Warlock Spec?

[Coop]

Alright, so what is the cookie cutter build for arena? Main focus would be 5v5, and some 3v3. I've seen 28/33 a lot, is that the best?

[Iceweaver]

its really going to depend on your team line up. If in games you tend to be tbe focus id go SL fer sure and if you are not being the focus you should go afflict.

Again, it really depends what your team wants out of you.
a tank with dots
or dmg and dots

[kyoshi]

for 5v5 not really. its more like destro cause of the burst.

[Kcolraw]

it depends on what team makeup you run with

[Agnos]

I agree that it has alot to do with what group you run with, but I'd stress equally (if not more importantly) what you're comfortable with, and who you're playing (or likely to play) against.

Personally, I've forced myself to get good at alot of specs, from 27/34 (and variants) and 17/33/11 + Felguard Soul Link to UA affliction builds and Destruction (mainly for 5v5, but not exclusively, and going from ~22/5/34 to 0/16/45 etc), but the builds I do best with are generally the ones I'm most comfortable with (13/37/11 and 17/33/11 in my case).

If you're playing with a fire mage and a rogue in 3v3, I wouldn't go a soul link drain spec, for example, and if you're playing with 2 healers, i wouldn't go destruction, whereas if you're with 3 other magical dps in 5v5, or a shadowpriest in 2v2 the usual choice is 41+/x/x.

By the same notion, if your battlegroup is populated mainly with paladin/warrior/shaman or paladin/warrior/priest teams in the 3v3 bracket in your rating range, you probably want to consider playing (and gearing for) affliction, whereas if it's mainly warlock/mage/healer teams, you probably want to be 27/34 (or a variant of the drain spec), etc.

[Forensic]

For 5v5 if you are with a shadowpriest, go UA if you like that spec. If you don't have a shadow priest, and instead an elemental shaman or Frost mage, I would prefer some SL variant over UA. But that is just me