Warlocks

[Drasca]

My Warlock Elleneor is nearing lvl 20, and so on the fly I decided to follow the road already travelled and recommended (At least for my first warlock).

Here is what I am planning now; Destruction (31)
T1 Improved Shadow Bolt (5/5)

IsB is of questionable use, as its increased damage is easily eaten up by corruption and CoA. With some strategy, might be very useful to get Shadowbolt after shadowbolt nightfalls for major damage... Early on... maybe not so useful, if you constantly spam Corruption. In fact, I don't recommend getting destruction until having at a gross minimum of 11 talent points, in order to get shadowburn.

So, IsB and Cataclysm are both very marginal. IsB probably less so early on. Take your pick.

T2 Bane (5/5)
T3 Devastation (5/5)  Shadowburn (1/1)
T4 Intensity(2/2)  Improved Seering Pain (5/5)
T5 Pyroclasm (1/2)  Ruin (1/1)

I really like using searing pain. I either use pain or shadowbolt. Keep in mind, searing pain's high threat is going to pull from your pets about as much as shadowbolt--which is a lot. If they're already aggro'ed to you, and you have enough life to survive/fear kite them, then no problem. Just take care when you do not wish to pull them off pets.

T6 Emberstorm (5/5)
T7 Conflagrate (1/1)

Demonology (2)
T1 Improved Imp (2/3)

Affliction (16)
T1 Improved Corruption (5/5)
T2 Improved Life Tap (2/2)  Improved Drain Life (3/5)
T3 Improved COA (2/3) Amplify Curse (1/1) Fel Concentration (2/5)
T4 Nightfall (1/2)

Leaving 1 for Nightfall (2/2)  or when they fix Pyroclasm (2/2)
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Improved CoA stinks. Resist suppression would improve CoA's damage more than improved CoA would, as the curses would break less. If you want to stand toe-to-toe in your early levels, move those points to fel concentration. I get some use out of Amp curse, but wasn't that fond of it personally. YMMV.

I suggest aiming for nightfall (22 pts), or devastation/ruin first, then filling in the other tree. Leave one side by for the other.

Don't discount grim reach. Range is by far the warlock's best friend. If fear kiting, you'll get fewer "out of range" interrupted casts when they run away. In my pvp server, range is life.

Oh. You cannot get conflagorate without 5 points into improved immolate according to thott's warlock talent tree script

You'll also find this discussion on warlock talent builds very useful.