Balance Druid

Overview

Talents and builds

Level 60 build

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Raid build

The raid build moves 9 points from Improved Entangling Roots (1), Heart of the Wild (5) and Reflection (3) to Improved Starfire (4), Nature's Grace (1), Eclipse (2) and Naturalist (2).

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Key talents

• Improved Wrath5/5Up to 0.5 seconds off Wrath's cast time and 50% off its mana cost at rank 5, a heavy early investment in the tree's other nuke
• Genesis2/52% more periodic damage a rank on Moonfire and Insect Swarm (doubled in the 1.60.1.70707 hotfix)
• Vengeance5/5Up to a 100% critical-strike-damage bonus at rank 5 on Arcane and Nature spells, the tree's biggest single multiplier
• Improved Starfire1/5Up to 0.5 seconds off Starfire's cast time and a 15% chance to stun the target at rank 5. The raid build takes all five; the leveling build keeps one rank and moves the rest into Eclipse and Reflection, which our level-60 search measured at about +15% for the leveling build on the 1.60.1.70707 trees, mostly from the mana Reflection saves
• Insect Swarm1/1A second cheap DoT the rotation keeps running alongside Moonfire
• Nature's Splendor1/1The one-point talent that the simulator credits with the largest single gain in this tree
• Moonfury5/5Up to 10% more Arcane and Nature damage at rank 5
• Eclipse1/3Reworked in Forever: each Wrath banks two charges, up to four, that take 0.17 seconds a rank off your next two Starfires for 15 seconds. The raid build takes all three ranks (0.5 seconds) and the fifth rank of Improved Wrath; the leveling build takes one
• Moonkin Form1/1The capstone: 360% more armor from items while shapeshifted, a doubled Omen of Clarity proc chance, and 3% more critical strike chance for party and raid members within 45 yards, on spells and attacks alike

The Restoration points reach Naturalist, 2% more damage of every kind a rank (10% at 5/5 in the raid build, 6% in the leveling build). Nature’s Focus opens the tree and Subtlety cuts the threat of your Nature and Arcane spells. The leveling build also takes Heart of the Wild (10% more Intellect; it moved from Feral to Restoration’s top row in 1.60.1.70707) and Reflection (half your mana regeneration keeps running while you cast).

Rotation and priority

Be in Moonkin Form before the pull and stay in it: the form gives you 3% more critical strike chance, and every spell in this loop can be cast from it. Keep Moonfire and then Insect Swarm ticking on the target: with Improved Moonfire and Nature’s Splendor, a Moonfire does more damage per second of casting than Starfire, and a raid-buffed Balance druid has the mana to keep both up. Starfire is everything else: cast it on repeat for the rest of the fight. Near the end of a fight, adjust for what will actually land: once less time is left than your next Starfire takes, switch to Wrath, which still finishes; once less is left than a Wrath takes, only the instant Moonfire lands in time. With the raid build’s Improved Starfire and Improved Wrath, that is Starfire at 3 seconds (2.5 on an Eclipse charge) and Wrath at 1.5. With Eclipse, cast Wrath whenever you have no Eclipse charge banked: with Improved Wrath it is a 1.5-second cast, and the two charges turn the next two Starfires from 3-second into 2.5-second casts, so a Wrath and two quick Starfires do more than three plain Starfires in the same time. Without the talent, skip that Wrath.

Stat priority

1. 1Spell power
2. 2Arcane power
3. 3Hit
4. 4Nature power
5. 5Critical strike
6. 6Intellect
7. 7Spell haste
8. 8Spell penetration

Best in slot

Enchants and consumables

Races

• Night Elf (Recommended)
• Tauren (Recommended)
• High Order Skyborne
• Windshaper Skyborne

Night Elf is the Alliance pick: Elune's Light. Tauren is the Horde pick: Endurance.

Professions

Balance benefits from the same caster-support professions as any spellcaster: Tailoring for crafted spellcaster gear and Enchanting to self-apply spell power enchants are the general Classic-era convention.

Leveling

Outlined: points added in this level range.

Balance is a reasonable leveling spec on its own, with Moonfire and Starfire providing ranged damage, but Feral is generally considered the stronger overall leveling choice for Druid thanks to Cat Form’s mobility and Bear Form’s durability.