Introduction
Please see the "simple questions" thread for day to day questions. I will be pulling relevant questions and answers from there into this thread as I find them. Hopefully this will reduce the amount of repetitive questions being posed over at the Warlock Simple Questions/Answers thread and provide a useful reference. Questions that should be in a FAQ will be in this thread.

This guide is intended to form a reference for those interested in playing demonology. It will be a work in progress. Covered are the areas that should be useful for demonology locks. If you see something missing or incorrect, please either message me or post. I will be going through the other warlock threads again for updates.

This guide is written to provide information based on patch 3.1



[top]FAQ's


Q. Why does my pet miss 8% of the time?
A. Because the dodge from behind is not able to be mitagated.

Q. What should I do if somebody asks about pets missing 8% of the time in the thread?
A. Report them for not reading the opening post.

Q. Are there bigger questions to be asked about warlocks?
A. Yes, start here

Q. Do I need mana feed?
A. This talent has changed from 3 points to 1 point and moved to the 21 point talent for Demonology. For the single point invesment this talent is well worth it.

Q. Wouldn't using the imp be better?
A. No, unless you are demo/conflag.

Q. Why don't you recomend using the infernal or doomguard?
A. Because are enslaved pets and as such they don't activate deep demo talents. If you have to re-summon your pet, throwing an infernal down and then rapidly re-summoning your main pet once it dies may be a good option.

Q. This <insert honorific> warlock <insert name> has this, why haven't you recommended it?
A. I'm not <insert name>, this thread isn't <insert name>'s thread. We're trying to build up a start place for raiding demo locks and a thread to capture the relevant theory.

Q. Why should I cast <insert dot name>?
A. Because the simulator suggests that it should be an increase in DPS.

Q. Should I cast CoD or CoE rather than CoA?
A. If it is an overall DPS increase for you and your raid, then yes. This is especially true where no other class is able to provide the CoE equivilant debuff. Fel/Ember could look to use CoD where the boss will be alive for more than 60 seconds but this will impact molten core up time.

Q. Should I wear <insert crappy item> or <insert other crappy item>?
A. Have a look in the tools and see what they say.

Q. Would you please test my new spec for me and tell me if it's good?
A. Untested spec posters need to read this thread and submit all requests for spec testing there.


[top]Tools


Use these tools first as most gear and spell usage questions can be answered via the spreadsheet and Rawr. These tools are not a substitute for you working out what you need yourself. They are an aid only.

Tool Purpose RawrDynamic graphical tool for gear comparisons.The SpreadsheetCurrently does not support demonology in 3.1 SimulationcraftStatic tool for running simulated fights based on set parameters

[top]Talent Specs


The pve specs have been lifted from the post 3.1 simulationcraft thread. The Demo/Conflag build from the same thread is a hybrid spec that uses an imp and pops conflag on cooldown. If you think a spec will perform better than those below, please get it included in the simulation thread and I'll pick it up from there when I review the current performing demonology specs.

Build Name Point Layout Purpose Description Meta/Ruin0/56/15DPS with raid supportThis build focuses on providing good DPS combined with a raid buff equal to 10% of the Warlock's +spell power.Felguard/Emberstorm0/41/30DPSThis build provides higher DPS to the Warlock but has no significant raid contributionMeta PvP3/58/10Meta based PvPThis build has the survivability talents for the warlock built in and the +hit talent to allow better gem/enchant choicesImp/Conflag0/40/31DPSDemo/Conflag buildMeta/noDP3/52/16DPSMeta with no demonic pact (lower raid contribution)
[top]Mechanics


There are now three styles of play available to the demonology warlock in flavour. The first is based on the meta/ruin talent build, the second is based on the the felguard/emberstorm and the third is the demo/conflag. Each of these builds has a distinct set of effects that they are trying to bring into play. The VW build is a specific build used for tanking certain fights. (note:find reference to bliz saying this isn't intended in raids.) Included in this section are those talents and glyphs that combine with the build to make specific builds stand appart.

[top]Meta/Ruin


Meta/Ruin is the raid contribution build of the demonology specs. It combines higher sustained burst damage with a damage increase for the raid casters. The combination of the deep (41+) demonology talents and the increased damage while in meta provide for a solid DPS combination.

Demonic Pact
Demonic Pact is the major raid contibution a Meta Lock makes to the raid. 10% of your spell power to the raid for 12 seconds provides a significant boost to parties and, at high damage levels, exceeds the bonus of the shaman totem.


With cleave and haste, frequency is in the 1.2-1.5 seconds per hit range. Unless crit chance is 100%, it's not going to have 100% uptime. With 14.5% crit and 1.5 second intervals:



Ref post here.

Metamorphosis
This is the defining talent for this build, it provides a 20% DPS increase and increases melee survivability in PvP. Given the significant DPS increase of this talent it is best to delay using it at the start of combat to avoid stripping agro quickly. In a fight that has a DPS race it may be best to save for the heroisim/bloodlust. There is greater support for metamorphosis with talented cooldown reduction and glyphed extended duration.

Demonic Tactics
The increased critical strick from this and improved Demonic Tactics combine to give a significant boost to Demonic Pact uptime. The uptime is based on the critical strike rating of the felguard and both of these directly increase critical strike, and hence Demonic Pact up time.

[top]Felguard/Emberstorm


Fel/Ember is a personal DPS build of the demonology specs. In Simulationcraft and WWS parses it is consistently demonstrated as a sustained DPS build with little variation in rotation regardless of the fight stage. The combination of the felguard and the mid tier (down to 30) destruction talents provide a solid DPS combination. If Immolate drops the DPS of this build drops significantly.

[top]Demonology/Conflagrate


Demo/Conflag is a personal DPS build that resembles the destruction lock style of play. It involves keeping up the three dots, using incinerate as a filler and using conflagrate on cooldown. The conflagurate glyph is essential for making this build work. The pet for this build is imp.

[top]General Demonology Mechanics


Both Felguard builds are highly reliant on their pets for sustained damage. Judicious use of life taps, fel synergy and paying attention to positioning make the Felguard a potentially great source of damage. Fundamentally, all builds apply 3 dots, spam a filler and keep the dots going.

Souldrain is no longer a suitable execute for either spec as there is now soulfire available to execute from 35%. Soulfire requires application on the landing of either Incinerate or Shadow bolt, then casting of soul fire. Effectively this makes for a 2:1 rotation of filler to execute in the worst case and 1:1 rotation in the best.

[top]The Basic Rotation


The Demonolgy priority is the same for the PvE DPS specs. They have a focus on keeping DoTs up and using a single filler spell to do the majority of the damage. The rotation is no longer king. Look at priorities, they'll tell you what to do next. The rotations below are not law but an indicator of priority. If you have chosen to go conflagrate, then you need to be using it on every cool down while Immolate is on the target.




[top]Stats


The Combat stat ratings thread has covered stats more fully.

In general, hit rating is preferred to get soft capped, then damage becomes more important. Hit rating is not always the cheapest way to increase DPS even when not capped. Haste, Crit and Spirit are similar in value and at a raid level of gearing all offer a similar DPS gain. Demonic Pact warlocks should prioritise Crit to ensure a good uptime and hence raid buff.

[top]Hit Rating


Note: there is NO MAGIC NUMBER for hit rating. These caps are posted so that they are not exceeded. If in doubt, use the spreadsheet. It is possible to maximise performance with less than hit cap, but it is generally advised against. From the combat rating thread with 26.23199272 hit rating required for each percentage of hit required.

[top]Hit rating caps at level 80


Mob Required Rating w. Druid/SP w. drenai Boss 17 446 367 34182 6 157 79 5281 5 131 52 2680 4 105 26 0
[top]Recommended Gems



Colour Options MetagemChaotic RedRuned (damage) or Veiled (hit/damage)YellowRigid (hit) or Veiled (hit/damage) or Reckless (haste/damage)BluePurified (spirit/damage)

› See More: Demonlogy Dps Pve(3.3.3 Updated)