Retribution Paladin Raid Guide (2024)

When to use this Spec

Use this spec for your raid encounters as it should be your standard build for single-target damage. It leverages the combo of Radiant Glory and Crusade, but you also use Execution Sentence for single-target burst damage. For a detailed guide on playstyles and priority lists, check the deep dive section below to learn how to fully optimize this build!

There is Currently a bug with Radiant Glory Read FAQ to learn more about it!

Gameplay Altering Talents

Discover all talents that significantly alter your gameplay within the Spec and Class Talent trees. This section gives a concise overview of these talents and their applications but for a more detailed look check out the Rotation and Deep Dive sections below.

Spec Tree

• Radiant Glory
  • Automatically activates Crusade when you cast Wake of Ashes.
• Execution Sentence
  • A strong single-target burst cooldown.
  • Every time Wake of Ashes is ready make sure to combo this.
• Final Verdict
  • Your main single target Holy Power spender.
• Boundless Judgment
  • Your Judgment generates an additional Holy Power.
    • Combining this with Swift Justice provides the most Holy Power.
• Improved Blade of Justice
  • 2 charges of Blade of Justice instead of 1.
• Crusading Strikes
  • Generates 1 Holy Power every 2nd auto attack, replaces your Crusader Strike.
  • Look below in Deep Dive to see how to play around this.
• Empyrean Legacy
  • Every 20 seconds after you press Judgment it empowers your next Final Verdict also use Divine Storm.
• Art of War
  • Your auto attacks have a 20% chance to reset Blade of Justice.
• Vanguard's Momentum
  • Generates 2 Holy Power instead of 1 on enemies below 20%.
  • Has 2 charges now instead of 1.
• Rush of Light
  • Gain 5% haste when you Crit with your Single Target abilities.
• Consecrated Blade
  • When you cast Blade of Justice it also casts Consecration below you every 10 seconds.

Class Tree

• Divine Toll
  • Casts Judgment on your target.
  • Mainly used for its Holy Power gain.
• Avenging Wrath
  • Your main cooldown, it empowers everything you do.
• Divine Steed
  • Move at 100% movement speed for 3 seconds.
    • Cavalier Grants you 2 charges instead of 1.
• Lay on Hands
  • A strong single target heal that can be used to save friendly targets.
• Blessing of Protection
  • Great way to avoid aggro or prevent Physical damage.
• Blessing of Sacrifice
  • Perfect to use on tanks or players dealing with certain spells during boss fights.
• Rebuke
  • A kick to interrupt any spell.
• Unbound Freedom
  • Allows you to use Blessing of Freedom on another member.

When to use this Spec

Use this build when you need a longer burst than the 8 seconds gained from Radiant Glory. The full 23 seconds from the Avenging Wrath and Divine Wrath combo makes you powerful for a longer duration and could be handy on some fights.

Talent Adjustments

Listing all the changes within the Class and Spec tree compared to the default build.

Spec Tree

• Added
  • Avenging Wrath
    • Empowers your 1 min cooldowns.
  • Divine Wrath
    • Adds 3 seconds to your Avenging Wrath.

• Removed
  • Crusade
    • This was replaced by Avenging Wrath.
  • Radiant Glory
    • To make full use of your 23 seconds of Avenging Wrath, avoid using this as it prevents that.

When to use this Spec

Use this build when you need more cleave on your raid fights. This build allows your generators to cleave and enables you to spam Divine Storm when needed.

Talent Adjustments

Listing all the changes within the Class and Spec tree compared to the default build.

Spec Tree

• Added
  • Tempest of the Lightbringer
    • When you cast Divine Storm it now hits an additional time for 20% of the base damage and hits anyone up to 20 yds away.
  • Blade of Vengeance
    • Blade of Justice now Cleaves to 5 nearby enemies and additionally debuffs them with Expurgation.
  • Blessed Champion
    • Your Judgment and Crusader Strike now Cleaves to 2 additional targets.

• Removed
  • Empyrean Legacy
  • Penitence
  • Heart of the Crusader

When to use this Spec

This is your main AoE build, ideal for fights with constantly spawning adds or when you're on add-clearing duty. It's also effective for fights with 2-3 bosses up at the same time. This build utilizes your Avenging Wrath 1-minute burst and allows you to spam Divine Storm, while your generators cleaves everything around you.

Talent Adjustments

Listing all the changes within the Class and Spec tree compared to the default build.

Spec Tree

• Added
  • Avenging Wrath
    • Empowers your abilities and cooldowns.
  • Tempest of the Lightbringer
    • When you cast Divine Storm it now hits an additional time for 20% of the base damage and hits anyone up to 20 yds away.
  • Blade of Vengeance
    • Blade of Justice now Cleaves to 5 nearby enemies and additionally debuffs them with Expurgation.
  • Blessed Champion
    • 2 Points into this.
    • Your Judgment and Crusader Strike now Cleaves to 4 additional targets.
  • Burning Crusade
    • Your Divine Storm deals 5% increased damage.
  • Searing Light
    • Your spells have a small chance to call down a blast of AoE damage around you!

• Removed
  • Crusade
  • Radiant Glory
  • Vanguard's Momentum
  • Rush of Light
  • Empyrean Legacy
  • Heart of the Crusader

Class Tree

• Added
  • Divine Purpose
    • Small chance to grant you a free Holy Power spender such as Divine Storm.

• Removed
  • Vengeful Wrath
    • This talent is not worth it without Vanguard's Momentum.

To read more about Radiant Glory head down to the Deep Dive section!

Opener

Your main goal in your opener should be to get to 3 Holy Power by using Blade of Justice into Divine Toll before starting in your Execution Sentence window. There are also 2 different openers you can play with, if you find yourself at max Holy Power or unable to use Divine Toll instantly on the pull, follow the version below. The Crusading Strikes trait has an RNG factor that affects when you gain Holy Power. Specifically, Holy Power is gained on the 2nd auto attack, but this can vary due to the RNG factor. During your opener, be aware of this variability. If you don't gain Holy Power as expected, you may need to use a generator ability to fill in the gaps.

Standard Opener

Max Holy Power Opener

Priority List

This is a general priority you aim to maintain throughout the fight.

1. Cast Execution Sentence on cooldown.
2. Cast Templar's Verdict (close to 5 Holy Power).
3. Cast Wake of Ashes on cooldown to proc Radiant Glory ( 2 or less Holy Power).
4. Cast Blade of Justice (to keep up Expurgation).
5. Cast Divine Toll on cooldown.
6. Cast Hammer of Wrath (on any target below 20%).
7. Cast Judgment (if 3 Holy Power or below).
8. Cast Blade of Justice (if 3 Holy Power or below).

To read more about Avenging Wrath head down to the Deep Dive section!

Opener

Your main goal in your opener should be to get to 3 Holy Power by using Blade of Justice into Judgment, before starting in your Execution Sentence window.

Priority List

This is a general priority you aim to maintain throughout the fight.

1. Cast Execution Sentence on cooldown.
2. Cast Avenging Wrath on cooldown.
3. Cast Templar's Verdict When Close or at 5 Holy Power.
4. Cast Wake of Ashes on cooldown or delay so you use it at 2 Holy Power.
5. Cast Divine Toll on cooldown.
6. Cast Blade of Justice To keep Expurgation Up.
7. Cast Judgment on cooldown.
8. Cast Hammer of Wrath on cooldown.

To read more about Radiant Glory head down to the Deep Dive section!

Opener

Multitarget / AoE Priority List

1. Cast Final Reckoning on cooldown.
2. Cast Divine Storm (When high on Holy Power).
3. Cast Wake of Ashes (when low on Holy Power).
4. Cast Blade of Justice ( To Keep up Expurgation).
5. Cast Divine Toll on cooldown.
6. Cast Judgment
7. Cast Divine Storm (When 3-4 Holy Power).
8. Cast Hammer of Wrath (on any target below 20% since Vanguard's Momentum).

To read more about Avenging Wrath head down to the Deep Dive section!

Opener

Multitarget / AoE Priority List

• Keep up Expurgation from Blade of Justice.
• Cast Judgment to Buff your Divine Storm.
• Cast Avenging Wrath on cooldown.
• Cast Final Reckoning on cooldown.
• Cast Divine Toll on cooldown pref when at 0 Holy Power but always after Final Reckoning.
• Cast Final Reckoning on cooldown.
• Cast Wake of Ashes on cooldown or save it for 2-3 seconds for a better lineup.
• Cast Divine Storm always be spamming this.

• When specced into Radiant Glory, you cannot use Avenging Wrath or Crusade directly. Instead, using Wake of Ashes triggers the cooldown you have chosen in your talents for a few seconds. Additionally, there is a small chance that any Holy Power spender can proc your chosen talent for an additional 5 seconds, this extends your Crusade or Avenging Wrath if it procs while the spell is active.
• Never sit on Wake of Ashes since Final Reckoning has a 1-minute cooldown and Execution Sentence has a 30-second cooldown. Delaying Wake of Ashes also delays all of your other cooldowns.

Execution Sentence

• When you have chosen Execution Sentence as your minor cooldown, it is optimal to use Wake of Ashes after Execution Sentence. This is because the gain from getting Avenging Wrath won't affect Execution Sentence, and you want the full uptime on wings during the Execution Sentence window. Try to have 3 Holy Power ready right before Execution Sentence goes off cooldown so you can use it instantly.

Final Reckoning

• The optimal Wake of Ashes usage, when you have chosen Final Reckoning, is to use Wake of Ashes after Final Reckoning. Try to have 3 Holy Power ready right before using Final Reckoning so you can instantly spend your Holy Power.

• Choose this talent when boss fights or dungeons allow you to never miss a cooldown window.
• When using trinkets, do not hold your Avenging Wrath, as it does not significantly buff the overall damage of trinkets but it does increase their crit chance.
• Delaying Avenging Wrath also delays your other minor cooldowns.
• For trinkets with a 90-second cooldown, use them on cooldown unless you have a trinket that provides a massive mastery or strength buff. In that case, try to align it with Avenging Wrath.
• Never sit on Avenging Wrath for more than a few seconds, as most of your damage comes from combining it with other 1-minute cooldowns. As mentioned earlier, always use Avenging Wrath first unless you are using Execution Sentence, in which case follow the specific strategy explained below.

• The main reason you play this talent is if there is a boss where you can really utilize your strong 2-minute cooldown burst, or if you have heavy haste with Radiant Glory, which can grant you a decent amount of proc wings.
• Optimal usage is to make sure to instantly use Templar's Verdict to quickly build up your stacks. Aim to get to 7-10 stacks before using Execution Sentence or Final Reckoning for the most damage. However, be mindful of the fight or dungeon scenario. If holding these cooldowns for later in the Crusade window means losing a full usage overall, it is better to use them early to ensure you get an extra usage.

• The main idea of Execution Sentence is to fit as many spenders as possible within its duration. It's not strong outside of Avenging Wrath or Crusade due to its short burst window and lack of initial damage.
• To use it optimally, always cast Execution Sentence before Avenging Wrath. When you run out of Holy Power, immediately use Wake of Ashes, followed by another spender and then Divine Toll. The golden rule is to press Execution Sentence on cooldown to ensure it aligns with other cooldowns, even if there is no strong cooldown available.
• If you are playing Radiant Glory, make sure to use Execution Sentence before Wake of Ashes.

• Your big AoE cooldown Final Reckoning is a very straightforward spell. It is mainly used for AoE or on fights where getting good single target usage out of Execution Sentence is not possible.
• It works similarly but puts a 12-second debuff on the target, increasing your single-target Holy Power spenders by 30% and other spenders by 15%.
• Optimal usage of Final Reckoning is to combo it with your other 1-minute cooldowns such as Avenging Wrath, since they share the same cooldown.
• If playing Crusade, try to save Final Reckoning for when you are at 7-10 stacks before using it. This provides the most damage overall since Crusade lasts 30 seconds.
• If playing Radiant Glory, refer to the opener/prioritization list above for usage instructions.

Boss Tips

• If you are assigned to kill adds, make sure to interrupt Ice Barrage with Rebuke.
• You can pre-use Blessing of Freedom on allies since you are talented into Unbound Freedom. Use it right before they are afflicted by Icy Shroud to fully negate the root and healing absorb on the player and yourself.
• Rotate your Shield of Vengeance and Divine Protection during Wildfire. If you get too many stacks, don't be afraid to use Divine Shield.

Offensive Cooldown Usage Boss

Offensive Cooldown Usage Adds

• If you are assigned to add duty, don't worry about boss damage since your main focus is on the adds. Consider using the AoE build mentioned in the Talents section above.

Boss Tips

• To survive Hurricane Wing, use the following sequence:
  • First cast: Divine Steed.
  • Second cast: Divine Steed x2.
  • Third cast: Demonic Gateway.
  • Fourth cast: Divine Shield.
• You can use Rebuke, Hammer of Justice, and Blinding Light to interrupt Volatile Sparks.
• During the first intermission, make sure to interrupt as many Stormseeker Acolytes as possible with Rebuke.
• Use Divine Steed to run through Tempest Wing.
• Make sure to save DPS cooldowns and Shield of Vengeance for Stormsurge.
• Use Blessing of Freedom on any player near you who just got Fulminating Charge to help them move out quickly. Also, don't stand near them as it spreads to any target within the circle when it expires.

Offensive Cooldown Usage

• The most important thing about cooldowns on this boss is to make sure to have cooldowns for Stormsurge.
• Note: Your guild timings might be a bit different than the pictures below so just follow the notes from above

Defensive Cooldown Usage

• Maximize your damage from Shield of Vengeance throughout the fight by using it when you get the buff from Stormsurge.

Boss Tips

• Use Divine Steed to quickly run out with Volcanic Heart.
• Use Blessing of Sacrifice on players targeted by Volcanic Heart.
• Use Shield of Vengeance and Divine Protection during Umbral Annihilation.
• Divine Shield makes you immune to Ebon Destruction while also removing all debuff stacks. Save it for the second or third cast, or use it on the first cast if you use Bloodlust and there won't be a second cast.
• Blessing of Protection can remove the debuff from Calamitous Strike from your tank, but don't use it randomly. Make sure your tank calls for it.

Offensive Cooldown Usage

• It's pretty simple: use everything you have on cooldown, but be careful not to cleave with Wake of Ashes and Divine Toll during Corruption.

Defensive Cooldown Usage

• Your timings with Divine Protection might vary. Try to maximize damage from Shield of Vengeance, and using Blessing of Sacrifice on your tanks can help proc the full damage from Shield of Vengeance. Make sure to save Divine Shield for the last phase, which means you probably can't use it during Phase 2.

Boss Tips

• Start with Blessing of Sacrifice on the tank, followed by Shield of Vengeance for the first Glittering Surge that occurs 5 seconds into the fight. If you feel like you are dying, skip Blessing of Sacrifice as it is just to help the tank out.
• Make sure to clear your Oppressing Howl debuff by being hit by Mass Disintegrate or Searing Breath. Use Shield of Vengeance or Divine Protection to survive this.
• Use Divine Steed when collecting Mind Fragment and Astral Flares.
• In P1 intermission, use Divine Steed right when you have gotten to the Raid stack and your pool has been dropped. Then try to collect 2-3 Astral Flares stacks. Make sure to return to your Raid's stack point to avoid dropping any random pools in the room, as this can easily kill people. Use your second Divine Steed after dropping off your second pool. Quickly get up to 9 stacks of Astral Flares and wait with 9 stacks before refreshing them to 10 stacks right before collecting your third Mind Fragment. This ensures maximum uptime for the haste buff while being able to damage the boss.
• You could use the passive cleave build here, but in my case, there are better classes to deal with the AoE in Phase 2. Interrupt Empty Recollection casts in Phase 2 with Rebuke.
• Try to save Wake of Ashes for when the adds spawn and use maybe 1-2 Divine Storms per wave in Phase 3.
• If you get targeted by Embrace of Nothingness, you can use Divine Shield to soak it alone. Make sure that either you or the raid leader calls this out to prevent anyone from trying to save you and dying. Normally, there is a gateway for you to quickly get out with it.

Click this link

• In this video, you see the Warlock Xerwo demonstrating how we handle the P1 intermission. Note that, as someone without teleport, you cannot go as far as he did in the video. Since the spawns from Astral Flares are a bit random, quickly collect any close ones and then regroup as stated above.

Offensive Cooldown Usage

• Your Phase 1 timing might vary from what has been mentioned, so try to fit in an extra Execution Sentence before the boss becomes immune.

Defensive Cooldown Usage

• Since Shield of Vengeance contributes significantly to your damage, use it as often as possible. Paladins are generally tanky, but you can't always survive spells like Searing Breath without using cooldowns. Save Divine Shield for Phase 3 in case you need to solo soak.

Boss Tips

• Stand away from other players when affected by Overheated. As melee, you prefer facing the middle since ranged players are closer to the edge. Use Divine Steed to quickly move and bait Lava Geysers.
• Soak Brand of Damnation if you don’t have Overheated, as missing this affects your damage later.
• During the intermission, soak 3 Living Flames to increase your damage and prevent the boss from gaining a damage boost. Ensure all your cooldowns are ready after collecting these 3 Living Flames. This phase occurs around 1:07 into the fight and again 1.5 minutes later. Use Avenging Wrath at the pull and save it for subsequent damage buffs, or if the fight extends to enrage, check below for alternative cooldown timings.

Offensive Cooldown Usage

If the boss dies at 5:15!

• You might lose one use of Avenging Wrath, but this strategy ensures that your major cooldowns align with every damage buff window. The main reason for this is to coordinate with your guild’s Bloodlust on their 2-minute cooldown, which occurs around 2:46 into the fight. By doing this, you have Avenging Wrath ready for that Bloodlust window.

Defensive Cooldown Usage

• Use Divine Protection whenever needed or if you're about to get hit by any lines. You can also combo it with Shield of Vengeance. Save Shield of Vengeance for after soaking your Living Flames during the intermission, as it gives a significant damage boost at that time.

Boss Tips

• You can immune Mass Entanglement by pre-casting Blessing of Freedom. Do this the second time in Phase 1, as Mass Entanglement overlaps with Fire Beam, which can be deadly. After that, use Blessing of Freedom every time it's off cooldown during Mass Entanglement in Phases 2 and 3.
• Don't forget to use Unbound Freedom to assist healers or others who need it to dodge Fire Beam.
• Use your Dragonriding mount to quickly fly between platforms as the boss transitions phases. Typically, a tank or healer picks up Dream Essence, so head to the boss as quickly as possible.
• When you land, use Avenging Wrath: Might to burn through Supernova. This is also a good opportunity to use Shield of Vengeance.
• In Phases 2 and 3, ensure you soak Seeds of Flame to prevent a wipe. Always keep Divine Steed ready for this. As a Paladin, you can cover more distance to soak seeds, thanks to your decent attack range compared to other melee classes.

Offensive Cooldown Usage

• Ensure you have cooldowns ready during Supernova. Try to save Wake of Ashes for as many Mass Entanglement instances as possible.

Defensive Cooldown Usage

• Use Shield of Vengeance early so it’s ready for the Mass Entanglement and Fire Beam combo in Phase 1. Also, ensure Shield of Vengeance is available for every Supernova, as the absorb buff from Dream Essence is quite strong.

Boss Tips

• Use Divine Steed to drop Firestorm at the back of the room away from the raid. Don’t hesitate to use Shield of Vengeance or Divine Protection to reduce the damage from this.
• You can use Shield of Vengeance or Divine Protection for the Wildfire & Fyr'alath's Flame combo in Phase 1.
• In Phase 1, use Divine Steed when Dream Rend is active. This makes it easier to dodge and stay with the Raid stack.
• Since your spells have considerable range, give other melee priority to be closer to the boss when Blaze is active.
• You can dispel Aflame from Burning Presence with Divine Shield, but be cautious if you need to soak during Phase 1 Intermission.
• When the boss enters Intermission from Phase 1, use Demonic Gateway to avoid the knock-up effect of Incarnate if timed correctly.
• As a Paladin, you can also use Blessing of Protection and move to your designated side early, since you need to soak with Divine Shield later.
• Soak Shadowflame Orbs during the P1 Intermission. Be on the assigned side. Use Shield of Vengeance early, as you can use Divine Shield later for immunity, and Divine Steed to soak multiple orbs efficiently.
• In Phase 2, interrupt Searing Screams from Screaming Souls with Rebuke to make it easier for the group to stack.
  • You can also use Wake of Ashes for its stun effect since the adds are undead, stunning them for 5 seconds.
• In Phase 3, stand in the Seed of Amirdrassil when Apocalypse Roar is about to occur to reduce its damage.
  • You can also use Divine Protection here.
• In Phase 3, use Divine Steed to run away from Swirling Firestorm.

Offensive Cooldown Usage

• Your guild’s timings might differ, but the strategy below is set up so you don’t feel completely ineffective during the Intermission phases in Phase 2. You might need to adjust for more boss damage, and it’s straightforward to switch to this if needed. If you prefer, avoid using any cooldowns during the Intermission phases except for Execution Sentence, but ensure you follow your guild’s requirements.

Below you are presented with a good list of farmable alternatives that are obtainable outside of WoW’s weekly lockout system. While replaced in time as you progress, these offer immediate character power.

#showtooltip Final Reckoning/cast [@cursor] Final Reckoning

#showtooltip Rebuke/cast [@focus] Rebuke

#showtooltip Hammer of Justice/cast [@focus] Hammer of Justice