WoW's Marksmanship Hunters Are Getting A Major Redesign In Patch 11.1

It's not often that an existing World of Warcraft class specialization gets a dramatic redesign, but that's exactly what's happening to Marksmanship Hunters in the game's upcoming 11.1 Undermine(d) update.

As detailed in the public test realm patch notes for the update and now available for testing, Blizzard is looking to redefine what Marksmanship Hunters are all about by removing pets from the equation and replacing them with an eagle companion that will support players in a new (albeit less directly controllable) way.

"Moving into Undermine(d), we are looking to reimagine Marksmanship's sharpshooter fantasy and reconcile some large spec friction points such as Lone Wolf," Blizzard writes. "Undermine(d) is seeing Marksmanship lose their pet functionalities and it is instead joined in battle by a unique eagle pet that will exist outside of the game space but continue to support you in combat in a uniquely Marksmanship way."

Considering pets have always been a major part of the class as a whole, having them disappear entirely from Marksmanship is a big move. As for the eagle, it factors into a number of new active and passive abilities. One, Harrier's Cry, sees it descend from the sky and gives a 30% haste buff to party and raid members for 40 seconds. A passive ability, Eyes in the Sky, makes it so abilities empowered by Precise Shots have a chance for the target to be marked by the eagle, increasing Aimed Shot damage against the target.

Marksmanship Hunter's talent tree is, unsurprisingly, getting an almost complete overhaul. A total of 19 talents are being removed, though a few of their effects (like Pin Cushion) are being added to existing abilities like Steady Shot. Multi-shot, once a talent, will now instead be learned baseline by Marksmanship Hunters at level 10.

Many other talents have been adjusted, while a whole slew of new talents have been added. One new talent, Ohn'ahran Winds, gives a 25% chance when applying a Spotter's Mark to apply it to three additional enemies, while another, Double Dap, makes it so casting True Shot causes the next Aimed Shot to fire a second time or the next Rapid Fire to fire 100% additional shots during its channel. Numerous Marksmanship abilities like Aimed Shot, Rapid Fire, and Steady Shot are all receiving significant damage buffs as well.

The Undermine(d) update doesn't have a release date just yet, but when it does arrive, the goblin-themed update will let players explore the new Undermine zone in their own customizable hot rod. According to datamines, 11.1 will also add a NPC tribute to Mats "Ibelin" Steen, the subject of the recent Netflix documentary The Remarkable Life of Ibelin.