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So I just ran across someone who said that +dmg, then +stam and then +int is the way to go for locks. I understand this mentality for Destro... what about for me as an Afflock? I always thought that +stam is the only thing that matters for locks, particularly in a raid where I'll be on the receiving end of heals. I;d appreciate some feedback? Thanks!~

It does, but as affliction I would take +damage over +crit. As Destro, I would go the other way.

arguably in a raid, once you can hit 10k hp with buffs you really don't need anymore, int would then be a better choice as it'll mean you can dps for longer periods without needing to tap, so allowing you to leave the tapping for when you're in a boss 'movement phase' (i.e. when you can't nuke the boss)

generally for 'most' warlock specs

+hit (until you hit 202 hit) > spellhaste > +dmg > +crit

you really can't include int and stam in that either, they're simply something you get as you get better gear.

spell haste improves casting time
some items have a set + haste and other have a proc chance

spell haste for affliction imo is useless as 3/5 of the dots are insta cast and it has no effect on channeled (drain life)

spell haste is more for mages/destro

svagis, to explain it would require pasting loads of maths onto here, which i simple can't be ***** to do(if you look hard enough on this forum, you'll find the maths. i've posted them plenty of times). simply put. I'm right, they're wrong. I've done the maths dozens of times and well... i'm right. another thing to point out is that spell haste IS still very good for an afliction warlock. 2 reasons:

1. 30-50% of your damage comes from SHADOWBOLT. for which haste is very useful

2. due to LAG (average players lag is about 100-200ms) your 1.5second cast spell is actually a 1.6-1.7 sec. now even with the use of a /stopcasting macro, you still are likely to have a 50-100ms increased cast time. sooo.. for a 1.5second cast spell (immolate, UA), anything from 5-10%(80-180 spell haste rating) spell haste will STILL be beneficial to your dps even though you're pushing the the cast time below the GCD.

Edited, Dec 31st 2007 1:31pm by Jenovaomega

If you're Demonology, then it should be +stamina then +intellect, but always get +damage with any gear you can when you can find it.
I rarely run out of mana, and I cant depend on critical hits. Since my stamina improves my +damage (from Demonic Knowledge) and my ability to recover from fighting, then stamina is preferred over intellect.

+Sta is important when your stuck with old world gear in which you're having to choose "do I want Sta, Int, Sta+Int, OR +Dmg?" Sta is the best choice here because it relates to HP AND Mana, which then allows for longer DPS output.

Once you get into OL you'll find not only great Rares and Epics with all the STA you'll need AND damage options, but also green gear like "of the Sorcerer" which has inordinate amounts of STA already on it, AND has the +dmg/Int.

For high-end raiding though, things are different.

+Hit makes it easier for all your offensive spells to land. Think of it as boosting your effective level when casting your offensive spells. You're never gonna hit those level 72s with already high resistances w/o some +hit, and if you're not hitting the enemy half the time, then it really doesn't matter how much +dmg you have.

Spellhaste is obviously useful for boosting DPS, although like it was posted up here it's not going to be as effective for a Lock, and especially for an Affliction lock. The reason, I believe, he put it in this order was to illustrate the fact that Spellhaste is much harder to come by than +Dmg, so if you have a piece of armor and you're trying to figure between 1 with Haste and 1 with +Dmg, it may be better to take the Haste.