by Andrew Robert White

Created on: January 04, 2010

Paladins, one of the playable classes in the MMORPG World of Warcraft are one of the few "hybrid" classes in the game. a hybrid class is one that is able to Tank, Deal Damage, or Heal well based on their spec. Paladins are very solo friendly as well as group helpers. 

There are four current races that can be paladins currently, with a fifth being added in the expansion. For the Alliance Paladins can be Humans, Dwarves, or Draenai, whereas the horde only have Blood Elves who can play as the paladin class. In the expansion Tauren will also be able to play as a paladin. Paladins wear chain mail armor until level 40, where they train plate mail armor.

Paladins can use maces, swords and axes both one hand and two handed. they can also use pole-arms as well. paladins are one of the few classes that does not have a ranged weapon slot that is commonly used for wands, crossbows and guns, instead they have a Libram slot, which allows paladins to use unique class items that buff certain moves. Healing paladins could get a libram to make them heal more, whereas a damage dealing paladin could get one to increase that damage he does. 

Another class specific move that paladins have is their auras. Auras are group wide, allowing the paladin to passively help himself and comrades. Auras can vary between preventing fire, shadow or ice damage or even doing damage to enemies that attack you. a Tanking paladin uses Devotion aura which reduces the damage they take. A healing paladin would use concentration aura to prevent their spells from being slowed. 

Each paladin has an arsenal of buffs called Blessings that can help themselves and party members. They have blessings to increase melee damage, mana regeneration, the base stats of players, and reduce damage taken. Each blessing gets upgraded based on the spec of the paladin. For example a healing paladin gets extra mana regeneration and a damage dealing paladin gets more melee damage. 

The main part of a paladins arsenal is their Seals. Seals do various things based on what you have up. There are seals to regenerate your mana or health when you attack, do extra damage to enemies, or partially stun them. Seals are learned slowly over the course of leveling, and some seals are even spec specific, for example the retribution paladins seal of command that is learned through talents. 

The last specific group of abilities that paladins get are called Hands. there are four hands that are helpful to paladins depending on how they use it. There is a hand that reduces threat on one player, transfers the damage that one player receives to another, one that prevents you from being snared or slowed, and one that prevents your ally from being damaged from physical attacks. 

Paladins have three unique specs that they may play as, Holy, Protection, and Retribution. Each spec speaks for itself. Holy focuses on healing and the holy power of paladins to help others, they are healers. Protection focuses on protecting and taking the damage of players to overcome obstacles, they are tanks. Retribution focuses on dealing damage to enemies and stunning and bringing justice to its foes, they are damage dealers. 

Paladins are a versatile class that can play in any aspect of the game. They are recommended for new players and pros alike. for more information on the paladin class, you can visit Wowwiki or any of the World of Warcraft fan sites. 

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