State of druids, aka what spec should I play?

[Deleted]

Hi,

I just recently came back to WoW, I would like to try MoP for a while and I decided that I will continue playing my druid.

However, I have absolutely no clue what does WoW looks like at the moment, so I would like to ask here.

How does Restoration druid perform comparing to the other healers?
How does Feral - dps perform comparing to other dps classes?
How does Feral - tank perform comparing to the other tank classes?

Also, what spec would you recommend me to play? I used to play Resto on Cataclysm on pretty decent level (5 / 8 DS Heroic), but I always wanted to play a tank, so right now I am undecided.

Also, this may sound weird, but anyways - how much time approximately does it take nowadays to prepare for a raid and which spec has it easiest? I have so much stuff to study so I would like to spent at least amount of time farming stuff.

Thanks for replies and I am sorry for a such a questions, I know that I could do a little research first, but you know, asking is easier ^^

[Feylor]

Because you are including tanking, I assume you mean PVE? Right now Resto druids are pretty weak compared to most other healers. I haven't played Feral for anything but soloing but I believe they are middle of the line and I know nothing about the current state of Guardian druids. Finally, Boomkins are one of the bottom DPS specs. That said, I'm pretty positive Blood Legion ran at least 1 boomer during progression raids so the DPS disparity can't be that great or they would have likely gotten sat.

Personally I went monk this expac after playing druid since TBC and I have hardly looked back.

[zegyra]

If 10 man: defo resto. but if 25man; NO WAY totally sucks in 25.

Tankings ok in both, so is feral dps.

Balance is quite low in dps right now.

[kaiadam]

From what I hear, and our slotting practices, resto druids are pretty weak. There's no real niche - there are better tank healers, better aoe healers, and better all-around healers.

Guardians are okay. We tend to take less damage than plate tanks, but are slightly harder to heal because the incoming damage is spikier. This really shouldn't be an issue if you're just coming back though. Nothing about guardians really stand out - monks and especially paladins do more raid healing. Paladins have higher single target and monks have higher aoe. DKs are far better in challenge modes/5mans and have more self healing. Warriors give a crapload more raid utility. Guardians are just middle of the pack.

Balance seems to be a bit weak. They have tremendous burst - our balance druid literally can spike to twice my damage in the first minute of combat - but it tapers off significantly from there. Okay at multidotting, low single target. They have a fair amount of utility though. Pretty sure the reason BL ran a boomkin is ... where else are you going to dump the leather int gear if resto druids aren't getting slotted? a boomkin will still outdamage most other classes if they're 10 ilvls higher.

Ferals are in a fairly good place. Not the best spec for burst, but strong at single target and really strong in aoe cleave situations. I might be slightly biased here but I feel they are the best all-around dps spec in the game right now. Affliction might come close.

[Arielle]

How does Feral - tank perform comparing to the other tank classes?

Fine. Everyone is pretty much on par for tanking. Some fights other tanks perform better than others but it isn't by enough to care about.

Feral DPS is on par with most melee DPS specs. However it's really easy to be bad at it, and requires a lot of practice.

Resto has changed the least since Cataclysm, followed by Boomkin. Feral has changed quite a bit, and Guardian got a complete overhaul.

how much time approximately does it take nowadays to prepare for a raid

AH farming takes no time at all. It's really easy to make $$, depending on your server I guess. Resto is obviously the worst at doing dailies though.

[hulkgor]

Play the one that seems the most interesting to you?

Quite easy and practical to swap specs now, so give them all a shot. Resto\Balance and Feral\Guardian can mostly share gear, at least on an entry level.

[Sunfyre]

This is a pretty subjective question. There's a lot of relevant and recent discussion for all specs regarding their current strengths/weaknesses/etc in the forums. I suggest you browse through those to make a decision that best suits you. (Also note the 5.2 changes). Closing thread.