Enhancement Shaman guide

Melee DPSShaman · WoW Forever

Beta guide, level 30. The WoW Forever beta stops at level 30, so this guide and its build cover levels 1 to 30. We update it for level 60 after launch on November 4.

Enhancement mixes big melee hits with lightning. Forever reworks it: Mental Dexterity turns your Intellect into Attack Power, Stormstrike is now a strike that makes your next Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning or Earth Shock hit 20% harder, and Maelstrom Weapon stacks from your hits until your next Lightning Bolt is much faster and cheaper. Rage of the Farseer sits at the bottom of the tree. Forever change: Shaman totems now reach your whole raid, not just your party.

Strengths

Big burst from Windfury and Stormstrike
Heals itself between fights
Totems help the whole group

Weaknesses

Busy: totems, shocks, weapon buffs and Maelstrom stacks
Needs a good two-handed weapon early
Mana can run dry

Talent build (level 30) 0/21/0

Enhancement 21 points

Thundering Strikes5/5
Mental Dexterity3/3
Improved Ghost Wolf2/2
Elemental Weapons3/3
Shamanistic Focus1/1
Anticipation1/3
Flurry5/5
Stormstrike1/1

21 points in Enhancement: Thundering Strikes for crit, Mental Dexterity for Attack Power, Elemental Weapons for stronger weapon buffs, Shamanistic Focus for cheap shocks, Flurry for attack speed, Improved Ghost Wolf, and Stormstrike at 30. Maelstrom Weapon and Rage of the Farseer come after launch.

Open this build in the talent calculator

Key talents

Stormstrike: Weapon strike that makes your next Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning or Earth Shock 20% stronger.
Mental Dexterity: New in Forever: +Attack Power equal to your Intellect.
Flurry: +25% attack speed for 3 swings after a crit.
Elemental Weapons: Windfury Weapon 40% stronger, Rockbiter and Flametongue boosted too.
Shamanistic Focus: New in Forever: shocks and Lightning Shield cost 45% less.

New in Forever: Enhancement talents

Mental DexterityIncreases your Attack Power by an amount equal to 100% of your Intellect.
Shamanistic FocusReduces the mana cost of your Shock and Lightning Shield spells by 45%.
Mental QuicknessIncreases your spell damage and healing by up to 30% of your Intellect.
Improved StormstrikeWhen you Stormstrike, you have a 100% chance to gain 50% mana regeneration while casting spells for 15 sec, and Stormstrike's cooldown has a 100% chance to reset each time you Dodge or Parry.
Maelstrom WeaponWhen you deal damage with a melee attack, you have a chance to reduce the cast time and Mana cost of your next Lightning Bolt spell by 20%. Stacks up to 5 times. Lasts 30 sec.
Rage of the FarseerIncreases your attack speed by 30% for 25 sec.

Rotation

Windfury Weapon (Rockbiter before you learn it) and Lightning Shield before the pull.
Drop your totems.
Stormstrike on cooldown.
Earth Shock right after Stormstrike for the 20% bonus, or Flame Shock if it isn't on the target.
Once you have Maelstrom Weapon: Lightning Bolt at 5 stacks.

Several enemies

Magma Totem and Fire Nova around you.
Flame Shock the targets that live long enough.
Chain Lightning once you learn it.

Cooldowns

Rage of the Farseer (after launch): +30% attack speed for 25 sec.
Healing Wave: Top yourself off between pulls instead of eating.
Ghost Wolf: Instant with Improved Ghost Wolf, and usable indoors.

Stats

Strength and Agility for Attack Power and crit, then hit. Intellect matters more than in Classic thanks to Mental Dexterity.

Best races

Alliance

Dwarf: The only Alliance Shaman. Artisan's Precision: +1% hit, plus Stoneform.

Horde

Orc: Blood Fury: +10% Attack Power and Spell Power for 15 sec.
Skyborne (Windshaper): Wind Blessed: +2% haste on spells and attacks.
Troll: Berserking: +10% casting and attack speed for 10 sec.
Tauren: Endurance: +5% health, and War Stomp for packs.

Professions

Leatherworking for caster and agility leather while leveling, Engineering for trinkets, or Enchanting.

Leveling

The comfortable Shaman leveling spec. Grab a slow two-hander, Windfury it, Stormstrike plus Earth Shock, and heal yourself between fights.