Warlock instance grouping guide Back to the Instance grouping guide Warlocks can be an extremely flexible and useful addition to almost any party . However , because the warlock doesn ' t fit neatly into any single stereotype , they require a bit of practice to use well . The Warlock in Instances . Okay lets be frank ; the main job for the warlock in an instance is to do damage , and a well - played warlock can be impressive , giving mages and hunters a very hard time keeping up on on the dps charts . On the other side of the coin , a poorly played warlock is practically a waste of time to have around . Warlocks are unique in the sense that they have access to a comprehensive arsenal of nastiness to throw at the enemies as well as several different pets . To maximize damage require skillful use of both . Damage Spells . Affliction . This tree has two primary , instant cast DoTs : Curse of Agony and Corruption . At level 50 , Unstable Affliction can be acquired via a talent , adding a 1 . 5 second cast curse to the mix ( below level 50 , Immolate makes a suitable stand - in ) . Most of the affliction warlock ' s damage revolve around these three spells , and the main goal , especially in low and mid - level instances , is to get them on as many mobs as possible , as aggro permits . Be sure to pick the talent Nightfall as well as the Glyph of Corruption to get some instant cast shadow - bolts into the fray as well . At level 60 , affliction warlocks gain the mighty Haunt spell , which greatly increases their single target damage ; Haunt deals an initial burst and applies a debuff to the target that increases shadow - damage - over - time . An Affliction warlock will always want to open the battle with this spell and quickly follow up with Curse of Agony , Corruption and Unstable affliction . Pick a new mob , then rinse and repeat as soon as the Haunt ' s cooldown ticks off . For high - level AoE , the affliction Warlock will mostly rely on Seed of Corruption which becomes a true hard - hitter with the talents of the tree . It works somewhat similarly to the mage spell Living Bomb but the subtle difference that the " fuse " on SoC is based on damage taken , not time . In high - level instances , the DPS to a single mob is usually so high that SoC will explode almost instantly , allowing the affliction warlock to spam the spell with very high damage output , compared to a non - talented Rain of Fire or Hellfire . Further , if one can manage to cast SoC on several mobs that are close together before a lot of DPS adds up , a domino effect will ensue after one mob dies . Threat and mana must be watched when using this strategy . Do not use SoC in boss fights or on single mobs with a lot of health . It is meant for close - quarters battle with several targets . Destruction . To be frank , Destruction is not a very efficient instance spec below level 50 , and shadow bolt spamming , mixed with Immolate , Corruption and Curse of Agony are just about the only tools of the trade available . You will find yourself running out of mana constantly . But for high - level , Destruction is a challenging , but terribly efficient single - target and downright fun spec to use in instances . The damage of this tree revolves almost exclusively around Immolate . In addition to dealing a fair amount of fire damage - over - time , many of the destruction warlock ' s nukes are greatly enhanced when Immolate is active on the target . Open the battle with Curse of the Elements and Immolate . From here enter the main nukes of the Destruction warlock ; Incinerate , Chaos Bolt and Conflagrate . There are several different rotations to use , depending on the exact spec and choice of glyphs , and the individual warlock should experiment and find what works best for them . For AoE , the destruction warlock will use Rain of Fire , which deals a fair amount of damage when properly talented in the tree . If circumstances permit , Hellfire can deal , impressive damage , but remember to ask the healer first . Demonology . Demonology is perhaps the most difficult spec to use for instancing and raiding , both in terms of building a working spec and putting it to good use . On the spell - side , the damage of the demonology warlock is centered around clever use of the talent Decimation . Whenever decimation is proceed , Soul Fire goes from being nearly completely useless , to the most efficient spell in the warlock arsenal ( With talent Bane , the base cast - time of a Decimation Soulfire is 1 . 6 seconds ) . For the last 35 % of a boss health , alternating Incinerate / Decimation Soulfire , produce whooping DPS . The downside is that demonology warlocks find it difficult to maintain a high DPS during the 65 % boss health where decimation cannot proc . The result is that Decimation works best in fights with multiple mobs where the Soulfire can be used on a new mob to bring it ' s health down to 35 % quickly The real trick of the raiding demonology warlock , is to make up for the less efficient spell damage , with clever use of the pet . Pets . Make sure your minion is on defensive or passive . Passive is preferable , just in case you break a sheep , shackle , trap , etc . Demonology warlocks have additional considerations when choosing which demon to use . Demonic Sacrifice and Master Summoner give extra bonuses to the warlock that will affect the choice of demon . Crowd Control . The following are a warlock ' s crowd control abilities : Fear , Enslave Demon , Howl of Terror , Seduce ( succubus ) , Banish . Sometimes Death Coil is lumped in here as well , especially in PvP . In PvE , the Voidwalker ' s AoE taunt Suffering can sometimes be used to engage / distract several mobs if you consider off - tanking to be crowd control . Curses . Whenever you have multiple warlocks , mages , or a shadow priest in your party / raid , Curse of Elements becomes a very useful spell that contributes to damage of every shadow / arcane / fire / frost spell caster , which is everything except shamans . It is also notable because it does not interfere with crowd control - when cast on frozen or polymorphed target , it does not break freeze / polymorph . If for some reason you find yourself targeting a sheep , consider quickly putting Curse of Elements on it before you move on , as this saves you the trouble of applying a curse later when you do get round to killing the target , and it reduces the chances that the mob will resist a refreshing of the Polymorph . Curse of Elements is also appreciated by Shadow - specced Priests ( see Priest talents for more information on the Shadow tree ) , and any group / raid that has spell casters . On high levels the warlock gains the Curse of Doom . This curse apply a single burst shadow - damage after 60 seconds . It has higher dps that an untalented Curse of agony , but if the target dies from the damage and yield experience or honor , a hostile Doomguard is summoned . Needless to say this limits it ' s applications but if you are confident the target will not die and you can ' t find a better curse to use , this curse is great for boosting your overall dps .