The jump shot is the basic skill that every hunter should have. With this in your arsenal you can kite mobs and increase your raid dps by limiting dps downtime. This guide should go over everything you need on how to jump shot — a hunter skill since WoW first launched.
Jump Shot is very simple: when you’re running you just jump, turn around midair, fire an instant shot, then turn back to facing forward before you land. This way your forward momentum never slows and you can still dps your target. A hunter literally never has to slow down or stop.
Note that you need to be steering with your mouse to jump shot! Just push down both mouse buttons and you’ll be running. As long as the right mouse button is down, you’ll turn with your mouse movement.
Here’s the hunter jump shot guide video to show you exactly how it’s done, and some examples of how it can be useful in raids (though that footage is a bit dated now, the concept continues to be relevant).
Hunter Jump-Shot Guide
YouTube direct link: Hunter Jump-Shot Guide
(26 votes, average: 4.73 out of 5)
Loading ...
Not really appropo to this post Frost, but….
Do you have a strat for soloing the mount-dropping bosses in Zul Gurub? I was trying Bloodlord Mandokir (i.e. the Raptor Boss) last night, and presumably I am doing something wrong.
http://www.wowhead.com/?npc=11382
For some reason he kept Charging me, which did about 3-5 of damage and a 2 second stun. I’m not sure what the mechanic is of his Charge (yet), but I figured I’d ask here before I go looking.
My strat, such as it was, was to burn his raptor add first. Maybe that’s the wrong strat.
Was using the standard Onyxia build and a turtle, to mitigate his enrage damage. It’s def. not a gear issue, I just need to figure out that Charge.
I have a very dumb question. Please confirm the exact mechanics of running, jumping, turning and firing. I expect that I have developed what are bad habits. I know that I can run by holding down both mouse buttons (but I never do it)
So …I hold down both mouse buttons and control my direction using A or D as normal, then hit space to jump, hit A or D to turn, left mouse click a shot , hit A or D again and then press both mouse buttons again ??
I will try this….but up to now I have moved using the keyboard and basically depended on auto shot to get of an occasional round when running and jumping
Strafe
dont turn all the way around, that equals getting dazed in a lot of cases. Still jump ofc, just dont turn your back on them ^^
love the void zone comments at the end. Jump shot is one of my fav’s.
I really loved the fact that the Rhokdelar quest chain for hunters back in the day, pretty much forced hunters to learn how to do the jumpshot. You just knew that if that hunter had Rhok as his bow, you can count on him to kite BWL adds or that final boss in UBRS. I had to work my ass off finishing that quest chain for Rhok and I felt more complete as a hunter once I finished it. If you are just starting out as a hunter, I suggest you at least give that quest chain a try. I assure you, if you finish that quest line without cheating, you will master the jumpshot. And to even out the fact that you are already 80, do it naked ;p
This is a cool technique that I never learned but need to start using. Thanks for the video Frost? One question though – do you fire with the mouse or do you need to have the keyboard set-up for shots? Thanks for the great site, while I dont comment much I read and learn every day.
Spamming the best hunter blog online is very very uncool Jane! Please knock it off!
Zyrinx -
I believe his charge range is like normal charge – just stand closer than 8 yards.
I’ve been doing the jump shot in pvp for a while now. It’s extremely useful there. But I hadn’t really seen too many places to use it in pve. I think watching you solo that big boss in ice crow and keristraza were the most interesting things in this vid. I never thought of solo’ing something without a pet! That’s so awesome. Gonna go try it now.
And about Jane…. Thats the first time I’ve seen a spammer on here. Thats poo.
GREAT video, guys! I really appreciated to comment about not needing to actually “watch” your shots hit the mob when you are jump-shotting. I am so guilty of that…it seems like I need to witness it to make sure my shots hit or something. *grin* I shall try to be less paranoid about it in the future!
Oh, and watching Arust on the target dummy in slo-mo was pretty danged epic!
Admin
Ognib – No, you turn with your mouse! You’ll never keyboard turn fast enough. And you will have to fire with your keyboard (which you should be doing anyway).
Jane is not the first spammer on the WHU — was horrible back in the day until we got an addon that blocked all automated spam, but Jane was doing it all by hand! Anyhow, his IP has now been banned and comments deleted.
Fantastic Frost!! i truly enjoy your videos! and the slo mo on sexah NE Arust… awesomesauce!!
So i feel a little dumb, but understand why I have never been able to get the jump shot to work since I drive with the keyboard and shoot with the mouse. Lol. I never could turn around far enough in the air. A little off topic but does firing with keyboard actually increase DPS? I follow every bit of advice on this site (gear, shot priority, gems, enchants) but cant get over 3K DPS and am wondering if thats part of the issue. Thanks all for any advice in advance.
To expand on Frost’s description… (assuming standard keybindings)
I break it down like this. Hold down the right mouse button so you’re mouselooking (like you were playing a first person shooter).
Hold down W to run. (I use my middle finger so i can strafe with Q/E as I run forward. It’s an old quake technique I can’t get rid of.. strafe running was a HAIR faster than straight running due to vectors.. but I digress)
Okay, you’re running with W, and controling direction with the mouse.
Now, you jump.. while in the air, move the mouse so you turn around 180 degrees (really you only need 90 degrees) – while turned, tap a number with your index finger (all my instant shots are on 3-6 for this particular reason) – after your shot goes off, quickly turn back the way you were facing before touching the ground.
Rinse.
Spend your life doing this in Vanilla battlegrounds while you grind your way to Grand Marshal.
Cackle as paladins cry.
Repeat.
Admin
Yes, you should be steering with the mouse and shooting (at least your primary rotation shots) with the keyboard. Keyboard turning is SLOW – mouse turning and/or moving will give you much faster reaction times.
Also, I think that keyboard shooting also has reduced reaction times – though that may just be for me. Regardless, you need to move with your mouse so you have to shoot with the keyboard
Contributor
/sigh
<—-keyboard turner. I was waiting for this guide to give me incentive to make the switch. I guess the time has come. Thanks Frost. Now it's time to re-learn kiting.
Member
I’m a keyboard turner too. Jump shotting with a Macintosh mouse is a massive pain
Dues Payer
love the guide, is very needed. i use it soooo often. whenever i am running to take my place in a boss you have to pull and position (like voa bosses, iron council) i always jump shot if i can. when i switch colors on the twins and im running to switch back, ill switch targets and pop a few shots off if i can.
i learned kiting and jumpshotting on that big demon mob in hellfire penninsula, Arazzius the Cruel, without weakening him. it was fun being like 71 and kiting him. i guess jump shotting came naturally to me though, i guess its from all that strafe jumping and what not back in my Doom multiplayer days.
i still cant kite in a circle though (which is a bit ironic given the above comment). good vid though. +2 internets.
this is unrelated, how do i learn to shoot with my keyboard lol
i know how to move with the mouse, but i am still a clicker
my ui is just powerauras dbm and recount and omen when my pc allows
could u help lol
Frost has such a sexy voice.
NOOOOOOOOO this is a dreaded moment for me i too am a keyboard steerer and a mouse clicker for shot rotation however if i swim or fly i tend to use both the mouse buttons as i am right and left handed ( handydexterous ) . But i can see this taking alot of practice to turn around my playing still and off course you lose dps in the mean time till you can readjust .
.
PS : I thought the jump shot was simply jump and shoot never thought of the running benfits but i can clearly see why its just all the retraining i am going to have to learn
your a madcunt, that vid is sick
ok, this does it, you guys are crazy… I’ll test it tonight.
lousy keyboard turner, too, , and with a mac (not the only one, Stokes).
i’ll breakdown and get a pc 2-button mouse, and go practice on the dummy… i think it probably would have been better to learn this some other level than 80 though, lol… thanks for the insight!
I thought I might get a chance to try it yesterday…….but in the end the typical pattern of running heroics cropped up. Healer stands behind me…..I lay down some traps in case some loose mobs get away from the tank…….PULL……stand still and shoot till everything is dead
Guess I’ll have to try it solo
Member
Long time reader, first time commenter.
Let me just say i heart the Hunters Union. It’s my daily must-have.
Thank you for the jump shot guide – been wondering how to get this to happen for a while.
However i am a keyboard mover & a keyboard shooter & a Mac user … is there any hope for me?
Admin
If you’re suffering from playing on a mac the solution is simple: just go get a USB PC mouse and plug it in! – you can get one super cheap. Believe me, having two mouse buttons will improve your quality of life drastically, even beyond wow.
Dues Payer
Hey Frost i have been trying to convert myself over but i noticed theres only 1 to 0 keys the – and + sign which is ok for 1 action bar but how do you operate the other 2 lower bars with the keyboard or can it not be done ? at least when i mouse shoot i can select anything from my 3 action bars giving me heaps of options for every task at hand . With the keyboard shooting I am feeling like theres only a 3rd of my actions i can use restricting my playing style. I have 3 bars 1 for shots ,MD , deterence and fiend death , the 2nd bar underneath has AOE attacks, aspects, pet controls , trinkets and the 3rd to my right bottom has all the hand to hand pvp options or if a boss gets to close and mounts. Even if i program my G15 keyboard theres not enough options for all the actions i use to be there at a push of the button away .
Admin
You’ll never have enough keys for all of your abilities; however, there are only a handful that you use all the time. I have my pet attack and my rotation shots on keys 1-7. F3 is my kill shot, the “T” is my readiness (or black arrow). That is 99% of what I’m going to use in a fight. The rest of it I just click if I need it.
Obviously stuff like macroing in your kill command, silencing shot, hunter’s mark, etc saves you button pushes. I also have one OMG KILL macro that triggers Rapid Fire, Call of the Wild, and my trinket.)
Dues Payer
I thought most MM hunters did’nt use macros anymore due to the fact of so many shots coming off coolodown making the process not to be vialable. I did use a macro i made for Eye of Eternity tho as Maly is hard to get threat on and our tank couldnt use taunts against her so i made a MD macro to him which i used at every oppertunity.
Admin
Why wouldn’t MM hunters use macros?? All hunters should use macros for al that pesky stuff that’s not on the global cooldown.
whats the key binding suppost to look like after your done ? having troubles …
P.S. Pic would be great for everyone having the same problem. Thx again for the great Info.
Admin
You can set up your keybinding however works best for you. In general though, most of your primary rotation shots are usually numbers 1-6 or so. You don’t have to do anything special to set that up — your left action bar is automatically linked to the numbers on your keyboard! Just put your shots in the appropriate slot.
Thr problem im having is that ive been playing wow for 2 years with the wrong set up using the keyboard to turn. Ty for the info on the keys but for some reason setting the mouse up is the true issue. on the the keybinding i click on the square for strafe left and L click my mouse but nothing works. any idea’s to get this set up?
Hmm… One thing I’ve never really mastered as a hunter is the jumpshot. And being a BC baby, I’ve never really had the need to kite anything really dangerous.
Before I go back and try this out, I have a comment. I actually bind all my instant shots to my scroll button. i.e. scroll up for Chimera, down for Aimed, click scroll for Arcane. I think my fingers are gonna convulse over trying this..
I’ll have to give this a try, but I have a feeling it will be a problem for me because I use the mouse with my left hand. The special UI quests have been a major PITA for this reason.
Thanks for the great site.
Contributor
Changed some button configurations, practiced for a bit, and then practiced in Naxx a few times when we had bosses clearly beaten. I’m getting the hang of it, though it’s not entirely natural. But thanks for the guide, it helped.
Save yourself some time and just strafe
Member
Ya, I hold right mouse button when moving (for looking, turning and strafing). But I can’t seem to get used to casting (shooting) with keyboard keys and am not really sure of it’s advantages. The biggest con I’ve found with it is the tab key (which changes your target) is so close to the #1 key that I’ve already found myself switching to a mob that the tank don’t have good aggro on (bad). Also because of various cooldowns I still end up watching my cast bar so the rotation doesn’t seem any more efficient than clicking. Since clickers get alot flack in chat and forums I assume it is in fact more efficient and I just need lots of practice but it’s a bit discouraging when you lose 1k dps in a raid cuz you commited yourself to using buttons instead of clicking.
Member
BTW thank you for this awesome site and for sharing your knowledge and skills. It’s an invaluable resource for any serious hunter.
Member
Thank you for the guide! I have one question from the vid. Which aspect did you activate when kiting? When I use Cheetah or Pack, it might be that I’ve failed in distance control, I used to get dazed a lot. Please assist.
Admin
The aspect depends on what you’re kiting. When you’re in cheetah, if you get hit by anything you’ll become dazed. As long as you’re kiting something with no ranged abilities, you can use cheetah to outpace it (as long as you aren’t in melee).
If you can’t safely kite in cheetah, you’ll want to use concussive shot and slowing traps to keep the mobs from catching up.
Member
A friend nudged me towards something I hadn’t really considered in my keyboard setup – extra mouse buttons. True, not everyone has them, but if you have some, use them. I have my Chimera/Supressive Macro on B4, and KillShot on B5. Makes space on the keyboard to make you able to keep your stuff neat and compact. Since nearly all raids are very movement-dependant, the less time it takes to move your hand from WASD and back, the better. So all my other stuff is clustered around those keys:
Q = Sting, E = Auto-Walk (not really important but I got used to it)
Y(Z for non-germans) = Aimed Shot, X = Arcane, C = the shot with the cast time, dunno the English term right now.
Of course this ain’t the final icing on the cake, but since several people seem to struggle with it, some input might prove useful.
Nice demonstration. Nice site!
I was wondering how you stopped the camera from zooming in as soon as you do the jumpshot. This was during the segment while fighting the elite in icecrown.
I have been trying to stop the camera from zooming during the jumpshot, but have sofar been unable to do so in interface. It would make control a little easier I think without the zooming in.
Member
Another way to learn the jumpshot kiting skill is PvPing… It may seem odd to train in PvP for PvE tactics, But nothing makes you learn quicker then a pissed off fully gear PvP melee oppentent trying to run down your ass… also makes you get use to using disenaging from incoming oppentents… I can no longer count how any times I have use disenaged mixed with killshot or exploive shot ftk in a raid boss fight… (makes Guildies love you… speciailty when they think its a wipe all relase and come back in seeing you drinking in front of a dead boss)
OK … I am missing something here … I tried kiting elementals on the ice in the Sons of Hodir area. They seem to move significantly faster than me and they catch up quickly. I have tried concusive shot and that helps some but it has a 6 sec CD and they still catch me. I know I can drop a frost trap and slow them some but is there something else I am missing?
Member
I’ve noticed on a lot of fights in ICC you can use Jump-Shot. Especially in the Sindragosa fight. She pulls you in with her “DeathGrip” (I know thats the wrong ability but similar action) and you have to run out before her AOE “Blistering Cold”. I use Disengage, firing off one instant shot right before landing and running away using Jump-Shot as soon as i get an Instant up again. Of course Kiting the Gas Cloud on the Putricide fight is the same way, Jump-Shot is essential. So many Bosses utilize this ability in ICC. I even had to teach the technique to an Off-Tank to tank the Big Ooze on the Rotface. After the lesson the tank understood and now uses this technique whenever needed. I guess a hunter could kite that, but its definetly a LAST resort situation.
Or instead of using jump shots on a fight like sindra when she pulls you in, i disengage, turn, and run sideways. Not sideways as in parallel to her, you’ll still be running away from her but can get shots in without jumping. So say i’m facing her, after i disengage i hold the right mouse button and the left arrow button, being able to shoot at her without jumping…. Maybe this is because i’m left handed and i use the mouse with my left hand, and i have all my abilities on the number pad… Anyway, may be a lil awkward for you right handers, but it works wonders for us leftys
Awesome video – have been doint this hap-hazard, as something I was figuring out myself lol. Now I’ll go practice like you suggest and get it down to a fine art.
Member
haveing just learned this ability I have been much more effective on my main ( 63nelf ) Love the Site
awesome, i never really knew how to kite, good job guys
Member
I also kite mobs by holding RMB and D or A (turn/move right/left). Its drawback is when you have to make a turn you are facing away from the mob you’re kiting. So I’ll give jumpshot a try next time
I’m right handed but I have a separate number pad connected to my computer, I’ll just put it on the other side of the keyboard 
And Soulwaxx, you just gave me a nice idea
One more thought – it’s not that hard to learn killing stuff using your keyboard when you are forced to play with a touchpad and/or are as clumsy at clicking tiny buttons rapidly as I am. I found that I can use my spells more effectively (i mean less downtime caused by moving the cursor).
I love seeing into other hunters. I may never be leet, but I do have some tricks. I have a 5 button mouse. One button on each side, 2 on top, and a wheel/button. I set it up a couple of ways. I am right handed. Left side button at my thumb is target enemy for PVE, and I can toggle through targets rapidly by clicking it. In PVP it is strafe left. The opposite side is strafe right. The wheel is back-up if pushed down. Then my left hand is purely for hitting shots and macros on my keyboard. They make mouses with more buttons, which I’d like because I’d like to always have targetenemy and strafe on my left side, and on my healz I’d like target friend and enemy always avaialble at the touch of my right thumb. Someday I’d also like to have a Nostromo or other game pad device for my left hand instead of a keyboard.