Btw the only Holy type of leveling build I’ve heard of is one in which you
-Talent into Ret early till PoJ/SoC, then talent up through Holy & practice holy till 60
-Stack Int/Strength gear ("of the eagle"s I believe) & 2h SoC for solo content
-Heal the s**t out of dungeons
Seems ok to me, tbh
I want to play Paladin cuz it is great for RP and healing but I just cannot stand retribution paladin’s 2 buttons rotation…
Shadow Priests will be tough, even as Ret. Fear, barrier, mana burn, silence, and surprising damage. It’s why I prefer to go Ret
Well, remember that Vampiric Touch and Unstable Affliction didn’t exist in Vanilla.
You can safely dispel all their magical DoTs and nothing bad will happen to you other than the mana expenditure (which, unless they’re downranking DoTs to bait dispels, is still more efficient than healing it is).
It’s not a fight where you’re likely to actually ever kill them, but it is also very difficult for them to actually kill you. (It’s easier for warlocks than shadow priests, since warlocks can hit you with repeated fears and shadow priests have a significant cooldown on theirs. Mana Burn sucks, but it’s also a long cast and you can just run away and they won’t get very many off.)
Shadow priest typically mana burn them and murder a paladin
Yea dude but they mana burn pallys and shadow priest are super tanky. A decently geared shadow priest played by someone who is even mildly good should kill a pally
I tend to level as either Ret, or Holy. I enjoy both.
I enjoy healing dungeons while leveling, as well as doing plenty as dps.
If sit-reck is a thing, that’ll be fun to play as well. I enjoy the utility of the class. I like being able to heal and buff people. I enjoy Retribution the most. I’ve been a paladin for a long time, and intend to keep at it in Classic.
D E U S V U L T
The paladin walks away.
How does the priest keep mana burning them?
(If it’s a duel situation, then sure, the priest should win every time. But as a holy paladin, you should never need to 1v1 anyone in any situation that actually matters and where running away isn’t an option.)
Kinda why I figured (Bring friends)
Rank 1 Seal of Command with Libram and 5/5 Benediction costing only 38 mana says Hold my beer…
Cringing watching this guy waste potential damage while sitting in SoC during Reckbombing.
This is how I level a Pally. Works well, and it’s my preferred method.
If you intend to level primarily via (PUG) dungeons, then Holy is obviously best.
If you intend to level primarily via grinding mobs, then Prot is best, followed by Holy.
Anything else, or some combination thereof, especially on a PvP server, then Ret is probably best.
Honestly, I think that 31 Holy is your best bet overall. The addition of Consecration and Holy Shock gives you some controlled damage, and you can talent into improved SoR or go 11+ into Ret for SoC and some other goodies.
Re: shadow priests and warlocks. You’re almost certainly screwed, no matter what. Your best chance is probably Ret because of Repentance and E4E, especially if you also have engineering (i.e., iron grenades, shadow reflector trinket).
Priest doesn’t need to keep mana-burning them, necessarily.
Mana burn, mana burn
Paladin walks away
Mind flay
Blessing of Freedom
Priest runs too, until BoF runs out
Mind flay
Eventually paladin stops to Heal
Silence
Mana burn, mana burn
etc.
I totally get what you’re saying, but the only time a paladin – Holy or otherwise – can leave a fight at will is when hearthstone and Divine Shield are up. Any other time, and the opponent will almost certainly have something to say about it. Even if the paladin ends up getting away, it’s not so easy.
Can a priest actually keep up? I thought the speed enhancement talent would make it possible to escape, buuuuut… tricky.
This is quite possible, especially while leveling. (A speed enchant equalizes the playing field, and of course many players do not take PoJ.)
Just to follow up: personally, I will be doing one of two things:
Why Ret fairly early, you say? Simple: Verigan’s Fist. 
The consecration makes sense. How much mana does that eat tho? Is it reasonable or expensive?
Prot is by far the most efficient way to level. AoE leveling isn’t really a thing though unless you have a main feeding gear/enchants/etc, that is more of a lv60 farming thing. Consecration is way too much mana for the damage it does, it is mainly for aggro when tanking dungeons. IMO the most efficient way to level is to use a 1h/shield. When you get reckoning you can start pulling multiple mobs to build reck charges faster.
The paladin walks away while he’s slowed by mindflay?