A Worthy Weapon – Shadowmourne

No, 3.3 didn’t come out today. But, Death Knights everywhere (and to a lesser degree warriors and paladins) had reason to rejoice. Shadowmourne, the long awaited super weapon was unveiled by both Blizzard and various news sites. Blizzard of course released a great little teaser webpage to whet the appetites of all those blood thirsty axe wielding beasts out there – link. In fact, even the epic axe received early on in the quest chain Shadow’s Edge is badass.

Now, normally this segment is reserved for items I actually have. This one however, I’ll go ahead and say it: I went into total spazz mode when I found out this item would be in the game, though like many DKs I was hoping for Frostmourne itself (especially considering melees got Illidan’s blades last xpac) but, from a lore standpoint I understand why it had to be this way. And frankly, speaking as an Orc, I’m quite glad it’s an Axe.

The interesting thing about this weapon is the drama that’s already ensued. I imagine any DK (tank or otherwise) is going to want this thing, it speaks to the part of us that made a DK in the first place. It’s as Iconic for our class, as a Holy Avenger is to a Paladin (in Dungeons and Dragons). Thematically, it suits us perfectly. It’s not a glowing Gladius, Polearm, etc. It simply oozes, Death Knight. But of course, this alone is not enough to warrant a Death Knight receiving this item, seriously. And let’s face it, the chances of getting this on an RP server are slim to none, in other words: you can’t play the Lore card on this one as a DK and expect any guild to let you have it.

But as I said, this thing is the new Drama Bringer… Already on various news sites and forums there are heated discussions about who should get this massive chopper of the damned. In all seriousness, almost all of the people arguing one way or the other won’t get it. The quest chain, though not exactly a Herculean task, but the chain is also nothing to sneeze at. Just the shards of the throne are going to prove difficult (if the current count of 60 stands, and assuming they drop only from bosses). At best, with absolutely perfect luck it would take five weeks of full clears to complete the thing. That said, whoever decides to work on the thing is going to have to be dedicated, absolutely to their guild. They’re going to have to be someone who has flawless (or quite nearly) attendance. And in the case of one of the quests in the chain, it would help to be a tank.

The common argument I’m seeing from people as to why this bad boy should not go to a tank, is that all a tank gets from it is more threat. Assuming that were the case, which I assure you it is not, let’s see why the added threat is important. First, there is the proc. Is it a deal breaker? No, but in the Wrath environment of pull first, CC… LOL. A little extra threat is never a bad thing, especially for Blood tanks who have somewhat limited tools for AE threat, and no AE snap aggro abilities. Again though, it’s not make or break. Just another thing to keep the odd overzealous ranged DPS from pulling aggro early and dying on trash (or gimick bosses like Dreamwalker). Likewise, the Str buff that builds up with each proc adds … more damage (threat) and Parry, which of course helps the tank live longer (which is kinda his job). Similarly, there is a huge chunk of Str on the weapon already, previous comments about Str apply here. In the end, this is going to be quite obviously the absolute best threat weapon for a DK tank in the game, definitely. And with maximum threat comes a higher ceiling for the DPS, Mages don’t have to hold off when their Ice Block is on Cooldown. There should be no worry about lucky crit strings, etc picking up aggro. They can lean on the damage longer, and harder with a tank that’s doing max TPS. It’s in the logical self-interest of the DPS to have a tank with maximum threat, especially on weird gimmick fights where huge buffs make DPS numbers skyrocket (think Valks in TOC and Hodir in Ulduar). So, yes it gives us more threat. And that is a good thing.

Beyond this of course, there are the rest of the stats. Stamina normally reserved for Arena weapons (which btw are arguably the BIS tanking weapons for DKs currently, yes ARENA weapons for TANKING… that is wrong). Along with the Parry gained from the Str on this item, the Stamina of course provides a sizable chunk of health for the tank (and we like health). Of course, then there’s the question of Armor Penetration and Critical Strike. It’s not enough for some people to even read Blizzard’s class description and see that by design, DKs are meant to use DPS 2 handers to tank. In the case of ArPen: The argument could be easily made that Retadins probably get less use out of this stat than we do. Blood tanks such as myself however love ArPen and Crit, it’s a very crit dependent spec. And all but one of our attacks (Death Coil, or RP Dump) are melee based attacks. So, essentially Crit and ArPen is going to result in even more threat for a Blood Tank, and with some of the changes incoming to the other trees (such as the new mechanic for Scourge Strike) it will likely be a solid choice for those tanks as well, though if you’re an Unholy tank trying to do IC, all I can say is good luck (you’re probably going to need it).

As for sockets, there are very few 2 handers with a socket bonus that’s inherently “tank” oriented. So losing out on the 8 Str bonus in favor of 3 Solid Dragon’s Eyes is not a horrible loss (and what tank doesn’t want an additional 153 Sta on their weapon, from gems alone). Of course, there are those who will continue to say that any tank going after this is selfish, and undeserving. But I simply disagree, I think there’s a strong case for a DK tank using this weapon. That does not of course preclude the value of this weapon for a DPS class. If anything, I’d say it’s fairly equal. There’s no real wasted itemization here for either role. And it’s definitely going to be BIS for anyone who gets it. So, in the end all I can say to anyone who’s seriously wanting this thing like I am. Good luck!

The Quest for Shadowmourne
+ 1. The Sacred and the Corrupt
+ 2. Shadow’s Edge
+ 3. A Feast of Souls
+ 4. Unholy Infusion
+ 5. Blood Infusion
+ 6. Frost Infusion
+ 7. The Splintered Throne
+ 8. Shadowmourne!
+ 9. The Lich King’s Last Stand