Notice: After The Burning Crusade was released I only remained restoration until level 64. Afterwards, and since then, I’ve been playing as feral. Because of that this guide is outdated with pre-TBC info, because I don’t really have experience on anything new (or more like I wouldn’t be able to write something as good as I wrote in the past). Unless I respec (which doesn’t seem likely for now) this guide might not get a theory update. If it does, I’ll announce it in the front page, tho.
Index
PI. Introduction
PII. Addons
PIII. Gear
PIV. Stats
PV. Supplies
PVI. Builds
PVII. Tips
PVIII. Disclaimer
PIX. Revision History
PI. Introduction
From World of Warcraft’s Druid Class:
Druids are the keepers of the world. Locked in slumber for generations, they awoke to meet the threat of the Burning Legion during its recent invasion. After Archimonde’s defeat, the Druids chose to remain in the waking world and help to rebuild their shattered lands. The Legion’s attack left a terrible scar on the natural order, and the Druids seek to heal it.
The Druid gives players several play style options. A Druid in normal form is a caster that can fight with spells or weapons. In Bear form the Druid becomes a Warrior with Rage. While in Cat form the Druid becomes a Rogue with Energy and stealth. The Druid can also transform into two other special animal forms. With its ability to heal itself and fellow characters, the Druid can also take on the role of a Priest. A Druid is not as versatile in its abilities as a Priest is, lacking the spells Power Word: Shield and Resurrection, but is otherwise a very capable healer.
This guide will focus mainly on the healing side of a druid. My character, Gahlok, is a druid that has leveled most of the time on instances, and even tho I don’t consider myself as the best druid (I still have to learn), I can say that I can defend myself pretty well.
A good druid is one that knows the advantages of his class, and also is aware (and admits) the weaknesses within his class. The advantage of Druids is how versatile they are, they can do many things at the same time, they aren’t the “best”, but they are some kind of Jack-of-all-Trades. To avoid ranting all over, lets keep on topic.
On a healing point of view,
Advantages of a Druid.
- Healings over Time are the best of any other class. These would be Rejuvenation, an Instant Cast spell, and Regrowth, a spell that crits often (with talents).
- The only Combat Rezzing spell, called Rebirth. After one of the latest patches (prolly 1.10), it can be used with Nature’s Swiftness, and make it an instant spell.
- Innervate, that lets you regenerate mana at a faster rate, and can be used on the druid or on any other target (like a Priest).
- We use Leather items, which provide more armor than Cloth items (compared to priests).
Barkskin, a spell that avoids spell interruption caused by damage. - The ability of being able to shapeshift, as the situation fits. The group wiped, there are respawns, what’s better than stealthing and being able to rez?
- Mark of the Wild / Gift of the Wild is, according to Blizzard, one of the most powerful buffs in the game.
Disadvantages of a Druid.
- On caster form, we don’t have any kind of spell that can reduce our aggro, at least not like a priest that has Fade.
- Our spells, compared to a Priest, take too long. Our best spell, with talents, can take up to three seconds (Nature’s Touch), while Regrowth takes 2 seconds.
- Regrowth is a mana killer; takes too much mana and doesn’t heal as much as a Healing Touch.
- Our AoE Healing Spell (Tranquility) doesn’t work in the same way as a Priest; ours is channeled, theirs is instant.
- Depending on the items, usually druids have a lower mana pool than a priest, and usually we run out of mana faster.
PII. Addons
No addon is essential for healing, but they are really helpful and make it just “easier”. Keep in mind that by just having them it won’t mean that you will be a pro healing, still, you will need skills, in other words, they are just tools, and it will all depend on the blacksmith that uses it 
The addons listed doesn’t have a specific order. Always keep your addons updated. Two good places to find more addons would be ui.worldofwar.net and curse-gaming.com.
CT_RaidAssist
One of the most useful addons for healers, it shows your entire raid, and you can customize what you want it to show. It could also be one of the most used addons as well. And it doesn’t only show things that may be useful for healers, but also sends you alerts on boss fights, etc. etc.
Decursive
This is still being updated, by a different author, and still works. It’s as easy as installing it, then making a macro with /decursive or you can also use a keybinding. If you want to configure it a bit more, just /dcrshow
Titan Panel
Titan Panel has many useful things, but one of the most important ones is that it has a module called Item Bonuses, that lets you know, very easily, your Healing Power and Mana Regen/5 seconds.
ItemRack
Maybe one of the best addons I’ve ever seen, this lets you have different sets of items, and by just clicking on the icon, you change automatically every piece of it, instead of having to do one by one. Compared to others, like Wardrobe, ItemRack doesn’t have any kind of dependencies, in other words, ItemRack doesn’t need any other thing for it to work.
Druid Bar
Adds an extra bar to your portait, letting you know your current mana when you are shapeshifted (if it’s needed).
P e r l Classic Unit Frames
An enhanced Unit Frame, Party Frame, Target Frame, etc. It’s very customizable.
Omni Cooldown Count
Lets you view, easily, how long is left for your spells to be ready (those spells that have a cooldown). It also shows spells that are used on macros.
Natur EnemyCastBar
A very nice addon that gives you bars with timers, like when you throw a Rejuvenation or Regrowth on someone, so you can have an idea of when it will run out. It also works on bosses and stuff like that.
UseByName
It’s an addon for macros, lets you make macros as easy as
/target Charname
/usebyname Bandage
So it uses anything in the inventory that has “Bandage” on it, for example, regardless of the position in the inventory.
KLHThreatMeter
It gives you an idea of your threat, individually or your threat ranking on the raid. Only useful if more than one is using it in the raid, tho.
TheoryCraft
It overwrites your tooltip with information, taking your bonuses into consideration.
HitsMode
An enhanced combat log, makes it easier to see things.
Scrolling Combat Text
It shows different information around your character. The latest version shows for how much you heal, for how much you overheal, and also shows who’s healing you. Pretty nifty.
BigWigs
A more complete Boss Announce addon, it has many really nice features, really recommended.
PIII. Gear
There are so many items in Azeroth that would make the list pretty long. But, lets make it easier.
If you want to be an effective healer, don’t even bother getting Wildheart Set (Tier 0), the bonuses aren’t even worth the effort at all. The best loot, instance-wise, is dropped in Dire Maul, located in Feralas. This is a five-man instance that has three sides: East, West and North. There are also a few items in other instances, but most of them are in Dire Maul. Lets make a short stop to explain the sides, even tho they won’t provide information about the gear, it will help you know the area so you are able to go and get your items.
Dire Maul East
East side is the easiest of all. Mobs here are plants and demons. Most of the times, the people that do East side are only going for boss hunts, which is nice: a full boss run can take around 45 minutes, depending in how fast the group can move, and a druid can main-heal on this side. A paladin might be wanted for rezzes tho. An example of the awesome loot you can get on this side is Ring of Demonic Guile. This ring isn’t unique.
Dire Maul West
In my opinion, the West side is the hardest of all, because there aren’t many ways to crowd control mobs here and also because mobs here hurt a lot. A druid might be able to main-heal, but I would recommend having a Priest because they can shackle. Mobs on this side are plants and also undead, and some of the undeads have an AoE that damage a lot of people (I think it’s a cone effect or something). An example of the awesome loot you can get on this side is Mindtap Talisman. This trinklet isn’t unique.
Dire Maul North
This side is one of the easiest as well because mobs here are beasts and humanoids. That being said, a druid can easily main-heal on this side. It’s recommended to have a Mage, Rogue and/or Hunter for crowd control. There are two different types of runs that can be made: Boss run and Tribute run. The boss run involves killing the guards and, well, basically any boss there, but the loot won’t be the same as doing a Tribute, that involves bypassing all the guards and only killing the king. An example of the awesome loot you can get on this side is the Insightful Hood
PIV. Stats
As a healer, there’s two kind of things that can benefit druids: +healing and +mana/5seconds. There have been many discussions of which one is better, in my opinion, it may depend in your healing style. Lets explain it a bit, from my point of view. Before continuing, keep in mind that having just a bit of these won’t help at all. Also, both of them end up in the same, because both are used for something called Mana Conserving, which will be explained later on.
+ Healing
The advantage of having + Healing is that it lets you use lower rank healing spells, in that way, you are able to heal for the same as using the high ranked ones, but still, using less mana. This stat also affects your Healing-over-Time spells, which are Rejuvenation and Regrowth, which is pretty awesome. + Healing is also mostly useful on short fights, in which you can sit an regen.
+ Mana per 5 seconds
The advantage of having + Mana per 5 seconds is that it lets you regenerate, regardless of if you are not casting or casting (works different as Spirit). Think about it as having a permanent Blessing of Wisdom. The main point of this is being able to regenerate mana as fast as possible, to be able to cast. + Mana per 5 seconds is mostly useful on long fights, in which you need to regenerate fast to be able to heal.
Mana Conserving
Druids don’t have a huge mana pool as a Priest can, so we have to use things that lets use last longer on fights. Regardless of what you choose (from the two options that were explained previously), you need to keep stacking the stats, because having a little bit of them won’t work at all. Items that have that stat usually have low INT, for example, but it doens’t matter if you are mana conserving.
On the other side, as a druid healer, it’s not recommended at all focusing on items that only provide tons of INT, because you won’t be efficient at all, and because you will burn your mana faster than someone that has +healing or +mana/5s. Items like %crit aren’t as helpful as the ones explained before as well, because, with talents, Regrowth already has a high chance of critting, and, well, Healing Touch heals for a lot, and a constant stat is more beneficial than a something that has a “chance”.
PV. Supplies
There are different kinds of supplies that are helpful for healing, here’s a list of a couple of them.
Major Mana Potion
The amount of mana gained is random, between a range of 1350 to 2250. Most of the times what you get is pretty low… but the advantage is that it can be used on any kind of situation, called if you are standing or if you are moving.
Greater Dreamless Sleep Potion
The advantage of this one, over the Major Mana Potion, is that the amount of mana that you gain is a set value, 2100, also gives that same amount on health. The downside is that you need to be standing still, 12 seconds, and you will sleeping, meaning that you won’t be able to do anything during those 12 seconds. It can break with any kind of damage, with fear, etc. etc, and it also shares the same cooldown with any other kind of potion. Something else I noticed a while ago that it’s not a good idea to use this on fights like Chromaggus (Blackwing Lair) or Vem, Yauj and Kri (Ahn’Qiraj), because the sleeping effect of this poison can be cleansed by a Paladin (if you are an Alliance), so you will stop getting mana of it.
Limited Invulnerability Potion
Somehow this works as a priest’s shield.
Demonic Rune
Takes 600~1000 HP and gives back 900~1500 MP. It has a separate cooldown than potions. This works very cool when it’s used with a Whipper Root Tuber.
Dark Rune
Works in the same way as a Demonic Rune, the only difference maybe is that Dark Runes aren’t binded to the character, while the Demonic Runes are. This works very cool when it’s used with a Whipper Root Tuber.
Night Dragon’s Breath
Restores 394~456 MP and 394~456 HP. Has a separate cooldown than potions.
Whipper Root Tuber
Heals HP, has a separate cooldown than potions.
Brilliant Mana Oil
When applied to a weapon, it gives 12mp/5s and also +25 healing. Lasts 30 minutes.
PVI. Builds
There is so much controversy about builds, so many of them. The easiest way is going over here and checking the Restoration Builds. Keep in mind that it might change with the patch 1.11.
As I’m writing this (050306), I’m using the build 7/0/44.
Just in case the link is gone, here’s the information, copied from there:
7/0/44 Pure Raid Healer
Healbot. As much efficiency as possible, with Nature’s Grasp and 2/5 Improved Moonfire there just because there are no more healing talents available. Recommended only for those who care nothing at all about the game outside of raiding.5/11/35 PvE Nature’s Grasp & Feral Charge
Healbot, but not totally useless everywhere else. All the good healing talents are still there, dropping the least useful Restoration points for the amazing lower portions of the Balance and Feral trees for increased versatility and PvP power.5/15/31 PvP Nature’s Grasp, Feral Charge & Feline Swiftness
For the Druid who wants Innervate but also wants to increase his versatility and be as effective as possible in PvP. Gift of Nature and Improved Mark of the Wild are dropped in favour of Furor, Feline Swiftness, and Sharpened Claws.20/0/31 Vengeance/Innervate
As much of the Balance tree as you can get while still keeping Innervate. Key talents are Improved Moonfire, Vengeance, and Nature’s Reach. Improved Wrath can be maxed out at the expense of full Nature’s Grasp depending on preference. Some Druids choose to drop Innervate for Nature’s Grace to take advantage of its interaction with Improved Regrowth. Personally I don’t see this being worth it, but I mention it and leave it to you to think about.
By the way, being Restoration gives an edge over healing, but that doesn’t mean that other builds, call it Balance or Feral, can’t heal at all. At the end, any build works, just that Restoration improves many healing spells that makes things easier, faster and more efficient.
PVII. Tips
- Don’t kill your mana! Try to use Healing Touch as much as possible, it will help you saving your mana instead of just spamming Regrowths. It’s very important to keep in mind how long it takes, if you use it in the wrong situation whoever you are tanking might die, so choose wisely which one fits best for the situation, Healing Touch or Regrowth. With practice, you might be able to use Healing Touch faster, by knowing in advance where it fits best.
- Friends we are. You are part of a team, always keep in mind that. You need to work as one with all other healing classes. For example, lets say that you are in a party that has the main tank, and along it’s a priest. Throw Rejuvenations and Regrowths, because the priest should also be focusing on him. No point spamming heals if you know that the person will be healed. Now, if you think that someone is going to die, do your best to keep that person alive.
- Down! I’m down! A dead healer might end up in a dead raid. It’s very important to keep yourself alive. It’s also important to keep the Main Tanks alive, tho, at least on Raid Instances, if the Main Tank dies, most of the times it ends up in a wipe.
- Brutality! Combos are pretty nice, for example, Healing Touch and a Rejuvenation, Regrowth and Rejuvenation or even maybe a Rejuvenation and then Swiftmend.
- Woah! Innervate regens faster on a Priest than on a Druid, because of how Spirit works on them compared to a Druid. Now, I’m not saying you can’t use Innervate on yourself, but you also have to keep in mind that it can be used on other people.
- The time is ticking. If you are going to use a Potion, use it almost at the beginning of the fight, or at least as soon as possible, but don’t waste it. This is because the cooldown might be up during the fight and it will let you use another potion. If you wait too long to use it, you won’t have another chance to pop another.
- Do you hear me? Use macros to announce who you are Innervating (if you have it), Battle Rezzing and maybe Hibernating people. I would recommend using a macro that I found somewhere in WoW Forums, I call it Smart Macro, because it checks if you are solo, in a party or in a raid, and depending on these factors, it announces on the best channel. For example, if you are solo, it won’t announce, but if you are in a raid, it will go to the raid.
/cast Spell(Rank #);
/script s="MESSAGE GOES HERE";a=0;if GetPartyMember(1) then c="party" a=1 if GetNumRaidMembers()>0 then c="raid" end;end;if a>0 then SendChatMessage(s,c) end;examples
/cast Innervate();
/script s="%t has been innervated";a=0;if GetPartyMember(1) then c="party" a=1 if GetNumRaidMembers()>0 then c="raid" end;end;if a>0 then SendChatMessage(s,c) end;/script s="Hibernating %t.";a=0;if GetPartyMember(1) then c="party" a=1 if GetNumRaidMembers()>0 then c="raid" end;end;if a>0 then SendChatMessage(s,c) end;
/cast Hibernate(Rank 3)%t stands for the target you are selecting.
- I see dead people. It’s impossible on some situations to keep everyone alive, and maybe someone in your party, or even in your raid, will die. You made your best, and that’s what matters. I usually feel bad and try to apologize when someone dies, but sometimes there are priorities, and you have to decide. Still, if you know you are doing your best, it doesn’t mean that you are going to let anyone make you feel bad or anything like that. We are all humans, and we all make mistakes. As some people may say, @(#^ happens.
- Salvation. It’s very important to have Blessing of Salvation, if you are an Alliance druid.
- Swiftmend! With the patch 1.11, Swiftmend was introduced in the Restoration tree, as a 31pt talent. In my very very own opinion, swiftmend is one of the best spells ever, with a 15 second cooldown, it’s really an awesome spell. How I use it is, depending in the situation, if I need a fast good heal, I throw a Rejuvenation and then swiftmend, so I don’t use my Nature’s Swiftness. With my current healing gear (+749 Healing Power), swiftmend can heal for 1.7k, and it can crit for around 2.5k, which is sweet. Another option of a bigger heal would be throwing Regrowth and then swiftmend. Obviously you can also just throw rejuvenations at people and then use it when it’s about to run out.
PVIII. Disclaimer
This guide was written from my very own point of view. I apologize if there is any error, I hope there isn’t. Comments are welcomed, as usual (via eMail). This guide was written from an Alliance point of view.
No gnomes were harmed during the writing of this guide.
Author: Gahlok, Lv. 60 Night Elf, playing on US-Mal’Ganis Server.
Revision: 040308
URL: http://www.frostbolt.com/
PIX. Revision History
040308 - Fixed a couple of things here and there, theory wasn’t changed, tho.
100406 - Fixed the links on the builds, keep in mind that I didn’t make them, I just updated the links, so I’m not really sure if the talents are like they were before.
081806 - Updated: Supplies, Addons, Gear, Tips. Added info: Supplies, Addons.
071106 - Added a few more addons and information about Swiftmend, introduced with patch 1.11. A few changes in the layout as well.
050306 - Release of the guide.
