Hunter 101 - Stats
It amazes me sometimes when I look at the gear that other Hunters have chosen, and I sometimes wonder if they are keeping some items for vanity or if they really simply don’t know how stats work for Hunters.
I checked out a guild-mate in the WoW Armory who is level 76, only 4 levels below me, so I would expect similar numbers as my own. However, I was surprised by what I saw. My base damage is 809-1031, whereas his was 558-696. I know mine does not break the bank, but I know I did not pick up 40% more damage in the last 4 levels.
My Attack Power is 2134 compared to his 1306, again a massive difference. Finally Crit %: my 20.54 to his 8.38 %. Mine is more than double his, but the effect is far more drastic than simply missing a chance to crit 1 out of 8 times. He is also missing all the special events that occur with a crit, such as Kill Command. This is a massive amount of damage to leave on the table, and it can make the difference between wiping in a raid, or sailing through it smoothly.
So why the huge difference in numbers? Simply put, it’s the gear. Too many items that he has chosen had no Agility. In fact, of the base stats, his Agility stat was second, behind Stamina. This simply does not work for a Hunter. Stamina is great, and it should be second or third along with Intellect, and I will take free Stamina whenever it is handed to me, but not at the expense of Agility.
Here’s why: Agility affects three major things. First and most importantly it increases Attack Power. Yes, you can get items that buff you power directly, but Agility also does so on a 1 to 1 basis (1 Agility = 1 AP), but you get even more benefits from the Agility. Agility also contributes 2 points to Armor for every 1 point; it increases the chance to Dodge a hit in melee; and most importantly, it increases Crit % chance.
When I looked at my guild-mate’s gear, I noticed a common mistake: his melee weapons were not chosen for Agility. Normally, a Hunter should never enter into melee, so his melee weapons have to be chosen for stats. Unfortunately not all Hunters know that their melee weapon stats will also contribute to their ranged attack, and this is the main area where they lose power.
Some Hunters I have known have argued, “but I want to be able to survive if I get meleed.” Yes, of course, but as I noted above, Agility contributes to Armor, which mitigates damage; plus it increases the chance to Dodge. But the main point is that you should not decrease your damage output in order to increase your ability to withstand hand to hand combat.
After all, the best way to win at melee for a Hunter is to kill your opponent before he gets to melee you.
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