I’m curious on what Classic is desired in HC. I want to play a Priest or Warlock, but don’t know which to pick.
I think a priest would be fun, but I don’t know if healers are needed or not. I like the idea of warlocks but considering they use a good chunk of their health pool for more mana, I’m hesitant on rolling one. What’s your opinion on the classes and HC?
Both are strong for leveling, but between the two Priests are doubtless the more desirable choice for endgame because they can heal, and healers are always high value, always needed. Dual Spec also means you can have a healing spec in your pocket and do open world stuff in Shadow, so more flexible.
Warlock is still valuable with Summons and Healthstones, though, and while both are good for leveling Warlock is easily far stronger than Priest because they can fear juggle, have Howl of Terror, Mortal Coil, as well as all their pet utility.
Subjective, but you are wrong by broad (and anecdotal) general opinion.
Priests are a lot of wanding because wands are pretty OP for casters in general. Shadow is considered mediocre until 40 so most level going down Disc/Holy before reaching 40, and even then some stay Disc/Holy with little downside compared to Shadow. Shadow’s biggest problem is mana conservation, which is why you do a lot of wanding because that allows you to conserve it to level efficiently. Otherwise you just OOM too frequently.
That being said healers are always in demand and priests are great so you’ll never have problems grouping if you’re willing to heal, but it’s definitely a more mundane leveling class.
I am extremely partial to playing Affliction. You just have to learn the right rhythm for playing one and juggling mana and health, but they are strong and have great sustain in healing, especially if you are UD. If you go engineering then you also have target dummies; alchemy has an argument if you are playing solo and can’t buy them. I have always gone down to Siphon Life in Aff before going down Demo to improve my VW (I am not a Succy Fan). Around level 30 is where I find my groove and by the mid 40s is when I feel I am unkillable between death coil, healthstone, health pots, bandages, and two Sacrifice VWs every 15 minutes (via Fel Domination) that are also improved via talents. It’s like having 5 health bars; if you can’t kill what you are fighting you got tons of ability to get out of there.
At 60 Warlocks are considered good, but lots of people like to play DPS so it’s harder to group for content across the board.
Priest is fairly safe on HC. You bubble and wand single targets slowly but surely, have an instant aoe fear and are unlikely to find yourself out of mana (provided you mostly wand enemies). You can heal or dps in dungeons and I’ve had no problems finding a dps spot. (only tried low level dungeons on HC). You will probably have a generic build until 40 and then optionally change to another fairly static build. It’s pretty much the same game play all the way. I personally love priest but I can see how this is potentially quite boring. Priests are the most desired healer, especially leveling on hardcore, since paladins are more endgame tank orientated and there’s no pvp, and one of druids big selling points, combat rez, is not a thing. (Can’t comment on shaman, I play alliance).
Warlock shines on HC. It’s a really excellent solo class. Initially you will wand a lot too because you don’t want to lifetap too much early on but this will change. Pets are invaluable while leveling, especially on HC. You can handle unexpected adds with ease, have a lot of control over fights, and have excellent sustain. Warlocks can make a bunch of money (and/or friends) summoning people to locations, which is also true of regular servers but much more on HC. Warlocks get a free (quest) mount at 40. There is a lot of flexibility with builds and playstyles as you level.
Don’t worry about being a desired class. If you make it to 60 on HC you will be desired.
I would also consider Mage. I personally think this is the easiest class to play on HC. You have an amazing array of escape options, control, damage and are always desired. You won’t die unless you make at least 2 mistakes in a row, or dc.
Priest. Strong solo capability, high demand for dungeons and raids in future.
Warlock is one of the 2 best soloers but if you are bad at pet management, it will definitely backstab you in group content. Warlock also has threat issue, so that’s another downside for group content.
But if you will strictly play solo leveling then warlock is definitely the better choice.
Priest you press your shield and wand button and afk for 15 seconds, then pick a new target, for 200+ hours until you hit 60
Warlock, you have a cute succubus to entertain you and dance for you while you press your dots.
If you are really new to hardcore, I would suggest Hunter. Your pet does 30% of your Dps and the rest is auto attacks. It is boring, but pretty safe. Your pet can save you, hunters can solo pretty much anything they want.
New hunter player is a big red flag for any group content in HC.