Overview
Hunter/Holy Paladin is a defensive setup comp built around two truths: the Paladin almost cannot be killed if he plays his cooldowns cleanly, and the hunter carries the single best healing-debuff-plus-CC package in 2s. You survive early, drink when you can, and wait for the trap-into-Aimed-Shot window that turns a even fight into a global kill. Against melee-plus-healer teams you are heavily favored — the hunter kites, Concussive and Wing Clip peel, and the Paladin walls anything that leaks through.
The ceiling is real but so is the skill floor. Everything hinges on the hunter respecting his dead zone, juggling Freezing Trap without breaking it early, and knowing exactly when Bestial Wrath goes down. The Paladin has to ration mana, pre-Cleanse poisons, and hold Divine Shield / Hand of Protection for the moment a swap actually threatens the kill. Misplay either and the comp's biggest weakness — modest sustained pressure — lets patient teams simply outlast you.
Win condition
Land Freezing Trap on the enemy healer (or Scatter Shot into trap if they're loose), then open the kill on the DPS: Aimed Shot for the 50% healing reduction, Bestial Wrath so the hunter is CC-immune, Kill Command and pet Intimidation stun stacked with Multi-Shot and auto crits. The Paladin funnels one big Holy Light into the hunter beforehand so he can commit fully, and Hammer of Justice extends the stun chain on the target. If the healer trinkets the trap, re-trap or Viper Sting them dry — you have all day, they don't. The kill lands inside the trap's duration or you reset and drink.
Strengths
- +Aimed Shot's 50% healing debuff plus trap CC lets you force a real kill window on demand.
- +Holy Paladin is the sturdiest 2s healer alive — Divine Shield, Hand of Protection, and Freedom hard-reset the enemy's whole plan.
- +Bestial Wrath makes the hunter fear- and CC-immune for a burst window nothing melee can peel.
Weaknesses
- −No instant Paladin heals and no mobility — a coordinated train on the healer through a bubble can still win the war of attrition.
- −Kiting casters (Blink, Frost Nova, sheep) shut the hunter out of the dead zone and outlast your limited sustained pressure.
Cooldown timeline
Open defensive: don't blow anything, establish LoS and let the hunter chip with Steady Shot while reading their setup. Your offense starts when Bestial Wrath (2 min) is up AND you have Freezing Trap ready on the healer — never Bestial Wrath into a full-HP healer who's untrapped. Intimidation's stun opens or extends the burst; Rapid Fire can be layered for a hard swap. On defense, Divine Shield and Hand of Protection are your "oh no" buttons — bubble to Cleanse yourself out of a stun-lock, Hand of Protection onto the hunter to drop a rogue/warrior mid-swap. Blessing of Freedom pre-emptively vs Frost Nova / Hamstring / Crippling Poison. Trinket the first HoJ or full CC chain on the Paladin, not a throwaway root.
Positioning
The hunter lives at max range and off the healer's LoS-reset pillar — you want the enemy on ONE side of a pillar so your Paladin can heal around it while the hunter still has a shot. Never let yourself get pushed into the dead zone (8–yard band); step back or Wing Clip / Concussive to re-open range. Freezing Trap goes on your side of a corner so the healer eats it repositioning, not where their DPS can cleave it off. The Paladin plays behind terrain, only peeking to cast, and body-blocks nothing — he kites melee into the hunter's traps and Wing Clips rather than tanking. Keep the hunter and Paladin split enough that no single AoE fear or cleave hits both.
Vs. the meta
The mage will kite your hunter with Blink, Frost Nova and Sheep while the rogue trains your Paladin — this is your hardest 2s matchup. Pre-Cleanse and pre-Freedom the Paladin against Nova/poison, and trap the ROGUE on his openers rather than chasing the mage. Save Divine Shield for the Blind-into-Cheap-Shot kill attempt, and Hand of Protection the hunter the instant the rogue swaps to him. Your kill route is Scatter-trap the mage, Aimed Shot the rogue through his Evasion window, and Viper Sting the mage to starve the sheep chain. Patience beats them; greeding a burst into a Blink loses.
A pure attrition trap — the druid HoTs and Cyclones your kills off while the mage kites and drinks. You cannot out-sustain them, so you must manufacture a lockout: Freezing Trap or Scatter the druid, Aimed Shot the mage for the healing debuff, and Bestial Wrath through the Cyclone window on the mage while the druid is CC'd. Viper Sting both to pressure mana since the game goes long. Keep the Paladin topped and never let the mage free-cast Polymorph on the hunter during your go — Bestial Wrath's CC immunity is the whole answer to their control.
Gear requirements
- ▸Hunter: Merciless Gladiator's ranged weapon and enough Resilience to survive a swap, then stack Agility/AP and hit the ranged hit cap so Aimed Shot and traps land clean.
- ▸Holy Paladin: full Merciless Gladiator's Sanctuary for Resilience and Stamina, then prioritize mana regen and +spell crit/haste — you need to outlast long games, so mp5 and Intellect over raw throughput.
Tips
- •Never Bestial Wrath into an untrapped healer — the window is wasted the second they free-cast a heal. Trap first, then commit.
- •Layer Aimed Shot's healing debuff onto the target BEFORE the burst, not during — it needs to already be ticking when your damage lands.
- •Paladin: hold Divine Shield to Cleanse yourself out of a stun-lock, and Hand of Protection the hunter to peel melee mid-swap — don't burn them on the first pressure.
- •Viper Sting the enemy healer every time you're not actively bursting; against druids and mages the mana war is a legitimate win condition.
Gear & talents for this comp
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