Fear
From WoWWiki
- For general info, see fear effect.
| Fear | |
|---|---|
| |
| Usable by | |
| Class | Warlock |
| Properties | |
| Type | Offensive |
| School | Shadow |
| Cooldown | None/Global Cooldown |
| Talents | |
| Improvement talents | Grim Reach |
| Other information | |
| Ranks | 3 |
| Related debuff | |
| |
- It fled without a word . . . unless "AAAAAGH!" counts as a word.[TCG src]
Fear is a Warlock spell in the Affliction tree. Fear causes a single enemy to flee in fear, effectively disabling it temporarily. This can be a powerful, though dangerous, tool that is integral to the warlock crowd control.
Fear has a damage limit. If we reach it, the fear come to and. Dots need more time to disable the effect than melee or casted spells.(cause it has smaller damage) Spells that cause no damage do not break fear. We can enlarge the fear under damaging: Glyph of Fear: Increases the damage your Fear target can take before the Fear effect is removed by 20%.
Repeated castings of fear increase the victim's ability to resist it for players (due to the Diminishing Returns Rule), but not for mobs. A mob can be repeatedly feared indefinitely.
Contents |
Rank table
| Rank | Duration (sec) | Level | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 | 8 | 2
|
| 2 | 15 | 32 | 63
|
| 3 | 20 | 56 | 1 98
|
Notes
PvE
In a solo setting, Fear can put a mob out of commission for a period of time; this is hugely beneficial considering the low mana cost of Fear. The danger is that the feared mob can run into companions that, depending on the type of mob (usually humanoid and some beasts), may aggro. This drawback normally restricts Fear's PvE use to planned settings or emergency situations (i.e. the warlock is about to die). A common use of Fear is to cast many DoTs on a mob and then repeatedly fear it. This tactic is especially useful when fighting elite mobs or mobs much higher level than the warlock. When used in combination with Demonic Sacrifice for HP regeneration, a warlock can solo hard elite mobs.
It is possible to effectively crowd-control/kite a single mob with Fear in conjunction with Curse of Recklessness. If a mob runs in an undesirable direction while feared, casting Curse of Recklessness will cause the mob to immediately return to the fight. Overriding Curse of Recklessness with any other curse while the Fear debuff is still active will send the mob running away again. With some practice, the Warlock can trap the mob in a controlled "yo-yo" pattern with a minimal risk of the mob attracting additional enemies.
Fear only works on one target at a time. Even so, a skilled warlock can keep two mobs running at once with Fear: fearing the first mob, then the second mob when the first is some distance away (breaking the fear spell on the first) then re-fearing the first when it gets back, causing a "fear relay" that takes a lot of the Warlock's attention.
PvP
In PvP, Fear finds its place to shine -- it is powerful, especially in a 1v1 setting, and when combined with the Succubus Seduction it can eliminate two opponents from a fray. This strategy has also resulted in the derogatory nickname "fearlock."
Counters
- Items that can dispel fear:
- [Glimmering Mithril Insignia] grants immunity to fear for 30 sec when used.
- [Phaseshift Bulwark] makes the wearer immune to fear when used for 4 sec.
- [Insignia of the Alliance] and [Insignia of the Horde] both break all movement-impairing and loss-of-control effects over a character, including fear.
- Hunter pets of hunter's with the Bestial Wrath talent are immune to fear.
- Priests can use Fear Ward to prevent one fear effect working over a 3 min period.
- Warriors can use Berserker Rage to become immune to fear for 10 sec or use Recklessness for 15 sec.
-
Warriors with the Tier 5 Arms talent Death Wish can use it to be immune to fear for 30 sec.(Death Wish fear immunity removed in Patch 3.0)
-
- Forsaken characters can use their racial trait Will of the Forsaken to dispel fear.
Talent improvement
- Grim Reach improves the casting range of Fear.
- Improved Fear adds a snare effect to the target when Fear breaks off. (-30% of normal speed)
Tips and tactics
PvP gloves improve Fear by giving the wearer a 50% chance to avoid interruption caused by damage while casting Fear.
Most PvP sets have a bonus to reduce the casting time of the wearer's Fear spell by 0.1 sec.
Controversy
Fear can be used as a last resort but in duels it is often considered cheap. This is because the opponent cannot break free without being hit. By the time the opponent recovers they could be feared again. OTOH, the same could be said of many such abilities from other classes, and asking a player to handicap themselves (by not using particular spells or abilities, i.e. to deliberately play their character in a less than optimal fashion) is an open admission from the start that that player is better. To make it fair, a warlock should only agree to refrain some using fear at the request of the other player, and in return, should be allowed to pick an ability that the other player must refrain from using as well.
See also
Patch changes
- Hotfix (2009-04-30): "Mana Burn now causes Fear, Hex and Psychic Scream to break early when used."
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