Elemental Shaman guide
Talent trees, every tier list's rating and the sim: the Elemental tab.
In short
- A ranged caster with Lightning Bolt, shocks and Fire totems.
- Number 20 of 20 damage specs in our newest sim run, at 494 DPS. We read it as unfinished: the sim engine handles Elemental poorly. Sourced: Sim · 11 Oct run
- Lava Burst at the bottom of the tree deals 20% more damage with your Flame Shock on the target. Sourced: Talent database Source pending
- Weak spot while leveling: Chain Lightning only comes at 32, so packs are slow before then.
How it plays
Up to level 30. Lightning Bolt from range, Flame Shock, and Earth Shock to interrupt or finish; Searing Totem on longer fights, Fire Nova Totem on packs, and melee with Rockbiter Weapon when you're out of mana. Our level-60 build starts with Convection and Concussion, then Reverberation and Call of Flame. Elemental Alacrity sits in row 3 since the 24 Sep build: at 3 of 3, Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning and Lava Burst get a 0.5 sec shorter cast time.
Sourced: Dev notes · 24 Sep, Talent database Source pending
At level 60. Theory Totems first, Flame Shock, then Lava Burst on cooldown, Lightning Bolt as the filler and Chain Lightning on cooldown; Earth Shock to interrupt. Lightning Overload gives Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning a 10% chance to fire a free copy at the same target, for half damage and no threat. Elemental Fury, which needs Call of Thunder, makes the crit damage bonus of your Fire, Frost and Nature spells and of Searing and Magma Totems 100% higher; Call of Thunder needs Elemental Alacrity 3 of 3.
Sourced: Talent database Source pending
Talents at a glance
Our level-20 and level-30 builds for Elemental are still to come; for now, here is the level-60 build.
Level 60: Convection 5, Concussion 5, Reverberation 5, Call of Flame 3, Elemental Focus 1, Elemental Alacrity 3, Eye of the Storm 3, Call of Thunder 1, Lightning Overload 3, Elemental Reach 2, Elemental Fury 5, Lava Burst 1, Totemic Focus 5, Tidal Focus 5, Natural Grace 3, Mindfulness 1
The prerequisite chain of Elemental Alacrity, Call of Thunder and Elemental Fury is paid in full; Lightning Overload 3/3 unlocks Lava Burst. Restoration filler: Totemic Focus, Tidal Focus, Natural Grace, Mindfulness.
Theory · See the trees · Open in the calculator
Rotation at level 30
RecommendationSingle target
Open with Lightning Bolt, Flame Shock.
- Flame Shock
- Lightning Bolt (faster with Elemental Alacrity)
- Earth Shock
- Searing Totem
- Mana Spring Totem (26) for regen
Groups
- Chain Lightning arrives at 32
Tip
Elemental Alacrity was moved early on 24 Sep — the first real power spike.
Stats
Each guide's stat order as it gives it, the sim's stat weights, then ours. Guides dated before the last big tuning are shown but not counted.
Guides agreeSame order on 2 guides for the stats they all name.
| Where | Stat order |
|---|---|
| Guide · 4 Oct PvE, level 30 · read 12 Oct | Spell power › Crit › Hit › Intellect › Mana per 5 sec › Spirit › Stamina |
| Guide · 1 Oct PvE, level 20 · read 12 Oct | Spell power › Crit › Intellect › Spirit › Stamina |
| Guide · 7 Oct leveling, level 30 · read 12 Oct | Not ranked |
| Sim · stat weights level 60 · run 12 Oct, 5,000 iterations | Per 1%: Spell hit 5.39 › Spell casting speed 4.13 › Spell crit 3.76 Per point: Spell damage 0.484 › Nature spell damage 0.312 › Intellect 0.253 › Mana every 5 sec 0.226 The DPS each stat adds, for a level-60 character on the engine's preset gear in a 2-minute fight on a beta engine: a direction, not a verdict. = marks a tie: stats within each other's margin. Not counted toward "Guides agree". Our order matches the sim's lists for the stats both name. |
| Ours Recommendation | Nature spell power › Hit › Spell crit › Intellect › Mana per 5 sec › Stamina Our order matches the guides' wherever they all agree. |
Race
Each guide's race picks for Elemental, then our pick for the Shaman.
Alliance
Guides agreeDwarf on 2 guides.
- Guide · 4 Oct PvE, level 30 · read 12 OctDwarf
- Guide · 1 Oct PvE, level 20 · read 12 OctDwarf
- Guide · 7 Oct leveling, level 30 · read 12 OctDwarf
- Ours, for the Shaman RecommendationDwarf S
Horde
Guides agreeOrc on 2 guides.
- Guide · 4 Oct PvE, level 30 · read 12 OctOrc
- Guide · 1 Oct PvE, level 20 · read 12 OctOrc
- Guide · 7 Oct leveling, level 30 · read 12 OctTroll, Orc
- Ours, for the Shaman RecommendationOrc S
Professions
Guides agreeThe same professions on 2 guides.
- Guide · 4 Oct PvE, level 30 · read 12 OctSkinning, Leatherworking, Herbalism, Alchemy
- Guide · 1 Oct PvE, level 20 · read 12 OctSkinning, Leatherworking, Herbalism, Alchemy
- Guide · 7 Oct leveling, level 30 · read 12 OctNot given
- Ours, for the Shaman RecommendationHerbalism + Alchemy; or Mining + Engineering
Level 20: best and second best per slot
| Slot | Best | Second best |
|---|---|---|
| Hands | Hillman's Leather Gloves Crafted: Leatherworking | — |
| Legs | Dreamer's Leggings quest Underground Assault | — |
| Feet | Moonglow Boots Crafted: Leatherworking | — |
| Main Hand | Fang of Magmatus Hall of Thanes - Magmatus | — |
| Two-Hand | Staff of Westfall quest The Defias Brotherhood | — |
| Ranged / Relic | Buzzer Blade Deadmines - Sneed's Shredder | — |
Sourced: Guide · 26 Sep
Level 60: where gear will come from
- Pre-raid: Alcaz Prison, Shaper's Terrace, the Drowned City, Krol'dok Stronghold and Hyjal quests; hit and crit are merged, so 'spell hit' and 'spell crit' items are the same stat budget as melee ones.
- Crafted: Tailoring school-specific sets ('Flame', 'Shadow', 'Pearly' at L20 — expect the same lines at 60), Enchanting ring Spell Power, Alchemy trinket.
- Wands lost spell-damage scaling on 24 Sep — treat the ranged slot as stats only.
- Raids open 9 December; no level-60 BiS exists yet.
Theory
What changed for Elemental
8 Oct: Lightning Bolt ranks 1–5 retuned so each new rank is an upgrade; Fire Nova no longer triggers and uses up Elemental Focus.
Sourced: Dev notes · 8 Oct
1 Oct: Totemic Recall correctly restores mana; Disease Cleansing Totem 5-minute duration fixed; Ghost Wolf visible in bright areas.
Sourced: Dev notes · 1 Oct
Elemental: Elemental Fury (row 3) and Elemental Alacrity (row 6) swapped — Alacrity now early. Lava Burst ranks 1–2 +~10% base damage; Lightning Bolt ranks 3–4 buffed.
Sourced: Dev notes · 24 Sep
Totems: Flametongue Totem no duration, no stacking with Flametongue Weapon or Windfury Totem; Tranquil Air / Windfury / Grace of Air no longer stack across Shamans.
Sourced: Dev notes · 24 Sep