Nine classes. Nine questions to test at level 30.

A useful build starts with a purpose. These nine editable examples spend 21 points at level 30 and give you a question to investigate. They are starting plans, not rankings or claims of the strongest build.

Choose an example by the session you want

How to compare without fooling yourself

1. Save your current allocation before trying the example.
2. Read the chosen talents and confirm the abilities you can use at your level.
3. Keep your equipment, enemy type and group composition consistent.
4. Record the full session, including recovery and waiting.
5. Change one choice for the second attempt and write down the reason.

If your gear or the group changes between attempts, write that down too. One good fight does not establish a universal ranking. A repeatable improvement to the activity you actually play is a better reason to keep a plan.

Warrior: Shield and control

This plan puts the comparison around shield use and control rather than a damage ranking. Agree on a familiar pull with your group, then note whether you can establish control without exhausting your Rage.

Allocation: Shield Specialization 5 · Anticipation 5 · Last Stand 1 · Master of Defense 2 · Defiance 3 · Improved Sunder Armor 3 · Vanguard 1 · Concussion Blow 1.

Open Warrior level-30 example

What to measure: Count pulls where an enemy leaves your control and record what you pressed before it happened. Keep the shield, group and pull size consistent.

Trade-off: All 21 points sit in Protection. This does not evaluate an Arms or Fury damage setup.

Paladin: Holy healing decisions

Use this Holy example to investigate healing choices during a small-group session. Before traveling, check the healing spells your character actually knows and prepare a separate gear set if you usually fight in melee.

Allocation: Divine Intellect 5 · Healing Light 3 · Spiritual Focus 2 · Reverence 3 · Purifying Power 2 · Illumination 5 · Holy Shock 1.

Open Paladin level-30 example

What to measure: Write down recovery stops and situations where a quick healing decision mattered. Compare complete pulls, including recovery, rather than only the largest heal.

Trade-off: A healing-focused allocation leaves Protection and Retribution unspent. It is not a tanking recommendation.

Hunter: Pet-assisted questing

This Beast Mastery example gives you a specific pet-focused plan to test while questing. Select enemies you can repeatedly reach and keep your pet family and ability settings unchanged during the comparison.

Allocation: Deadly Aspects 5 · Focused Fire 2 · Pathfinding 2 · Improved Revive Pet 1 · Bestial Swiftness 1 · Unleashed Fury 4 · Ferocity 5 · Intimidation 1.

Open Hunter level-30 example

What to measure: Record pet deaths, recovery time and interruptions to your planned pulls. A faster individual kill is less useful if recovering your pet repeatedly consumes the session.

Trade-off: The allocation does not include Marksmanship or Survival tools. Check your ammunition and pet management as well as the talents.

Rogue: Combat and weapon handling

This Combat example is a starting point for testing a weapon-based play style in familiar fights. Keep the weapons constant so that a weapon upgrade does not get mistaken for a talent improvement.

Allocation: Improved Sinister Strike 2 · Lightning Reflexes 3 · Precision 3 · Deflection 3 · Endurance 2 · Improved Sprint 2 · Dual Wield Specialization 5 · Blade Flurry 1.

Open Rogue level-30 example

What to measure: Track recovery stops, interrupted casts and when you choose to use a cooldown. Compare single enemies and paired enemies separately.

Trade-off: These points do not test an Assassination poison setup or a Subtlety opener setup. Weapon choice and enemy armor still matter.

Priest: Discipline healing and recovery

This Discipline example reaches Penance at the level-30 point budget. Its current tooltip differs from the earlier snapshot, so begin with a short familiar encounter before assuming old healing or damage expectations still hold.

Allocation: Twin Disciplines 5 · Improved Power Word: Shield 3 · Holy Precision 2 · Mental Agility 3 · Meditation 2 · Mental Strength 5 · Penance 1.

Open Priest level-30 example

What to measure: Note which spell you choose under pressure and the Mana left after comparable encounters. Keep overhealing and time spent drinking in your notes.

Trade-off: The plan spends no points in Holy or Shadow Magic. A calculator allocation does not replace checking your current trained ranks.

Shaman: Restoration and group recovery

Use this Restoration example to organize a group healing comparison. Agree when the group will pause and keep your totem placement deliberate, rather than changing several habits during the same test.

Allocation: Improved Healing Wave 5 · Tidal Focus 5 · Ancestral Healing 3 · Water Shield 1 · Healing Focus 1 · Tidal Mastery 4 · Mana Tide Totem 1 · Nature's Swiftness 1.

Open Shaman level-30 example

What to measure: Record healing interruptions, recovery breaks and any pull where movement prevented the action you wanted. Review those situations before changing the allocation.

Trade-off: This is a healing experiment, not an Elemental or Enhancement damage build. Totem use and the group pace can change the result.

Mage: Frost control and a reset option

This Frost example gives you a consistent starting point for comparing control and recovery during solo play. Begin with ordinary enemies and confirm how your current spells interact before attempting larger pulls.

Allocation: Improved Frostbolt 5 · Elemental Precision 2 · Ice Shards 3 · Frost Channeling 3 · Piercing Ice 2 · Ice Block 1 · Shatter 3 · Arctic Reach 1 · Cold Snap 1.

Open Mage level-30 example

What to measure: Count enemies that reach you, time spent recovering and times you use a defensive cooldown. Keep enemy type and level similar between attempts.

Trade-off: It does not claim that area farming is safe or optimal. Fire and Arcane options are outside this particular comparison.

Warlock: Affliction sustain

This Affliction example frames the question around sustained questing. Keep the same pet and comparable enemies while observing how you balance health, Mana and recovery between encounters.

Allocation: Improved Corruption 5 · Improved Life Tap 2 · Improved Drains 3 · Fel Concentration 3 · Improved Bane of Agony 1 · Amplify Curse 1 · Malevolence 3 · Nightfall 2 · Siphon Life 1.

Open Warlock level-30 example

What to measure: Record the resources left after a fight and all recovery time. Separate a faster kill from a better sustained sequence of fights.

Trade-off: Pet survivability and your chosen spells can dominate the result. This does not test a Demonology or Destruction allocation.

Druid: Restoration while moving

This Restoration example is a starting point for a healing session, especially when movement interrupts a comfortable casting rhythm. Prepare the spells and gear you intend to use before you join a group.

Allocation: Nature's Focus 5 · Naturalist 5 · Reflection 3 · Gift of Nature 5 · Swiftmend 1 · Tranquil Spirit 1 · Nature's Swiftness 1.

Open Druid level-30 example

What to measure: Record moments when movement or a form change delayed a heal. Keep emergency decisions separate from ordinary sustained healing when reviewing the session.

Trade-off: No points are spent in Feral Combat or Balance. Natural Instinct and the revised Furor wording belong to different planning choices.

Recheck a saved plan after an update

Beta tuning can change a tooltip, a prerequisite or the behavior behind it. Open an old link and read any validation message before using it. The October update restores the Deep Wounds prerequisite for Warrior Impale and renames the Druid talent Predatory Instincts to Natural Instinct. Those are reasons to inspect the affected plan, rather than assuming every old screenshot is current.

Source records and official changes are linked separately: public client comparison and Blizzard October 8 development notes. Our allocation choices and measurement advice are original editorial planning.

For the next decision, compare the gear you actually own in the equipment finder, then use the session planner to make a preparation checklist.