Project Lore: World of Warcraft Videos and Guides

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Due to the breadth of their abilities, each trip to the druid trainer tends to reveal additional aspects of the class. Druids are late bloomers who fully round out later than other classes. Just remember that good things come to those who wait.

Level 1

Healing Touch and Wrath are your life for the first few levels. Visit a trainer and learn Mark of the Wild for your recastable "buff" to increase your combat effectiveness, but most fights at this stage will consist of a druid casting Wrath a few times at an enemy until it is in melee range and then smacking it with a staff. Druids can heal themselves or others with Healing Touch, but beware that incoming damage will cause "pushback" prolonging your cast, so leave ample allowance.

Level 4

Moonfire does more damage than Wrath, but with a twist: its damage is split between an initial Direct Damage (DD) component and a damage-over-time (DoT) component, applying some of its total damage every few seconds. An icon will appear under your target's status window at the top of your interface with the Moonfire icon if they are still suffering from the Moonfire DoT, and it is best to let this run its course before re-applying Moonfire.

Rejuvenation similarly is an over-time spell, but it's a heal-over-time (HoT). Unlike Healing Touch, Rejuvenation is instant cast and cannot be interrupted or pushed back. One can also apply it at the beginning of a fight to counteract incoming damage a few "ticks" at a time rather than in one burst.

With these new tools, a druid can now cast Wrath at a target, Moonfire as the Wrath is on its way, and cast Rejuvenation before... smacking it with a staff.

Level 10

By completing a quest chain that begins at the local trainer (Darnassus for Night Elves, Thunder Bluff for Tauren) with "Heeding the Call," druids can learn their first shapeshift: Bear Form. By casting this spell, a druid becomes a bear and is granted increased armor, attack power, and stamina as well as immunity from polymorphs. Shifting into or out of any form also removes polymorphs and movement impairing effects.

While in Bear Form, druids use rage like a warrior, increasing when striking or struck in combat and decreasing when out of combat or after using a rage-based ability.

Along with the ability to teleport to the druid sanctuary of Moonglade at level 10, druids pick up several skills only usable while in Bear Form and a talent point. As such, this is a good time to reflect on which aspects of fighting have been most enjoyable so far, since gear and talent points will begin to make a larger difference in how well certain styles of play fare.

Bear Form questline

Starts with "Heeding the Call" (level 10)

1a. (Horde) Other druid trainers will send you to Turak Runetotem. Seek him out in The Elder Rise of Thunder Bluff.

1b. (Alliance) Alliance druids should pay a visit to Mathrengyl Bearwalker in the Cenarion Enclave of Darnassus.

2. Cast Teleport: Moonglade and speak with Dendrite Starblaze in the house in front of you when you arrive.

3. Head west to the Great Bear Spirit and speak with it. For those with an addon that can display coordinates, navigate over to [39, 27].

4. Return to your faction's main druid trainer. There are flight masters in Nighthaven at [44, 45] available just for druids (cue other classes' jealousy).

5a. (Horde) Find the gray colored stone with the glowing center at [42, 61] just as you cross the border into The Barrens. Use the provided quest item Cenarion Lunardust to summon Lunaclaw. Defeat the angry moonkin, speak with its spirit, return to Turak, and begin life anew with Bear Form!

5b. (Alliance) East of Auberdine at [43, 46] in a cave you will find a stone with runes and a glowing center. Use the provided Cenarion Moondust to summon Lunaclaw. Defeat the angry moonkin, speak with its spirit, return to Mathrengyl, and begin life anew with Bear Form!

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Level 12

Regrowth can be thought of as the healing counterpart to Moonfire. It heals with a direct and over-time component and completes a druid's arsenal of heals until level 30. Until Rank 3 of Healing Touch at level 14, the direct component of Regrowth alone is comparable to Healing Touch.

Level 16

Beginning with "A Lesson to Learn," from Darnassus or Thunder Bluff, this quest chain leads to Aquatic Form, to increase swimming speed and breathe underwater. While an Aquatic Form druid can attack enemies, spellcasting reverts the druid to humanoid form.

Aquatic Form questline

1. Your old friend at Thunder Bluff/Darnassus once again points you in the direction of Dendrite Starblaze. Cast Teleport: Moonglade once again and pay him a visit.

2. A 30 minute timer starts. Dive into the nearby Lake Elune'ara and search the bottom of the deep portions for the quest item which spawns in a random location. Use it and bring the Shrine Bauble to the Shrine of Remulos in the northwest part of the zone.

3. After using the bauble at the shrine, speak with Tajarri who will start you on the Trial of the Sea Lion.

4a. (Alliance) The first half is located in Darkshore at [49, 11]. In the waters west of the Ruins of Mathystra, by the northeastern most set of small islands in the chain on the map, is a sunken chest surrounded by threshers. Careful divers can avoid fighting them.

The second half is in Westfall - quite a run if you haven't discovered the Ironforge flight point yet - at [18, 33]. It can be found directly west of Saldean's Farm on the map just at the edge of the water too deep to swim in (a fatigue bar will appear, warning you to return to shore). There is an anchor one can use as a landmark. Swim down from that point and be on the lookout for bubbles which will allow you to breathe at the bottom while you open the nearby chest.

4b. (Horde) The first half is located in the Barrens at [57, 8] in the center of the pond in the Sludge Fen.

The second half is in Silverpine Forest at [29, 29] just a bit farther than halfway between the "T" in "The Great Sea" on the map and the shore directly east. Swim down and search for bubbles which will allow you to breathe at the bottom while you open the nearby chest.

Level 18

Hibernate is a situational crowd control spell that can be used on dragonkin and beasts. Keep it in mind when fighting hunters, other druids, or shaman.

Level 20

Cat Form attacks faster and increases attack power over Bear Form, so it can dish out a good amount of damage. However, it doesn't benefit from the increased armor and stamina that Bear Form does. While in Cat Form, a druid uses energy like a rogue, increasing by 20 (out of 100) every 2 seconds and decreasing upon use of an energy-based ability. Cats can also stealth and build (and unleash) combo points, again similar to rogues. Because their energy source refills so quickly without the aid of drinks, many druids choose to level from 20-70 primarily using Cat Form and improving its effectiveness by placing talent points in the Feral tree and gearing for Agility, Strength, and Stamina. Claw to 4-5 combo points and use Rip for maximum damage. Druids who more enjoy spellcasting should focus on Intellect, Spirit, and Stamina and will use the bear and cat forms less frequently.

Rebirth is the druid's "battle res." It is the only resurrection spell usable while in combat and has saved countless instance runs in the history of the world (of Warcraft). Try to choose a strategic time to cast Rebirth, though, as it consumes a reagent and is on a 20 minute cooldown timer.

Starfire does more damage than Wrath but has a longer cast time, so it is used primarily as an opener. With the Balance talent Starlight Wrath, it is used much more frequently.

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Level 22

Though Shred requires a cat to be behind the targeted enemy, it is the most efficient attack measured in damage per energy that is not a finishing move, especially with the talent Shredding Attacks which reduces its energy cost. If someone else is taking hits for you, shred!

Level 30

The Travel Form shapeshift increases movement speed almost as much as a mount. Unfortunately, it isn't as useful as it has been in the past, with mounts becoming available at level 30. However, it is instant cast and usable while in combat, so it allows druids to escape sticky situations. Tranquility is a 10-minute-cooldown heal that affects all nearby group members which can sometimes be useful when too many allies are badly hurt. Just beware that this can cause a lot of unwanted attention from nearby enemies.

Level 32

Ravage like Shred requires a druid be behind the enemy target but also must be performed while stealthed. Open with this, Claw & Rake to 4-5 combo points, and Rip. If your enemy doesn't turn to face you after Ravaging, skip Claw and Rake and just Shred.

Level 36

Pounce is the preferred opener for Feral druids as it's possible to Shred up to twice while the enemy is stunned and unable to attack back.

Level 40

Dire Bear Form directly replaces Bear Form at level 40, providing increased defensive benefit.

Innervate is another extremely useful group utility spell. It allows its target to regenerate mana at a drastically increased rate for 20 seconds. A well timed Innervate on your party's priest or druid healer can also save the day.

Hurricane is a druid's only AoE spell, usable once every minute.

Druids who have focused all talent points into the Balance tree have Moonkin Form available with their 31^st talent point. A Moonkin gains the same armor bonus as Dire Bear Form while increasing party members' spell critical chance by 5%, so they can be surprisingly tough spellcasters.

For druids with 30 points already in Restoration, taking Swiftmend with the 31^st allows a druid healer to gain some "burst" healing. Swiftmend removes a Rejuvenation or Regrowth buff on the target and instantly heals the target for several ticks' worth of healing regardless of how much time remains on the spell effect (and in fact, it's best to Swiftmend just after the second to last tick of the HoT).

Level 44

Barkskin can be cast once per minute, reducing all incoming damage by 20% and preventing damaging attacks from causing spell pushback. Not only is this a great way to ensure that crucial heal isn't pushed back too long when you need it, it's also usable while stunned, frozen, sapped, feared, or asleep to help absorb at least a little bit of damage. Barkskin can be used offensively in combination with Hurricane (level 40).

Level 50

This is the earliest a druid can spend 41 talent points in a tree and can enable some very nice abilities. 41 points deep into Feral enables Mangle, a great skill that should be used as often as possible for bears. Mangle increases damage done by bleed effects and Shred, so cats should keep the Mangle debuff on their targets while Shredding in instances (unless a bear tank is Mangling for them). For Restoration druids, the Tree of Life shapeshift reduces mana cost of heals and increases the effectiveness of heals for nearby party members. Trees do not however have access to Healing Touch, so Swiftmend and Nature's Swiftness are key for dealing with damage your HoTs don't cover.

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Level 58

You can now move to the Outlands for quicker leveling and much better gear

Level 62

Maim requires at least one combo point be on the target and does begin a 10 second cooldown if dodged, blocked, or parried. If Maim does land, it will interrupt most spell casts and incapacitate the target until directly damaged (DoTs will not break this effect). Use this against spellcasters to interfere with casts or following a Pounce-Shred-Shred opener to reposition and Shred again.

Level 64

Lifebloom is the druid healing spell. Restoration druids will want to keep a triple-stack of this on any target receiving sustained damage. For those with very little bonus healing (e.g. Feral druids), the difference between maintaining a triple stack and only casting Lifebloom once on an ally and letting it bloom is not very large. Further, the final bloom does not appear to cause threat for the healer nor the healed so this strategy can be very threat efficient as well as mana efficient.

Level 66

Lacerate - Bears should be using this and Mangle as they are the two best threat per rage abilities available while tanking. As of patch 2.4 bleed immunity has all but been removed from the game, so lacerate away! Feral tanks should also note that even if the enemy target has a full 5-stack of Lacerate, there is bonus threat associated with each "cast" of Lacerate, so extra applications are not necessarily wasted.

Level 68

Flight Form is instant cast, like Travel Form, but it is not usable while in combat. Not only do druids get access to flight two levels earlier than other classes, but they also receive this shapeshift for a 6 gold, 30 silver training cost compared to 800 gold for riding training and 100 gold for a mount for other classes. Flying low enough to the ground, a druid can also gather herbs or mine nodes while in Flight Form.

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Level 70

Cyclone is one of a druid's only crowd controls (CC). For 6 seconds, its target will be unable to act but also immune to everything (including their allies' heals). A second cast will Cyclone the enemy for 3 seconds, a third cast for 1.5 seconds, and a fourth or subsequent cast will fail.

Druids who spend the 5000 gold (this one you do have to pay) for the final riding skill training can embark upon a quest chain starting in Moonglade, Thunder Bluff, or Darnassus called "Morithis Whisperwing" to gain Swift Flight Form which will allow flight at epic flying mount speed.

Swift Flight Form questline

Starts with "Morthis Whisperwing" (level 70)

1. Wave goodbye to 5000 gold and train to 300 riding skill.

2. (Optional) Obtain comfort food, mourn loss of 5000 gold.

3. See Loganaar in Moonglade. He sends you to a Druid of the Talon, Morthis Whisperwing. Morthis awaits in the cenarion Refuge in Zangarmarsh.

4. Collect Bogblossoms atop the giant mushrooms in the zone. These sometimes explode, so be ready to shift into flight form if knocked off the cap. 10 Ancient Lichen and 10 Dreaming Glory are also required. If you are not an herbalist, you'll need to find someone who is, though the Bogblossoms do not require herbalism to pick.

5. Take the ward of Waking from Morthis and teleport to Moonglade. Find Clintar Dreamwalker in the south entrance at the Stormrage Barrow Dens and wake him.

6. Protect Clintar as he wanders around the den. He will gather 3 relics, and none of the attacks during the escort are too notable besides the Aspect of the Raven before the third relic with more health than a normal level 70 enemy. He will send you back to Morthis with the Relics of Aviana.

7. Return to the refuge at Zangarmarsh. Morthis will refer you to Arthorn Windsong at the Evergrove. Make your way there in the Blade's Edge Mountains.

8. Kill Aether Rays near Ogri'la to obtain an Aether Ray Eye. Use it with the provided quest item Seer's Stone to see ghost arakkoa. Find and speak with Sai'kkal the Elder's nearby spirit.

9. Arthorn will send you out to Nagrand to see Watcher Elaira. She can be found between the Twilight Ridge and Forge Camp Hate in the western part of the zone.

10. Use the Sparrowhawk Net on the nearby wild birds. As Elaira suggests, it helps to prowl your way into netting range.

11. Fly to Terokkar Forest and wander around the arakkoa in Skettis. After blowing the Cenarion Sparrowhawk Whistle, a bird will appear and uncover nearby Raven Stones. Collect eight and return to the Evergrove.

12. Find the eagle shrine just west of the horde town Stonebreaker Hold in Terokkar at [47, 45]. Activate the statue to begin the fight with the Guardian of the Eagle. It will summon several birds during the fight and Bear Form is recommended. Use Demoralizing Roar to greatly reduce the birds' attack power and try to use Bash to interrupt his Starfire cast which can hit for 4500-5500 arcane damage. Use Arthorn's Sparrowhawk Whistle once you defeat the guardian and obtain the Essence of the Eagle.

13. The shrine of the falcon is at [61, 61] on the eastern shore of the lake by the Alliance's town in Terokkar, Allerian Stronghold. The Guardian of the Falcon stacks a debuff on you, so a quick kill is recommended to minimize incoming damage. Healers can likely heal through even the increased damage, but the fight will be longer. It's advisable to fight against a wall to mitigate the knockback it casts, and humanoids should note the guardian casts a polymorph. Use the whistle once more when the guardian is defeated.

14. The Guardian of the Hawk awaits on the floating island to the south of Auchindoun. It casts a mana drain that can be de-poisoned as well as casting a debuff that increases physical damage taken. The guardian also hits very hard in melee and takes a remarkable amount more than normal damage from spells, so it is best to use Entangling Roots and Starfire, even if Feral spec.

15. Bring the essences back to Arthorn at the Evergrove. You will receive a Charm of Swift Flight, a trinket which increases flight speed, as an item like a Riding Crop will not affect shapeshifts. Return to Morthis in Zangarmarsh with the package Arthorn provides.

16. Morthis sends you after a Southfury Moonstone in Azshara. Fly out to Talrendis Point and make your way north to [14, 48]. Take a Free Action Potion before looting the stone or have a PVP trinket ready, as a goblin will sap you and run off when you activate the quest item. Race after her avoiding bombs and picking up speed boosts (how convenient!) in aquatic form or stay on land and intercept her in the water after cutting her off.

17. The Raven God Anzu in Heroic Sethekk Halls is the final objective. Morthis gives you a package of materials. Make sure the Essence-Infused Moonstone is in your keyring and head over. Anzu can be summoned by a druid with the Moonstone in the room just before Ikiss. Clear the room completely before summoning Anzu.

There are three bird spirits in the room, each with a beneficial effect while activated with a druid HoT on them. A druid maintaining rank 1 Rejuvenation on the three helps quite a bit. Anzu casts Spell Bomb, a removable curse which burns mana and deals damage if cast through; Cyclone of Feathers, a 6 second cyclone that can be removed with Mass Dispel; and Paralyzing Screech, a 6 second stun on the group.

Anzu will self-banish and call crows to attack you at 2/3 and 1/3 health. HoT/shield the tank when Paralyzing Screech is cast, dispel and decurse, and keep the spirits up. After one minute of banishment, Anzu will return, so make sure to finish off birds quickly if the tank must pick Anzu back up at this point. Amplify Magic can be used, as most of the encounter's damage is physical.

18. Return to Morthis and learn Swift Flight Form. Druids who have completed this quest can re-summon Anzu by picking up a Moonstone from Morthis.