The Tank Trio
Three tanks anchor every fight in T5. Roles flex per encounter, but here are the locks:
Havitz
Protection Warrior
- Frost-resist tank on Hydross
- MT on Lurker, Karathress, Morogrim, Vashj, Void Reaver, Solarian, Kael'thas
- Drives raid pulls & positioning calls
Gayboi
Protection Paladin
- Nature-resist tank on Hydross
- AoE add tank: Morogrim murlocs, Solarian wave adds, Kael phoenixes
- Consecration / threat king on packs
Bluelazer
Feral Druid
- OT on Leotheras (whirlwind phase tank)
- Strider kiter on Vashj P2/P3
- Cat DPS on Lurker, Void Reaver, Solarian
25-Man Roster
Verified comp. Hover any boss page for boss-by-boss role assignments tied to these names.
Group 1
- Nocharles
- Saexgg
- Bushpig
- Bluelazer
- Ellic
Group 2
- Jays dumbass
- Bandet
- Crpc
- Havitz
- Grimmy
Group 3
- Glad
- Meta
- Gond
- Outis
- Spoofy
Group 4
- Dolmar
- Mafe
- Kandin
- Moto
- Jerzee
Group 5
- Littlemoon
- Jd
- Kali
- Morg
- Gayboi
Comp Snapshot
Tanks (3) · Healers (6)
Tanks: Havitz, Gayboi, Bluelazer.
Healers: Morg (Holy Pala), Jd + Kali (Holy Priests), Crpc + Jerzee (Resto Shamans), Littlemoon (Resto Druid).
DPS (16): Melee 6 / Ranged 10
Melee: Nocharles, Saexgg, Bushpig, Ellic, Jays dumbass, Grimmy.
Ranged: Bandet, Dolmar, Glad, Meta, Gond, Outis, Spoofy, Mafe, Kandin, Moto.
Comp Strengths
Our roster has very real raid utility — bring this up in officer chat when planning recruits/swaps.
- 3 Warlocks (Glad, Meta, Gond): Banish on elementals (huge for Hydross Pure Spawns & Vashj Tainted Elementals); Curse of the Elements for raid magic damage; 3 Soulstones for combat rezzes; Felhunter Devour Magic = 3 extra magic dispels.
- 4 Shamans (Spoofy, Crpc, Jerzee, Ellic): Earth Shock chain interrupts on a 6-second shared shock CD. Resto shamans (Crpc, Jerzee) reserve their shock for interrupts since they aren't shock-cycling for DPS. Best interrupt density in T5.
- 2 Mages (Mafe, Kandin): Spellsteal · Counterspell · Decurse · Polymorph for trash CC.
- Shadow Priest (Moto): Vampiric Touch refunds party mana — pair with caster group; Mass Dispel for trash.
- 2 Hunters: Tranq Shot for enrage removals (Vashj striders), Misdirection threat dumps, Aspect of the Wild from Dolmar (BM with Imp AotW) for Hydross Nature side.
- Balance Druid (Outis): Improved Faerie Fire raid armor debuff, third Tranquility option behind Littlemoon and Bluelazer.
- Ret Paladin (Grimmy): Repentance CC, Judgment of Wisdom mana refund, raid Crusader Aura alt.
Encounter Index
Serpentshrine Cavern
Six bosses. Lady Vashj is a guild-defining test — the rest train tank coordination, dispel rotations, and add control.
- Hydross the Unstable — tank swap on schools
- The Lurker Below — spout, water tomb, fishing pull
- Leotheras the Blind — demon/whirlwind, inner demon
- Fathom-Lord Karathress — 4-target priority kill
- Morogrim Tidewalker — murloc waves, watery grave
- Lady Vashj — tainted core relay, strider kiting
Tempest Keep: The Eye
Four bosses. Kael'thas Sunstrider is a 5-phase, ~10-minute encounter and arguably the hardest fight in the tier.
- Al'ar — flame patriarch, two-phase
- Void Reaver — pound interrupts, orb spread
- High Astromancer Solarian — wave dispels, void zones
- Kael'thas Sunstrider — 5 phases, weapons, MC, gravity lapse
Universal Raid Prep
Raid buffs & auras
World buffs (DM:N tributes, Songflower, Onyxia/Nef rallying cry, Spirit of Zandalar) are stripped on entry to TBC raids. Don't bother farming them.
- Outis Improved Mark of the Wild + Morg Greater Blessing of Kings on every body
- Battle Shout from Nocharles (Improved Battle Shout, Booming Voice talents)
- Power Word: Fortitude / Prayer of Fortitude from Jd + Kali (Imp Fort)
- Greater Blessing of Wisdom / Might from Morg + Grimmy (split by group)
- Glad / Meta / Gond Curse of the Elements (–88 magic resist, +10% magic dmg taken — Arcane/Fire/Frost/Shadow only)
- Outis Improved Faerie Fire on bosses (–armor + spell hit for ranged)
- Drums of Battle (+80 haste rating, 30s, 30yd party radius) — 1 Leatherworker per group rotates on cooldown for raid-wide haste uptime
Min-Max Consumables — Per Role
Flasks are progression-tier; doubling-up Battle + Guardian Elixirs out-stats most flasks once you have the gold. Below is the canonical TBC stack per role, sourced from Wowhead and Icy-Veins class guides.
Caster DPS
Roles: Glad, Meta, Gond, Mafe, Kandin, Moto (Shadow), Outis (Boomkin), Spoofy (Ele).
| Slot | Min-max | Progression alt |
|---|---|---|
| Battle Elixir | Adept's Elixir (+24 SP, +24 spell crit rating) | — |
| Guardian Elixir | Elixir of Major Mageblood (+16 mp5) or Elixir of Draenic Wisdom (+30 int/spirit/stam) | — |
| Flask alt (replaces both elixirs) | — | Flask of Pure Death (locks/SP, +80 shadow/fire/frost SP) or Flask of Blinding Light (mages/Boomkin/Ele, +80 arc/holy/nature SP) |
| Food | Blackened Basilisk (+23 SP) | Skullfish Soup (+20 spell crit) |
| Weapon Oil | Superior Wizard Oil (+42 SP) | Brilliant Wizard Oil (+36 SP) |
| Scroll | Scroll of Intellect V (+20 int) — stacks with food | — |
| Burst Potion | Destruction Potion (+2% spell crit, +120 SP, 15s) — opener + every 2min | Super Mana Potion if mana-constrained |
| Mana | Super Mana Potion (1800-3000) on cooldown; Demonic Rune (warlocks) | — |
Physical DPS
Roles: Nocharles, Saexgg, Bushpig (Fury), Jays dumbass (Rogue), Grimmy (Ret), Ellic (Enh), Bandet/Dolmar (Hunters), Bluelazer in cat form.
| Slot | Min-max | Progression alt |
|---|---|---|
| Battle Elixir | Elixir of Major Agility (+35 agi, +20 crit) for agi classes; Elixir of Major Strength (+25 str) for fury/ret/enh | — |
| Guardian Elixir | Elixir of Major Mageblood (+16 mp5 — yes, even melee, for ret/enh/cat); Elixir of Mastery (+15 all stats) as alternative | — |
| Flask alt | — | Flask of Relentless Assault (+120 AP) |
| Food | Spicy Hot Talbuk (+20 hit + 20 stam) UNTIL hit-capped, then Warp Burger / Grilled Mudfish (+20 agi) | Roasted Clefthoof (+20 str + 20 spirit) for fury/ret |
| Weapon Stone | Adamantite Sharpening Stone (+12 dmg, +14 crit rating) on weapons; Adamantite Weightstone (alternative) | — |
| Scrolls | Scroll of Agility V + Scroll of Strength V — stack both, they don't conflict | — |
| Burst Potion | Haste Potion (+400 haste rating, 15s) on opener + every 2min; Insane Strength Potion (+120 str) for fury bursts | — |
| Hunters specific | Adamantite Shells / Sharpened Adamantite Arrow for ammo; Battle elixir works for pet too | — |
Tanks
Roles: Havitz, Gayboi, Bluelazer (bear duty).
| Slot | Min-max | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Flask | Flask of Fortification (+500 HP, +10 def) — flask is fine here, tank stat budget is HP-driven | Resist fights: Flask of Chromatic Wonder (+18 all res, +35 all stats) on Hydross |
| Battle Elixir alt | Elixir of Major Fortitude (+250 HP, +10 spirit) — only if not flasking | — |
| Demon-bonus Elixir | Elixir of Demonslaying (+265 dmg vs demons) for Leotheras + any demon trash | — |
| Food | Fisherman's Feast (+30 stam + 20 spirit) or Spicy Crawdad (+30 stam, +20 spirit) | Spicy Hot Talbuk if hit-capping is needed |
| Weapon Enchant | Mongoose enchant (proc +120 agi 15s, ~40% uptime) or Major Defense (+16 def) | Adamantite Weightstone if not enchanted |
| Scrolls | Scroll of Strength V + Scroll of Stamina V | — |
| Defensive Potion | Ironshield Potion (+2500 armor, 1min) for damage spikes; Super Healing Potion as emergency | Heroic Potion (+heal + AP) is the alternative |
Healers
Roles: Morg (Holy Pala), Jd + Kali (Holy Priests), Crpc + Jerzee (Resto Shamans), Littlemoon (Resto Druid).
| Slot | Min-max | Progression alt |
|---|---|---|
| Battle Elixir | Adept's Elixir (+24 SP, +24 spell crit) — counts as healing power for crit | Elixir of Healing Power (+50 healing) if mp5-rich already |
| Guardian Elixir | Elixir of Major Mageblood (+16 mp5) or Elixir of Draenic Wisdom (+30 int/spirit/stam) | — |
| Flask alt | — | Flask of Mighty Restoration (+25 mp5) or Flask of Distilled Wisdom (+65 int) |
| Food | Golden Fish Sticks (+44 healing, +20 spirit) — only choice for healers, no real alternative in TBC | Blackened Sporefish (+8 mp5 + 20 stam) if mana-constrained |
| Weapon Oil | Brilliant Mana Oil (+25 mp5 + 8 healing) for mana-constrained fights; Superior Wizard Oil (+42 healing) when mana isn't an issue | — |
| Scroll | Scroll of Intellect V (+20 int) | — |
| Mana Potion | Super Mana Potion (1800-3000) on cooldown | Demonic Rune as second mana source (off shared CD) |
Resistance Consumables — Per Encounter
For tanks and key DPS in resistance encounters, stack a protection potion on top of normal consumables.
| Encounter | Resist Type | Players | Item |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hydross — Frost form | Frost | Havitz + Frost-side melee | Greater Frost Protection Potion (absorb ~1750 frost, 1min) |
| Hydross — Nature form | Nature | Gayboi + Nature-side melee | Greater Nature Protection Potion |
| Vashj P3 — Poison Bolt Volley | Nature | Whole raid (poison damage) | Greater Nature Protection Potion before P3 entry |
| Leotheras — Demon Form | Fire | Glad (demon tank) + melee in Demon phase | Greater Fire Protection Potion |
| Lurker / Al'ar / Kael Pyroblast | Fire | Tanks + likely Pyroblast targets | Greater Fire Protection Potion |
Macros & Communication
Required addons (raid-side)
DBM (or BigWigs) with the latest TBC modules, OmniCC, Decursive (for healers + Mafe/Kandin/Outis/Littlemoon), and a threat meter (Threatmeter / Omen). Healers should run Grid + Clique or VuhDo.
Voice protocol
Tanks call swaps. Havitz (raid leader) calls phase transitions and kill order. Otherwise voice should stay clear — rely on DBM warnings and named callouts. If you take a Watery Grave or get an Inner Demon, announce in voice.