Mastery is a mechanic and stat introduced in Patch 4.0.1. Each specialization has its own Mastery, offering benefits appropriate to that spec's role and abilities. Masteries' effects vary, increasing certain types of damage dealt, providing bonus DoT or HoT effects, or even generating free extra melee or spell attacks. Mastery is available at level 78, and has no effect until that level is reached.
Mastery also refers to the secondary stat, found under Melee, Ranged or Spell on the character sheet. Characters have a base mastery of 0, but this can be increased by gear with mastery on it. Numerous enhancements such as enchantments and gems also increase mastery.
Mastery benefits are measured in percentages, whether in terms of a fixed improvement, the size of a bonus effect, or a proc chance. Each Mastery has a base percentage value; the mastery stat increases this by a small amount, depending on spec and level. Even characters with no mastery bonuses will therefore benefit from their Mastery.
In terms of stat weighting, the value of mastery depends on the effect it grants the player.
While technically passive abilities, Masteries are not found in the Spellbook, but can only be viewed by mousing over the character's mastery rating in the Character sheet.
Masteries
Below is a list of all Masteries, and the classes and specs to which they belong. Listed under 'Base effect' is the base percentage benefit granted to players regardless of their mastery stat. Listed under 'Ratio' is the amount of mastery required to gain an additional 1% effect, at level 90. At lower levels, smaller amounts of mastery are required to gain the same benefit. Both base effects and ratios are often very specific and unlikely numbers (such as 191.7), and are sometimes difficult to determine precisely.
Class | Specialization | Mastery | Effect | Base effect (%) | Ratio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Demon hunter | Havoc | [Mastery: Demonic Presence] | Increases Chaos damage by X% and movement speed by Y%. | 11/8 | |
Vengeance | [Mastery: Fel Blood] | Demon Spikes reduces Physical damage taken by an additional X%. Also increases attack power by Y%. | 12/8 | ||
Death Knight | Blood | [Mastery: Blood Shield] | % of [Death Strike] healing is also applied as a shield, and increases Attack Power. | 12/8 | |
Frost | [Mastery: Frozen Heart] | Increases frost damage by %. | 12 | ||
Unholy | [Mastery: Dreadblade] | Increases shadow damage by %. | 18 | ||
Druid | Balance | [Mastery: Starlight] | Increases Starfall and Starsurge damage, and the effect of Lunar, Solar, and Stellar Empowerments by an additional X%. | 14 | |
Feral | [Mastery: Razor Claws] | Increases bleed damage by %. | 16 | ||
Guardian | [Mastery: Nature's Guardian] | Increases maximum health and healing received by X%, and increases Attack Power by Y%. | 4/8 | ||
Restoration | [Mastery: Harmony] | Increases healing by % for each Restoration heal over time effects on the target. | 4 | ||
Hunter | Beast Mastery | [Mastery: Master of Beasts] | Increases pet damage by %. | 18 | |
Marksmanship | [Mastery: Sniper Training] | Range of all ranged abilities is increased by X% and damage of all Focus spending abilities increased by Y%. | 5/20 | ||
Survival | [Mastery: Hunting Companion] | Pet have a X% chance to grant an additional charge of Mongoose Bite. | 4 | ||
Mage | Arcane | [Mastery: Savant] | Increases Mana regeneration and maximum Mana by X%. Arcane Charges increase the damage of affected spells by an additional Y%. | 8/4 | |
Fire | [Mastery: Ignite] | Certain spells apply the Ignite DoT that deals % of the damage of these spells. | 6 | ||
Frost | [Mastery: Icicles] | Increases Water Elemental damage by %. Stores % of the damage of certain spells that can be unleashed with [Ice Lance]. | 18 | 300 | |
Monk | Brewmaster | [Mastery: Elusive Brawler] | Each time you're hit or use certain abilities, increases the dodge chance until until your next successful Dodge. Also increases Attack Power. | 8 | |
Mistweaver | [Mastery: Gust of Mists] | Healing spells also cause a gust of healing mists, instantly healing the primary target for X% of spell power. | 13 | ||
Windwalker | [Mastery: Combo Strikes] | Abilities deal X% more damage when they are not a repeat of the previous ability. | 10 | ||
Paladin | Holy | [Mastery: Lightbringer] | Proximity to target causes spells to heal for up to X% more. | 12 | |
Protection | [Mastery: Divine Bulwark] | Increases damage reduction of [Shield of the Righteous] by X% and Block chance by Y%. Also increases Attack Power by Y%. | 4/8 | ||
Retribution | [Mastery: Divine Judgment] | Increases Judgment damage by X%, and causes Judgment to increase damage taken from Holy Power spenders by Y%. | 24/12 | ||
Priest | Discipline | [Mastery: Absolution] | Increases the healing transferred through Atonement by X%. | 11.1 | |
Holy | [Mastery: Echo of Light] | Direct heals also apply a HoT that heals for % of the original spells. | 10 | ||
Shadow | [Mastery: Madness] | Increases the damage of some single-target damaging spells by %. | 20 | ||
Rogue | Assassination | Mastery: Potent Poisons | Increases poison damage by %. | 28 | |
Outlaw | [Mastery: Main Gauche] | X% chance on main-hand attacks to cause an extra attack that deals 210% of off-hand weapon damage. | 18 | ||
Subtlety | [Mastery: Executioner] | Increases finishing move damage by %. | 22.1 | ||
Shaman | Elemental | [Mastery: Molten Earth] | Some spells have a X% chance to trigger a second cast on the same target for 75% of normal damage and Maelstrom generation. | 16 | |
Enhancement | [Mastery: Elemental Overload] | Increases chance to trigger Stormbringer and Windfury by X%, and increases elemental damage by Y%. | 1/16 | ||
Restoration | [Mastery: Deep Healing] | Increases healing done by at most % to targets on low health. | 24 | ||
Warlock | Affliction | [Mastery: Potent Afflictions] | Increases the damage of certain DoT spells by %. | 25 | |
Demonology | [Mastery: Master Demonologist] | Demonic Empowerment increases the damage done by demons. | 14.4 | ||
Destruction | [Mastery: Chaotic Energies] | Spell damage increased by a random amount, up to X%. Damage taken reduced by a random amount, up to 5%. | 24/5 | ||
Warrior | Arms | [Mastery: Colossal Might] | Increases damage and damage increase of Colossus Smash by X%. | 16 | |
Fury | [Mastery: Unshackled Fury] | Increases physical damage done while Enraged by %. | 11 | ||
Protection | [Mastery: Critical Block] | Increased chance to block by X% and chance to critically block by Y%, and increases Attack Power by Z%. | 4/12/8 |
Patch changes
- Patch 7.0.3 (2016-07-19): Masteries are now learned at level 78 instead of 80.
- Patch 6.0.2 (2014-10-14): Masteries are no longer found in the Spellbook.
- Patch 5.0.4 (2012-08-28): Mastery is no longer found as mastery rating or measured in points. Gear and items that previously granted 'mastery rating' now simply grant 'mastery', and mastery is now converted directly into a percentage bonus without being measured in points. Accordingly, there is no longer a standard rate of conversion for mastery.
- Patch 4.0.1 (2010-10-12): Added.