Extrapolation
Taking a break from the lolsmite regime for a day. I have most of the rest written, but I did actually want to talk about some other stuff too.

I wrote this ridiculously long three page rant about what it's like to be one of those rare magical creatures in Azeroth known as a “female”, continuously subjected to the giant bloated egos of arrogant males all around me. I decided I wouldn't subject anyone else to it this early in the morning. Suffice to say, I have just about had it with the ridiculous amounts of arrogance bouncing back and forth between raid members and officers and boys thinking they SHOULD be raid leaders and yada yada yada. I am at the end of my patience with it. Do you boys think it's cute? Or endearing? It's not. Total turn off in every sense. And, in WoW, I've only seen it be a problem with the guys. Oh and Ful, being an engineer is so not an excuse for everything you know. Nor is being a blogger!

Now that that's off my heaping dwarven bosom...

I have been spending a lot of time doing research and write-ups justifying the lolsmite spec, and this has led me to ponder other class specs that are subjected to so much ridicule. Case in point, I am having a difficult time leveling my shammy and my druid. Everyone tells me to level them enhancement and feral respectively. But I truly do suck at melee. And now I’m wondering if it even matters if leveling one way is fast when I hate it so much that I don’t even bother to play the character anymore.

So I’ve decided screw what everyone else is telling me I need to do. They’re my toons, and I’m going to do it my own way. Hell, I leveled a priest all holy, all the way, and that spec is undoubtedly considered one of the most challenging, if not THE most challenging, spec for leveling.

There are two problems with this decision I have made regarding leveling my shammy and druid alts...

The first is that against my better judgment, when I purchased the heirloom items for my shammy and druid, I purchased items for melee, with attack power and agility and all that jazz. So it is sort of a waste of the items I purchased. And now that those emblems are so useful for really nice high level gear for my Priest and Pally, I can’t justify spending them on an alt. Oh well, what's most important about the items is the XP bonus, and they do have stats like intellect at least.

The second problem is that I just can't figure out the right spec. So I challenge you, my dear readers, to help me with this. Link me up your recommendation for a good caster leveling spec for a druid and one for a shammy. Wild and creative ideas are encouraged. Specs that give me plenty of exposure to the different healing spells I will have at 80 are also encouraged.

Bring it. In the words of Sir Cadogan, "A QUEST!!"

Edited to Add: Also, I like how I completely ignore all major things WoW related. Like the expansion leak storm. Or, you know. BLIZZCON. There is actually a reason for this. I have nothing to say that is original about it, and nothing informative to add so... why bother? While everyone else is pitching in their two cents I kinda just go off and do my own thing if I don't have anything particularly insightful to add.
11 Responses
  1. Spanklin Says:

    Go back to the kitches! 71 points in feral. And enhancement shaman. Stop being a such a nub.


  2. M Says:

    *Sigh* I'm not exactly fond of it either, and I haven't done shit lately... just for the record.

    But before you go off on a fem-rant about boys, I've seen my fair share of female arrogance... it just tends to be more passive aggressive, yet equally unhelpful to progress.

    Also, pointing out a problem without offering any sort of solution really grinds my gears. :-/


  3. @Fulguralis

    Yeah passive aggressive is awesome. I'm southern, you know, so i always recognize the signs. Like, "Bless his heart, he sure is an asshole." That sort of thing.

    I will say you have an amazing ability to keep your mouth shut during raids when other raid leaders are making stupid decisions. But you know the guys I'm talking about. The ones that just have to try and talk louder than the RL to make their point (and superiority) clear. Not that I'm naming names.

    I don't mind people pointing out a problem if it's not noticed even without a solution... but there are good ways to do it. Like, if the whole raid wipes, yelling into vent "YOU GUYS KEEP DYING GAWD" is not exactly helpful.

    Sending a tell to the healing lead that says "Pewpewpally healer isn't strong enough to keep the tank alive." if i may not have noticed that was specifically the problem is actually helpful.


  4. @Spanklin

    Are you frustrated because I'm not in game at the moment for you to troll?

    Also, learn how to spell kitchen before you insist I return to it. OH SNAP


  5. Fuubaar Says:

    awwww Cute :)

    Jess has a baby troll. Remember to feed it & give it nums every day so it can grow up big & strong.


  6. M Says:

    lol I like kitches better. It like trenches and ditches combined with kitchen... BACK TO THE KITCHES THAT SPAWNED YOU WOMAN!

    As far as yelling in vent... totally agree and I will punch someone in the face (or berate you in o chat because I'm not RL and that's all I got).

    And you're right about that final statement, that is a good example that doesn't fall into my gear grinding scenario. That is helpful. I was thinking more about the people who just whine to whine.


  7. Araat/Vinenaro Says:

    Fun leveling specs for shaman... Well I leveled my shaman elemental for the majority of its time leveling since I wanted to have caster gear when I hit 80 so I could get into healing quicker. So I would say that is a very viable and fun spec to play for leveling.


  8. Ganklin Says:

    @Fuubaar

    L2Gem ;)

    @Fulguralis

    Indeed, Kitches has a nice ring to it. And the mighty womans arose from the depths of the kitches in a futile effort to retain their stance as being a valid gender rather than slaves!


  9. @Vine

    If you get a chance, would you mind throwing a spec together for me on wowhead that i could use for leveling purposes? I bow to your obvious superiority.

    @Franklin

    You did NOT just insult my tankbabe. Did you? DID YOU? because if so, shiznat will fly. Also, it's pretty lame to insult another Pally when you leave no information about your own Pally. FAILTROLL


  10. Unknown Says:

    My Restokin leveling guide
    (sorry for the length!)

    I leveled my Druid as Feral from 1 to about 35 or so, and I'm not sure where yours is at, but around 35 I got tired of playing yet another melee character. My previous mains were a rogue (72) and DK (80) and wanted a change of pace for my Druid. Despite what anyone says about Feral being the fastest leveling, I highly recommend a balance/resto hybrid.

    Here's my druid leveling philosophy. Feel free to disagree since there's more than one right way to do it:

    1. Drinking is not playing. I like playing. I don't like drinking.

    2. Mana > all else, including +Stam and even DPS. For a druid, getting more HP is just a heal away, so you

    get more HP from Int than from Stam. At lower levels, I often prehotted with Regrowth + Rejuv, at higher

    with Rejuve + Lifebloom (Regrowth optionally when AoEing bigger packs). The more mana and especially regen you have, the lower your downtime and the less likely you are to die even when the odds are against you and then you pull a few more adds as you flee (perferably in Travel Form). Unless I'm in WG behing 2-
    shotted by a OPer-than-thou Ret pally, it's very hard to kill my druid. Lots of mana regen means that you have flexibility to damage longer/heal more when needed, giving you great flexibility no matter what you
    face.

    3. Healing is fun, so anything that gives you the flexibility to heal is good. From the looks of things on this blog, I think you agree with me.


    My gear choices:

    Anything with +SP, +Spr, and +Int. MP5 is quite nice too, but you lose a little SP from Improved Moonkin form when you take it over Spirit. Stam, Crit, and Haste are nice as well, but more optional. So, basically... take healing gear.


    My talent choices:

    Overall, I went into Resto to get Omen and Intensity before going deep into Balance. I didn't get Moonkin form until 54, but I think it was worth it. I got a lot of general DPS talents like Moonfury, Lunar Guidance, and Earth and Moon, but mostly skipped Vengeance and Wrath of Cenarious until I got more +SP and +Crit to make them worthwhile in Outland and especially Northrend.

    If you're starting from Level 1, I'd recommend 5 points in Starlight wrath, then 14 in Resto, then finish up in Balance. If not, just stick the 14 in Resto and go from there. I healed up through Mana Tombs with this spec before dual spec became available, but if you don't have money for dual-spec, you could probably go even higher and heal just fine.

    If you eventually have problems healing without all the Resto tools (which might happen at the low to mid-70s in my guess), perhaps a more traditional Restokin build will become better at some point (going far enough into Resto to get Nature's Swiftness or Swiftmend while being sure to get to at least Dreamstate in Balance). Or, you can make a Resto-emphasis hybrid build that is more DPS agressive (for soloing) with Starlight Wrath instead of the usual Resto talent Genesis, going down Balance as far as Nature's Splendor or Insect Swarm to give you more DPS while still focusing in Resto.

    Starlight Wrath, Nature's Focus, Celestial Focus, Owlkin Frenzy: All great for improving DPS while getting beat on.

    Nature's Splendor: Some people say dots are terrible for leveling. Ignore them. I used dots a lot, and beating on a dotted mob with a stick for the least 50% is not a bad idea mana-wise. But really, the huge benefit in this 1-point talent is to make hots longer (especially when prehotting, which is great for soloing).


  11. Unknown Says:

    Omen of Clarity, Intensity, Moonglow, and Dreamstate (in the order you should get them): more mana. Omen is especially nice since you if you notice it go off, you can use it for high-mana spells like Regrowth, Hurricane, or later Lifebloom, since it gives back mana. Even from level 40-50 before learning Barkskin, anytime I'd get Omen (even against a single mob), I would pop Nature's Grasp (always no mana cost so it doesn't consume Omen, let the enemy root itself, step back a bit, and let a mana-free, high-DPS hurricane rip. And half the time, one of Hurricane's ticks would trigger Omen again! Once you get Barkskin, Celestial Focus, and/or Owlkin Frenzy, this becomes even easier.

    Moonkin/Improved: 30% of Spirit as SP is great and lets you see a great DPS return from the Spirit-heavy healing gear that keeps you going. You won't feel as bad taking Spirit over Crit when Spirit starts helping your DPS. Moonkin raiders might still hate Spirit, but for leveling, it's great.

    Insect Swarm: probably the most mana-efficient damage you can do, and even better with the glyph.


    Rotations:

    I didn't root much, generally preferring Nature's Grasp when things got a little hairy. I preferred to prehot or rehot when necessary and get beat on a lot.

    Single Target: A typical rotation was Starfire, Insect Swarm, Moonfire (more optional since it's more expensive), Wrath, Wrath, staff smack until dots + staff = dead mob. More wraths if/when necessary. Sometimes an extra Insect Swarm (cheap) or Moonfire (fast) to finish them off if necessary.

    AoE: HoTs up on you, dot the mobs up to pull them, then use Nature's Grasp (optional and mostly before level 50), Barkskin, Trinket, Starfall (optional), Hurricane, Typhoon (optional), Hurricane again if needed.


    Glyphs:

    I'm not a huge fan of the moonkin glyphs. I mostly ran with Entangling Roots (a good general-purpose glyph that keeps roots doing what it's supposed to do), Rejuv (which is mostly considered a bad glyph, but I feel gives me more self-healing when I really need it the most, Insect Swarm (which loses a bit of survivability, but it does nice damage).

    For Minors, I really like Aquatic Form (quite fast), Rebirth (very handy), and Wild (because I like to buff random people all the time just for the fun of it).


    I hope you enjoy your Druid! I know I do!


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