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In Phase One forWoWSeason of DiscoveryShadow Priests (the Priest DPS spec) were really not in a good place. Theirdamage output was severely lacking, but smart players knew to be patient and hold out until Phase Two, when abilities like Shadowform would become available.
Now that Phase Two is here, and a max level of 40 is attainable, Shadow Priests are doing extremely well. With Shadowform, and several buffs to the best Priest SoD Runes, they regularly find themselves topping DPS charts in Gnomeregan. Movement isn’t an issue, either, because the spec is almost entirely based on DoT spells. This guide goes overwhat the best SoD Priest Runes arefor each slot, and why they are so beneficial to a chart-topping Shadow Priest build.
Homunculi Effect
Arguably one of the most unique Runes in the Season of Discovery,Homunculi Runeis a Priest Rune that creates three small copies of yourself. Called “my children” or “the mini-mes” by some community members, these three Homunculi will attack your target and reduce their AP, Armor, and Attack Speed.
They don’t have a lot of HP, but the effect is pretty useful for all endgame content in SoD. It’s not only one of the funniest Runes – especially when the Homunculi die – it’s also the source of great debuffs for PvP and PvE both.
Void Plague Effect
The recipient of several buffs throughout SoD,Void Plague Runehas turned into a powerhouse of a DoT spell. It’s an instant cast ability that puts a DoT on the target, dealing Shadow Damage every three seconds for 18 seconds. In Phase One, its damage output was pretty abysmal, but with severalupdates it’s become incredibly strong.
Void Plague should be a regular part of your damage rotation as a Shadow Priest. The amount of damage it can do on a six second cooldown (which means you’re able to rotate between three targets and maintain the DoT), is pretty hard to match.
Shadow Word: Death Effect
Shadow Word: Death Runeis the Shadow Priest’s most iconic Execute ability, brought to SoD as a Gloves Rune. It deals an enormous amount of Shadow damage to the target instantly, but if that target isn’t killed by Shadow Word: Death, the caster willtake a chunk of damage in reciprocation.
On a 10 second cooldown, and with the amount of HP recovery available to Shadow Priests (like Vampiric Embrace), it’s not necessarily an ability that’s guaranteed to kill you in retaliation. Though it’s great for finishing trash fights faster, there’s no reason not to “spam” this towards the end of a Boss fight to up your DPS, as long as you can stay alive.
Mind Spike Effect
Mind Spike Runeis, for all intents and purposes, a better version of Mind Flay. Instead of being a Channeled ability that can be interrupted or pushed back, it’s an Instant-cast. Instead of slowing the target (which isn’t that useful in PvE), it increases the Critical Hit chance of Mind Blast by 30%, stacking three times. Instead of just dealing Shadow Damage, it deals both Shadow and Frost damage.
It’s difficult to pick any Rune over such a core ability for a Shadow Priest’s rotation. Mind Blast is already a powerful skill for the spec, and this Rune makes that better while also providing a new Instant Cast. With the amount of moving required in Gnomeregan, too, Instants are much more useful than Channeled abilities in SoD.
Dispersion Effect
TheDispersion Runeis the best Boots Rune for Shadow Priests because it’s one of the very few ways that the Priest class canregenerate Mana easily in SoD. When Dispersed, all incoming damage is nearly nullified, and you become immune to movement-impairing effects. It can also be castduringthese effects, canceling them and allowing freedom of movement. However, you can’t cast any spells or attack.
Dispersion lasts for six seconds, during which you regenerate 6% mana every second, for a total of 36% base Mana. Though you may lose DPS uptime, it’s worth it to regain Mana and launch yourself back into the action. Because you already won’t be able to do anything under its effects, consider casting Dispersion during mechanics where casters are forced to move, like for Electrocutioner 6000 in Gnomeregan.
