AzerothGlad

SL/SL Warlock

TBC Classic PVP Guide

Overview

SL/SL (Siphon Life / Soul Link) Warlock is one of the most dominant specs in TBC PVP. Soul Link splits 20% of damage to your pet, Siphon Life provides passive healing, and the combination makes you one of the tankiest DPS in the game. Your playstyle is sustained pressure — keep DoTs on everything, Fear for CC, and let the damage slowly overwhelm the enemy healer's mana. SL/SL excels in every bracket and is a core component of the best 2v2 and 3v3 comps.

Talent Builds

Coming Soon

Arena

Talent builds are being reviewed and will be published shortly.

BiS Gear

SlotItem
All SlotsComing Soon

Faction Racials

horde

Undead — Will of the Forsaken

WotF breaks Fear — this means enemy Warlocks cannot Fear you easily. In Warlock vs Warlock matchups, WotF is a free Fear break. Also counters Priest Psychic Scream. Best Horde Warlock race.

horde

Orc — Hardiness

15% stun resistance and Blood Fury for extra spell power. Less impactful than WotF for Warlock but still strong. Second choice for Horde.

alliance

Gnome — Escape Artist

Breaks roots and snares. Useful for kiting melee that stick to you through Hamstring. Warlock lacks mobility, so a root break is valuable. Best Alliance Warlock race.

alliance

Human — Perception

Less useful for Warlock than other classes since you rarely need to find stealthed targets. Reputation bonus is the main perk. Gnome is better for PVP.

Arena Strategy

Warlock Fundamentals

Your job: DoTs on everything, Fear for CC, stay alive with Soul Link + Drain Life. You are not a burst class — you win through sustained, unavoidable pressure over minutes. Every second your DoTs tick, the enemy healer spends mana. You win when they run out.

DoT Management

Keep Corruption and Siphon Life on both enemy DPS and the healer if possible. In 3v3, that is 6 DoTs ticking simultaneously. Curse of Tongues on the enemy healer slows their casts by 60% — this is mandatory. Curse of Agony on the kill target for extra damage pressure.

Fear and CC

Fear is your primary CC. 8-second duration, 1.5 second cast. Fear the healer during kill windows. Fear the DPS off your healer when being trained. Alternate Fear with your partner's CC (Cyclone, Polymorph) to chain CC without sharing DR.

Death Coil is your burst CC — instant cast, heals you, and horrors the target for 3 seconds. Use it as a finisher on low HP targets, a peel for your healer, or an interrupt on a critical cast. Death Coil shares DR with Fear.

Survivability

Soul Link + Siphon Life + Drain Life makes you extremely tanky. When being trained by melee, Drain Life the enemy for self-healing. Healthstone on cooldown. Your healer needs to keep your pet alive — if the pet dies, Soul Link drops and you lose 20% damage reduction.

Matchups

vs Arms Warrior

Medium (5/10)

Warriors MS you but Soul Link tanks it. Fear the Warrior off you — Berserker Rage breaks one Fear but not the next. Spell Reflect is dangerous — bait it with Corruption before casting Fear. Drain Life through MS debuff.

  • Soul Link tanks MS
  • Fear the Warrior
  • Bait Spell Reflect with Corruption
  • Drain Life through MS
  • Berserker Rage has cooldown

vs Subtlety Rogue

Medium (5/10)

Rogues burst you from stealth. Soul Link + Healthstone survives the opener. DoTs prevent re-stealth after opener. Fear the Rogue off you. Cloak of Shadows on your Rogue makes this matchup about your DoT management.

  • Soul Link survives opener
  • DoTs prevent re-stealth
  • Fear the Rogue
  • Healthstone during burst
  • DoT management is key

vs Frost Mage

Medium (6/10)

Mages Counterspell your Fear school (Shadow) for 8 seconds. Bait CS with Corruption (Shadow) before casting Fear. Polymorph on your healer is the real threat. DoTs on the Mage prevent drinks. Soul Link helps survive Shatter.

  • Bait CS with Corruption
  • Poly on healer is the threat
  • DoTs prevent Mage drinks
  • Soul Link survives Shatter
  • Shadow school locked = big problem

vs Discipline Priest

Medium (4/10)

DoTs pressure Priests. Mass Dispel removes your DoTs — annoying. Mana Burn is their win condition against you. LoS Mana Burns. Fear the Priest during their Burn casts. Curse of Tongues slows everything.

  • DoTs pressure Priests
  • LoS Mana Burns
  • Fear during Burn casts
  • Curse of Tongues slows everything
  • Mass Dispel removes DoTs

vs Restoration Druid

Medium (5/10)

Druids shift your Fear. Cyclone cannot be countered. Keep DoTs rolling. Curse of Tongues on Druid. Felguard Intercept the Druid when they try to drink. Long mana war — you need your healer to be efficient.

  • Druids shift Fear
  • Keep DoTs rolling
  • Curse of Tongues on Druid
  • Felguard Intercept drinks
  • Long mana war

vs Beast Mastery Hunter

Medium (4/10)

Hunters Viper Sting your mana. Dispel it or have partner dispel. The Beast Within makes Hunter immune to Fear — wait it out. DoTs on hunter and pet. BM Hunter is manageable with Soul Link.

  • Dispel Viper Sting
  • Wait out Beast Within
  • DoTs on Hunter and pet
  • Soul Link helps
  • Manageable matchup

vs Holy Paladin

Medium (4/10)

Paladins can Cleanse your Corruption and Siphon Life. Re-apply DoTs constantly. They cannot dispel Fear or Curse. Curse of Tongues slows their heals significantly. Bubble wastes time but doesn't threaten you.

  • Re-apply dispelled DoTs
  • CoT slows heals
  • They can't dispel Fear
  • Bubble wastes their time
  • Sustained DoTs win

Battleground Strategy

Battleground Role

You are the multi-DoT pressure machine. In team fights, Corruption and Siphon Life on as many targets as possible. Fear bombs with Howl of Terror in groups. Drain Life for sustain. You top damage meters in BGs through spread DoT pressure.

In AB, you are an excellent node defender. Fear enemies off the flag. DoTs on attackers while you cap. Soul Link makes you hard to kill 1v1. In WSG, DoT the enemy flag carrier and Fear their support.