Paladins and Shamans?

[Val the Moofia Boss]

So, paladins are generally the most popular class but their shaman counterparts are the least?

[Teriz]

Mainly because Shaman can't tank, and have been on the weaker end of the spectrum for numerous expansions. Their design has also been pretty bland, despite the fact that their concept blows Paladins away. Blizzard has real problems keeping the class' overall design consistent. Restoration is probably the best designed spec in the class.

[docterfreeze]

Ever since TBC they've been nerfed to all hell, while paladins have been getting buffed. Plus, paladins are the superior healers for raiding and they have a tanking spec...

Seems just now they are getting buffed to an "Ok" state.

[Dristereau]

DPS, Healer and Tank rolled into one. Able to heal. Uther and Arthas were Paladins. Most iconic class probably. Can Bubble-Hearth. Anything else needed?

[Romeothecat]

There's a shaman class?

yeah, blizzard tends to ignore the pleas of shaman be it for small things like their non-existent 'fun' minor glyphs or their performance in pve/pvp(resto is probably their best designed spec and even it could use a little work)

[Teriz]

There's a shaman class?

yeah, blizzard tends to ignore the pleas of shaman be it for small things like their non-existent 'fun' minor glyphs or their performance in pve/pvp(resto is probably their best designed spec and even it could use a little work)

Yeah, Shaman glyphs are freaking terrible.

Its like they didn't even try.

If you want to see how much Blizzard loathes the Shaman class, compare the Shaman glyphs to the Paladin glyphs.

[Aqua]

Paladins can perform all roles, and they wear plate, also holy paladin is very likely to gear up in raids with no contest from other healers competing on similar gear pieces to dps classes.

So yes. They are, and Shaman seems to have a solid representation still. My guild hasn't had a mage in ...well over a year, we still need that bloodlust from somewhere. Also their skill set is still desirable in both their roles. It's just a side effect of fitting in with the rest of the classes besides Druids.

Paladins sit in a rather unique position of having a spec that has an entire gear type catered to one of their specs (Intellect Plate) and can perform every role. They're versatile, useful and their ability in both tanking and healing right now is above par. Absorption healing on encounters is terribly powerful. Ret is the ugly duckling but the fact that they can bend to that role is still a boon in itself for raids with limited people on standby.

Is it really surprising? A paladin will nearly always have a way to conform to the raid/bg/arena's purposes. A Shaman is not so lucky. They have bloodlust/heroism. A mage now has that ability too. As long as raids keep droppin Intellect plate, it's nice to have someone along who can make use of it. It's a slight efficiency edge and not all guilds make use of it, but it is there. Having a Dps/Tank paladin along who can scoop up that gear and conform to healer quite fast if needed is nice. Where as other classes are likely not going to see a scrap of offspec gear until every class/mainspec has made their claim to each piece.

[ManjiSanji]

Shaman feel like the messiest class around. The design and abilities are all over the place, have no organization, and poor consistency of theme. I've played a Shaman for years, and I honestly think they need to be redesigned from the ground-up.

Restoration is the only spec that seems remotely solid in overall design, but that said, they still feel very messy.

[Deleted]

I remember the good old days doing class specific quests. Shaman class quests at level were a beast, easily the toughest of all classes! Then after all that I discovered the class seemed to have no real niche and many design problems all the way right through to endgame and beyond.

I think if my first class had been a Shaman instead of a Druid, I would never have subbed to WoW for longer than a (free) month. I have to really hand it to those that did in those days!

That said, things have improved a LOT after Burning Crusade for Shaman. They are still relatively the most ambiguous and inconsistent class, but that distance has narrowed dramatically and they are nevertheless a lot fun. It may help that my primary role has always been healer though.