Intro
Originally, hunters were designed to be played as a ranged class and the legitimacy of a hunter in the melee role was rarely considered. However, with a game that has been dissected for over a decade this dated notion has now been disregarded. It's crucial to remember your melee journey demands a large amount of effort for players to recognise. Painting yourself in the most positive light possible will have lasting results. See Video to learn more.
Being attentive and well mannered will have positive ripple effects later on. You want as much working for you as possible. If done properly, you’ll be known as not only a skilled Hunter but a proficient Melee Hunter who goes above and beyond expectations.
Video: Melee Hunter - Best Races? - Video Explanation
The Horde faction is incomparably better than the Alliance mostly due to Windfury Totem which contributes greatly to our damage. The Horde faction will be our focus. Sadly, Tauren don't have any racial damage benefits. Troll have Berserking and excel on ~45 seconds fights & Orc have Blood Fury excelling on longer fights. To learn more about race options, see the Video.
PetsVideo: Melee Hunter - What Pet? - Youtube
A pet contributes a decent amount to our general damage. But, if you don’t cater to the survival of a pet it will be a detriment to your DPS. Therefore, it’s not only advised to move out of the “giant fire” on the ground but also manage the position of a pet. Those who master this notion, should consider investing into buffs for their pet. In terms of damage, the pet family: "Cat", come in first place but more specifically Broken Tooth who has a unique 1.0 second attack speed.
Video: Melee Hunter - Which Professions?
Engineering for: Gnomish Battle Chicken, Goblin Sapper Charge, Goblin Jumper Cables XL among many other items. As a second profession, pick an easy or high gold generating one, this helps you buy powerful potions.
Video: Melee Hunter - Buffs
There's a max of 32 Buffs, avoid nearing the max as it may result in Buffs getting mistakenly removed, the addon: Buff Cap Tracker helps. Use Buff Cap Calc to see what Buffs stack. Being in melee leads to a higher chance of dying, so get a few Buffs to bolster your survival. A max of 16 Debuffs can be on a mob, Faerie Fire and other armor reducing debuffs are the most influential.
Phantom of the Wing ClipThe basic spell Wing Clip performs a “Phantom Strike”, which causes a melee swing but no actual damage is dealt but it will still trigger effects that require a melee swing to activate, ex: Windfury Totem among others.
VIdeo: Melee Hunter - How to gear? - Video Explanation
We gear similarly to a traditional ranged hunter. It’s possible to play as a ranged hunter and get Melee Hunter gear without anyone noticing. Here's an example of a Melee Hunter gear set in Phase5. General Stat Priority: Dual-Wield Melee Hit Cap (12%) > Agility > Strength/Attack Power > Intellect. General Stat Priority: Dual-Wield Melee Hit Cap (12%) > Agility > Strength/Attack Power > Intellect.
Enchants are tailored the same way as the gearing process. See the list of Enchants to learn more.
Video: Melee Hunter - Best Talents?
- Short Fights: (31/0/21) Mostly for ~2min fights. It's crucial to keep you pet alive for as long as possible. If this is not feasible, consider the next setup.
- Support: (0/31/20) Typically, this setup is for a guild’s progression through a raid. You will likely be put in a group with damage dealing Warriors. You might also be asked to equip Nightfall for the first ~30 seconds of a fight.
- Anti-Pet Fights/Long Fights: (21/0/30) The setup solution for a pet dying for whatever reason and +2min fights. But requires gear from AQ to unlock its potential. Also, ideal for fights where keeping a distance is sometimes necessary.
Video: Melee Hunter - Rotation
- Pre Pull: Before the fight starts, make sure you and your pet get the most buffs out there in the world. Buffs will slowly start to countdown, so be sure to Log Out to keep their duration and log back into the game when the raid is ready. In terms of Hunter Aspects, use Aspect of the Monkey, if the fight has moments when you cannot go in melee than instead use Aspect of the Hawk. If the fight requires attacking targets that have distance between each other use Aspect of the Cheetah to reach the next target faster.
- Pulling: Summon your pet and ask the Raid for the few remaining buffs.
- Pulling-Situational: If it’s required to keep a distance for a few seconds either at the start or later in a fight, equip Primal Blessing and Hurricane, cast Rapid Fire and get as many ranged auto-attacks out as possible before being allowed to go into melee. Once you get the Primal Blessing buff, equip all your normal gear and head towards the target.
- Combat: Run towards the mob, use Arcane Shot, use Raptor Strike while pressing Wing Clip. Once you reach the mob, use a trinket, ex: Earthstrike. Spam WG until RS comes of cooldown. Continuously repeat the WG and RS process.
- Combat-Situational: If you accidentally Aggro a target and it’s about to attack you. Use the talent spell Deterrence to enable the possibility to Mongoose Bite, after use Limited Invulnerability Potion (cancels Aggro), after help the tank reposition the mob and go behind its back.
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