Everyone has been feared at least once in their time playing World of Warcraft.  Its effects give the caster a definite advantage of having you run about while he peppers you with magic. Most times, many people die to the DoTs or the dps while under the effect of fear, leading many to cry, "Overpowered!"

In asking for nerfs of the skill, some players have gone to an extreme, calling Blizzard posters biased and extremely defensive of the skill. A player named Dinnjin in WoW's European forums recently aired out his frustrations, asking why Vaneras had to keep defending fear. Vaneras replied that he wasn't defending the skill, but rather protecting forum users from people who cant follow forum guidelines. Vaneras also posted links that offered some light into the strengths and weaknesses of fear.

Fear's utility comes from the fact that not many things could break it. While direct damage and damage over time do cause fear to break early, the chances that they do aren't exactly that high. Warlocks in particular get the spotlight for using fear in conjunction with other skills such as seduce, howl of terror, deathcoil, allowing them to pull off a "fearlock." Well played locks can have their enemies kept in a constant state of fear and seduction, greatly increasing their chances of winning battles.

But every spell has its weakness. Like most status effect spells, it also suffers from diminishing returns. Repeated casting of the spell will eventually make it useless. Blizzard has also given other classes a whole bunch of answers to fear. Faction insignias, racial abilities such as Will of the Forsaken, skills like Cloak of Shadows and Deathwish; even spells such as Divine Shield and the mage's Ice Block are all effective counters. Unfortunately, the amount of spell power warlocks carry around today allows them to steamroll opponents in at least one casting.

As it goes, fear still strikes... well, fear into the hearts of many adventurers in the realms. Countering a fear spell cast on you would depend entirely up to how your playstyle would work. You can call on the many skills at your disposal, or simply avoid warlocks whenever you can. The choice is up to you, but it would be prudent to always have the faction insignia equipped when facing a caster with fear.