This guide is simply intended to provide a general overview of the class. For a more in-depth and highly detailed resource on this class, check out this guide here.

Click here for either the Priest Class Guide or the Shadow Priest Class Guide, and also check out this page for more world of warcraft leveling tips & tricks.

Index:
1.0 - Introduction
2.0 - Talents
3.0 - Gear & Progression

Shadow Priests are one of my favorite classes, they present a lovely variety of damage capabilities as well as the ever-present healing/buffing power of any priest.  All in all they also come in very close to Warlock’s in terms of style and grinding ability, the just lack the pet.

Still, Shadow priests also have quite a bit of their own playstyle to enjoy, face-melting with mind flay(lazers!) as well as mind control hijinks that occupy quite a bit of my time due to being on a PvP server.

So, read on and learn how to maximize your shadow priests leveling experience.

2.0 – Talents

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This build is designed to reach the core points of the shadow tree, allowing you to become the mana efficient non-stop killing machine as desired, as well as picking up what I consider the best choices of side-grade/supporting talents.

Unfortunately enough, shadow really doesn’t come into its real/full potential until as far as the 40’s, although a taste of the true killing ability does come starting around both the 20’s and 30’s.  It’s a mixture of mana regeneration and mana efficient killing spells that allow you to really keep going.

Spirit tap is both the first talent in the tree and one of the greatest, instantly providing a level of mana regeneration likely equaling your entire mana pool well into the 20’s, this is also further augmented by wearing lots of +spirit gear.

Blackout is one of my more well-liked supporting talent choices, it’s either that or Shadow Focus and personally I’ve never run into much of a problem with spell resistances, at least not while leveling, at 70 it could be a different matter entirely.

Blackout’s stun often comes in handy when opening a fight, sometimes even gaining a chain stun-effect as it proc’s multiple times from SWP, Mind Blast, etc.  This also aids immensely when the opponent gains melee range, the stun period lasts long enough to get a mind blast off.

Mind flay, a real killer at higher levels but you’ll likely not notice it being of *great* use immediately upon picking it up.  Still, it’s definitely worthy of using in-between mind blasts in addition to a wand.

Shadow Reach, Improved Mind Blast, Improve Shadow Word Pain – All of these improve the primary spells of any shadow priest arsenal and therefore are a nice scaling boost to damage output as we await the real goodies.

Vampiric Embrace, this is another ability that, like mind flay, will seem somewhat negligible until your early 40’s whereupon it really comes into play as a massive time-saver due to the self-healing effect making every fight more efficient.

Now we get focused Mind, a point in shadow weaving, Darkness. Yet more side-grade style talents that just make life easier in general and improve your killing capabilities two-fold, however, worry not, the real stuff kicks in soon.

Shadow Form, and with it a taste of real power as you really get the combined force of all your previous talents plus a hefty 15% damage increase.  This is the benchmark line talent-wise for becoming a real powerhouse of leveling, wands become a thing of the past.

Shadow Weaving, Shadow Power, Vampiric touch – All of these talents now serve to beef up your already deadly arsenal and provide some slight mana regeneration/variety in the form of another DoT.

All in all this rounds out the necessary picks and leaves the rest up to you, either following my talent build or picking what you think helps best.

10 – 14 Spirit Tap
15 – 19 Blackout
20 – Mind Flay  
21 – 24 Improved Mind Blast 4/5
25 – 26 Shadow Reach
27 – Improved Mind Blast 5/5
28 – 29 Improved Shadow Word: Pain
30 – Vampiric Embrace
31 – 33 Focused Mind
34 – Shadow Weaving 1/5
35 – 39 Darkness
40 – Shadow Form
41 – 44 Shadow Weaving 5/5
45 – 49 Shadow Power
50 – Vampiric Touch
51+ - Branch out, explore other talent tree options if you like, etc.

3.0 – Gear & Progression

Gearwise, shadow priests have basically two priority picks and a whole slew of possible choices.  Those priority statistics would be +spirit and +shadow damage, spirit taking the chief slot until past 40 or so whereupon shadow damage becomes slightly more prevalent and useful.

Another thing to be kept in high priority is an ever-updated wand, maximum DPS as well as some +spirit or shadow damage stats on it is merely a plus.  Wanding is a large part of how any shadow priest levels prior to your late 40’s and thusly the right wand choice makes all the difference.