I wanted a build that would let me solo and still be a decent healer when I join a guild later in the game.

Ferel

Ferocity 5/5
Thick Hide 5/5
Feline Swiftness 2/2
Feral Charge 1/1
Sharpened Claws 3/3
Predatory Strikes 3/3
Blood Frenzy 2/2
Primal Fury 2/2
Savage Fury 2/2
Faerie Fire 1/1
HotW 5/5
LotP 1/1
-----------------------

Resto

MofW 4/5
Furor 5/5
Improved Healing Touch 5/5
Nature's Focus 2/5
Improved Rejuvenation 3/3

What do you guys think about this build?

Do 30/21 or don't even bother putting more than 5 in resto.

More or less what Falloraan said. If you've got 19 pts in resto, another 2 points to get Nature's Swiftness seems only logical. It's one of the better talents in resto ( until you drop 31 pts to get swiftmend which is also quite amazing ).

I have to disagree. I know I'm not as experienced as the other posters, but that build is very similar to my build and I love how it plays. My main reason for not wanting to drop those points from feral to resto is that LotP is such an awesome buff in raids. A few extra crits from a party can be the difference in winning and wiping. Giving it up to put those extra points into resto just means you're focusing more on healing at endgame than anything else. I don't want to be expected to heal exclusively. The feral tree gives me the versatility to DPS or off-tank, and putting the rest into resto lets me play backup healer if I need to, albeit not as well as a dedicated healer. Plus putting more than 5 points in resto is appropriate, in my opinion, to max out MotW and Furor to add to our buffing capacity and augment the feral role further. I'm not saying NS isn't a great talent, I just like to focus my build on something other than healing. It's the essence of being a druid to me.

I would encourage Dayzmist to reflect on our contributions to end game other than healing, if that's how you want to play your druid.

Then go with a 14/32/5 build. The point is, without getting NS in resto, you really aren't getting much to make you that much of a better healer. The proposed 32/19 build doesn't make you all that much better at healing other than reducing the cast time of Healing Touch (which is really only good in PvE). And you're giving up all the feral goodness in the Balance tree and still not getting Nature's Swiftness. There's a reason the 30/21 build is so popular: it's extremely effective for both PvE and PvP.

NS + HT > 3% crit


As an aside, if you do go for this build, 4/5 in IMotW is a waste; go all the way or none at all. The frustration you will get when trying to buff people is worth the extra point.

Do 30/21 or don't even bother putting more than 5 in resto.


This is a possibitlity. From what I have read, NS is just an emergency heal and wasn't a must have for healers.

I really wanted Hotw which limits me in the restro tree to 21. 30/21 is possible, but then I have to give up LoTp for NS.

Keep in mind that I will be soloing alot with mixed guild raids.

Thanks for the feedback!

I have to agree about goin 0/30/21 or 14/32/5. I am all for non-cookie cutter builds, but as you have the resto part speccd out, you aren't really helping yourself as much as you could. Same with the Feral for that mater.

Natures Swiftness really is much more worthwhile as a talent imo than 3% crit for lv 60 pvp and pve IMO. The added crit is really nice, but remember, it only helps your group. In raiding situations with 40 people, only 4 others will get the 3% crit, and, as you know, that is only if you are in cat or bear. If you are dead in PvP cause you couldn't get that heal off in time, well, all the crit% in the world isn't going to help you. If it were a talent like rogue's Cold Blood which gives the next attack a 100% crit chance, it would be a harder decision. So, some thoughts on the build as you have it posted:

In your feral build, I have no idea why you didnt put 2 points into Brutal Impact. An extra second worth of stun is huge. Time enough for you to Shift out, regrowth, rejuv yourself, then shift back. Maxed Thick hide will add 200 - 300 armor overall, which is nothing compared to the 9k - 12k armor that you will have in bear form once you get some decent gear at lv 60. Armor doesn't play as big a role as does dodge% in cat form. I personally would put those 5 points into 2 brutal impact and 3 feral instinct. That will make tanking / stealthing noticably easier, and give you a good, long, 5 sec stun every minute.

For your resto build, Falloran is right on saying you should have 5/5 iMoTW or none at all. There will be Druids in the raid that have it maxed out, not allowing you to buff over them, making them the primary buffer's. Save yourself the 4 points, and just bring them some reagents. I would use those 4 points to finish out Natures Focus and then put one in Tranquil Spirit. If a hunter's pet, or mob, or dot is hitting you and your heal keeps getting interrupted, chances are that you, or whoever you are trying to heal, are going to die. Again, just my experience. An ideal 21 point resto build looks like:

5/5 Furor
5/5 Imp HT
5/5 Natures Focus
5/5 Tranquil Spirit
1/1 Natures Swiftness

But in the end, play how you like, and do what makes you happy. This is all advice coming from people who have been raiding for a long time, and have seen how different builds contribute to a group dynamic. There is a lot to be said for learning that firsthand yourself too, once you get into a guild later in the game.

I have to agree about goin 0/30/21 or 14/32/5. I am all for non-cookie cutter builds, but as you have the resto part speccd out, you aren't really helping yourself as much as you could. Same with the Feral for that mater.

Natures Swiftness really is much more worthwhile as a talent imo than 3% crit for lv 60 pvp and pve IMO. The added crit is really nice, but remember, it only helps your group. In raiding situations with 40 people, only 4 others will get the 3% crit, and, as you know, that is only if you are in cat or bear. If you are dead in PvP cause you couldn't get that heal off in time, well, all the crit% in the world isn't going to help you. If it were a talent like rogue's Cold Blood which gives the next attack a 100% crit chance, it would be a harder decision. So, some thoughts on the build as you have it posted:

In your feral build, I have no idea why you didnt put 2 points into Brutal Impact. An extra second worth of stun is huge. Time enough for you to Shift out, regrowth, rejuv yourself, then shift back. Maxed Thick hide will add 200 - 300 armor overall, which is nothing compared to the 9k - 12k armor that you will have in bear form once you get some decent gear at lv 60. Armor doesn't play as big a role as does dodge% in cat form. I personally would put those 5 points into 2 brutal impact and 3 feral instinct. That will make tanking / stealthing noticably easier, and give you a good, long, 5 sec stun every minute.

For your resto build, Falloran is right on saying you should have 5/5 iMoTW or none at all. There will be Druids in the raid that have it maxed out, not allowing you to buff over them, making them the primary buffer's. Save yourself the 4 points, and just bring them some reagents. I would use those 4 points to finish out Natures Focus and then put one in Tranquil Spirit. If a hunter's pet, or mob, or dot is hitting you and your heal keeps getting interrupted, chances are that you, or whoever you are trying to heal, are going to die. Again, just my experience. An ideal 21 point resto build looks like:

5/5 Furor
5/5 Imp HT
5/5 Natures Focus
5/5 Tranquil Spirit
1/1 Natures Swiftness

But in the end, play how you like, and do what makes you happy. This is all advice coming from people who have been raiding for a long time, and have seen how different builds contribute to a group dynamic. There is a lot to be said for learning that firsthand yourself too, once you get into a guild later in the game.


Great post, thanks for the detail. Gives me alot to think about. Leaning toward this build.

NS > LotP? Is that what you guys are saying?

Not having Nature's Swiftness is a HUGE problem, even as a backup healer. If key member gets a big crit or 2 and is teetering on the verge of death, NS is an amazing saviour.

I have no problems with feral druids in raids. I used to be one in fact. But, the further you go with raid, the "feral" gear you'll see drop is few and far between with the occassional piece here and there. All the while the rogues, tanks, etc gear up and up and you are not. Your dps becomes negligible and you're more there just for the crit buff to your party.

I moved from a 14/32/5 to a 0/30/21 to a now 0/20/31 build, as healing and healing well is just so utterly important the further you progress. I only crit heal for 4200 currently though :(

"0/20/31 build" can you post your 0/20/31 build?

I'll have to check when I get home. I respec'd a few days ago, and I don't remember where every point went.

Found a post where I posted my proposed build and I think this is what I went with finally: http://www.wowhead.com/?talent=MZxxzscbZxxcReq0o

I would think that it would be:

Feral
Ferocity 5/5
Feral Instinct 3/5
Brutal Impact 2/5
Feline Swiftness 1/2
Feral Charge 1/1
Sharpened Claws 3/3
Blood Frenzy 2/2
Predatory Strikes 3/3

Resto
iMoTW 5/5
iHealing Touch 5/5
Natures Focus 5/5
Insect Swarm 1/1
Tranquil Spirit 5/5
Improved Rejuv 3/3
Natures Swiftness 1/1
Gift of Nature 5/5
Swiftmend 1/1

I almost took this build, though I ended up at 0/15/36, taking 5/5 Improved Regrowth over 2/2 Blood Frenzy and 3/3 Pred Strikes. At first I didn't like it, cause when iRegrowth would crit (50% of the time), I was drawing a lot of aggro. I have since learned how to heal around that. The main reason I took improved regrowth was because I am have the strongest HoT's in my guild, and need to keep them up on the MT as much as possible. The improved regrowth makes that spell much more mana efficient, provided that the crit portion isn't overhealed. If I wasn't responsible for casting that spell on the MT every 21 seconds, I wouldn't have taken it. I do miss Blood Frenzy and Pred Strikes though. A lot. Though I am really tough to take down with imp regrowth and rejuv when in my bear gear. Regrowth crits on me for about 2k, and both Hot's together tick for about 325 or so. With improved bash (brutal impact), its really easy to shift out of bear, regrow rejuv, then back in. And if whoever I'm fighting gets lucky, I always have NS + HT rank 10 heal in my pocket. And innervate. Though I hit like a wuss :(

Sounds like you guys don't even bother w/Subtlety, it was presented to me as a must some time back. Any thoughts?

Also, no thick hide, does that not scale in bear form?

Also, I get the going 3/5 in feral instince... but why pick imp rejuv over reflection?

I have been both builds and I would agree with the others. Either 14/32/5 or 0/30/21.

3% crit buff is nice but for me NS has been much more valuable both in solo and raid play.

Sounds like you guys don't even bother w/Subtlety, it was presented to me as a must some time back. Any thoughts?

Also, no thick hide, does that not scale in bear form?

Also, I get the going 3/5 in feral instince... but why pick imp rejuv over reflection?
I am Alliance, so when I raid I have Blessing of Salvation. You don't need Subtlety if you have Salvation, unless your tanks really suck.

IMO Thick Hide is a good skill if you are frequently tanking for raids and are a full feral spec. But if that's the case, you really want both, for the added aggro generation in Feral Instinct. If you go the hybrid route and you have to pick one of the two, I like Feral Instinct a lot more.

As for Improved Rejuv over reflection, for me it was a pvp decision. I am in forms more than caster, so Reflection gives a much smaller return to me than Improved Rejuv.

Subtlety is very nice when healing 5 mans, but in the 10, 20 and 40 it becomes much less of an issue IMO. Even when I had no points in it, I don't remember every pulling aggro from the tank b/c of a crit heal.

EDIT: Stupid double post - Mod please remove at your lesiure.

That makes sence, thank you. I happen to spend more of my time in caster, I was seriously debating going w/a 30 point balance spec, but swiftmend bails me out a lot more than nature's Swifntess (2k instant heal every 15 seconds ftw).. that + I have the 15% extra regen from 3/8 Tier 2, so I think it would be a better choice for me to keep it. Thanks again Falloran.