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Unholy Death Knight · Melee DPS

Unholy Death Knight beginner guide · MoP Classic

BeginnersData-drivenMediumPatch 5.5.4
863Updated

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This guide is assembled by the site from match data and the game's own information — nobody wrote it by hand. Official and community guides appear alongside it when they exist.

Overview

Unholy Death Knight is a melee DPS specialization of the Death Knight in Mists of Pandaria Classic. It is A tier on our ladder: 5% of the top players, average rating 2077, average item level 522.

Strengths

  • Wins 66.4% of its rated games among the top players.
  • Top players stack PvP Power (31.4% of their secondary stats).

Build cheat sheet

Pick the build that fits what you want to do this game.

Builds

Unholy Death Knight · 3v3 Arena

More damagePvP
Open build

When to use it

What the 4 top 3v3 Arena players we read are using. Average item level 522. Glyphs: Glyph of Resilient Grip, Glyph of Icy Touch, Glyph of Death's Embrace.

3v3 arena build

4 top profilesAverage item level 522

Talent trees

Level15Roiling Blood75%Plague Leech25%Unholy Blight
Level30Lichborne75%Anti-Magic Zone25%Purgatory
Level45Death's Advance25%Chilblains75%Asphyxiate
Level60Death Pact75%Death SiphonConversion25%
Level75Blood Tap100%Runic EmpowermentRunic Corruption
Level90Gorefiend's Grasp25%Remorseless WinterDesecrated Ground75%

Major glyphs

  • Glyph of Icy Touch100%
  • Glyph of Anti-Magic Shell50%
  • Glyph of Regenerative Magic25%
  • Glyph of Strangulate25%

Minor glyphs

  • Glyph of Resilient Grip100%
  • Glyph of Death's Embrace75%
  • Glyph of the Long Winter50%
  • Glyph of Horn of Winter25%

Gold, what most of the top players take (with its rank); the rest shows the share of players who take it.

Secondary stat split

  1. 1. PvP Power 31%
  2. 2. Critical Strike 24%
  3. 3. Haste 17%
  4. 4. Mastery 12%
  5. 5. Expertise 9%
  6. 6. Hit 7%

Most socketed gems

  • 475%Bold Primordial Ruby+160 Strength
  • 225%Tense Imperial Amethyst+80 Strength and +80 PvP Power
  • 150%Skillful Vermilion Onyx+80 Strength and +160 Mastery
  • 100%Reverberating Primal Diamond+216 Strength and 3% Increased Critical Effect
  • 50%Bold Serpent's Eye+320 Strength
  • 50%Fierce Vermilion Onyx+80 Strength and +160 Haste

Gear by slot

  • Main hand

    • Grievous Gladiator's Decapitatorilvl 522 · 25%
    • Grievous Gladiator's Greatswordilvl 522 · 25%

    ✦ Rune of the Fallen Crusader (100%)

  • Trinket

    • Grievous Gladiator's Insignia of Victoryilvl 522 · 75%

  • Head

    • Grievous Gladiator's Dreadplate Helmilvl 522 · 25%

  • Neck

    • Grievous Gladiator's Choker of Proficiencyilvl 522 · 25%

  • Shoulders

    • Grievous Gladiator's Dreadplate Shouldersilvl 522 · 25%

    ✦ +200 Strength and +100 Critical Strike (75%)

  • Back

    • Grievous Gladiator's Cloak of Alacrityilvl 522 · 25%
    • Grievous Gladiator's Cloak of Prowessilvl 522 · 25%

    ✦ Swordguard Embroidery (50%)

  • Chest

    • Grievous Gladiator's Dreadplate Chestpieceilvl 522 · 25%

    ✦ +80 All Stats (100%)

  • Wrists

    • Grievous Gladiator's Armplates of Proficiencyilvl 522 · 25%

    ✦ +180 Strength (75%)

  • Hands

    • Grievous Gladiator's Dreadplate Gauntletsilvl 522 · 75%

    ✦ +170 Strength (100%)

  • Waist

    • Grievous Gladiator's Girdle of Accuracyilvl 522 · 25%

  • Legs

    • Grievous Gladiator's Dreadplate Legguardsilvl 522 · 75%

    ✦ +285 Strength and +165 Critical Strike (100%)

  • Feet

    • Grievous Gladiator's Warboots of Crueltyilvl 522 · 50%
    • Grievous Gladiator's Warboots of Alacrityilvl 522 · 25%

    ✦ +140 Mastery & Minor Speed Increase (75%)

  • Ring

    • Grievous Gladiator's Signet of Crueltyilvl 522 · 25%

Abilities

  • Gorefiend's GraspShadowy tendrils coil around all enemies within 20 yards of a target (hostile or friendly), pulling them to the target's location.Key talent of the specialization.
  • Remorseless WinterSurrounds the Death Knight with a swirling tempest of frigid air for 8 sec, chilling enemies within 8 yards every 1 sec. Each pulse reduces targets' movement speed by 15% for 3 sec, stacking up to 5 times. Upon receiving a fifth application, an enemy will be stunned for 6 sec.Key talent of the specialization.
  • Desecrated GroundCorrupts the ground in a 8 yard radius beneath the Death Knight for 10 sec. While standing in this corruption, the Death Knight is immune to effects that cause loss of control. This ability instantly removes such effects when activated.Key talent of the specialization.

Strategy

1What you do

Your job: deal damage from behind the target while watching your threat and staying out of the cleave.

  • Wait for the tank's threat before attacking: in Classic, pulling aggro early is the most common melee death.
  • Use your interrupts and stuns on the casters the raid leader assigns you.

2Mistakes to avoid

  • Tunnelling the boss while ignoring the adds that must die first.
  • Pulling threat off the tank: in Classic, threat is slow to build and a dead damage dealer deals no damage.
  • Running out of consumables: potions, flasks and food are part of the build in Classic raids.
  • Ignoring crowd control assignments: sheep, sap and fear the packs you are asked to, and don't break them.

Tips

  • Reach the hit cap for your content before stacking other stats.
  • Spend your talent points in the order of this guide and only change the rows the content asks for.
  • Hit rating comes first until you reach the cap for your content: missed spells and swings are wasted damage.
  • Bring weapon enhancements and buff food to every raid.

Changelog

  1. Guide created for patch 5.5.4.

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