PVP - Arena guide: USING SHADOW WORD: DEATH

TABLE OF CONTENTS
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1. SHADOW WORD: DEATH HAS MANY USES
2. WHEN TO USE SHADOW WORD: DEATH
3. CLASSES TO USE DEATH AGAINST
4. ASSIGN YOUR FOCUS TO THE TARGET THAT WILL CC YOU
5. KEYBINDS

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1. SHADOW WORD: DEATH HAS MANY USES

Shadow Word: Death sends damage back at the priest after the spell is used. It can be used this way to damage yourself, so you can break polymorphs, blinds, repentance, scatter shots that are cast on you. This can keep the priest playing the game when other priests would be sitting in CC. Shadow Word: Death is a skill that allows the priest to execute skill and insight, and the payoff is huge. The priest will need to use SW:D in arena to stay competitive, and it is a learning process. But, it is fun to learn, and it is also possible when you have an explanation on when it is useful, and when you start to see the same situations repeated. Shadow Word: Death is also about understanding what the enemy wants to do.

2. WHEN TO USE SHADOW WORD: DEATH

Your goal is to use Shadow Word: Death at the exact moment your enemy uses CC against you. It is hard. But, there are ways to make it easier to predict and more successful. There are two ways you can time your Shadow Word: Death better; the two ways are with LoS and with range. You position yourself on the battlefield so that enemy must reposition if they want to CC you. Their movement reveals their goal. When certain classes make an effort to gain LoS on you, or come closer to you, you know they are going to cast a CC. The priest forces this information by strategically positioning himself away from classes that CC him like hunter, pala, mage, warlock, other priests. You force the classes to reveal information, and then you are prepared to use Shadow Word: Death at the right time. On the contrary, if you stand beside hunter all game, he can use CC without ever showing his goal, and you will never be able to predict it to use Shadow Word: Death. But if you force hunter to walk around a corner, or jump towards you, you know when he wants to CC, and use Shadow Word: Death better.

CLIP: https://www.twitch.tv/connoram/clip/...LEJZohnnTGKx9o
In the above clip, you can see that I hug the object so that mage cannot cast on me. The mage cast Blink to get LoS on me, this is exactly what you're looking for. It tells me CC is coming so I back up and run around corner to cancel his polymorph cast. If I did not have corner to use, I would have pressed Shadow Word: Death at this time because I knew he was coming. When paladin comes to me, the first spell I use is Shadow Word: Death.

CLIP: https://www.twitch.tv/connoram/clip/...0aX07icJB_5KN3
In the above clip, the hunter uses CC as soon as he gets LoS on me. Because I was position in LoS, he has to run towards me and reveal his strategy. I could have predicted this CC. I should have been spamming Shadow Word: Death when we see each other. Instead, I get CC'd for 15 seconds. (I explain below in the Hunter. section)

CLIP: https://www.twitch.tv/connoram/clip/...xdzBjOGVKb9tR1
Look at situation. Pala and Shammy are very focused on my rogue. Then pala runs towards me. This is sign. I keep him out of range of his CC spell and then I press Shadow Word: Death and run into range. He uses repentance, I use Shadow Word: Death, and it was timed correctly cause of the 20yard range. It was timed properly according to the range guideline I'm giving you. (It turns out I was flame shocked anyway, but here is still an example of proper use.)

3. CLASSES TO USE DEATH AGAINST

Hunter. In most arena games, the hunter will want to Freezing Trap you, and it will be their primary goal, so it will be easy to manipulate this desire. The hunter has a combo that they want to execute: they want to get close to you so they can use Scatter Shot, and then Freezing Trap. You can control this situation by revealing yourself to the enemy at the moment that you press Shadow Word: Death on them. You will both gain LoS at the same time, and your spell will go off at the same time, and you will use Shadow Word: Death correctly. In order to use Shadow Word: Death against this combo, the priest strategically keeps a far range from the hunter, or keeps LoS from the hunter. When the hunter makes an effort to walk or jump around the corner to see you, you press Shadow Word: Death. The spell will happen at the same time that the hunter gains LoS, and so you will Shadow Word: Death at the same time that the hunter Scatter Shots. You will break the cc, and be able to walk away. Scatter Shot has 15 yard range. It becomes obvious when the hunter wants to Scatter Shot you, because they start to make an effort to come close to you. When there is noone attacking you, and a hunter jumps towards you, you should press Shadow Word: Death when he gets to his 15-yard range of Scatter Shot. You must create the situation of LoS and range against a hunter, and be aware that he will try to CC you when the situation means no one is trying to kill you.

CLIP: https://www.twitch.tv/connoram/clip/...0aX07icJB_5KN3

In this example, the hunter scatter shots me as soon as he gets LoS. If I had been spamming Shadow Word: Death like I am explaining to you, I would have countered this CC. This is the best time to spam CC, when a hunter shows interest in you, and runs around the corner to see you, spam Shadow Word: Death.

Paladin. The retribution paladin will often cast their very first spell against you as Repentance. When the game has started and combat is alive, retribution paladins will commonly run to you and cast Repentance as soon as they get into range. It is much like the situation with the hunter. You understand the range that the paladins Repentance will be allowed to be pressed (20 yard range) and you press Shadow Word: Death at the time that the paladin meets this 20 yard threshold. Just like the hunter, the paladin will be spamming his CC button while he approaches you, or turns around the corner to get LoS on you. You press Shadow Word: Death at the same time, and you have manipulated the situation so that Shadow Word: Death is used at the exact same time as his spell.

CLIP: https://www.twitch.tv/connoram/clip/...xdzBjOGVKb9tR1
When pala turns attention to me and starts running to me I'm out of range for repentance. I give him the range while pressing Shadow Word: Death. It was timed properly according to the range guideline I'm giving you. (It turns out I was flame shocked anyway, but here is still an example of proper use.)

Warlock. When a warlock has succubus pet out in arena match, they will start the arena match by having the succubus to cast seduce CC on you immediately when it gets in range. You cannot see the pet because it is invisible. But you can counter this easily. The strategy is this: make sure you do not have anyone targetted, and run forward to where you want to go while spamming Shadow Word: Death keybind. NOT the focus keybind, just the normal spell. The succubus will begin to cast seduce on you, and so it will become your target, and you will be spamming Shadow Word: Death, so you will cast it on the pet. It lands at the perfect time and breaks seduce. This works against warlocks who have the talents to make seduce a 0.5s cast.
VIDEO CLIP: https://www.twitch.tv/connoram/clip/...c__fKmMIpV2YUa

Mage. The mage's primary goal in an arena will be to polymorph you as soon as possible. Whenever you give the mage vision on you, they will try to cast polymorph. So, when you face a mage, like other classes, you will need to use LoS to manipulate the situation. When you need to walk into the arena without LoS, you are ready to press Shadow Word: Death. You watch the mages cast bar, and he will use polymorph, and you cast Shadow Word: Death when he is casting. You will need to practice this timing. Polymorph is a very fast cast. And, it will take some practice. But that is the strategy.

4. ASSIGN YOUR FOCUS TO THE TARGET THAT WILL CC YOU

The way to use Shadow Word: Death against these classes is to assign the classes as your focus target. So, at the start of the arena match, assign the ret paladin, or the hunter, or the mage as your focus target. Then, when the hunter, or mage or paladin behaves in the way that you know a CC is coming, you press your focus Shadow Word: Death keybind. You need a target within range in order to use your spell to break CC, and the most guaranteed way to always have a target to use Shadow Word: Death against is to cast it against the person who will be trying to CC you. You will need a good place on your keyboard for focus Shadow Word: Death.

5. MACRO

macro: /cast [@focus] Shadow Word: Death