Best class you should pick in Classic WoW?

You will play Classic WoW but you don't know which class you should pick? Here is our guide to help you find the best class for you for PVP & PVE.

Which class should you play in Classic WoW?

Posté le 18/01/2021 by Kipik_WiC
 121,638  70  1  Favorites

Here is a guide to help you choose the best class for you to have fun with in Classic WoW. You will find the pros & cons of each class for Leveling, PVE and PVP.


Warrior

A quick tour of the Warrior, a very important class in World of Warcraft. Because of the lack of Spirit on their equipment, their leveling is relatively slow, and they’re likely to spend some time running back to their corpse. In dungeons, warriors are the best at tanking groups of mobs in WoW Classic.

You won’t have any trouble finding partners up to level 60 if you are properly geared. Once level 60 is reached, you will be preferred to other classes for raids if you’re using the Protection tree.

If you succeed in becoming your guild’s main tank, you will be a cornerstone of your group.

Warrior isn’t the best class for world pvp, especially if you’re alone. You will have to be very attentive to your environment. On the other hand, with a healbot by your side, you will be able to shine and win multiple fights in a row!


warrior guide leveling wow classic

Warrior’s strengths:

  • Best DPS class in vanilla (Fury for PvE and Arms for PvP)
  • Best tanking class
  • No mana, so you can kill mobs with no downtime with good gear
  • Very powerful in a group PVP setting with a pocket healer.
  • Easy to find dungeons as a tank
  • Can be rich if you are blacksmithing and find the Arcanite reaper recipe.
  • You can enjoy all the 3 specs as warrior
  • Good duo leveling class

Warrior's weaknesses

  • Very hard to level 1-60, one of the slowest classes but see our leveling warrior guide to be faster.
  • Most gear depends on your class in WoW.
  • Overpopulated class, so a lot of competition for gear and finding a good spot in a guild / dungeon.
  • Having to collect multiple sets (PvP gear, tank gear, PvE dps gear, resistance gear)
  • Repairing plate gear is also very expensive
Check out our guide for warrior leveling 1-60
warrior

Hunter

The hunter is the best leveling class in the game. With your pet who tanks for you, you can easily kill multiple mobs in a row unlike other classes that have to spend more time regening. Moreover, the hunter does not depend on his gear to be effective, green weapons from vendors are good enough for leveling.

In raids, the hunter is not the leading class in terms of dps, he is outperformed by warriors, mages, rogues, warlocks who do significantly higher dps.

As far as PvP is concerned, hunters are OK because they have a lot of control, can continually attack from far away and excel at capturing and recovering the flag in Warsong.

wow classic hunter

Pros:

  • The best class for leveling solo and speedrunning 1-60 (world record 4 days and 20h) – Check out our hunter  leveling guide 1-60
  • Thanks to your pet, you can go from mob to mob quickly and kill elite targets easily.
  • Epic hunter quest that adds challenge to the class.
  • T2 looks epic.
  • Taming a pet is fun and adds more depth to the class.
  • Kiting gameplay is really cool in solo PVE and PVP.

Cons:

  • One of the worst pure DPS classes after the nerf at the end of vanilla.
  • High skill cap ceiling if you want to be competitive in PVE or PVP.
Read our hunter leveling guide 1-60
wow classic hunter

Rogue

Rogue will be THE best class for all the WORLD PVP lovers. Being stealthed and starting the fight first is the main strength of the rogue in WoW Classic.

Indeed, cloth classes will be your favorite targets, such as mages / warlocks / priests, who barely survive a surprise attack by a well-equipped rogue.

In PVE, it is a T1 DPS class, but sadly rogue are an extremely popular class in Classic WoW so it can be tricky to get a spot in raids/groups.

Finally, although rogue is a very powerful class in Classic WoW, it is also very dependent on gear, and especially weapons to be effective.

wow classic rogue

Pros:

  • Best class for 1v1 world pvp (stealth for choosing when to start the fight)
  • 2nd best DPS class in PVE
  • Stealth is the best spell in the game.
  • Skip all the mobs for quick questing
  • Very fun to play.
  • 3 different and very good specs.
  • Undead rogue is the way to go for PVP with the racial skill for breaking fear

Cons:

  • A little bit squishy when solo leveling or when you don’t start the fight in PVP
  • Like warrior, it’s an overpopulated class so a lot of competition for gear and spots in groups.
  • High skill celling, hard to master.
Read our rogue leveling guide 1-60
wow classic rogue

Priest

At level 60, the priest is the best of all healers: he has a powerful shield and excellent single-target healing, you will always have a place in any dungeon or raid by playing this class.

In PVP, discipline and holy are quite squishy and lack mobility, but the best spec is shadow, because it can inflict great damage on the enemy. In addition, the priest also has good control such as fear / mind control and mana burn which are perfect for the PvP.

For leveling, shadow spec is the most effective. All you have to do is use a spell and finish the enemies with your wand and have a good farming cycle without stopping to regen your mana.

wow classic priest

Pros:

  • Best and most versatile healer in the game
  • Guaranteed spot in any group / raid.
  • Priest is the best teammate anyone can imagine, you’ll have a lot of friends!
  • Very interesting class to play with across the board healing ability and high skill celling
  • Shadow priest does serious damage in PVP with a lot of fun tools to enhance your gameplay (fear, mana burn, mind control etc..)
  • Shadow priest is extremely efficient for leveling.
  • Quest class for an awesome staff

Cons:

  • Annoying to level until shadow form, a lot of respeccing during your 1-60 (see the guide here)
  • Shadow priest could be difficult to gear because it’s hard to find a place in raids (people prefer mages / warlocks)
Read our priest leveling guide 1-60
wow classic priest

Mage

The mage is a very versatile class in WoW Classic. Effective during leveling thanks to its ability to AOE and generate its own food / drink, it will be easy to reach lvl 60 quickly.

Regarding PVE, the mage is the best Ranged DPS, especially once AQ40 / Naxx opens because mages will be able to spec FIRE.

In PVP, the mage has an arsenal of extraordinary skills which allows him to achieve amazing moves such as 1vs3, thanks to their sheep, frost nova and various slowdowns. A mage who mastered his class will be deadly in Wold PVP and Battlegrounds.

wow classic mage

Pros:

  • Great class for a quick leveling (Single target or aoe leveling, see our guide)
  • Gear Independent
  • Highly Engaging Dynamic Gameplay
  • Free Consumables (Food / Water / Mana Pots)
  • Fantastic Group Utility
  • Strong in Open World PvP
  • Get good tips from people for trading food / water / portal
  • All 3 spec are viable so you won’t get bored
  • Good gold maker (Aoe farming in elite zones / raids, etc…)

Cons:

  • Slow Leveling 1-20
  • Frost spec mandatory during the first 2 stages of Classic because of fire-immune enemies.
  • No Self-Healing
  • Very Squishy in PVE / PVP
  • A lot of Downtime Drinking during the leveling.
Read our mage leveling guide 1-60
wow classic mage

Warlock

The Warlock’s performance (like the hunter) during the 1-60 leveling phase is surely one of the most impressive. Easy and fast, the warlock shines in solo PvE.

In lvl 60 dungeons / raids, it is a real support that brings damage and control. The Healthstone and the imp can bring important bonuses in complicated situations.

Regarding PvP, the warlock is also very comfortable out of "instanced" fights. In future phases, when Blizzard will set up the BGs, hide behind a melee frontline and you can control the opponents with the Fear spell while your DoTs do the rest, feels damn good.

classic wow warlock

Pros:

  • Great class for leveling solo thanks to your pet (like hunter)
  • Bring a lot of utility in groups / raids with all your dots / buffs.
  • Free mount at lvl 40 and another one at lvl 60 thanks to the class quest.
  • Summoning players to get in dungeon faster.
  • You have your own free healing pots.
  • Really good duo leveling with a healer because you can trade your health into mana (life tap skill)

Cons:

  • Great in PVE but not the best.
  • Great in PVP but not the best…
  • Can be hard in PVP if you are alliance and you fight undeads with “Fear Immunity”.
Read our warlock leveling guide 1-60
wow classic warlock

Druid

Second on the podium for leveling speed 1-60, the druid is indeed a leveling machine thanks to the different animal forms. He is able to heal, tank and DPS making it a hybrid character that can do anything. Very useful when you want to do some dungeons.

His ability to resurrect in combat is unique and makes it a class to pamper in raids like Molten Core or Zul'Gurub.

Good in instanced PvP, the druid defends himself well in battlegrounds but remains squishy depending on the spec that he is using during WORLD PvP sessions. He will tend to survive thanks to his ability to changeform but will not necessarily kill his attackers.

wow classic druid

Pros:

  • Least played class in vanilla, so if you love this class, you’ll get all the gear.
  • Resto is the only good way to play a druid in PVE and you’ll always find a place in raid.
  • Best PVP healer (Healing over time, bear form to tank, etc..)
  • Unique ability in PVE with “Battle rez” that can save a raid and innervate.
  • Best flag carrier in WSG.
  • Early travel form to level faster.
  • Good leveling skill when you hit 20 as feral.

Cons:

  • Balance and Feral druid are kind of useless (much worse than other classes)
  • Hard leveling until you hit lvl 20, then you can spec feral and be a cat
Read our druid leveling guide 1-60
wow classic druid

Shaman

The shaman is an excellent healer, he is the only class to have an AOE heal. He is in great demand for these totems that give a big advantage both in dungeons and raids.

Enhancement is the most used spec for PvP, mainly because of "Windfury" which can lead you to potentially oneshotting an enemy if you are lucky. A second PvP spec is a hybrid elemental / restoration that gives you significant DPS ability, while still being a healer support for the team. However, the weakness of the PvP shaman is that he does not have mass crowd control unlike mages and warlocks, nor does he have mobility to escape from enemies.

The shaman is not the best class for leveling, but becomes interesting from level 20 thanks to "Ghost wolf" which allows him to increase his movement speed by 40% with a casting time of only 1 second if you have the right talents. It will allow you to complete your quests faster and you will avoid unnecessary deaths when you are in danger.

wow classic shaman

Pros:

  • One of the most wanted healer in PVE thanks to the amazing totems. (Windfury especially)
  • One of the only classes with AOE healing.
  • High Burst Damage in Elem and Enhancement spec.
  • You have a unique skill at Level 20 : Ghost ( 40% movement speed ) to improve leveling speed.
  • Amazing Group Utility
  • Can Tank / DPS / Heal
  • Strong Self Healing

Cons:

  • Like all hybrid class in Vanilla, Healing is the only viable PVE spec.
  • Constant Mana Management
  • Struggles vs. Multiple Targets
  • Not really good at leveling
Read our shaman leveling guide 1-60
wow classic shaman

Paladin

The paladin is a hybrid class and like all hybrid classes in Classic WoW, they are "average" in every aspect. The paladin's main problem right now is his leveling speed which is one of the worst of any class.

However the paladin will shine in PVE where his buffs will be very valuable for a group / raid. Healing spec will be the way to go in PVE if you want to find a spot in a group.

For PVP, the paladin is OK in Healing spec or RET spec, with a good equipment you can have fun and kick ass!

wow classic paladin

Pros:

  • Best single target healer in PVE and PVP (as good as a priest) once you are geared.
  • Really good utility in raid with all your unique BUFFS
  • As a ret paladin with good gear, you can kick ass in PVP !
  • Free mount at lvl 40 and another one at lvl 60 thanks to your class quest.

Cons:

  • Worst class for leveling (even worse than warrior) because you are always out of mana.
  • “Boring” class to play, your main source of damage will be auto-attacking as ret.
Read our paladin leveling guide 1-60
wow classic paladin

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Special Thanks

Thanks for all these people for marking this guide possible :
Kargoz, Elysium Forum, Nostalrius Forum, Joana, Wow-petopia.

About author: Kipik_WiC
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Co-fondateur de Wowisclassic - Rédacteur de guides et de news. Son dicton : Ki s'y frotte s'y Pik 🤠

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