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Though many of these WoW Paladin Runes have been officially revealed, some have only been revealed by datamining, and may change with the release of the Season of Discovery. Because only one Rune can be equipped to each slot, each section below ranks Paladin Runes against other Runes within the same gear category.
After launch, this guide to the best WoW SoD Paladin Runes will be updated with methods to Discover every Paladin Rune in the Chest, Legs, and Gloves slots. Later in the season, check back for information on the best Paladin Runes for other equipment slots when the 40, 50, and 60 level brackets unlock in later Phases.
Paladin Chest Runes, Ranked
Aegis, Divine Storm, Horn of Lordaeron, & Seal of Martyrdom
Paladins are a great class with some serious drawbacks, but SoD seems to balance things out across its three available specs. Paladin Tanks get some great options in the form of Divine Storm, a close-range AoE that damages and heals thereby generating lots of Threat, as well as Aegis, an active ability that increases’ the Paladin’s Block effectiveness. Of the two, Aegis will tend to be the better option overall, but Divine Storm complements the Paladin’s already-strong AoE Threat generation quite well, too.
Horn of Lordaeron is a party-wide active buff that increases all targets’ Strength and Agility for a short time. Though not an incredibly strong buff, it’s still better than manually applying Blessing of Might to every party member, though it doesn’t do much for spellcasters.
Seal of Martyrdom shows some serious potential in SoD, though. If the player can manage their HP well while active, Seal of Martyrdom is a straight-up 30% damage boost that also restores Mana to allies. Seal of Martyrdom has a high skill cap, but it’s worth leaning and optimizing, especially as a DPS Paladin.
Divine Storm
- Divine Storm Effect: An instant weapon attack that causes 110% of weapon damage to up to 4 enemies within 8 yards.
- The Divine Storm heals up to 3 party or raid members totaling 25% of the damage caused.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Horn of Lordaeron
- Horn of Lordaeron Effect: The Paladin blows the Horn of Lordaeron, which increases the total Strength and Agility of all party members within 30 yards by 6.
- Lasts 2 min.
- Exclusive with Blessing of Might.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Aegis
- Aegis Effect: Increases your block value by 30% and damaging melee and ranged attacks against you have a 10% chance to increase your chance to block by 30%.
- Lasts 10 sec or 5 blocks.
- Effect not cumulative with Redoubt.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Seal of Martyrdom
- Seal of Martyrdom Effect: Fills you with holy spirit for 30 sec, causing each melee attack to deal 30% extra weapon damage, but damaging the player for 10% of the damage inflicted.
- While this seal is active, party members within 40 yards each gain mana equal to 10% of the damage you take from this seal.
- Unleashing this Seal’s energy will judge an enemy, instantly causing 70% weapon damage at the cost of health equal to 10% of the damage inflicted.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Paladin Legs Runes, Ranked
Avenger’s Shield, Divine Sacrifice, Exorcist, Inspiration Exemplar, & Rebuke
With Paladin Leg Runes in SoD, two of the class’ biggest weaknesses are rectified – but because they are both Legs runes, the instant interrupt Rebuke and Avenger’s Shield compete for the same slot. Tanks will have to make a hard choice here, as Avenger’s Shield is an enormous boon to Paladins’ ability to gain and maintain threat, but having an instant Interrupt is also crucial. Generally, Avenger’s Shield will be the pick here for a Tank, while damage-dealers should pick up Rebuke.
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However, there is also Divine Sacrifice to consider. This ability redirects a chunk of damage from other party members to the Paladin, which can singlehandedly save a party from wiping in bad spots. Avenger’s Shield still takes the proverbial cake here, but keep a chest piece with Divine Sacrifice engraved on it for fights with a particularly high chance of wiping.
Inspiration Exemplar can be great in some situations, and in PvP, but it’s outclassed by the other Paladin Legs Runes. Similarly, the ability to cast Exorcism on any target with the Exorcist Rune is powerful, especially for Healing Paladins, but melee Paladins should pick up the interrupt instead.
Inspiration Exemplar
- Inspiration Exemplar Effect: Your inspiring presence periodically dispels Fear and Sleep effects on nearby party members.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Exorcist
- Exorcist Effect: Exorcism can now be cast on any target and has 100% increased critical strike chance against Undead and Demons.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Divine Sacrifice
- Divine Sacrifice Effect: 30% of all damage taken by party members within 30 yards is redirected to the Paladin for 10 sec.
- Damage which reduces the Paladin below 20% health will break the effect and grant the paladin 10% increased damage and healing done for 10 sec.
- Divine Sacrifice cannot be used while you are under the effects of Blessing of Protection, Divine Shield, or Divine Protection, and prevents you from being targeted by those abilities while it is active.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Rebuke
- Rebuke Effect: Interrupts spellcasting and prevents any spell in that school from being cast for 2 sec.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Avenger’s Shield
- Avenger’s Shield Effect: Hurls a holy shield at the enemy, dealing Holy damage, Dazing them and then jumping to additional nearby enemies.
- Affects 3 total targets. Lasts 10 sec.
- Discovery Source: TBD
Paladin Gloves Runes, Ranked
Beacon of Light, Crusader Strike, Hand of Reckoning
One thing that Tank Paladins lacked in vanilla WoW was a direct Taunt, a way to generate threat against an enemy instantly to pull them off of allies. With Hand of Reckoning, this weakness is shored up, and it should be the default Gloves Rune choice for Paladin Tanks – it even increases Threat generation and mana recovery for other abilities, too.
Similarly, one thing that DPS Paladins have lacked – specifically the Ret spec – is, well, buttons to press. Ret is notorious for being a spec in which players load up on buffs and auto-attack targets until they die. With Crusader Strike, Ret Paladins have a real rotation to play with, as well as a way to recover Mana reliably.
Paladin Rune Rankings
Table of Contents
Paladins have long been recognized as a formidable class in WoW Classic. While their leveling journey may vary, they often find themselves fulfilling healing roles rather than focusing on DPS or Tanking. However, the tide is turning for Paladins in the Season of Discovery, as significant changes to Paladin Runes are equipping the class with potent damage abilities and markedly improved Tanking capabilities, redefining their combat potential. For more information, please visit the Season of Discovery.
Here are all of the Paladin Rune Engravings in WoW Classic: Season of Discovery, ranked from best to worst:
Chest Runes
- Aegis: This Rune increases the effectiveness of your Shield Block ability. It is a must-have for all Paladins, regardless of their role.
- Divine Storm: This Rune causes your Consecration ability to also deal damage to enemies in the air. It is a great choice for Paladins who want to do more AoE damage.
- Horn of Lordaeron: This Rune increases the effectiveness of your Holy Shock ability. It is a good choice for Paladins who want to do more healing.
- Seal of Martyrdom: This Rune causes your Seal of Justice ability to also deal Holy damage to all enemies in melee range. It is a situational choice for Paladins who want to do more damage to groups of enemies.
Glove Runes
- Beacon of Light: This Rune causes your Beacon of Light ability to also heal the target for a small amount of Holy damage over time. It is a great choice for Paladins who want to do more healing.
- Crusader Strike: This Rune increases the critical strike chance of your Crusader Strike ability. It is a good choice for Paladins who want to do more damage.
- Hand of Reckoning: This Rune causes your Hand of Reckoning ability to also stun all enemies within 8 yards for 3 seconds. It is a great choice for Paladins who want to control enemy movement.
Leg Runes
- Avenger’s Shield: This Rune causes your Avenger’s Shield ability to also taunt all enemies in melee range. It is a great choice for Paladins who want to tank.
- Divine Sacrifice: This Rune causes your Divine Sacrifice ability to also heal the target for a large amount of Holy damage. It is a great choice for Paladins who want to save their allies from death.
- Exorcist: This Rune causes your Exorcism ability to also silence the target for 3 seconds. It is a good choice for Paladins who want to control enemy spellcasters.
- Inspiration Exemplar: This Rune increases the effectiveness of your Holy Light ability when used on targets with low health. It is a situational choice for Paladins who want to do more healing to critically wounded allies.
- Rebuke: This Rune causes your Rebuke ability to also slow the target by 50% for 3 seconds. It is a good choice for Paladins who want to kite enemies.
