General/Leveling Lvl. 63, 43/15/7 - What am I missing?

[Ronin12B]

First, let me apologize as I am estimating my build as the servers were down when I left the house this morning and couldn't pull up my build. I will edit this later tonight with the coreect build.

Ok, I have levelled my lock virtually solo since day one, only grouping where absolutely mandatory. I have used my blueberry almost exclusively while grinding quests since I got him. When I am 1on1 vs a mob, my attack is simply to send in the aggroberry, the I hit Curse of Agony, Immolate, Unstable Affliction, Corruption, Siphon Life, Shadowbolt, then Drain life. Once the mob is dead, life tap and move on to the next target.

Sometimes if the target is an elemental or something similar, I will use Curse of Elements instead of Agony simply because the damage values are higher with the de-buff. I'll also sometimes forgo the Bolt if their life is running out quickly or if I want to Drain a second time.

This is how I have played since day one. The only changes I have made have been the additions of DOTs to my cast order when levelling has allowed me to get them, i.e. Unstable Affliction. I swap whatever gear I get for whatever higher gear I get as long as it has better Stam and Int. If I get into a mob that is more than 2-3 of my level, I am in a LOT of trouble. ((@#%& Murlocs) ;)

What can you tell me that can increase my enjoyment of my lock? Someday, I want to join my friends in raids and instances, and to a lesser extent do some PVP. Since joining this site, I really feel like I am a lowbie who's inherited a level 63 lock and has no idea what to do with him.

[Akasha]

Although it didn't follow the layout required (tisk tisk), approving as there is thought put behind it.

[Ronin12B]

Here's my actual build: (41/14/0)
Talent Calculator - World of Warcraft

Dunno how I was able to put 7 in Dest., lol, my fingers must have been working independently from my mind. I apologize for that and would be happy to repost this and follow the correct format as I obviously rushed to put this up. If you'd like to delete this post, and let me re-try it with some more thought Akasha, that would be fine.

However, my question still remains the same. Is there something that jumps out and screams "Why haven't you X'ed" or "Why in the name of Azeroth do you use "Y"".

[Morganfaey]

I pulled up your Armory and really, your talents look just fine. Some things you may consider getting as you gain levels and points are Dark Pact and Improved Howl of Terror. Dark Pact will allow you to steal mana from your minion (though if you use a blueberry tank they might not have much to spare) and the iHOT will let you fear without a cast time if the "stuff" hits the fan. If you use the blueberry alot and find yourself needing to heal them then Improved Health Funnel may be useful but it is not necessary.

Now if you really want to get into raiding and/or pvp at 70 then you will probably want to make some changes but I think you're doing fine spec wise for leveling.

I also looked at your gear. Here you need a bit more help. Your bracers and pants (and to a lesser extent your cloak) should be changed ASAP. The healing on them is doing next to nothing for you. Keep an eye out for decent quest rewards, scan the AH, or see if a guildie can craft you some replacements. I know you said you look for stam and int, and while these stats are certainly quite useful you'll also want to stock up on damage. Luckily, the more time you spend in Outlands the more items you will find with all three. (Crit isn't overly important as Affliction but you'll end up with some anyway. Just don't sacrifise too much damage for crit)

Playstyle: With a deep affliction spec you should theoretically be able to dot up one mob and then move on to another. Your dots should be able to kill them eventually. This playstyle takes some getting used to and is something I never did a whole lot of. Maybe someone with more experience can help out here, and I think there are some tips on the forum. My best advise is to try it slowly, with mobs at or below your level until you get used to it.

The way your playing now is fine, but this may be more efficient. If your loading up all your dots the mob is probably dieing before most have run even half their course which is a waste of mana. If you prefer to stick with one target try using fewer dots (UA, Corruption, Siphon maybe) and then bolting or draining if you need the health.

The more damage you get the easier either of those playstyles will be.

Hope that is of some help.

[RomaGoth]

As Morganfaey said, you need to upgrade your gear ASAP. You need pants with spell damage and stamina, look on the AH, find a tailor to make you some netherweave vestment pants, or do a quest that will give you an upgrade. The same goes for your bracers. In fact, you should really just get the entire Netherweave Vestments set, it will last you until close to 70 and is a nice upgrade to what you have now:

Netherweave Vestments - WoWWiki - Your guide to the World of Warcraft

Your other option is to run some instances, mainly Hellfire Citadel, Coilfang Reservoir, and Auchindoun.

As for your spec, I would make a few changes, especially if you plan on staying affliction:

Get rid of Shadow Embrace, Improved Life Tap in the affliction tree and pick up Amplify Curse, Improved Howl of Terror, and Dark Pact. Also get rid of Improved Healthstone and take Improved Health Funnel. You might also want to find a way to take at least 3 points in Suppression (affliction tree). This will help against resists at 70 until you get better gear.

Hopefully this helps, I am definitely not the expert in affliction, as I prefer my Felguard when soloing, although destruction may be my future.