With World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, the MMORPG received a new, big feature: the Covenants. With these, you should improve your character and gain new abilities. They differ in application and strength. The question is: Which one should I choose? MeinMMO helps you with the decision.
Covenants are an important feature in Shadowlands and determine the performance of many classes. We will tell you which Covenant best suits your class.
Update from March 24, 2022: After new buffs and nerfs of the sets, we made minor adjustments to the list for the current patch 9.2. Please note that we recommend all the best Covenants along with the new set bonus for your class and the second, covenant-specific legendary. With these links, you can jump directly to the individual points in the text:
- Which Covenant for which class? Class overview
- What are Covenants and how do I switch them?
- These classes should choose Kyrians
- These classes should choose Night Fae
- These classes should choose Necrolords
- These classes should choose Venthyr
- More tips for Shadowlands
Which Covenant for which class?
First of all: The Covenants differ in strength for most classes only slightly. The effect is likely to only be a few percentages between the “best” and the “worst” Covenant for each class. Therefore, the choice of the mathematically best Covenant is truly relevant only for hardcore players.
The difference lies mainly in the playstyle, which can be altered by the respective new ability. In general, you should choose the Covenant that appeals to you the most. Story, aesthetics, and gameplay are usually just as important for enjoyment as performance. And with something that is fun, you usually fare better than if you force yourself to perform.
By clicking on the lists and specializations below, you will go directly to your best Covenant.
The best Covenants for Warlocks
The best Covenants for Priests
The best Covenants for Rogues
The best Covenants for Druids
The best Covenants for Monks
The best Covenants for Hunters
The best Covenants for Shamans
The best Covenants for Warriors
The best Covenants for Paladins
What to pay attention to: If you still want to orient yourself towards the “best” Covenant, here are many criteria, such as:
- In which area do I want to be strong – dungeons, raids or PvP?
- Am I playing tank, healer or DPS?
- How does the Covenant ability alter my rotation, how does it change my playstyle?
- Which soulbinds are particularly relevant or strong for me?
Depending on your gear, the “best Covenant” may change, and you should not expect to find a one-size-fits-all answer.
Nonetheless, the experts from Wowhead and specialists in the Discords of the individual classes have picked out some Covenants that are particularly strong for their respective classes. We provide you with an overview by Covenant.
Each Covenant has its own story, background, and a task in the land of the dead. The warlike Necrolords, for example, form the army, while the Venthyr ensure that the souls of the deceased atone for their sins before moving on.
For you as a player, the Covenants serve as a source for new abilities that they grant you when you join them. You can also form “soulbinds” with companions that further enhance you with passive abilities. In our special, you can read everything about the Covenants and their abilities and rewards.
In the current patch 9.2 of World of Warcraft, it is fairly easy to switch Covenants. Once you reach Renown level 80, any character on the account can easily switch to the corresponding Covenant and back. This makes the choice less binding.
These classes should choose Kyrians
- Blood Death Knights (for raid, otherwise Night Fae or Necrolords, but the Covenants are all quite close)
- Protection Warriors
- Protection Paladins (for dungeons, otherwise Venthyr)
- Restoration Shamans (only for dungeons, otherwise Necrolords)
- Retribution Paladins
- Vengeance Demon Hunters
- Brewmaster Monks
- Windwalker Monks (alternatively: Necrolords for multi-target fights)
- Fury Warriors (alternatively: Night Fae or Venthyr for single targets; for progress raiders: see Necrolords)
- Subtlety Rogues (as a raid alternative to Venthyr)
- Outlaw Rogues
- Arcane Mages
For almost all tank classes, the Covenant ability of the Kyrians is extremely useful and helps you stay alive or generate threat, binding enemies to you. Particularly, warriors are popular here because the Spear of Bastion holds enemies in one place.
These classes should choose Night Fae
- all Hunter specializations
- all Druid specializations
- all Warlock specializations (alternatively: Necrolords)
- Elemental Shamans (alternatively: Necrolords)
- Holy Priests (for raids, otherwise Kyrians)
- Unholy Death Knights (for dungeons, otherwise Necrolords)
- Frost Death Knights (except with Sindragosa’s Fury in raids, then Necrolords)
- Havoc Demon Hunters
- Subtlety Rogues (alternatively: Necrolords for dungeons and multiple targets)
- Fire Mages
- Arms Warriors (alternatively: Kyrians)
For many DPS classes, Night Fae is the best Covenant. This applies to both Mythic Plus dungeons and raids. One reason for this is that with a soulbind, you can prevent your death every 10 minutes, which is extremely useful for some DPS classes and especially healers.
In pure damage, Night Fae also has the upper hand through their class abilities and bonuses, in part thanks to Niya, who is considered the strongest soulbind.
Moreover, their special signature ability, the Soul Shape, is extremely powerful. With it, you have the ability to use the Mage’s Blink ability with any class multiple times in a row. The mobility can save your life in many situations.
These classes should choose Necrolords
- Restoration Shamans (except for dungeons, then Kyrians)
- Unholy Death Knights (in raids, otherwise Night Fae)
- Frost Death Knights (for Sindragosa’s Fury in raids, otherwise Night Fae)
- Enhancement Shamans
- Mistweaver Monks
- Shadow Priests
- Frost Mages (for raids, otherwise Night Fae)
- Fury Warriors, as soon as they wear 4 pieces of the set and only for the raid (the synergy strengthens the entire group, not just the warrior himself and is therefore overall more valuable)
In Patch 9.2, Necrolords have become particularly interesting for melee fighters. The soulbind with Emeni can, for example, increase your primary attribute on demand.
DPS classes also benefit from an improved build of their resources or an enhancement for their already existing rotation. Additionally, some soulbinds and abilities can provide a strong buff for the entire group and thus a DPS gain for the raid. So, Necrolords offer a fairly easy entry without major changes.
These classes should choose Venthyr
- Protection Paladins (for raids, otherwise Kyrians)
- Holy Paladins (alternatively: Necrolords, also for PvP)
- Guardian Druids (as an alternative to Night Fae)
- Discipline Priests (for raids, otherwise Kyrians)
- Balance Druids (as an alternative to Night Fae)
- Subtlety Rogues
If you are interested in PvP, you should also take a closer look at the Venthyr – here the Venthyr are considered particularly strong together with the Kyrians. Especially the soulbind with Nadjia can provide you with some advantages.
If you need more help, you can find out in our quiz which Covenant suits you. Have you already made your decision? Then let us know in the survey on MeinMMO, which Covenant you will join.
More tips for Shadowlands
Covenants are the biggest feature in Shadowlands, but much more changes with the new expansion. We have compiled some useful guides and overviews for Shadowlands:
- The current DPS ranking of WoW – The strongest classes
- Which legendary should I craft in WoW Shadowlands? Overview for all classes
- Farming Cosmic Flux in patch 9.2 – Here you can find the resource
With patch 9.2, the end of Shadowlands is reached. The expansion will only receive 2 content updates, which according to the director was planned from the beginning. The Mausoleum of the First forms the last raid, and the Jailer is the last boss of the addon. However, there are already speculations about what will happen next:
What comes after Shadowlands? Leaks, rumors, and theories about the addon 2022
