Paladin / Warrior
Paladin/Warrior is an extremely durable comp that wins through outlasting opponents. Blessing of Freedom keeps the Warrior mobile, Blessing of Sacrifice reduces damage taken, and Bubble provides an untouchable reset button. The Warrior brings consistent MS pressure. The downside is a complete lack of offensive CC — Paladins have no Cyclone, no Fear, and Hammer of Justice is short range with a long cooldown. This comp is strong against teams that try to burst you down, but weak against Druid comps that can CC the Paladin and drink forever.
General Strategy
Paladin/Warrior plays a straightforward game: the Warrior trains a target with MS while the Paladin heals. Your advantage is survivability — between Bubble, Blessing of Protection, Blessing of Sacrifice, and plate armor, you are very hard to kill. Your disadvantage is no offensive CC, which means you rely entirely on the Warrior's damage to create kill pressure.
Blessing of Freedom is your most important utility spell. Keep it on the Warrior whenever he is being kited. A Warrior with permanent Freedom cannot be kited by Druids, Mages, or Hunters. This single spell is what makes this comp viable.
Paladin Role
Flash of Light is your primary heal — fast and mana efficient. Holy Light for emergencies only, the cast time is too long against interrupt-heavy teams. Keep Blessing of Freedom on the Warrior to prevent kiting. Use Blessing of Sacrifice to split damage when the Warrior is being focused.
Hammer of Justice is your only CC — use it wisely. HoJ the kill target for a burst window, or HoJ an enemy DPS that is training you. The cooldown is long so do not waste it. Cleanse is critical — dispel Fear, Polymorph, Cyclone (wait, you cannot dispel Cyclone — this is why Druid comps are your worst matchup).
Bubble is your ultimate reset. When you are about to die, Bubble and heal to full. The enemy must wait 12 seconds for it to expire. Use this time to drink or top the Warrior. Do not waste Bubble early — it is a one-time use per game effectively.
Warrior Role
Standard Warrior gameplay with the benefit of Freedom. You should be on the kill target 100% of the time with Freedom preventing roots and slows. MS uptime should be near-constant. Use Hamstring liberally and Intercept to close gaps when Freedom is on cooldown.
Since the Paladin has no offensive CC, your kill pressure comes entirely from damage. Use Recklessness and trinkets during any CC window you can create (Intimidating Shout or Hammer of Justice). Pop cooldowns aggressively — you need raw damage to compensate for the lack of Cyclone.
Mana Management
Paladin mana is a real concern. Flash of Light is efficient but against sustained DoT pressure or double DPS, you will go OOM. Drink whenever the Warrior has space. Mana Potions are critical — use them on cooldown in long games. If the enemy team has Mana Burn (Priest), you need to LoS it aggressively or you lose the mana war.
Matchups
vs Warrior / Druid
Worst common matchup. Cyclone has no counter. Train their Warrior. HoJ + MS burst during Cyclone DR windows. Freedom keeps your Warrior mobile. Long and difficult.
- Cyclone is your biggest problem
- Freedom the Warrior to prevent kiting
- HoJ the Druid for kill windows
- Drink aggressively — mana is tight
- Long and difficult game
vs Rogue / Priest
Favored. Plate + Bubble survives any opener. Train Priest with MS. Cleanse Blind off Warrior. BoP if Warrior is in stunlock.
- Bubble survives Rogue opener
- Train the Priest
- Cleanse Blind off Warrior
- BoP Warrior in stunlock
- Outlast them — Priest OOMs
vs Warlock / Druid
Very hard. DoTs + Cyclone devastate you. Curse of Tongues slows casts. No way to counter Cyclone. Train the Warlock to reduce DoT pressure. Freedom helps Warrior stay on Warlock.
- No counter to Cyclone
- Curse of Tongues slows your healing
- Train the Warlock
- Freedom keeps Warrior on target
- Very hard — DoTs + CC overwhelm
vs Mage / Rogue
Heavily favored. Bubble opener. Cleanse Poly. Train Mage after surviving. Freedom prevents kiting.
- Bubble the opener
- Cleanse Poly off Warrior
- Train the Mage
- Freedom prevents Frost Nova kiting
- Free win after surviving opener
vs Rogue / Druid
Double stealth openers. HoJ the Rogue when he opens. Bubble if stunlocked. Train the Druid when possible. Cyclone is annoying but manageable with HoJ pressure.
- HoJ the Rogue on opener
- Bubble if stunlocked
- Train the Druid
- Cleanse Blind and CC
- Manageable matchup with good play
vs Warlock / Warrior
They have no healer. Your sustain wins. Train the Warlock. Freedom keeps your Warrior on target. BoP the Warrior if he gets low. Outlast their double DPS.
- Train the Warlock
- Freedom keeps Warrior mobile
- BoP Warrior if low
- Sustain wins over double DPS
- Outlast them
vs Hunter / Druid
Viper Sting drains your mana — your biggest threat. Cleanse Viper Sting on cooldown. Freedom the Warrior to close gap on Hunter. HoJ the Druid. Long game is dangerous if they Viper Sting freely.
- Cleanse Viper Sting immediately
- Freedom Warrior to reach Hunter
- HoJ the Druid
- Mana management is critical
- Viper Sting is your biggest threat
vs Paladin / Warrior (Mirror)
Pure damage war. Both teams have same tools. Better Warrior uptime and smarter HoJ usage wins. Freedom vs Freedom. Mana management decides it.
- Better Warrior uptime wins
- Smarter HoJ usage
- Freedom vs Freedom
- Mana management decides
- Long mirror match
vs Shaman / Warrior
Survive Bloodlust with Bubble. After Lust, your sustain wins. Train the Shaman — HoJ + MS burst. Freedom prevents Earthbind kiting. You outlast them.
- Bubble the Bloodlust burst
- After Lust, you are favored
- Train the Shaman — HoJ + MS
- Freedom prevents Earthbind
- Outlast them post-Lust