[Guide] Choosing the right specialization

[Wedinn]

I often get asked which specialization performs well, and to that, I say all are good in their own way, but, how exactly? Well, this mini-guide will address just that, talking about each specialization and its strenghts and weaknesses in PvP and PvE. This is coming from a player who has played all three specializations in both enviornments. Let's begin!




Unholy

Unholy is my favourite specialization when it comes to 1v1 fighting and rated arenas. This is, some could argue, the scourge of healers and bane of noobs. Unholy is a predominantly DoT ("Damage over time" effect) based class with the occasional high damage and healing absorbtion via Necrotic Strike, an ability which deals high damage, slows casting and absorbs healing. This, coupled with a highly dangerous guardian, the Gargoyle, and your permanent pet (which other specializations do not have) makes Unholy popular among Death Knights in the arena enviornment.
This specialization does not depend on runic power as much as the other ones, and thus picking "Conversion" as your healing talent over the others and "Roiling blood" as your DoT talent is a popular playstyle (not my favourite one, but good for newbies to experiment with). This is because conversion heals you in exchange for runic power and roiling blood causes blood boil to spread your DoTs to nearby enemies if your main target is infected. I do not reccomend this specialization to non-pet players or new DKs, because most of us agree that it has a higher skillcap than Frost, the other DPS specialization. Unholy DKs perform well in BGs, and are highly looked for in arenas. However, their PvE performance can appear mediocre when comparing it to that of Frost.



Frost

This used to be my favourite specialization back in Cataclysm and early MoP. I made a PvP guide for it as well, which you can get to by checking the guide section in this forum.
This is the more noob-friendly and less punishing DPS specialization. Unlike Unholy, Frost is much more mobile and straightforwd. It depends heavily on both Runes and Runic Power, but they are quite easy to manage when specced into Frost. The specialization's strenght is being able to deal high burst damage in a short ammount of time.
It is easily the most popular DK specialization because it is easy to understand and master, and unlike Unholy, it has only a few spells that you need to get your head around. Its main damage abilities are Obliterate, Frost Strike and Howling Blast, and it benefits from procs which empower these abilities. Frost does well in both PvP and PvE, but people prefer Unholy in arenas because Frost lacks the ability to put pressure on enemy healers. Because Runic Power is a big deal for frost death knights, death pact should be your healing ability and Plague Leech your DoT ability, because DoT effects aren't that powerful for this specialization.



Blood

"Blood" is our tanking specialization, and arguably one of the best of its kind. What makes DK tanks different from others is that we can tank with a two-hand weapon, and we can keep ourselves alive for longer periods of time. I find this specialization fun because you'll be using heal-heavy abilities, a bone shield, an additional weapon that mimicks your character's actions, and blood worms, which help keep you and your party alive by exploding. With Blood as your specialization, you'll have a blast tanking or soloing old content. This spec is meant for PvE only, but you can have some fun with it in Battlegrounds and low-rating arenas.

Need more help? Check this section once you have decided what specialization to play.

Wedinn
Former Game Master & Discord Community Manager
(January 2017 - February 2018)