History Characters / WarcraftPlayerCharcters

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A character subpage for ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft''. For the main character page, see [[Characters/{{Warcraft}} here]].

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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/adventurers.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"All right, gear check, everyone."'']]

Like any game, the playable characters in WOW have their own tropes as well. It must be pointed out that certain tropes apply only to playing your character in certain ways. It should also be pointed out that Blizzard had been blurring lines between good and evil in many occasions and some tropes may apply to certain situations more subjectively than others.

Please DO NOT add any alignment tropes due to the game being a sandbox {{RPG}} game.

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[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Generic]]
* ActionGirl: When female.
* ActionHero: Most of the time
%%* AnAdventurerIsYou
* {{Ambadassador}}: You are the representation of your nation and your homeland in Azeroth.
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority: Through the PVP system, you can gain ranks from Private to Grand Marshal in the Alliance and Grunt to High Warlord in the Horde, depending on your number of victories in Rated Battlegrounds. It was [[UpToEleven even more so before]], when to gain the highest ranks you had to have the largest amount of honor at the end of a week, and then you had to keep killing ''just so you could keep it''.
** And then in ''Warlords of Draenor'', you're made Commander of a garrison in Draenor. After the garrison is completely upgraded, you're promoted to the rank of General.
** In ''Legion'', the Alliance and Horde get wrecked by the Burning Legion. Whatever forces remain decide to fight each other instead of the Legion to the point of lethal stupidity. Because of this, most of the neutral class factions cut ties with the major factions and because of your legacy and credentials, they all unanimously agree that you should be the one in charge, making you the de-facto leader of your ''entire class''.
* BackFromTheDead: Which is one of the reasons why the players could [[WeDoTheImpossible overcome anything]]: [[PunctuatedForEmphasis THEY. JUST. CAN'T. DIE.]]
** This point is noted by Illidan during the Demon Hunter starting experience if [[spoiler: the player commits suicide to open a portal. He notes that they had an immortal soul, just like his.]]
* BackToBackBadasses: When two of you team up.
* BadAssArmy: Armies of Legionfall, that is conformed by the members of all class orders.
* BadassBookworm: Mages and Warlocks.
* BadassCape: Most of the capes in end game are elaborately woven and are often knee-length.
* BadassCrew: When you team up for a dungeon or a raid.
* BadassLongRobe: For casters most of the times.
* BaldOfAwesome: There are several bald hairstyles for male player characters, as well as female Orcs.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: You can be a paragon of goodness who helps out orphaned children and old men with mundane tasks, while being responsible for taking the names of some of the most powerful beings in Azeroth.
* BewareTheQuietOnes: The adventurers don't often say much other than handful of written dialogue. They're also part of the reason Azeroth still stands.
* {{BFS}}: Some end game swords are almost as large as your character, yet sometimes you [[OneHandedZweihander wield them with one hand]]
* TheBigGuy: As part of the Alliance's FiveManBand in Pandaria, being the combat expert compared to the rest of the SI:7 operatives.
** Admiral Taylor acts as TheLeader and is in charge, giving the orders.
** Rell Nightwind acts as TheLancer, being in charge of the rest of the SI:7 Operatives and second in command of the team.
** Sully "The Pickle" Mcleary acts as TheSmartGuy, being an explosives and machinery expert.
** Mishka takes the role of TheChick, being a CombatMedic and the more feminine of the two girls on the team.
** Amber Kearnen is [[TheSneakyGuy The Sneaky Girl]] as the team Sniper.
** Little Lu, when he joins the team, becomes the TagalongKid, as well as the local guide.
* {{Bishonen}}: Or {{Bishoujo}} depending on the player's choice of gender if you're blood elven.
* TheChick: Of the Horde's FiveManBand in Pandaria, choosing to ally with the local Hozen rather than fight them.
* TheChosenOne: Questing involves the player fulfilling a variety of prophecies.
* CombatPragmatist: While perhaps particularly applying to the Rogue class, several others involve decidedly unfair tactics, and quests can involve some rather unscrupulous methods to achieve victory.
* CommandingCoolness: The adventurer is made commander of a garrison in Draenor, in Shadowmoon Valley for the Alliance and in Frostfire Ridge for the Horde.
* CurbStompBattle: Most of the times, except for raid boss fights.
* CutsceneIncompetence: Occasionally crops up, though is sometimes more justified by facing off against a particularly powerful enemy.
* DamagerHealerTank: Classes are able to choose a talent after level 10 which fits in one of these categories.
* TheDreaded: The exploits of Azeroth's heroes are so astounding that [[spoiler:Alternate Gul'dan actually ''abandons his plans to defect from the Legion'', after realising that would leave him all alone against a whole planet of the same heroes who slew Archimonde.]] Yes, villains are now being characterised as fearing the players.
* DudeWheresMyRespect: Occasionally played straight as expansions go on, but mostly averted. At the beginning of the Northrend campaign your skills in battle are acknowledged by several {{Non Player Character}}s. By the time you reach ''Mists of Pandaria'' you're personally sent to Pandaria as part of an elite team by your faction, and in ''Warlords of Draenor'' you're hand picked by Varian/Vol'jin to lead forces in Draenor, and are openly regarded as the best chance the Alliance/Horde have of defeating the Iron Horde. In ''Legion'' your accomplishments are widely acknowledged and you're promoted to the leader of your class in recognition of your power and skills.
* EscapedFromHell: In Stormheim, the player character is [[DraggedOffToHell banished to Helheim]] to prevent them from claiming the Aegis of Aggramar. Despite that, they outsmart Helya and free themselves as well as a contingent of Valarjar shieldmaidens. Helya is none too pleased.
* FamedInStory: Lower down the levels your fame is typically smaller and more local in scope. As you progress up the levels and perform more epic feats, you become widely acknowledged as a hero.
** In ''Legion'' [=NPCs=] in your Order Hall tell each other what sound like [[MemeticBadass Chuck Norris facts]] about the player such as killing Ragnaros twice or taking down Deathwing with nothing but a pair of daggers. Notably, they're all ''true''.
* FiveManBand: The maximum number of players in a dungeon group.
* FourStarBadass: By the time your garrison is completely upgraded, Varian or Vol'jin promotes you to the rank of General.
* FrontlineGeneral: As [[CommandingCoolness Commander]] of your garrison in ''Warlords of Draenor'', you spend a lot of time on the front lines crushing opponents while your garrison team work on supporting you. This doesn't change when you reach level 100 and get a promotion to General.
** In Legion you lead a faction consisting of your entire class (Ebon Blade for Death Knights, Earthen Ring for Shamans, etc) but are still fighting on the front lines even more than your own soldiers.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: A heroic variant (Or anti-heroic, or villainous, depending on your class and RP preferences). Most races and classes start as a small time apprentice, and as you quest you gain recognition and reputation. In low level zones, you're a mercenary or just a normal explorer, people don't know your name and sometimes even treat you like a nobody. At high levels, you're considered a champion of your faction, having seen a lifetime of warfare and felled many evils, and are heralded as a savior of Azeroth.
** Notable exceptions are the Death Knight and the Demon Hunter. Death Knights were already noted to be heroes of their respective races before their reanimation, while Demon Hunters invade a demonic world ''as their starting quest line''.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: The game treats Death Knights and Forsaken as Humanoids, since classing them as Undead would lead to an inherent disadvantage in PVP. Similarly, Demon Hunters are "more Demon than Hunter" now in lore, but retain Humanoid classification (until transformed).
* GlacierWaif: Some of the character models (like female Blood Elves and male Trolls) are quite slender. That doesn't stop them from being effective as Death Knights or Warriors.
** Inverted with burly-looking casters such as male Orc Warlocks or male Draenei Mages.
* HeroicComedicSociopath: While ultimately a hero, they will sometimes do things that are morally questionable and clearly only causing trouble not because they were fooled, but because they simply need to do ''something'' to keep busy no matter what it is and that was just the first thing to be offered. Reaches a peak in Cataclysm, they give themselves three separate quests to kill a specific type of enemy the moment they kill ''one'' of it, rationalize it to themselves in a circular manner, and decide to reward themselves for the act.
* HeroicWillpower: This is even an actual ability in certain quests and boss encounters.
* HopeBringer: In some cases, all you need to do is be there to inspire the NPC warriors.
* HypercompetentSidekick: A common feature of questing, though sometimes it gets inverted with the player playing fairly minor roles, or being saved instead.
* InfinityPlusOneSword: In ''Legion'', they get their hands on several artifact weapons of great fame and power to deal with the Burning Legion, like the ''Scythe of Elune'', the ''Ashbringer'', the ''Doomhammer'', and others.
* InTheEndYouAreOnYourOwn: In general, adventurers are Azeroth's last bastion of hope against the various forces threatening it, with the only other faction having an interest in Azeroth's survival being [[NeglectfulPrecursors the powerful, but absent Titans]]. [[spoiler:The Titans have been dead for eons, killed by Sargeras. For all this time, Azeroth's defenders have been the only thing keeping the planet standing.]]
* LivingLegend: By the end of ''Mists of Pandaria'' you'll be really famous, where after having completed the legendary quest you even receive the title of ''Legend of Pandaria'', and it's mentioned that your exploits will be recounted for generations.
* MagneticHero: Several quests even involve inspiring other [=NPCs=] using this.
* MajorInjuryUnderreaction: Unless your HP runs out.
* {{Mana}}: Prior to ''Legion'', all spellcasters in game used this as a main resource. Following, it's primarily used by Mages, Warlocks, and healers.
* TheMedic: For all healing specs.
* MemeticBadass: [[invoked]]Your badassness had been confirmed and often reminded of by {{Non Player Character}}s in game.
* MuggingTheMonster: Many of the [=NPCs=] you encounter will think they stand a chance against you. It doesn't usually work out well for them.
* NamedWeapons: Players could equip named weapons ever since the beginning of ''[=WoW=]'', but ''Legion'' has now brought artifact weapons, which are the only weapons players can get in the entire expansion. Each spec of each class has one, with a name and much legendary background behind it. Upgrading them actually represents a huge chunk of the players' activity in ''Legion''.
* OddFriendship: There's a staggering variety of factions and [=NPCs=] you can befriend, particularly ones that start at Hated or Unfriendly.
* OneManArmy: Except in dungeons and raids, fighting mobs that are elite, or mobs significantly higher than your level.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Particularly when other characters speak voiced dialogue, for obvious reasons. However, even in text you're still often referred to as hero, champion, adventurer, and so on.
* PlayerCharacter: These are the characters that players can choose to play the game.
* PowerGlows: Most of 'em.
* PowersDoTheFighting: Essentially all DPS caster classes.
* SquishyWizard: Most cloth-based spellcasters couldn't take a punch in the face very well.
* TookALevelInBadass: Essentially you get more and more badass by leveling up, unlocking more powers and gaining better gear.
* TryToFitThatOnABusinessCard: The number of titles you can accrue borders on the somewhat insane. In fact, one of the titles you can get ''is'' actually ''The Insane''.
* WeDoTheImpossible: The player characters overcame impossible odds and put some of the [[BigBad worst villains]] in universe back into their place (two Old Gods, the Lich King, Deathwing the Destroyer, Lei-shen, Archimonde from another universe, and countless others, and countless more to follow.)
-->'''Grommash:''' They will defy you. I have seen their forces in battle. They are fearless. It does not matter what vile creatures you summon to the battle, they will persevere. Their resolve is unbreaking. They will come, they will fight, and they will wash their blades of your blood in victory!
[[/folder]]

!!Introduced in original ''World of Warcraft''

[[folder: Druid]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/worgen_druid.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Worgen Druid manipulating the powers of nature.]]
->''"Life replenishes itself, often stronger than before."''
-->-- '''Hamuul Runetotem''', Tauren Archdruid of Thunder Bluff

Druids are the scholars of nature, tirelessly monitoring and preserving the balance of nature, seeking wisdom and teachings of {{MotherNature}} herself. With enough experience, a druid is able to harness the vast and unforgiving side of nature, unleashing its raw life energies upon enemies, [[ThePowerOfTheSun burning them with concentrated solar flame]],[[{{Lunacy}} scorching them using the light of the moon]], [[StarPower raining celestial fury over them from great distances]], [[GreenThumb binding them with enchanted vines]], [[WeatherManipulation ensnaring them in unrelenting cyclones]] or [[{{Animorphism}} maiming them by transforming into huge, fearsome beasts]].

Druids can also direct this power to [[HealingHands heal wounds and restore life to fallen allies]]. They are deeply in tune with the [[NatureSpirit animal spirits]] of Azeroth. This flexibility allows them to [[JackOfAllTrades fill different roles]] during their adventures, tearing enemies to shreds one minute and surveying the battlefield from the sky the next, making them [[HypercompetentSidekick an invaluable ally]] at all times.

Most druids nowadays belong to [[NGOSuperpower an inter-factional organization]] known as the [[TheOrder Cenarion Circle]], a para-militaristic research group dedicated in the studying and preservation of nature. Druids play different roles in different cultures: Night elves and Tauren, both claiming to be the first to receive Cenarius' teachings, hold their druids with high esteem and elder members act as sages and [[ActionPolitician politicians]] within their respective societies; The people of Gilneas had practiced nature magic to help growth of crops and act as wandering healers; the Trolls, having deep connections with their [[NatureSpirit loa]], shift into the forms of their patron gods to compliment their natural ferocity.

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!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/druid_crest.png]]

* AnimalMotifs: Can transform into many different animals.
* {{Animorphism}}: Druids' shapeshifting capabilities, stemming from their connection to the Wild Gods.
* BearsAreBadNews: Guardian druids shapeshift into a massive bear to take huge amounts of damage.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: Druidic magic is nature-based, not arcane magic, and are generally at odds with them. Despite this, in-game, some Balance Druids spells are classified as dealing Arcane Damage. It's really just for simplicity, instead of having dozens of different damage types.
* GreenThumb: Many druid spells involve the manipulation of plants.
* HealingHands: Restoration druids are adept in channeling the powers of nature into soothing healing powers to heal allies.
* InHarmonyWithNature: Druids dedicate their lives in studying the ways of nature and preserving its balance. Most of them live in close resonance and are mostly field researchers.
* JackOfAllTrades: ''Legion'' basically made Druids the ''master'' of all. They can do every job in the game - tank, heal, melee dps, and ranged dps. Before dual-spec showed up in ''Wrath'', when talent point choices really determined your spec, it was not unusual for some Druids to have about half their talent points in both healing and feral (which was a combined mishmash of tanking and melee dps at the time), allowing them to do a half-decent job at healing and damaging in a raid (or even briefly off-tanking).
* {{Lunacy}}: Standard for all druids is the power to focus moonlight into searing attacks.
* MorphicResonance: Most of the Druid's important shapeshifts share traits with their humanoid form, such as hair color or tauren horns.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** Fangs of Ashamane, [[DualWielding two daggers]] for Feral druids formed from the teeth of the panther Wild God.
** Claws of Ursoc, [[DualWielding two]] [[PowerFist fist weapons]] for Guardian druids, once wielded by one of the bear Wild God siblings.
** Scythe of Elune, a [[SinisterScythe scythe]]-shaped MagicStaff for Balance druids with powers tied to the Worgen curse.
** G'Hanir the Mother Tree, a MagicStaff for Restoration druids, formed from a branch of the first world tree used to create the Emerald Dream.
* NatureHero: Druids are the students, servants, and preservers of nature. They spend years studying and communing with nature, able to understand the workings of the great outdoors and in turn, manipulate and shape nature to their will.
* TheOwlKnowingOne: The Moonkin form, a strange owl-like beast that improves the druid's casting abilities.
* PantheraAwesome: Feral druids specialize in shapeshifting into a large feline predator to tear enemies apart.
* PlantPerson: Restoration druids possess the ability to shapeshift into a tree.
* ThePowerOfTheSun: Balance druids also call upon the power of the sun in conjunction with their lunar magics.
* SpiritAdvisor: The druids have strong connections with the beings of the Emerald Dream, from wisps to the feral gods, and they often seek guidance from these spirits.
* StarPower: Balance druids are unique in their ability to call upon stellar magic, [[YinYangBomb fusing solar and lunar]] magic to devastating effect.
* TalkingToPlants: Druids possess the ability to commune with the [[NatureSpirit nature spirits]] within plants, either to monitor the status of nature within the area or to serve as a crude method of scouting.
* VoluntaryShapeshifting: Druids' mastery of the workings of nature allows them to shapeshift into incredible beasts, significantly improving their martial prowess and enabling them to combat like an animal.
* WeatherManipulation: With the ability to control forces of nature, a druid can unleash [[BlowYouAway relentless hurricanes and cyclones]].
* WhenTreesAttack: Balance druids have a talent that allows them to summon a handful of treants to attack enemies.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Hunter]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/blessingsoftheheavens.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Night Elven Hunter readying an arrow.]]
->''"I have watched the other races... I have seen their squabbling, their ruthlessness. Their wars do nothing but scar the land, and drive the wild things to extinction. No, they cannot be trusted. [[NatureHero Only beasts are above deceit]]."''
-->-- '''Rexxar''', Beastmaster and Champion of the Horde

From long ago since the birth of civilization the mysteries outside the walls of great cities called upon those with a restless heart, promising a life of discovery and adventure. Seeking to see these promises fulfilled, [[NatureLover these adventurers]] left the comforts of their homes to leave for an unforgiving primal world. Those who did not succumb to the dangers of nature became hunters, masters of their environment. [[ArcherArchetype Armed with bow, crossbow]], [[TheGunslinger rifle]], or perhaps something a bit more [[BladeOnAStick savage]], these swift warriors lurk in the deep of the bushes, watching and stalking their prey as they plan to deliver the perfect ambush.

In modern days, hunters and ranged combat personnel act as scouting forces in military. Hunters are one of the few classes that is accessible by all races, and for Hunters, each race has a unique history with the craft. Frostwolf Orcs are known for being natural [[TheBeastmaster Beastmasters]], fighting alongside their loyal wolves for their entire history. Trolls and Tauren invoke the nature of their [[NatureSpirit primal gods]], stalking the jungles and plains for prey while befriending the beasts of the wild. Night Elves and Blood Elves, combined with their [[ImprobableAimingSkills peerless skill in marksmanship]], have kept vigil over [[ForestRanger Azeroth's forests]] for centuries.

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!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hunter_crest.png]]

* AbnormalAmmo: Hunters could fire venomous barbs, magical projectiles, explosive ammunition and armor-piercing powershots.
* AnimalMotifs: Hunters have various Aspect abilities which grant them bonuses based on animals. While Aspects were AdaptedOut for a time, they make a return in ''Legion'', with various Aspects granting the Hunter boons fitting of the Aspect's animal. Aspect of the Eagle gives Survival Hunters and their pet increased critical strike chance and chances to gain charges of their most used spell. Aspect of the Cheetah grants the Hunter a short burst of speed that decays over time. Aspect of the Turtle maintains a defensive stance where the Hunter doesn't attack, but deflects all incoming attacks. Aspect of the Wild, for Beast Mastery Hunters, grants both the Hunter and his pet increased critical strike chance and grants them both Focus over time.
** NobleBirdOfPrey: Survival Hunters are specifically themed after the eagle. Their major cooldown is Aspect of the Eagle, and their artifact weapon is a spear enchanted by an Eagle spirit, which grants them a number of eagle based passives. With the Eagle's Bite trait, for example, an eagle effigy follows the Hunter when they use Harpoon, and proceeds to wound the target for damage over time.
* ArbitraryMinimumRange: Prior to ''Mists of Pandaria'', every hunter used a ranged weapon and a melee weapon in case an enemy reached a hunter's melee range. Yet, it had caused gameplay issues and later the hunters can only use ranged weapons, subverting this trope. As a result, hunters can no longer use melee weapons effectively as other classes, until ''Legion'' for Survival hunters.
* TheBeastmaster: Perhaps one of the most unique things about Hunters is their special ability to tame nearly any animal. From savage raptors to noble wolves, a Hunter is incomplete without their loyal companion. Beast Mastery Hunters specialize in the beast, gaining the ability to tame Exotic Beasts, which are more spectacular and magical than regular beasts. Survival Hunters also get a unique take on the trope, fighting in melee tandem with their pet to work together, revealing weaknesses for the other to exploit.
** [[BearsAreBadNews W]][[FullBoarAction e]] [[RhinoRampage c]][[BatOutOfHell o]][[TheMarvelousDeer u]][[NobleBirdOfPrey l]][[NeverSmileAtACrocodile d]] [[TurtlePower f]][[KillerGorilla i]][[FantasticFoxes l]][[RaptorAttack l]] [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys a]][[ScarabPower n]] [[PantheraAwesome e]][[SnakesAreSinister n]][[GiantEnemyCrab t]][[NobleWolf i]][[BeeAfraid r]][[ALoadOfBull e]] [[TyrannosaurusRex p]][[SpidersAreScary a]][[ExtremeOmniGoat g]][[SandWorm e]] [[OurDragonsAreDifferent w]][[TheHyena i]][[CirclingVultures t]][[ScaryScorpions h]] [[RobotDog b]][[OminousOwl e]][[AlienAnimals a]][[SeaMonster s]][[StrongAnts t]][[CanineCompanion s]]. Trust us. There's a LOT to tame.
** Marksmanship Hunters can subvert this trope. While they have access to a pet, they're the only spec with zero focus revolving around it, relegating the beast as a 'pocket tank' while the Hunter shoots from afar. With a talent, Lone Wolf, Marksmanship Hunters can opt into a petless style, trading their companion for increased damage on their abilities.
* BladeOnAStick: In ''Legion'', the Survival specialization of Hunters opts out of ranged combat, opting for the brutality of melee combat and wielding a vicious hunting spear instead. Troll and Tauren Hunters in particular have long and illustrious histories with their spears; Tauren are known to carve their family lineage in their runespears, and Troll Headhunters have been able to keep up with Elven Archers and Dwarven Riflemen with only a good arm and a satchel of throwing spears.
** The spear can be transmogrified into a two-handed [[{{BFS}} sword]] or [[AnAxeToGrind axe]], which could be just as appropriate depending on your preferences. The abilities emphasize a spear, though. More strangely, however, would be transmogrifying your spear to a [[SimpleStaff staff]]. Perhaps your wild-walking stick?
* BladeSpam: The Survival artifact ability, Fury of the Eagle, has the Hunter do this, rapidly stabbing their spear in a cone in front of them to deal massive damage.
* BlowYouAway: Thas'dorah, the Marksmanship artifact, invokes a number of wind-based abilities for the Hunter. The ability, Windburst, causes the Hunter to fire a shot that leaves a powerful tailwind, allowing allies to follow along the arrow's path with increased movement speed. Other passives do things like summon a number of Wind Arrows to assault the target.
* BottomlessMagazines: Hunters used to run out of shots, not anymore.
* BowAndSwordInAccord: Subverted. It used to be possible until ranged weapons also occupied the main weapon slot since Mists.
* DualWield: Subverted to an extent. They used to be able to dual wield single handed weapons until MoP made ranged weapons occupy the main slot. It is possible for them still to dual wield, but given their ranged DPS nature it would be ineffectual. In ''Legion'', despite the fact that Hunters can dual wield and have a melee specialization in Survival, the spec is built around two-handed combat with a spear, instead of dual wielding.
* DynamicEntry: Survival Hunters have the Harpoon ability. They toss their weapon, attached to a chain, at the enemy, and then tug on the chain to leap at the target while also rooting them in place. Originates earlier in the franchise from non-player characters that hunt dragons using chained spears to either pull the beast down or pull themselves up.
* FluffyTamer: [[TyrannosaurusRex Devilsaurs]], core hounds, raptors, nether rays...... There are [[http://www.wow-petopia.com/ countless terrifying beasts in the World of Warcraft]], and many of them could be tamed by a skilled (or unskilled) hunter. Many players also have the tendency to give their pets weird/cute/funny names (Turtles named "The Will Of The Klaxxi", see [[Memes/WorldofWarcraft memes]] for more detail).
* ForestRanger: Blood Elven rangers, the Farstriders, are an example of this, as are Night Elven sentinels. Marksmanship Hunters specifically invoke this trope. The Dwarven Mountaineers could be considered a mountain variant.
* GuileHero: A lot of Hunter abilities focus on cunning tactics and survival instincts. Misdirection causes a target the Hunter attacks to believe something else (The target the Hunter used Misdirection on) attacked it instead. Feign Death fools a target into thinking the Hunter died, so it ignores him; the pet also can Play Dead, giving a similar effect as Feign Death but for the pet instead.
* TheGunslinger: If you choose to use a gun. Dwarven Mountaineers in particular are known for their skill with a firearm paired with loyal, tamed bears or rams. Goblin Hunters personally craft and tweak their beloved explosives and firearms, while training crabs and dogs to do their dirty work.
** Beast Mastery's Artifact, the Titanstrike, is a rifle empowered by Titanic magic. When you wield it, Thorim's wolf, Hati, accompanies you into battle.
* ImprobableAimingSkills: Aside from very specific conditions, you will hit whatever you've targeted.
* InHarmonyWithNature: Hunters are men and women of the wilderness. They spend most of their lives in nature, stalking prey while adapting to the mercilessness of nature. In turn, they are excellent survivalists and are perfectly fine with living in the wild.
* MixAndMatchCritters: Their class mount is a Wolfhawk, a beast that's a hybrid between a wolf and a hawk. It's cry sounds like a mixture of a howl and a screech. Also, yes, there's also ones you can tame.
* {{Multishot}}: One of the hunter skills. It involves shooting a ridiculous amount of ammunition over a widespread area at once. The Barrage and Volley talents also invoke the trope; with Barrage, the Hunter unleashes a huge number of shots into a cone in front of them, and Volley causes every auto-attack to also fire a number of arrows from the sky that rain down on the target and enemies nearby.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** Talonclaw, a [[BladeOnAStick spear]] for Survival hunters, originally wielded by Huln Highmountain, leader of the tauren in the War of the Ancients.
** Thas'dorah, Legacy of the Windrunners, a bow for Marksmanship hunters, once wielded by the missing Alleria Windrunner.
** Titanstrike, a [[{{BFG}} gun]] for Beast Mastery hunters, crafted by the Titanic keeper Mimiron. While wielding Titanstrike, the hunter can also call on Thorim's wolf, Hati, as a second pet.
* NatureHero: The vast majority of Hunters fit this trope, with only a few, more civilized versions not.
* NobleSavage: Orc, Troll, and Tauren Hunters naturally invoke this trope. Night Elves also, to a lesser extent.
* NoArcInArchery: Hunter shots function similarly to spells, automatically homing in on the target, so long as that target doesn't dodge.
* PlayingPossum: Feign Death ability.
* PoisonedWeapons: Stings are abilities used by Hunters that emphasize envenomed weapons. While Stings were once largely removed, they've made something of a resurgence in ''Legion'', with every spec having access to one sting, and more through the PvP Honor Talent system. Each sting is named for an animal, and so represents the venom attributed to that animal. This differenciates the venoms used by Hunters to the poisons used by Rogues.
** Serpent Sting - Available only to Survival Hunters, this is a very straightforward venom; it deals damage over time.
** Wyvern Sting - The potent venom of a wyvern acts as a tranquilizer and places enemies into a trance-like sleep. Available to Beast Mastery and Marksmanship Hunters.
** Viper Sting - The mind-numbing venom of a viper has a hazardous effect on healing magics, reducing healing done by the target by 30% until the caster concentrates hard enough to counteract the effects (IE, casts a healing spell with a long cast time).
** Scorpid Sting - This muscle numbing venom reduces the critical strike chance of a victim's physical attacks.
** Spider Sting - Similar to Viper Sting, but this venom isn't limited to healing spells. While the venom holds (5 seconds), the next spell cast by the target incurs a short-duration silence, preventing them from casting more spells.
* ScarilyCompetentTracker: Hunters have access to a unique mechanic called Tracking. This allows them to see enemies on the minimap by tracking their enemy type (Humanoid, Beast, Demon, etc). Tracking isn't exclusive to Hunters; Feral Druids can Track Humanoids, and Warlocks can Find Demons. But Hunters are notable for not only for being able to track every enemy type in the game, but also being able to track enemies that no one else can track, like Dragonkin and Giants.
* ScreamingWarrior: Like a roaring bear or a shrieking eagle, Survival Hunters shout battle cries often during combat.
* StealthExpert: A master of camouflage and stealth, but not to the extent of the Rogue. They have a Camouflage talent that stealths them, and heals them as long as they remain hidden.
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: The ability Glaive Toss, which has the Hunter throw a pair of boomerang glaives at the target which strike and return. This talent was conceived by Blizzard in response to Hunters who wanted to wield the late Throwing Weapons, which were ranged weapons made for Rogues and Warriors but were removed from the game. Hunter players could never use Throwing Weapons effectively with their shots, [[WhatCouldHaveBeen but Blizzard said the programming was impossible despite their efforts]], so they made Glaive Toss instead.
** Survival Hunters, in ''Legion'', have two abilities that simply toss a hatchet at enemies, and an ability that tosses a spear with a chain to pull them to enemies after the throw.
* TrapMaster: Hunters are experts at placing and manipulating traps. All Hunters can use a number of traps, but Survival Hunters excel at it. They have exclusive access to the damaging Explosive Trap and Steel Trap. They also have a unique ability called Waylay. If their traps are given extra time to arm (2 seconds, specifically), they gain bonus effects. These effects are utility based, but give the Survival Hunter a number of bonus options in how they approach a situation.
** Freezing Trap is a magical trap that encloses the enemy that triggers into into a block of ice. While the ice shatters if the target is damaged, it lasts a long time, effectively forcing an enemy out of a fight for a long period. With SV's Waylay, the Freeze effect won't break for a few seconds after the target takes damage, turning it into an effective stun.
** Tar Trap is a trap that coats the ground in debilitating tar, slowing all enemies int he area. SV's Waylay dramatically increases the potency of the tar for the first few seconds.
** Explosive Trap is exclusive to Survival, and it deals Fire damage instantly and over time to enemies within the blast radius. Waylay causes the trap to blind enemies in a flash, making them miss their next melee attack. Marksmanship Hunters can get access to an alternate version of this trap called Hi-Explosive Trap, that deals no damage but knocks enemies away from the trap when triggered.
** Steel Trap is exclusive to Survival, and can only be taken with the appropriate talent. The trap clasps itself around an enemy's legs, rooting them in place for a long duration. While taking damage breaks the root effect, they continue to take heavy bleed damage, even if the trap releases them. With Waylay, the damage of the bleed effect is dramatically increased, able to kill most regular enemies by itself over the duration of the root if set up properly.
** Caltrops is a unique 'trap' for Survival Hunters, able to be selected with a talent. While it is not a trap in the classical sense, and does not trigger and cannot benefit from Waylay, it does benefit from other passives that effect traps and the Survivalist can still use it as such. The Caltrops slow and deal constant bleed damage to enemies who walk over them.
* TrickArrow: Most unique Shot attacks are these, usually as a result of magically imbued weapons or other exotic forms of ammo.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Mage]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fem_gno_mage.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Gnome Mage summoning ice against her enemies.]]
->''"Bein' a mage means knowin' power can flow in more than one direction."''
-->-- '''Ganvar Singebeard''', A Dwarven mage

Students gifted with a keen intellect and unwavering discipline may walk the path of the mage. The arcane magic available to magi is both great and dangerous, and thus is revealed only to the most devoted practitioners. To avoid interference with their spellcasting, magi wear only cloth armor, but arcane shields and enchantments give them additional protection. To keep enemies at bay, magi can summon bursts of fire to incinerate distant targets and cause entire areas to erupt, setting groups of foes ablaze. Masters of ice can command blizzards that tear into flesh and limit movement. Should enemies manage to survive this assault, the mage can shrink them into harmless sheep in the blink of an eye.

Powerful magi can even generate enhancements and portals, assisting allies by sharpening their minds and transporting them instantly across the world.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mage_crest.png]]

* AnIcePerson: Frost mages. Arcane and Fire mages also have access to ice spells but it's not their focus.
* TheArchmage: Finally a title upon completing the Mage class campaign in ''Legion''. Even before this, several of the most prominent archmagi of the Kirin Tor work directly under you, and it can be argued characters have been this in all but name for a while.
* BalefulPolymorph: The Polymorph ability turns an enemy into a harmless sheep. This ability can be glyphed for other critter animals, like monkeys and bear cubs.
* BarrierWarrior: Can create a shield appropriate to their specialisation to absorb damage.
* BlackMage: Mages are a pure DPS class and has one of highest DPS in the game.
* {{Familiar}}: Frost mages can summon a water elemental to fight with them.
* GlassCannon: Mages are {{Squishy Wizard}}s so can't take much damage despite what they can dish out.
* HavingABlast: The Fire mage's "Living Bomb", which causes the target to explode [[WhyAmITicking after a bit]].
* HealItWithFire: One of the mages' spells, "Cauterize" involves the mage burning their wound together, healing them immediately but damaging them afterwards.
** LastChanceHitPoint: Clever mages use Cauterize as a warning to encase themselves in their Ice Block, which negates all incoming (and outgoing) damage, including from Cauterize itself.
* {{Invisibility}}: The titular mage spell.
* PlayingWithFire: Fire mages. Arcane and Frost mages also have access to fire spells but it's not their focus.
* MiracleFood: Mages possess the ability to conjure up refreshments immediately with magic.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** Felo'melorn (Elvish for "Flamestrike"), a [[ElementalWeapon spellblade]] for Fire mages, once passed down through the royal Sunstrider dynasty before Prince Kael'thas' fall from grace, combined with its attached offhand,.
** Ebonchill, a MagicStaff for Frost mages originally wielded by the first Guardian of Tirisfal, Alodi.
** Alu'neth, Greatstaff of the Magna, a [[LivingWeapon sentient]] [[MagicStaff staff]] for Arcane mages once wielded by the Guardian Aegwynn.
* PortalDoor: Capable of summoning these.
* PureEnergy: Arcane mages harness the raw power of the universe itself, able to unleash pure surges of devastating energy to destroy enemies.
* TeleportSpam: Possible with the Blink spell. Mages can also teleport themselves to major locations.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Paladin]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hum_pala.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Human Paladin tearing through an undead onslaught.]]
->''"In all things, paladins must reflect the Light, which supplements our strength. To strive to be divine for one of our kind does not mean we strive for godhood--we strive to be good in all actions. Although called upon to smite evil in these harsh times, you must always remember that it's aiding others that will truly set you apart from the other citizens. Compassion, patience, bravery--these things mean as much to a paladin as strength in battle. Know this well, and never forget it."''
-->-- '''Tome of Divinity''', sacred book used in the initiation of paladins in the Alliance

This is the call of the paladin: to protect the weak, to bring justice to the unjust, and to vanquish evil from the darkest corners of the world. These holy warriors are equipped with plate armor so they can confront the toughest of foes, and the blessing of the Light allows them to heal wounds and, in some cases, even restore life to the dead. Ready to serve, paladins can defend their allies with sword and shield, or they can wield massive two-handed weapons against their enemies. The Light grants paladins additional power against the undead and demons, ensuring that these profane beings corrupt the world no longer.

Paladins are not only zealots, but also guardians of the righteous, and they bestow blessings on those the Light would shine upon. The Light radiates from paladins, and worthy allies who stand near them are emboldened by its power.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/paladin_crest.png]]

* BarrierWarrior: Has a number of protective shields to protect themselves and others; the most notable is Divine Shield, which makes the Paladin completely immune to damage for a period of time.
* BloodKnight: Subverted. While there is a Sin'dorei Paladin organization called the Blood Knights, [[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant they don't relish in battle as a defining trait]].
* CherryTapping: Until a major rework in ''Wrath'', the retribution spec was pretty bad, leaving slightly-boosted auto-attacks as the only real addition to your damage. Many players ended up leveling in their tank spec, since it did almost the same damage, but gave much higher health and armor, as well as abilities that were good for hitting several enemies at once.
* CoolHorse: Paladins get a special-looking horse called Warhorse at Level 20, a Charger at Level 40, and a Golden Highlord's Charger during their Order Hall campaigns.
* CoolSword: The famous Ashbringer has become the artifact weapon for retribution paladins in ''Legion''.
* DropTheHammer: Paladins can wield hammers, and they are the favored lore weapons of Alliance Paladins. Several Paladin effects utilize hammers as a result.
** The Judgement spell takes this literally by consisting of a Hammer of light which was once ''dropped'' on the enemy's head. As of ''Legion'', it is now thrown horizontally at the enemy.
** The Silver Hand is the artifact weapon for Holy Paladins in ''Legion''. It was once the hammer wielded by Tyr, a titan who gave its name to Tirisfal.
* GoodFeelsGood: Paladins are paragons of the Light, and strive to help out others simply because it's the right thing to do.
* GoodIsNotSoft: They are inherently good. If you are not, they will kill you dead with righteous fury.
* HealingHands: Paladins are able to heal and resurrect allies with power of the light. The holy spec specializes in this field.
* HeroicSacrifice: Paladins once had the power to sacrifice themselves to remove an ally from combat and make them immune to damage; this was particularly useful to cast on a healer when the party was losing a fight, allowing them to resurrect the party after the battle to reduce downtime. This ability is returning in the form of a Paladin-exclusive item in ''Legion''.
* HolyHandGrenade: Retribution paladins are the embodiment of light's wrath and are the vindicators of justice and vanquishers of evil. Wielding [[{{BFS}} massive two-handed weapons]], these holy warriors smite their foes with the power of the Light.
* LastChanceHitPoint: As of ''Legion'', Retributions have one in Divine Intervention: attacks that would kill them instead automatically trigger their Divine Shield.
* LightEmUp: Paladins derive their power from the Holy Light, whether through devotion or [[LightIsNotGood force]]. The exception being Tauren Paladins, the Sunwalkers, who [[PowerOfTheSun derive their powers from the sun]].
* LightIsGood: Primarily played straight. Most Paladins worship the Holy Light, a omnipresent and conscious "force" that functions as the source of their powers. Paladins with strong faith in the Light have been granted many [[DeusExMachina inexplicable blessings]], particularly protection from the powers of the [[DarkIsEvil Scourge and Burning Legion]], and increased strength when fighting against them. Many of the [[TheParagon most heroic]] and [[TheFettered honorable]] major characters in the game are also Paladins, such as Tirion Fordring and Bolvar Fordragon.
** Draenei Paladins draw their holy powers from the teachings of [[OurAngelsAreDifferent the Naaru]], who are the most unambiguously benevolent force in the Warcraft mythos, considered by some to be physical manifestations of the Light itself.
** Double subverted by the Blood Elf Paladins. Though High Elves had their own Priests prior to the fall of Quel'thalas, the Blood Elves' desperation led to the use of demonic powers and weakened their natural connection to the Light; the Blood Knights instead gained their holy powers by ''[[PoweredByAForsakenChild leeching them directly from a captive]] [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Naaru]]''. They later [[TheAtoner realized the error of their ways]], and when Velen [[EasilyForgiven reignited the Sunwell]], they learned to once again draw their powers from faith.
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: Protection paladins wield shields in accord with a single-handed weapons to absorb damage and aid them in tanking.
** Truthguard is the artifact weapon for Protection Paladins in ''Legion'', combined with the sword named Oathseeker.
* MagicKnight: They are the typical high fantasy paladin, blending strong armor, heavy weapon strikes and healing magic.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** Truthguard, a [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe shield]] for Protection paladins, which wields Titan magic capable of revealing hidden demons, combined with its attached sword Oathseeker.
** The Silver Hand, a [[DropTheHammer hammer]] for Holy paladins originally wielded by the Titanic watcher Tyr following the loss of his hand, alongside a tome.
** Ashbringer, the long-awaited two-handed [[ElementalWeapon fiery sword]] for Retribution paladins.
* TheOrder: Paladins of all factions belong to one sect belonging to the military of their respective factions. Humans and Dwarven Knights of the Silver Hand; Draenei Vindicators; Tauren Sunwalkers and Blood Elven Blood Knights.
* ThePaladin: ChurchMilitant MagicKnight with healing and light powers. Check, check, check, and check!
* PowerGivesYouWings: Avenging Wrath increases a Paladin's damage and healing abilities, while also giving them a nice pair of non-functional wings.
* StatusBuff: Blessing of Might and Blessing of Kings, which increase the Mastery stat and Strength/Agility/Intellect respectively.
* ThrowingYourShieldAlwaysWorks: Protection Paladins have access to the ability Avenger's Shield, which throws your shield at an enemy. The shield then bounces between three enemies before coming back to you. Slight aversion in that you aren't actually throwing your shield, just a light-based construct in the shape of a shield.
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: Retribution Paladins, on the other hand, have Hammer of Wrath, where they used to throw a Hammer of Light at an enemy as a FinishingMove. It has been removed in ''Legion''.
* WhiteMagic: They gain most of their power through the Holy Light.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Priest]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/draenei_priestess.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Draenei Priest casting to heal her allies in combat.]]
->''"It is faith in ourselves that separates us from others, and with our powers, we will cause great change in all of Azeroth. The weak will come to lean on you. The lepers will call you Lord. And the ignorant will look to you for guidance."''
-->-- '''Dark Cleric Duesten''', A member of the Cult of the Forgotten Shadow

Priests are devoted to the spiritual, and express their unwavering faith by serving the people. For millennia they have left behind the confines of their temples and the comfort of their shrines so they can support their allies in war-torn lands. In the midst of terrible conflict, no hero questions the value of the priestly orders. These masters of the healing arts keep their companions fighting far beyond their normal capacities with an array of restorative powers and blessings. The divine forces at the priest’s command can also be turned against foes, smiting them with holy fury.

As light cannot exist without darkness, and darkness without light, some priests tap into shadow to better understand their own abilities, as well as the abilities of those who threaten them.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/priest_crest.png]]

* CastingAShadow: Shadow priests in a nutshell.
* CastFromHitPoints: Shadow priests have some skills based around sacrifice. For instance, "Shadow Mend" will initially heal the target, but comes at the cost of some of that restored health over a period. "Shadow Word: Death" used to harm the user if the effect didn't kill the target. "Surrender to Madness" grants the Shadow priest a massive boost in power... and then [[CastFromLifeSpan kills them at the end of its effect.]] [[AndThatsTerrible Horribly.]]
* CombatMedic: Discipline has a very heavy focus on healing-through-damage. Their actual proper, direct heals are very weak, but put a buff called atonement on the healed ally that mirrors damage the priest does as healing. Once Atonement is on the wounded allies, the priest unloads with damage to sustain the party.
* DarkIsNotEvil: In its shadow incarnation, it is arguably one of the darkest classes in the entire game, with an explicit connection to the game's resident [[EldritchAbomination Eldritch Abominations]] and powers over madness, darkness, and void. They are still the good guys.
* GoMadFromTheRevelation: Shadow Priests enter Void Form with high levels of Insanity. And then there's Surrender to Madness...
* HealingHands: Priests have two specs specializing in this.
* HolyHandGrenade: Some spells (Smite for example). Overall, averted; unlike paladins, priests are quite bad at using the light to hurt, and have to become shadow priests to deal any meaningful damage.
* LightEmUp: Priests, like paladins, derive their powers from the Holy Light, either through devotion or through [[LightIsNotGood zealotry]]. The Tauren priests, the Sages, are an exception since they [[PowerOfTheSun draw power from the sun]].
* LightIsGood: Again, naturally.
* LivingWeapon: In ''Legion'', the Shadow priest artifact weapon "Xal'atath, Blade of the Black Empire" has a mind and will of its own.
* LovecraftianSuperpower: Long-implied before ''Legion'', Shadow priests forsake the Light to channel the powers of the '''''[[GodOfEvil Old Gods]]'''''. This allows them not only a number of PsychicPowers, but also the ability to summon CombatTentacles and EldritchAbomination minions.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** Tuu're, Beacon of the Naaru, a [[MagicStaff staff]] for Holy priests formed from the core of a fallen [[OurAngelsAreDifferent Naaru]].
** Light's Wrath, a [[MagicStaff staff]] for Discipline priests, made to be a sibling to the Retribution paladin's Ashbringer.
** Xal'atath, Blade of the Black Empire, a [[LivingWeapon sentient]] ritual dagger for Shadow priests.
* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Shadow priest abilities Vampiric Touch, Vampiric Embrace, and the talent San'layn.
* PowerBornOfMadness: Shadow priests literally use Insanity as a resource as of ''Legion''. Void Form can be extended by maintaining high levels of Insanity, and Surrender to Madness is less likely to kill you as long as Void Form stays up.
* PowerOfTheVoid: Shadow priests draw power from the void and use void energy to empower their offensive spells.
* PsychicPowers: Most Shadow priest offensive powers attack the mind.
* RedMage: Discipline priests use both Light and Shadow magic for their spells
* WhiteMage: Holy priests are nothing but this .
* WhiteMagic: Holy priests gain their power through the Holy Light.
.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Rogue]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/forsaken_rogue.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Forsaken Rogue stalking the treetops.]]
->''"The thing about being an assassin is that people expect you to do the dirty work that no one wants to do: taking someone off the grid, going deep undercover in some hell of a craphole or just wiping someone's ass after they'd done it. You're expected to finish it clean, you don't show your face in public and people think you're just a damn 'accident'. By the way, we never had this conversation."''
-->-- '''Jonathan O'Grady''', A field agent of the SI:7

For rogues, the only code is the contract, and their honor is purchased in gold. Free from the constraints of a conscience, these mercenaries rely on brutal and efficient tactics. Lethal assassins and masters of stealth, they will approach their marks from behind, piercing a vital organ and vanishing into the shadows before the victim hits the ground. Rogues can dip their weapons in paralyzing toxins that render foes unable to defend themselves. These silent stalkers wear leather armor so they can move unencumbered, ensuring that they land the first strike.

With the rogue’s poisons and speed, the first strike is often the last step before the killing blow.

For some, however, stealth is more of a suggestion. Trading daggers for swords, they fight toe-to-toe with their enemies...but that doesn't mean they play nice. They will use every dirty trick they have to gain an advantage, from parley to hidden pistols - anything is fair game to these outlaws.

Rogues fend for themselves, looking for fights in which they dictate the terms. They’re the shadows in the night that remain unseen until the right moment comes to strike—then they dispatch an opponent with quick blade work or a deadly toxin snuck acutely into the bloodstream. Rogues are opportunistic thieves, bandits, and assassins, but there’s an unparalleled art to what they do.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rogue_crest.png]]

* CastingAShadow: In ''Legion'', Subtlety Rogues are centered around the idea of enhancing their skills with a dagger with shadow magic.
* BadassNormal: Rogues are not trained in any kind of special powers. They are just skilled combat personnel who are skilled with ambushes, poisoning and hand-to-hand melee combat with swords or daggers.
** EmpoweredBadassNormal: As mentioned, Subtlety rogues in ''Legion'' explicitly use Shadow magic in their techniques.
* BowAndSwordInAccord: Subverted. They used to be able to equip a bow before the secondary weapon slot was removed in ''Mists'' (They can still equip all 3 types of ranged weapons in their main slot if their player really wants to, but they can't use any of their skills properly)
* CombatPragmatist: Rogues are mostly about (excluding Outlaw rogues in ''Legion'') sneaky underhanded tactics and knocking their opponents back before unleashing a hail of bladed assaults. They rely on [[StealthExpert stealth]], [[PoisonedWeapons poisons]] and [[KnifeNut backstabbing]] to cripple or assassinate their targets.
* DualWield: [[LightningBruiser Because one dagger is simply not enough]].
* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Fan of Knives, crossed with AreaOfEffect; the Rogue spins around and throws knives in all directions.
* FlashStep: The Level 60 talent Cloak and Dagger, the Outlaw ability Killing Spree, and the Shadowstep talent work like this.
* FinishingMove: One of the key features of the rogue.
* FragileSpeedster: They hit hard and they hit fast. They get hit and they go down almost instantly.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: Outlaw's core abilities are clearly meant to be thematically used with swords - what with names like "Saber Slash" and "Run Through" - but aside from their Artifact, they can still wield axes, maces, and fist weapons.
* TheGunslinger: Outlaw rogues in ''Legion'' interweave gunplay in their combat, either as a follow-up to a well placed strike, or to stun enemies.
* GrapplingHookPistol: Outlaw rogues can pick up a Grappling Hook to leap to not-normally-accessible areas.
* KnifeNut: Various skills require the use of a dagger in the main hand, though not all specializations use these skills. Also their class exclusive Legendary Weapon from Catacysm, Fangs of the Father is actually a pair of daggers.
* LastChanceHitPoint: Their Cheat Death talent is a notoriously popular choice, to the point where other classes' LastChanceHitPoint mechanics are often grouped under its name. Upon taking fatal damage, Cheat Death restores the Rogue to low health and grants high damage mitigation for a brief period.
* LightningBruiser: Essentially how the class is meant to be.
* MasterSwordsman: Outlaw rogues in Legion.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** The Kingslayers, the [[DualWielding twin daggers]] once wielded by Garona Halforcen to slay King Llane Wrynn.
** The Dreadblades, a [[DualWielding set of]] [[CoolSword demonic cutlasses]] for Outlaw rogues, which compel their wielder to [[HungryWeapon feed the blades]].
** The Fangs of the Devourer, a [[DualWielding pair of daggers]] formed from the teeth of Sargeras' personal felhound.
* {{Ninja}}: Subtlety's aesthetic in ''Legion'', as assassins that stalk through the shadows; their ranged abilities just so happen to be shuriken-flavored (compare Assassin's "Fan of Knives" to Sub's "Shuriken Storm").
* NonchalantDodge: Rogues easily have some of the highest dodge ratings in the game.
* {{Pirate}}: In contrast, Outlaw's aesthetic, with themes of sabres and pistols for that distinct PiratesVersusNinjas flavor.
* PoisonedWeapons: As assassins and cutthroats, rogues must know how to kill their enemies swiftly and quietly. Poisons are very helpful when it comes to such situations. Rogues in game have the ability to coat their weapons in a variety of deadly and non-deadly poisons which would largely hinder their opponents abilities to retaliate. As of ''Legion'', Assassin rogues are the only poison users.
* ShadowWalker: A few Rogue abilities, like Shadowstep, convey this fantasy.
* SmokeOut: Some Rogue abilities use smoke bombs. Vanish has the Rogue disappear in a cloud of smoke. Smoke Bomb throws a bomb of blinding smoke that blocks targeted abilities.
* StealthExpert: Being shady characters operating outside boundaries of law, this skill is immensely helpful. Rogue tactics, particularly those for Subtlety rogues, are based enormously on the ability Stealth.
* SwordAndGun: Outlaw rogues have a Pistol Shot ability that evokes this image.
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: Assassin rogues have access to Deadly Throw, which has them throw their weapon at an enemy for extra damage and a snare.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Shaman]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tauren_shaman.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Tauren Shaman [[DishingOutDirt calling to the earth]].]]
->''"Know this: a shaman must never demand power; to do so would arouse the anger of the elements, and a shaman without the elements' protection is nothing. Those that follow the path of the shaman must never forget this most vital tenet. However, a shaman that works in a respectful union with the elements wields a power rivaled by few."''
-->-- '''Teo Hammerstorm''', A Dwarven shaman of the Wildhammer Clan

Shaman are spiritual guides and practitioners, not of the divine, but of the very elements. Unlike some other mystics, shaman commune with forces that are not strictly benevolent. The elements are chaotic, and left to their own devices, they rage against one another in unending primal fury. It is the call of the shaman to bring balance to this chaos. Acting as moderators among earth, fire, water, and air, shaman summon totems that focus the elements to support the shaman’s allies or punish those who threaten them.

These masters of the elements can also call upon elemental forces directly, unleashing torrents of lava and bolts of lightning against foes. The elements can create, destroy, support, and hinder. The experienced shaman balances the vast spectrum of these primordial forces into an array of diverse abilities, making shaman versatile heroes and valued members of any group.

For millennia, since the primitive tribal cultures of Azeroth and Draenor, the natural elements of the physical universe have been celebrated, feared, and even worshiped. Mystics sought communion with the earth, air, fire, and water, and learned to tap into their raw power. In time, these spiritual guides came to understand that nature’s elemental forces aren’t wholly benevolent, but have, in fact, been locked in an unending conflict of chaos and primal fury that once consumed the physical realm. So began the calling of the Shaman, to bring balance to these volatile energies, leveraging their intensity to mend wounds . . . or inflict them.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/shaman_crest.png]]

* BalefulPolymorph: The Hex ability turns enemies into frogs. Glyphs can change the hex to a number of diminutive animals, like cockroaches or compys. Hex is also fundamentally different than a Mage's Polymorph; the Hex victim is in full control of their movement, although they cannot cast or use spells. The Hex, however, does not immediately break upon taking damage, like a Mage's Polymorph does.
** The Voodoo Totem talent allows the Shaman to Hex a large number of enemies around a summoned totem.
* BlowYouAway: While more offensive Air focused abilities take the form of ShockAndAwe, Shamans still have a number of wind based abilities, although they're mostly used for utility. Wind Shear causes the shaman to buffet the target with a blast of wind to interrupt any spellcasting. Wind Rush Totem summons a totem that speeds up the Shaman and nearby allies with a quickening tailwind.
* DishingOutDirt: Earth Shields, Earthquake, Earth Shock etc.
* DualWield: Many enhancement shaman abilities (Lava Lash for example) requires the use of an off-hand weapon.
* ElementalPowers: A Shaman's primary offensive prowess comes from communing with elemental spirits.
* FireIceLightning: Uses all three in addition to [[DishingOutDirt earth]]
* HealingHands: Restoration shamans focus their elemental powers on healing. The healing magic is mostly derived from the cleansing power of water, but earthen protection and spiritual healing through ancestral magic is also used.
* AnIcePerson: Not as obvious as mages and death knights though. Shaman ice abilities are probably more associated to [[MakingASplash the manipulation of the water element]] than direct manipulation of ice, although a few abilities like Frost Shock and Frostbrand attempt to play at it.
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: if they are not carrying a staff, Restoration and Elemental shamans can be seen using one. Being casters, however, means the shields are mostly just [[StatSticks Stat Sticks]]
* MagicallyBindingContract: Unlike Druids, the elemental forces that Shaman draw from are fully sentient, thus the caster is not harnessing their power, but is in a contract, harnessing power not belonging to them, which is sort of "on loan". Shaman that get disgraced in the eyes of the elements are little else but warriors in pelts as they refuse to offer them power, and while the elements ''can'' be forced to serve, it's considered a monstrously horrific thing as it "kills" the elements and mentally corrupts the user almost as badly as fel magic.
* MagmaMan: Shamans possess several lava based abilities (such as Lava Lash, Lava Burst, Magma Totem). In lore, dark shamans, shamans that enslave the elementals to do their bidding, could summon huge and powerful lava elementals called magma giants.
* MakingASplash: Many shaman [[HealingHands healing powers]] are involved with evoking the power of the water elements. Riptide, for example, heals the target for a moderate amount, and then heals them for more over time.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** The Fist of Ra-Den, an [[ElementalWeapon electric]] [[PowerFist fist]] for Elemental shamans, used by the Titanic keeper Ra to create the Elemental Planes, with its own shield.
** Sharas'dal, Scepter of the Tides, a [[DropTheHammer mace]] for Restoration shamans infused with the power of the Naga queen Azshara, with a complementary shield.
** The Doomhammer, a [[DropTheHammer hammer]] for Enhancement shamans previously wielded by Warchief Thrall, which gives the user the power to summon an [[ElementalWeapon elemental replica]] in their offhand.
* PlayingWithFire: One of the basic forms of shamans' elemental powers.
* RaptorAttack: A glyph can change the Feral Spirit wolves into Spirit Raptors, and another can change Ghost Wolf into a raptor form. These reflect the close relationship that trolls have with raptors, similar to the Orc's relationship with wolves.
* SavageWolves: Or NobleWolves depending. Orcish (And later Tauren) Shaman have a noted kinship with the wolf, which embodies the primal cunning and ferocity that they respect. Shaman can take the form of a wolf spirit to move faster, and Enhancement can call upon the aid of spirit wolves in battle. A talent, Feral Lunge, causes an Enhancement Shaman to use their animal form to leap upon and bite a target, before shifting back into their normal form.
* SoulPower: This is the crux of all a Shaman can do. Their powers come from their unique ability to communicate with spirits; Elemental Spirits, Animal Spirit, Ancestral Spirits, Plant Spirits, etc. A number of Restoration abilities also invoke a spiritual type of healing; Chain Heal is a beam of spiritual light that bounces from person to person, and Spirit Link Totem redistributes health among allies around it, putting everyone at a high average health to make it easier for healers to assist them.
* SuperMode: All three specializations have access to a a talent that turns them into an ascendant, a transhuman creature made up entirely of one element. Elemental turns into a Fire Ascendant, removing the cooldown of lava burst and turning their chain lightning into the much more damaging chain lava, as well as making Lava Burst damage scale with crit. Enhancement turn into an Air Ascendant, making their auto attacks pure nature damage, and giving their auto attacks and Stormstrike a 40 yard range. Restoration turns into a Water Ascendant which duplicates all healing they do before evenly dividing it among allies in an AoE effect. Sadly, anyone hoping to be an Earth Ascendant is out of luck.
* ShockAndAwe: Because of their powers over the elements, they are also very adept at the manipulation of lightning and it is their dominant method of offense; Lightning Bolt, Stormstrike, and Chain Lightning are major offensive spells for Shamans. A number of talents such as Lightning Surge Totem and Lightning Shield further solidify their relationship with the trope.
* SpiritAdvisor: Shaman's close connection to the spirits means that they often seek guidance and wisdom from ancestors and other [[NatureSpirit spirits]].
* StatusBuff: Shamans formerly bestowed a large number of buffs to party members via totems before buff spells/passive effects were revamped and spread throughout the classes, and totems were redesigned. These included granting attack power, spell power, and elemental resistance. One spell that still remains and was at one time exclusive to the shaman class is Bloodlust/Heroism, which increases attack and casting speed for all party members by 30% for 40 seconds. Later, mages and hunters (via Core Hound pets) were granted a similar ability.
* SummonMagic: Elemental Shamans can call an Earth (to tank) or Fire (for extra damage) elemental anchored to a totem to aid them in combat, with a talent allowing the shaman to call upon the Storm elemental (which heals at the same time it attacks), and Shaman specializing in Enhancement can summon spirit wolves. As this isn't their specialty (see Warlocks for more dedicated summoners), the spells have a short duration and a long cooldown, though they are still useful.
* WeatherManipulation: Shamans, with their connections to the wind elementals, could summon violent storms to aid their attacks.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Warlock]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dwa_war.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Dwarven Warlock grinning at his enemy's misfortune.]]
->''"Behold those who have power, and who are not afraid to wield it. Behold... the warlocks!"''
-->-- '''Gul'dan''', The most powerful warlock to have lived

In the face of demonic power, most heroes see death. Warlocks see only opportunity. Dominance is their aim, and they have found a path to it in the dark arts. These voracious spellcasters summon demonic minions to fight beside them. At first, they command only the service of imps, but as a warlock’s knowledge grows, seductive succubi, loyal voidwalkers, and horrific felhunters join the dark sorcerer’s ranks to wreak havoc on anyone who stands in their master’s way. Warlocks can ignite distant enemies in searing flame, send them fleeing in terror and pain, or afflict them with corrupting diseases and curses that steal the victim’s vitality.

These practitioners of the profane are feared across Azeroth, and many who have felt their wrath now prefer to fight alongside a warlock than against one.

Warlocks burn and destroy weakened foes with a combination of crippling illnesses and dark magic. While their demon pets protect and enhance them, warlocks strike at their enemies from a distance. As physically weak spellcasters bereft of heavy armor, cunning warlocks allow their minions to take the brunt of enemy attacks in order to save their own skin.

Warlocks are the most volatile and insatiable of spellcasters. Though they often pledge themselves to the service of noble causes and are not innately evil, their desire to understand darker magics and exercise unwavering command over demonic forces breeds mistrust among even their closest allies. Warlocks peer into the Void without hesitation, leveraging the chaos they glimpse within to devastating ends in battle—their greatest abilities are fueled by the souls they’ve harvested from their victims. They exploit powerful Shadow magic to manipulate and degrade the minds and bodies of their enemies. They employ Fire magic, dropping hellish rain from the sky, to immolate the opposition. They summon and command indomitable demons from the Twisting Nether to do their bidding, or even to be sacrificed as the Warlock sees fit, empowering and protecting the dark caster from harm.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/warlock_crest.png]]

* AntiHero: They gain their powers from researching and learning demonic magic, which is said to be extremely dangerous and will corrupt the minds of people who study it, and are largely opportunists seeking to defeat their enemies with whatever method possible regardless of the morality.
* CastingAShadow: Warlocks, by definition, are magic wielders and scholars who study and research shadow and fel magic and use thus with efficiency. Affliction and Demonology warlocks are more focused in this field, while Destruction warlocks focus more on [[PlayingWithFire fire magic]].
* {{Curse}}: With their knowledge in [[BlackMagic the black arts]], Warlocks are able to cripple and torment enemies with dark curses using their demonic magic. Affliction warlocks are particularly adept in this art, specializing in the more corrosive aspects of the Fel.
* DealWithTheDevil: Warlocks don't deal with them, they enslave them.
* HellishHorse: Warlocks, with their ability to summon demons, also possess the ability to summon Felsteeds: An alien race of stallions from a harsh planet with burning eyes and hooves. More powerful warlocks could summon Dreadsteeds: A particular breed of more fearsome Felsteeds with [[HornsOfVillainy horns]] and spikes on its body.
* HeroicRROD: A lot of Warlock spells operate this way. Some convert health into mana and others, like Hellfire, deal heavy damage at the cost of damaging the user.
* HeroicWillpower: Said to be how good Warlocks resist corruption from the dark powers they command.
* IncendiaryExponent: Destruction Warlocks have a unique resource in Burning Embers. The more the Warlock casts fire spells, the more his figure becomes wreathed in demonic flames, which the Warlock can focus into powerful spells.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** The (Jeweled) Scepter of Sargeras, a [[MagicStaff staff]] for Destruction warlocks originally wielded by the Dark Titan Sargeras himself, used by Ner'zhul to ([[GoneHorriblyWrong inadvertently]]) obliterate Draenor and create Outland.
** Ulthalesh, the Deadwind Harvester, a [[SinisterScythe scythe]] for Affliction warlocks, which earned its name from scouring the land around Karazhan of all life to create the Deadwind Pass.
** Skull of the Man'ari, the [[LivingWeapon animated skull]] of the first Eredar summoner Thal'kiel for Demonology warlocks, with [[{{Squick}} his spine]] for a dagger.
* NotEvilJustMisunderstood: Because of their association with orcs and demons, warlocks are oftentimes [[TheExile looked down upon and despised]] within their societies, seen as power-hungry madmen and sadistic maniacs. Because of this reason, many warlocks are discriminated against or even outright abolished from the magical academia or banished from their societies. However, many warlocks study dangerous fel magic to better [[PayEvilUntoEvil understand demons and the way to counter them better]] and many of them are much nicer and more sane than some self-righteous *ahem*Scarlet Crusade*ahem* paladins and clerics.
* OneWingedAngel: With their vast knowledge on demons and their physiology, Demonology warlocks are able to bring their demonic powers to extreme by morphing into a powerful demon and gain supernatural speed, durability and ferocity. This ability however, will be removed in ''Legion'', which saddens many avid Demonology players.
* OurDemonsAreDifferent: Demons in Warcraft are actually alien species from different planets conquered by the Burning Legion and corrupted by Fel magic.
* PlayingWithFire: Instead of the usual fel and shadow magicks, Destruction warlocks, in order to fully maximize their abilities to devastate and wreak havoc, focuses their studies on fire magic.
* SicklyGreenGlow: Most [[BlackMagic fel magic]] has a green glow, but player warlocks spells are mostly a mix of [[PurpleIsTheNewBlack purple]], black and green, and their fire spells are [[FireIsRed red]] or orange. However, later in ''Mists'', player warlocks embark on an epic quest to gain more understanding of fel magic and after encountering a mysterious secret society known as the [[spoiler: Black Harvest]] , gain [[spoiler: [[TomeOfEldritchLore an ancient book of unknown power]]]] and turn their fire spells green after [[spoiler: reading the contents]].
* SoulJar: Affliction Warlocks have access to Soul Shards, which are their victims souls kept in crystals. They use these to empower some of their spells. All Warlocks also have Soulstones, which can lock an allies soul in a crystal so they can be resurrected if they die.
* TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow: Warlocks are essentially practioners and scholars of the magic of the [[TheDarkSide Burning Legion]] and is considered chaotic and extremely dangerous by most cultures in Azeroth. They study [[TheDarkArts demonic magic]] through [[TomeOfEldritchLore books of unimaginable powers]] and evoke the destructive powers of the legion upon their foes. Therefore, they are mainly [[TheExile looked down upon]] in the magic academia.
* SummonMagic: Their knowledge of demons enables them to forcibly summon demons from the Twisted Nether.
** The first demon they have is an [[TheImp Imp]], which is a small, fireball throwing coward who complains about serving a warlock. He can also dispel magical debuffs away from the Warlock and allies. With the Supremacy talent, it becomes a Fel Imp, who is much more happy to serve a Warlock, and gets an area effect version of the magic dispel.
** [[PowerOfTheVoid The Voidwalker]] is a bulky demon made for tanking hits and taking great punishment. While he acts like TheEeyore, he nonetheless taunts and tanks enemies for his master. With the Supremacy talent, it becomes a Void Lord, which is a more AffablyEvil, less whiny version of the Voidwalker who wears armor, and has a strong shield to help tank hits.
** [[HornyDevils The Succubus]] is a crowd control focused demon who attacks with a whip. She is hopelessly in love with and obsessed with her master, and does whatever he asks. She has a Seduce ability, which enthralls an enemy, [[AnythingThatMoves no matter the gender]], for a short time. Supremacy turns her into a Shivarra, a much less ([[{{Tsundere}} openly]]) friendly but no less [[{{Fanservice}} fanservicy]] (Or [[FanDisservice fan-diservicy]]?) demon who wields vicious swords.
** [[{{Hellhound}} The Felhunter]] is a dog-like demon beast who is adept at sniffing out and consuming magic. While evil and demonic, they're just puppies to their warlock master, and have the ability to silence and dispel spellcasters. With Supremacy, the Felhunter changes to an Observer, a demon that looks like [[{{Oculothorax}} a floating octopus with a giant eye]] who are living archives of the Legion's victories and hold secrets and knowledge of planets long forgotten or destroyed and [[SycophanticServant are more than willing]] to share said knowledge with a master who lets them taste the exotic magics all around the universe.
** Demonology Warlocks have access to a special demon - the Felguard. This axe-wielding juggernaut is a savage killer who has only one purpose: To cause as much death and destruction as possible. Supremacy turns him into a Wrathguard, an Eredar offshoot race of demons who are similar to Felguards, except they dual wield. [[TheStarscream Neither are particularly happy about serving you]], hence the needed Demonlogy specialty.
** Warlocks have two final demonic minions linked to long cooldown abilities: The Doomguard, which Supremacy turns into a Terrorguard, focuses on single target damage by casting shadow spells on the target, and the Infernal, which Supremacy turns into an Abyssal, who arrives from a demonic meteor from the sky and focuses on area of effect damage. These demons can become permanent minions with the level 100 Demonic Servitude talent.
* WreathedInFlames: Destruction Warlocks can become this, the more Burning Embers they build up.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Warrior]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/noktal_the_savage_8.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Troll Warrior standing firm against an onslaught.]]
->''"Experience?! Don't you talk about experience to me, boy! I have seen as much battle as you have eaten bread! I have spilled so much blood with my hands that you couldn't fill with a river! Experience is the one thing that defines a warrior from a soldier!"''
-->-- '''Joshua Orville''', Captain of 4th company, Stormwind Marine Corps

For as long as war has raged, heroes from every race have aimed to master the art of battle. Warriors combine strength, leadership, and a vast knowledge of arms and armor to wreak havoc in glorious combat. Some protect from the front lines with shields, locking down enemies while allies support the warrior from behind with spell and bow. Others forgo the shield and unleash their rage at the closest threat with a variety of deadly weapons. The warrior’s battle cries embolden friends and leave foes cowering in fear. With legendary precision, warriors target the smallest gaps in armor and slice at hamstrings in a blur of steel.

Every dragon slain, corrupted tyrant toppled, and demon banished from Azeroth has trembled in the face of these lords of war.

Warriors are the quintessential fearless fighters on the battlefield, and their pure martial prowess inspires courage in allies and despair in enemies. Experts in all manner of melee weaponry and possessing incredible physical strength and skill, Warriors are perfectly suited to serve as frontline combatants and battlefield commanders.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/warrior_crest.png]]

* TheAce: Warriors are the masters of close quarter combat and excel in the usage of weapons. Arms Warriors in particular are supposed to feel like true weapon masters; people who've trained for years to perfection with their chosen weapon. It shows through abilities such as Colossus Smash, where the Arms Warrior cuts completely through an enemy's armor. They're also the only Warriors that have baseline access to Bladestorm; Fury can get it, but need to spend a talent to do so.
* BadassNormal: Warriors are martial artists without peer. But that's about it. Warriors do not rely on fancy spells or shiny gimmicks to [[IncrediblyLamePun drop the hammer]] on the enemy, just raw martial prowess.
* TheBerserker: Fury Warriors in essence. All Warriors utilize rage, but Fury lives the trope.
** The developers have stated that they intended for Protection Warriors to embody everything between CityGuards to the KnightInShiningArmor elements not covered by Paladins, while Arms Warriors are intended to be the kind of veterans that [[ICallItVera have special names for each of their weapons]]. While almost all character personality elements are left to the player, Fury Warriors' entire playstyle is distinctly built around being the "screaming, half-naked, bloodthirsty, rage-powered brute" that this trope implies.
* TheBigGuy: Their role is to either dish out hell of a punishment or being tank of a party.
* BowAndSwordInAccord: Subverted. They used to be able to equip a bow or ranged weapon before the secondary weapon slot was removed in ''Mists'', one of the reasons being that it was not very useful in actual combat. It was rarely used for anything other than pulling an enemy, and when removed, it was replaced with a standard "throwing knife" ability that performs the same function.
* DualWield: OneHandedZweihander gets turned UpToEleven when a Fury warrior dual wields two-handed weapons.
* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: Two abilities - Whirlwind, which makes the Warrior spin in a blur of steel and deal instant damage to everyone around him, and Bladestorm, which is like Whirlwind UpToEleven, and causes the Warrior to become a continuous tornado of blades.
** The Arms talent Ravager, has the Arms Warrior toss a weapon to a location, where it spins in place to deal damage to anyone nearby.
* FinishingMove: Execute, which can only be used on a low health target, helps the Warrior dispatch a wounded foe.
* HeroicSecondWind: With the "Second Wind" talent, Warriors gain Leech at low health, which makes them heal for a percentage of damage they deal. Also the ability Victory Rush can fit this theme, an ability which activates after the Warrior gets a killing blow and deals damage to a different target while healing the Warrior.
* HeroicWillpower: A lot of Warrior abilities focus on this. How else would they stand beside spellcasters and slice them to bits?
* InASingleBound: Heroic Leap is a defining example. In ''Legion'', Warriors also exit their order hall by crashing into their destination like a meteor.
* IShallTauntYou: Their "Taunt" ability grabs a foe's attention and makes them focus their attacks on the warrior instead of others. Some other classes have variations on this.
* LastStand: The appropriately-named "Last Stand" ability grants the Protection Warrior a brief health boost for use in emergencies.
* MadeOfIron: Some classes heal themselves with actual healing magic. Warriors just tank the damage head on and their adrenaline and bloodlust help them ignore it. Abilities like Shield Wall and Die By The Sword emphasize this.
* MakeMeWannaShout: Warriors have access to a number of Shout abilities to inspire allies or disrupt foes.
** Battle Cry, a cooldown for all Warriors, causes all attacks to be assured critical strikes for a short time.
** Intimidating Shout inspires terror in enemies, causing the target and other enemies near the warrior to flee in fear.
** Commanding Shout bolsters allies by increasing their effective health.
** Dragon Roar, a talent for Fury Warriors, is a powerful bellow that knocks enemies back and ''deals physical damage''.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** Strom'kar, the Warbreaker, a two-handed [[HeroesPreferSwords sword]] for Arms warriors once wielded by the first king of Arathor to end the Troll Wars and seal away a lieutenant of the Old Gods.
** The Scale of the Earth-warder, a [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe shield]] for Protection warriors made from the scale of the dragon Aspect Neltharion before he became Deathwing, with a complementary sword.
** The Warswords of the Valarjar, a [[DualWielding pair of]] [[OneHandedZweihander massive swords]] commissioned by the Titanic keeper Odyn and corrupted by the death goddess Helya.
* OneHandedZweihander: Fury warriors have the passive ability called Titan's Grip which allows them to wield two-handed weapons with one hand.
* ScreamingWarrior: If a Warrior ability doesn't involve swinging a weapon, there's a good chance it involves yelling.
* ShieldBash: The Protection ability Shield Bash, which deals damage to an enemy with the shield.
* ShockwaveStomp: A few abilities like Thunderclap and Shockwave.
* SpinAttack: See EverythingIsBetterWithSpinning.
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: Warriors have access to different abilities that have them throw their weapon.
* TranquilFury: Arms Warriors embody this trope. Out of all the specs, they have the least amount of shouting and rampaging, instead focusing on precise weapon mastery. While they still use Rage, it's more subdued, and their attacks are dramatically slow compared to other classes, but pack a lot more punch. An Arms Talent called Focused Rage involves shedding off anger to focus your attacks, dramatically increasing the damage of their Mortal Strike ability the more rage they shed to focus. Another talent, Deadly Calm, causes their abilities to cost no rage during their Battle Cry cooldown.
* UnstoppableRage: Unstoppable is right -- Warriors can effectively heal their wounds and ignore crowd control effects by focusing their anger. The Berserker Rage ability in particular shrugs off a number of CC effects, including the unique ability to break a Rogue's Sap in PvP.
[[/folder]]

!!Introduced in ''Wrath of the Lich King''

[[folder: Death Knight]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/8b306587dc74940ca30d5d27448216ae.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:An Orc Death Knight standing victorious upon a mountain of skulls.]]
->''"All that I am: anger, cruelty, vengeance - I bestow upon you, my chosen knight. I have granted you {{immortality}} so that you may herald in a new, dark age for the [[TheDarkSide Scourge]]."''
-->-- '''The Lich King''', [[TinTyrant Supreme leader]] of the Scourge

->''"Harness your hate; make it useful."''
--> -- '''Darion Mograine,''' after the Death Knights are freed from Scourge's grasp

Heralds of Death, Harbingers of Destruction, Ebon Riders of Darkness...Words cannot describe how powerful and how terrible these undead warriors are. Clad in [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience heavy armor as dark as the dead of the night]] and wielding wickedly fashioned weapons glowing with runes, they represent the pinnacle of the might of the [[TheDarkSide Scourge]] and were often powerful paladins and knights felled under the onslaught during the [[ZombieApocalypse Scourge Invasion]]. Risen through dark {{Necromancy}}, these warriors are imbued with the mightiest powers of the Scourge and often serve as [[TinTyrant leaders]] and [[FourStarBadass lieutenants]] for the Lich King, [[WalkingWasteland sowing death and destruction in their wake]]. [[AnIcePerson Frost sharpens their strikes]]; [[OurVampiresAreDifferent blood fortifies their bodies]]; and [[TheUndead undeath]] allows them to erupt in unholy rage in the heat of battle. A thousand atrocities are etched in the eyes of every death knight, and foes who gaze into them too long [[TheDreaded will feel the warmth pulled from their bodies]], replaced with cold steel.

When the Lich King’s control of his death knights was broken, [[HeelFaceTurn his former champions sought revenge for]] [[PayEvilUntoEvil the horrors committed under his command]]. After their vengeance was won, the death knights found themselves without a cause and without a home. One by one they trickled into the land of the living in search of a new purpose.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/death_knight_crest.png]]

* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: They died fighting the Lich King's forces, only to join them.
* AnimateDead: Unholy Death Knights can [[NightOfTheLivingMooks summon various undead minions]] to do their bidding, including up to ''two'' permanent pets at the same time. In ''Legion'' all varieties of Death Knights can do this on certain quests.
* AntiHero: Although much of the hero they used to be after their starting experience, they nonetheless use their formidable and terrifying powers to achieve what they will and stop at nothing to have their revenge at the Lich King.
* AntiMagic: Death Knights have an Anti-Magic Shell that will not only absorb incoming spells and elemental attacks, but convert the damage into runic power to perform counterattacks. They are also capable of forming an Anti-Magic Zone to protect their allies, and unleashing Necrotic Strikes which cancel out healing magic wasted on their foes.
* BadassBaritone: The unique Death Knight voice is low, heavy and echoes with awesomeness, reminding their foes what formidable opponents they are.
* BadWithTheBone: The Blood specialization takes a focus on this with the ''Legion'' spells Bonestorm and Marrowrend.
* BagOfSpilling: Averted. Death Knights in lore were once heroes that already did work, and then were trained by the Lich King. As such they start at level 55 rather then 1.
* BlackKnight: They are [[BloodKnight vicious warriors]] adept in {{necromancy}}, often wearing [[DarkIsNotEvil dark armor]] and wielding [[{{BFS}} massive runeblades]].
* BlackMagic: Death Knights wield the power of the [[TheDarkSide Scourge]] and their magic is used to sow destruction, pain and death among the living.
* BloodMagic: Blood death knights are [[OurVampiresAreDifferent vampiric warriors]] who take the blood of enemies and use it to [[LifeDrain keep themselves battleworthy]].
* BloodKnight: Within the lore, Death Knights suffer wracking pains whenever they ''aren't'' inflicting suffering on others.
* CommandingCoolness: Years before other adventurers managed this in ''Warlords of Draenor'', during the Death Knight starting zone, the player is promoted to Scourge Commander for their OneManArmy annihilation of the Scarlet Crusade.
* ChillOfUndeath: The Icebound Fortitude spell allows Death Knights to freeze their blood to become more resilient towards damage.
** Also a common motif: Many undead creatures associated with the Scourge, such as Deathchargers, Frostbrood drakes and player Death Knights, have a blue glow from "cold flames" used to animate them.
* TheDarkArts: {{Necromancy}} is considered highly dangerous and is forbidden in most cultures in the World of Warcraft. It is even sometimes referred to as this by members of Dalaran.
* DarkIsNotEvil: They prove to ultimately be heroic [[HeelFaceTurn after their intro experience]], although the Ebon Blade remains somewhat [[AntiHero dubiously]] [[TheUnfettered so]].
* {{Determinator}}: They are hell bent on seeking vengeance on the Lich King and the Scourge.
* TheDeadHaveEyes: Death Knights' are gorgeously blue.
* TheDragon: As the Deathlord of the Ebon Blade, they are second only to the Lich King, Bolvar Fordragon.
* TheDreaded: It is stated in the book Death Knights of Acherus that they left no survivors in their onslaught and completely devastated their enemies, with the player character being responsible for most of this [[OneManArmy almost single-handedly]]. The book in fact strongly implies that when the player character was bound to the Scourge, they were one of the most violent, cruel, and brutal death knights to ever exist.
-->''Soulless killing machine. No remorse. No regrets. Has killed more Scarlet Crusaders, destroyed more lives, and caused more chaos than any death knight before [them].''
* DualWield: Frost Death Knights have the ability to wield one weapon in each hand.
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The first-generation death knights that appear in ''Warcraft II'' are undead human knights whose corpses are possessed by spirits of deceased orc warlocks. Only third-generation death knights have shown any grasp of Frost magic; in fact, several death knights shown the Warcraft series prior to ''Wrath of the Lich King'', such as Teron Gorefiend (an example of the above) and Thane Korth'azz, have been heavily associated with ''Fire'' magic.
* EverythingsBetterWithSpinning: The Bone Shield and Bonestorm abilities of the Blood Death Knight, Remorseless Winter for Frost Death Knights, and Soul Reaper for Unholy Death Knights.
* EvilIsDeathlyCold: Basically Death Knights are a frost-encrusted [[WalkingWasteland walking death machine]] [[UpToEleven on steroids]].
* FallenHero: Due to being raised as the Lich King's servants. "A hero... that's what you once were."
* FlyingWeapon: Blood Death Knights can create a Dancing Rune Weapon that will fight on its own, copying its creator's attacks. Come ''Legion'', Frost Death Knights can use a weaker version of this with their Artifact.
* GlowingEyesOfDoom: When you gaze into those blue eyes... You're already dead.
* HeelFaceTurn: At the end of their starting quest line they return to their former heroic ways.
* HellishHorse: Death Knights' will gain the Acherus Deathcharger after the quest Into The Realm of Shadows, which essentially involves hijacking the horse from a other-dimensional horseman. The charger has a curved pair of goat horns, glowing blue eyes, hooves wreathed in blue flames and is clad in dark armor decorated with skulls. Additionally, skeletal warhorses are also popular with death knights (see Baron Rivendare and [[spoiler:both generations of]] the Four Horsemen).
* AnIcePerson: Compared to those mages who study the properties of ice to manipulate them as methods of offense, death knights are the incarnation of winter itself. Their [[TheDreaded mere presence brings a chill upon a normal man's heart]] and when they strike, their frost-encrusted blades howl with the might of winter. Frost Death Knights are particularly adept in this field, calling in arctic winds and winter storms to wear down crowds of foes.
* ImplacableMan: Though [[MightyGlacier not very fast]] to start with, some of their abilities make them hard to slow down: Wraith Walk resists snares, Icebound Fortitude cancels most stuns, Pillar of Frost NoSells knockbacks, and AntiMagic Shell is a Swiss army knife for ignoring control effects.
* KnightInSourArmor: They were killed in combat, raised as a mind-controlled undead slave, sow death and destruction on innocent (and some not so innocent Scarlet Crusade) people and were forced to murder their best friend. Then they were abandoned by the Lich King and after they rejoined their respective factions, they were seen as monsters. Such experience made them cynical about the world but they nonetheless strive to be the heroes that they used to be.
* LastChanceHitPoint: The Purgatory talent allows them to absorb fatal damage (and [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill any damage after]]) as well as incoming healing. If the absorbed healing outweighs the absorbed damage at any point within the next 3 seconds, they live; if not, they die. Of course, there's nothing to stop them from being killed immediately ''after'' Purgatory saves them in the case of a narrow margin.
* MadeOfIron: Not technically though. The main reason that they could shrug off injury that normal people could not bear is, well, they're dead.
* MageKiller: Mages have always had difficulties when dealing with Death Knights due to their AntiMagic capabilities. They also have access to a Dark Simulacrum which can [[PowerCopying copy enemy spells]], to turn them against their original casters or redirect their benefits to the Death Knight. In the past, Death Knights could even convert regeneration effects placed on their foes into diseases to [[HoistByTheirOwnPetard kill them faster]].
* MagicKnight: Death Knights are the harbingers of destruction and possess expertise in necromancy and dark magic, being able to [[BloodMagic draw power from blood]], [[AnIcePerson evoke the power of the winter chill]] or [[PlagueMaster spread doom and fear with deadly plagues and diseases]].
** Unholy death knights are particularly noteworthy in this regard, trading heavy melee damage for the ability to weave [[PlagueMaster diseases]], [[{{Necromancer}} necromancy]] and [[CastingAShadow shadow magic]] at a longer range, albeit not dealing damage as efficiently as they could in melee. Come ''Legion'', the Clawing Shadows spell can replace their main attack, complementing their Death Coil for ranged barrages.
* MightyGlacier: Death Knights have the fewest mobility skills in the game, and generally aren't very fast. However, [[YouWillNotEvadeMe they don't need to be]].
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** The Maw of the Damned, a [[AnAxeToGrind two-handed axe]] for Blood death knights, a [[HungryWeapon soul-leeching weapon]] adorned with the [[AndIMustScream conscious skull of the crazed demon who crafted it]].
** Apocalypse, a two-handed [[EvilWeapon demonic sword]] for Unholy death knights, capable of summoning its own [[NightOfTheLivingMooks army of the dead]] and previously used by dreadlords to spread a HatePlague.
** The Blades of the Fallen Prince, a [[DualWielding pair of]] [[ElementalWeapon icy blades]] for Frost death knights, reforged from the shards of Frostmourne after the fall of the Lich King Arthas Menethil -- and still haunted by him.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Aside from Death Knight itself, the player character also receives the title of Deathlord in ''Legion''.
* {{Necromancer}}: Death Knights, being the Lich King's champions, are some of the best necromancers in his ranks. While all Death Knights can learn to resurrect their allies, the Unholy specialization has the best use of this, being able to summon ghouls and skeletons as permanent minions, [[BodyHorror transform ghouls into monstrosities]], animate gargoyles and even [[NightOfTheLivingMooks raise a whole undead army]] on his/her own.
* NightOfTheLivingMooks: Formerly a signature skill available to all Death Knights, now exclusive to the Unholy specialization. In ''Legion'', the Unholy Death Knight's artifact allows them to summon up to a whopping ''[[UpToEleven twenty]]'' different minions at one time[[labelnote:*]]A permanent ghoul or abomination, a permanent skeleton from talents, a gargoyle or Val'kyr, a super-zombie proc, 8 ghouls from Army of the Dead and 8 more from the artifact power[[/labelnote]] -- although only a couple will last, with the majority [[ActionBomb exploding]] after a few moments.
* NonIndicativeName: Despite the name, several of the second generation Death Knights, such as Arthas Menethil, weren't actually dead. Functionally, they slid from living into undeath, but they never experienced the actual dying part. However, both the first and third generations of Death Knights are reanimated corpses. The first generation was comprised of the souls of the Shadow Council members inserted in the bodies of Human knights, while the third generation are heroes and champions who fell in battle against the Scourge and were later raised amongst their numbers.
* OneManArmy: During the Death Knight starting zone, the player character almost single-handedly annihilates the Scarlet Crusade. They only get even more powerful from here.
* PayEvilUntoEvil: They completed their HeelFaceTurn at the end of their questline and uses the power of the [[TheDarkSide Scourge]] to rain hell on the Lich King and his minions.
* PlagueMaster: Unholy death knights specialize in weakening and damaging their enemies with diseases while their [[NightOfTheLivingMooks undead minions]] deal the fatal blow.
* PsychicStrangle: The abilities Strangulate & Asphyxiate, used to interrupt spell casting. Asphyxiate in particular lifts the enemy off the ground for 5 seconds and stuns them while they clutch at their throat.
* PummelingTheCorpse: For a bit of bonus humiliation, Death Knights can learn to cast Corpse Explosion, which [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin causes an enemy corpse to explode]] into a red cloud of LudicrousGibs, leaving only ribs and bloody meat behind. This used to be an actual attack when first introduced, the explosion causing AOE damage to other mobs in the area or by exploding the Death Knight's Ghoul Minion, but it's limited usefulness when soloing and general awkwardness led to it over time being removed and reintroduced as a non-damaging "For fun" ability you have to go out of your way to learn.
* SkeletonsInTheCoatCloset: Death Knight armors are often dark and grim in color tone and adorned with [[SpikesofVillainy spikes]] and sometimes, skulls and bones.
* SpellBlade: The Death Knight's calling card and magical focus is his magically empowered Runeblade. Frost and Unholy Death Knights in particular can infuse the blade with elemental energy for some attacks, although all three specializations will use it to discharge their spells.
* TheUndead: Essentially.
* TheUnfettered: In ''Legion'', the Knights of the Ebon Blade elect to "do what the living cannot". This includes everything up to [[spoiler:storming Light's Hope Chapel ''[[FullCircleRevolution again]]'' in an attempt to raise the fallen [[TheParagon Tirion Fordring]] into undeath, although it doesn't work. [[SecretTestOfCharacter Not that it was actually intended to work in the first place]]]].
* UndeathlyPallor: Death Knights' skin color can vary from [[HadesShaded pale to eery green to pitch black]] (most likely depending on how long they've died). However, death knights can also have normal skin color.
* WalkingWasteland: When you're capable of defiling the very land around you or freezing the air in a matter of seconds, you qualify.
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: Death Knights have quite a few ways to keep a target pinned so they can unleash hell upon them. A Death Knight's most notorious ability is Death Grip, which grabs an enemy and forces them beside you. Other abilities like Chains of Ice and Asphyxiate also work to keep enemies in place so you can slice them to bits.
[[/folder]]

!!Introduced in ''Mist of Pandaria''

[[folder: Monk]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/639px_taran_zhu_tcg.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Pandaren Monk keeping vigil during the night.]]
->''"Why do we fight? To protect home and family... To preserve balance and bring harmony. For my kind, the true question is: What is worth fighting for?"''
-->-- '''Chen Stormstout''', famous wanderer, brewmaster and descendant of the Stormstout family

When the pandaren were subjugated by the mogu centuries ago, it was the monks that brought hope to a seemingly dim future. Restricted from using weapons by their slave masters, these pandaren instead focused on harnessing their chi and learning weaponless combat. When the opportunity for revolution struck, they were well-trained to throw off the yoke of oppression.

Masters of bare-handed combat, monks never rely solely on the need to have a weapon in their hands to defend against their enemies. Although most widely known to the outside world for their fearsome jabs and flying kicks, they refuse to limit themselves to a single method of combat. Many monks prefer instead to “soak it up” and seem to revel in the intoxicating effect of absorbing blow after blow while their companions press the attack. Other monks specialize in calling upon the restorative power of the mists to balance the good and bad energy within people, returning them to good health and fortune.

Monks bring a unique martial arts style to any fight, and harness an exotic form of magical energy that’s unfamiliar to those who practice other arcane arts. They seek spiritual balance in life and in combat, and as dangerous as Monks can be on the battlefield, they’re rarely looking to pick a fight without just cause. They view the world through a different lens, finding power through serenity and inner peace—then expressing it through artful combat techniques and powers that mend life. Perhaps most surprisingly, Monks are also adept at producing powerful brews they consume to aid them in battle.

----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pandarencrest.jpg]]

* AddictionPowered: It is heavily implied both in lore and in game that monks are very fond of consuming alcoholic beverages. However, only Brewmasters use it as part of their fighting style in ''Legion''.
** BoozeBasedBuff: Fortifying Brew, Nimble Brew, Tigereye Brew etc.
* AsskickingPose: Monks have many unique attack animations and many resemble the stances of famous Chinese kung-fu styles.
* BareFistedMonk: Averted to an extent. Most core abilities forgo the weapons in favor of strong kicks or punches, but fist weapons are incorporated into Tiger Palm and Fists of Fury, and Jab changed depending on the monk's equipped weapon.
* CombatMedic: Mistweaver monks rely on melee combat to fuel their [[KiAttacks chi]] to empower their healing spells.
* CombatPragmatist: Choosing the Leg Sweep talent makes the monk capable of this.
* DivingKick: Flying Serpent Kick lets a Windwalker monk quickly move about this way.
** DynamicEntry: If the Windwalker uses it to enter combat.
* DrunkenMaster: Brewmaster tanks invoke this, supposedly dodging attacks and shrugging off whatever damage they do take simply by their own drunkenness.
* DualWield: Windwalkers and Brewmasters are capable of this.
* KamehameHadoken: Chi Blast ability. In which the monk concentrates a giant ball of chi energy and pushes it out, dealing damage to all enemies on the line of the attack while healing the monk.
* KiAttacks: Many of the combat abilities of Windwalker monks (Fists of Fury, Spinning Crane Kick etc.) are based on Chi.
* KiManipulation: The monks many abilities are based on the ability to channel their Chi.
* LightningBruiser: The Windwalker monk in essence.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** Fu Zan, the Wanderer's Companion, a [[SimpleStaff staff]] for Brewmaster monks, once wielded by the Titanic watcher Freya as she created the Wild Gods.
** Sheilun, Staff of the Mists, a [[MagicStaff staff]] for Mistweaver monks, blessed by the August Celestials and used by Emperor Shaohao to cloak Pandaria in mists.
** The Fists of the Heavens, a [[DualWielding pair of]] [[PowerFist bladed fist weapons]] infused with power stolen from the Elemental Lord [[BlowYouAway Al'akir]].
* SimpleStaff: Staffs are another common weapon for Monks.
* SpotOfTea: In contrast to Brewmasters, Mistweavers use magically-enhanced Thunder Focus Tea to empower their heals. Mistweavers who choose the Mana Tea talent also use tea to restore mana during combat.
* SupernaturalMartialArts: Monks are adept at interweaving physical combat with their unique magics.
[[/folder]]

!!Introduced in ''Legion''

[[folder: Demon Hunter]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/8f7897b6d92147520d3f8ff0fee69446.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A Blood Elven Demon Hunter preparing to strike.]]

-> ''"Most of them, Varedis included, pursue power for its own sake. That power will consume them, for they are not driven by the pure fire that burns inside a true demon hunter's heart."''
-->-- '''Altruis the Sufferer''', one of the few Demon Hunters, referring to his own kind

Demon hunters, elven disciples of Illidan Stormrage, uphold a dark legacy, one that frightens their allies and enemies alike. The Illidari embrace fel and chaotic magics—energies that have long threatened the world of Azeroth—believing them necessary to challenge the Burning Legion. Wielding the powers of demons they’ve slain, they develop demonic features that incite revulsion and dread in fellow elves.

Demon hunters ritually blind themselves in exchange for spectral sight that enables them to better sense their prey. This enhanced awareness, together with their great agility and magical prowess, makes demon hunters unpredictable adversaries. An Illidari’s quarry has much to fear.

Most Illidari are adept at interweaving their fel magics and their physical aptitude into their fighting style, running circles around their prey as they wear them down with lightning-fast glaive attacks and controlled bursts of chaos magic. Their fury comes to a peak in their Metamorphosis, a terrifying winged form that magnifies their already formidable powers. Others find power in their pain, taking the frontline and soaking up damage only to deal it back in return. These warriors refine their magical abilities, slowly tearing apart the souls of their enemies and fortifying their bodies, and taking on the form of massive spiked demons to maximize their potential.
----
!!Tropes
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/demon_hunter_crest.png]]

* AbsoluteCleavage: When female, to show off their [[PowerTattoo Power Tattoos]].
* TheAntiNihilist: On some level, this is what drives Demon Hunters, as described by the ''Illidan'' novel. All Illidan-trained Demon Hunters see a vision of the Legion's atrocities across the cosmos and soon realise they are dwarfed by its pure scale, yet they continue to fight regardless.
* ArmorPiercingAttack: Demon Hunters primarily employ Chaos damage in their attacks, which counts as a combination of [[InfinityPlusOneElement every elemental damage type in the game]].
* BadassArmy: Demon Hunters are perhaps rightfully considered the most dangerous neutral force to ever come from Azeroth. Absurdly powerful, near immortal, usually unhinged, and capable of permanently killing demons. Yet all the same, they've dealt multiple crushing blows against the Legion, who before Demon Hunters came into existence had never encountered a significant counterattack from a planet they invaded.
* BladeBelowTheShoulder: Aside from the Warglaives of Azzinoth, Demon Hunters have exclusive access to Warglaive-type weapons.
* BlindfoldedVision: All Demon Hunters are blind, their vision instead coming from a demonic true sight. Though for players the blindfold is optional, as you can go without and let the world see [[BodyHorror the felfire burning in otherwise hollow eye sockets]]. Nefarian's new class call for them mocks it: ''"Demon Hunters! How odd, covering your eyes like that. Doesn't it make it hard to see the world around you?"''
* BodyHorror: No, elves aren't supposed to grow horns. Some of the skin options also give them scales and Metamorphosis turns it [[UpToEleven Up to Eleven]].
* CombatParkour: Havoc Demon Hunters employ their [[DashAttack Fel Rush]], [[SpringJump Vengeful Retreat]], and [[InASingleBound Metamorphosis]] effects as part of their regular attack rotation. They also boast having the highest mobility in the game, with their DoubleJump and [[NotQuiteFlight Glide]] abilities; Havoc Demon Hunters even increase their base movement speed as they gear up. These can be comboed to rapidly cross ''massive'' distances in the open world, and perform SequenceBreaking in some older dungeons.
* ConservationOfNinjutsu: [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration Fittingly for champions who are made to fight against the endless crashing waves of demons]], both specs of demon hunters in different ways excel when fighting numerous enemies at once.
** To start with, both specs with different mechanics knock soul shards loose from the enemy, these fragments when consumed will heal the Demon Hunter for various amounts depending on their spec and ensures that as long as the first enemy dies, they'll be healed nearly to full HP, or even all the way, allowing them to continue fighting without worry. Both specs also have a [=PvP=] talent called Solitude which increases their damage when no allies are nearby but multiple enemies are.
** Havoc Demon Hunters excel at fighting multiple enemies at once, nearly ALL of their abilities are either [=AoE=] or have a cleave component, their special artifact ability is a specialized [=AoE=], Blade Dance is competent enough as both an [=AoE=] and a single target effect, Chaos Nova stuns every enemy it hits and looses a soul fragment from them with an artifact ability, and multiple of their legendary armors empower these further like reducing the cooldown on Eye Beam depending on number of enemies hit, or empowering their Fel Rush to do more damage.
** Vengeance Demon Hunters specialize in holding the attention of multiple enemies, like Havoc nearly all of their skills have an [=AoE=] component to them, with their main Pain spending ability having a cleave component, and their main threat ability being a passive fire aura that is always drawing attention, and their sigils place down [=AoE=] fields that has no target limit, making sure every enemy it touches will be affected by it.
* DemonSlaying: Demon Hunters gain several bonuses when fighting against demons. Their starting Warglaives increase their attack power against demons, and their Soul Fragments empower their damage if received from demons.
* {{Determinator}}: One of the marks of the Illidari. Those remaining on the Fel Hammer have personally suffered at the hands of both the Legion and the Wardens, watched their allies tortured and slain by demons [[FateWorseThanDeath or worse]], and know full-well that their enemy is nigh-''infinite'' -- and are still fighting for Azeroth.
* DifficultButAwesome: Demon Hunters rely on reaction timing and the advantage of speed to be effective. Havoc Demon Hunters have some of the [[DashAttack most]] [[EyeBeams narrow]] AreaOfEffect attacks in the game, requiring enemies to line up perfectly for the best mileage. The Blade Dance ability gives all Demon Hunters a [[InvulnerableAttack 100% chance to dodge incoming attacks]] for ''1 second'', allowing them to bypass big hits completely if used properly -- but ''Illidan have mercy'' if you play one with server lag.
* DodgeTheBullet: Havoc Demon Hunters' primary defense comes from avoiding attacks entirely, be it from [[DashAttack dashing]] out of area attacks or boosting their Dodge chance. They can even create fields of shadow that allow their ''allies'' to avoid attacks entirely.
* DualWielding: Demon Hunters are only proficient in wielding one-handed weapons, and they cannot use shields. Their primary focus is on wielding a pair of Warglaives.
* EyeBeams: All Demon Hunters gain this ability during the introductory experience, but only Havoc gets to keep it.
* EyePatchOfPower: Demons Hunters get special customization options in the form of different blindfolds.
* IncendiaryExponent: Vengeance Demon Hunters gain Immolation Aura, which sets them on fire.
* FragileSpeedster: Havoc Demon Hunters are Agility-based attackers with, at the time of their inclusion, the highest burst mobility in the game. However, they have very limited access to self-healing and no resistance to crowd control; if a Havoc Demon Hunter slows down, they'll go down easily.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: Demon hunters belong to a neutral faction (Illidari), and they actually don't care if one of their members is a night elf or a blood elf. Of course, in gameplay they have to work with the faction of their respective race in a PvP.
* GutturalGrowler: Male Demon Hunters of both races have unique voice clips that are a few octaves deeper than normal Elves' and have a scratchy, feral sounding rumble behind their words.
* InstantRunes: Vengeance's ''Sigil'' spells, which carve large runes into the ground.
* KnockbackEvasion: Clever players have come to find that their Glide ability allows them to negate the momentum of effects that would render them airborne.
* LastChanceHitPoint: Vengeance Demon Hunters can take a talent to restore some health and enter SuperMode when they take fatal damage.
* LightningBruiser: Vengeance is one of the most mobile specializations in the game. It is also a tank with ridiculous self-healing and sustain potential fueled by excellent AoE ability.
* NamedWeapons: The artifact weapons in ''Legion'':
** The Twinblades of the Deceiver, a [[DualWielding pair of]] [[DoubleWeapon warglaives]] for Havoc demon hunters, infused with the power of Kil'jaeden and taken from a traitor to the Illidari.
** The Aldrachi Warblades, [[DualTonfas a set of bladed tonfa]] for Vengeance demon hunters, taken by Sargeras from the champion of one of the first races to resist -- and be wiped out by -- the Legion.
* PlayingWithFire: Another common element in their spells, prominently in Vengeance.
* PowerGivesYouWings: All Demon Hunters can unfurl a set of wings allowing them to safely glide long distances. Havoc's Metamorphosis briefly transforms the user into the iconic "wings, horns, hooves" demon form.
* ThePowerOfHate: This is ultimately what makes a Demon Hunter capable of surviving their brutal training. The demon they choose to bind to themselves is encouraged to be one they have a personal vendetta against and is also what tempers them to let their power not consume them. As the quote above says, there's a bit of disdain from Demon Hunters who pursue the path out of an Anti-Heroic hatred for Demons towards those that pursue the art for the sake of power above all else.
* PowerTattoo: They work as a way of regulating a Demon Hunter's power.
* ResurrectiveImmortality: While this is true of all player characters, only the Demon Hunter has it as GameplayAndStoryIntegration. During the introductory zone for the Demon Hunters, you have to sacrifice people at different points during the story to power portals for armies to march through. At the last portal, you can choose to sacrifice yourself rather than the intended victim. If you do, you go to the graveyard per norm for the game, but a surprised Illidan contacts you mentally, informing you that your soul is now demonic, so like any demon, your "death" only sends your soul to the Twisting Nether until you can find a suitable host to inhabit. And, if it hasn't been too long and in its good enough condition, you can reclaim your old body, which is still a viable container, as it only died recently. [[spoiler:Also foreshadows Illidan's resurrection.]]
* SpikesOfDoom: Vengeance Demon Hunters can Metamorph into a spiked, flightless demon. While in their elven form, they can also invoke these same spikes on their bodies to reduce incoming damage.
* SuperMode: All Demon Hunters have one in the form of Metamorphosis.
* TrainingFromHell: A Demon Hunter's training is absolutely ''brutal''. As detailed in the ''Illidan'' novel, a Demon Hunter's training ends with killing a demon of their choice, drinking its blood and eating its heart, after which Illidan causes a reaction that puts them into a dream where they have to do the same to the mental projection of the demon now in their body. After that's done, they're shown horrific visions of the Legion's victories, worlds destroyed over infinite realities and timelines while the demon taunts them, the horror of this is what causes Demon Hunters to put their eyes out. After that, the Demon Hunter wakes up blind and frenzied until their spectral sight kicks in, upon which they've found they've grown aspects of the demon they consumed. According to the book, only one in five elves make it to the end, the ones who don't die due to the brutal physical training or [[IncrediblyLamePun not being prepared]] for what the demon shows them often commit suicide out of insanity or unwillingness to live as a demon.
* TheUnfettered: Their motto is "Nothing is more important than the Legion's destruction"; this ''begins'' with siphoning demonic power and sacrificing their allies. Not surprising, given their mentor's rather... dubious methods of fighting the Legion.
* VictorGainsLosersPowers: Defeating major demons throughout their starting zone grants them more powers.
* WalkingShirtlessScene: Male Demon Hunters get this by default for all chest armor, to show off their [[PowerTattoo Power Tattoos]].
* WingedHumanoid[=/=]NotQuiteFlight: All Demon Hunters grow demonic wings, but they can only use them to glide, not to fly (by pressing the "Jump" button when falling).
* XRayVision: Their true sight functions as this when focused on it, allowing the Demon Hunter to see any living creature through walls and making stealth completely useless. However, to keep this ability balanced in [=PvP=], using it slows the demon hunter to a crawl.
* YourSoulIsMine: Demon Hunters can cleave off fragments of their victims' souls, devouring them to restore their own health; if the victim is a demon, their powers grow as well. A recurring motif with demon-related weapons and technology is that they require souls to power, which the Illidari have been willing to exploit... usually by feeding said weapons and technology the souls of its creators.
[[/folder]]
----

* TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow: Warlocks are essentially practioners and scholars of the magic of the [[TheDarkSide Burning Legion]] and is considered chaotic and extremely dangerous by most cultures in Azeroth. They study [[TheDarkArts demonic magic]] through [[TomeOfEldritchLore books of unimaginable powers]] and evoke the destructive powers of the legion upon their foes. Therefore, they are mainly [[{{Outcast}} looked down upon]] in the magic academia.

%% Zero Context Examples are not allowed. All such examples have been commented out. Please add context before uncommenting them.

* NotEvilJustMisunderstood: Because of their association with orcs and demons, warlocks are oftentimes [[{{Outcast}} looked down upon and despised]] within their societies, seen as power-hungry madmen and sadistic maniacs. Because of this reason, many warlocks are discriminated against or even outright abolished from the magical academia or banished from their societies. However, many warlocks study dangerous fel magic to better [[PayEvilUntoEvil understand demons and the way to counter them better]] and many of them are much nicer and more sane than some self-righteous *ahem*Scarlet Crusade*ahem* paladins and clerics.

* EscapedFromHell: In Stormheim, the player character is [[DraggedOffToHell banished to Helheim] to prevent them from claiming the Aegis of Aggramar. Despite that, they outsmart Helya and free themselves as well as a contingent of Valarjar shieldmaidens. Helya is none too pleased.

* BloodKnight: Subverted. While there is a Sin'dorei Paladin organization called the Blood Knights, [[IThoughtItMeant they don't relish in battle as a defining trait]].

* Pirate: In contrast, Outlaw's aesthetic, with themes of sabres and pistols for that distinct[[PiratesVersusNinjas]] flavor.

* CombatMedic: Discipline has a very heavy focus on healing-through-damage. Their actual proper, direct heals are very weak, but put a buff called atonement on the healed ally that mirrors all damage the priest does as healing. One Atonement is on the wounded ally, the priest unloads with damage to sustain the party.

* PsychicPowers: Most shadow priest offensive powers attack the mind.
* WhiteMage: In general priests are mostly a healer class and most of their abilities (excluding those of the Shadow spec) are involved with healing and protection. They still possess offense capabilities, but rarely useful. Priests who choose the Shadow spec fits more into the RedMage or BlackMage archetype.
* WhiteMagic: Holy and Discipline priests gain most of their power through the Holy Light.
* YinYangBomb: Discipline priests use both light and shadow magic in equal amounts for their spells.

* PummelingTheCorpse: For a bit of bonus humiliation, Death Knights can learn to cast Corpse Explosion, which [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin causes an enemy corpse to explode]] into a red cloud of LudicrousGibs, leaving only ribs and bloody meat behind.

* ConservationOfNinjustu: [[GameplayAndStoryIntegration Fittingly for champions who are made to fight against the endless crashing waves of demons]], both specs of demon hunters in different ways excel when fighting numerous enemies at once.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness:The first-generation death knights that appear in ''Warcraft II'' are undead human knights whose corpses are possessed by spirits of deceased orc warlocks. Only third-generation death knights have shown any grasp of Frost magic; in fact, several death knights shown the Warcraft series prior to ''Wrath of the Lich King'', such as Teron Gorefiend (an example of the above) and Thane Korth'azz, have been heavily associated with ''Fire'' magic.

* BaldOfAwesome: There are several bald hairstyles for male player characters.

* GutteralGrowler: Male Demon Hunters of both races have unique voice clips that are a few octaves deeper than normal Elves' and have a scratchy, feral sounding rumble behind their words.

* {{Curse}}: With their knowledge in [[BlackMagic the black arts]], Warlocks are able to cripple and torment enemies with dark curses using their demonic magic. Affliction warlocks are especially adept in this art.

** The (Jeweled) Scepter of Sargeras, a [[MagicStaff staff]] for Destruction warlocks originally wielded by the Dark Titan Sargeras himself, used by Ner'zhul to obliterate Draenor and create Outland.

* TheDreaded: It is stated in the book Death Knights of Acherus that they left no survivors in their onslaught and completely devastated their enemies, with the player character being responsible for most of this almost single-handedly.

* ForestRanger: Blood Elven rangers, the Farstriders, are an example of this, as are Night Elven sentinels. Marksmanship Hunters specifically invoke this trope.

* MixAndMatchCritters: Their class mount is a Wolfhawk, a beast that's a hybrid between a wolf and a hawk. It's cry sounds like a mixture of a howl and a screech. Also, yes, their's also ones you can tame.