Reflecting on Holy Paladin in Dragonflight and the War Within

Key Takeaways

• Holy Paladin entered Dragonflight with a disjointed Holy Power loop built on Holy Shock, Crusader Strike, and Light of Dawn, and the spec ran dry of healing between Holy Shock cooldowns.
• Patch 10.0.5 pushed Avenging Crusader to the front of the meta, and Awakening drove the high uptime that turned much of the spec's throughput into randomized, hard-to-aim healing.
• The Patch 10.1.5 "Fractures in Time" rework rebuilt the spec around Glimmer of Light and faster Holy Shock gameplay, landing overpowered before a run of nerfs settled it.
• Holy Power spenders stayed weak after the rework, so talents like Seal of Order and Of Dusk and Dawn carried the resource instead of the spenders themselves.
• The editorial's core asks were a clearer identity, stronger spenders, restored damage, and a rethink of mana going into The War Within.
• The War Within delivered the Lightsmith hero tree, shared with Protection, and buffed Holy Power spenders, but Lightsmith leaned hard into the ally-buff fantasy Clarius was wary of.

Clarius, WowCarry's Holy Paladin writer, set down this retrospective near the end of Dragonflight, before The War Within launched. Here is how the spec's cycle played out, and how the wishlist aged now that both expansions are behind us.

The Journey of Holy Paladins in Dragonflight

This article walks through Holy Paladin's journey across Dragonflight: the problems that kept resurfacing for the spec, and what Clarius hoped to see going into The War Within. It covers the launch talent tree and playstyle, the changes that followed, the spec's missing identity, and the case for a more cohesive design.

Early Dragonflight: A Disjointed Start

The launch Holy Paladin talent tree and playstyle were disjointed and lacked synergy. The loop centered on generating Holy Power with Holy Shock and Crusader Strike and spending it on Light of Dawn. It was too simple, and it left the spec short on healing whenever Holy Shock was on cooldown or no Holy Power was available for spenders. Players ran out of healing resources and fell behind in dungeons.

In Patch 10.0.5, changes addressed some of this. The most significant reworked Avenging Crusader, which shifted the meta in its favor. With Awakening generating Holy Power procs and class-tree talents like Zealot's Paragon supporting the build, players reached high Avenging Crusader uptime, producing randomized healing that was hard to control. Some players enjoyed the chaos. Many disliked the loss of control over their healing targets.

The Patch 10.1.5 Rework

In Patch 10.1.5, Holy Paladin received a full rework that landed overpowered in raids and Mythic+ before nerfs brought it back in line. The rework leaned on Holy Shock, Glimmer of Light, and Holy Power generation for a fast, well-liked playstyle. The catch was the spec's reliance on Flash of Light for competitive throughput, which frustrated players in movement-heavy raids.

Even with that wrinkle, the reworked tree introduced meaningful choices. Daybreak, Rising Sunlight, and Glorious Dawn added depth to the Holy Shock gameplay and made the spec more engaging to play.

Post-Rework Spell Tuning Problems

After the rework, spell tuning had rough edges. Holy Prism interacted poorly with the spec's aura and lost healing output. Holy Power spenders stayed weak, which undercut the relevance of Holy Power as a resource. The problem traced back to talents like Of Dusk and Dawn and Seal of Order, which buffed spenders but needed careful tuning to keep the spec balanced.

Clarius's fix was straightforward: buff the spenders and add more talents that interact with them, restoring the engaging gameplay players enjoyed right after the rework.

The Lack of Identity and a Clear Vision

One of the larger challenges was the absence of a defined identity. Over the years the spec shifted playstyles repeatedly, leaving a fragmented community with different preferences. Serving every preference is admirable, but it worked against a clear, cohesive identity for the spec. Clarius argued that committing to one or two playstyles and trimming the rest of the talent tree would help the spec's overall design.

Where Did Our Damage Go?

In earlier expansions, Holy Paladins were known for strong damage output while healing. The Dragonflight playstyle dropped both passive and active DPS. Clarius's view was that sacrificing healing resources for damage should pay off with more substantial numbers, and that the balance between healing and damage deserved another pass for a more rewarding experience.

Mana, Oh Mana

Mana as a limiting resource had become a sore point across the healing community. Encounter design and boss mechanics often pushed healers to conserve mana, capping how much healing they could actually deliver. Mana management had always been part of healing, but Clarius wanted the concept reimagined rather than left as a flat tax on output.

Other Wishes for The War Within

Clarius closed the wishlist with a few more asks. The hope was that the incoming Hero talent trees, the Lightsmith in particular, would not lean entirely on external buffs. There was a request to trim the excessive keybinds the toolkit demanded, and an overall note of optimism for the team working on Paladin combat and class design.

How the Wishlist Aged: What The War Within Delivered

The War Within has since launched and ended, so the wishlist can be scored. Lightsmith shipped as a Holy Paladin hero tree shared with Protection, built around Holy Armaments and the Sacred Weapon and Holy Bulwark buffs you place on allies. It leaned squarely into the ally-support fantasy Clarius was wary of. Clarius's own follow-up review of the tree carried the verdict in its title, "Support Fantasy Over Gameplay." The second Holy tree, Herald of the Sun, took the more personal-throughput route.

Holy Power spenders did get the buffs the wishlist asked for, pulling them back toward relevance after their Dragonflight weakness. The deeper requests, a single clear identity and a fundamental rethink of mana, went mostly unanswered. The loop in The War Within stayed Holy Power generation into spend, much as it had in Dragonflight. Players chasing current Midnight content can explore our Mythic+ dungeon carries or browse current raid boost runs to skip the gearing grind.

FAQ

When did the Holy Paladin rework happen in Dragonflight?

The big Holy Paladin rework shipped in Patch 10.1.5 "Fractures in Time." It rebuilt the spec around Glimmer of Light and faster Holy Shock gameplay, landed overpowered in both raids and Mythic+, and was then nerfed several times until its performance settled to a reasonable level.

Why did Holy Paladins struggle early in Dragonflight?

At launch the talent tree was disjointed. The loop generated Holy Power with Holy Shock and Crusader Strike and spent it on Light of Dawn, but it gave the spec little to do when Holy Shock was on cooldown. Healers ran out of resources and fell behind in dungeons.

What changed with Avenging Crusader in Patch 10.0.5?

Patch 10.0.5 reworked Avenging Crusader into the spec's defining cooldown. Combined with Awakening generating Holy Power procs, players reached high uptime on it, which produced strong but randomized healing that was difficult to aim at specific targets.

Did the Lightsmith hero talent tree ship in The War Within?

Yes. Lightsmith arrived as a Holy Paladin hero tree shared with Protection, built around Holy Armaments and its Sacred Weapon and Holy Bulwark buffs. It leaned into the ally-support fantasy, exactly the direction this editorial worried about. The second Holy tree, Herald of the Sun, is shared with Retribution.

Were Holy Power spenders buffed in The War Within?

They were. One of the editorial's central asks was stronger Holy Power spenders, and The War Within strengthened them so the resource felt worth spending again. The deeper wishes for a single identity and a redesigned mana system were not delivered.

What is the second Holy Paladin hero tree?

Herald of the Sun is the other Holy Paladin hero tree, shared with Retribution. Where Lightsmith centers on ally support through Holy Armaments, Herald of the Sun takes a more personal, sun-themed throughput route built around Holy Shock and its sunlight effects.

About the Author

This retrospective was written by Holy Paladin writer Clarius, a long-time Holy Paladin player who is active in the Paladin Discord community and played for the Danish guild Sabotage. Clarius also writes and reviews Holy Paladin content on Wowhead.

Last reviewed 2026-06-30 against Patch 10.2.7 Dark Heart. Maintained by WowCarry's WoW team.