Problems faced by the Retribution paladin these days (as of patch 2.1), are providing little utility, lack of aggro control and mediocre DPS in raids. This guide is to help any Retribution paladin gear up properly and in turn, produce quality DPS in Karazhan raids. Below is a list of equipment that can be gathered through running normal instances, , completeing quests, reputation rewards or bought in the Auction House.

To be ready for Karazhan, a Retribution paladin should attain the following unbuffed:

• 1200 - 1300AP
  Attack Power increases you base damage, therefore it is the most important stat. You should never have enough of this.
• 23% Critical Strike Chance
  Critical strikes are an important part of a paladin’s DPS because of the Vengeance talent, which can increase your damage by 15%. With constant critical strikes you should be able to keep Vengeance up throughout a fight. Of course a big problem would be aggro, as paladins have no way to dump aggro and so Retribution paladins have to learn to manage aggro well.
• 9% Hit (6% with Precision)
  Hit Rating is needed to ensure your melee attacks do not miss your target. 15.8 Hit Rating gives 1% Hit so 6% Hit requires at least 95 Hit Rating and 9% requires 142 Hit Rating. If you are a Human paladin, you need only 3% Hit with 350 Weapon Skill and Precision due to Racial Bonus.

GEAR LIST

Head

• Furious Gizmatic Goggles (Engineers only)
• Overlord’s Helm of Second Sight (Quest Reward)
• Hope Bearer Helm (Shirrak the Dead Watcher, Auchenai Crypts)
• Exorcist’s Scaled Helm (Spirit Shard purchase)

• Enchant: Glyph of the Outcast/Glyph of the Ferocity

Neck

• Haramad’s Bargain (Exalted with The Consortium)
• Natasha’s Pack Collar/Natasha’s Choker (Quest Reward)
• Talon Lord’s Collar (Quest Reward)
• Insignia of the Mag’hari Hero (Quest Reward)
• Choker of Bloodied Feathers (Quest Reward)

Shoulders

• Pauldrons of the Crimson Flight (Aeonus, Black Morass)
• Warchief’s Mantle (Quest Reward)

• Enchant: Greater Inscription of the Blade/Greater Inscription of Vengeance

Back

• Vengeance Wrap (Tailoring)
• Capacitus’ Cloak of Calibration (Cache of the Legion, Mechanar)
• Cloak of the Inciter (Blackheart the Inciter, Shadow Labyrinth)
• Cloak of Impulsiveness (Lieutenant Drake, Old Hillsbrad Foothills)
• Netherfury Cape (Warp Splinter, Botanica)
• Cloak of Malice (Grand Warlock Nethekurse, Shattered Halls)

• Enchant: Greater Agility

Chest

• Breastplate of Kings (Blacksmiths only)
• Chestplate of A’dal (Quest Reward)
• Doomplate Chestguard (Harbinger Skyriss, Arcatraz)
• Durotan’s Battle Harness (Captain Skaroc, Old Hillsbrad Foothills)
• Leonine Breastplate/Blackened Chestplate (Quest Reward)

• Enchant: Exceptional Stats

Wrist

• Black Felsteel Bracers (Blacksmithing)
• Bands of Syth (Darkweavger Syth, Sethekk Halls)
• Nexus-Bracers of Vigor (Nexus-Prince Shaffar, Mana-Tombs)

• Enchant: Brawn

Hands

• Steelgrip Gauntlets (Blacksmithing)
• Gauntlets of Cruel Intention (Thorngrin the Tender, Botanica)
• Gauntlets of the Vanquisher (Quest Reward)
• Adamantite Plate Gloves (Blacksmithing)
• The Hands of Fate (Quest Reward)

• Enchant: Major Strength

Waist

• Deathforge Girdle (Talon King Ikiss, Sethekk Halls)
• Girdle of Siege (Random World Drop)
• Rubium War-Girdle (Zereketh the Unbound, Arcatraz)
• Borak’s Belt of Bravery (Quest Reward)

Legs

• Ornate Leggings of the Venerated (Blackheart the Inciter, Shadow Labyrinth)
• Azureplate Greaves (Quagmirran, Slave Pens)
• Greaves of the Iron Guardian (Swamplord Musel’ek, Underbog)
• Legguards of the Shattered Hand (Random World Drop)

• Enchant: Cobrahide Leg Armor

Boots

• Vortex Walking Boots (Exalted with Ogri’la)
• Obsidian Clodstompers (High Botanist Freywinn, Botanica)
• Sha’tari Wrought Greaves (Quest Reward)
• Ornate Boots of the Sanctified (Ambassador Hellmaw, Shadow Labyrinth )
• Boots of Zealotry (Random World Drop)

• Enchant: Dexterity

Rings

• A’dal’s Command (Exalted with Sha’tari)
• Pathfinder’s Band (Random World Drop)
• Truestrike Ring (Random World Drop)
• Ring of Umbral Doom (Thorngrin the Tender, Botanica)
• Ravenclaw Band (Talon King Ikiss, Sethekk Halls)
• Ring of the Exarchs (Exarch Maladaar, Auchenai Crypts)

Trinkets

• Hourglass of the Unraveller (Temporus, Black Morass)
• Abacus of Violent Odds (Pathaleon the Calculator, Mechanar)
• Bladefist’s Breadth (Quest Reward)
• Felsteel Boar (Jewelcrafters only)
• Darkmoon Card: Crusade (Darkmoon Blessings Deck)
• Darkmoon Card: Wrath (Darkmoon Storms Deck)

Weapon

• Thunder/Lionheart Blade/Lunar Crescent (Blacksmiths only)
• Felsteel Reaper (Blacksmithing)
• Khorium Champion (Blacksmithing)
• Warmaul of Infused Light (Wrath-Scryer Soccothrates, Arcatraz)
• Plasma Rat’s Hyper-Scythe (Mechano-Lord Capacitus, Mechanar)
• Crow Wing Reaper (Talon King Ikiss, Sethekk Halls)
• Singing Crystal Axe (Random World Drop)
• The Oathkeeper (Random World Drop)

• Enchant: Savagery/Crusader/Mongoose

Libram

• Libram of Eternal Rest (Darkweaver Syth, Sethekk Halls)
• Libram of Avengement (The Maker, Blood Furnace Heroic)

NOTE: Libram of Avengement should be a compulsory item when you are able to run heroic instances.