Leveling Your Defense Skill

[Ticks]

I thought I'd share this method of how I level up my defense skill. As multiboxers are well aware, we kill things so quickly, mobs never have a chance to hit us so our defense skill is usually many levels behind. Here's an easy way to bring your character's defense up and fast.

There's only one caveat: you need to have not completed "The Dread Relic ('http://www.wowhead.com/?quest=10877') " quest. If you have, you're outta luck.

"The Dread Relic ('http://www.wowhead.com/?quest=10877') " quest asks to get a relic from a chest located at the derelict caravan in Terokkar Forest. It's one of the quests from the outpost that's northeast of the stadium. When you open the chest to retrieve the relic, tons of level 60 skeletons spawn with about 250 health. They hit for barely nothing on cloth. When you reach your desired defense level, you simply use whatever AoE you have and they all die within a second.

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/6055/dreadrelicrw2.th.jpg ('http://img88.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dreadrelicrw2.jpg')

Why is defense important? There are many reasons but the number one reason for me is when I finish leveling my toons, I want to go into BGs as soon as possible. If my defense skill is many levels below my current level, melee just rips me apart.

[Svpernova09]

I thought I'd share this method of how I level up my defense skill. As multiboxers are well aware, we kill things so quickly, mobs never have a chance to hit us so our defense skill is usually many levels behind. Here's an easy way to bring your character's defense up and fast.

There's only one caveat: you need to have not completed "The Dread Relic ('http://www.wowhead.com/?quest=10877') " quest. If you have, you're outta luck.

"The Dread Relic ('http://www.wowhead.com/?quest=10877') " quest asks to get a relic from a chest located at the derelict caravan in Terokkar Forest. It's one of the quests from the outpost that's northeast of the stadium. When you open the chest to retrieve the relic, tons of level 60 skeletons spawn with about 250 health. They hit for barely nothing on cloth. When you reach your desired defense level, you simply use whatever AoE you have and they all die within a second.

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/6055/dreadrelicrw2.th.jpg ('http://img88.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dreadrelicrw2.jpg')

Why is defense important? There are many reasons but the number one reason for me is when I finish leveling my toons, I want to go into BGs as soon as possible. If my defense skill is many levels below my current level, melee just rips me apart.I'm pretty sure in PvP your defense is set to max level (you won't see this, but the attacks are calculated at max skill for your level) just like weapon skills are.

[Ticks]

Really? I've been playing WoW since release and I've never heard that before. My experience however doesn't align with that statement. I'll have to research it.

[Svpernova09]

Really? I've been playing WoW since release and I've never heard that before. My experience however doesn't align with that statement. I'll have to research it.Hmmm, i'll try to find where I read that, but I'm certain about the weapon skill.

Edit:

http://www.wowwiki.com/Weapon_skill
Weapon skills are maxed in pvp combat. While this means leveling a weapon for pvp is unimportant, racial attribrutes, talents, and weapons with +skill still affect pvp hit/crit rating. Many players, however, see the +skill in PvP as unimportant and you will still see many Orcs with PvP reward weapons besides the Axes. Edit 2:

I found this thread asking the very question. Would be nice to see if anyone can give a definitive answer.

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=5286571740&sid=1

[Caspian]

There are also these scorpions http://www.wowhead.com/?npc=3252 in the barrens. They spawn little adds and your defense shoots right up. They hit me for like 3-5 I think at level 40. You would still need an AoE to get away from them when you are done.

[Multibocks]

I just ran into Rage Fire Chasm and gathered up 10 mobs, turned my back to them and waited until I was low health(unless you can heal). Run out of instance and rinse/repeat. It goes up pretty fast.

edit: I'd also like to point out that defense is very important for pve. If your clones are at 1 def and they take a single hit from a boss, it's gonna be a crushing blow for sure.

[dwaine]

If you are hoard I have an easyer way. Go to the undead startup area , there is a cave with lvl 3 (iirc) spiders. They are agro and you can just run down and collect a bunch. I always take my toons there and it works great.

[TheBigBB]

Really? I've been playing WoW since release and I've never heard that before. My experience however doesn't align with that statement. I'll have to research it.Hmmm, i'll try to find where I read that, but I'm certain about the weapon skill.

Edit:

http://www.wowwiki.com/Weapon_skill
Weapon skills are maxed in pvp combat. While this means leveling a weapon for pvp is unimportant, racial attribrutes, talents, and weapons with +skill still affect pvp hit/crit rating. Many players, however, see the +skill in PvP as unimportant and you will still see many Orcs with PvP reward weapons besides the Axes. Edit 2:

I found this thread asking the very question. Would be nice to see if anyone can give a definitive answer.

http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=5286571740&sid=1I am pretty sure that defense does matter for PVP. Defense raises your chances to parry, block and dodge, all things which can happen in PVP. If you fight a fully geared tank with melee, you are sure to experience a lot of this. Skill defense will only make it harder and harder to hit them. HOWEVER, it's possible that they made it so that everyone counts as having AT LEAST their current level's max defense. I'd be interested to know, also.

[Smoooth]

"As of 3.0, crushing blows mechanism have been changed. Now only mob four level higher than you can deal crushing blows."

It is still a good idea to level your defense but it isn't near as important as before. You won't be crushed even with a defense at 1.
As for PVP I don't think your defense skill is considered max for your level like weapon skill is, but I don't have any proof.

[Ticks]

It is still a good idea to level your defense but it isn't near as important as before. You won't be crushed even with a defense at 1.Actually, you will get crushed if you're 20 skill points below the mob that's hitting you. I have a brandy new level 60 Pally (thank you RAF) and was getting crushing blows from level 9 mobs outside Orgrimmar. I don't think it's the level difference that matters but rather the difference between melee skill and defense skill. At least that's what I've experienced over the years. I could be wrong.

[Multibocks]

Nope you are right.

[softflow]

Why not just set up a few shammy totems - Healing Streams & Stoneskins, and just let a few fast attack cats from STV or SoS beat on you for 30 minutes? That's the way I've always done it.

[Tdog]

Why not just set up a few shammy totems - Healing Streams & Stoneskins, and just let a few fast attack cats from STV or SoS beat on you for 30 minutes? That's the way I've always done it.That's not a bad idea for anyone using shammies which is most of us. I've always used the servants in BL for both def and wep skill but unfornately blizz nerfed the wep skill gains off of the servants :( not sure about def. With a paladin I just judged light on the servant and autoattacked and took off for 4 hours, came back to max wep skill and def.

[Smoooth]

It is still a good idea to level your defense but it isn't near as important as before. You won't be crushed even with a defense at 1.Actually, you will get crushed if you're 20 skill points below the mob that's hitting you. I have a brandy new level 60 Pally (thank you RAF) and was getting crushing blows from level 9 mobs outside Orgrimmar. I don't think it's the level difference that matters but rather the difference between melee skill and defense skill. At least that's what I've experienced over the years. I could be wrong.Ah, true! Good reason to use quotes as where I got this info is technically wrong. It used to be 15 defense below the NPC's weapon skill and is now 20 below to have the chance of being crushed.

My quote is kind of like the statement that people born on Feb 29, 1984(my birthday) are only 6 years old. It's true I have only had 6 true birthdays but I have been alive 24 years.

[Abyssal]

"swarmer" silithids also get infinite adds

[nazgul]

For my Alliance toons, I used the Defias in the field near Northshire Abbey. It's easy to gather 20-30 of them if you do it right, and they only hit for 1 damage when they are actually able to land a hit.

[Kromtor]

you could kill herod too and let his followers bash on you, dread relic is ideal though

[Sivier]

How def skill work in WOW? U still gain def skill from low lvl mobs? If yes i guess will take long time, right?

[XSync]

Imo, the best place to do this as well as level your weapon skill is in the blasted lands. There are mobs which cannot die unless you destroy a nearby crystal or some such as part of a quest chain. I will update this post with more specifics when the server comes up, but basically just go auto attack those mobs and surf the web while you lvl def/wep skills. 8)

[Ticks]

Imo, the best place to do this as well as level your weapon skill is in the blasted lands. There are mobs which cannot die unless you destroy a nearby crystal or some such as part of a quest chain. I will update this post with more specifics when the server comes up, but basically just go auto attack those mobs and surf the web while you lvl def/wep skills. 8)They changed this; you can no longer gain weapon skill from those mobs in Blasted lands.

I know there are many ways to level up defense, this method has been the fastest and easiest for me since it's easy to get to from Shatt. That's why I posted it. Why have a cat pound on you for 30 minutes when this method I posted will take you to max skill in about 2 minutes?

[XSync]

Ahh, been awhile. Blizz is so sneaky.

[Tdog]

Imo, the best place to do this as well as level your weapon skill is in the blasted lands. There are mobs which cannot die unless you destroy a nearby crystal or some such as part of a quest chain. I will update this post with more specifics when the server comes up, but basically just go auto attack those mobs and surf the web while you lvl def/wep skills. 8)They changed this; you can no longer gain weapon skill from those mobs in Blasted lands.

I know there are many ways to level up defense, this method has been the fastest and easiest for me since it's easy to get to from Shatt. That's why I posted it. Why have a cat pound on you for 30 minutes when this method I posted will take you to max skill in about 2 minutes?Because as you already mentioned not everyone still has the relic quest.


Ahh, been awhile. Blizz is so sneaky.Not really they announced it directly in a patch note awhile ago.