Druid Guide for WoW Forever

Druid Guide for WoW Forever Quick Overview:

• Druid is the most versatile class in Forever, allowing you to be a ranged/melee DPS, tank, or a healer.
• The changes in Forever mitigate the mana dependency of the class and make Shapeshifting much more fluid. There’s no need to constantly switch between forms for Energy generation, and you are allowed to use consumables while shapeshifted.
• Tauren, Night Elves, and Skyborne Elves can be Druids, although the latter seem less impressive so far.
• Feral looks like the most reliable leveling specialization, with Balance coming second.

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WoW Forever Druid Changes

If you always liked Druid for its versatility, then you have nothing to worry about — Blizzard insists on keeping this class identity intact. The key differences you’ll notice are more about convenience and shapeshifting improvements, but it’s still safe to say that Druid reworks are quite massive in Forever.

Some of the most impactful changes are to the game’s ruleset: now your Healing Over Time effects stack freely, and they can also crit, which substantially changes the build priorities and overall class dynamic for Druid. I don’t have to mention that you get a whole bunch of new talents for every specialization, as well as changes to almost every existing talent. What I do have to say is that most of these are buffs or direct improvements.

Let’s list some of the most important changes:

• Nature's Grasp and Omen of Clarity are now baseline abilities, so there is no need to invest in trees you wouldn’t otherwise use just to get that one crucial tool.
• Revive is a new ability that enables Druids in Forever to resurrect allies outside of combat, which is something they historically lacked.
• Overgrowth is a new Balance talent that allows you to affect up to three targets with Entangling Roots.
• Eclipse makes it so your Wrath reduces the cast time of your next two Starfires by up to 2 seconds.
• Berserk enables your Primal Bite to strike up to 3 targets with no cooldown, all while increasing the critical chance of your Combo Point-generating abilities by 100%. It also removes Fear from you and grants immunity to it for the entire duration, which is 15 seconds.
• Natural Reaction increases your dodge chance by up to 5% and provides up to a 100% chance to get 5 Rage each time you dodge.
• Wild Growth is a 40-yd range instant ability that heals the entire party for 7 seconds. The healing is applied more quickly at first and slows down till the duration is over. The cooldown is 6 seconds.    
• Gift of the Earthmother reduces the global cooldown on your Rejuvenation, Swiftmend, and Wild Growth by 0.5 seconds.
• Improved Wrath now also makes Wrath cheaper by up to 50% and lowers its cast time by up to 0.5 seconds.
• Nature’s Reach, Vengeance, Moonglow, and Subtlety now work generally, without limiting themselves to specific abilities.
• Insect Swarm is now a Balance ability.
• Feral Charge and Blood Frenzy are now also available for Cat Form.
• Brutal Impact now also reduces the Bash cooldown by up to 30 seconds.
• Improved Tranquility now also reduces its cooldown by up to 60%.

If anything, Druid in Forever feels a lot less restrictive, if that word was ever truly applicable to the class in general. You don’t have to invest in specializations you don’t like, your shapeshifting is way more simple and straightforward, and the healing aspect is more reliable.

Druid Pros and Cons in WoW Forever

As it always was with Druids, the class is balanced around being a decent option in any scenario, but not the best one. No matter which path you choose, there will always be some other class that does it better.

Restoration Druids might offer great healing over time, but instant heals will always be more valuable in dangerous situations, and the lack of dispel options is another gap that you cannot really fix. Balance Druids might offer nice buffs and DPS with their spells, but the lack of reliable interrupts really hurts them later on. Feral Druids have always been somewhat of a mix between tanking and DPS by design, and that is still true in Forever.

As a result of this mixed design philosophy, Druids often have to do a lot of different things at the same time, all while keeping track of multiple abilities as well as their immediate surroundings. That can be really taxing, so it’s not a great class to start your first WoW playthrough. If you’re a veteran, however, you might enjoy the nuanced and complex nature of the kit.

Pros	Cons
Incredible flexibility and versatility	Jack of all trades, master of none
Effective mobility tools	Very difficult to play optimally
Great HoT effects	Lack of crucial utility tools depending on the build
Efficient mana usage tools
Multiple buffs

How to Play Druid in WoW Forever

Druid offers three distinct specializations to choose from, each offering a unique play pattern. Essentially, if you choose Druid, you can be anything from a full-on healer or tank to a melee/ranged DPS. I’d suggest taking your time to learn how to play each of these, however, since Druid is tricky in many regards.

How to Play Balance Druid

Balance Druid is all about that magic DPS, and many of the buffs were clearly directed to make this build more viable in Forever. In particular, the mana issue is addressed. It doesn’t look like the devs intended to fully solve the problem — you still need to pick up every talent that improves your mana sustain — but you probably aren’t going to be completely blocked out from doing stuff as it happened in Vanilla.

The general idea of Balance Druid is simple: you use Wrath to make your Starfire cast quicker and better, rinse and repeat. If anyone comes close to you, you can always use Entangling Roots on them. You will still likely have to drink mana potions to keep up with the costs of your abilities, but it shouldn’t be too debilitating. If you get truly and utterly swarmed, Hurricane is probably the best way to get things under control, as long as there’s someone out there protecting you.

Obviously, as soon as you get your hands on Moonkin Form, you start using it — it’s a crazy steroid for everything that you do.

How to Play Feral Druid

With Feral Druid, you get to choose between tanking as a Bear or attacking as a Cat. The devs added a great QoL change, allowing you to use consumables while shapeshifted, so there’s no reason to switch between forms all the time, especially considering that the Mana-to-Energy engine is now simplified through the addition of Shifting Power.

If you want to be a melee DPS, you’ll be happy to learn that the Cat now has access to both Feral Charge and Blood Frenzy. However, King of the Jungle and Berserk are going to be your primary abilities, and you’ll have to build your entire combat presence around these. Spend as much time as a Cat as you can, but don’t be afraid to shift when the situation demands it.

As for the Bear Form, you’re in a better shape compared to Classic, thanks to Primal Bite, Lacerate, and an option to use Rage Potion while shapeshifted. Natural Reaction seems like a solid addition to the kit as well. Simply stack DoT on foes and stay alive using your solid HP pool and armor.

How to Play Restoration Druid

Restoration Druid is the one Druid specialization that wasn’t completely overhauled by Blizzard in Forever. That doesn’t mean there aren’t significant changes to it, though, and the introduction of Wild Growth alone is probably enough to shift the meta.

In general, Restoration Druid is way more user-friendly now, with HoT stacking, crits providing additional healing, and Swiftmend becoming an ability without a massive HoT-removing drawback.

You also get a lot more mana thanks to the Reflection buff, and the cooldowns on multiple of your abilities are much more forgiving. To put it simply, if there was ever a great time to try Restoration Druid, it is now.

As far as your playstyle goes, this specialization is a bit less straightforward than many other healers. You will still do basic stuff, sure, like casting Rejuvenation and Healing Touch on your tank, but you’ll also have to keep up with the entire party, and decide when it’s justifiable to use your Wild Growth.

Best Druid Race in WoW Forever (WIP)

In Forever, each faction gets two races to choose from when it comes to Druids. Horde gets Tauren, Alliance gets Night Elf, and then both can use their respective versions of Skyborne Elves.

Race	Faction	Best Spec
Tauren	Horde	Any
Skyborne	Horde	Balance, Feral
Night Elf	Alliance	Balance, Feral
Skyborne	Alliance	Balance, Restoration

All things considered, most Skyborne racial bonuses aren’t particularly impressive when it comes to being a Druid. Both are capable of falling without taking damage and get a Wind Blessed passive, sure. Alliance version gets Read Leyline — a tool to heal and restore their own mana, which is probably the most impressive ability on a mana-hungry class. In comparison, the Horde version gets a bit more movement speed through Skysight.

As for Tauren, you get War Stomp for PvP or as a setup for spellcasting/combat reset, a 5% total HP increase through Endurance, and Cultivation on top of it all. I feel like Tauren are actually a bit too good as Druids, so if you’re Horde, there’s no reason not to choose them over Skyborne.

Night Elves get an increase to Dodge and Critical Strike chance through Elune's Light and Quickness, both of which are very good on Druids. I consider them to still be the best race for the class, which also makes a lot of sense lore-wise.

Druid Stat Priority in WoW Forever (WIP)

While WoW Forever is still being discovered, it’s hard to say with any certainty whether a certain stat priority is optimal. My suggestion is to keep relying on the old familiar formula while everyone is learning more about the game.

Spec	Stat Priority
Balance	Spell Power → Hit → Critical Strike → Haste → Intellect
Feral DPS	Attack Power → Hit → Expertise → Critical Strike → Agility
Feral Tank	Defense → Dodge → Armor → Agility
Restoration	Healing Power → Spirit → Haste → Critical Strike

Best Druid Builds in WoW Forever (WIP)

Once again, defining the best build for each specialization is impossible at the moment since it requires a lot of testing and data from players. What I can say with some degree of certainty is what abilities different Druid specs will likely build around.

Build	Core Talents	Goal
Balance	Improved Wrath, Moonglow, Improved Moonfire, Nature’s Majesty, Nature’s Splendor, Nature’s Reach, Nature’s Grace, Insect Swarm, Vengeance, Moonkin Form	Ranged spell DPS
Feral DPS	Ferocity, Shredding Attacks, Primal Bite, Shifting Power, Leader of the Pack, berserk	Sustained melee DPS and high mobility
Feral Tank	Heart of the Wild, Thick Hide, Natural Reaction, Natural Instinct, Feral Charge, Berserk	Reliable tanking
Restoration	Nature’s Focus, Naturalist, Reflection, Gift of Nature, Gift of the Earthmother, Swiftmend, Wild Growth	Single-target and AoE HoT effects

Once we have an established meta, I’ll expand this section to include full spec trees.

 

 

Druid Leveling Guide in WoW Forever (WIP)

Early on, your primary source of damage is Wrath, so you’ll keep spamming it until hitting level 10. The simplest strategy here is to use Thorns and then cast Wrath and Moonfire until you’re out of mana — that’s when you start using your weapon.

After that, you’ll have to choose one of the specs to level further. Here’s how I see these specs perform during leveling based on my limited experience with the game so far — this section might change later on.

Spec	Solo Leveling	Dungeon Leveling	Summary
Balance	Solid	Solid	Mana issues are the only real downside
Feral	Excellent	Great	Reliable and consistent
Restoration	Weak	Great	Only works in parties

As you can see, Feral seems like the best overall choice. Unlock Bear Form ASAP. After that, your rotation will involve something like Wrath into Moonfire into Bear Form, Enrage, Demoralizing Roar, and Maul. Use Swipe against groups of enemies.

When you hit level 20, switch to Cat Form and start relying on it during combat at all times. Prowl into Shred, then Faerie Fire and Rake. Use Claw to get Combo Points that you’ll spend on Rip.

Druid Best-in-Slot Gear in WoW Forever (WIP)

Unfortunately, no one currently has any idea what BiS Druid gear will look like in WoW Forever. I’ll update this section once there is enough data to work with.

Best Druid Rotations in WoW Forever

Balance Druid Rotation

1. Open with Wrath.
2. Use Entangling Roots so that the enemy becomes an easy target.
3. Cast Starfire, then cast it again.
4. Cycle Wrath and Starfire for maximum Eclipse efficiency

Balance Druid DPS is pretty straightforward, so you shouldn’t have much trouble with it aside from sustaining mana costs.

Feral Druid Rotation

1. Start with Shifting Power as long as Clearcasting is not active, and you’re certain you will not waste your Energy.
2. If you have 4 or 5 Combo Points, use Rip as long as you’re certain the DoT effect makes sense. Don’t try reapplying it. The same ruleset goes for Rake.
3. Apply Faerie Fire if it’s not on target and it’s not a waste of Energy. You can also use it when you’re out of options to proc Clearcasting.
4. Apply Shred or Claw depending on your positioning. These are low priority, so if you’re missing your uptime on other abilities, use them instead.

Feral Druid is all about those nasty DoTs and Energy conservation, and it’s something that comes with enough practice.

Restoration Druid Rotation

1. Start with applying Thorns on your tank. As soon as they enter combat, cast Rejuvenation and keep it up as long as they’re going to take damage.
2. Use Regrowth when you need a direct heal, then apply Healing Touch.
3. If things get too spicy and someone’s in danger, use Swiftmend if they have an active HoT, or combine Rejuvenation and Swiftmend if they don’t.
4. If everyone’s in danger, use Tranquility/Wild Growth.
5. If everyone’s okay, you can use Wrath for extra DPS as long as you have spare mana. If you don’t, save it.

Restoration Druid is all about understanding the current priority and thinking in advance — your instant healing options aren’t that great or reliable, so your job is to predict what’s going to happen in the next few seconds and apply HoT accordingly.

Best Druid Professions in WoW Forever (WIP)

It’s currently very difficult to predict which profession fits Druid best, and considering the versatility of the class, making any assumptions at this moment would be a mistake.

From what I can tell now, Leatherworking and Tailoring look like the safest choices for consistent gearing. I’m not sure about Enchanting and Alchemy at the moment, since knowing their full capability is crucial before committing to them. Herbalism might prove to be a good gathering option for Druid as well.

Best Druid Consumables in WoW Forever (WIP)

All that we know so far is that characters can get stat bonuses along with leveling XP bonuses with consumables, but we don’t have enough info on these. I’ll update this section once I learn all there is to know about it.

 

 

Read our other WoW Forever guides:

• Legacy System
• All Dungeons
• Skyborne Race

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