LoDBlog

Thus far for the Drunken Retnoob blog I’ve mostly focused on issues related to endgame raiding or arena PVP, but in promoting the blog I’ve talked with so many Ret Paladins who are just getting into the spec and get overwhelmed with all the options out there for gearing up, and have so many questions about where to start.  With Cataclysm still a ways off, and Blizzard stretching out Icecrown Citadel content as long as they can by using gated releases and *gasp* moderately difficult content (which gets progressively nerfed over time as the Ashen Verdict gathers strength), there’s really never been a better time for casual players to gear themselves up and hop into raiding.  So that got me thinking:  if I was a fresh level 80 and needed to gear up quickly to get raid-ready, how would I go about it?

The challenge: Build a Ret DPS set using gear from Emblems of Triumph, 5 man instances, and reasonably priced BOE pieces, which would enable a skilled player to jump straight into normal mode 25 man Icecrown Citadel and contribute solid enough DPS to earn their raid spot.

The result: An epic gear set with a Rawr-estimated 7500 DPS, which would be reasonably obtainable in around a month, by only running 5 man heroics and daily quests!

Before we start, a Disclaimer!

The set I list will only be one of many possible ways that someone could gear up a new Ret Paladin.  For each gear slot I’ll list many other possibilities that could be better to use, based on whether they are realistic for you to acquire.  As always though, use Rawr to determine whether something really is an upgrade for you, and keep in mind that changing one piece can lead to many other “best items” changing, due to the hit and expertise caps.  If you aren’t familiar with using Rawr, check out my guide for using the Ret Paladin module!

A note about Set Bonuses:

• Tier 10: both set bonuses are incredible for Tier 10.  2 piece is a great DPS bonus, and adds a ton of FUN to the Ret dps rotation.  4 piece is kinda boring, but a great DPS increase nonetheless.
• Tier 9: The 2 piece bonus is extremely good.  4 piece is very weak, but slightly better than nothing
• Tier 8: Back in Ulduar, the 2 piece bonus was horrible and the 4 piece bonus was awesome.  But by this point it doesn’t matter, the low ILVL on this gear makes the set bonuses not worth worrying considering.
• Tier 7: Forget about it

Ultimately your goal will be 4 pieces of T10 plus one offset piece.  But since this will take a ton of Emblems of Frost, you’ll want to get 2 piece T9 as soon as possible.  Your gear progression should probably look like:

1. 2 piece T9 + 3 best other pieces (may include 4 piece T9 bonus, may not)
2. 2 piece T9 + 2 piece T10 + 1 other
3. 4 piece T10 + 1 other

Helmet

Captain Heroic’s choice:  T9 helmet (50 Emblems).  Obviously get the 245 version instead if you can get the trophies

Other options:

• Judgement Hood (Onyxia 25), Judgement Hood (Onyxia 10), and Faceplate of Silver Champion (ToC 10) are a couple stat points above their respective versions of T9.  If people are still running Onyxia or ToC 10 man on your server, you can save yourself some Emblems if you score any of these helmets first.
• Helm of Thunderous Rampage (75 Emblems) is better than the 232 version of T9, unless you net a set bonus from your T9 helmet
• Frayed Scoundrel’s Cap (Forge of Souls) and Eyes of Bewilderment (Forge of Souls) are both better if they don’t cost you a set bonus – although you’ll have to work around the LFG loot system not allowing you to roll Need

Necklace

Captain Heroic’s choice:  Barbed Ymirheim Choker (Pit of Saron).

Other options:

• Wodin’s Lucky Necklace (BOE, ICC25) and The Executioner’s Malice (BOE, ToC25) are significantly better options, but I highly doubt you’ll find either of these BOEs at a price that I could get away with calling “reasonable”, unless money is no object for you
• I debated including Sparkling Onyxia Tooth Pendant (Onyxia 10 or 25) on my list instead of the PoS necklace, since the quest item is a guaranteed drop for 1 person on each Onyxia kill, so it is relatively easy to get.  But I left it off since it technically requires a raid to obtain.  This is a very good option that you should look into, but keep in mind that the extra hit on this necklace will likely change your “best” items on other parts of the list.
• Favor of the Dragon Queen (Naxx25/Malygos25) and Spiked Battleguard Choker (19 Emblems) are not as good as the PoS necklace, but decent backup options if you have bad luck with your 5 man drops.

Shoulders

Captain Heroic’s choice:  T9 Shoulders (30 Emblems).  Obviously get the 245 version instead if you can get the trophies

Other options:

• Pauldrons of Trembling Rage (45 Emblems) is exactly the same as the 245 T9, and probably worth getting unless it costs you a set bonus
• Spaulders of the Snow Bandit (ToC 10) and Pauldrons of the Timeless Hunter (ToC 10) are both a tiny bit better, if ToC is an option for you

Cloaks

Captain Heroic’s choice:  Tapestry of the Frozen Throne (Halls of Reflection)

Other options:

• Drape of the Untamed Predator (BOE, ToC 25) is a huge upgrade, but will likely cost you a ton of money if you can find one on the AH at all
• Shawl of the Shattered Giant (BOE, Ulduar 10) is a very tiny upgrade, and probably not worth the money unless you find it cheap or just really want to avoid Halls of Reflection
• Hammerhead Sharkskin Cloak (25 Emblems) is a downgrade, but probably your best backup option if you can’t get the HoR cloak to drop

Chest

Captain Heroic’s choice:  T10 Chest (95 Emblems of FROST).  This one is cheating a little bit, but since you can get ~20 Emblems of Frost per week solely from heroics and the weekly raid quest, you can still get one piece of T10 in about a month, so I’m allowing myself one piece on the list

Other options:

• Breastplate of Cruel Intent (ToC 25), Cuirass of Calamitous Fate (ToC 25), and Armor of Shifting Shadows (ToC 10) are all well itemized pieces from ToC, but are tough to PUG your way to if they use standard loot rules preventing you from rolling on leather/mail
• Titanium Razorplate (BOE crafted) is actually pretty good even with Armor Penetration (the 3 sockets will do that for you), but between 10 titansteel bars and the 8 crusader orbs, it was a bit too pricy for me to include on this list.  Many people would consider it worth the money though, depends on personal preference
• Frost Wyrm Ribcage (Pit of Saron) isn’t really all that good, but if you do plan to buy the T10 chest first with your Frost Emblems, then this chest will probably be a good piece to use in the meantime

Bracers

Captain Heroic’s choice:  Crusader’s Dragonscale Bracers (BOE crafted).  Of the three ToC craftable bracers, I’d go with the mail ones since they are better itemized and likely cheaper to craft than the plate bracers.

Other options:

• Malykriss Vambraces (Pit of Saron) is only about a 50 DPS downgrade from the crafted bracers so you may rather wait on these to drop than the spend money.  Although one benefit of getting a few crafted items right away when hitting 80 is that they’ll boost your average ILVL and help you get into the ICC 5 mans more quickly.
• Wristbands of Sentinel Huntress (BOE, 60 Emblems) is probably your best backup option if you don’t want the spend on the crafted bracers and can’t get the PoS bracers to drop, but is probably not worth the emblems unless you’re drowning in them (although note that the Emblems don’t need to be from your Paladin since the bracers are BOE)

Gloves

Captain Heroic’s choice:  T9 Gloves (30 Emblems or VoA 10).  Obviously get the 245 version instead if you can get the trophies or get lucky in VoA Koralon

Other options:

• Gloves of the Silver Assassin (ToC 10) are extremely well itemized but you have to fight the Rogues/Ferals for them along with Fury Warriors probably
• Gauntlets of Rising Anger (ToC 10) are almost exactly the same as the T9 gloves, might save you some emblems

Belt

Captain Heroic’s choice:  Belt of the Titans (BOE crafted).  The other Ulduar craftable belts are better itemized (WTF 126 stamina!), but one thing I’ve noticed is that expertise is tough to come by on starter gear, so I think this belt is a pretty good value for its cost.

Other options:

• Bloodbath Girdle (ToC 25) is a great direct upgrade if you can get it from a ToC PUG or something
• Flayer’s Black Belt (Pit of Saron) is almost an exact sidegrade, including the expertise.  If you don’t want to spend for the Belt of Titans, see if you can get around the LFG loot system to get this belt
• Belt of Twilight Assassin (28 Emblems) is your best backup option if you don’t want to pay for the crafted belt, and get any of the above belts

Leggings

Captain Heroic’s choice:  T9 Leggings (50 Emblems or VoA 10).  Obviously get the 245 version instead if you can get the trophies or get lucky in VoA Koralon

Other options:

• Legplates of Painful Death (BOE crafted) are obviously a big DPS upgrade, but with the price of Primordial Saronite, these are only an option if money is no object at all
• Legguards of Ascension (ToC 25) is well itemized, and a very good upgrade if you have enough expertise elsewhere.
• There isn’t really anything else I’d consider using – the T9 leggings are very well itemized and will provide much needed expertise, so I’d probably try to get them right away

Boots

Captain Heroic’s choice:  Footpads of Silence (BOE crafted).  These boots are extremely well itemized, and I used them for a long time before I upgraded them.  They’re even relatively inexpensive now that Runed Orbs sell for very little, easily the best bargain for the money of any BOE item on my list.

Other options:

• Footpads of Impending Death (BOE crafted) are incredible – I’m looking to get some crafted myself to use until ICC hardmodes come out.  They’re also incredibly expensive, but these boots will last you a long time if you’re able to drop the 10-15k gold on them (important fashion note!  these things look hideous if you don’t have T8 or T10 leggings!)
• Greaves of the 7^th Legion (ToC 25) are a very good option for boots if you drift away from the Belt/Leggings expertise scheme (like if you get Leggings of Ascension or any ICC level belt)

Rings

Captain Heroic’s choices:  Bloodshed Band (35 Emblems) and Dextrous Brightstone Ring (35 Emblems).  The Bloodshed Band is an obvious choice, and doubles as a great Protribution PVP ring if you do use that spec for PVP.  The DRB isn’t nearly as enticing, but it’s still a pretty good value at only 35 emblems.

Other options:

• I didn’t include Ashen Verdict rings (Friendly, Honored, Revered, Exalted) since they technically require a raid, but they can actually be obtained purely from farming trash mobs if you can find a group doing this.  Even if you don’t raid at all, it is well worth your time to get in a trash farming group to at least get up to Friendly – that would give you a free ILVL251 ring for a couple hours work.
• Ring of Rotten Sinew (BOE, ICC trash) is extremely good (and makes the perfect Protribution PVP ring to pair with Bloodshed Band), but will also likely be extremely expensive.
• Runed Ring of Kirin Tor and Runed Band of KT (9800 to 11750 gold each, depending on Kirin Tor rep) – ok here’s the deal with these, you’re paying 6800-8000 gold to get a 2^nd Dalaran hearthstone, and then if that’s worth it for you, go ahead and pay the last 3000-3750 gold for the upgraded DPS ring.
• The Lady’s Promise (Halls of Reflection) is approximately as good as the Dextrous Brightstone Ring, despite lower ILVL.  So you could save yourself some emblems by getting this ring instead, but it will depend on how much expertise you have elsewhere
• Band of Stained Souls (Pit of Saron) is a downgrade to DRB due to the lower ILVL, but not by all that much since it is optimized better

Trinkets

Captain Heroic’s choices:  Darkmoon Card: Greatness (BOE) and Mirror of Truth (40 Emblems).  Darkmoon Card is VERY much worth the money.  I assembled mine for a combined 14k gold back when we first started running Naxxramas, and I’m still using it 3 tiers of content later.  In order to replace DMC, you’ll need 2 of the following trinkets: Death’s Choice, Whispering Skull, Deathbringer’s Will, and Herkuml War Token.  If you’re reading this list for advice then you won’t be getting two of those four trinkets any time soon – so buy yourself a Darkmoon Card ASAP.  For Mirror of Truth, there are a few other options which are approximately as good, but MoT is arguably the easiest to obtain (especially if you have the Brewfest equivalent trinket).

Other options:

• Needle-Encrusted Scorpion (Forge of Souls) is a tiny bit better than MoT, although you should be prepared for lots of hate from random Rogues, Warriors and Hunters if you use one (doesn’t matter if no one else in the group wanted it, they’ll still hate you)
• Banner of Victory (normal mode Trial of Champion 5 man) is listed by Rawr as a tiny upgrade over MoT, which seems dubious to me – but if Rawr is correct that MoT has a longer internal CD on the AP proc, then I guess it could be true
• Bandit’s Insignia (Naxx 25) is a bit worse than Mirror, but they’re pretty close
• Finally, don’t be afraid to use hit trinkets like Mark of Supremacy (50 Emblems) or Pyrite Infuser (Ulduar 10) if you need the hit rating.  Most people never mention these since it’s generally pretty easy to get hit capped, but these options are out there if you do need the hit.

Libram

Captain Heroic’s choices:  Libram of Valiance (25 Emblems).  Don’t even think of joining a raid without this libram, it is by far the biggest upgrade you’ll get from one single Emblem of Triumph item.  I recommend buying this first out of anything, although if you’ll just be running heroics for a while then you can wait since this libram is worthless in 5 mans, for soloing, and in PVP.

Other options:

• Ultimately you want Libram of Three Truths (30 Emblems of FROST) instead, but this is only a small upgrade over Valiance in raids, so I recommend getting all your Tier 10 pieces first.  The only way I would buy this first is if you care much more about PVP than raiding, and still PVP as Ret instead of Protribution
• Until you get 3 Truths, you’ll want the best arena PVP libram that you are able to get, for those times when you can’t use Seal of Vengeance. The lowest available version doesn’t actually require a PVP team, only 15k honor points, so there’s really no excuse to not have at least this version
• Please don’t ever use the Divine Storm Libram or Crusader Strike Libram!  They are horrible under any and all circumstances – even when you do have 4 targets to hit with Divine Storm, any PVP libram is still better.  You’re better off just leaving your libram slot empty and telling people that you left it in your bank, you’ll get less /facepalms this way than if you use either of these librams

Main Hand Weapon

Captain Heroic’s choice:  Last, but certainly not least, I’ll go with Tyrannical Beheader in the all important weapon slot.  Its stats certainly aren’t itemized all that well, but high Weapon DPS and slow speed will always be the most important factors, so this weapon is a good starter weapon for sure.

Other options:

• Bryntroll, the Bone Arbiter (ICC 25).  I’ve been avoiding putting ICC raid gear on this list so far, but Brynntroll is best in slot until ICC hardmodes come out, and it drops off the very first (and very puggable) boss in ICC.  It was nerfed a bit recently, but it will still be very much worth getting.
• Shadow’s Edge (ICC 25 questline) is the ultimate in extremely expensive BOEs, but technically anyone can get this weapon (which may end up better than Bryntroll after the nerf) with “only” 50k gold and a kill on Rotface/Festergut in ICC25.
• Justicebringer (ToC 25) is a solid DPS upgrade, from a quick puggable raid instance
• Sharpened Obsidian Edge Blade (Onyxia 25) and to a lesser extent the Keen OEB (Onyxia 10) can both be better weapons, although they require redoing your expertise items
• Orca-Hunter’s Harpoon (Halls of Reflection) is a sidegrade to the Tyrannical Beheader, also from an ICC 5 man
• If you’re just starting out, there are several options for ILVL219 weapons until you can get a 232 or higher weapon, including Garfrost’s Two-Ton Hammer (Pit of Saron normal mode), Mourning Malice (Halls of Reflection normal mode, Marrowstrike (ToC 5 heroic), and Edge of Ruin (ToC 5 heroic).

The Results

295 Emblems of Triumph, 95 Emblems of Frost, a few ICC 5 man drops, and around 10k gold worth of crafted items, and you should end up with unbuffed stats looking something like 4400 AP, 33% crit, 13% haste, with 8% hit and 6% expertise.  Not too bad at all, you should definitely be able to pull your weight in raids with those stats, with plenty of room for gear improvement as you start obtaining better items in ToC or Icecrown raids.  Just remember though, this list is only a fraction of the items out there, so always use Rawr on your own to determine whether something is right for you to use!