Some players like to tell you that the game really starts at level 80–whether you agree with this or not, there is definitely a case to be made.
That doesn’t mean that the first 79 levels have to be a miserable experience!
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Leveling Tips
Out of all the classes I’ve played, the Mage is easily one of my favorites. Between being able to freeze enemies in their tracks and crowd control via sheeping, the mage is a fun and exciting class that has one of the highest DPS ratings in the game.
A lot of players who choose to roll mages don’t realize how difficult leveling can be. Although the end result is a character with versatility beyond almost any other class, the journey to 85 can frustrating.
Mages have a strong disadvantage compared to other cloth armor classes when it comes to survivability. They have less HP and lack any form of healing abilities. The success of a Mage in battle is entirely dependent on their ability to avoid taking hits.
Warlocks are definitely one of the most well rounded classes in World of Warcraft. They are both great at resisting damage and great at dealing damage. On battlefields, there are few classes that leave a trail of destruction as impressive as a Warlock.
Unlike Mages, Warlocks are built for both damage and survival. Because of their high HP, Warlocks are highly desirable as DPSs in raids. In PvP servers, players will generally want to avoid picking fights with you as you can easily take the advantage in most one-on-one fights.
Depending on the talent tree you choose, you will have a very different leveling experience. Destruction, Demonology, and Affliction Warlocks all play very differently in practice.
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Known as being one of the fastest levelers in the game, Hunters are an incredibly versatile class that is both extremely fun and rewarding to play. Hunters are capable of taming beasts and have some of the most useful pets in the game. In a group situation, they can be great at controlling crowds and even have a really good DPS output.
Unfortunately, Hunters also have a pretty negative reputation with other players. If you’ve ever heard the term “Huntard,†you know what I’m talking about. While many players feel leveling the Hunter class is too easy, there are some ways to separate from the flock.
Hunters are not actually designed for close combat, and the more a player is able to keep their long ranged skills in effect, the faster battles will become.
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If the only thing you need to enjoy your MMORPG life is to rip apart mobs with brutal, overpowered damage—the Warrior class may be just what you are looking for.
The Warrior class may look like the easiest class to play at first due to relatively simple gameplay strategies, this can be pretty deceptive. Whether it’s PvP or PvE, Warriors are everyone’s favorite punching bag and you will inevitably be the first target on a PvP server.
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While Priests are one of the common classes in pretty much all MMORPGs, Priests in WoW have the advantage of not being forced into a support role by definition. Depending on their build, Priests can easily be one of the fastest solo leveling classes in the game.
Depending on what type of gameplay a player is looking for, Priests can easily be one of the most impressive healers in a group or a killing machine of endless slaughter with no downtime. Priests are equally desired in raiding as both healers and damage dealers.
One of the downsides of playing a Priest, which is largely associated as a healing class, is leveling in a PvP environment where you immediately are everyone’s favorite punching bag. Rolling a Shadow build will allow a player to use Fear, which certainly helps, but they are still inevitably one of the first classes to be targeted during a PvP battle.
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Rogue gameplay is difficult to describe to someone who has never rolled a Rogue. It’s not difficult because of the complexity but rather playing the class is so fun that it can be difficult to find a starting point.
The Rogue class is very diverse and can be very good at both PvE and PvP depending on the player. They are not by any means simply another DPS class and their stealth can make them a great addition to both raiding and battlegrounds.
While Rogues used to be pretty well known for causing chaos and mass death in battlegrounds, Blizzard has worked towards balancing the classes out a bit. Still, you only need a good strategy and you can recapture the (little) glory lost.
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Most people are pretty surprised when I tell them how many toons I have leveled over the past few years. I have never been content just to pick a single server and level up my toons–I like exploring, and I like having the freedom to pick a new server and know that I can have a new level 85 toon there in a week or so. It’s very liberating.
World of Warcraft is a huge place–the ingame map for this game is way bigger than any other MMORPG I’ve played, and the amount of quests and dungeons are staggering. A player can’t possibly experience even half of what the game has to offer by just leveling up one toon! A lot of the most fun content is also part of the end-game levels which can make it frustrating for new players playing low leveled characters. So how do you skip to the good part faster?
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It never ceases to amaze me how many high level players just don’t understand how to play their class when it comes to tanking. While running some of the new Cataclysm instances, I’ve seen both some really amazing tanking and some incredibly fail tanking.
The truth is that one of the most important parts of tanking (and any time of playing with a team) is communication.
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The best part about instance leveling is that it allows you to play in groups with friends (or make new ones) while still getting a ton of experience and gold along the way. It takes the monotony out of the daily grind, and if you’ve already been through a few level 80s, this can really reinvent your playing experience.
If you like grinding and like making gold in the battlefield, you probably are already enjoying the benefits of instance leveling (and if you’re not, what are you waiting for?). Although instance leveling is easily one of the fastest and simplest ways to level a toon, there are some tricks and tips that can really help you speed up the leveling process.
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