⚡ The Bottom Line
Paladin is considered "broken strong" by the Turtle WoW community and is consistently top of PvP tier lists. Retribution — which was unfinished garbage in vanilla (Blizzard literally removed Crusader Strike before launch) — is now a genuine melee DPS spec with a real rotation. A Paladin can "one-man-army the open world." Lowest skill floor in the game. If you're new to WoW and playing Alliance, Paladin is the answer.
🐢 Turtle WoW Changes — What's Different
- Crusader Strike restored and reworked — The ability Blizzard cut from vanilla WoW before release. Now properly implemented with meaningful damage. Refreshes active Judgements on target, fixing the Judgement of the Crusader interaction problem.
- Holy Strike added — New baseline ability for Paladin — a melee strike with Holy damage component. Gives Paladin a second reliable melee button alongside Crusader Strike.
- Retribution overhauled — Dev comment: 'The design of the Paladin class in Vanilla is often considered unfinished.' Ret is now a competitive melee DPS spec. Sanctified Command buffs Crusader Strike damage. Vengeance reworked.
- Holy Paladin reworked to go into melee — Holy previously was 'a Priest in all but name.' Now incentivised to enter melee range for throughput increase — unique identity separate from other healers.
- Baseline Taunt added — Paladin now has a proper taunt — same as Druid and Warrior. Additional talent in Protection tree grants bonus hit when taunting, preserving the old taunt niche.
- High Elf can play Paladin — New race/class combo — High Elf Paladin is one of the most popular characters on the server, lore-wise and aesthetically.
- Hand of Freedom/Sacrifice/Protection — Blessings of Freedom, Sacrifice and Protection renamed to Hand versions, allowing them to be active alongside regular Blessings.
🌳 The Specs
Crusader Strike + Holy Strike + Judgements = a real rotation now. Mortal Strike-style debuff in PvP with Judgement of Justice. Community verdict: 'absolutely broken' in current state.
Now has melee throughput identity. Flash of Light spam + going into melee = Turtle WoW's Holy identity. Good mana efficiency. New rank of Flash of Light at level 60.
Excellent 5-man dungeon tank. Baseline Taunt finally makes Paladin a proper tank. Struggles more vs raid bosses than Warrior but perfectly solid for all dungeon content.
📋 Talent Priority — Leveling Build
⚔️ Rotation
🎒 Gear Priorities
⚒️ Best Professions
Mining + Blacksmithing is the recommended Paladin combination — craft your own plate gear and weapons throughout the leveling process. Armorsmith specialisation at 60 for endgame plate. Paladin's self-sustain means you can afford to spend gold on mats rather than potions. Alternatively: Engineering for Goblin Sapper and stun grenades — excellent PvP toolkit combined with Paladin's already-strong CC. Alchemy is good for Flask of Chromatic Resistance and Elixir of the Mongoose if you focus on Blacksmithing but want potion self-sufficiency.
💬 Community Tips
"A Paladin can usually one-man-army the open world. You can find raid spots with any non-meme build. It's probably one of the most noob-friendly classes and that's not even a bad thing."
"Retribution is absolutely strong right now. Anyone calling it weak hasn't played it since the CC2 changes. Crusader Strike refreshing Judgements changed the entire rotation."
"High Elf Paladin is genuinely one of the most satisfying combinations in the game. The lore is perfect — the race that stayed loyal to the Alliance after Arthas's betrayal."