As far as Darkspear, the Shadow Hunter seems to be the pinnacle. The question becomes, what is closest to that.
The spells translate closely to Shaman - with Hex and Chain Heal. And the whole big bad voodoo daddy spell that Shaman had for a little bit. And Druids could Symbiosis it - that almost feels like a fever dream, how quickly it came and went.
However, Hunters have the Transmogs. I believe they have a Legion Helmet that references Shadow Hunters, among others.
And then we have Lightbright T Rex Rezan merged with Voljin, and the Hand of Valor⌠what ever that means⌠that sounds like it treads on Paladin talk. Maybe Darkspear Paladins will be a thing with Voljinâs return, and they will be Shadow Hunters.
For me personally, the ultimate troll class will always be the Troll Berserker. Itâs represented across all troll tribesâeven the Zandalari have their own version. The blend of alchemy and voodoo used to create these terror-inducing warriors, combined with Zulâjinâs modifications of this ancient tradition to forge even stronger variantsâthat, to me, is the peak of what a troll class can be.
It was fitting for their race and thematically served as a perfect counter to the more swift and fragile elven rangers.
The others have said good classes, So iâm gunna throw in troll druids which are basically just loa priests/Dinomancers, With druids/paladins/priests all being paths to worshipping the loa, its not perfect but its does good work making their religion feel distinct.
Trolls have the benefit of nearly all of them working really well, so the first 1-8 are all basically neck and neck
Hunter - The real quintessential troll class between the head hunters from WC3, the racials that work/ed so well with trolls, the great transmogs, and their half foot into the Shadow Hunter aesthetic. From Darkspear and Amani to Zandalari dino zoo keepers, hunter has really stuck and kept its claim
Shaman - the other half of the Shadow Hunter fantasy that covers more of the abilities of one. Its where all the voodoo went. So many examples of them being general loa followers and priests too, or at least having that ability fall into that archetype of a loaâs champion or priest.
Druid - They were introduced as being followers of Gonk for the Darkspear (and I remember the great troll druid invasion of 2010), the Zandalari have been doing it for who knows how long, probably longer than the Night Elves, and every other empire has had some half-troll half-animal combo, or turned into one, so theyâre right up there with loa followers, devotees, and priests. If only we had more options
Priest - Bit of a classic throw back but also, again, loa priests. While it took some time to make them appear less âholy lightâ like, troll priests have always been a corner stone of every troll group. Really priest, shaman, druids, mages, and to a lesser extent warlocks all kinda fall in the same âloa priestâ category but priests and shaman were always the classics. Priest just has too much shine and light though, can be a bit difficult to start with until you really get into it, or go Shadow.
Rogue - Less associated with shadow hunters, but still a very close relation given all the stealthing they both do. Again, was always a classic pick for folks too, though quite behind Forsaken rogues (weâre just built different). They were members of the Shattered Hand, often portrayed as the scouts for every other Horde base. Just a generally safe pick.
Mage - Just never saw a lot of play or association, but one of the lesser two âloa followerâ picks. Some picked up more as other loa were introduced like Janâalai but never really had that much of a following or association. There was a push after the Zandalari were introduced, and troll mages got a bit more spot light, but nothing to really push them up more.
Warlock - Suffers the same as mage, but also a much newer option so it doesnât have that carrying weight from classic. Same idea that a lot would be loa followers, priests, and devotees. Hiâreek, Hethiss, Hakkar, Shadra, Sseratus, and so on. Basically, anything poisonous, venomous, snake like, spider like, dark, creepy, and crawly. It has a lot of potential. A lot of warlocky-ness can be interpreted as voodoo, even the warlock trainer has a mask on their imp. The ânewnessâ of it all and lack of lore or attention to troll warlocks keeps them down though.
Warrior - Probably the most controversial take but theyâre just boring. Trolls donât really have anything that screams unique warriors beyond beserkers but are they really âwarriorsâ at that point? Everyone can be one, they were always out shined by orcs and tauren, and even Forsaken could at least point to the Death and Dreadguard and say âlook! Neat, unique, cool!â while the poor trolls got a couple sets of armor to give them a warrior look but nothing really beyond that. Just plain. But of plain gets you to 8/10, then youâre doing pretty good as an overall group.
Death Knight - suffers as the above, and Iâd argue maybe deserves a little higher up, but Death Knights are Death Knights. Nothing too unique about them or have a history that lends to them well like humans, Forsaken, and elves. Theres some unique takes - Sanfury Blood Drinkers, Drakkari Death Knights, but everyone else doesnât really have a connection. Bwonsamdi isnât raising his own army of the dead in the same way to fight for him and if anything wants them to stay in the ground. So just not a lot there outside of a few cases.
Monk - The class itself is just so Pandaren focused that even if there was new lore or loa or anything, it would still be so associated with an entirely different people that it doesnât feel right. Could def go the loa devotee or priest route here too, but it doesnât have that same connection. Yeah, Volâjin spent some time with them but thats it, thats the only real connection.
Only Zandalari can technically be paladins, so 11 is cut off.
One of my hopes for the end of BfA/Shadowlands was that Bolvar would be the Alliance DK leader and Bwonsamdi would lead Horde DKs - or at least have an interaction with Zandalari DKs where he tells them âwe both know who you really work forâ As he points to himself.
I think I like this aspect a lot more than like a DK leader or creator. If you just so happen to be undead, you know who youâre really working for, or else youâre not in for a great time once your back in the ground.
But theyâre shown little more as fodder more recently and thats what folks remember. Of all the quest mobs, of all the named NPCs, theyâre never given any attention or respect as anything particularly unique among the many various warriors portrayed in game. They donât get the reputation or representation of the Korâkron, Greygaurd, Dreadguard, general tauren braves, I can keep going. Theyâre presented as bland, as fodder. Can you spice it up? Sure, absolutely. However, as something that suppose to be more akin to a âprestige classâ or elite unit theyâre just not shown as that and therefore remain bland.
Shaman wouldnât be my first choice as a troll either way. I think warriors and hunters are the best pick because no other ingame culture needs to be ready for war all the time like they do not even Orcs.
