Choosing a class specialization Introduction . What is Specialization ? In the World Of Warcraft there are a total of 11 different class es ( 9 until Wrath of the Lich King which added death knight s and Mists of Pandaria added monk s ) that each have their own playstyle and story to tell . Choosing a class will only bring you to the main framework , beyond that there is another choice that must be made . Choosing a specialization . A specialization is like a mixture of the role that you want and the class that you want . When your character reaches level 10 he is given a choice on which specialization he would like to pick . The specialization is chosen by picking a talent tree . When one picks a tree to specialize in he can only put talent points in that particular tree until he has devoted 31 points into the tree , only then can he branch out to another tree . It is important to note then once one picks a specialization he can only unlearn his talents by paying gold . After leveling for a while the character may purchase a Dual Talent Specialization to get 2 specializations . Gains Of Specialization . By choosing a specialization , the character receives a specialization only skill . This skill will help you in your leveling and is usually a core part of your class and the specialization you chose . Sometimes it may even go so far as to have the entire spec centered around that skill . An Arcane Mage gets the spell Arcane Barrage which will form the central core in the dps rotation of the mage . Later on at level 80 , the character may learn Mastery . Mastery gives bonuses to the character depending on which specialization he chose . With the example of the Arcane mage , his Mastery is to be have an increased percentage of damage to all Arcane Damage that he deals . Which Specialization . Not only is there a combat mechanic boost to choosing a specialization , there is also a big amount of fun involved in choosing a specialization . Specializations are what makes each character different . Each Specialization involves certain aspects of the game ' s lore and mechanics . For new players , it is extremely frustrating to have leveled a character to a rather high level only to realize that the spec is not for you . To try to avoid such a case I will be giving a summary of the playstyle of every specialization and a little background to it . = Tanks = A protection warrior is the general idea that one would get from the word Warrior , Guardian or Protector . A Protection Warrior wields a Shield and a main hand weapon . Over the years of Warcraft , Protection Warrior s were the forefront of any army , from the Kaldorei warriors fighting in the War of the Ancients against the Burning Legion to the Human Warriors fighting against the Orcs in the First War . Protection warriors were the first tanks to exist in WoW . Before the Burning Crusade , Protection warrior s held a monopoly in the tanking business as no other class could become a tank . This slowly changed as Paladins and Druids came to become playable as tanks and with the introduction of the Tanking class , the Death Knight . A Protection warrior upholds the image of a forefront soldier , a commander . They are extremely similar in sense as the Paladins as they both wear plate armor and fight with a blade and shield but where the Paladins wield powers of the holy light , the Protection warrior upholds his shield with resolve , determination and resilience . Willpower and Skill makes them able to withstand the hardiest of all foes . His sword strikes enemies to attract their Agro . A protection warrior will find it easier to tank as being the Original tank ing class , they are equipped with more tanking skills when compared with the other classes . The Protection Warrior pulls threat and agro by using various skills , a basic is Defensive Stance while some affect and pull multiple enemies while others focus on one boss to maximize the threat . The skill received from specialization is Shield Slam . Shield Slam is used to build up a huge amount of threat on a single target while coupled with repeated applications of Sunder Armor or Devastate . Heroic Strike may also sometimes be used to build single target threat . For AoE fights , the warrior has Thunder Clap , Shockwave and Cleave to gain AoE agro . As the protection warrior receives damage or deals damage he build up rage to fuel his skills . Being attack ed at all times give him a steady flow of rage to use all his skills quickly and unhesitatingly With that being said one can think of a Protection Warrior in battle as one who always lift his shield to try to block attacks while using his blade to strike at the opponents weak spots in order to weaken their armor and when a whole group of monsters approach they will strike the ground to pull in and distract them . Following that will be a strong swing in the air , rippling it , to produce a giant shockwave which will greatly damage them as a finisher a smooth , clean cleave will end the enemies life . Examples of Protection warriors playing an important role in lore are Anduin Lothar , Maxwell Tyrosus , Danath Trollbane and Captain Kur ' talos Ravencrest . I suggest reading up on these characters so you have a greater idea on what a protection Warrior personality is like . In the First War . . . = Healer = = Melee DPS = = Ranged DPS =