balance-druid-guide
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Shifting Perspectives: Cataclysm heroics guide for balance druids, part 2
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Shifting Perspectives for cat , bear , restoration and balance druids. So, it may not actually be Throne of the Tides, but you don't get to ride a seahorse as a moonkin, so I think it's cooler. That, and the LFG tool did not work with me this week in my dungeon selection. Blame RNG! Seriously! Well, well, well, another week down, and it's that time again, folks. Last week, we began detailing the various ins and outs of the heroic dungeons that you'll be faced with. This week will be the second and final part of that series. Heroics can be easy or excruciatingly difficult, even now, even with quite a bit of heroic gear. Although gear certainly helps -- our guild heroic runs generally use a lot less CC now -- it is not what is going to make or break the success of a group. Completing dungeons is about strategy: knowing the fights and knowing how to cope with various mechanics. Doing this makes everything significantly easier. I know the more casual players will cringe slightly at the thought. Heroics can take a lot of time. They can take quite a lot of effort as well, and having to put forth research and energy into a hobby can seem like it saps all of the fun out of the game. To you, I say this: Don't think of guides or strats as a requirement or a chore that you have to do in order to actually play the game. Just look at it as another facet of the game as a whole. Like chess, you wouldn't just move a piece at random; you would think, plan, and have a strategy.
Shifting Perspectives: Running heroics as a balance druid, part 1
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Shifting Perspectives for cat , bear , restoration and balance druids. This week, we start the long dive into dungeons that will be consuming your life for the next few years. At least, until the next expansion. You know all of the gear that you want to get out of heroics. You know that you need to get your one random heroic done each day. But you are constantly finding yourself struggling to get through the instances that you are placed in. Don't fret; this is actually a fairly common experience, even for those players who have done more heroics than they would have liked to by this point. Even when I do random PUGs, things can get rough. Sometimes the tank and/or healer is undergeared; sometimes the players are just new to the instance and don't quite have the feel for how things work. There are a lot of things that can go wrong in a Cataclysm heroic dungeon, and anyone stepping into them should be prepared to wipe multiple times no matter how prepared they are. However, there are things that you as a balance druid can do to make any heroic instance you run more smoothly. Sometimes it's through CC, sometimes it's through knowing what does what, and sometimes it's by making use of every single tool that you have in your toolbox. This week is the first of a two-part series explaining in detail how balance druids can best assist their groups in heroics.
Shifting Perspectives: Moonkin, a history
Every week, Shifting Perspectives explores issues affecting druids and those who group with them. This week, we are dusting off those moldy tomes we have stuffed away in our forgotten bookcases. Mold can be deadly, you know! Plus, you know, we might actually read those someday. To start randomly off topic, is anyone else a fan of the show Greek? I was for the first few seasons, but, like most things, I eventually lost interest in the story arcs and characters. As much as I do love some shows, I am exactly like a cat with string and shiny objects. Anyway, if you did ever watch the show Greek, then I'm sure you remember the character Cappie. My college life was quite similar to his. Not at all really. I wasn't in a fraternity, I didn't binge drink every single night and I didn't have horribly complex, awkward and pissy relationship strings. We did have one thing in common, sorta. Cappie was notorious for his line of "I was an X major once" after any insightful comment he actually made. Though I didn't change majors at the drop of a hat, only switched once actually, I did coin a similar phrase during my time. "I dated an X major once" was something I was often heard saying when I made any reference to something outside of my own field; and let's face it, the depths of literary content don't often come up in normal conversation. A brief repose into my past may seeming meaningless, but I swear I have a point to this story. You see, I dated a history major once, so I picked up a few things about the subject. Perhaps that's a lie, given that I don't actually recall any deep form of discourse occurring between us. What I do know is the history of balance druids, though. That's a subject I'm well versed in. As history majors are often noted for saying, at least I've been told they are noted for saying it since I don't recall my history major ever making the comment, "We must understand our past in order to create a better future." Normally I'd call rubbish, but there is a note of wisdom there. It is important to know something past. Even though knowing and the application of knowledge are two entirely different points, I did date a philosophy major after all so I should know, the one thing that history can give us is perspective. With little fanfare, I would like to present to you a CliffsNotes version of the history of balance druids.
Cataclysm Class Changes: Balance druid analysis
Attention everyone, before we begin today's lessons, allow me to indulge in a moment of temporary insanity as I squee like a little schoolgirl. SQQQQQQUUUUUUUEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Ahem, with that out of the way, maybe we can get right down to business. As I'm sure it goes without saying, Blizzard has been systematically releasing previews of class changes to expect in Cataclysm. Other classes may have had their time in the sun to relish in whatever meager glories that might have been thrown out to them like ducks at a pond, but we balance druids are not mere ducks. No, my friends, balance druids are the swans of WoW. We are graceful, elegant and deadly. All right, maybe a swan is bad avian choice; perhaps a hawk would be better. No matter how you look at it, moonkin are amazing. With the recently announced changes, we're only going to become even more so. Past all the glitter and glitz given out to our lesser-specced brethren, the true meat of the druid changes can be found. Though there are several great discussions going on about the topic around the interwebs, allow me a moment of your time in order to given an in-depth analysis of the changes. Keeping true to our nature, each change will be rated on the Eclipse scale, using a range of "The sun is still in my eyes and it burns" to "Total eclipse!"
Pimp My Profile: Elasmind, balance druid
Welcome to Pimp My Profile, the column in which the WoW.com staff turns zeroes into heroes. Don't think you're performing where you should be? Not sure how your class/spec is supposed to be gearing up? E-mail us with your Armory link, and you might be next to receive our help! Please pimp my druid. I can put out decent DPS in 5 mans if the conditions are right but I want to do more. I'm unsure about some of my talent choices and hope you can put me on the right track to ICC. - Elasmind Like a genie in a bottle, your wish is my command. With minimal tweaks, we can certainly get your toon ready to raid in style. When I say style, I mean style, you'll be the talk of Fountain Square. Get your whisper blocking add-on ready, because after we turn you from a moonkin to a doomkin, every balance druid in Dalaran is going to want to know your secret.
