Alterac Valley Strategy - Part Two

In my previous AV strategy guide I discussed basic Horde strategy. Now I’m going to take a step back and give you a basic idea of what you should be doing based on your class in AV. Surprisingly many people don’t really know what they should be doing and you see people running around like insane monkeys.

As I mentioned in my previous blog I have a lot of experience in AV but I don’t claim to be the best AV player or strategist. This is just a guide for people who might be new to AV or may be looking to improve their game slightly.

Druid: Our furry friends: doppelgangers with no identity of their own!

On offense and defense you function exactly like a Warrior and Rogue if you’re feral. You function like a priest if you’re restoration. You function like a mage if you’re balance. See the appropriate entries for additional details.

One thing to note, because you’re one of the few classes that can increase its run speed; take it upon yourself to kite mobs that need to be kited. This includes Ivus and marshals.

Hunter: Our much-maligned class functions like a surgical sniper.

Offense: On offense find a cozy nook, preferably high up and difficult to get to and pick off cloth wearers and healers. Sick your pet on a healer. I do not exaggerate when I say a single skilled hunter can determine the entire outcome of an offensive push. Use multi-shot to grab mobs guarding graveyards and kite them while your team mates cap the graveyard. Never “play fair”. If someone starts DPSing you use FD and run into a crowd of allies where you will probably not be targeted. Ignore warriors, druids in bear form, and paladins unless they are the only target available or causing serious havoc.

Like a druid your job is to kite things that need to be kited. Also, mark things that need to be focus fired.

Defense: You can really shine on defense as well. Again, prioritize soft targets over hard targets and sick your pet on healers. Keep your multi-shot up in case the flag gets overwhelmed. Use multi-shot to buy time before the GY flag caps. Try and position yourself in a hidden nook and kill Alliance one by one.

Mage: Your job is to kill, kill, kill.

Offense: On offense you nuke your opponents. Try and sheep healers and blast any target that presents itself. Keep blink up in case the line has to withdraw and you have to escape. One tactic that you see from time to time is the Arcane Explosion bomb where you rush into the opposing line and AE like crazy. This is very ineffective if you are alone… if you can get 2 or 3 mages to go with you however… it can be nearly unstoppable.

Defense: Be more selective with your targeting. CC hard targets and nuke softer targets. Your job on D is similar to your job on O.

Paladin: AFK please if you think you’re DPS.

Offense: On offense you should be healing. I have, on numerous occasions, sat in my fixed position shooting cloth wearers while an opposing paladin was beating on me just ignoring him... freeze trap, bandage… repeat until my allies pull the Pally off me or the Alliance line forces me to move from my position. Your DPS is truly pathetic. Please heal.

When assaulting graveyards it is nice for you bubble, grab the mobs and pull them back to the Offensive line.

Defense: Again, heal. Heal! A paladin who heals is, quite possibly, one of the most irritating things to deal with in AV because you can’t kill THEM and you can’t kill the person they’re healing.

Use your bubble to buy time when a graveyard is being overrun and smack everyone trying to cap it. Maybe you can buy enough time for your teammates to res.

Priest: Heal bitch heal!

Offense: I’ve seen a skilled priest single-handedly be responsible for keeping an entire offense up and running through well placed heals. Healing in AV is enormously important and turns the tide of battles. Stay in a group at all times and do your best to keep everyone up. If you’re shadow, you’re a mage/warlock… see their entries for details. Do not be afraid to be vocal about telling your allies to stay within range of your heals if they expect to get any. Do not go out of your way to heal someone who pushes too far ahead.

Defense: Again, heal you allies and stay back. Use your fear to keep people off flags. If you’re shadow, again, you’re a mage/warlock.

Rogue: You are not a tank

Offense: The versatility of the rogue is incredible in AV. Unfortunately I so often see that marvelous versatility go unrealized as idiotic rogue after idiotic rogue dies because they believe they are a tank.

Lurk behind the Alliance defensive line and pick off wounded who fall back and healers. Try and keep vanish up and don’t be afraid to let a target go if too much attention is being drawn to you. It is better to live and kill someone else than go through the process of reacquiring good positioning behind the line after you res.

Whenever possible ninja graveyards.

If you can form a team of 3-5 rogues who work in conjunction as a surgical strike team you can be the most feared force on the battlefield. I’ve seen a team like this cause complete disruption in the alliance defense to the point where it is completely ineffectual.

Defense: Generally the rogue’s place is on offense. However, when D is short, and it often is, rogues find themselves on D. If this is the case spend your time sapping behind the approaching alliance offense and nailing soft targets.

Shaman: You CAN heal. It’s probably not on your hotbar… but you do have the power.

Offense: The strongest roll of a Shaman is as a healer and fixed position defender. Heal the DPS and lay down totems near the offenses current point of attack. Of course you want to blast everything but really… you’re far more effective with your totems than without and the nature of PvP in AV is very fluid… and totems that you aren’t near = wasted mana.

If the O has just captured a GY and you’re waiting for it to come under Horde control your class is one of the ideal defenders.

Defense: As with offense, defend your fixed position. Healing is your ideal roll because you’re more durable than other healers (except paladins). Use your totems to make graveyards more difficult to assault.

Offense: You guessed it. Kill stuff! A succubus is nice to charm opposing healers but that depends on the situation. Choose an available target and DOT him up. If he stays around for you to nuke… fine… kill him. If he runs away, don’t bother chasing him. You put him out of the action. Start dealing with someone else.

Defense: A succubus is, again, very valuable in shutting down opposing healers. Felguards are, however, always nice to add that extra scary beast for the O to deal with. Of course, like O, you should nuke the hell out of the opposing offense.

Warrior: You are not a rogue!

Offense: The strongest roll a warrior can play is to rush into the opposing line, intimidating shout, snare whoever he can, and let his allies do the killing. No need to stay focused on one target unless there are no others available. Snare, shield bash, do whatever scary thing comes to mind to disrupt the opposition. Hopefully you have a healer available… if not… what else is new?

Defense: Patience is a virtue. Stay back. Do NOT rush into the opposing offensive line. Wait till they come to you and THEN pull out your tricks. If you get too far away from your allies you will be easily Focus Fired down. Your longevity can help you keep flags from being capped and buy you some time to res reinforcements.

There you have it. Those are the blanket class rolls in AV. Although it may seem basic I see far too many classes “misbehaving” in AV so I can only assume the basics are not known.

Tagged with: Alterac Valley, Druid, Hunter, Mage, Paladin, Priest, PvP, Rogue Warlock, Shaman, Startegy, Warrior, World of Warcraft