Introduction

Zug zug. My name is Dpsmanic, and welcome to The WoW Authority’s Hunter Leveling Guide: “From Lowbie Huntard to Elite Hunter!” If you are interested in receiving updated and useful tips and tricks that can help you level your Hunter, you can get your membership to my free mailing list here.

World of Warcraft Hunters are superb damage dealers, with most of their damage coming from ranged attacks. They are appealing to many players as their primary role is heavy DPS, standing back away from the main battle and raining down damage from afar. This guide will try to explain the various aspects of playing one, as well as discuss tips and tricks on the best ways to leveling your Hunter. For more advanced Hunter Leveling Guides, please check out my Hunter Leveling Guide Reviews.

Without further ado, I present to you:

The WoW Authority’s Hunter Leveling Guide

“From Lowbie Huntard to Elite Hunter!”

as written & updated by Dpsmanic (to bookmark this page, please hold Ctrl and D together)

Enjoy :)

Contents

1.  A Brief Hunter FAQ

2. Choosing a Race

3. The Early Levels

4. Pet? What Pet?!?

5. Gear & Weapons for Leveling Hunters

6. Talent Specs for Leveling Hunters

7. Making Gold while Leveling

8. Top 10 Hunter Leveling Tips & Tricks

1. A Brief Hunter FAQ

What does a Hunter do? A Hunter in WoW is a ranged physical damage class which uses either bows, crossbows or guns as their main arsenal. A Hunter also has the ability to crowd control and kite during dungeon runs making them a useful addition in a party. In addition, they also have a pet which can be used as a form of damage or crowd control where the pet can either deal damage or tank temporarily.

2. Choosing a Race

Alliance

Dwarf           : Stoneform which removes all bleed and poison effects as well as a passive 1% to crit using guns.

Night Elf      : Shadowmeld ability where the Hunter goes into stealth permanently until movement or action as well as a passive 1% increase dodge rating.

Draenai        : Gift of the Naaru which is a small heal over time on friendly target and a passive 1% chance to hit aura to party members as well as yourself.

Horde

Orc               : Blood Fury an activated skill which gives an attack power bonus but reduces healing on the player by up to 50%, a 15% resistance to stuns as well as an increase in pet damage by 5%.

Tauren        : War Stomp which is an area of effect stun around the Hunter for 1 second which has a cast time of 0.5 seconds. Taurens also have a passive 5% increase in Health Points calculated from their base HP.

Troll             : Berserking ability which increases attack speed from 10% to 30% based on the amount of HP the Hunter has for 10 seconds on a 3 minute cooldown. The attack speed bonus increases the lower the Hunter’s HP is. Trolls also have a passive 1% chance to crit using bows and a 5% damage dealt bonus against monsters categorized as Beasts. Trolls also have a passive HP regeneration bonus compared to other races.

Blood Elves : The ability to tap mana as well as silence enemies around an 8 yard  radius of the Hunter for 2 seconds.

Alliance Considerations

If you have decided to play on the Alliance faction in the World of Warcraft, there are a few thoughts to consider first. Do you play the game intending to PvP heavily during the end-game? Or are you leaning more towards PvE content? PvP meaning Player Vs Player and PvE meaning Player Vs Environment. Why I bring this up this early in this Hunter leveling guide is simply because the racial abilities of each and every one of these races will have an impact in how you perform once you’ve achieved the “end-game” which means hitting the maximum level.

For the Alliance side, a Dwarf or a Night Elf Hunter would be optimum in PvP due to their racial abilities, whereas a Draenai is better suited for a PvE environment. The Dwarf, using it’s Stoneskin ability can easily remove status ailments such as bleeding and poisons which make him a harder target against rogues who are melee intensive classes that rely heavily on poisons to slow their targets down. The Night Elf, using it’s shadowmeld ability makes it easier for him to camp or defend an area as well as ambushing enemies. The Draenai however, armed with only the ability to give his party and himself a passive 1% chance to hit using physical attacks is considered a fairly weak racial ability as compared to the Dwarf or Night Elf.

As an Alliance Hunter, you may also want to consider getting yourself an advanced Hunter Leveling Guide. A good hunter leveling guide will assist by advising you on exactly how to go about with your quests, so you know precisely which quests you should be doing, and which you should not, enabling you to get to level 70 in the fastest time possible. Click here to check out the best hunter leveling guide for alliance players.

Horde Considerations

On the Horde faction, the Orc is considered a well rounded PvP and PvE race simply because of it’s ability to burst it’s Attack Power as well as a passive 15% chance to resist stuns. On top of that, Orcs have the passive 5% damage increase to their pets which is useful in both a PvE and PvP situation.

Taurens are also a good choice if you intend to PvP because of their passive increase in Health Points as well as their Warstomp ability which stuns enemies within 8 yards of the Hunter. This is useful as Hunters generally prefer fighting at ranged compared to melee.

Troll Hunters have the berserking ability which increases their attack speed from 10% to 30% based on the amount of HP they currently have compared to their Total HP. They also have a passive 15 chance to crit using bows and a 5% increase in damage when attacking enemies categorized as Beasts. In both PvE and PvP, the berserk could prove useful as an extra skill to burn down enemies quickly.

Finally, the Blood Elf which has the racial ability to silence foes who are within melee range for 2 seconds as well as an ability to “tap” mana from enemies. The Mana Tap ability doesn’t count for much as the amount of mana taken from the enemy is fairly insignificant whereas the melee silence is useful in a PvP situation.

As a Horde Hunter, you may also want to consider getting yourself an advanced Hunter Leveling Guide. A good hunter leveling guide will assist by advising you on exactly how to go about with your quests, so you know precisely which quests you should be doing, and the fastest way to go about doing them, enabling you to get to level 70 as soon as possible. Click here to check out the best hunter leveling guide for horde players.

3. The Early Levels

One of the first things a Hunter will realize leveling from 1 to 10 is the difficulty of keeping out of melee range of mobs. This is due to the fact that Hunters only gain the ability to “tame” a pet at level 10. This said, your first 10 levels as a Hunter will be slow. Don’t fret however, as at level 10, visit your Hunter Trainer and he/she will give you a quest to begin taming pets.

4. Pet? What Pet?!? How do I get one?!?

Put it simply, the quest will require you to run around taming specific pets around the vicinity. Once complete, you will be able to tame whichever pet you like and keep it permanently. Other than aesthetics, different pets from ranging from different areas and levels DO have a difference in the amount of damage they do, their HP as well as their armor. Suffice to say, I recommend a raptor or cat as a pet which has the highest damage output simply because it’ll be the quickest way to level using a Hunter.

5. Gear & Weapons for Leveling Hunters

On a separate note, I’d like to touch a bit about what kind of gear a Hunter will need as you level. Mostly, Hunters will stack up on anything which has Agility on it as it gives you Attack Power, Critical Rating and a small amount of Dodge Rating. From level 1 to 39 Hunters are able to wear Leather and at 40 Mail will be available to them. Gear that you’ll be looking out for would mainly be anything that has the term “Monkey” on it. For example, “Pink flowery gloves of the Monkey”. Monkey gear has Agility and Stamina on them. A better description of how to attain gear which suits your class would better be described in the complete guide which I’ve mentioned above.

6. Talent Specs for Leveling Hunters

With all that out of the way, I’ll be explaining about talent trees. At level 10, you will gain 1 talent point and a talent point for every level as you progress with your Hunter. The 3 trees are Beast Mastery, Marksmanship, and Survival. For the quickest way to level, I highly suggest going Beast Mastery simply because this tree focuses on your pet and it doing a high amount of damage. The reason behind this is that during the lower levels you will find that gear doesn’t come along easily and you will quickly out-level your gear assuming you are rushing to maximum level. Picking Beast Mastery literally makes your pet the bulk of the damage while grinding or questing.

Talent calculators can be seen here: http://www.wowhead.com/?talent=c. This calculator allows you to test your own builds so as to not make any mistakes in-game. A few of the talents I would highly recommend picking up are listed below:

Endurance Training (Level 10-14): Increase of 10% of your pet’s HP as well as 5% of your own. Useful since it will mean less heals for your pet during grinding/questing.

Thick Hide (Level 15-17): Increase of your pet’s armor by 20% which directly reduces damage taken by all physical attacks as well as an increase in the Hunter’s armor by 10%.

Kill Command (Level 18-19) : 2 talents 2% increase in all damage done by Hunter while your pet’s summoned. Useful as your pet will ALWAYS be there by your side.

Unleashed Fury (Level 20-24): An increase in your pet’s damage by up to 20% which stacks with the 5% pet damage assuming you’ve chosen an Orc as your race.

Ferocity (Level 25-29): 5 talents increases your pet’s chance to crit by 10%.

Improved Mend Pet (Level 30-31): Extremely important as you will be using the Mend Pet ability often during leveling/questing.

Bestial Discipline (Level 32-33): Pets use focus to cast their abilities and this doubles the amount of focus they gain every 2 seconds. From normally 20 focus per 2 seconds, it becomes 40 focus per 2 seconds which makes their damage increase significantly.

Intimidation (Level 34): Your pet’s next attack stuns enemy for 3 seconds causing a high amount of threat. Good for getting your pet to hold aggro when you’re burning down a large opponent or PvP.

Frenzy (Level 35-39): 5 Talent points when your pet crits an enemy he gains an extra 30% attack speed which is also a significant increase in damage.

Bestial Wrath (Level 40): Your pet deals 50% more damage when cast for 10 seconds and is also immune to all crowd control such as polymorph or fear. Useful when fighting other players assuming you’ve chosen a PvP server.

In total, the talents I have described are 31 talents which would make you level 40 if you’ve taken the route I’ve laid out here. For a further description on which areas are suitable for you based on your level as well as what quests you should keep a look out for, you should definitely check out my reviews here on advanced Hunter Leveling Guides which is where I’ve taken most of my information about leveling a Hunter from.

7. Making Gold while Leveling

Getting around in the World of Warcraft requires gold, and lots of it! To buy the best items, or get your mount as quickly as possible, you must keep an eye out on your gold level as well. Many players struggle with their finances, but staying competitive in WoW is essential if you want to be able to hold your own against the best.

Fortunately, as a Hunter, life is much easier for you as compared to other classes. With a pet, a Hunter can literally grind thousands of mobs with just 2 buttons: Send Pet, and Autoshot. Remember to clear out your bags and buy enough arrows and pet food before setting out on a farming session, that way, you don’t have to return to a vendor so often.

You are going to need 100g at level 40, 1000g at level 60, and a whopping 5000g at level 70 for your normal mount, epic mount and flying mount respectively. If you are facing gold troubles, consider getting an advanced gold making guide for more detailed tips and strategies. Click here to check out the best gold making guide for Hunters.

8. Top 10 Hunter Leveling Tips & Tricks

  1. Your pet IS your friend. Always prepare yourself with food when leaving towns to questing areas or grinding sessions.
  2. Your pet’s happiness is important as he deals more damage while happy (125% of usual 100%) and if he’s unhappy for too long IT WILL RUN AWAY PERMANENTLY!
  3. USE your traps. One of the most useful traps is Freezing Trap which you’ll gain at level 20 and is your form of crowd control.
  4. ALWAYS use your tracking abilities to make looking for enemies easier.
  5. You will gain new spells from your Hunter Trainer every 2 levels and you should always update your spells.
  6. There is ALSO a Pet Trainer where you can teach your pet abilities like Growl which is a taunt and helps your pet tank better (So you don’t tank).
  7. Remember to update your Quiver/Ammo Pouch as you level. You can get a Leather worker to do this for you or just get one from the Auction House.
  8. Update your Ammunition! The higher level you are the better Ammo you have available to you! Don’t be stingy! These help you kill faster therefore money comes in faster as well!
  9. Learn to kite! Kiting is the event where you always stay a distance from enemies while continuously doing damage. It’s useful in the event you encounter an enemy that’s impossible for your pet to tank.
  10. Whenever you’re forced into melee range do not forget your most important melee skill “Wing Clip” which reduces enemy movement by 50%. It’ll help when trying to get away from enemies which are focused on melee damage.

Like the tips above? I’m glad you found them helpful. If you would like to receive continuously updated and useful Hunter Tips and Tricks that will help you level and play your Hunter better, please sign up for your membership to my free mailing list here.

~ Dpsmanic is a hardcore (sometimes too hardcore :P ) World of Warcraft player.
He has two level 70 hunters and is currently leveling a third one on the Frostmourne server.
If you are interested in receiving updated and useful tips and tricks that can help you level your Hunter, you can get your membership to his free mailing list here.
Feedback, comments and suggestions are always appreciated, and he can be reached at thewowauthority(at)gmail(dot)com.