What is the Best Hunter Faction in Shadowlands?

The “best” Hunter faction in Shadowlands doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Instead, it’s entirely dependent on your playstyle, priorities, and the specific content you enjoy. While Kyrian and Night Fae generally shine for their throughput, particularly in raid environments, Necrolord and Venthyr offer strong alternatives with utility and survivability benefits that can be very valuable in Mythic+ and PvP, depending on the Hunter specialization.

Covenant Abilities and Hunter Specializations

To truly understand which Covenant reigns supreme for Hunters, we need to break down their individual offerings and how they interact with each of the Hunter specializations: Beast Mastery, Marksmanship, and Survival.

Kyrian: Guided Quiver

The Kyrian Covenant Ability, Guided Quiver, is a potent choice. It modifies your Aimed Shot or Rapid Fire (depending on spec). For Marksmanship, it enhances Aimed Shot, making it cast faster and deal significantly increased damage. For Beast Mastery and Survival, it affects Rapid Fire, providing a similar burst of damage. The Kyrian Soulbinds, particularly Pelagos, offer potent throughput buffs, making it a popular choice for raid environments where maximizing DPS is paramount.

• Beast Mastery: Decent. Rapid Fire isn’t the core damage dealer, but the buff helps.
• Marksmanship: Strong. Aimed Shot synergy makes it a top contender for single-target damage.
• Survival: Viable. Adds burst to Rapid Fire, complementing the spec’s rotational needs.

Night Fae: Soulshape and Wild Spirits

Night Fae provides Hunters with Soulshape for unparalleled mobility and the signature Covenant Ability, Wild Spirits. This ability places a large, AoE zone on the ground that empowers your attacks, causing them to hit up to five additional nearby targets. It synergizes exceptionally well with AoE rotations and is incredibly valuable in Mythic+ dungeons. Dreamweaver is a frequently chosen Soulbind for Night Fae Hunters, offering strong defensive and utility benefits alongside damage increases.

• Beast Mastery: Very Strong. Wild Spirits drastically boosts AoE damage.
• Marksmanship: Strong. While not as strong as Kyrian for pure single-target, it provides excellent AoE capability.
• Survival: Excellent. Wild Spirits synergizes well with the spec’s already strong AoE potential.

Necrolord: Death Chakram

Necrolord’s Death Chakram is a ranged attack that bounces between targets, dealing Shadow damage and increasing your damage dealt to them. It’s more versatile than some other options, providing both single-target and AoE benefits. The Necrolord Covenant also emphasizes survivability, making it a good pick for players who struggle with staying alive in challenging content. Bonesmith Heirmir is a strong soulbind choice for Necrolord Hunters, offering both damage and defensive capabilities.

• Beast Mastery: Decent. Provides some added damage, but doesn’t drastically change gameplay.
• Marksmanship: Viable. Can be useful for burst AoE situations.
• Survival: Good. Provides a solid damage boost and benefits from the increased survivability.

Venthyr: Flayed Shot

Venthyr’s Flayed Shot is a unique ability that deals initial Shadow damage and then applies a damage-over-time (DoT) effect to the target. More importantly, it grants stacks of Flayer’s Mark on the target. Each stack increases the critical strike chance of your next Kill Shot or Kill Command against the target. This synergizes very well with specs that frequently utilize these abilities. Nadjia the Mistblade is a popular Soulbind choice for Venthyr Hunters, offering increased critical strike chance and movement speed bonuses.

• Beast Mastery: Good. Amplifies Kill Command, a core ability.
• Marksmanship: Viable. Works well with Kill Shot, but might not be optimal in every situation.
• Survival: Decent. Less impactful compared to other options.

Making Your Choice: Content Matters

While the above assessment provides a solid foundation, the “best” Covenant truly hinges on where you spend most of your time in the Shadowlands.

• Raiding: Kyrian (Marksmanship) and Night Fae (Beast Mastery, Marksmanship, Survival) are generally preferred for maximizing DPS. Kyrian’s strong single-target focus makes it ideal for boss encounters, while Night Fae’s Wild Spirits excels in situations with multiple targets.
• Mythic+ Dungeons: Night Fae is generally favored for its incredible AoE potential, making it a powerhouse in dungeon environments. Necrolord also presents a viable alternative, offering both damage and survivability, particularly for higher key levels.
• PvP: The Covenant choice is more nuanced in PvP. Kyrian can provide burst damage, while Necrolord and Venthyr offer valuable utility and survivability. The best option depends on your specific PvP specialization and playstyle.

Beyond Covenant Abilities: Soulbinds and Renown

Remember that choosing a Covenant is more than just picking an ability. Soulbinds provide significant passive bonuses that can dramatically impact your performance. Likewise, your Renown level unlocks various perks and cosmetic rewards within your chosen Covenant. Consider these factors when making your final decision.

The Importance of Personal Preference

Ultimately, the best Hunter Covenant is the one you enjoy playing the most. Don’t feel pressured to pick the “meta” choice if it doesn’t resonate with your preferred playstyle. Experiment with different Covenants, Soulbinds, and abilities to find what works best for you.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Can I switch Covenants?

Yes, but there’s a catch. Switching Covenants involves a cooldown period, and you’ll need to complete a series of quests to fully rejoin a previous Covenant. Switching back to a Covenant you’ve already left will require significantly less work compared to joining a new one.

2. How do I unlock Soulbinds?

Soulbinds are unlocked by progressing through your Covenant Campaign. Each Soulbind has its own talent tree that you can unlock using Soulbind Conduits, which are earned through various activities.

3. What are Conduits?

Conduits are items that enhance your Soulbind abilities. They come in three types: Potency (offensive), Endurance (defensive), and Finesse (utility).

4. How do I obtain Conduits?

Conduits can be obtained from various sources, including raid bosses, Mythic+ dungeons, Torghast, and PvP vendors.

5. What is Renown?

Renown is a measure of your standing within your chosen Covenant. Earning Renown unlocks new rewards, including Soulbind rows, cosmetic items, and access to Covenant features.

6. How do I earn Renown?

Renown is earned by completing Covenant Campaign quests, world quests, and weekly activities such as rescuing souls from the Maw and completing Callings.

7. Does Covenant choice impact my gear?

No, Covenant choice doesn’t directly impact your gear. However, some Covenants offer gear as rewards for completing their campaigns.

8. Which Covenant is best for leveling my Hunter?

Night Fae offers strong mobility with Soulshape and potent AoE damage through Wild Spirits, making it a solid choice for leveling.

9. How often should I change my Soulbind?

You can change your Soulbind as often as you like, but remember that doing so resets your Soulbind talent tree, requiring you to re-specialize.

10. Are there any Covenant-specific Hunter transmogs?

Yes, each Covenant offers unique armor sets and cosmetic items that can be used for transmogrification.

11. Can I use any Covenant ability regardless of my spec?

Yes, you can use any Covenant ability, regardless of your chosen specialization. However, some abilities will synergize better with certain specs than others.

12. How does the Covenant campaign work?

The Covenant campaign is a series of quests that tell the story of your chosen Covenant. Completing the campaign unlocks various rewards and progresses your Renown level.

13. Do Covenants have different world quests?

Yes, each Covenant has its own set of world quests that offer different rewards, including anima, Renown, and gear.

14. Is it worth changing Covenants just for a specific encounter?

Generally, no. The effort required to switch Covenants and catch up on Renown is usually not worth it for a single encounter. Focus on optimizing your current Covenant for the overall content you enjoy.

15. What happens if I regret my Covenant choice?

If you regret your Covenant choice, you can switch to a different Covenant, but be aware of the cooldown period and the effort required to rejoin a previous Covenant. Consider testing out different Covenants on alt characters before making a permanent decision on your main.