknesses. While spriest can do crazy dmg when left unchecked, they’re rendered mostly useless if tunneled by a few melee. Mage and ele also suffer a bit from being susceptible to interrupts, although not as much. Their dmg potential is lower overall, but they offer some nice utility and are quite strong 1v1. Warrior with its recent buffs are much better than they used to be, and can truly slaughter stuff vanilla-style with a few healers around, but lack in 1vX situations as they are not very self-sufficient. DH was a clear tier 1 throughout BfA, but will most likely not be on the same level anytime soon (/pray!). They generally deal very good dmg and excell in 1vX situations. The leech healing makes them very self-sufficient, but the lack of perma evasion is surely a great setback. Its hard to say at this point just how good they will be.
3 - Bm and surv hunters offer mediocre dmg, but have the great benefit of not being susceptible to interrupts at all and being pretty mobile. They’re decent picks if you’re a casual player who play solo and wanna have something that doesnt feel too frustrating or inconvenient to play. They’re both alright in 1v1 situations, and deal with defending nodes exceptionally well. Btw: If you play surv hunter I strongly recommend going hydras bite and chakrams and mostly deal dmg from range! MM can deal serious dmg, and currently they dont even struggle as much 1vX. They are, however, usually sitting ducks if caught, and only thrive when left alone at max range. Sub rogue is a very tough one to call. They are very strong atm, to the point of absurdity 1vX. But they tend to suffer in big scale fights once their cds and opener momentum are gone. Its a great spec if you like defending nodes or going on solo missions, but generally not a good pick if you wanna make a difference in the big picture. Ret is a decent allround spec with good dmg and healing, but suffers greatly from 0 disruption and mobility. Same goes for enh, they have quite alright dmg potential, but are quite squishy and a melee class with limited mobility and defensives.
4 - These specs rely on being in melee to deal dmg, and their overall dmg is mediocre (exception: ww atm). Coupled with being quite squishy, these specs are probably the least enjoyable to play overall in bgs. That being said they are quite capable 1v1, and definitely have some potential in the hands of good players.
Healers
- Tier 1
Disc priest - Tier 2
Rdruid, rsham - Tier 3
Hpala, mw, hpriest
The gap between the healer tiers is a lot smaller than for the dps, so it may look somewhat misleading.
1 - Disc is in a special place because of its ability to heal both itself and others while being zerged. Your three spell schools, instant casts, defensive cds and offensive capabilities makes it a very solid pick for carrying random bgs. The only major drawback is mana inefficiency.
2 - While these healers can also survive reasonably well, they do so at the cost of not healing others while surviving (bear/ghost wolf) - unlike disc priests. On the flipside they have much better mana and mobility.
3 - These healers are very susceptible to interrupts and are generally easy to zerg down. However, if your team is competent and you dont have to soak every interrupt there is, they all have very solid throughput and utility.
Its hard to take into account how class/spec stacking can impact the rankings. Some specs (like locks and dks) can make up the entire bg and yet be extremely effective, while others (like rogue) can be extremely valuable if you have only one in your team, but close to useless beyond that.
I am a bit uncertain in regards to the healer standings for shadowlands, so any feedback is greatly appreciated!