With the launch of WoW Dragonflight Patch 10.1.5, the Warlock class is becoming universally available to every race in the game (with the exception of the newly added Dracthyr, who can still only play as Evokers). With this in mind, the meta is about to shift, and pre-existing Warlock players will have the option to increase their DPS slightly by making a race change.
Alternatively, if you’ve been looking to create a Warlock but were hung up on which race to play as, the new additions to the class could make your choice more direct.
For average players, racial abilities have little impact on the way that the game is played. It’s only at the very highest level of PvE gameplay that your character’s race has a genuine make-or-break impact. Still, if you have high-end aspirations, it doesn’t hurt to get ahead of the curve and start playing the race that’s going to give you the best leg up, regardless of how minuscule that difference may be.
Here are the best races for the Warlock class in World of Warcraft as of Dragonflight Patch 10.1.5.
Best Warlock races in WoW Dragonflight
Although racials are mostly down to personal preference and playstyle, there is technically always going to be a best one that’s available for each class. Each race has different active and passive abilities that will act as DPS boosters, and a high-damage class like Warlock will benefit from almost all of them.
Plus, allied races (which were added to the game in Battle for Azeroth in 2018), tend to have more extensive and intriguing racial abilities than the ones that were introduced to WoW upon its initial launch in 2004.
There are five standout races for the Warlock class that we recommend playing for the most optimal results in Dragonflight Patch 10.1.5.
- Dark Iron Dwarf (Alliance)
- Human (Alliance)
- Troll (Horde)
- Vulpera (Horde)
- Lightforged Draenei (Alliance)
Dark Iron Dwarves’ racial active ability, Fireblood, removes most debuffs from your character and increases your primary stat depending on how many debuffs you cleansed. Even without debuffs to remove, the ability is a dependable DPS booster that slides easily into your rotation and can be used in concordance with all of your hardest-hitting abilities.
Related: How to customize Warlock pets in WoW Dragonflight
Humans always make for a decent pick thanks to their passive increase to all secondary stats. A baseline 2-percent boost to stats like Mastery, Versatility, Haste, and Critical Strike is a strong passive on every damage-dealing class in the game, Warlocks included.
Trolls make the list for their Berserking ability, while Vulperas are valuable for their Bag of Tricks active—both of which can reliably increase your DPS marginally over the course of an encounter. Lightforged Draenei’s active ability, Light’s Judgment, adds essentially another ability to your rotation, making them a viable choice, as well.
Ultimately, your choice of race is up to you, but these five options will assist you by a few percentage points. Your racial abilities could be a sneaky difference-maker if you’re pushing high keystones or progressing Mythic raids.
