BMP Buff My Pet WoW Classic Hardcore notes for routes, pulls, dungeons, professions, and exits.
Demonology

Warlock

Demonology keeps a durable pet beside the Warlock and supports a long route with very little downtime.

DPS

A Warlock watches more than the enemy's health bar. Pet health, threat, mana, and the health spent through Life Tap all need attention before another mob joins the pull.

Talent route 10-60 Draft route
HC5/5
Pace4/5
Survival4/5
Dungeon4/5
Difficulty Forgiving with practiced pet control
Role Pet-supported attrition caster
Best duo Druid

The Voidwalker holds the first target while Druid uses Entangling Roots on an add outdoors and heals the damage that reaches the Warlock. Travel Form also keeps the pair moving between camps.

Talent route preview

Full 10-60 route

Start in Demonology and build toward Soul Link at 40. Take Demonic Embrace first, then Improved Voidwalker and Improved Health Funnel while learning how much threat and damage the pet can handle. Soul Link completes the main route by sharing 30% of incoming damage with the demon.

Leveling approach

Send the Voidwalker and let Torment establish threat before applying Curse of Agony, Corruption, and Immolate from range. Use Drain Life when your health needs recovery, then finish a low target with the wand or Shadow Bolt. Keep Healthstone ready and cast Fear only when the fleeing mob has clear ground.

Stat priority

  1. Stamina with Demonic Embrace
  2. Shadow damage / spell power
  3. Intellect
  4. Spirit
  5. Pet uptime over single-stat min-max

Professions

  • Take Tailoring with Enchanting for the cloth route, then turn spare drops into materials for the next useful enchant.
  • Engineering with Mining adds tools for the pull that reaches the Warlock instead of the Voidwalker. Target Dummy can redirect an add, while Goblin Sapper Charge deals area damage and also takes health from the player.
  • When health is around two-thirds and mana is also low, bandage between pulls before using Life Tap again.
  • Keep Healthstone, mana potions, and Soul Shards in fixed bag places so they remain easy to find when the pet loses control of the pull.

Alliance races

Gnome - Getting rooted beside a damaged Voidwalker can close the only exit from a pull. Gnome can clear the root with Escape Artist, and Expansive Mind adds 5% Intellect throughout the run.
Human - Human fits a steady drain route where the extra Spirit improves recovery between pulls.

Horde races

Undead - Fear can move the Warlock away from the pet and into another pack. Undead can break it with Will of the Forsaken, then use Cannibalize after a humanoid fight to recover without another spell.
Orc - Orc strengthens the normal pet route through Command, which increases pet damage by 5%. Hardiness also improves the chance to resist the stun that would interrupt a cast or delay an exit.

Route rhythm by level band

1-9 Before Voidwalker

The Imp is your only pet through the opening levels, so use Shadow Bolt and Corruption on single targets and drink when the mana bar needs it. The Voidwalker arrives at 10 and takes responsibility for normal melee threat.

10-24 Learn the Voidwalker

Give the Voidwalker time to establish threat before applying DoTs. Train Drain Life at 14 and practice using it before the health bar reaches an emergency. Soulstone is learned at 18, though it cannot resurrect a character on official Hardcore realms.

24-40 Felhunter and Howl of Terror

Train Banish at 28 before taking the Felhunter quest around 30. Spell Lock follows at 36, and Howl of Terror arrives at 40. Use either Fear spell only where fleeing targets cannot reach another pack.

40-60 Soul Link and caster packs

After taking Soul Link at 40, the demon absorbs 30% of the damage dealt to you. Caster packs become more common after 50, so keep pulls to single targets in Eastern Plaguelands, Burning Steppes, and Winterspring whenever the terrain allows it.

Also worth trying: Affliction

Affliction asks the Warlock to carry more of each pull through DoTs and Drain Life while the Voidwalker keeps the target in place.

  • Apply Corruption and Curse of Agony before adding Siphon Life, then use Drain Life when health recovery matters more than another damage cast.
  • Keep watching Voidwalker threat. Affliction still needs the pet to hold long enough for every DoT to finish its work.

Demonology Warlock Survival: Pet, Health, and Fear Draft

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Keep the Voidwalker alive, tap with health to spare, and cast Fear only where it cannot bring another pack.

Emergency order

  • Drain Life can recover health while your DoTs keep working. Start the channel before the health bar reaches an emergency.

  • Life Tap only when your health bar can still pay for an exit. If both bars are low, drink at the next safe point.

  • Use Healthstone below 30% HP. It has a separate cooldown from healing potions.

  • Fear only on clear ground. In caves or beside ledges, a fleeing target can return with another pack.

  • Banish demons or elementals. The Felhunter can then use Spell Lock on casters.

  • Treat elites, rares, and patrols as a different pull from the normal Voidwalker setup.

Dungeon rules

  • Hand out a Healthstone before the first hard pull so the group has one more recovery button.

  • Official Hardcore disables the resurrection from Soulstone. Treat it as unavailable for dungeon recovery.

  • For a Banish-able demon, agree on the cast before the tank pulls.

Leave now

  • Leave when the Voidwalker dies while a healthy mob is still on you.

  • Leave when Fear pulls another pack and Howl of Terror is on cooldown.

  • Leave when HP is below 30% and the Healthstone is gone.

  • Leave when both Healthstone and a healing potion are unavailable and the pull keeps growing.