WoW Patch 12.1: Blizzard Buffs Retribution Paladin and Warlock in Weekly Tuning

Blizzard has locked in another round of weekly class tuning for World of Warcraft’s Patch 12.1, headlined by damage buffs to Retribution Paladin and Warlock. The changes go live with scheduled maintenance in each region and were first compiled by Wowhead, whose report was later updated to note that Restoration Druid tuning had also been added to the list.

Retribution Paladin’s Templar Hero Tree Gets a Boost

Retribution Paladin is one of the two headline winners in this pass. Blizzard’s developer notes, mirrored on Blue Tracker, explain the reasoning directly: Retribution’s personal durability has been higher than they would like considering their complete team defensive package, and Templar’s damage has not been competitive with Herald of the Sun, so they’re increasing some sources specific to its hero tree.

The framing puts Templar in focus rather than the spec as a whole. Herald of the Sun has been the stronger of Retribution’s two hero talent trees for several weeks running, and this adjustment is aimed squarely at closing that gap without touching the spec’s overall defensive kit.

Warlock Pets Jump 350% Across Affliction and Demonology

Warlock gets the bigger raw numbers of the week. Blizzard is increasing the throughput of Affliction and Demonology by focusing on their single-target and multi-target tools, and considerably increasing the damage of Warlock demons so they contribute more to overall throughput, which should also help with aggro concerns during solo play. The pet buff is not subtle: Imp, Voidwalker, Sayaad, and Felhunter damage is increased by 350%.

Core spells get smaller, more targeted increases on top of that. Unstable Affliction damage is increased by 15%, not applying to PvP combat. Hellcaller’s signature ability also gets a lift: Blackened Soul damage is increased by 20%, not applying to PvP combat.

The buffs extend into Affliction’s damage-over-time kit as well. Wrath of Nathreza damage is increased by 35%, not applying to PvP combat. Shadow of Nathreza damage climbs 25%, also PvE only. Agony damage rises 20% and Corruption damage rises 15%, both restricted to PvE content. Together, the changes touch nearly every recurring damage source in the Affliction rotation.

Protection Paladin Takes a PvP Hit in the Same Pass

Not every class walked away better off. Protection Paladin was reined in for arena and battleground play in the same update. Blizzard noted Protection Paladins have been extending the duration of matches they participate in thanks to frequent access to group utility, and is reducing the effectiveness of Blessing of Sacrifice and Guardian of the Forgotten Queen to bring them in line.

The specifics are exact. Guardian of the Forgotten Queen’s duration is reduced to 6 seconds, its cooldown is increased to 4 minutes, and it now carries a 6 second internal cooldown. Sacrifice of the Just now reduces the cooldown of Blessing of Sacrifice by 30 seconds in PvP combat, down from 60 seconds. The changes only affect PvP combat, leaving the tank’s Mythic+ and raid performance untouched.

Read also: WoW: Blizzard Calls Evoker Disconnect Bug in Patch 12.1 High Priority

Restoration Druid Added After the Initial Post

The tuning list did not stay static. Wowhead’s original writeup on the update was revised to flag an addition: Restoration Druid tuning had been folded into the same weekly patch after the initial announcement went out. The spec has been a recurring subject of hotfixes since Patch 12.1, code-named Curse of Ula’tek, went live and Midnight Season 2 opened shortly after.

These weekly tuning passes have become routine since Season 2’s launch, with Blizzard adjusting specs almost every reset as raid and Mythic+ data comes in. The next scheduled maintenance window will show whether Retribution’s Templar buff and Warlock’s pet damage spike hold, or whether another round of hotfixes follows before the season’s first full balance pass.

Reported from

• Wowhead
• Blue Tracker
• MMO-Champion