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Classes Deathknight Demon hunter Druid Evoker Hunter Mage Monk Paladin Priest Rogue Shaman Warlock Warrior
Class races DK DH Dr Ev Hu Ma Mo Pa Pr Ro Sh Wl Wr
Quests DK DH Dr Ev Hu Ma Mo Pa Pr Ro Sh Wl Wr
Abilities DK DH Dr Ev Hu Ma Mo Pa Pr Ro Sh Wl Wr
Trainers DK DH Dr - Hu Ma Mo Pa Pr Ro Sh Wl Wr
Armor sets DK DH Dr Ev Hu Ma Mo Pa Pr Ro Sh Wl Wr
Useful macros DK DH Dr - Hu Ma Mo Pa Pr Ro Sh Wl Wr
Class Halls DK DH Dr - Hu Ma Mo Pa Pr Ro Sh Wl Wr

This is an article on Paladin abilities. Nearly all of the Paladin's abilities are mana-based and are split into three disciplines.

Holy
Includes all healing spells, supportive seals, and spells.
Protection
Includes spells that protect yourself and others.
Retribution
Includes most damage-related skills.

Trainable abilities

These abilities are available to all Paladins, at the appropriate level, regardless of Talents.

Icon Ability Min Level Tree Description
Spell holy crusaderstrike Spell holy crusaderstrike [Crusader Strike] Starts with Retribution An instant strike that causes 120% weapon damage and grants a charge of Holy Power.
Spell holy righteousfury Judgement 3 Retribution Unleashes the energy of a Seal to judge an enemy for $d Holy damage.
Spell holy righteousnessaura Spell holy righteousnessaura [Seal of Righteousness] 3 Protection Fills the Paladin with holy spirit for 30 min, granting each single-target melee attack (MWS * (0.011 * AP.022 * holy power)) additional Holy damage. Only one Seal can be active on the Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy devotionaura Spell holy devotionaura [Devotion Aura] 5 Protection Gives X additional armor to party and raid members within 40 yards. Players may only have one Aura on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy sealofmight Spell holy sealofmight [Hammer of Justice] 7 Protection Stuns the target for 6 sec.
Inv helmet 96 Inv helmet 96 [Word of Glory] 9 Holy Consumes all Holy Power to heal a friendly target for X per charge of Holy Power.
Ability parry Parry 10 Protection Gives a chance to parry enemy melee attacks.
Spell holy sealoffury Spell holy sealoffury [Righteous Fury] 12 Protection Increases your threat generation while active, making you a more effective tank. Lasts until cancelled.
Spell holy unyieldingfaith Spell holy unyieldingfaith [Hand of Reckoning] 14 Protection Taunts the target to attack you, but has no effect if the target is already attacking you.
Spell holy holybolt Spell holy surgeoflight [Holy Light] 14 Holy Heals a friendly target for X.
Spell holy flashheal Spell holy flashheal [Flash of Light] 16 Holy A quick, expensive heal that heals a friendly target for X.
Spell holy layonhands Spell holy layonhands [Lay on Hands] 16 Holy Heals a friendly target for an amount equal to the Paladin's maximum health and restores X of their mana. If used on self, the Paladin cannot be targeted by Divine Shield, Divine Protection, Hand of Protection, or self-targeted Lay on Hands again for 2 min.
Spell holy excorcism 02 Spell holy excorcism 02 [Exorcism] 18 Holy Causes X Holy damage to an enemy target. If the target is Undead or Demon, it will always critically hit.
Spell holy sealofprotection Spell holy sealofprotection [Hand of Protection] 18 Protection A targeted party or raid member is protected from all physical attacks for 10 sec, but during that time they cannot attack or use physical abilities. Players may only have one Hand on them per Paladin at any one time. Once protected, the target cannot be targeted by Divine Shield, Divine Protection, or Hand of Protection again for 2 min.
Spell magic magearmor Spell magic greaterblessingofkings [Blessing of Kings] 22 Protection Places a Blessing on the friendly target, increasing Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Intellect by 5%, and all magical resistances by (cond($lte(level, 70), level / 2, cond($lte(level, 80), level / 2 + (level) / 2 * 5, level / 2 + (level) / 2 * 5 + (level) / 2 * 7)) - 0.5), for 1 hour. If target is in your party or raid, all party and raid members will be affected. Players may only have one Blessing on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy innerfire Spell holy innerfire [Consecration] 24 Holy Consecrates the land beneath the Paladin, doing (8 * (0 + 0.027 * holy power.027 * AP)) Holy damage over 10 sec to enemies who enter the area.
Spell holy auraoflight Spell holy crusade [Retribution Aura] 26 Retribution Causes X Holy damage to any enemy that strikes a party or raid member within 40 yards. Players may only have one Aura on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy excorcism Spell holy excorcism [Holy Wrath] 28 Holy Sends bolts of holy power in all directions, causing (0.3 * holy power + X) Holy damage divided among all targets within 10 yds and stunning all Demons and Undead for 3 sec.
Spell holy resurrection Spell holy resurrection [Redemption] 28 Holy Brings a dead ally back to life with 35% of maximum health and mana. Cannot be cast when in combat.
Spell holy restoration Spell holy divineprotection [Divine Protection] 30 Protection Reduces all damage taken by 20% for 10 sec.
Spell holy healingaura Spell holy healingaura [Seal of Insight] 32 Holy Fills the Paladin with divine power for 30 min, giving each single-target melee attack a chance to heal the Paladin for (0.15 * AP.15 * holy power) and restore 4% of the paladin's maximum mana. Only one Seal can be active on the Paladin at any one time.
Unleashing this Seal's energy will deal (1 + 0.25 * holy power.16 * AP) Holy damage to an enemy.
Spell holy purify Spell holy purify [Cleanse] 34 Holy Cleanses a friendly target, removing 1 Poison effect and 1 Disease effect.
Inv shoulder 37 Inv shoulder 37 [Righteous Defense] 36 Protection Come to the defense of a friendly target, commanding up to 3 enemies attacking the target to attack the Paladin instead.
Inv chest plate01 Plate Mail 40 General
Spell holy mindsooth Spell holy mindsooth [Concentration Aura] 42 Holy All party or raid members within 40 yards lose 35% less casting or channeling time when damaged. Players may only have one Aura on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy aspiration Inv glove plate raidpaladinmythic q 01 [Divine Plea] 44 Holy You gain 10% of your total mana over 15 sec, but the amount healed by your healing spells is reduced by 50%.
Spell holy sealofvengeance Spell holy sealofvengeance [Seal of Truth] 44 Retribution Fills the Paladin with holy power, causing single-target attacks to Censure the target, which deals ((0.013 * holy power.025 * AP) * 5) additional Holy damage over 15 sec. Censure can stack up to 5 times. Once stacked to 5 times, each of the Paladin's attacks also deals 16% weapon damage as additional Holy damage. Only one Seal can be active on the Paladin at any one time. Lasts 30 min.
Unleashing this Seal's energy will deal (1 + 0.22 * holy power.14 * AP) Holy damage to an enemy, increased by 10% for each application of Censure on the target.
Inv hammer 04 Spell paladin hammerofwrath [Hammer of Wrath] 46 Retribution Hurls a hammer that strikes an enemy for 1254+0.15*holy power.15*AP to 1384+0.15*holy power.15*AP Holy damage. Only usable on enemies that have 20% or less health.
Spell holy divineintervention Spell holy divineshield [Divine Shield] 48 Protection Protects the paladin from all damage and spells for 8 sec, but reduces all damage you deal by 50%. Once protected, the target cannot be targeted by Divine Shield, Divine Protection, or Hand of Protection again for 2 min.
Spell nature enchantarmor Plate Specialization 50 General Grants a 5% increase to your primary attribute for wearing plate in all armor slots.
Increases your primary attribute by 5% while wearing Plate in all armor slots. Holy specialization grants Intellect, Protection specialization grants Stamina, and Retribution specialization grants Strength.
Spell holy sealofvalor Spell holy sealofvalor [Hand of Freedom] 52 Protection Places a Hand on the friendly target, granting immunity to movement impairing effects for 6 sec. Players may only have one Hand on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy greaterblessingofkings Spell holy greaterblessingofkings [Blessing of Might] 56 Retribution Places a Blessing on the friendly target, increasing attack power by 10% and restoring X mana every 5 seconds for 1 hour. If target is in your party or raid, all party and raid members will be affected. Players may only have one Blessing on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy crusaderaura Spell holy crusaderaura [Crusader Aura] 62 Retribution Increases the mounted speed by 20% for all party and raid members within 40 yards. Players may only have one Aura on them per Paladin at any one time. This does not stack with other movement speed increasing effects.
Spell holy surgeoflight Divine Light 62 Holy A large heal that heals a friendly target for X. Good for periods of heavy damage.
Spell holy sealofwrath Spell holy sealofwrath [Seal of Justice] 64 Protection Fills the Paladin with the spirit of justice for 30 min, causing each single-target melee attack to limit the target's maximum run speed for 5 sec and deal (MWS * (0.005 * AP.01 * holy power)) additional Holy damage. Only one Seal can be active on the Paladin at any one time.
Unleashing this Seal's energy will deal (1 + 0.25 * holy power.16 * AP) Holy damage to an enemy.
Spell holy sealofsalvation Spell holy sealofsalvation [Hand of Salvation] 66 Protection Places a Hand on the party or raid member, reducing their total threat by 2% every 1 sec. for 10 sec. Players may only have one Hand on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy avenginewrath Spell holy avenginewrath [Avenging Wrath] 72 Retribution Increases all damage and healing caused by 20% for 20 sec.
Spell fire sealoffire Spell fire sealoffire [Resistance Aura] 76 Protection Gives (cond($lte(level, 70), level, cond($lte(level, 80), level + (level) * 5, level + (level) * 5 + (level) * 7))) additional Fire, Frost and Shadow resistance to all party and raid members within 40 yards. Players may only have one Aura on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy turnundead Ability paladin turnevil [Turn Evil] 78 Holy The targeted undead or demon enemy will be compelled to flee for up to 20 sec. Damage caused may interrupt the effect. Only one target can be turned at a time.
Spell holy sealofsacrifice Spell holy sealofsacrifice [Hand of Sacrifice] 80 Protection Places a Hand on the party or raid member, transfering 30% damage taken to the caster. Lasts 12 sec or until the caster has transfered 100% of their maximum health. Players may only have one Hand on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell holy championsbond Mastery 80 N/A Allows you to benefit from mastery rating. Check your talent overview pane for additional details.
Spell holy symbolofhope Spell holy unyieldingfaith [Inquisition] 81 Retribution Consumes all Holy Power to increase your Holy Damage by 30%. Lasts 4 sec per charge of Holy Power consumed.
Inv jewelry ring 60 Spell paladin divinecircle [Holy Radiance] 83 Holy Heals all friendly targets within 10 yards for X every sec. Lasts 10 sec.
Spell holy heroism Spell holy heroism [Guardian of Ancient Kings] 85 Protection Select a talent specialization in order to activate Guardian of Ancient Kings.

Talent Granted Abilities

Holy

Icon Ability Reqs Description
Spell holy divineillumination Spell holy heal [Divine Favor] Holy 10 Increases your spell casting haste by 20% and spell critical chance by 20% for 20 sec.
Ability Paladin BeaconofLight Ability paladin beaconoflight [Beacon of Light] Holy 15 The target becomes a Beacon of Light to all members of your party or raid within a 60 yard radius. Any heals you cast on party or raid members will also heal the Beacon for 50% of the amount healed. Only one target can be the Beacon of Light at a time. Lasts 1 min.
Spell Holy AuraMastery Spell holy auramastery [Aura Mastery] Holy 20 Causes your Concentration Aura to make all affected targets immune to Silence and Interrupt effects and improve the effect of all other auras by 100%. Lasts 6 sec.
Spell holy holynova Spell paladin lightofdawn [Light of Dawn] Holy 30 Send a wave of healing energy before you, healing yourself and all friendly targets up to 30 yards away.

Protection

Icon Ability Reqs Description
Ability Paladin HammeroftheRighteous Ability paladin hammeroftherighteous [Hammer of the Righteous] Protection 10 Hammer the current target for 30% weapon damage, causing a wave of light that hits all targets within 8 yards for Holy damage. Grants a charge of Holy Power.
Ability paladin shieldofvengeance Ability paladin shieldofvengeance [Shield of the Righteous] Protection 15
Spell holy innerfire [Sanctuary] 3
Slam the target with your shield, causing Holy damage. Consumes all charges of Holy Power to determine damage dealt.
Spell holy powerwordbarrier Spell holy powerwordbarrier [Divine Guardian] Protection 20 All party or raid members, excluding the Paladin, take 20% reduced damage for 6 sec.
Spell holy ardentdefender Spell holy ardentdefender [Ardent Defender] Protection 30 Reduce damage taken by 20% for 10 sec. While Ardent Defender is active, the next attack that would otherwise kill you will instead cause you to be healed for 15% of your maximum health.

Retribution

Icon Ability Reqs Description
Ability Paladin DivineStorm Ability paladin divinestorm [Divine Storm] Retribution 10 An instant attack that causes weapon damage to all enemies within 8 yards. The Divine Storm heals up to 3 party or raid members totaling 25% of the damage caused. Consumes all Holy Power to increase damage dealt.
Spell holy fistofjustice Spell holy rebuke [Rebuke] Retribution 15 Interrupts spellcasting and prevents any spell in that school from being cast for 4 sec.
Spell Holy PrayerOfHealing Spell holy prayerofhealing [Repentance] Retribution 20 Puts the enemy target in a state of meditation, incapacitating them for up to 1 min (6 seconds for PvP). Any damage caused will awaken the target. Usable against Demons, Dragonkin, Giants, Humanoids and Undead.
Spell holy proclaimchampion 02 Spell holy weaponmastery [Zealotry] Retribution 30 Your Crusader Strike generates 3 charges of Holy Power per strike for the next 20 sec. Requires 3 Holy Power to use, but does not consume Holy Power.

Abilities by Type

Auras

Auras are buffs that benefit the Paladin as well as raid and party members within 40 yards. There are a wide variety of Auras, but only one Aura can be activated on the Paladin at any one time. If there are other Paladins in the group, the same Aura's effects do not stack, but different Auras can be used to further strengthen the group. Changing Auras does not cost mana, but does trigger the global cooldown. Therefore it is not feasible to change Auras just to absorb a certain magic school (such as Devotion Aura to Resistance Aura to absorb a single Shadowbolt), then reverting back to the previous one. These Auras are very much support buffs that make grouping easier, but they are not so vital that they are the key factor in determining whether the group will succeed or fail.

The range of your Auras can be increased by an additional 10 yards with the 3-piece bonus from Judgement Armor.
Icon Aura Level Tree Description
Spell Holy DevotionAura Spell holy devotionaura [Devotion Aura] 5 Protection Gives additional armor to party or raid members within 40 yards.
Spell Holy AuraOfLight Spell holy crusade [Retribution Aura] 26 Retribution Causes Holy damage to any enemy that strikes a party or raid member within 40 yards.
Spell Holy MindSooth Spell holy mindsooth [Concentration Aura] 42 Holy All party or raid members within 40 yards lose 35% less casting or channeling time when damaged.
Spell Holy CrusaderAura Spell holy crusaderaura [Crusader Aura] 62 Retribution Increases the mounted speed by 20% for all party and raid members within 40 yards. This does not stack with other movement speed increasing effects.
Spell fire sealoffire Spell fire sealoffire [Resistance Aura] 76 Protection All party or raid members within 40 yards get additional Fire, Frost and Shadow resistance.

Blessings

Paladins have 2 powerful Blessings, which provide 60 minute buffs. Like Auras, only one Blessing can affect a target per Paladin. This means two Paladins cannot cast the same Blessing on a target, but two different Blessings on a target is possible.


Icon Blessing Level Tree Description
Spell Magic MageArmor Spell magic greaterblessingofkings [Blessing of Kings] 22 Protection Places a Blessing on the friendly target, increasing Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Intellect by 5%, and all magical resistances by (cond($lte(level, 70), level / 2, cond($lte(level, 80), level / 2 + (level) / 2 * 5, level / 2 + (level) / 2 * 5 + (level) / 2 * 7)) - 0.5), for 1 hour. If target is in your party or raid, all party and raid members will be affected. Players may only have one Blessing on them per Paladin at any one time.
Spell Holy FistOfJustice Spell holy greaterblessingofkings [Blessing of Might] 56 Retribution Places a Blessing on the friendly target, increasing attack power by 10% and restoring 743 mana every 5 seconds for 1 hour. If target is in your party or raid, all party and raid members will be affected. Players may only have one Blessing on them per Paladin at any one time.

Hands

Hand spells are used in very situational events. When used correctly, these Hand spell effects are very powerful, especially in a Player versus Player environment. Only one Hand spell can be cast per Paladin on a target at any one time.

Icon Aura Level Tree Duration Cooldown Description
Spell holy unyieldingfaith Spell holy unyieldingfaith [Hand of Reckoning] 14 Protection 3 sec 8 sec Taunts the target to attack you, but has no effect if the target is already attacking you.
Spell holy sealofprotection Spell holy sealofprotection [Hand of Protection] 18 Protection 10 sec 5 min A targeted party or raid member is protected from all physical attacks for 10 sec, but during that time they cannot attack or use physical abilities. Once protected, the target cannot be targeted by Divine Shield or Hand of Protection again for 2 min.
Spell Holy SealOfValor Spell holy sealofvalor [Hand of Freedom] 52 Protection 6 sec 25 min Places a Hand on the friendly target, granting immunity to movement impairing effects for 6 sec.
Spell Holy SealOfSalvation Spell holy sealofsalvation [Hand of Salvation] 66 Protection 10 sec 2 min Places a Hand on the party or raid member, reducing their total threat by 2% every 1 sec. for 10 sec.
Spell Holy SealOfSacrifice Spell holy sealofsacrifice [Hand of Sacrifice] 80 Protection 12 sec 2 min Places a Hand on the party or raid member, transfering 30% damage taken to the caster. Lasts 12 sec or until the caster has transfered 100% of their maximum health.

Judgements

Judgement instantly deal damage to an enemy target, and will often trigger secondary effects depending on talent specialization. Judgement cannot be used without an active Seal, and damage dealt is dependent on which seal is active. Judgement has an 8 second cooldown. Since Judgement is a stable of the Paladin's combat system, it is a highly used spell if the Paladin is utilizing melee potential.

Improvements to Judgement

Judgement can be improved by talents in the following ways:

Seals

Seals are Paladin self-buffs that trigger upon melee attacks. They are instant cast and last 30 minutes; only one Seal can be used by the Paladin at a time.

Icon Aura Level Tree Description
Spell Holy RighteousnessAura Spell holy righteousnessaura [Seal of Righteousness] 3 Protection Adds constant Holy damage per swing. The Holy damage dealt by this spell can be increased by up to 12% with [Seals of the Pure].

Note: The additional Holy damage cannot be estimated as it varies depending on weapon speed, attack power and spell power. The in-game tooltip values will change immediately as the Paladin changes weapon.
Adds a constant amount of Holy damage per melee hit on the target. The extra damage may be small at lower levels, but a generous +spell damage coefficient can add a significant amount of damage per melee hit, often doubling melee damage output. This is a standard Seal to use for damage, and is commonly used for tanking at lower levels. Holy damage added by the Seal is normalised across all weapon speeds, with slower weapons adding more Holy damage per hit than faster ones. The benefit from spell power is not constant, but increases with slower weapon speed. Therefore slower weapons gain extra spell damage than fast ones, with a further bonus if the weapon is two-handed instead of one. The extra holy damage cannot crit. Can be superior to Spell holy sealofvengeance [Seal of Vengeance] for shorter fights or PvP, but if given time to stack, Vengeance will outperform Righteousness.

Spell holy healingaura Spell holy healingaura [Seal of Insight] 32 Holy Fills the Paladin with divine power for 30 min, giving each single-target melee attack a chance to heal the Paladin for (0.15 * AP.15 * holy power) and restore 4% of the paladin's base mana. Only one Seal can be active on the Paladin at any one time.

Unleashing this Seal's energy will deal (1 + 0.25 * holy power.16 * AP) Holy damage to an enemy.

Spell Holy SealOfVengeance Spell holy sealofvengeance [Seal of Truth] 44 Retribution Leaves a stacking DoT debuff that deals holy damage and stacks to 5. In addition, deals 16% additional weapon damage as Holy after 5 stacks of the debuff with critical strikes dealling double damage.

This Seal is for PvE Retribution and Protection. It is ideal for tanking, but takes extra time to generate high levels of threat compared to Righteousness. In most fights longer than a few seconds, SoV will deal more damage than SoR. The additional 16% Holy damage from a melee hit on a 5-stack Spell holy eyeforaneye [Censure]-inflicted target can critically hit at melee critical damage, with critical rate equal to the Paladin's melee critical chance.

Spell Holy SealOfWrath Spell holy sealofwrath [Seal of Justice] 64 Protection Causes each melee hit to limit target's move speed to 100% for 5 seconds and cause a minor amount of Holy damage. Seal of Justice is effective in PvP against classes capable of increasing their movement speed through abilities such as Ability rogue sprint [Sprint] or File:Ability Druid TravelForm.png [Travel Form].

Threat Modifiers

Icon Ability Level Tree Description
Spell Holy SealOfFury Spell holy sealoffury [Righteous Fury] 12 Protection A self-buff that lasts until cancelled and increases all threat generated by 200%.
Spell Holy UnyieldingFaith Spell holy unyieldingfaith [Hand of Reckoning] 14 Protection Cast it on an enemy, forcing it to attack you for three seconds.

A very useful tool for pulling due to its 30 yard range, and a paladin's only single-target taunt that does not rely on the enemy targeting something else.

INV Shoulder 37 Inv shoulder 37 [Righteous Defense] 36 Protection Cast it on a friendly target, commanding up to 3 enemies to attack you instead.

Righteous Defense is a cost-free, long-range taunt. Similar to warriors' Taunt, Righteous Defense force the mobs to attack you for three seconds regardless of their threat list, at the same time give you the same threat level as the one with the highest threat on their threat list. You can also cast Righteous Defense on an enemy mob, which will taunt the target mob plus two more mobs that are attacking target mob's target.

Abilities by Function

This section is under review for removal.

Protection

Paladins have several protective blessings at their disposal for use on group members: Hand of Protection, which will temporarily protect a member from all physical damage; Hand of Sacrifice, which will send a small part of damage taken from the target player and send it to the paladin unmitigated; Hand of Freedom, which will make the target player immune to movement hampering effects; and Hand of Salvation, which will reduce the threat of the target player.

Tanking

Spell holy sealofvengeance [Seal of Truth] is the preferred seal to use when tanking. It takes a slightly longer time to build up threat than Spell holy righteousnessaura [Seal of Righteousness] but will eventually deal more Holy damage.

Debuffs

Area of Effect & Damage over Time

Paladins have one universal AoE ability: Spell holy innerfire [Consecration]. Spell holy excorcism [Holy Wrath] is another paladin AoE ability (very effective against Undead and Demons). Consecration is also one of two of the Paladin's damage-over-time spells - the other being Holy Vengeance (from Spell holy sealofvengeance [Seal of Truth]).

Direct Damage

Paladins are a melee Hybrid class, with no ability to use ranged weapons. They deal direct damage with weapons and also have damaging spells such as Exorcism, Holy Wrath and Holy Shock. There are various Seals, which deals holy damage with melee strike. When a Seal is active, Judgement spells can be used to do an amount of direct damage and apply a specific debuff to the mobs. Hammer of Wrath is a ranged spell usable on targets under 20% health and is instant cast; if the target heals or regenerates above 20% health at any time - even if the projectile is in flight - the spell will be cancelled.

Most of the paladin's damage is done within melee range. There are four paladin ranged attacks: Spell holy searinglight [Holy Shock] (31-point Holy talent), Spell holy avengersshield [Avenger's Shield] (41-point Protection talent), Spell paladin hammerofwrath [Hammer of Wrath] (only usable against targets under 20% health) and Spell holy excorcism 02 [Exorcism]. Ability paladin enlightenedjudgements [Enlightened Judgements] increases the range of the Judgement spells by up to 30 yards.

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