The 39 Class Tier List

DigitalChemyst

DigitalChemyst

Grandfathered
Everything expressed in this post is simply my OPINION™, based on my observations in the 39 bracket. Also most of the class/specs I list have an armory linked to them, so click on them!

*This is current as of patch 8.1.0, and I will try to update for BfA and beyond.

TIER 1 (GODMODE)
Marksmanship Hunter
Mistweaver Monk
Arcane Mage
Balance Druid
Discipline Priest
Fury Warrior

TIER 2 (VERY GOOD)
Shadow Priest
Survival Hunter
Restoration Druid
Restoration Shaman
Retribution Paladin
Subtlety/Outlaw Rogue

TIER 3 (Competitive in the hands of an experienced & geared player)
Beastmaster Hunter
Feral Druid
Elemental/Enhancement Shaman
Windwalker Monk
Fire/Frost Mage
Affliction/Destruction/Demonology Warlock
Arms Warrior
Holy Paladin
Assassin Rogue

TIER 4 (Why Bother?)
Protection Warrior
Protection Paladin
Guardian Druid
Brewmaster Monk

So a quick breakdown of what each tier means:

Tier 1 are busted solo & group monsters, able to take on multiple players with ease while laughing at their pathetic attempts to tickle them to death.
Tier 2 are solid choices that are highly competitive for solo & group play.
Tier 3 are for those players who like to challenge themselves by playing class/spec combinations that are thoroughly rewarding for those who take the time to properly gear & learn them. Because of this, there is generally not a noticeable difference in power level between tier 2 & 3.
Tier 4 are for those who love to smash their keyboards in fits of fury as they continually die in battlegrounds without ever killing a single player.

All in all, if you are looking for a fun bracket to start the XPoff lifestyle in, 39's are it!

*Also keep in mind, this list is not designed for you to pick Flavor of the Month (FotM) specs, it is designed to give general awareness of class/spec performance within the bracket.
 
Last edited:
Adeimantus said:
I think you underrate MW, especially if ret makes the very good list. At the very least MW shouldn't be in a tier with specs that are so bad you can't even find the profile of some masochist to provide as an exemplar lmao.
Click to expand...

Agreed, MWs are the sleeper healers of 39s right now. I play a terrible MW, and my first outing at 39 saw me pulling off clutch plays and posting solid numbers.

@DigitalChemyst this will come across as a nitpick, but I think it could really help to retitle the tiers one level up i.e. (perhaps) S-tier, tier 1, tier 2, tier 3. While those familiar with 39s will understand the distinctions you want to make between groups of classes, it could mislead newcomers to think of (for example) balance druids as "only" tier 2.

@Chops while those looking for FotM classes may pounce on fury warriors and disc priests, I think it says a lot about the bracket's current state (once disc gets nerfed and shadow gets buffed) that such an influx wouldn't offer much cause for worry. Anytime I queue up and see 6+ fury warriors on the other side, I know my chances to win that game just cleared 90%.
 
I think the MW placement is justified, its a difficult class to play imo, i'm not very good at it and trying to learn it, but it is one of those classes that seems hard to play vs the hard melee cleave like warriors...

I might be wrong, but MW is SUPER Strong, its just hard to play like i said.
 
So, imo Tier 4 should be a Tier 5.
The third tier is way too variable in terms of power.
TIER 1 (GODMODE)
Fury Warrior
Discipline Priest

TIER 2 (VERY GOOD)
Arcane Mage
Marksmanship/Survival Hunter
Balance/Restoration Druid
Restoration Shaman
Outlaw Rogue
Retribution Paladin

TIER 3 (Competitive in the hands of an experienced & geared player)
Beastmaster Hunter
Feral Druid
Shadow/Holy Priest
Elemental/Enhancement Shaman
Windwalker/Mistweaver Monk
Fire/Frost Mage
Affliction/Destruction/Demonology Warlock
Arms Warrior
Holy Paladin
Subtlety/Assassin Rogue
Click to expand...

Actual Tier 3 should incl:
BM, Feral, Shadow, MW, HPal, Sub/Ass Rogue

Then Tier 4 should incl:
Warlock, Fire/Frost, WW, Ele/Enh Sham, Holy Priest, Arms

Discuss?
 
I dont think you've seen a competent Lock, they actually PUMP damage right now, in a wargame/arena setting they do a ton of dmg, their dots are pretty crazy as aff.

Again, might be wrong, but this is my experience
 
Sail said:
I dont think you've seen a competent Lock, they actually PUMP damage right now, in a wargame/arena setting they do a ton of dmg, their dots are pretty crazy as aff.

Again, might be wrong, but this is my experience
Click to expand...

You're not wrong it's just maybe 2 people I've seen locks be effective. I mean shit, I've seen a 36 Warlock top meters against 39 squads on either side. I guess we just don't know how they fare in WGs, whether its padding, confirming kills, or actually pressuring the healers. We all know the Boom/Spriest meta absolutely rolled a Fury team, maybe its time for dot comps. If you roll a warlock, expect to get trained. In my suggested tiers, it'd be a toss up between 3 and 4 but it does feel bad putting them in there with Frost Mages etc. Also, Holy Priest will be at least T2 in 8.1 so there's that.
 
Enno said:
So, imo Tier 4 should be a Tier 5.
The third tier is way too variable in terms of power.

Actual Tier 3 should incl:
BM, Feral, Shadow, MW, HPal, Sub/Ass Rogue

Then Tier 4 should incl:
Warlock, Fire/Frost, WW, Ele/Enh Sham, Holy Priest, Arms

Discuss?
Click to expand...

This is a great question, and I'd argue against splitting off tier 3 specs just yet. While there are some I haven't seen in action e.g. sub/ass rogue, ele/enh shaman, frost mage, I've witnessed stellar examples of others. I'll take a good feral, fire mage, WW, aff lock and especially @Haaveilija 's holy priest any day over a fresh tier 1.

Some specs definitely perform better than others, but I wouldn't be ready to relegate any spec besides tank specs to the basement.
 
Enno said:
So, imo Tier 4 should be a Tier 5.
The third tier is way too variable in terms of power.


Actual Tier 3 should incl:
BM, Feral, Shadow, MW, HPal, Sub/Ass Rogue

Then Tier 4 should incl:
Warlock, Fire/Frost, WW, Ele/Enh Sham, Holy Priest, Arms

Discuss?
Click to expand...

There's def a big spread in that group, I agree with most of that T3 being better than T4. My question - is holy priest actually bad? I honestly have no idea, but it seems like it'd be alright. Serenity's great, chastise is nice. It probably does deserve a not disc tax moving it down a tier though.

Geekz said:
Shadow priest is tier 2 until the shadow form nerfs go through.
Click to expand...

Yeah, Shadow's awesome. Idk if you can call it a nerf coming either, they're getting Focused Will to make up for losing the Shadowform DR. Solid trade since you actually use void form at this level. It might end up with Dispersion too since there's gonna be a T2 talent for it.
 
@Swoops that form change is pretty null like you said.

But the juicy news is:

Mind Sear 4% sp buff.
PW:S 30% cost reduction.
Void Bolt generates +4 more insanity; 16 to 20.
Void Form 10% sp dmg buff; 10% to 20%.
Focused Will coming to shadow.
Dispersion coming to Lv 28 (6s duration);
15% damage reduction buff; 60% to 75%
Increase movement speed by 50%
Immune to movement impairs​
Intangibility talent replacing Mania at Lv30;
50% heal over 6sec, 30s reduced CD​

[doublepost=1542138611,1542138570][/doublepost]Why do I feel like I'm screaming 'shadow is gonna be broke' every day. Enjoy Mania before it's gone @Geekz.
 
Last edited:
Enno said:
So, imo Tier 4 should be a Tier 5.
The third tier is way too variable in terms of power.


Actual Tier 3 should incl:
BM, Feral, Shadow, MW, HPal, Sub/Ass Rogue

Then Tier 4 should incl:
Warlock, Fire/Frost, WW, Ele/Enh Sham, Holy Priest, Arms

Discuss?
Click to expand...

I think arms is tier 3. It has mw effect and some pretty decent burst potentional, it just gets overlooked/sees the play levels of some of those other meme specs because it's not fury.
 
This is true, but you can pick up the MW debuff in other ways. For wg or stacked Warrior comps, I would suggest an Arms playstyle but the survivability and RNG burst isn't as big. Damage is definitely there though. T3 would be a safe spot for them too.
 
Enno said:
This is true, but you can pick up the MW debuff in other ways. For wg or stacked Warrior comps, I would suggest an Arms playstyle but the survivability and RNG burst isn't as big. Damage is definitely there though. T3 would be a safe spot for them too.
Click to expand...

Yep I think I’d rather have a surv hunter over an arms warrior. Better mobility, cc, and spread pressure.
 
Kirise said:
Agreed, MWs are the sleeper healers of 39s right now. I play a terrible MW, and my first outing at 39 saw me pulling off clutch plays and posting solid numbers.

@DigitalChemyst this will come across as a nitpick, but I think it could really help to retitle the tiers one level up i.e. (perhaps) S-tier, tier 1, tier 2, tier 3. While those familiar with 39s will understand the distinctions you want to make between groups of classes, it could mislead newcomers to think of (for example) balance druids as "only" tier 2.
Click to expand...

I'll keep that in mind when I update the guide after the new patch. For me personally I find "S" tier, or any other letter to be confusing, which is why I chose just pure numbers. If anything, I would go by the tier descriptions more than that tier title itself.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Top