Protection Warrior Hero Talent Showdown in The War Within - Colossus vs. Mountain Thane

Posted 2024/08/13 at 3:16 AM by Nomeratur

Not sure what Hero Talents to play for your spec in The War Within? Check out all the released articles in the 'Hero Talent Showdown' series:
Hero Talent Showdowns in The War Within
Blood DK
Frost DK
Unholy DK
Havoc DH
Vengeance DH
Balance Druid

Feral Druid
Guardian Druid
Restoration Druid
Augmentation Evoker
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Subtlety Rogue
Elemental Shaman
Enhancement Shaman
Restoration Shaman
Affliction Warlock
Demonology Warlock
Destruction Warlock
Arms Warrior
Fury Warrior
Protection Warrior

For more information on Hero Talents coming in the War Within, check out our Hero Talents Overview.

The War Within Hero Talents Overview

Protection Warrior in the War WithinHero Talent Showdown: Mountain Thane vs. Colossus Thunder ClapLightning StrikesAvatar of the StormDemolishRevenge Mountain Thane

Strengths

Weaknesses

Shield SlamThunder ClapViolent OutburstShield WallIgnore Pain Colossus

Strengths

Weaknesses

RevengeColossal MightDominance of the ColossusDemolishWhat's Changed? Mountain Thane

30% dmg buff to Lightning Strikes and a small nerf to Ground Current

Colossus

Mountain of Muscle and Scars changed from 5% to 4% damage increase

Dominance of the Colossus increases damage dealt up to 20% for protection instead of 10%

And the Winner Is...

Class Fantasy & Visuals: Mountain Thane (Winner)

It is an easy choice to make because of the added lightning effects to Thunder Clap and frequent access to it offers beautiful visuals.
Colossus doesn't offer any additional visuals.

Fun & Rewarding Gameplay: Mountain Thane (Winner)

Mountain Thane wins because it further enhances the core principles of Protection Warrior without sacrificing any defensive powers without altering the rotation in uncomfortable ways.
The repeated interactions of Flashing Skies, Thorim's Might, Burst of Power, Thunder Blast and Avatar of the Storm are fantastic for Protection Warrior. These 5 Talents can cause an immense feedback loop generating incredible amounts of rage while simultaneously dealing large amounts of Single Target and AoE damage.
Avatar procs Thunder Blast -> Thunder Blast procs Lightning Strikes -> Lightning Strikes can grant 2 Free Resets of Shield Slam allowing for 3 Shield Slams to be used back-to-back-to-back -> these then have a large chance to proc yet another Thunderblast which can start the whole loop from the beginning again!

Colossus falls short because it currently offers no way to increase rage generation and instead incentivizes you to spend rage more on offense rather than defense.

Difficulty: Mountain Thane (Winner)

Mountain Thane Is easier to play as it focuses entirely on Shield Slam and Thunder Clap, both of which you want to send as often as you can anyway. Few mistakes can be made when playing this Hero Tree!

Colossus on the other hand punishes rotational mistakes quite heavily as it will quickly leave you without a button to press if you overspend rage on Revenge.

Defensiveness & Utility: Mountain Thane (Winner)

Mountain Thane is the clear winner in terms of Defensiveness & Utility as it gets a vastly improved rage generation and the great addition of Storm Shield which can be extremely useful in M+ and Raid alike.

Colossus offers a significant buff to Shockwave in the form of a choice node between Earthquaker and Boneshaker.

Leveling: Mountain Thane &Colossus (Tie)

For early levels Colossus will be the better leveling Tree as it offers the immediate dmg gain of Demolish. Once You're a higher level Mountain Thane will start getting ahead due to its feedback loop between Flashing Skies, Thorim's Might, and Burst of Power being able to reset each other back and forth!

Mythic+: Mountain Thane (Winner)

Mountain Thane has the Edge in Mythic+ due to increased rage generation, more frequent access to high AoE dmg, and the added utility provided from Storm Shield.

Raid: Mountain Thane&Colossus (Tie)

Both Hero Trees are at a Tie when it comes to raiding as the added benefits of both trees only really shine in AoE encounters. With the small difference that the increased rage generation of Mountain Thane does provide a small defensive benefit, which however is not as impactful in Raid compared to Mythic+.
Offensively both Trees are extremely similar with Mountain Thane getting a strong execute phase because of Thorim's Might and its increased rage generation.Colossus getting a strong execute phase because Execute grants an additional stack of Colossal Might which grants higher uptime of Dominance of the Colossus and frequent usage of Demolish.

Best Overall: Mountain Thane (Winner)

As already mentioned a plethora of times, the increased rage generation, competitive damage, and added utility Mountain Thane wins practically on all fronts.

Hero Talent Feedback Mountain Thane ColossusbothBase Protection Warrior Gameplay & TalentsChampion's Spear

Avatar of the Storm and Champion's Might combined with frequent access to Violent Outburst can lead to some very satisfying numbers.

Thunderous RoarStorm SurgeRevenge

Demolish very frequently lines up with Thunderous Roar because of Uproar.

Dominance of the Colossus then grants the 20% damage increase to Thunderous Roar aswell as Thunderous Words empowering our other DoTs at the same time.

Should You Play Protection Warrior in the War Within?blastHero Talent Guides for the War Within Launch

Comment by Scuffieno mention on the 5% size increase for colossus in the +/- section but very nicely written otherwise so I'm gonna unfortunately have to give this breakdown a 0/10Comment by Crowfieldfunny how the weaknesses are "very fast playstyle" vs "slower playstyle"
as opposed to the strength "normal speed playstyle"Comment by Nomeraturfunny how the weaknesses are "very fast playstyle" vs "slower playstyle"
as opposed to the strength "normal speed playstyle"Comment by Nomeraturno mention on the 5% size increase for colossus in the +/- section but very nicely written otherwise so I'm gonna unfortunately have to give this breakdown a 0/10Comment by OswaldovzkiEpic Showdown! I'm all about that Warrior life, and it's time to return to my roots with my main and first character, a Protection Warrior.

The Hero talents? Absolutely epic. And Colossus? It's like reuniting with our beloved and never forgotten old friend Gladiator Stance!Comment by OswaldovzkiMy comment above was duplicated...Comment by AzbottNice read. As someone who enjoys Prot but doesn't main warrior, it covers everything I wanted to know and isn't a boring node vs node, x% difference slogfest.Comment by GnomesRuleno mention on the 5% size increase for colossus in the +/- section but very nicely written otherwise so I'm gonna unfortunately have to give this breakdown a 0/10Comment by IkusameMountain thane: "It does everything better but has slightly less damage"
Collossus: "It does everything worse but does slighty more damage"Comment by ryuplaneswalkerThis is gonna be the format of so many of these articles.

"Wow one of these is a well though out, thematic and awesome idea...the other is kind of half baked, awkward...but it does good numbers by working twice as hard as the other one."Comment by EdlarelMountain thane: "It does everything better but has slightly less damage"
Collossus: "It does everything worse but does slighty more damage"Comment by lovelywazMythic+: Mountain Thane (Winner)Thunder ClapStorm SurgeComment by JulienWAno mention on the 5% size increase for colossus in the +/- section but very nicely written otherwise so I'm gonna unfortunately have to give this breakdown a 0/10Comment by BallagornWith those +/- ration I expect Mountain Thane will be hitted by nefr hammer at some point
I'll stay with Colossus, who should have talent allowing to use 2h weapon with shieldComment by metalchileWith those +/- ration I expect Mountain Thane will be hitted by nefr hammer at some point
I'll stay with Colossus, who should have talent allowing to use 2h weapon with shield