Ranged class · S tier
Hunter build guide
Kills from a safe distance, gets free damage from pets and has the scariest single-target crits in the game. The best mix of safety and power for most players right now.
Tier
S
Ease
#3 of 9
Damage ceiling
#1 of 9
Range
Ranged
Best race
Dwarf / Troll
“Death from range. Arrows, traps and volleys, as long as you keep your distance.” The game's own pitch
Best Hunter build
Recommended
Aimed Shot crit sniper
- Kill Shot capstone
- free Aimed Shot milestone
- crit chance and Blessing of Might (damage) passives
- crit and damage rings
Every kill can reset Aimed Shot, so dense waves turn into a chain of huge crits. This is the build behind the 100k-crit clips going around.
Alternative
Beast pack (safest)
- wolf milestone
- Bestial Wrath capstone (raptor)
- pet damage and crit picks
- Multi-Shot
Pets body-block and keep killing while you kite. Forgiving if you are still learning boss patterns. Unlocking the White Devilsaur perk in co-op merges both summons into one giant beast.
Avoid: Standing still to finish a boss. Your whole kit assumes you keep moving.
Hunter talents: capstones and milestones
A capstone rebuilds Hunter around one idea, and you run one at a time. Milestones are the big mid-tree talents on the way there. Text below is the game's own. For every talent with its numbers, see all Hunter talents.
Capstones
Kill Shot
Start every run with Aimed Shot; its cooldown is 15% shorter and a killing blow readies it again (at most every 2 sec).
Bestial Wrath
A raptor joins your wolf, and pet bites tear through 2 more enemies nearby for 100% of the bite.
Wyvern Sting
Start with Frost Trap, and an Explosive Trap sets itself at your feet every 5 sec.
Milestones worth chasing
- Rapid Fire: every 6th shot you fire is followed by a free Aimed Shot.
- Piercing Shots: Auto Shot pierces into 1 enemy beyond its target for 80% damage.
- Explosive Ammunition: enemies killed by Auto Shot or Multi-Shot explode for 20% of their max health within 6 yd.
- Tame Beast & Frenzy: a wolf fights at your side, and pet bites have a 75% chance to fire a free Multi-Shot.
Spells you will see
- Auto Shot
- Multi-Shot
- Aimed Shot
- Arcane Shot
- Volley
- Explosive Trap
- Frost Trap
All Hunter talents & planner (game 0.114.1)
All 39 talents in the three Hunter trees, in the game's own words. A row opens after 5 more points in that tree, and you can spend up to 51 points in total with one capstone active. Numbers are for the first rank; click any talent below to plan a 51-point build and share the link.
Beast Mastery 0 pts · 13 talents
Available at once
-
Improved Aspect of the Hawk
Your cooldowns recover 1.5% faster.
-
Endurance Training
Increases your maximum health by 3%.
5 points in Beast Mastery
-
Improved Aspect of the Monkey
Reduces all damage taken by 1%.
-
Pathfinding
Increases your movement speed by 4%.
10 points in Beast Mastery
-
Tame Beast
A wolf fights at your side, biting what you shoot.
-
Unleashed Fury
Your pets deal 20% more damage.
15 points in Beast Mastery
-
Ferocity
Increases your and your pets' critical strike chance by 1%.
-
Spirit Bond
Regenerate 0.8 more health per second.
20 points in Beast Mastery
-
Frenzy
Your pets' bites have a 75% chance to fire a free Multi-Shot.
Requires Tame Beast
-
Bestial Discipline
Your pets deal 20% more damage.
25 points in Beast Mastery
-
Intimidation
Auto Shot and Multi-Shot deal 6% more damage.
-
Ferocious Inspiration
Increases all damage by 3%.
30 points in Beast Mastery
-
Bestial Wrath
A raptor joins your wolf, and your pets' bites tear through 2 more enemies nearby for 100% of the bite.
Requires Frenzy
Marksmanship 0 pts · 13 talents
Available at once
-
Lethal Shots
Increases your critical strike chance by 1%.
-
Efficiency
Your cooldowns recover 1.5% faster.
5 points in Marksmanship
-
Improved Arcane Shot
Arcane Shot's cooldown is 6% shorter.
-
Improved Serpent Sting
Serpent Sting deals 8% more damage.
10 points in Marksmanship
-
Piercing Shots
Auto Shot pierces: every arrow also strikes 1 enemy beyond its target for 80% of it.
-
Mortal Shots
Increases your critical strike damage by 6%.
15 points in Marksmanship
-
Ranged Weapon Specialization
Increases all damage by 1.5%.
-
Improved Multi-Shot
Multi-Shot fires at 1 more targets.
20 points in Marksmanship
-
Rapid Fire
Every 6th shot you fire is followed by a free Aimed Shot.
Requires Piercing Shots
-
Barrage
Multi-Shot and Volley deal 8% more damage.
25 points in Marksmanship
-
Hawk Eye
You deal 5% more damage to elites and bosses.
-
Scatter Shot
Concussive Shot and Aimed Shot cooldowns are 7% shorter.
30 points in Marksmanship
-
Kill Shot
You start every run with Aimed Shot; its cooldown is 15% shorter and a killing blow readies it again, at most every 2 sec.
Requires Rapid Fire
Survival 0 pts · 13 talents
Available at once
-
Monster Slaying
You deal 3% more damage to elites and bosses.
-
Deflection
Reduces all damage taken by 1%.
5 points in Survival
-
Clever Traps
Your traps cover 10% more ground.
-
Survivalist
Increases your maximum health by 2%.
10 points in Survival
-
Entrapment
Your traps hold what they hit: every hit of a trap has a 50% chance to root the enemy for 2 sec.
-
Savage Strikes
Increases your critical strike chance by 1.2%.
15 points in Survival
-
Trap Mastery
Your traps' cooldowns are 8% shorter.
-
Surefooted
Increases your movement speed by 3%.
20 points in Survival
-
Explosive Ammunition
Enemies killed by your Auto Shot or Multi-Shot explode for 20% of their maximum health on everything within 6 yd.
Requires Entrapment
-
Killer Instinct
Fire spells deal 8% more damage.
25 points in Survival
-
Lightning Reflexes
Increases all damage by 2%.
-
Counterattack
When an enemy strikes you in melee, 15% chance to set off a free Explosive Trap.
30 points in Survival
-
Wyvern Sting
You start every run with Frost Trap, and an Explosive Trap sets itself at your feet every 5 sec.
Requires Explosive Ammunition
Best rings, trinkets, amulets & gear for Hunter
Hunter kites from range: Amulet of Vek’nilash (+1 target to every ability) and Hand of Justice multiply Auto Shot and Multi-Shot volleys, while Gnomish Universal Remote vacuums XP from safety. See the full items, trinkets & Codex guide for every ring, trinket and amulet in game 0.120.4.
In-run · Codex jewelry
Best rings, trinkets & amulets
- Rings: Band of Accuria, Master Dragonslayer's Ring
- Trinkets: Hand of Justice, Gnomish Universal Remote
- Amulets: Amulet of Vek'nilash, Onyxia Tooth Pendant
Between runs · Armory (Mail)
Hunter armor sets & weapons
- Armor sets (Common → Legendary): Tracker's → Beaststalker's → Giantstalker's → Dragonstalker's → Cryptstalker
- Main hand: Short Bow → Hunting Bow of the Wilds → Bow of the Dragonflight → Ahn'Qiraj Rifle → Rhok'delar, Longbow of the Ancient Keepers
Best race for Hunter
Default starting races: Dwarf, Night Elf, Orc, Tauren and Troll. (In v0.120.0+, any other race can be unlocked for 100 achievement points on the Rewards tab.) Our pick: Troll (Berserking for faster cooldowns) or Dwarf (Stoneform shield, gun damage).
Cross-Race Unlock Tip: On the title screen's Rewards → Races tab (new in v0.120.0), any race can be unlocked for all classes for 100 achievement points. Bought races stay permanently unlocked through resets, enabling cross-race synergy builds.
Recommended
Dwarf
- Stoneform: a shield worth 30% of max health, every 45 sec
- Gun Specialization: +6% damage
- Treasure Finding: +30% pickup range
Alliance
Night Elf
- Shadowmeld: 3 sec of immunity near death (75 sec cooldown)
- Quickness: +8% move speed
- Nature Resistance: +5% damage reduction
Horde
Orc
- Blood Fury: +35% damage for 12 sec, every 40 sec
- Hardiness: +10% max health
Horde
Tauren
- War Stomp: stuns nearby enemies for 2 sec, every 15 sec
- Endurance: +15% max health
Recommended
Troll
- Berserking: cooldowns 30% faster for 10 sec, every 35 sec
- Throwing Specialization: +3% crit
- Regeneration: +1.5 health per second
Zone path with Hunter
Zones unlock per class: each win with Hunter opens the next zone for your Hunters only. Here is the road from the tutorial to the endgame, and who waits at the end of each run.
- 1 Elwynn Forest Final boss: Edwin VanCleef
- 2 Duskwood Final boss: Morbent Fel
- 3 Warsong Gulch Final boss: Lord Kazzak
- 4 Un'Goro Crater Final boss: King Mosh
- 5 Arathi Basin Final boss: Lord Aliden Perenolde
- 6 Feralas Final boss: King Gordok
- 7 Gurubashi Arena Final boss: Hakkar the Soulflayer
- 8 Scarlet Monastery Final boss: High Inquisitor Whitemane
- 9 Alterac Valley Final boss: Azuregos
- 10 Blackrock Mountain Final boss: Nefarian
- 11 Gates of Ahn'Qiraj Final boss: C'Thun
- 12 Naxxramas Final boss: Kel'Thuzad
Hunter vs other classes
| Class | Tier | Range | Ease | Ceiling |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warrior | A | Melee | 5/5 | 4/5 |
| Paladin | A | Melee | 5/5 | 3/5 |
| Hunter | S | Ranged | 4/5 | 5/5 |
| Warlock | S | Ranged | 4/5 | 5/5 |
| Druid | B | Hybrid | 4/5 | 3/5 |
| Shaman | A | Hybrid | 3/5 | 4/5 |
| Priest | B | Ranged | 3/5 | 4/5 |
| Mage | S | Ranged | 2/5 | 5/5 |
| Rogue | B | Melee | 2/5 | 4/5 |
Sorted by ease. Rankings are our opinion for game 0.120.4; see the full tier list for the reasoning.
Hunter FAQ
Is Hunter good in Azeroth Survivors?
Hunter is S tier in our tier list: #3 of 9 for ease and #1 of 9 for damage ceiling. Kills from a safe distance, gets free damage from pets and has the scariest single-target crits in the game. The best mix of safety and power for most players right now.
What is the best Hunter build?
Aimed Shot crit sniper: Kill Shot capstone, free Aimed Shot milestone, crit chance and Blessing of Might (damage) passives, crit and damage rings. Every kill can reset Aimed Shot, so dense waves turn into a chain of huge crits. This is the build behind the 100k-crit clips going around.
Alternative: Beast pack (safest). Pets body-block and keep killing while you kite. Forgiving if you are still learning boss patterns. Unlocking the White Devilsaur perk in co-op merges both summons into one giant beast.
What are the Hunter capstone talents?
- Kill Shot. Start every run with Aimed Shot; its cooldown is 15% shorter and a killing blow readies it again (at most every 2 sec).
- Bestial Wrath. A raptor joins your wolf, and pet bites tear through 2 more enemies nearby for 100% of the bite.
- Wyvern Sting. Start with Frost Trap, and an Explosive Trap sets itself at your feet every 5 sec.
You can only run one capstone at a time; respecs are free between runs.
How many talents does Hunter have?
39 talents in three trees: Beast Mastery (13), Marksmanship (13), Survival (13). Each row of a tree opens after 5 more points in it: the first milestones at 10 points, the next at 20 and the capstones at 30. See every Hunter talent.
What is the best race for Hunter?
Troll (Berserking for faster cooldowns) or Dwarf (Stoneform shield, gun damage). Default starting races: Dwarf, Night Elf, Orc, Tauren and Troll. (In v0.120.0+, any other race can be unlocked for 100 achievement points on the Rewards tab.) Starting in version 0.120.0, you can also unlock any race for 100 achievement points on the Rewards → Races tab. If cross-race unlocked, Gnome (+20% Luck, -8% cooldowns) is a premier scaling choice for proc and cooldown builds, while Orc (+35% Blood Fury damage) provides unmatched burst damage.
How do you unlock Hunter talents?
Play Hunter runs. Every run pays talent experience to the class you played, based on time survived, kills, bosses, a win and how hard the zone was. If Hunter is behind your best class it earns bonus experience, so it catches up faster. Zones also unlock per class: beating Elwynn Forest with Hunter opens Duskwood for Hunter only.
More: Azeroth Survivors guide · builds for every class · items, trinkets & amulets · how to play · all zones and bosses