Post by Myre on Sept 27, 2015 23:09:53 GMT -6
Hello druid new and old.
The following is a comprehensive guide of playing a druid based on several current and former druids, druids from other private servers, along with tricks and tips to help improve you play. It is long, filled with plenty of nuance, and best consumed slowly and over time.
Enjoy!
Note, if you don't know where to turn for looking up items, specs, the like, AoWoW Database is the best source. Here's a link: db.vanillagaming.org/
Section I. The Basics
1. Jobs in raid
2. Secondary Roles
3. When to do what
Stats:
Feral:
X agility = X Crit
X agility = X Attack power
X agility = X flat dps increase
Y strength = Y weapon damage increase
Y weapon damage = Y flat dps increase
Boomkin:
X int = X crit
X int = X flat dps increase
Y Spirit = mp5
Z Spellpower = Z dps
Resto:
X int = X crit
X int = X flat hps increase
Y Spirit = mp5
Z Spellpower = Z hps
PICTURES!!!
People like pictures, and it makes the wall of texts easier to handle. Put in pictures of how to complete the druid quests, where to find important druidy things, etc.
Rotations and Doing Your Job:
What are druids good at? How are druids played? Burst, sustained, utility? Expand and generally talk about it.
Feral:
The ideal rotation is as follows:
.......
In practice, this often looks like this:
........
Whats the difference?
POWERSHIFTING GOES HERE
Talk about individual Spells. What are the spell coefficients? Which scale better? Do you ever stop using one versus the other?
Boomy:
The ideal rotation is as follows:
.......
In practice, this often looks like this:
........
Whats the difference?
When to put up what debuffs when / when not to take one of the 16 debuff slots.
Talk about individual Spells. What are the spell coefficients? Which scale better? Do you ever stop using one versus the other?
Resto:
The ideal rotation is as follows when healing the tank:
.......
In practice, this often looks like this:
........
Whats the difference?
When to put up what hots / when not to
Talk about individual Spells. What are the spell coefficients? Which scale better? Do you ever stop using one versus the other?
DOWNRANKING GOES HERE
Binds:
Keybinds are important. If you don't use them, you should. The difference between clicking and pressing buttons cannot be understated: it is massive. Why? Two reasons: 1) Moving your mouse takes time, and unless you're supremely quick with it, you're going to be late, and 2) Because when you're clicking, your eyes are focused on your action bars, not on the fight around you. If you're clicking, you're also very likely to be dying to fire, killing people with plague, or otherwise not performing as well as you should be. Don't click.
Binding all of your keys at once, might seem overwhelming, and it can be. However, I would still recommend binding everything you can manage at once, and then slowly learning the main buttons. After that, expand to some of the tricks and toys and throw potions into the mix. Lastly, you don't have to bind "everything." In a fight, you may only use 2 different types of consumables for instance, but that may vary from fight to fight. Feel free to move things around on your bars as the situation requires.
This next section is completely up to personal taste, but here's how I've bound my keys:
1: ....Shift....
2: ....Shift....
3: ....Shift....
4: ....Shift....
5: ....Shift....
R: ....Shift....
Q: ....Shift....
T: ....Shift....
E: ....Shift....
F: ....Shift....
Z: ....Shift....
G: ....Shift....
Shift S: ....Shift....
V: ....Shift....
Shift C: ....Shift....
`: ....Shift....
Shift Z: ....Shift....
I also use a Naga Razor for all the macros, aspects, tracking, mounts, and toys that I have, which gives me another 24 keys to play with. If you don't have a Naga, use the same format, but use another modify key (such as Control or Alt) and continue the pattern.
Here is a picture of the bottom two rows:
Picture of your binds here:
Section II. The Spec
The Basic Specs:
Feral:
PICTURE
This spec is your go-to when starting out. As a druid with very little gear, your job is to ... You also need to make sure you are getting as much hit as possible, as the majority of your damage comes from Auto attacks, and if you're missing any of those, you're losing major damage points.
There are X areas of flexibility in the build. Expand.
The in-depth spec guide can be found here.... Talk about when you would swap specs. Make a second thread for the specs (with pictures!).
Boomy:
PICTURE
This spec is your go-to when starting out. As a druid with very little gear, your job is to ... You also need to make sure you are getting as much hit as possible, as the majority of your damage comes from casts, and if you're missing any of those, you're losing major damage points.
There are X areas of flexibility in the build. Expand.
The in-depth spec guide can be found here.... Talk about when you would swap specs. Make a second thread for the specs (with pictures!).
Resto:
PICTURE
This spec is your go-to when starting out. As a druid with very little gear, your job is to ... You also need to make sure you are getting as much spellpower as possible, as the majority of your healing comes from using down-ranked heals which scale the best, for the mana, with the spellpower increases.
There are X areas of flexibility in the build. Expand.
The in-depth spec guide can be found here.... Talk about when you would swap specs. Make a second thread for the specs (with pictures!).
Section III. The Gear
How you should read this section: "I'm going to try to get the first item in each list, but if I cannot easily, I will get the second, and then the third." Do not jump straight to the third, as you will miss out on a lot of important stats and will be doing very little for the raid.
Feral:
Items:
Head - 1
Neck - 1
2
Shoulder - 1
2
3
4
Back - 1
2
Chest - 1
2
Wrist - 1
2
Gloves -1
2
Waist - 1
2
Legs - 1
2
Boots - 1
1.Ring - 1
2.Ring - 1
2
1.Trinket- 1
2.Trinket - 1
3.Trinket - 1
2
Weapon - 1
2
3
Idol - 1
2
Boomy:
Items:
Head - 1
Neck - 1
2
Shoulder - 1
2
3
4
Back - 1
2
Chest - 1
2
Wrist - 1
2
Gloves -1
2
Waist - 1
2
Legs - 1
2
Boots - 1
1.Ring - 1
2.Ring - 1
2
1.Trinket- 1
2.Trinket - 1
3.Trinket - 1
2
Weapon - 1
2
3
Idol - 1
2
Resto:
Items:
Head - 1
Neck - 1
2
Shoulder - 1
2
3
4
Back - 1
2
Chest - 1
2
Wrist - 1
2
Gloves -1
2
Waist - 1
2
Legs - 1
2
Boots - 1
1.Ring - 1
2.Ring - 1
2
1.Trinket- 1
2.Trinket - 1
3.Trinket - 1
2
Weapon - 1
2
3
Idol - 1
2
Donations:
Vanillagaming supports donating, and if you're willing to spend a few dollars or euro, you can save yourself a lot of time and energy.
Must-have items for 0-5 Euro Range.
Feral:
Boomy:
Resto:
Must-have items for 5-10 Euro Range.
Feral:
Boomy:
Resto:
Must-have items for 15+ Euro Range.
Feral:
Boomy:
Resto:
Books:
AQ20 Druid Books:
You can find all of these on the AH (usually) but they are pricey. A few runs of AQ and you should also have them.
Enchants:
ZG idols are also fantastic for SOME druid specs (not boomy).... Get them as soon as possible.
Section IV. Raiding as a Hunter
Raiding as a druid is relatively easy, although there are important elements. You should come prepared to each raid with X and Y and make sure you're doing Z, which is likely to come with a bit of practice. Here are the required elements for raiding:
Items:
Kiting certain mobs can be challenging, and these items make it a lot easier to pull off. Especially useful if AQ40 if you're asked to kite.
EXAMPLES:
Goblin Rocket Boots - Speed boost (Required)
Nifty Stopwatch - Speed Boost (Recommended)
Skull of Impending Doom - Speed Boost, Causes Damage / Drains Mana (Recommended)
Consumables:
Consumables are very important . Take the time to farm / buy these on the AH before each raid. I recommend 10 Mongoose, 2 Flasks, 10 Mageblood, 10 Mongoose, 10 Mana Potions, 5 Dark Runes. You may not use them all, but you may need to, and you don't want to be "that guy" who didn't pop consumables on the 1% boss wipe. We don't like that guy.
Elixir of the Mongoose - 25 Agility, 2% Crit (Required)
Flask of Distilled Wisdom - 500 Mana (Required)
Mageblood Potion - 12 MP5 (Required)
Mana Potions - Restores Mana (Required)
Swiftness Potions - Speed Boost (Required)
Dark/Deamonic Runes - Restores Mana, Different CD to Mana Potions (Recommended)
Juju Might - 40 Attack Power, For Self and Pet (Recommended)
Agility/Strength Scrolls - For Pet (Optional: Recommended for BM)
Juju Power - 30 Strength, For Pet (Optional)
Limited Invulnerability Potions - Temporary Immunity (Optional, useful for kiting)
Petfood (REQUIRED)
Arrows / Ammunition (REQUIRED)
Water (REQUIRED)
etc.
etc.
etc.
If you ever find yourself at the Darkmoon Faire looking for the buff, the correct sequence is 1-1. Healing sequence is X-X. Boomy sequence is Y-Y
Macros:
POWERSHIFTING MACROS
ONE BUTTON DPS MACROS
BATTLE REZ ANNOUNCER MACROS
Regards,
Myre
Guild Master of Reign, Hunter Class Leader
Last Updated: September 27, 2015
The following is a comprehensive guide of playing a druid based on several current and former druids, druids from other private servers, along with tricks and tips to help improve you play. It is long, filled with plenty of nuance, and best consumed slowly and over time.
Enjoy!
Note, if you don't know where to turn for looking up items, specs, the like, AoWoW Database is the best source. Here's a link: db.vanillagaming.org/
Section I. The Basics
1. Jobs in raid
2. Secondary Roles
3. When to do what
Stats:
Feral:
X agility = X Crit
X agility = X Attack power
X agility = X flat dps increase
Y strength = Y weapon damage increase
Y weapon damage = Y flat dps increase
Boomkin:
X int = X crit
X int = X flat dps increase
Y Spirit = mp5
Z Spellpower = Z dps
Resto:
X int = X crit
X int = X flat hps increase
Y Spirit = mp5
Z Spellpower = Z hps
PICTURES!!!
People like pictures, and it makes the wall of texts easier to handle. Put in pictures of how to complete the druid quests, where to find important druidy things, etc.
Rotations and Doing Your Job:
What are druids good at? How are druids played? Burst, sustained, utility? Expand and generally talk about it.
Feral:
The ideal rotation is as follows:
.......
In practice, this often looks like this:
........
Whats the difference?
POWERSHIFTING GOES HERE
Talk about individual Spells. What are the spell coefficients? Which scale better? Do you ever stop using one versus the other?
Boomy:
The ideal rotation is as follows:
.......
In practice, this often looks like this:
........
Whats the difference?
When to put up what debuffs when / when not to take one of the 16 debuff slots.
Talk about individual Spells. What are the spell coefficients? Which scale better? Do you ever stop using one versus the other?
Resto:
The ideal rotation is as follows when healing the tank:
.......
In practice, this often looks like this:
........
Whats the difference?
When to put up what hots / when not to
Talk about individual Spells. What are the spell coefficients? Which scale better? Do you ever stop using one versus the other?
DOWNRANKING GOES HERE
Binds:
Keybinds are important. If you don't use them, you should. The difference between clicking and pressing buttons cannot be understated: it is massive. Why? Two reasons: 1) Moving your mouse takes time, and unless you're supremely quick with it, you're going to be late, and 2) Because when you're clicking, your eyes are focused on your action bars, not on the fight around you. If you're clicking, you're also very likely to be dying to fire, killing people with plague, or otherwise not performing as well as you should be. Don't click.
Binding all of your keys at once, might seem overwhelming, and it can be. However, I would still recommend binding everything you can manage at once, and then slowly learning the main buttons. After that, expand to some of the tricks and toys and throw potions into the mix. Lastly, you don't have to bind "everything." In a fight, you may only use 2 different types of consumables for instance, but that may vary from fight to fight. Feel free to move things around on your bars as the situation requires.
This next section is completely up to personal taste, but here's how I've bound my keys:
1: ....Shift....
2: ....Shift....
3: ....Shift....
4: ....Shift....
5: ....Shift....
R: ....Shift....
Q: ....Shift....
T: ....Shift....
E: ....Shift....
F: ....Shift....
Z: ....Shift....
G: ....Shift....
Shift S: ....Shift....
V: ....Shift....
Shift C: ....Shift....
`: ....Shift....
Shift Z: ....Shift....
I also use a Naga Razor for all the macros, aspects, tracking, mounts, and toys that I have, which gives me another 24 keys to play with. If you don't have a Naga, use the same format, but use another modify key (such as Control or Alt) and continue the pattern.
Here is a picture of the bottom two rows:
Picture of your binds here:
Section II. The Spec
The Basic Specs:
Feral:
PICTURE
This spec is your go-to when starting out. As a druid with very little gear, your job is to ... You also need to make sure you are getting as much hit as possible, as the majority of your damage comes from Auto attacks, and if you're missing any of those, you're losing major damage points.
There are X areas of flexibility in the build. Expand.
The in-depth spec guide can be found here.... Talk about when you would swap specs. Make a second thread for the specs (with pictures!).
Boomy:
PICTURE
This spec is your go-to when starting out. As a druid with very little gear, your job is to ... You also need to make sure you are getting as much hit as possible, as the majority of your damage comes from casts, and if you're missing any of those, you're losing major damage points.
There are X areas of flexibility in the build. Expand.
The in-depth spec guide can be found here.... Talk about when you would swap specs. Make a second thread for the specs (with pictures!).
Resto:
PICTURE
This spec is your go-to when starting out. As a druid with very little gear, your job is to ... You also need to make sure you are getting as much spellpower as possible, as the majority of your healing comes from using down-ranked heals which scale the best, for the mana, with the spellpower increases.
There are X areas of flexibility in the build. Expand.
The in-depth spec guide can be found here.... Talk about when you would swap specs. Make a second thread for the specs (with pictures!).
Section III. The Gear
How you should read this section: "I'm going to try to get the first item in each list, but if I cannot easily, I will get the second, and then the third." Do not jump straight to the third, as you will miss out on a lot of important stats and will be doing very little for the raid.
Feral:
Items:
Head - 1
Neck - 1
2
Shoulder - 1
2
3
4
Back - 1
2
Chest - 1
2
Wrist - 1
2
Gloves -1
2
Waist - 1
2
Legs - 1
2
Boots - 1
1.Ring - 1
2.Ring - 1
2
1.Trinket- 1
2.Trinket - 1
3.Trinket - 1
2
Weapon - 1
2
3
Idol - 1
2
Boomy:
Items:
Head - 1
Neck - 1
2
Shoulder - 1
2
3
4
Back - 1
2
Chest - 1
2
Wrist - 1
2
Gloves -1
2
Waist - 1
2
Legs - 1
2
Boots - 1
1.Ring - 1
2.Ring - 1
2
1.Trinket- 1
2.Trinket - 1
3.Trinket - 1
2
Weapon - 1
2
3
Idol - 1
2
Resto:
Items:
Head - 1
Neck - 1
2
Shoulder - 1
2
3
4
Back - 1
2
Chest - 1
2
Wrist - 1
2
Gloves -1
2
Waist - 1
2
Legs - 1
2
Boots - 1
1.Ring - 1
2.Ring - 1
2
1.Trinket- 1
2.Trinket - 1
3.Trinket - 1
2
Weapon - 1
2
3
Idol - 1
2
Donations:
Vanillagaming supports donating, and if you're willing to spend a few dollars or euro, you can save yourself a lot of time and energy.
Must-have items for 0-5 Euro Range.
Feral:
Boomy:
Resto:
Must-have items for 5-10 Euro Range.
Feral:
Boomy:
Resto:
Must-have items for 15+ Euro Range.
Feral:
Boomy:
Resto:
Books:
AQ20 Druid Books:
You can find all of these on the AH (usually) but they are pricey. A few runs of AQ and you should also have them.
Enchants:
ZG idols are also fantastic for SOME druid specs (not boomy).... Get them as soon as possible.
Section IV. Raiding as a Hunter
Raiding as a druid is relatively easy, although there are important elements. You should come prepared to each raid with X and Y and make sure you're doing Z, which is likely to come with a bit of practice. Here are the required elements for raiding:
Items:
Kiting certain mobs can be challenging, and these items make it a lot easier to pull off. Especially useful if AQ40 if you're asked to kite.
EXAMPLES:
Goblin Rocket Boots - Speed boost (Required)
Nifty Stopwatch - Speed Boost (Recommended)
Skull of Impending Doom - Speed Boost, Causes Damage / Drains Mana (Recommended)
Consumables:
Consumables are very important . Take the time to farm / buy these on the AH before each raid. I recommend 10 Mongoose, 2 Flasks, 10 Mageblood, 10 Mongoose, 10 Mana Potions, 5 Dark Runes. You may not use them all, but you may need to, and you don't want to be "that guy" who didn't pop consumables on the 1% boss wipe. We don't like that guy.
Elixir of the Mongoose - 25 Agility, 2% Crit (Required)
Flask of Distilled Wisdom - 500 Mana (Required)
Mageblood Potion - 12 MP5 (Required)
Mana Potions - Restores Mana (Required)
Swiftness Potions - Speed Boost (Required)
Dark/Deamonic Runes - Restores Mana, Different CD to Mana Potions (Recommended)
Juju Might - 40 Attack Power, For Self and Pet (Recommended)
Agility/Strength Scrolls - For Pet (Optional: Recommended for BM)
Juju Power - 30 Strength, For Pet (Optional)
Limited Invulnerability Potions - Temporary Immunity (Optional, useful for kiting)
Petfood (REQUIRED)
Arrows / Ammunition (REQUIRED)
Water (REQUIRED)
etc.
etc.
etc.
If you ever find yourself at the Darkmoon Faire looking for the buff, the correct sequence is 1-1. Healing sequence is X-X. Boomy sequence is Y-Y
Macros:
POWERSHIFTING MACROS
ONE BUTTON DPS MACROS
BATTLE REZ ANNOUNCER MACROS
Regards,
Myre
Guild Master of Reign, Hunter Class Leader
Last Updated: September 27, 2015
