Protection Paladin Tank Guide - Midnight (12.0.1)

Welcome to our WoW The War Within Protection Paladin Guide! In this comprehensive guide, we provide top tips for mastering Protection Paladin gameplay. From rotation and gearing to consumables and macros, you’ll find everything you need to excel with this specialization.

Protection Paladin Overview

As a Protection Paladin, you can expect to perform the role of a solid and reliable tank. In general, your damage intake will be relatively smooth, with many attacks being blocked by your shield or softened by your strong active mitigation. No other tank class has quite the array of tricks up their sleeve that a Paladin does.

Protection Paladin Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths

• Unique group utility and damage reductions with Blessings and Auras.
• Strong active mitigation and cooldown kit against predictable incoming damage.
• Good burst capabilities with cooldowns for damage and threat generation.
• Good self and group healing with Word of Glory and Lay on Hands.
• Can remove poisons and diseases with Cleanse Toxins.
• Great emergency cooldowns like Lay on Hands and Divine Shield when things look dire.

Weaknesses

• Mistakes in your rotation can be very punishing.
• Moving out of Consecration means losing out on damage reduction.
• It takes a few GCDs to get Shield of the Righteous started meaning the start of combat can be dangerous. This can be offset by using a cooldown such as Ardent Defender / Guardian of Ancient Kings.
• Limited mobility outside of Divine Steed.

Protection Paladin Basic Gameplay

Tanking, in general, means a lot of pressure to not only do damage and thus threat to make sure things are attacking you but also about surviving those attacks. As a Protection Paladin, this generally means generating as much Holy Power as possible, so you can spend it on Shield of the Righteous to reduce damage intake. There can be moments where damage taken is higher and you will want to supplement this with another cooldown should, these would be scenarios such as pulling a large amount of enemies or bosses. If you are fairly new to the class and spec and need to jump into it right away, we recommend the Easy Mode page linked below.

Protection Paladin Changes in Patch 11.2

Patch 11.2 does not include any direct changes for Protection Paladins.

Seasonal Updates

With the start of a new season, new tier set bonuses have been introduced, now tied to Hero Talents.

Protection Paladin Leveling Guide for The War Within

Gear Options

When leveling up, you should always choose the piece of loot with the highest item level. The only exception to this rule is if you have a Ring or Necklace with a slightly lower item level but 2 secondary stats on it instead of 1.

Protection Paladin PvP Talents for Leveling

1. Steed of Glory increases the duration of Divine Steed by 2 seconds, letting you travel much farther with each charge. This is great for mobility, but keep in mind that it knocks back enemies on contact, which can be a downside when trying to group them for AoE.
2. Warrior of Light causes Shield of the Righteous to deal 30% more damage at the expense of reduced Armor. This tradeoff is usually acceptable for outdoor content, where survival is rarely an issue for tanks.
3. Aura of Reckoning provides passive extra damage after you've been hit 50 times.

Best Heirloom Items for Protection Paladin Leveling

When deciding on which heirlooms to purchase or use, you will want to target items that offer the most Strength. Choosing item pieces with Haste can help you kill enemies fast and more consistently, as the overall time until you gain enough Holy Power to use your Spender, which usually acts as your finishing move, is reduced with more Haste.

Protection Paladin Tank Spec, Builds, and Talents

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Copy the Protection Paladin talents, paste them into the game.

Single-Target Talents

AoE Talents

Mythic+ Talents

Delves Talents

PvP Talents for Protection Paladins

This list assumes you are not focused on actual PvP combat, and instead prioritizes the best talents for outdoor PvE content like World Questing and Leveling.

• Warrior of Light increases Shield of the Righteous damage by 30% at the cost of reduced Armor. This is typically fine in outdoor content where survival isn't a major concern.
• Steed of Glory extends the duration of Divine Steed by 2 seconds, greatly improving mobility. However, it also knocks back enemies, which can be problematic when trying to group them for AoE damage.
• Aura of Reckoning passively increases your damage after being hit 50 times.
• Hallowed Ground and Shield of Virtue enhance what Protection Paladins already excel at. Shield of Virtue is notable because it causes Avenger's Shield to silence players and nearby enemies, which is a rare utility but has limited value in outdoor content.

Most other talents are either too weak or primarily benefit nearby players, making them situational at best for solo outdoor play.

Best Hero Talents for Protection Paladin in The War Within

Raiding Hero Talents for Protection Paladin

Templar

Templar will provide more DPS in Raids, however it does not provide any raid utility in comparison to Lightsmith.

Lightsmith

Both Hero Talent choices are equally strong for raiding.

Lightsmith offers broader raid support by granting shields through Holy Bulwark and enhancing players via Sacred Weapon. Notably, the damage from Sacred Weapon is attributed to you, boosting your contribution on meters.

Mythic+ Hero Talents for Protection Paladin

Templar

Templar is the preferred choice in Mythic+ due to its higher damage output compared to Lightsmith. However, it offers less utility since you need to maintain Shake the Heavens, which results in Avenger's Shield having a lower rotational priority.

Lightsmith

Lightsmith offers more utility in Mythic+ than Templar, but provides less DPS. It features a simpler rotation and grants group utility through Holy Bulwark and Sacred Weapon.

Lightsmith is a great choice for learning dungeons and running lower-level keys.

Protection Paladin Healing Stat Priority

The Basics of Stats for Protection Paladin

Defensively, the stat priority for Protection Paladins is as follows:

1. Haste
2. Mastery
3. Versatility / Critical Strike

This priority is not affected by your choice of Hero Talent.

It's important to note that Haste, Mastery, and Versatility are all extremely close in value, and item level is by far the most important factor when considering gear upgrades. This stat priority is mainly useful when comparing two items of the same item level.

Once you approach around 30% Mastery, it's advisable to start balancing your stats by adding more Versatility where possible to avoid Diminishing Returns.

Getting a Better Understanding of Protection Paladin Stats

Haste reduces your global cooldown and the cooldowns of most of the abilities in your rotation. Its main purpose is to increase Shield of the Righteous uptime, smoothing out damage intake and making you easier to heal. At around 20% Haste, you’ll have enough rotational Holy Power to maintain high uptime on Shield of the Righteous. At approximately 25-30% Haste, you can cast Word of Glory without risking a drop in Shield of the Righteous uptime. Once you reach this threshold, it’s recommended to focus on maximizing the benefits of other stats.

Mastery, through Mastery: Divine Bulwark, increases your chance to block attacks, boosts your attack power, and enhances the damage reduction granted while standing in Consecration. It also enables you to block periodic spell damage and enhances the damage of your abilities, though it doesn't affect damage from external sources like trinkets or enchants.

Versatility increases all damage and healing done and reduces damage taken. It offers slightly more damage reduction per point than Mastery and is effective outside of Consecration. However, it lacks the added block chance provided by Mastery, which makes it slightly weaker in comparison.

Critical Strike boosts both your damage and healing output and grants parry at a 1:1 ratio. While it doesn’t offer much defensive value outside of parry, the additional parry chance can increase the frequency of Grand Crusader procs. In Mythic+ scenarios where you face frequent physical attacks, parry becomes significantly more valuable.

Strength increases the armor gained from Shield of the Righteous, your attack power, and provides a small boost to parry chance.

Adequate Stamina is essential to survive high-damage hits and allow time for healers to respond. Most of your Stamina will come from gear by default, but it's helpful to have additional Stamina available via trinkets, enchants, or gems when needed. As you become more experienced in assessing the survivability demands of each encounter, you can begin to shift some of that Stamina into other secondary stats.

Protection Paladin Tank Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities

Single Target Rotation for Protection Paladin

1. Avenging Wrath
2. Eye of Tyr if you have 0-2 Holy Power
3. Hammer of Light if you have any Blessing of Dawn stacks
4. Bastion of Light
5. Consecration (if you are not standing in it)
6. Shield of the Righteous when you are at 3-5 Holy Power to prevent overcapping on Holy Power
7. Divine Toll if you are not at 5 Holy Power
8. Hammer of Wrath
9.  Judgment
10. Hammer of the Righteous / Blessed Hammer if Shake the Heavens is active
11. Word of Glory if you have Shining Light and Shake the Heavens is active
12. Avenger's Shield
13. Hammer of the Righteous / Blessed Hammer if Shake the Heavens is not active
14. Word of Glory if you have a charge of Shining Light and are below 50% Health
15. Consecration if everything else is on cooldown to refresh the duration

Opener for Protection Paladin

1. Pre-place Consecration where you will be fighting
2. Pull the enemy with Hand of Reckoning
3. Avenger's Shield
4. Avenging Wrath
5.  Judgment
6. Eye of Tyr
7. Shield of the Righteous
8.  Judgment
9. Bastion of Light
10. Hammer of Light
11.  Judgment
12. Shield of the Righteous
13. Divine Toll

AoE Rotation for Protection Paladin

1. Avenging Wrath
2. Eye of Tyr if you have 0-2 Holy Power
3. Hammer of Light if you have any Blessing of Dawn stacks
4. Bastion of Light
5. Consecration (if you are not standing in it)
6. Shield of the Righteous when you are at 3-5 Holy Power to prevent overcapping on Holy Power
7. Avenger's Shield (to get Bulwark of Righteous Fury stacks)
8. Hammer of Wrath
9.  Judgment
10. Divine Toll when you have 0 Holy Power
11. Hammer of the Righteous / Blessed Hammer if Shake the Heavens is active
12. Word of Glory if you have Shining Light and Shake the Heavens is active
13. Hammer of the Righteous / Blessed Hammer if Shake the Heavens is not active
14. Word of Glory if you have a charge of Shining Light and are below 50% Health
15. Consecration if everything else is on cooldown to refresh the duration

Active Mitigation for Protection Paladins

Shield of the Righteous and Word of Glory are your two active mitigation abilities (though Word of Glory is a heal, so it does not really mitigate damage).

Shield of the Righteous

Shield of the Righteous is your primary damage mitigation ability. It costs 3 Holy Power, and each cast grants you a 4.5-second buff that increases your Armor, with the amount being influenced by your Strength. It also deals damage to all enemies directly in front of you and does not require a target.

Shield of the Righteous is off the global cooldown, allowing you to easily incorporate it into your regular rotation. The timing of when to use it will depend on your specific situation, but in general, aim to keep it active whenever you are taking substantial damage. It's important to avoid capping at 5 Holy Power when using a Holy Power-generating ability. However, you should also refrain from using Shield of the Righteous when you have only 3 Holy Power, as you may not have enough time to generate additional Holy Power should you need it shortly after.

Word of Glory

Word of Glory costs 3 Holy Power and provides a small heal that is increased by your missing health.

Given its Holy Power cost, it's best to wait until your health is at a comfortably low level (around 30-50%) to use Word of Glory for maximum benefit without putting yourself at risk. Every 5 casts of Shield of the Righteous will grant you a buff, making your next Word of Glory free to cast. While this buff is active, you cannot gain additional Shining Light charges.

In some situations, it can be beneficial to take a hit or two without Shield of the Righteous active (only do this when it is safe to do so), but as soon as the hit lands, immediately use Word of Glory to heal yourself and apply mitigation. This allows you to buy some time to regenerate Holy Power for Shield of the Righteous.

Cooldown Usage for Protection Paladins

Given that you will have Shield of the Righteous active and will be standing in Consecration while tanking, the following cooldowns should be planned ahead of time for situations where you will take larger amounts of damage. Examples include larger pulls in Mythic+ or Boss Tank Buster abilities:

• Guardian of Ancient Kings provides 50% damage reduction for 8 seconds on a 5-minute cooldown. Use this ability before a period of large damage.
• Ardent Defender is another powerful defensive with a 2-minute cooldown and 8-second duration. It reduces all damage taken by 20% and causes the first killing blow against you to heal you up to 12% of your maximum health instead of killing you (this effect consumes Ardent Defender). Best used to bypass deadly encounter mechanics or save your life in critical moments. It also lets you play at low health safely.
• Avenging Wrath increases both damage and healing done by 20%, and grants your Paladin abilities a 20% critical strike chance. This also gives you access to Hammer of Wrath, which generates more Holy Power.
• Lay on Hands is a massive heal with a very long cooldown. It will heal you (or a targeted ally) for your maximum health with a 10-minute cooldown. Best used as an emergency heal when you cannot cast Word of Glory due to the global cooldown or if you have recently used it.
• Divine Shield makes you immune to all damage for 8 seconds. Normally difficult to use while tanking (as the boss will immediately target another player unless you Taunt it), but it can clear certain debuffs or avoid fatal mechanics. Final Stand turns Divine Shield into a usable tank cooldown, making you immune to damage while forcing all enemies to attack you.

Protection Paladin Tank Gems and Consumables

Best Gems for Protection Paladins

You should use a Culminating Blasphemite in your first available gem socket, and fill every other with Masterful Emerald.

Best Phials, Weapon Augments, and Potions for Protection Paladin

Use Flask of Alchemical Chaos as a general-use phial.

Use Algari Mana Oil if you are playing as Templar, or Rite of Sanctification if you are playing as Lightsmith.

Tempered Potion should be your combat potion of choice.

You should use Invigorating Healing Potion for in-combat healing. Healing potions do not share a cooldown with Healthstones, so you can use both independently if you have access to a Warlock.

Best Food for Protection Paladin

Use Chippy Tea as your food buff of choice if a Feast is not available.

If a Feast of the Midnight Masquerade / Feast of the Divine Day is available, use this instead.

Augment Runes for Protection Paladin

In addition, if you can afford it, you should use Crystallized Augment Runes to increase your primary stat. Augment Runes are expensive, and disappear on death, so use them wisely!

Best Enchants for Protection Paladin in The War Within

Slot	Enchantment
Necklace	Magnificent Jeweler's Setting (adds up to 2 sockets to a Ring or Neck)
Weapon	Enchant Weapon - Authority of Radiant Power
Chest	Enchant Chest - Crystalline Radiance
Bracers	Enchant Bracer - Chant of Armored Speed
Legs	Stormbound Armor Kit
Boots	Enchant Boots - Scout's March
Rings	Enchant Ring - Radiant Haste
Cloak	Enchant Cloak - Chant of Burrowing Rapidity

Protection Paladin Tank Gear and Best in Slot

This section will cover everything you need to know about equipping your character correctly.

BiS Gear for Protection Paladins

Slot	Item	Source
Helm	Lightmane of the Lucent Battalion	Tier Set: Catalyst / Vault / Raid
Neck	Chrysalis of Sundered Souls	Soulbinder Naazindhri
Shoulder	Chargers of the Lucent Battalion	Tier Set: Catalyst / Vault / Raid
Cloak	Reshii Wraps	Reshii Wraps
Chest	Cuirass of the Lucent Battalion	Tier Set: Catalyst / Vault / Raid
Bracers	Everforged Vambraces	Crafted
Gloves	Protectors of the Lucent Battalion	Tier Set: Catalyst / Vault / Raid
Belt	Everforged Greatbelt	Crafted
Legs	Shrapnel-Fused Legguards	Fractillus
Boots	Interloper's Plated Sabatons	The Soul Hunters
Ring #1	Band of the Shattered Soul	Dimensius The All Devouring
Ring #2	Signet of Collapsing Stars	Tazavesh, the Veiled Market
Trinket #1	Nexus-King's Command	Nexus King Salhadaar in Manaforge Omega
Trinket #2	Diamantine Voidcore	Fractillus in Manaforge Omega
Weapon	Brand of Ceaseless Ire	The Soul Hunters
Shield	Tome of Light's Devotion	Priory of the Sacred Flame

Best Trinkets for Protection Paladin in The War Within Season 3

Raid Trinket Tier List for Protection Paladin

This Trinket Tier List is for trinkets that are used for Single Target/Raiding Purposes.

S-Tier

• Tome of Light's Devotion
• Brand of Ceaseless Ire

A-Tier

• Improvised Seaforium Pacemaker
• Ara-Kara Sacbrood
• Signet of the Priory
• Eradicating Arcanocore
• Unyielding Netherprism
• Ticking Sack of Terror

B-Tier

• So'leah's Secret Technique
• Perfidious Projector
• Miniscule Mailemental in an Envelope
• Incorporeal Warpclaw

C-Tier

• Araz's Ritual Forge
• Astral Antenna
• Screams of a Forgotten Sky

Mythic+ Trinket Tier List for Protection Paladin

This Trinket Tier List is for trinkets that are used for AoE Purposes in M+/Delves/Raiding.

S-Tier

• Tome of Light's Devotion
• Brand of Ceaseless Ire

A-Tier

• Unyielding Netherprism
• Ara-Kara Sacbrood
• Signet of the Priory
• Eradicating Arcanocore

B-Tier

• Improvised Seaforium Pacemaker
• So'leah's Secret Technique
• Astral Antenna
• Screams of a Forgotten Sky

C-Tier

• Perfidious Projector
• Araz's Ritual Forge
• Ticking Sack of Terror
• Incorporeal Warpclaw

The War Within Season 3 Tier Set for Protection Paladin

With the launch of Season 3, Protection Paladins will gain bonuses from Vows of the Lucent Battalion. These vary based on your chosen Hero Talents:

Lightsmith

• Paladin Lightsmith 11.2 Class Set 2pc: Hammer and Anvil damage increased by 15% and can also be activated by Blessed Hammer or Hammer of the Righteous at 40% effectiveness.
• Paladin Lightsmith 11.2 Class Set 4pc: Hammer and Anvil grants a stack of Masterwork, causing your next Holy Armament (Sacred Weapon or Holy Bulwark) to cast a Lesser version on a nearby ally for each stack.

The 2-piece is a straightforward damage increase by providing additional ways to trigger Hammer and Anvil. The 4-piece gains power through these extra triggers, generating Masterwork stacks that apply Lesser Sacred Weapon for a damage boost or Lesser Holy Bulwark for shielding nearby allies.

Templar

• Paladin Templar 11.2 Class Set 2pc: Empyrean Hammer deals 20% increased critical strike damage, and its criticals have a 50% chance to grant an extra stack of Light's Deliverance.
• Paladin Templar 11.2 Class Set 4pc: Hammer of Light deals 35% more damage to its main target, strikes 3 extra secondary targets, and gains an additional cast after Eye of Tyr.

The 2-piece increases damage while generating more Light's Deliverance stacks, enabling extra Hammer of Light casts. The 4-piece doubles the number of casts available after Eye of Tyr. and adds cleave, creating even more Light's Deliverance procs and free Hammer of Light uses.

Addons for Protection Paladin

Generic Addons for Paladins

• ElvUI
• Boss Mods
  • Deadly Boss Mods
  • BigWigs
• GTFO
• Parrot or Mik's Scrolling Battle Text
• Recount / Skada / Details!
• Weak Auras
  • Word of Glory Heal Predictor by Woliance (predicts Word of Glory healing)
• Omen Threat Meter
• Method Raid Tools
• Clique

Specific Addons for Protection Paladins

• Currently, no additional addons are needed to play this specialization to its full potential.

WeakAuras for Protection Paladin

WeakAuras is an essential tool for Protection Paladin and Tanks, offering unparalleled customization to enhance your gameplay. Rather than focusing on specific examples, we recommend exploring Wago.io, where you’ll find an extensive library of WeakAuras to suit your needs.

If you are unfamiliar with WeakAuras, it is an incredibly powerful and widely-used AddOn that allows you to create custom displays for nearly everything in the game. This includes tracking buffs, debuffs, cooldowns, Focus, resources, and much more.

To import a WeakAura, visit Wago.io and select one that fits your preferences. Click the "Copy WeakAura Import String" button to copy it to your clipboard. Next, log into the game and type /wa in the chat box to open the WeakAuras interface. Navigate to the "Import" section, press Ctrl+V to paste the copied string, and click "Import". You’re ready to go!

Mastering WeakAuras and customizing it to your playstyle is highly recommended for any serious raider. With countless options available on Wago.io, you can tailor your interface to optimize your performance and focus on what truly matters in combat.

Protection Paladin Frequently Asked Questions

Should I Play Defensively or Offensively?

If you're progressing on a boss or playing a character you're not fully comfortable with, prioritize playing defensively. The primary role of a tank is to survive and ensure the group’s success.

As you gain confidence and understand the encounter mechanics, you can adopt a mixed approach, balancing survivability with damage output. Once you're fully comfortable and confident in the encounter, you can shift your focus to maximizing DPS. This point varies based on your gear, skill level, and the needs of your group.

Is There a Haste Cap?

There’s no specific Haste cap for Protection Paladins or other stats. Instead of chasing particular breakpoints, focus on increasing your overall stats. For example, 120 Mastery or Versatility is generally better than 100 Haste due to the minimal differences between secondary stats. Simply prioritize acquiring as much Haste as possible, as it remains a reliable choice without having a definitive cap.

How Viable are Paladins in the Current Patch?

Protection Paladins are currently a well-rounded tank choice for both raids and dungeons. They excel at self-sustain, allowing them to recover from low health quickly, and they have strong active mitigation tools to handle predictable damage effectively.

Can I Sim Myself?

• Offensively: Yes, you can simulate your DPS using SimulationCraft, which is helpful for evaluating gear, traits, or talents for damage output.
• Defensively: No, simming for defensive stats isn’t reliable. Tanking involves complex variables like spike damage and encounter-specific mechanics, which simulations cannot accurately account for. For defensive gearing, it’s best to follow established guides and recommendations.

What Race is Best for Protection Paladins?

There’s no definitive “best” race for Protection Paladins, as most racial benefits vary by situation. Here’s a breakdown:

• Horde:

  • Tauren: Best defensively, offering more stamina and an AoE stun (War Stomp).
  • Blood Elf: Strong utility with an AoE dispel (Arcane Torrent) that is helpful in dungeons and some raids.
  • Zandalari Troll: Offers healing with Regeneratin', though situational and easy to interrupt.

• Alliance:

  • Dwarves: Best defensively, with Stoneform or Fireblood, providing damage reduction and dispels.
  • Lightforged Draenei: Strong AoE burst damage with Light's Judgment, useful in dungeons.
  • Humans: Balanced option, with increased secondary stats and Every Man for Himself  for breaking crowd control.

Choose a race that complements your preferred content or aesthetic.

What Piece is Better, X or Y?

In general, higher item level gear is better. However, there are exceptions:

• If the lower item level piece has better secondary stats (e.g., Critical Strike vs. unwanted stats), it can outperform higher-level gear within a small range (e.g., 5-10 item levels for rings).
• Trinkets should always be compared based on their effects rather than item level.

The best way to evaluate gear is to use tools like SimulationCraft or consult a guide for specific encounter setups.

Where Can I Find a Pawn String?

While Pawn can help determine gear upgrades, it has limitations. Item level is often a more reliable indicator of an upgrade, especially when secondary stats vary. Since Protection Paladins have both offensive and defensive considerations, Pawn may not accurately account for all factors. It’s better to use tools like SimulationCraft for offensive comparisons and guides for defensive gear advice.