Class hotfixes (datamined · unofficial)

Forever Assist commentary

Paladins took the biggest shake-up. Positions, rank counts and prerequisites changed in all three trees at once, so any talent plan made during name reservation needs a fresh look. Protection gets Redoubt at 30% for far more frequent blocks, while each Holy Shield hit deals less. The weight shifts toward surviving on block count and building threat, which arguably makes Prot steadier as a 5-player tank.

Feral Druids trade Berserk for a Primal Bite and Lacerate core, adding threat tools for bear tanking, and Restoration gets a clearer roll-then-burst HoT flow with Bloom and the new Swiftmend. Mages get Ice Lance at 300% but with an 8-second cooldown, ending freeze-and-spam Ice Lance play. Arcane Blast is easier on mana while leveling but hits a little softer. Shadow Priests should save Shadow Word: Death for finishing blows.

None of this was explained by Blizzard in a post; it was found in game data, so intent and exact numbers should be re-checked once official notes appear. Paladins and Druids in particular should rework their builds on the new trees before re-spec costs kick in after the Nov 4 launch.

Forever Assist commentary

Hunters see Aspect of the Hawk and Trueshot Aura cut nearly in half. Since Trueshot Aura became raid-wide the group-level loss is smaller, but solo leveling Hunters will clearly feel less damage. Protection Warriors go the other way: Revenge now scales with gear, so their threat improves as they gear up.

Mages get Precision widened to all spells, making hit easier to cover in Arcane-heavy builds, and the path to Combustion in Fire gets shorter. These are data changes with no official explanation, so they may still move before launch.