Affliction Warlock Mythic+ Dungeon Guide

Affliction Warlock Mythic+ Guide

World of Warcraft Guide Patch 11.1.5

Pros/Cons

Pros & Cons

Tier: B

Pros

One of the tankiest casters due to Soul Leech, Dark Pact, and Unyielding Resolve.
Very unique utility making them a great choice for certain dungeons via Demonic Gateway
Healthstones & Soulstone battle rez which is unique, because Warlocks can resurrect themselves. This is OP when you’re the only battle rez in the party.
Arguably the highest burst damage of all the Warlock specs.

Cons

No immunity
Can be difficult to keep Agony up in lower keys due to Vile Taints long cooldown.
Hard ever seems to be the “Meta” warlock spec.
You are badly punished for mismanagement of dots, such as Agony falling off.

Talents

Talent Calculator

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How To Play Affliction Warlock

Affliction Warlock often carries the reputation of being an overwhelming spec full of timers, maintenance, and panic reapplications. But when you strip it down, Affliction is surprisingly rhythmic and intuitive, especially in Mythic+. This guide is meant to help you understand and excel with the spec’s core flow, so you can bring its full value to any dungeon.

Affliction Overview

Affliction isn’t about frantically keeping everything up at once—it’s about timing. Think of your toolkit as a toolbox filled with DoTs, damage windows, and burst phases that you carefully plan around. The key to good gameplay is syncing your cooldowns with Malefic Rapture windows, reacting efficiently to procs, and never wasting your precious resource—Soul Shards.

Soul Shards cap at 5, and letting them overcap is a flat-out DPS loss. They aren’t something to hoard unless you’re actively preparing for a damage window. Typically, you’re spending them in bulk during one-minute Rapture Windows, which we’ll dive into next.

Rapture Windows

Once every minute, you’ll have a powerful burst phase known as your Rapture Window. This is your time to shine, and it follows a predictable structure: prep your cooldowns, align your DoTs, and dump Malefic Rapture.

You’ll begin this window with either Phantom Singularity or Vile Taint, followed by Soul Rot. After these are active, spam Malefic Rapture to convert all those active DoTs into chunky AoE or single-target damage. That’s the moment your ramp pays off.

If you’re using Vile Taint, remember you get one extra cast in between each Soul Rot. It has a 30-second cooldown, so don’t be afraid to use it outside the burst window to get extra DoT uptime and shard generation—especially in M+.

Reacting to Procs

The passive Tormented Crescendo proc gives you instant, free casts of Malefic Rapture. These are capped at 2 stacks, so if you’re sitting on both, cast one right away. Otherwise, you risk losing a proc entirely.

Nightfall procs also cap at 2 and give you free, instant Shadow Bolt casts. As Soul Harvester, Haunt casts also generate Nightfall stacks, so keep that in mind during your opener and in your filler periods. Always aim these procs at targets with Unstable Affliction, or you won’t get Tormented Crescendo chances.

The basic rule? Never sit on procs, and make sure you’re getting full value out of every one.

Opener Strategy

Your opener sets the tone for the whole dungeon or pull. You want it to be clean, consistent, and synchronized with your cooldowns. Depending on the number of targets, open with manual applications of Agony and Corruption to ensure control.

If you’re facing two enemies, split Agony and Corruption between them early. Then quickly cast Haunt and Unstable Affliction on your primary target. This sets up for efficient Malefic Rapture damage and guarantees that your procs are being aimed at the correct target.

Got adds coming soon? Consider holding cooldowns or staggering your resources so you can blow up the next pull.

Understanding Affliction AoE

Affliction Warlock shines in sustained AoE scenarios, but it requires a bit of ramp to get rolling. You’ll want to start the moment your tank begins gathering the pack:

Cast Seed of Corruption first. This lets you begin spreading Corruption passively as mobs clump. Follow this with Vile Taint to mass-apply Agony across all targets.

Then, place Haunt and Unstable Affliction on your priority mob. These two DoTs allow your funnel damage to focus on that target while still maintaining cleave pressure on everything else.

As you progress through the dungeon, don’t be afraid to hold a Vile Taint for the next pull, especially if the current group is melting and your next window is near. Affliction is all about flow—if you can chain pulls while keeping your DoTs rolling and cooldowns aligned, you’ll snowball hard.

Major Cooldowns

Your primary cooldowns each have a role in the puzzle. Used properly, they’ll extend your DoTs, empower your Malefic Rapture, and keep your Soul Shards flowing.

Summon Darkglare is your big 2-minute cooldown. It extends all your active DoTs and deals significant damage. Always pair this with Soul Rot and Phantom Singularity or Vile Taint. The idea is to have as many DoTs active as possible when you summon it, to get maximum extension and empowered Rapture casts.

Soul Rot is your one-minute burst key. It applies a strong DoT and generates 3 Soul Shards as Soul Harvester, fueling your next Rapture Window. Always sync it with Phantom Singularity or Vile Taint—never cast it alone.

Phantom Singularity is better suited to single-target or raid fights. It lacks mass DoT utility but provides great synergy with Soul Rot. Always hold it for that window.

Vile Taint is your Mythic+ bread and butter. It mass-applies Agony, deals solid initial damage, and lines up beautifully with Soul Rot at a 30-second interval.

Malevolence, if you’re playing Hellcaller, fits right into your 1-minute cycle. It buffs your Wither stacks and applies a small haste buff—perfect to combine with your Rapture window for maximum payoff.

Rotation Priority

Opener

Cast Seed of Corruption.
Cast Unstable Affliction on your Priority Target.
Cast Haunt on your Unstable Affliction Target.
Cast Vile Taint.
Cast Soul Rot.
Cast Summon Darkglare.
Cast Malevolence.
Cast Malefic Rapture as many times as possible.
Continue to maintain DOT effects and play around Malefic Rapture damage windows.

Single Target

Maintain Agony.
Maintain Wither on pull.
Maintain Unstable Affliction.
Maintain Haunt on your Unstable Affliction target.
Cast Malefic Rapture if at 5 Soul Shards OR 2 Tormented Crescendo stacks.
Cast Drain Soul or Shadow Bolt if at 2 stacks of Nightfall.
Maintain max stacks of Shadow Embrace via Drain Soul or Shadow Bolt casts.
Use Vile Taint every 30 seconds.
Cast Soul Rot as last spell before Darkglare.
Cast Summon Darkglare (Always paired with Soul Rot and Phantom or Vile Taint).
Cast Malevolence.
Cast Malefic Rapture as many times as possible.
Continue to maintain DOT effects and play around Malefic Rapture damage windows.

AOE

Cast Seed of Corruption.
Cast Unstable Affliction on your Priority Target.
Cast Haunt on your Unstable Affliction Target.
Cast Vile Taint.
Cast Soul Rot.
Cast Summon Darkglare.
Cast Malevolence.
Cast Malefic Rapture as many times as possible.
Continue to maintain DOT effects and play around Malefic Rapture damage windows.

Tier Set

Spliced Fiendtrader’s Influence

2-Set – Warlock Affliction 11.1 Class Set 2pc – Your spells and abilities have a chance to hit a Jackpot! that increases your haste by 12% for 12 sec. Casting Summon Darkglare always hits a Jackpot!
4-Set – Warlock Affliction 11.1 Class Set 4pc – Hitting a Jackpot! also increases the damage of Unstable Affliction by 50% and causes Unstable Affliction to spread to up to 3 targets within 40 yds for 12 sec.

General Tips

Manage Soul Shards

spend them before hitting the 5 shard limit unless prepping for a burst window. Pool Soul Shards for 1-minute Rapture Windows using Phantom Singularity or Vile Taint, then Soul Rot, and multiple Malefic Rapture casts.

Soul Rot Usage

Use Phantom Singularity with every Soul Rot, and Vile Taint every other Soul Rot if talented.

Tormented Crescendo

Spend a stack of Tormented Crescendo immediately if you hit 2 stacks to avoid wasting procs.

Stat Priority

Haste: Increases attack speed and spell casting speed. This also applies to pets.
Critical Strike: Chance for extra effectiveness on attacks and heals (double damage/healing).
Mastery: Increases the effectiveness of Mastery: Potent Afflictions.
Versatility: Increases damage and healing, and reduces damage taken.

1. Intellect- As with all specs, main stat will be top priority.

2. Critical Strike – Crit gives all spells a chance to deal double damage.

3. Mastery – Mastery boosts the damage of most key DoTs like Agony, Corruption, and Unstable Affliction.

4. Haste – Haste speeds up your casts, lowers your GCD, and increases DoT tick rate.

5. Versatility – Versatility passively increases damage dealt, healing done, and reduces damage taken.