Question regarding hardcapping and softcapping.

[Mordos]

So, I'm almost a raid-ready fury warrior. Or I'd like to think that I'm raid-ready since I usually whoop people in DPS-meters. But then again, they are pugs.

Either way, my question is that, is it a choice of either softcapping your ArP, or hardcapping? Or do you just softcap until you know you can hardcap, and thus hardcap it instead? Reason I ask is because I want to know if I should start regemming some stuff to reach the softcap.

My armory:
http://eu.wowarmory.com/character-sh...n=Mordos&gn=CR

I'm currently farming Normal and Heroic HoR for the cloak and the ring, and farming normal TOC for the trinket.

Any general advice you can give as well?

[Skyborn]

Even with regeming, I dont think you're geared enough to make the swap to softcapping ArP yet. Maybe with 2-3 more key upgrades you mentioned you're farming for,you will have enough ArP on your gear to do so. The softcap with NES is somewhere around 722 Armor Pen. So before you regem from Str to Armor Pen make sure you can hit that with gems + food.

Or do you just softcap until you know you can hardcap, and thus hardcap it instead?

This is my understanding. Softcapping is easy once you have mostly 245 gear, and then hardcapping becomes viable once you're in mostly 264 gear with a mix of 251, as long as you pick up the right pieces of gear.

[Mordos]

The only key upgrade that contains ArP is the trinket though.

However, I'm also buying http://www.wowhead.com/item=47573 once I have the other pieces of equipment, which might ease it up for me since I'm also a blacksmith - so my bracers alone provide 90 ArP.

Or should I just keep gemming the way I do until I can get lucky enough and get into a raid and maybe find some loot that'll help me softcap?

[Skyborn]

Quick way to boost your ArP that requires farming badges instead of farming drops (and will yield better results):

http://www.wowhead.com/item=50467
http://www.wowhead.com/item=47730

That'll keep your expertise capped and give you an extra 115 ArP.

But definitely keep gemming strength for now. When you get Gatecrashers Gauntlets + Some T10 or more 9.5 + better belt and neck you can start to think about swapping to gemming for Armor Pen.

[Mordos]

Ah. I was unsure if I was to buy the ring or wait for Lady's Promise from heroic HoR. Which I still am, but I suppose I could buy that ring instead of using Circle of Doom. However, the cloak is another matter. Since I don't raid, and people on my server are zealous about GS would never let me touch a raiding instance with my current gear.

But yeah, thanks for the advice! Very helpful!

[Skyborn]

You can get that cloak in a month without ever setting foot in a raid. Just run a random heroic every single day for 25 days. You'll get 2 emblems of frost each day. I know you said you don't raid but you could also get into a raid weekly easily if its something old like Sartharion, Ulduar, Malygos or Naxx. That's an additional 5 frost emblems a week. Or you could try and PuG VoA (people aren't very stringent about that raid either). Toravon drops 2 frost badges.

It's definitely a viable option for you.