by Highwind

September 16, 2025

TWW: 11.2 Havoc Demon Hunter DPS guide — Stats, builds, talents, rotations, and more

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In this Havoc DH DPS guide for Season 3 of the War Within, we explore all the information needed to play this spec. That includes builds, talents, macros, stat priority, and rotation.

Havoc Demon Hunter is a popular melee spec among players. One of the most mobile classes in the game with fluid and dynamic rotation, DH has powerful single-target and AoE damage, excelling in any situation. A welcome addition to any magic damage team composition, as DH increases the magic damage dealt to enemies.

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In this The War Within Patch 11.2 Havoc Demon Hunter guide, you will find all the information regarding this spec in the latest Patch. We’ll cover key details like pros and cons, stat priority, talent builds, rotation, gameplay tips, macros, Weak Aura settings, and utility.

Havoc Demon Hunter strengths and weaknesses

Before playing this spec, you should know all its pros and cons. Let’s examine them. 

There are many ways to play this spec due to different talents, so not all cons may apply. As of now, Havoc DH is a balanced class with a nice spot in the meta. Although the spec feels relatively intuitive and dynamic, don’t let it fool you. Proper cooldown management is necessary to maximize your effectiveness in a fight.

Havoc Demon Hunter changes in The War Within Patch 11.2

Havoc DH didn’t receive any direct nerfs or buffs going into Season 3. Any changes the spec received come directly from the new tier sets. 

The set for Aldrachi Reaver provides you with upgrades to key abilities of the Aldrachi Reaver tree. With a 2-piece bonus, Reaver’s Glaive damage is increased by 50%, while other sources of physical-only damage increase by 20%. With 4 pieces, abilities upgraded by Reaver’s Glaive get further improvements. Now Fury of Aldrachi slashes 12 additional times instead of 6. And Reaver’s Mark can stack up to 3 times, with Chaos Strike applying maximum stacks.  

The set for Fel-Scarred improves Immolation Aura and becomes a vital resource. With 2 pieces, your Immolation Aura deals 30% more damage, raising Chaos Strike damage by 20% while active. With 4 pieces, entering demonic form, be it through Metamorphosis or Demonic, activates Demonsurge and creates a Demon Soul. Consuming this soul grants a 20% all damage increase buff. 

Best Race for Havoc Demon Hunter

Currently, there are only two available options for Demon Hunter. That is Night Elf for the Alliance, and Blood Elf for the Horde. Both are equal in terms of the passive bonuses they can offer DH. An exception is active ability, Shadowmeld for Nelf and Arcane Torrent for Belf. Shadowmeld has a more substantial impact when used, but those situations are rare and mostly happen in high M+ keys. Arcane Torrent can dispel something from the enemy and get some extra Fury. But DH has his own dispel, Consume Magic.

In the upcoming expansion, Midnight, a third race will join the Demon Hunter roster. That being the allied race of Alliance, Void Elves. If nothing is changed regarding their racial abilities, the most useful thing for DH will be the Entropic Embrace. When triggered, for a short duration, this effect makes your attacks and spells deal an extra 5% damage as Shadowfrost. Spatial Rift is an active movement cooldown, but DH has enough of its own movement. 

Havoc Demon Hunter stat priority

• Primary stat: Agility
• Secondary stats: Critical Strike > Mastery > Haste > Versatility > Agility

As you can see, although Algility is a primary stat, it is at the end of priority. This means that you should get enough Agility by raising your item level. But when choosing between Agility and secondary stats, you should choose the latter. For example, suppose you have trinkets of the same item level, but one has Agility and another has Critical Strike. In that case, you choose one that grants Critical Strike.

Critical Strike is a vital stat for Havoc DH. Aside from increasing the power of all abilities, the DH talent, Know Your Enemy, increases the damage your crits deal. A higher Critical Strike translates to a higher chance and stronger crits. 

Mastery increases all the sources of Chaos damage in DH’s arsenal. As most abilities deal that type of damage, you get a significant boost, so Mastery should be your second stat. With the Pursuit talent, it also increases your movement speed, making you even more mobile. 

Haste affects your cooldown reduction, Fury generation, and delay between auto-attacks. The more Haste you get, the more dynamic your rotation becomes, as you get more procs, more Fury to spend, and your attacks come off cooldown faster. Aim to get a comfortable pace with the amount of Haste so you won’t feel overwhelmed by the increased pace. 

Versatility is a universal stat that provides both increased damage dealt and reduced damage received. It is primarily valuable for Mythic raids and high M+ keys. It won’t hurt to have some, but consider replacing it if you have an option.

Getting as much Critical Strike as possible should be your priority. Follow this up with Mastery and Haste to the comfortable levels. If you reached diminishing returns for these stats, consider changing some for Versatility, starting with excessive Haste. Try to sim your gear to see if you can get better damage increase from switching things around. 

If you are unsure which gear to aim for, check out our Havoc DH BiS for Season 3.

Havoc Demon Hunter talent builds 

Havoc DH has several builds that can be used in raid and M+, although some are slightly better. Some versions minimize the usage of mobility cooldowns in rotation with as little damage difference as possible. Try them out and see which one suits you the best. 

Aldrachi Reaver is a slightly harder-to-play Hero talent tree. Still, it comes out as a recommended multi-purpose build for any content. The reason is that even building for AoE scenarios results in low ST damage loss. Running Aldrachi Reaver builds allows you to be good in any combat scenario.

Fel-Scarred is easier to play but not as flexible as Aldrachi Reaver. It has higher single-target damage but requires a specific build that is different from the one for AoE. To fully compete with Aldrachi Reaver, you need 4 pieces of the new tier set. But with them, this tree is fully viable; it just needs some ahead planning. 

Aldrachi Reaver

This Hero tree upgrades various parts of the kit via Reaver’s Glaive. After using that ability, staples of your move set, such as Blade Dance and Chaos Strike, gain empowered effects that lead to more damage and buffs. But to make the most of these effects, you need near-perfect rotation execution to avoid overlapping and overcapping. 

Below are examples of Aldrachi Reaver builds for M+ and raid. This also includes low-movement variants. 

Import code for Aldrachi Reaver Havoc Demon Hunter raid build:

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Import code for low-movement Aldrachi Reaver Havoc Demon Hunter raid build:

CEkAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYGMzMzYMzMjZmJmZGAAAAAAwsZMbzwMzsNzMbYZGMzMmxy2sMDGGbbMJDzMDssA

Import code for low-movement Aldrachi Reaver Havoc Demon Hunter Mythic+ build:

CEkAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYmZmZmZGjZmZMmJzMzAAAAAAAmNjxMMzMbjZ2wyMDGDjltZZGMM22YCzYmZYYB

Fel-Scarred

This Hero tree upgrades your Metamorphosis cooldown. During this time, some of your abilities are significantly improved, while using empowered abilities triggers Demonsurge, a burst of AoE damage. This tree is all about making the maximum out of your demonic form windows. 

Below are examples of Fel-Scarred builds for M+ and raid. This also includes low-movement variants. 

Import code for low-movement Fel-Scarred Havoc Demon Hunter raid build:

CEkAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYmZGzMzYMzMjZmJmZGAAAAAAwsNMMMzYZMzGWmxMmZMssBbzmZMMbMNGzMjBb

Import code for low-movement Fel-Scarred Havoc Demon Hunter Mythic+ build:

CEkAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYmZmZmZGjZmZMmJzMzAAAAAAAmthhhZmZbMzGWmZwYYssBbzmZMMbMNGzMjBb

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WoW Havoc Demon Hunter rotation and gameplay

It is time to figure out the rotation of this spec and other gameplay aspects. Following this rotation will allow you to maximize your damage. 

Havoc Demon Hunter opener

Opener is the order of abilities used at the start of every battle. Using opener sends your abilities on the cooldown, allowing you maximum uptime of essential skills and making the most out of your kit. 

Havoc DH is very involved, as there are many abilities you want to set on cooldown. 

Aldrachi Reaver ST opener

1. Immolation Aura (2 seconds before the pull)
2. Sigil of Flame (1 second before the pull)
3. The Hunt
4. Reaver’s Glaive
5. Felblade
6. Eye Beam
7. Annihilation
8. Essence Break
9. Death Sweep
10. Vengeful Retreat into Metamorphosis
11. Death Sweep
12. Annihilation
13. Eye Beam
14. Sigil of Spite

After that, you can continue with the normal rotation skill priority.

Aldrachi Reaver AoE opener

1. Sigil of Flame (1 second before the pull)
2. The Hunt
3. Reaver’s Glaive
4. Chaos Strike
5. Blade Dance
6. Eye Beam
7. Annihilation
8. Essence Break
9. Death Sweep
10. Vengeful Retreat into Metamorphosis
11. Death Sweep
12. Annihilation
13. Eye Beam
14. Sigil of Spite

After that, you can continue with the normal rotation skill priority.

Fel-Scarred ST opener

1. Immolation Aura (2 seconds before the pull)
2. Sigil of Flame (1 second before the pull)
3. The Hunt
4. Immolation Aura
5. Eye Beam
6. Annihilation
7. Death Sweep
8. Vengeful Retreat into Metamorphosis
9. Consuming Fire (until it doesn’t reset)
10. Annihilation (with Inner Demon)
11. Abyssal Gaze
12. Essence Break
13. Annihilation (until Consuming Fire ends)
14. Death Sweep
15. Sigil of Doom
16. Consuming Fire

After that, you can continue with the normal rotation skill priority.

Fel-Scarred AoE opener

1. Sigil of Flame (1 second before the pull)
2. The Hunt
3. Immolation Aura
4. Eye Beam
5. Annihilation
6. Essence Break
7. Death Sweep
8. Vengeful Retreat into Metamorphosis
9. Death Sweep
10. Consuming Fire until it doesn’t reset
11. Annihilation (with Inner Demon)
12. Abyssal Gaze
13. Annihilation until Consuming Fire expires
14. Death Sweep
15. Sigil of Doom
16. Consuming Fire

After that, you can continue with the normal rotation skill priority.

As you can see, the opener for both trees and scenarios is quite busy. Still, it follows the rule of maximizing all the charges and resets to make sure nothing goes to waste. For example, Aldrachi Reaver using Metamorphosis resets Blade Dance and Eye Beam, meaning those cooldowns should be used before Metamorphosis.

Havoc Demon Hunter rotation 

As rotations work in WoW, the priority defines the order of skills used in the battle. There are many things to consider when maximizing your output, such as cooldowns of high value, skill resets, and resource generation. 

Here are guidelines that you should follow to improve your performance.

• Do not overcap on Fury in single-target encounters. Fury is a valuable resource used on Chaos Strike. You should have enough Fury to cast Blade Dance, but everything else should be spent efficiently.
• Abilities like Blade Dance, Eye Beam, Essence Break, and even Vengeful Retreat in some builds should be used on cooldowns. These abilities provide extra damage, so sitting on them is wasteful. 

Aldrachi Reaver:

• Aim to get as many souls as possible. Using abilities that provide extra Soul Fragments increases your Reaver’s Glaive uptime. Reaver’s Glaive provides valuable upgrades to your rotation, providing extra damage. More Soul Fragments equals more Reaver’s Glaive uses, leading to more damage.
• Try to maximize the uptime of the Thrill of the Fight. This buff is received after using both abilities empowered by Reaver’s Glaive. Use unbuffed Blade Dance after every empowered cast of this ability to ensure having this buff up as often as possible. 

Fel-Scarred

• Demonsurge provides all the extra damage for Fel-Scarred. Anytime you go demonic, use as many abilities that trigger that effect as possible.
• Be ready for burst windows, as they are the whole point of this Hero spec. Make sure you have the right resources and buffs before starting your burst.

Below are priority lists for both Hero trees for both single-target and AoE.

Aldrachi Reaver

Single-target

1. Death Sweep (during Essence Break)
2. Annihilation (during Essence Break)
3. Reaver’s Glaive (only if you don’t have both Glaive Flurry and Rending Strike)
4. Sigil of Spite
5. Vengeful Retreat (if movement talents like Initiative and Exergy are taken)
6. The Hunt (with no active Reaver’s Glaive proc)
7. Essence Break (during Metamorphosis)
8. Annihilation / Chaos Strike with Rending Strike buff
9. Death Sweep
10. Eye Beam
11. Metamorphosis (when Eye Beam and Death Sweep on CD)
12. Blade Dance
13. Sigil of Flame (under 90 Fury)
14. Annihilation
15. Felblade (under 60 Fury)
16. Chaos Strike
17. Immolation Aura, Throw Glaive or Fel Rush

You should remember that after using Reaver’s Glaive, you get Glaive Flurry and Rending Strike buffs that empower Blade Dance and Chaos Strike, respectively. While following the priority above, you should consume Rending Strike with Chaos Strike first. Blade Dance always consumes its buff second.

AoE

1. Reaver’s Glaive
2. Immolation Aura (if at 2 charges)
3. Vengeful Retreat (if movement talents like Initiative and Exergy are taken)
4. The Hunt (with no active Reaver’s Glaive proc)
5. Death Sweep
6. Sigil of Spite
7. Metamorphosis (when Eye Beam and Death Sweep on CD)
8. Blade Dance
9. Eye Beam
10. Sigil of Flame
11. Immolation Aura
12. Annihilation / Chaos Strike
13. Felblade
14. Throw Glaive or Fel Rush

Fel-Scarred

Single-target

1. Annihilation during the Essence Break
2. Death Sweep with Demonsurge 
3. Immolation Aura / Consuming Fire if it’s not active
4. Essence Break (during Metamorphosis)
5. Annihilation / Chaos Strike (while Immolation Aura active)
6. Death Sweep
7. The Hunt
8. Eye Beam / Abyssal Gaze (once to trigger Demonsurge)
9. Sigil of Doom (to trigger Demonsurge)
10. Metamorphosis (when Eye Beam on CD)
11. Blade Dance
12. Annihilation
13. Felblade (under 80 Fury)
14. Chaos Strike
15. Immolation Aura / Consuming Fire
16. Sigil of Flame / Sigil of Doom (under 40 Fury)
17. Throw Glaive or Fel Rush

When it comes to Immolation Aura / Consuming Fire, use it if you have 2 charges, refresh it if Eye Beam is about to come off cooldown, and always spend all of them before using Metamorphosis.

AoE

1. Vengeful Retreat (if movement talents like Initiative and Exergy are taken)
2. Death Sweep
3. Immolation Aura / Consuming Fire
4. The Hunt
5. Metamorphosis (when Eye Beam and Death Sweep on CD)
6. Eye Beam / Abyssal Gaze (once to trigger Demonsurge)
7. Blade Dance
8. Sigil of Flame / Sigil of Doom
9. Annihilation / Chaos Strike
10. Felblade
11. Throw Glaive or Fel Rush

For AoE scenarios, Fel-Scarred should use as many Immolation Aura / Consuming Fire as possible.

All the rotations are heavily affected by the talents picked. Especially when it comes to builds including damage buffs from movement cooldowns. However, they still all follow the general guidelines listed above.

For example, imagine you are an Aldrachi Reaver during a boss encounter. You have your Reaver’s Glaive proc ready to go. We check if you have Glaive Flurry and Rending Strike up. The Rending Strike is spent, but Glaive Flurry is still up. We check if Eye Beam and Death Sweep are on cooldown. Yes, they are. 

What about Metamorphosis? It is up. So we get Metamorphosis, follow it with Essence Break, and only then use Blade Dance to consume Glaive Flurry. Now with both buffs gone, we can use that Reaver’s Glaive. 

Havoc Demon Hunter macros

Macros are convenient when creating several button inputs with one button. Tying things like Trinkets, off-GCD abilities, potions, etc., allows you to be more effective in combat. 

Below are some macros that are useful for Havoc DH.

• Focus target Disrupt. An interrupt. A macro is cast on your focus target; otherwise, it is used at your current target.

#showtooltip
/cast [@focus,exists][@target] Disrupt

• Focus target Consume Magic. A dispel. A macro is cast on your focus target; otherwise, it is used at your current target.

#showtooltip
/stopcasting
/cast [@focus,exists][@target] Consume Magic

• Cursor Metamorphosis / Sigil casts. Automatically casts targeted AoE abilities, like Sigils, at your cursor position. Replace the ability’s name in the example with the one you need.

#showtooltip
/cast [@cursor] Sigil of Flame

• Player position casts. Like the macro above, casts targeted AoE abilities, centering them around the player. Replace the ability’s name in the example with the one you need.

#showtooltip
/cast [@player] Metamorphosis

Havoc Demon Hunter Weak Auras

Weak Aura is a special addon for creating custom UI elements and alerts. Many players use them to streamline the experience, allowing easier control over their cooldown, procs, buffs, uptime, etc. Below are useful Weak Auras for Havoc DH.

• Afenar’s Demon Hunter UI. A set of UI elements to track everything there is to track for both Havoc and Vengeance DH. Automatically updates according to chosen talents. 
• Luxthos’s DH UI. An alternative to Afenar’s UI. It also contains all the necessary information regarding procs, resources, buffs, etc. 

Havoc Demon Hunter utility

Utility is essential to every spec kit, especially regarding content like Mythic+. Thankfully, Havoc DH has something to offer to the group. 

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This is it for our Havoc Demon Hunter guide. We hope you learned how to play Havoc Demon Hunter efficiently. If you decide to level one up, our WoW power leveling is always here to help.