Talents and racial abilities are reworked to give you more options in the choices you make, whether that is your race, your spec or your talent build. The idea is to let you play the way you want to, not the way you are forced to. All changes are subject to review during beta and may change slightly.

Paladin

Holy · Protection · Retribution

  • Holy Shock heals for double, and costs 30% less mana.
  • Protection gains a taunt.
  • Holy Shield has 6 charges, and restores 150 mana for each charge consumed.
  • Consecration becomes a baseline spell, learned from the trainer.
  • Aura Mastery, new in Holy: your Concentration Aura makes all affected targets immune to Silence and Interrupt effects and improves the effect of all other auras by 100%. Lasts 6 sec, 3 min cooldown.
  • Hallowed Grounds (5/5), new in Protection: +30% Consecration damage, and Holy Wrath becomes instant and stuns for 2 sec.
  • Crusader Strike deals 80% weapon damage plus 60 Holy damage, plus 25% of your spell power as extra Holy damage (10% of base mana, 8 sec cooldown).

Mage

Arcane

  • Arcane Blast becomes a baseline spell.
  • Arcane Infusion (0/2), a new talent behind 5/5 Arcane Mind: Fireball, Frostbolt and Arcane Missiles have a 5%/10% chance to cut 0.5s off your next Arcane Blast and halve its cost.
  • Arcane Instability becomes a 2/2 talent: 2% at rank 1, 3% at rank 2.

Druid

Balance · Feral · Restoration

  • Moonkin Form reduces all spell costs by 15%, on top of its party spell crit.
  • Leader of the Pack grants 5% melee and ranged crit.
  • Heart of the Wild converts to agility in cat form instead of strength — agility gives attack power and crit.
  • Two-handers grant feral attack power in forms, derived from weapon DPS.
  • Druids can use Polearms.
  • Tree of Life, a new Restoration capstone: shapeshift into a Tree of Life, increasing healing received by party members within 45 yards by 6% and reducing the mana cost of your healing spells by 10%.

Priest

Discipline · Holy · Shadow

  • Improved Inner Fire also grants bonus spell damage and healing.
  • Force of Will boosts healing as well as offensive spells.
  • Spirit of Redemption extended to 15 seconds.
  • Lightwell no longer cancels when you are attacked, and its charge reduces damage taken by 5%.
  • Shadowform restores mana to the party, in the shape of Vampiric Touch.
  • Improved Shadow Protection (2/2), new in the Shadow tree: +10%/25% to Shadow Protection.
  • Priest racial spells are reworked as well — Feedback, Starshards, Elune’s Grace, Touch of Weakness and Hex of Weakness. See the priest racials →

Rogue

Assassination · Combat · Subtlety

  • Vigor also increases energy regeneration by 10%.
  • Improved Kick cuts Kick's energy cost by 2/5.
  • Premeditation keeps its 2 combo points, but its cooldown drops from 2 minutes to 1.
  • Improved Hemorrhage (2/2), new in Subtlety behind Hemorrhage: amplifies the physical damage-taken debuff Hemorrhage already applies, by 15%/35%.

Warlock

Affliction · Demonology · Destruction

  • Shadow Mastery grants 3% per point instead of 2% — 15% at 5/5.
  • Conflagrate no longer consumes Immolate.
  • Improved Searing Pain (3/3) and Improved Enslave Demon (2/2) cost fewer points for the same effect.

Shaman

Elemental · Enhancement · Restoration

  • Elemental Focus moves to row 5. Focus becomes a 3/3 talent giving a 30% clearcast chance at 3/3, 10% per point.
  • Elemental Oath (2/2), new behind Focus: a passive party aura with no duration that cuts spell mana costs by 5%/10%.
  • Elemental Haste (2/2), new in Enhancement under Improved Weapon Totems: melee hits can grant the party 5%/10% melee and spell haste for 6 seconds.
  • Healing Way now also boosts Lesser Healing Wave, and unlocks Earth Shield (1/1) beneath it.
  • Hex becomes a baseline spell at level 50: 2 sec cast, 3 min cooldown.

Warrior

Arms · Fury · Protection

  • Axe and Polearm specialisation combine into a single talent.
  • Improved Slam moves into Arms.
  • Improved Shield Wall also cuts the cooldown by 5/10 minutes.
  • Shield Slam deals more damage and threat, and dispels a magic effect every time.
  • Improved Revenge (2/2) now adds 60% Revenge damage and hits a second target, instead of the stun chance.
  • Victory Rush (1/1), new in Fury's fifth row behind 5/5 Enrage; Flurry now requires Victory Rush.

Hunter

Beast Mastery · Marksmanship · Survival

  • Wyvern Sting is usable in combat, and also reduces the target's armor by 15% for 12 seconds when it wakes, along with the 300 Nature damage.
  • Avoidance (1/1), new in Beast Mastery behind 2/2 Spirit Bond: your pet takes 60% less area damage from creatures.

Racials

Orc

Horde

  • Blood Fury Increases base melee attack power by 25%, and spell damage and healing by an amount that scales with level, for 15 sec. Reduces healing effects on you by 50% for 25 sec. 2 min cooldown.
  • Hardiness Chance to resist Stun effects increased by an additional 20%.
  • Command Damage dealt by Hunter and Warlock pets increased by 5%.
  • Axe Specialisation Skill with Axes and Two-Handed Axes increased by 5.

Troll

Horde

  • Berserking Increases attack speed by 10% to 40% for 10 sec — 10% at full health, rising to 40% the more wounded you are. 3 min cooldown.
  • Bow Specialisation Chance to hit with Bows increased by 1%.
  • Regeneration Health regeneration rate increased by 10%. 10% of total Health regeneration may continue during combat.
  • Beast Slaying Damage dealt versus Beasts increased by 5%.
  • Throwing Specialisation Skill with Throwing Weapons increased by 5.

Tauren

Horde

  • War Stomp Stuns up to 5 enemies within 8 yards for 2 sec and slows them by 50% for 4 sec. 2 min cooldown.
  • Nature Resistance Nature Resistance increased by 1 per 3 levels, up to 20 at level 60.
  • Endurance Total Health increased by 5%.
  • Cultivation Herbalism skill increased by 15.

Undead

Horde

  • Will of the Forsaken Provides immunity to Charm, Fear and Sleep while active, and may be used while already afflicted. 2 min cooldown.
  • Cannibalize Regenerates 7% of total health every 2 sec for 10 sec. Only works on nearby Humanoid or Undead corpses.
  • Underwater Breathing Underwater breath lasts 300% longer than normal.
  • Shadow Resistance Shadow Resistance increased by 10.

Human

Alliance

  • Perception Dramatically increases stealth detection for 20 sec. 3 min cooldown.
  • Stalwart A passive 10% chance to resist stuns and slowing effects.
  • Skinning Skinning skill increased by 5.
  • Sword Specialisation Skill with Swords and Two-Handed Swords increased by 5.
  • Mace Specialisation Skill with Maces and Two-Handed Maces increased by 5.

Dwarf

Alliance

  • Stoneform Grants immunity to Bleed, Poison and Disease effects and increases Armor by 25% for 12 sec. 3 min cooldown.
  • Gun Specialisation Chance to hit with Guns increased by 1%.
  • Mining Mining skill increased by 15.
  • Frost Resistance Frost Resistance increased by 10.
  • Find Treasure Senses nearby treasure, showing it on the minimap. Lasts until cancelled.

Gnome

Alliance

  • Escape Artist Escapes the effects of any immobilisation or movement-speed reduction, and grants 10% movement speed for 5 sec. 1 min cooldown.
  • Arcane Resistance Arcane Resistance increased by 20.
  • Expansive Mind Intelligence increased by 5%.
  • Engineering Specialisation Engineering skill increased by 15.

Night Elf

Alliance

  • Shadowmeld Slip into the shadows while stationary, reducing the chance enemies detect you. Lasts until cancelled or you move; breaking it grants 10% damage for 5 sec. 3 min cooldown.
  • Quickness Dodge chance increased by 2%.
  • Nature Resistance Nature Resistance increased by 20.
  • Wisp Spirit Transform into a wisp upon death, increasing speed by 50%.

Priest racial spells

Values at max rank

  • Feedback Human Surrounds a friendly target with anti-magic energy. Any successful spell cast against them burns 105 of the attacker's mana, causing 2 Shadow damage per point burned. Lasts 35 sec. (Rank 5)
  • Elune's Grace Night Elf Reduces an ally's ranged damage taken by 95 and increases their chance to dodge by 10% for 15 sec. (Rank 5)
  • Starshards Night Elf Rains starshards on the target, causing 936 Arcane damage over 3 sec. (Rank 7)
  • Touch of Weakness Undead Cast on a friendly target: the next melee attack on them causes 64 Shadow damage and reduces the attacker's damage by 20 for 2 min. 5 min cooldown. (Rank 6)
  • Hex of Weakness Troll Weakens the target, reducing damage caused by 20 and the effectiveness of any healing by 20%, and increasing damage it takes by 3%. Lasts 2 min. (Rank 6)
  • Desperate Prayer Dwarf and Human Instantly heals the caster for 1340 to 1579. (Rank 7)
  • Fear Ward Dwarf Wards a friendly target against Fear: the next Fear effect used on them fails, using up the ward. Lasts 10 min. 30 sec cooldown.
  • Shadowguard Troll Surrounds the caster with shadows: attackers are struck for 116 Shadow damage, once every few seconds, causing no threat. 3 charges, lasts 10 min. (Rank 6)