I know, I know…
There have been countless threads of players asking for Survival to be returned to ranged.
Right now I am literally begging for Survival to be returned as a ranged spec. I am becoming very dramatic in my own mind thinking about how much I NEED Survival to be ranged once again. Lol.
I know for myself that I’ve created numerous threads about this topic alone and I’ve said this before but I will say it again.
Hunter used to be my absolute favorite class to play in WoW. I’ve leveled 8 Hunter toons to max level and actually have played end game content on every single one of them over the years. I just could not get enough of the class.
Where it went wrong for me was with these examples. Hunter’s base GCD got increased from 1 second to 1.5 seconds. This slowed down the rotation to a point where well… To be completely honest, I’ve literally fallen asleep on my keyboard from playing the class. This one change to the class for me, made the class go from the funnest and most exciting thing for me to play in WoW to the one class I completely ignore nowadays.
I do not have one max level Hunter on my account. To me this really does speak volumes.
Survival was my absolute favorite spec within the class that’s for sure. Hell… My main Hunter is actually the reason why I have the nickname that my guildies and friends call me today because I played him so much. I had so much fun on my main Hunter that I would legit find any reason I possibly could to even play on him. I know this is useless information but trust me. Emphasis plays a big role here…
So since I do not like Survival spec, I’ve been forced to play MM or BM… Now… I used to tolerate both of these specs but now I just can not play either of them.
When Legion changed Hunters completely, BM got Dire Beast (Currently Barbed Shot) which replaced Cobra shot as the focus regenerator right? Well… This has led me to constantly stare at my bars whenever I have run low on focus to see whenever I could get another damn proc of Dire Beast or Barbed Shot to come back to up to get more damn focus… OMFG it’s been so damn annoying and I’m pretty sure this is a huge reason as to why I have fallen asleep on my keyboard because the damn class is so slow ON TOP of the fact that I’m constantly looking down, it just naturally makes me want to close my eyes… UGH… Anyway…
MM… We no longer have a fun option for a filler once we’re out of dare I say it… Charges of Aimed shot… Eww… It hurt to type that… Chimaera Shot was an absolutely love ability that was a powerful spell that felt good to press outside of aimed shot. Yay! We’ll be getting (S)Kill Shot back! Thank the Gods…
So… Enough typing… I’m sure I’ve said what I’ve wanted to say. Let’s see what everyone else would like to say.
41 Likes
I love current sv, but not really here to debate it. You love what you do, I love what I do. I honestly wish they’d just make a 4th spec…didn’t use to wish that, but now, I just don’t want to hear about it anymore.
I find bm a ok 2nd spec, but it gets boring. Mm I can never get the hang of [and I can tell you now, I didn’t care for old sv]. Sv is where it is at for me, I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun I have, and how I can hardly even focus on other toons because apple is all I want to play. But, for this reason, I can understand how it feels to love a spec and want it.
So who am I to really sit here and try to debate it away from you. The only time I’m going to is if someone is telling me I shouldn’t have my spec, and all I can see is you want yours…which I realize is in a way saying, “I want mine, how about changing it back.” But, how about asking for a fourth instead, and remembering those that do play current sv now, and would be for it coming back [just not taking theirs away]? 
25 Likes
Very interesting reply. Now I see where some of the Hunters in the community come from when they ask for a fourth spec.
Honestly though, if they just made BM and MM more fun, I probably wouldn’t have even made this post to begin with. Obviously I want to play as a ranged Hunter spec, so why not just make the ranged specs enjoyable? Right?
7 Likes
This would be the only sane answer. There are folks who just love the current survival spec. It would be unfair to take the only melee hunter spec away from them.
20 Likes
Tbh old Survival overlapped alot with BM, so I’m glad they made it distinct from the other 2 specs.
Maybe to get some of that feel back they could add back in some former Survival spells to BM?
5 Likes
here is something. Shadowlands is doing the largest unpruning since the 3 Expansions of Pruning that were Warlords, Legion and BFA. while you won’t get your entire kit back. BM Hunters should have some of the Fun Survival buttons which should help.
3 Likes
I wouldn’t say no to survival going ranged again, but no matter what the next several classes need to be physical ranged and caster ranged, in that order. We’re drowning in melee and I hate it.
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I have suggested mixing in some of the old sv spells with bm or mm, and this seems to get a negative reaction. So that is why I tend to go with the 4th spec idea anymore, but I tend to agree with you, wouldn’t just making the ranged specs more fun or more like sv solve a lot of the problem?
I would like to think it’d be a good start in the right direction.
Please, I’m begging you, please don’t return Survival to a ranged spec. I really, seriously, honestly enjoy melee Survival and I’d hate to no longer get to play that on my hunter.
I don’t know how Blizz can make both of us happy, but fingers crossed.
6 Likes
If you think about it, if Shadowlands will return the emphasis on Class with specs doubling down on certain abilities, survival may well be a ranged spec that can melee much better (similar to how Enhancement Shaman has most of Elementals ranged abilities, but can melee much better)!
If they do it right…
Melee survival growing on me. hell it did some amazing things last night.
Took that alt on her naz intro, for the gear of ofc. Did the first essence run. For reasons unknown me not 100% familiar with how it runs (literally changed it over 15 minutes prior) and she is among few to do the rock dude not dying once.
I get some bad timing and its like rock dudes attacks, falling rocks and other crap. S. Priest was fun here. Real…“fun”. Her essence was expensive at the repair shop after lol.
That “tauren” is supposed to be a big bad dragon’s son but I ain’t buying it. I want a paternity test to confirm lol.
But I jumped right in with SV and was smooth and clean all in all.
Never really had a chance to see Ranged SV to get attached to it so…not sure what was taken away.
I want a revamped Survival spec to be dual wield that would make me happy af
5 Likes
It would for sure be nice to have the choice. I want to be sport some side weapons like Rexxar! 
2 Likes
I love love love Survival as a melee spec.
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Then you know the answer: not happening. They went through the effort of redesigning the spec from the ground up to make it distinct from MM and BM. They can’t just flip a switch and change it back to pre-Legion SV without breaking Legion content and upsetting people who like the spec in its current state. You’d have better luck asking for Arcane to be turned into a healing spec.
I miss the days Hunter could fire arrows, or bullets, and if an enemy got close quarters you could use your trusty axe or sword melee.
I mean point blank shooting with a bow breaks immersion to me.
3 Likes
The old survival literally had no identity.
It was just Marksman with a few abilities replaced with a couple other abilities. That was it. There was no identity to survival. No, it wasn’t the “Poison Spec” - every hunter spec used Serpent Sting. Traps were available to all specs as well. The only “identity” it really had was explosive shot, and even then, it pretty much was just a replaced Aimed Shot. Black Arrow was pointless for the most part.
Ranged survival will not return because of that. What they should do is find a way to make it so marksman can be specced as survival though, through talents. Turning Aimed Shot into Explosive Shot, Arcane Shot into Serpent Sting, Rapid Fire into Black Arrow, things like that.
Current survival is fun to play and has an identity.
6 Likes
Current survival is really enjoyable to play.
Ranged survival was nice but it would need to be it’s own thing, if re-implemented.
1 Like
Survival range is gone, besides Survival melee had its roots ever since Vanilla with Raptor strikes wing clips and mongoose atks it just never evolved properly unlike Retri paladins from vanilla and becoming more defined in TBC.
You got a better chance to convince Blizz to go for a second ranged class that uses bows like Dark ranger than hope for the return of a class that is now pretty much solid
Stop trying to change me op!
i just want to kill things with a sword!
hands tray of chili fries
ya i kinda wanted to dual wield as well.
3 Likes