Table of content:
1. Leveling Spec
2. Talents
3. Abilities and Rotations.
4. Tips
5. Stats
6. Heirloom Gear
7. Totem Quests
8. Glyphs
9. Addons--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Leveling Spec
The by far best (solo) leveling spec for Shaman is Enhancement. This is because it's the most mana efficient tree there is (all class-specs included), while it still maintains a high damage output. In fact, an Enhancement Shaman deals the most damage compared to the mana usage (with duel wield that is). This only counts after level 40 though. So before that, you might want to try Elemental. Elemental is our casting spec. With it, we boost our Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning, Shocks and Totems.
I will write an Elemental leveling guide later on but it will take some time, so meanwhile; browsing at the Wowhead forums brought me a guide for elemental leveling. Read CanadianSnipers' Elemental Leveling Guide if you choose to level as Elemental. That guide can take you all the way to level 80.
If you want to level as Enhancement all the way, then read further. Otherwise... You can always pick this guide up from level 40 and get some gear from the Auction House(?). You can also start gathering "Enhancement gear" before you're level 40 though.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2. Talents
10 - 14: Ancestral Knowledge - 5/5.
15 - 19: Thundering Strikes - 5/5
20 - 20: Shamanistic Focus - 1/1
21 - 22: Improved Ghost Wolf - 2/2
23 - 24: Elemental Weapons (only 2) - 2/3
25 - 29: Flurry - 5/5
30 - 30: Spirit Weapons - 1/1
31 - 33: Mental Dexterity - 3/3
34 - 34: Elemental Weapons - 3/3.
35 - 37: Unleashed Rage - 3/3
38 - 39: Weapon Mastery (only 2) - 2/3
40 - 40: Stormstrike - 1/1
41 - 41: Dual Wield - 1/1
42 - 44: Dual Wield Specialization - 3/3
45 - 45: Lava Lash - 1/1
46 - 47: Improved Stormstrike - 2/2
48 - 49: Static Shock (only 2) - 2/3
50 - 50: Shamanistic Rage - 1/1
51 - 51: Static Shock - 3/3
52 - 54: Mental Quickness - 3/3
55 - 59: Maelstrom Weapon - 5/5
60 - 60: Feral Spirit - 1/1
TALENT BUILD UNTIL 60: 0/51/0==> Elemental
61 - 65: Concussion - 5/5
66 - 68: Elemental Devastation - 3/3
69 - 70: Elemental Warding (only 2) - 2/3
71 - 75: Elemental Fury - 5/5
76 - 76: Elemental Focus - 1/1
77 - 80: Reverberation (only 4) - 4/5
FINAL TALENT BUILD: 20/51/0--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. Abilities and Rotations
Always take weapons with the highest min/max. damage range. These are usually slow weapons.
1 - 9:
- Until you gain Earth Shock, simply spam Lightning Bolt.
- When you get Earth Shock, keep casting Lightning Bolt until your target is in melee range. Then start using Earth Shock and auto attack.
- Aways keep up Lightning Shield (it has 3 stacks).
- Enchant your weapon with Rockbiter.
- Use the best DPS weapon, be it a 1h + shield or 2H (the slow weapon part does not apply here, because we don't have Windfury yet)Rotation: Auto attack + Earth Shock. Pull with Lightning Bolt. Always keep up Lightning Shield.
10 - 19:
- Same as above but:
- Use Flametongue instead of Rockbiter.
- You might want to use a fast weapon, so that Flametongue hits more (which does more damage than it would on a slow weapon).See AlsoEnhancement Shaman Leveling Guide From 1 to 80 for WotLK ClassicWotLK Classic Shaman Leveling Guide - WotLK Classic - Warcraft TavernPvE Restoration Shaman Healer Guide - WotLK Classic - Warcraft TavernWotLK Shaman Guide - Ele (Level 80)Rotation: Lightning Bolt, until the mob is near you, then spam Earth Shock while auto attacking. Again, always keep up Lightning Shield.
20 - 29:
From now on, we will be using a method I like to call ÔÇÿShield TwistingÔÇÖ. All you have to do is keep a balance between Lightning Shield and Water Shield. Water Shield gives mana, but more than what we need. Lightning Shield gives free damage when you are hitRotation: Lightning Bolt, until the mob is near you, then spam Earth Shock while auto attacking.
30 - 39:
- Use the Windfury weapon enchant.
- Always take a 2H weapon with a speed of 3.0 or more.
- Don't forget the Shield Twisting method.Rotation: Pull with Lightning Bolt, then Auto attack + Earth Shock.
40 - 49:
Okay, so you've finally made it to level 40. Ready to rock? Because now we get our key abilities: Dual Wield, Stormstrike and Lava Lash. The fun can now begin!- Keep yourself from dual wielding before level 44, because otherwise you will simply "miss" too much without the +hit talents.
- Keep Windfury on both weapons (after level 44).Rotation: Stormstrike > Earth Shock > Lava Lash > Shield Twist.
Note: Although I call this a rotation; youÔÇÖll notice that after a while, youÔÇÖll simply be using the first ability that pops up from the cooldown. That's why from now on you'll see "priority list" instead of "rotation".
50 - 75:
As explained above, youÔÇÖll now have a priority list rather than a rotation.- Use Shamanistic Rage when you're out of mana.
- Again, donÔÇÖt forget the Shield Twisting method.Priority list: Stormstrike > Earth Shock > Lava Lash.
Whenever you have 4/5 or 5/5 Mealstrom Weapon, use Lightning Bolt or Chain Lightning, (use Chain Lightning preferrably only on AoE). Try to have the Stormstrike debuff on the target before pulling this one out. You should try to this when there is a gap between your cooldowns.
75 - 80:
- Use Windfury weapon enchant on main hand and Flametongue on your off-hand. You should still take a slow off-hand, because Stormstrike, Lava Lash and Windfury will still be used.
- Use Shamanistic Rage at 40% mana, or at least close to. Always use it when youÔÇÖre about to start a fight, since it ÔÇÿprocsÔÇÖ from attacks, youÔÇÖll want to make the most of it every time you use it.
- Again, donÔÇÖt forget the Shield Twisting method.
- Again, do a 5/5 Mealstrom Weapon when their is a gap between your cooldowns.Priority list: Stormstrike > Earthshock > Lava Lash.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. Tips
Instances:
- Use Earthliving if you know you are going to heal in an instance.
- Whenever you are at a boss fight, drop: Strenght of Earth, Flametongue totem, Windfury Totem and Healing/Mana stream totem.[/b]Solo:
- Just heal yourself with Lesser Healing Wave whenever you need to heal. Once you get Maelstrom Weapon, use that to get instant/short Healing Waves (or Lightning Bolt/Chain Lightning)
- If you're multi-pulling, use Stoneclaw Totem to crowd control.
- You can also pop your Spirit Wolves to help with packs, since they can heal you.Professions:
The best options money wise are Skinning/Mining because they make lots of money on the Auction House. Skinning also gives critical strike rating and mining gives extra stamina, which scales with buffs like Blessing of Kings. These bonuses are small and don't make almost any difference in end-game, so these professions are completely option.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. Stats
In the following order: Stamina > Agility >Intellect > ManaPer5Sec > Strength.
1. Stamina: Increases your maximum amount of health.
2. Agility Increases your amount of Attack Power and adds to your Critical strike chance.
3. Intellect: Increases your maximum amount of mana. It also adds to your spell critical strike chance. - Pretty much needed for everything and even increases your attack power thanks to the talent, Mental Dexterity.
4. Mana Per 5 Seconds: You won't see this a lot until Outland, but Water Shield gives this as well. It basically gives you a certain amount of mana every five seconds. But since patch 3.0 the mana gained from it flows in very smoothly. The the term "MP/5" is still used however.5. Strength: Increases your Attack Power. - Since Shamans started gaining Attack Power from Agility and Intellect as well, this stat has become more or less useless. Let's just say that this stat is not a bad stat to take, but you should definitively aim for the ones above instead.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. Heirloom Gear.
"Heirlooms bind to the account, as opposed to an individual character. This means they can be mailed to any character that shares the same account and server, including those of opposing faction."
For more information about Heirloom items, go to: http://www.wowwiki.com/Heirloom [STRONGLY suggested]VPs -> Vote Points
Champion Herod's Shoulder - Shoulder -> 50VPs
Champion's Deathdealer Breastplate - Chest -> 50VPs
Devout Aurastone Hammer/tp Venerable Mass of McGowan - 1h Mace(s) -> 50VPs each
Swift Hand of Justice/Discerning Eye of the Beast - Trinkets -> 50VPs eachHere I will show some gear you can pick up while leveling, although this guide is aimed at solo gameplay, going to an instance or two isn't a bad idea.
Weapons & Shield's
Combinations have the same color, and are under each other.
10 - 20:
Lvl 15 - 2H - Rhahk'Zor's Hammer Lvl 18 - 2H - Taskmaster Axe
20 - 30:
Lvl 20 - 2H - Arced War Axe Lvl 20 - 1H - Butcher's Cleaver Lvl 20 - Shield - Commander's Crest Lvl 27 - 2H - Corpsemaker Lvl 27 - Shield - Heart of Agamaggan Lvl 30 - 1H - Pronged Reaver
30 - 40:
Lvl 37 - 2H - Ravager Lvl 35 - 1H - Mallet of Zul'Farrak, Note: you can get this weapon at level 35, but this thing is very powerful. It can last 'till Outland. Imo, this weapon is a good choice you won't regret - Thanks to Lycander for letting me know about this weapon.
40 - 50, you can Dual Wield now.
Lvl 43 - 1H - The Hand of Antu'sul Lvl 45 - 1H - Ripsaw
50 - 60:
Lvl 51 - 1H - Coldforged Hammer Lvl 50 - 1H - Grizzle's Skinner [A]Lvl 60 - 1H - Grand Marshal's Handaxe [H]Lvl 60 - 1H - High Warlord's Bludgeon
For more items, use http://www.wowhead.com/--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8. Totem Quests
Call of Earth.
The earth totem quest for Orcs/Trolls
The earth totem quest for Taurens
The earth totem quest for Draenei's
Call of Fire
The fire totem quest for Orcs/Trolls
The fire totem quest for Draenei's
The fire totem quest for Tauren's
Call of Water
The water totem quest for Orcs/Trolls
The water totem quest for Taurens
The water totem quest for Draenei's
Call of Air
The air totem quest for Orcs/Trolls
The air totem quest for Taurens
If you by accident accept the quest that teleports you to the top of a mountain, don't be afraid; just jump off the wooden plank and you will get teleported back to the quest giver!
The air totem quest for Draenei's--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9. Glyphs
Click here for a full list of Shaman glyphs.
Major Glyphs:
Glyph of Lightning Shield
Glyph of Stormstrike
Glyph of Shocking or Glyph of Water Mastery - Your choice.
Minor Glyphs:
Glyph of Water Shield
Glyph of Water Walking
Glyph of Ghost Wolf or Glyph of Water Breathing - Again, your choice.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10. Addons
Some shaman specific addons:
Call of Elements - It's an addon that creates new bars for your totems, tells you when your totems are going to expire and/or are destroyed, and when your weapon enchant expires.
ShieldsUp - It's an addon that helps you with refreshing your shields by telling you when your Water/Lightning/Earth Shield fades.
Windfury Cooldown Timer - This addon shows you the invisible cooldown of Windfury. If you want, you can use Stormstrike or Lava Lash so that it can proc Windfury.
