The World of Warcraft: Shadowlands pre-expansion update 9.0.1 brings with it a host of class changes, and the Death Knight is no exception. Many classes will find some of their most popular abilities that were removed many expansions ago, and their skill acquisition adjusted due to the huge level reduction introduced in this same update.
Not all classes received massive adjustments, but Death Knight certainly saw a good amount of class changes. Below is the full list of class changes made to Death Knight in the Shadowlands 9.0.1 pre-patch. For the full patch notes, be sure to check out the link here, where additional class changes are listed.
Death Knight – Shadowlands Update 9.0.1 Modifications de classe
GENERAL
- Rune Strike is no longer a Blood Death Knight talent and has been redesigned to become a Rune spender and Runic Power generating ability used during the initial Death Knight leveling experience. Rune Strike will be replaced by Festering Strike, Heart Strike or Howling Blast when a specialization has been chosen.
- When swapping weapons, the Off Balance debuff is applied and prevents the death knight from gaining Runeforge enchantment bonuses for 30 seconds.
- All Death Knights can now use the following abilities:
- Death Coil – Fires a blast of unholy energy at the target, inflicting Shadow damage to an enemy or healing an Undead ally.
- Death and Decay – Corrupts targeted ground, causing Shadow damage for 10 seconds to targets in the area.
- Raise Dead – Raise a ghoul to fight alongside you for 1 minute. Only one ghoul can be standing at a time.
- Chains of Ice – Binds the target with frozen chains, reducing movement speed by 70% for 8 seconds.
- Lichborne – Harness unholy energy to become Undead for 10 seconds, increasing Leech by 10% and making you immune to Charm, Fear, and Sleep.
- Anti-Magic Zone – Places an Anti-Magic Zone for 10 seconds that reduces spell damage taken by party or raid members by 20%.
- Runeforging now offers five new runes to engrave on your weapon:
- Bloodthirst Rune – Your Death Strike deals increased damage based on the target's missing health. When you drop below 35% health, you heal for 50% of your maximum health over 6 seconds. Can only occur once every 5 minutes.
- Rune of Spellwarding – Deflects 3% of all spell damage and has a chance to create a shield that absorbs magic damage equal to 10% of your maximum health. When an enemy damages the shield, their casting speed is reduced by 10% for 6 seconds.
- Rune of Hysteria – Increases maximum Runic Power by 20 and your attacks have a chance to increase Runic Power generation by 20% for 8 seconds.
- Rune of Endless Thirst – When you kill an enemy that grants experience or honor, gains 5% haste, 5% movement speed, and heals you for 5% of your maximum health. Additionally, increases your movement speed on death by 10%.
- Apocalypse Rune – Your ghoul's attacks have a chance to apply an additional effect:
- Famine: Reduces damage dealt to the Death Knight.
- Death: Reduces healing done.
- Pestilence: Slows the target and deals damage over time.
- War: Increases damage dealt to the Death Knight.
- PvP Talent Changes:
- Lichborne has been removed.
SOME BLOOD
- Rune Tap is no longer a talent and will be learned by all Blood Death Knights at level 19. Additionally, Rune Tap has two charges and the global cooldown is removed.
- The following talents have been adjusted:
- New Talent: Savor Blood – While Crimson Scourge is active, your next Death and Decay heals you per Bone Shield charge and you immediately gain 10 Runic Power.
- New Talent: Death Pact – Create a Death Pact that heals you for 50% of your maximum health, but absorbs incoming healing equal to 30% of your maximum health for 15 seconds.
- Bloodmark cost removed and healing increased to 3% (was 2%).
- Rapid Decay now has an additional effect: your Blood Plague Leeches have 50% more health.
- Anti-Magic Barrier now reduces the cooldown of Anti-Magic Shell by 20 seconds (was 15 seconds) and increases its duration and amount absorbed by 40% (was 30%).
- Ravenous now grants you 15% leech for 8 seconds (was 6 seconds) and has an additional effect: Death Strike healing is increased by 20%.
- Red Thirst now reduces the cooldown of Vampiric Blood by 1,5 seconds per 10 Runic Power spent (down from 1 second).
- Consumption and Bonestorm now capped at 8 targets.
- The Ossuary has been removed and will be learned by all Blood Death Knights in Shadowlands.
- PvP Talent Changes:
- New PvP Talent: Rot and Wither – Your Death and Decay rots enemies each time it deals damage, absorbing healing equal to 100% of the damage dealt.
- Unholy Command has been removed.
GEL
- Obliterate, Frost Strike, Frostscythe, and Glacial Advance can now be used with two-handed weapons.
- New Passive: Icy Waste Power
- Rank 1: When dual wielding, your Obliterate and Frost Strike will also strike with your free hand, and you can engrave each weapon with a Runeforge enchantment.
- Rank 2: Increases your Obliterate damage by 35% and your Killing Machine proxy chance when using a two-handed weapon.
- Frostwyrm's Fury is no longer a Talent and will be learned by all Frost Death Knights at level 44.
- Reinforcement Rune Weapon and Pillar of Frost no longer have a global cooldown.
- Howling Blast and Breath of Sindragosa now deal reduced damage to secondary targets.
- The following talents have been adjusted:
- New Talent: Hypothermic Presence – Embrace the ice in your veins, reducing the Runic Power cost of your abilities by 35% for 8 seconds.
- Runic Mitigation proc rate adjusted to bring Dual Wield and Two Hand closer together and Runic Power gain increased to 5 (was 3).
- Blinding Sleet now has an additional effect: When Blinding Sleet ends, enemies are slowed by 50% for 6 seconds.
- Icecap now reduces the remaining cooldown of Pillar of Frost by 4 seconds (was 3 seconds).
- Frostscythe is now capped at 5 targets.
IMPIOUS
- Mastery: Dreadblade now also increases the damage of your minion's abilities.
- Epidemic is no longer a Talent and will be learned by all Unholy Death Knights at level 34. Additionally, Epidemic's range has been reduced to 40 yards (was 100 yards) and will not be able to be cast if there are no nearby enemies afflicted with Virulent Plague.
- Sudden Doom now gives your autoattacks a chance to cause your next Death Coil or Epidemic to cost no Runic Power.
- Scourge Strike now prefers targets with Festering Wounds inside Death and Decay.
- Duration of Virulent Plague Outbreak increased to 28 seconds (was 21 seconds).
- Virulent Plague no longer has a 30% chance that infected enemies will burst on nearby enemies each time it deals damage, and the area of effect range is increased to 10 yards (was 8 yards).
- Army of the Dead Rune cost reduced to 1 (was 3).
- Scourge Strike and Claw Shadows now capped at 5 targets inside Death and Decay. Both abilities will prefer targets inflicted with Festering Wound.
- The following talents have been adjusted:
- New Talent: Unholy Pact – Dark Transformation creates an unholy pact between you and your pet, igniting flaming chains that deal Shadow damage over 15 seconds to enemies between you and your pet. While active, your Strength is increased by 5%.
- Unholy Blight's disease now stacks up to 4 times and has an additional effect - Your minions deal 3% more damage per stack to enemies affected by Unholy Blight. Additionally, it applies virulent plague to enemies.
- Soul Reaper has been reworked and now costs 1 Rune and has a 6 second cooldown. Hit an enemy to deal Shadow damage and afflict the enemy with Soul Reaper. After 5 seconds, if the target is below 35% health, this effect will explode and deal additional Shadow damage to the target. If an enemy dies while afflicted, gain Runic Corruption.
- Defile now has an additional effect - If enemies are in the Defile, it increases in size and deals increasing damage every second.
- Army of the Damned now has an additional effect: Apocalypse and Army of the Dead summon a Magus of the Dead for 15 seconds that launches Frostbolts and Shadow Bolts at your enemies.
- Unholy Frenzy has been reworked and renamed Unholy Assault. Strike your target with an unholy blow inflicting Shadow damage, infecting the target with 4 Festering Wounds and sending you into a killing frenzy, increasing haste by 20% for 12 seconds.
- Bursting Wounds are now capped at 8 targets.
