This is what I’d do:
Make BM the melee spec, like Survival is, but rework it to be a dual-wield melee, just like Rexxar. I personally wouldn’t mind if it was a tank spec either, just to give Hunters something more than another DPS spec.
Then, add a 4th spec, call it “Bushwhack” spec or something, that is ranged, and will be a hybrid of both current BM and old ranged Survival, with talents to choose like Explosive Shot, Black Arrow, and Bestial Wrath.
BM as-is is woefully boring and needs some change, imo.
Hunters are more popular than Druids. It’s crazy they don’t have a 4th spec, and are locked into only DPSing.
Imagine how much faster queues would be if Hunters could tank. I’d actually main Hunter again.
I remember back in Wrath, I tanked Hodir hardmode, using by pet bear as BM, in a 10-man, and it worked pretty flawlessly.
I wish we had that kind of utility again, but they seemingly save it for just Druids only? And Paladins?
It’s weird. Hunters used to be the utility class.
It is very simple. Melee spots are typically heavily contested. Every melee brings something useful to the group. Except hunter. It has bled over into both ranged specs as well.
Almost every one of these ideas is pretty awful.
This would be like slicing your back tire after replacing the front one. There’s only 2 classes in the whole game that use bows/guns, make it 3 like it used to be.
Melee hunter has been and always be a meme, about that one ne terrible hunter that kept forgetting to get ammo before raids “uhh… yeah he’s one of those “””‘melee""’ hunters guys hue hue hue what an idiot".
Only blizz is so dumb to turn “hunta[RESACTED]”
into a apec, like if vrchat made Uganda knuckles their company logo and put out plushies of him it would be equivalent level cringe to what blizz did with the “every hunter is “””““special””“”“” meme
I actually like the spec as it is right now, but Guuah did bring up it’s biggest flaw. Too much is centered on wildfire bomb. I wouldn’t mind muzzle being a little more reliable as an interrupt as well. It just adds to the annoyance if you burn it & it does nothing to the caster you’ve targeted. Then intimidate may or may not be available as a back up.
I’d not be upset with more defensives, but still not as squishy as rogue. So it’d be rude to complain rather than just disengage out of AoE cones.
I’d go total Blizzard fashion and make everyone unhappy and change it back to range but you just throw 2hander weapons.
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The hero we didn’t know we needed has entered the forums. Lol would be a hilarious April fools joke
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My major issue with hunters is that theyre pretty squishy. Otherwise i really like survival.
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I mean, it’s far more popular of a spec than you think. It’s just a vocal minority that miss the weirdness of it. And let’s remember all of the facts. There were so many, because it was the bot gold farmer spec. Not as many thought it amazing as you may remember. It was marksman but with traps and some random melee talent. It outperforms in every way and has tools for pretty much every situation. But hey. If you need to dwell on the past in a nostalgia filled daze, go for it.
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I wouldn’t because it’s fine. 
Old Surv was just BM with ES replacing KC, and that’s why it was reworked.
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I’d drop the bomb bit, and give it a dual wield option, with some stealing from everquest Rangers. Give it some minor heal, some mail armor durability, snares, nature spells and dots and bleeds. Almost like a rogue druid hybrid.
As fun as the whole chain pull in bit is, I’d rather have something more like the warrior leap, but still have disengage to get out of danger.
Camo would be baseline, but limited duration still and a cd, bleeds like a feral, light healing like a ww monk or ret pal, the dw or 2h weapon option, and a good combo of armor parry and dodge. Not a tank, but at least able to not get crushed by non rare elites.
Keep the out of combat speed boost, talent up some combat haste, this would be a blast. Oh and some sort of raid and group utility, group snare on mobs perhaps, and a group wide bleed debuff?
John J. Rambo.
Watch how a Marksmanship Hunter tries to 1v1 a traditional SV Hunter with adds in the forest.
‘Rambo Hunts Cops In The Forest’ EXTENDED Scene | Rambo: First Blood - YouTube
duel wield as an option.
have hunters deal more dots, have a barrage ability thats survival specific that shoots two hand-held crossbows at em that deals dmg and applies stacks of venom for each number hit em, so raptor strike has a better chance of hitting em at max stacks.
give hunters more defensive stuff or make them benefit from leech.
better resource management, and lastly an idea is make them benefit from leech.
This is what I’d do.