Weapon skill
| Type | Character skill |
| Maximum | 5 × character level |
| Training | Weapon masters |
| Usage | Combat calculations |
| Related | Defense, Attack power |
Overview
Weapon skill is a character skill that determines proficiency with specific weapon types. Higher weapon skill improves combat effectiveness through various mechanical benefits, including increased accuracy and critical strike chance against higher-level opponents.
Maximum Weapon Skill = Character Level × 5
Training Rate:
Influenced by Intellect and weapon attack speed
Basic mechanics:
- Each weapon type must be trained separately
- Skill increases through successful combat usage
- Faster weapons generate skill points more quickly
- Higher Intellect increases skill gain rate
Combat Mechanics
Weapon skill provides combat benefits when it exceeds an opponent's defense rating. Each point of weapon skill above the opponent's defense provides the following benefits:
Per Weapon Skill Point Above Defense:
- Miss chance: -0.04% (increased accuracy)
- Critical hit chance: +0.04% (improved crit rate)
- Block chance: -0.04% (opponent blocks less)
- Parry chance: -0.04% (opponent parries less)
- Dodge chance: -0.04% (opponent dodges less)
Glancing Blow Mechanics
Glancing blows are a special type of attack that occurs when fighting enemies with higher defense ratings:
- Occurrence: Against enemies with defense ≥ attacker's weapon skill
- Damage type: Only affects white (auto-attack) melee damage
- Critical hits: Glancing blows cannot critically strike
- Damage reduction: Proportional to the skill difference
- Frequency: Up to 40% of attacks against higher-level enemies
Higher weapon skill reduces both the frequency and severity of glancing blows, making it crucial for DPS optimization against raid bosses.
Racial Weapon Skill Bonuses
Several races receive innate bonuses to specific weapon skills, providing immediate combat advantages:
| Race | Weapon Bonus | Bonus Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Human | Swords, Maces (1H and 2H) | +5 skill |
| Dwarf | Guns | +5 skill |
| Orc | Axes (1H and 2H) | +5 skill |
| Troll | Bows, Thrown Weapons | +5 skill |
These racial bonuses are particularly valuable at level 60, where the +5 skill bonus provides significant combat improvements against raid-level content.
Upcoming Changes (Patch 2.0.1)
The Burning Crusade expansion will introduce significant changes to weapon skill mechanics:
- Weapon skill will no longer reduce glancing blow damage
- Critical strike rating will replace the direct crit bonus
- Each weapon skill point will provide 0.1% critical strike rating against higher-level monsters
- Overall reduced importance of weapon skill in combat calculations
These changes will significantly reduce the importance of weapon skill for DPS optimization, making racial weapon bonuses less impactful in future content.