Top Hunter builds
Hunter talents
Points left 0Required level 605/11/35 split
Beast Mastery5 / 51
5/5C
0/5C
0/2N0/3C
0/2M
0/2
0/1C
0/5C
0/2C
0/5C
0/1N
0/2
0/1C
0/2C
0/5
0/1
Marksmanship11 / 51
0/3M
0/5
5/5C
0/3C
0/5C
5/5N
0/2N
0/5C
1/1N
0/1C
0/5C
0/2N
0/3C
0/1
0/5
0/1C
Survival35 / 51
5/5N
0/5C
0/5C
2/2C
5/5C
0/3C
2/2
3/3C
0/1
0/2N
5/5N
0/1C
2/2N
2/2N
2/2N
1/1N
5/5C
1/1N1–10
11–20
21–30
31–40
41–50
51–51
- Add a point with a click. Take one back with a right-click or Shift+click.
- Tap a talent to read it, tap again to add a point, press and hold to take one back.
- Each row opens after 5 more points in that tree. An arrow means the talent it points from must be maxed first.
- Where the demo only showed one rank, the other ranks are estimated and say so in the tooltip.
- Press C to toggle the Classic diff.
Found a wrong number, arrow or rank? Report it with the class and talent name and it gets corrected.
Hunter in WoW Forever — What Changed from Classic
50 talents14 new25 reworked2 relocated9 unchanged10 gone from the trees
Hunter has 50 talents in WoW Forever, fourteen of them new, and ten Classic talents no longer in the trees. The two Slaying talents, Trap Mastery, Killer Instinct, Improved Feign Death and Wyvern Sting are all gone from Survival, and Survival is now a real melee-and-traps tree instead of a place to park points on the way to Marksmanship. Aimed Shot is baseline, learned from the trainer, so the Marksmanship capstone became Sniper Shot, a steady snipe that adds flat ranged damage.
The demo Hunter also showed a new Call Pet convention: the spell is named after the pet, so the demo character had Call Pet. Explosive Trap and Viper Sting were trained by level 38, earlier than Classic's 44 and 36. Deadly Aspects replaces Improved Aspect of the Hawk and Lethal Attacks replaces Lethal Shots, both widened to cover more than ranged shots, which matters for the melee options below.
Beast Mastery
Beast Mastery stays the pet tree and keeps Bestial Wrath unchanged at 31 points. Focused Fire, new in row two, adds 1% damage per rank while a pet is out. Summon Hawk, new in row four, is an active ability that sends a hawk to dive-bomb your target for 18 seconds; Unleashed Fury and Ferocity buff "pets and hawks" together. Bestial Swiftness is a 30% pet movement speed passive now. Intimidation gained a critical strike bonus on the stunning hit, and Bestial Discipline lets a quarter of your mana regeneration continue while casting.
Marksmanship
Marksmanship has four new talents and a new 31-point talent. Careful Aim converts 20% of Intellect into Attack Power per rank and is required for Mortal Shots. Rapid Killing shortens Rapid Fire and rewards kills; Rapid Recuperation, which requires it, refunds mana from Serpent Sting and from consuming Rapid Killing. Lone Wolf is the headline: 20% more damage with all attacks while you have no pet, a single point in row three. Sniper Shot replaces Aimed Shot as the capstone since Aimed Shot is trained now. Improved Stings folds Serpent, Viper and Scorpid Sting bonuses into one talent.
Survivalnew 31-point talent
Survival is the most changed Hunter tree: eight new talents and a new capstone. Improved Tracking gives damage against whatever you are tracking. Predator's Edge raises melee crit damage and off-hand damage. Expose Prey lets attacks on a Hunter's Mark target activate Mongoose Bite, and Lacerating Strikes, the 31-point talent, makes Mongoose Bite leave a 21-second Bleed. Strider Kick is a new 100% weapon damage melee strike. Resourcefulness cuts trap and melee costs, Survivalist's Discipline shortens traps and Deterrence, and Survival Tactics adds hit chance to traps and Feign Death. Counterattack, Deterrence and Clever Traps carry over.
Popular Hunter builds
Three starting points at level 60. The link carries the placement order, so the leveling build doubles as a pickup order; open one, then change what you like.
- Leveling · 31/20/0Beast Mastery levelingPet damage first (Unleashed Fury, Ferocity), Summon Hawk, Bestial Wrath at 40; Marksmanship for Careful Aim and Mortal Shots.
- PvE · 20/31/0Marksmanship raidCareful Aim, Mortal Shots, Trueshot Aura, Barrage and Sniper Shot; Beast Mastery for pet uptime and Ferocity.
- PvP · 0/20/31Survival melee-hybridDeterrence, Counterattack, Strider Kick, Expose Prey and Lacerating Strikes; Marksmanship for Improved Concussive Shot and Mortal Shots.
Beyond the trees
8 of the 10 races can be a Hunter; their racials are on the WoW Forever racials page. The baseline spells that changed, and the demo spellbook, are under class abilities, and the account-wide Legacy perks apply to every character. For the picture across all nine classes, read the guide to every talent change in WoW Forever.
Hunter FAQ
- What's new for Hunter in WoW Forever?
- Fourteen new talents. Lone Wolf and Careful Aim in Marksmanship, Summon Hawk and Focused Fire in Beast Mastery, and a rebuilt Survival tree with Strider Kick, Expose Prey, Predator's Edge and the Lacerating Strikes capstone.
- Is Aimed Shot a talent in Forever?
- No. Aimed Shot is baseline. The Marksmanship 31-point talent is Sniper Shot.
- What's the best Hunter leveling spec?
- Beast Mastery. Pet damage from Unleashed Fury and Ferocity, Summon Hawk at 15 points and Bestial Wrath at 40. The leveling build above is in pickup order.
- Can a Hunter play without a pet?
- Lone Wolf, one point in row three of Marksmanship, gives 20% more damage with every attack while no pet is active. It is the first Classic-era tree to support a petless Hunter.
- How many Hunter talents are there?
- 50: 16 in Beast Mastery, 16 in Marksmanship and 18 in Survival.
- Did any Hunter talents get removed?
- Ten. Improved Eyes of the Beast, Thick Hide, Improved Hunter's Mark, Improved Scorpid Sting, Monster Slaying, Humanoid Slaying, Trap Mastery, Improved Feign Death, Killer Instinct and Wyvern Sting are no longer in the trees. Compare every class.