WOTLK Classic Druid Leveling Guide

There is no such thing as a perfect class in WOTLK Classic. But if you want to play a class that can be both melee and caster as well as take upon any role in dungeons, a druid is what you are looking for. In this article, we will focus on how to level up a druid effortlessly and effectively and what talent builds WOTLK Classic offers for a druid. If you are interested in other classes, feel free to check our SSEGold News for more WOTLK Classic guides and content.

Let’s get into the nitty-gritty of the druid, shall we?

Druids are known as the versatile class of shapeshifters. Each of the shape forms is bound to a different talent tree: Bear and Feline forms benefit the most from Feral talents, Moonkin form belongs to the Balance build, and Treant form embodies the power of Restoration talents. Apart from diverse shapes, druids are also a flexible class that can accommodate even the most demanding players because of druids’ adaptability to take on any role and still outshine the other classes. If you fancy the role of a Healer, pick the Restoration talents. Should you want to give a Tank a try, opt for the Feral Bear build. And if you are tempted by the DPS role, you can choose between ranged Balance druid and melee Feral Feline talents. While playing as a druid, you can also utilize travel forms of Storm Crow, Cheetah, and Sea Lion.

(Read the Ultimate WotLK Classic Class Picking Guide to know more details about other class in WotLK.)

Tip: Did you know that druids are unmatchable gatherers? If you choose your profession to be a gathering one (Herbalism, Mining, Skinning), your druid can collect the materials without stepping out of the form. How neat is that?

If you need any more reasons to give a druid a shot, let me introduce you to the druid’s incredible abilities, such as Mark of the Wild for an increase of Armor, Innervate that helps to replenish Mana, or Rebirth that allows to instantly resurrect even during a combat phase. When it comes to weaponry, druids are able to equip Staves, Fist Weapons, Maces, Daggers and Off-Hands; druids can also use Idols in the ranged slot for increase in stats.

As mentioned above, the Feral build offers roles of Tank and melee DPS. Overall, it is considered the best and fastest druid talent choice for leveling up. Meanwhile, Bear form holds the upper hand in AOE damage (Area Of Effect) and will reserve you a spot for dungeon runs, Feline form performs better in combat against a single target. While leveling feral druid on your own, you can take advantage of both forms; in dungeons, stick with the form that is assigned to your role. Among the stats are Strength, Attack Power and Critical, for Bear Tanks, Stamina is a key ingredient, and the Feline form relies heavily on Agility.

Tip: Always choose the weapon based on what are the best stats for your build, other weapon details are irrelevant since you use abilities to deal damage.

If your preferred way of leveling up is through questing and grinding, consider sticking with the Feline form. Although Bear shape possess strong defensive abilities and high health, the so-called Cat form (Feline) has little to no downtime and deals solid damage against a single target. Moreover, the Feline can make use of Prowl to sneakily dodge unwanted combat action.

Tip: When you struggle with a resilient opponent and you have exhausted all your energy in Feline form, swap into Bear form – it uses rage and proves to have more abilities for survivability.

The best rotation for Cat form is to use Prowl to get behind your enemy, open the combat with Faerie Fire and Pounce/Rake, followed by Rake, ensuing with Claw/Mantle, and when you obtain all combo points, strike with Rip or Ferocious Bite.

Tip: Try to always keep Mark of the Wild and Thorns active on you for a smoother experience.

You may ask: if Feral is the best talent build for leveling up, what are the benefits of playing a Balance druid? To put the record straight, Balance druid is a great ranged alternative that can handle both questing and dungeons with grace. (Don't worry about leveling, we have this 70-80 Dungeon Leveling Guide for you.)Not only that balance druid deals solid AOE damage, but it will not disappoint you even during one-on-one combat. The strategy behind the Balance druid is to smite the enemy from a distance before they can cause any significant damage.

Tip: You can always use regrowth or rejuvenation when low on HP.

Balance build may seem slow at the beginning, but once you obtain Starfall, leveling becomes a piece of cake. Stat-wise, Balance talents require Spell Power, Hit Rating and Critical Strike Rating. The only downside of this talent build is Mana management issues, as Balance druid is known for being a Mana-hungry class. Therefore, always keep Mana replenishment consumables in your inventory.

Tip: Make use of Innervate spell whenever your mana is getting low.

When opening fire, start with applying Faerie Fire on your enemy, followed by Moonfire and Insect Swarm. You can also use Starfall and Force of Nature when your cooldown allows it. For even greater AOE, employ Hurricane. Keep an eye out for Solar and Lunar Eclipse effects; keep casting Wrath while under the effect of Solar Eclipse and switch to Starfire when a Lunar Eclipse activates.

You should consider leveling up as a Restoration druid only if you intend to level up through dungeon runs. Leveling up without a group may be problematic, although not completely impossible. Just like the other builds, Restoration druid can also make use of Feline and Bear form, however, the progression will be much slower than with other talent specializations mentioned above. For Restoration build, pursue Healing Power, Spirit and Mana per Second.

The effective rotation starts with Wild Growth. Further, try to keep Rejuvenation active on your members. Use Swiftmend for burst for healing and Regrowth on the Tank; to cover extra damage, use Nourish. Hold onto a triple stack of Lifebloom and activate it on the Tank to counter profound damage.

Tip: Look out for one-hand maces; they are known to carry healer-friendly stats!

We hope the druid’s flexibility and diversity caught your eye and you will find your niche in this class. Feel free to visit our other guides on classes and professions of WOTLK Classic and we also invite you to check out our store for Cheap WotLK Gold, WotLK boost and other needed in-game commodities. Break a leg and farewell!