Upcoming 3.1 Marksmanship PvE Guide

For the past month I've been Marksmanship for raiding.  I've enjoyed it much more than I did Survival, even though it is currently a bit lackluster DPS wise. 

Come 3.1 the Marksmanship tree is getting some love PvE and PvP wise.  I believe most Hunters will switch over to Marksmanship for both PvE and PvP to at least try out the spec.

Sometime during the next week I'll post my guide on Marksmanship PvE.  The guide will give a rundown on the Glyph DPS, Talent DPS and the rotation a Marksmanship Hunter should use.

I also hope to play Marksmanship in Arena with Double DPS (I currently use Marksmanship for my BG spec, but not Arena spec) come 3.1.

If your bored on your Hunter I suggest speccing into Marksmanship and trying it out for PvE and PvP, I was pleasantly surprised with both.  Come 3.1 it will only get better.
  

Hunter PvP in 3.1

The 3.1 patch will dramatically change the situation for Hunters in PvP.

The Survival tree has gotten nerfed pretty heavily.  Marksmanship tree has gotten buffed pretty nicely.  The Beast Mastery tree has been largely ignored with only one talent buff.


Hunter 3.1 Overview:

• Disengage now has a 30 second cooldown (used to be 25 second)

• Glyph of the Monkey removed (used to be best glyph for a Hunter in PvP)

• Frost Trap no longer procs on immune targets (HoF or CoS will disable the Frost Trap)

These major nerfs to every Hunter are going to have the most significant impact in PvP.  The Frost Trap nerf especially seems completely devestating against some teams.
  

Survival Tree 3.1 Overview:

• T.N.T. no longer stuns

• Black Arrow replaces Trap Mastery for 41 point Survival talent, but is on the Trap cooldown (probably will not be used in PvP)

• Entrapment changed from RNG to instant proc on application (making it much less annoying for other teams and more skill based)

• Wyvern Sting remains a 1 minute cooldown, but only lasts 6 seconds in PvP (very similar to Repentance, but worse since Wyvern is a poison and a sleep; Undead)

• Explosive Shot does less damage than on live (actually it might not... very confusing)
  

I still see Survival Hunters having a place in PvP.  I think they will be merely okay, but it will take much more effort to do well as a Survival Hunter.

 
 Marksmanship Tree 3.1 Overview:

• A lot of talent buffs: Piercing Shots, Ranged Weapon Specialization, Wild Quiver, Efficiency, Rapid Recuperation
  

• Chimera Shot mana cost has been reduced so that Marksmanship isn't the I bleed mana tree anymore

• Concussive Barrage is now 2 ranks and gives your Chimera Shot 100% chance to Daze target for 4 seconds (this changed the talent from worthless to amazing)

• Silencing Shot no longer on the GCD
  

Marksmanship Hunters will be able to PvP decently after 3.1.  They still take a lot of prep time to do their damage; Sting before Chimera Shot.  I see the main body of Hunters moving over to try out Marksmanship in PvP.
  
     
 Beast Mastery Tree 3.1 Overview:

• Pets get more talents so that the 51 point BM talent is not as worthless

• Animal Handler now increases the duration of Master's Call by 6 seconds instead of reducing the cooldown on it by 10 seconds (this is a major buff and makes a BM Hunters Master's Call last for 10 seconds)

Beast Mastery Hunters will probably be unchanged come 3.1 as the talent buffs pretty much nullify the overall Hunter nerfs.  I really wish they would spice up the Beast Mastery tree as it was the least changed in 3.0 and now will be the least changed in 3.1.
   

Tweaked BM Build for Double DPS

I went back to the drawing board for my build and decided to go back to 50/21, BM with Readiness.  Even though Readiness no longer resets Bestial Wrath, it does reset many other essential cooldowns, including: Traps, Deterrence, Master's Call, Flare, Intimidation and Shots.

Since I use a Wasp, having four more talent points (BM 51 point talent) does not help me in PvP.  Come 3.1 it might, as pet trees will get more talent points.

The Glyphs I end up using with this build are:

Glyph of Frost Trap
Glyph of Disengage
Glyph of Aspect of the Monkey (removed in 3.1)

The reason I don't pick up Longevity is because we run Double DPS, so are matches tend to last under one minute.  I never get to use Bestial Wrath more than once unless it comes down to a 1v1 with a healer.  That also means that the Glyph of Bestial Wrath is worthless to me.

Here is my build:

     50 / 21  BM / Readiness

 

Over the next week I will be very busy with family entertaining, and will probably not post much. 

I would like to hear more about other Hunter (preferably you or the Hunter you play with) successes or failures in trying Hunter Double DPS comps.  If you have exprerience with it please leave a comment.
 

2108 Hunter / Rogue

I'm sure everyone is a bit tired of the updates I throw out every so often on our progress in 2's, but I don't care.
 

 
  
We ended our run winning against a 2261 rated Mage / Rogue team, and decided to call it good after that.

I wanted to make our team a little bit better this week by helping Siphter level his Engineering.  With Engineering he has Nitro Boosts for a 2 second super sprint, an Explosive Rocket on gloves, a Gnomish Lightning Generator trinket and the Engineering Helm for better stealth detection.  This gives us even more burst and more options for him to get on his target.

I also have switched up my spec to be more bursty, with less crowd control.  I tried out a Chimaera for a few games and then switched back to my Wasp.  The Cunning tree is just not viable at the moment, although come 3.1, it is getting some buffs.
 

53 / 18 / 0

 
  
This build definitely makes landing a Freezing Arrow a bit tougher (since I do not have Scatter Shot).  But dropping a Freezing Arrow on where the off target will probably move next has actually worked out most the time.


Looking on to 3.1 changes for PvP...

Survival is getting some heavy PvP nerfs:

• Explosive Shot damage lowered

• Wyvern Sting only lasts 6 seconds in PvP and now has a longer cooldown (and the glyph only reduces cooldown by 6 seconds, instead of 15)

• Explosive Shot no longer has a chance to stun the target from T.N.T.

Marksmanship is getting some buffs:

• Talents are getting much better throughout the Marksmanship tree (damage wise)
  

• Chimera Shot mana cost is reduced by about 20%

Beast Mastery is getting one decent buff for PvP:

• Animal Handler now increases duration of Master's Call instead of reducing the cooldown (which makes it a much better talent, and keeps BM THE mobility tree for Hunters)

I think I will stick with BM come 3.1 for 2v2 Arena given the current 3.1 changes.  I'm not sure what pet I will use come 3.1, either a Wasp or a Chimaera (with the Cunning buffs).
  

2053 Rated BG9: Hunter / Rogue Setup

 

    My Hunter Spec

   

  

Rogue Spec

 

 

 

 

My Hunter Gear

  

Head: Valorous Cryptstalker Headpiece

• Enchant / Meta / Blue Socket: Arcanum of Torment / Swift Skyflare Diamond / Enchanted Tear
  

Neck: Deadly Gladiator's Pendant of Triumph

  

Shoulder: Hateful Gladiator's Chain Spaulders

•  Enchant / Yellow Socket: Inscription of Triumph / Kharmaa's Grace

Cloak: Deadly Gladiator's Cloak of Triumph

• Enchant: Major Agility
  

Chest: Tunic of the Lost Pack

• Enchant: Powerful Stats
  

Wrist: Deadly Gladiator's Wristguards of Triumph

• Enchant: Fur Lining - Stamina
  

Gloves: Hateful Gladiator's Chain Gauntlets

• Enchant / Blue Socket: Hand-Mounted Pyro Rocket / Solid Sky Sapphire
  

Belt: Deadly Gladiator's Waistguard of Triumph

• Prismatic Socket (Eternal Belt Buckle) / Blue Socket: Glinting Monarch Topaz / Solid Sky Sapphire
  

Legs: Valorous Cryptstalker Legguards

• Enchant / Red Socket / Blue Socket: Icescale Leg Armor / Delicate Scarlet Ruby / Perfect Shifting Shadow Crystal

Feet: Deadly Gladiator's Sabatons of Triumph

• Enchant / Yellow Socket: Nitro Boosts / Glinting Monarch Topaz
  

Ring: Surge Needle Ring

 

Ring: Deadly Gladiator's Band of Victory

 

Trinket: Medallion of the Horde

 

Trinket: Gnomish Lightning Generator

 

Main Melee Weapon: Deadly Gladiator's Waraxe

• Enchant: Accuracy
  

Off-hand Melee Weapon: Hatestrike

• Enchant: Titanium Weapon Chain
  

Ranged Weapon: Envoy of Mortality

• Enchant: Heartseeker Scope
  

Ammo: Mammoth Cutters

   

   

Rogue Gear

  

Siphter mainly used PvE gear since I was usually their main target.  His burst damage is what made us get many of our kills.

   

   

My Hunter Major Glyphs

  

Glyph of Aspect of the Monkey

Glyph of Disengage

Glyph of Frost Trap

  

 

Rogue Major Glyphs

 

Glyph of Eviscerate

Glyph of Vigor

Glyph of Hemorrhage

 

 

My Hunter Macros

 

Lazer Beams (4k magical burst in 1 second; can use while moving):

/use Hateful Gladiator's Chain Gauntlets
/use Gnomish Lightning Generator

  

Cancel Deterrence:

#showtooltip Deterrence
/cancelaura Deterrence

  

Nitro Boosts & Master's Call:

/cast Master's Call
/use Deadly Gladiator's Sabatons of Triumph

 

Bestial Wrath + Dmg + Stun:

/cast Rapid Fire
/cast Kill Command
/cast Blood Fury(Racial)
/cast Call of the Wild
/cast Bestial Wrath
/cast Intimidation

  

Hunter / Rogue: 2053 Rating

After a stressful two hours, climbing up to 2040 many times before falling again and again to 2000, we managed to put together a string of wins and claim 2053 rating as BM Hunter / Shadowstep Rogue.  That was our goal since a few weeks ago when we started to believe it was actually possible.

Now that we have beaten the PvP and PvE part of WoW it's time to do some relaxing... or continue to level my 74 Ret Paladin.

Having completed my PvP objective I will probably end up talking a lot about 3.1 and what the future holds for Hunters.
 

My UI

My User Interface consists of mods I have used for years and mods I have just begun to use.  I have plenty of room for my plethra of mods with my 24 inch widescreen monitor.

  

 
Player Frames:
X-Perl UnitFrames

X-Perl has been my go to player frames mod for the last couple of years.  I first started using Perl Classic and eventually switched over to X-Perl.



Questing / Map:
Carbonite Quest
Questguru

My favorite mod happens to be Carbonite Quest.  It has, by far, the best map interface which is a true joy to use.

ActionBar:
Bartender4

I used to use TrinityBars for my action bar mod.  When 3.0 hit I switched over to Bartender4 and haven't had any problems.  Love the simple functionality.


Arena:
Gladius
Afflicted2

Gladius is by far the most important mod to have while playing in Arena.  The most important option is the display of when enemies use their PvP Trinkets.


Informational:
DoTimer

Power Auras Classic

NeedtoKnow

Kharthus's Hunter Timers
RangeDisplay
Recount

These informational mods are crucial for PvE and very helpful for PvP.

DoTimer is a great cooldown mod.

Power Auras Classic is the best graphical notifier of when procs happen (i.e. Lock and Load).

NeedtoKnow is my favorite mod for tracking debuffs on a target (i.e. Hunter's Mark, Serpent Sting, etc.).

RangeDisplay is probably the best range display out there.

 

Talents:
Talented

A much improved talent display that makes the in game like Wowhead.

Misc:
Titan Panel
Advanced Trade Skill Window
SimpleMinimap
Diablo 3 dynamic Orbs
SpamMeNot

Advanced Trade Skill Window is a time saver when it comes to professions, and it makes the display of the details of my profession much easier to read.

Diablo 3 dynamic Orbs is the best UI art that I have in my arsenal.  It is also very functional.  It looks awesome and helps me realize my health and mana easier.

SpamMeNot is my spam fighter.  I haven't recieved a single gold spam since I started using it about a year or so ago.

PvE:
Deadly Boss Mods
FailBot

Deadly Boss Mods is a godsend in helping notify me of important events in boss fights.  I've used DMB for a very long time and swear by it.

Failbot is a more recent addition to my library of mods.  Failbot makes it easy to tell who in my raid keeps failing at different things (void zones, negative/positive charge, Heigan dance, frogger, etc.) by displaying " fails at ____" in raid chat.


Auction House:
AHsearch
Baud Auction
Postal

These three mods are essential to anyone who uses the auction house daily.

AHsearch allows me to save any auction house search that I want and categorize it.  This makes it so I do not have to type in my many different auction house searches.

Baud Auction makes it so I can sort the results how I want to (Buyout per Unit), and displays the results all in one page that is scrollable.