That said, there have been some inquiries about how to spec if Pets is really just not your thing, and since I don’t like to take sides, I’ve gone ahead and created a whole page outlining a build for each Hunter tree.  I also tell you a little more about the class. Make sure to check it out if you’re bored of your build or if you just want to try out some different Hunter leveling builds.

In any case, make sure to bookmark the main page of Hunter Leveling Guide and keep checking back for further updates.  We’ve got plenty of quality content lined up for the coming weeks.

Hunter PvP Class strategies

Horde Hunter Races

Orc – The Orc overall is a great choice for a Hunter due to there blood fury, and command traits.  blood fury gives you a increase of attack power based on your level. While Command helps your pet do more damage.

Verdict: Orcs are a really good choice for a Horde Hunter, especially for pvp as well as leveling.

Troll - Their racials are mediocre, but they win the handsome contest every day of the week. Definitely a fun race for the Hunter.

Verdict: Racials aren’t even worth mentioning, but they are definitely my race of choice for looks and animations.  Unfortunately, from a pure stat cruncher’s perspective, they’re far behind the rest of the pack.

Tauren - There is really nothing special about the Tauren that benefits either the Hunter class or PvP. They get an initial start of +1 Stamina, Which does nothing at lvl 80. But there War Stomp is a nice stun effect for PvP.

Verdict: Nothing great, But a fun race to play as, and comes with a nice stun effect for PvP.

Blood Elf - The pretty race.  Arcane Torrent is slightly better than the Troll racials, but not too great for a Hunter.  They’re a good transition race for Alliance players who can’t stand playing an “ugly” race though!

Verdict: If you like the look of them, roll one.  Otherwise they’re basically like Trolls in terms of benefits, but less cool.  Not a terrible choice, but definitely not the best.

Conclusion: The quick and dirty answer is roll Orc if you want the best Horde Hunter.  If you’re going for looks, pick whatever floats your boat.  Horde racials aren’t exactly game-saving for Hunter.  In the end, go with what works for you.

Your pet can be a great tank, add a good amount of damage, are very gear-independent and make grinding very mana-efficient, decreasing downtime in between fights considerably. On top of that, they are fun and obedient companions to have with you on your journeys, and improving them by talents will let you kill enemies while leveling faster than any other build! Here is my personal talent choices for leveling, broken down into levels.

PvE Solo /  Leveling build (1-70)

Lvl 10-14: BM: Endurance Training 5/5

Lvl 15-17: BM: Thick Hide 3/3

Lvl 18-19: BM: Improved Revive Pet 2/2

Lvl 20: BM: Bestial Swiftness 1/1

Lvl 21-25: BM: Unleashed Fury 5/5

Lvl 26: BM: Improved Mend Pet 1/2

Lvl 27-29: BM: Ferocity 3/5

Lvl 30: BM: Intimidation 1/1

Lvl 31-32: BM: Ferocity 5/5

Lvl 33-34: BM: Bestial Discipline 2/2

Lvl 35-37: BM: Frenzy 3/5

Lvl 38-39: BM: Cat Handler 2/2

Lvl 40: BM: Bestial Wrath 1/1

Lvl 41-43: BM: Catlike Reflexes 3/3

Lvl 44: BM: Frenzy 4/5

Lvl 46-49: BM: Serpent’s Swiftness 5/5

Lvl 50: BM: The Beast Within 1/1

Lvl 51: BM: Frenzy 5/5

Lvl 52-56: MM: Lethal Shots 5/5

Lvl 57-59: Surv: Hawk Eye 3/3

Lvl 60: BM: Improved Mend Pet 2/2

Lvl 61-62: MM: Go for the Throat 2/2

Lvl 63: MM: Aimed Shot 1/1

Lvl 64-66: BM: Catlike Reflexes 3/3

Lvl 67-69: BM: Ferocious Inspiration 3/3

Lvl 70: BM: Improved Revive Pet 1/2

Even though this is a great build, don’t hesitate to experiment on your own.

Mainly improving your pet, this will make leveling and questing solo a lot faster. If you’re wondering what pet to get, it doesn’t really matter since they are all similar, but some are slightly better than others. Just make sure you take pets you like, since you’ll be spending a lot of time with them! Boars/bears are good to start off with since they are quite tough and eat pretty much everything (except gnomes). The boar charge ability is quite nice too. Later on, once you get the Frenzy talent, you might want to get a high damage pet with a fast attack speed, ideally a cat, for even faster leveling.

Alliance Hunter Races

Night Elf – Night Elf are one of the coolest race in the alliance. for the plus side you get a 2% chance to reduce melee, range, and nature spell attacks. For pvp this is a nice addition. Yet there best trait is Shadowmeld, its actually really cool when  Activated you slip into the shadows, reducing the chance for enemies to detect your presence until you cancel or move.  helpful for in tight situations.

Verdict: They definitely look awesome as a Hunter. For appearance i would go with the night Elf. Pvp wise they also got a nice edge with the 2% chance to reduce melee, range and nature attacks.

Dwarf- Dwarf are a pretty good fit for a Hunter. They have a specialization in gun’s. Which is a good start for leveling. They also have Stoneform which is good to get rid of any disease and gives a plus 10% armor  for 8 seconds. Mace specialization is great for leveling since you will be able to put out more dps with higher lvl mace’s compared to your lvl. Find treasure is nice, but doesnt help you in pvp at all.

Verdict: Good choice to start out as for leveling. However for pvp there isnt really anything initially useful,  for at lvl 80.

Draenei - Draenei are pretty much a tie with Night Elfs  in terms of the benefit that their racials provide.  The big one is obviously Gift of the Naaru.  Given that the only major drawback that a Hunter has is their inability to heal themselves, it’s hard to say no to this.  I’d say it’s got a much larger benefit in PVE than PVP, but it is definitely handy.  In addition, you get a bonus to Jewelcrafting and some Shadow Resist, plus a 1% hit aura, which comes in handy.

Verdict: A good choice.  The blueberries do very decently in the racials department, and look awesome as a Hunter to boot.

Conclusion: It’s pretty hard to go wrong with any of the Alliance races as far as Hunter are concerned.  As far as I am concerned, Draenei are the best choice, but the difference is not to the point that I would choose them over a race that I liked the look of better.  Draenei and Night Elf’s both make very good Hunter as well, so if you’re not a min/maxer I’d say go with whatever you like best.  For those of you who are straight-up number crunchers, the clear cut answer you are looking for is simple:  Roll a Draenei.

In the next Hunter Leveling Guide post, we’ll cover choosing a race for Horde players.  If you’re a die-hard Alliance player, don’t worry, we’ll be back to content that helps both sides shortly.