Paladin Speccing

My Pally is fairly unique among the gals in the sense that I plan to level her one way, and play in a different manner at the end-game. While leveling, it's tough to imagine any other way besides Ret (Prot is viable, but only after level 45, with both Reckoning and Holy Shield). However, at the end-game, I'll respec to Holy, as healers are always in demand for our guild runs.

A good comprehensive Ret Pally guide which I found was this one on the forums. It's also got a nice gear guide which might come in useful later, except that I would probably respec to Holy for healing support.

In summary, the spec suggested by this guide is basically this, which is a good start for my customisation...

& frankly, I don't know what to change... The issue is that the three trees have such disparate usage and purpose that there's really little reason to pick up too many points in your off-tree. However, I will list down some things to consider along the way.

Blessing of Kings


Generally listed as the best Blessing for Ret because it results in more AP, more crit and a bigger mana pool. Even helps with the Seal of Blood with more health. But, it's in the 'wrong' tree. To get this talent requires the sacrifice of a point from the Ret tree, while still meeting the basic tier requirements.

One possibility if I stay Ret long after lvl 64 is to recover the point on Seal of Command. The Blood Elf's Seal of Blood is a superior DPS spell at that level. Even if I go to Holy, it's something to keep in mind when I re-spec back to Ret for leveling to 80 in WotLK.

(Interestingly, if I get all the Ret talents, before moving to the Prot tree, I'll get Blessing of Kings at level 65, after Seal of Blood is available. If I'm feeling rich, I might just re-spec then!)

Spiritual Focus or Guardian's Favour


If we take the path to Blessing of Kings, then Guardian's Favour is a must.

However, if we leave that, then it's an interesting choice. Guardian's Favour makes one of the bubbles up earlier. But 2/5 Spiritual Focus helps somewhat when casting heals under fire. We can always bubble to heal, but that's not always available when grinding. Both are fairly situational in this regards.

Ultimately, the bottomline is that if I spec to get Blessing of Kings, then it's Guardian's Favor. No BoK, then Spiritual Focus.

So, this is what I'm going to roll with... For now...