Kiting

To Kite or kiting is a combat tactic of a player character keeping a mob or another player at a certain distance, usually out of melee distance but within ranged attack, and luring the pursuer toward your direction while dealing damage at the same time. This is a tactic best suited for classes who deal most of their damage from range and are weak in melee range. Mages and Hunters are probably the classes who rely on this technique the most.

The term comes from the fact that the player character is pulling along a trailing mob in the same manner a person flies a kite.

Kiting 101

1. Snare or root the mob from range
2. Attack mob from range until mob enters your melee range (or range you feel comfortable with)
3. Use snare or root (generally melee range snare/root)
4. Run back to range
5. Repeat

Additional Notes

• Snaring spells are useful for this tactic since they keep the pursuer at a certain distance. Although rooting abilities fill this requirement, the slowing movement effect from snaring spells last longer than rooting spells. Moreover, snare effects do not risk the chance of breaking if the target get any damage unlike most rooting spells.
• This tactic requires room to run. If you don't have the room due to adds or environmental restrictions (ie you are indoors), you will not be able to kite since you will be unable to gain the range you need.
• Since you will be running around a lot, be careful of adds.
• In World of Warcraft, mobs will run back to their spawn area if they are kited too far without taking damage. They also regenerate to full health and mana once they return. So when kiting you will want damage them consistently in order to maintain the mobs interest.
• A video exists which apparently shows a group pulling a Devilsaur from Un'Goro Crater to Crossroads in The Barrens by way of a complex kite.
• There is also a video of Lord Kazzak being kited to Stormwind, in order to wreak havoc on the city. Unfortunately, Kazzak is no longer kiteable, being chained. Another example of raid kiting is Azuregos kited to Orgrimmar, here.
  • Note that kiting (raid) bosses to heavily populated areas such as faction capitals, most likely resulting in a large number of characters being unwillingly involved (in an encounter), is a punishable offence in the eyes of Blizzard.