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4 years ago (Beta)
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Hello,
I am 99% sure i am going for that sweet furry friend for classic.
I think the druid class has super rich lore and cool flavor, and i like the idea of being a forest dude.
I was wondering if any of you guys have any fun or cozy stories from playing the druid and general druid experiences :)

   Selexin Sauva Kaiju
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Tauren
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4 years ago (Beta)
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Hi Mom!

I do love the Druid experience in Classic, too.

Aside from the obvious reasons of versatile gameplay, I also, like you, enjoy the lore.

Night Elves and Tauren, putting aside faction conflict for the greater good of the Earth-mother within the Cenarion Circle, keeping the balance in Azeroth despite the petty wars of mortals; I find this badass. The Cenarion Circle is a faction I would love to be more directive for the personalities of NPC Druids in the game as well as more integrated into questing.

Also, holding the power of the sun and moon in your hands is seriously wicked, as to me it feels even more supernatural than shamans and mages wielding the power of the elements. Together with shamans, to me druids somewhat identify as the hippies of Azeroth, combining their love and respect for the forces of nature into a kind of Shinto'esque worldview, which I can appreciate as it makes for some truly straightforward and no bullshit characteristics.

I have felt in the past that an opportunity was missed to create a little fun teasing or even real animosity between these hippie classes / races and others like the goblins & gnomes / mages & warlocks who - at the other extreme of the spectrum - exploit natures power rather than aspiring communion with it.

Last but not least, shape-shifting! I mean, shamans can do it too, but Druids are superior to that, which can be seen as proof of their ultimate intimacy with nature and its forces. Here I also thought a chance was missed, though. I find it weird that everyone in Azeroth is just sort of cool with these dudes being able to turn into animals. I would think there are at least some who would find this freaky. I mean, Taurens get teased about being Tree Lovers and talking to spirits and shit, but nobody dares calling a Druid a freak of nature because he fucking turns into animals. Then again, maybe I just missed it.

   Selexin Latsiv
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Tauren
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4 years ago (Beta)
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Hi @Mom, welcome to Barrens.chat!

Well said from @Rinkusan, and I agree with the points. Versatility for me is the biggest benefit to playing a Druid. If you really want, you can fill all 4 roles in the game varying between levels of viability. If you want to heal, fantastic, you've just nailed a guaranteed raid spot. If you're a dedicated Feral, you will nail down an off-tank and off-DPS spot without too much hassle. If you want to be a Moonkin, you can find a niche position in a friendly guild, or even pursue a hybrid caster/healer spec to fill multiple roles.

PvP is fun, it is challenging and it is like playing Chess (sometimes). You will strategise, outmaneuver and outwit a lot of players if you can utilise your full range of abilities. Feral is particularly strong, as you can supplement mobility and decent damage output with versatile healing options and melee crowd control.

I want to get into the lore a lot more this time around. I always got into the Tauren Druid 'feel' - but I think I can appreciate the lore and stories a lot more this time. 15 years adds a different spin on things. I can't wait!

   Rinkusan
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4 years ago (Beta)
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The more I hear about druids outside of reddit the more I want to play one :lol:
It really is a unique class, isn’t it.

   Selexin Rinkusan Faendor
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4 years ago (Beta)
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Tec wrote:
4 years ago
It really is a unique class, isn’t it.
It is. With the right spec, the difference between being a healer, a caster dps or a tank can be as little as changing gear and shifting your shape.

Druid players are fewer in number than others, but we are very outspoken about the fact that we love our class.

A "jack of all trades, master of none" class will always be in the cross-hairs of efficiency advocates. It used to be the case that there was a lot of hate for PvE Druids in any spec other than healing. Now since the private server community got larger and more knowledgeable about the game, other specs have been redeemed.


A really short example of why Druids rock:Show

In the end, playing a Druid adds to a PvE group in more forms than just dealing damage, healing or tanking. https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=20484/rebirth and https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=29166/innervate, as well as spells like https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=2637/hibernate can have significant value.

The same goes for PvP, of course, which is why a Druid is a well loved addition to any premade team & at this point, almost required for a Warsong premade as flag carriers due to https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=783/travel-form and https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=24866 ... -swiftness.

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Rinkusan wrote:
4 years ago
Tec wrote:
4 years ago
It really is a unique class, isn’t it.
It is. With the right spec, the difference between being a healer, a caster dps or a tank can be as little as changing gear and shifting your shape.

Druid players are fewer in number than others, but we are very outspoken about the fact that we love our class.

A "jack of all trades, master of none" class will always be in the cross-hairs of efficiency advocates. It used to be the case that there was a lot of hate for PvE Druids in any spec other than healing. Now since the private server community got larger and more knowledgeable about the game, other specs have been redeemed.


A really short example of why Druids rock:Show

In the end, playing a Druid adds to a PvE group in more forms than just dealing damage, healing or tanking. https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=20484/rebirth and https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=29166/innervate, as well as spells like https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=2637/hibernate can have significant value.

The same goes for PvP, of course, which is why a Druid is a well loved addition to any premade team & at this point, almost required for a Warsong premade as flag carriers due to https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=783/travel-form and https://classic.wowhead.com/spell=24866 ... -swiftness.
Think I’m gonna be a Druid come classic :lol: :lol:
Something entirely new and very unique and like you said, a great support toolkit.

   Selexin
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4 years ago (Beta)
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Welcome to the family, Friend :)

   Tec
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Rinkusan wrote:
4 years ago
Welcome to the family, Friend :)
Thanks :mrgreen:

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4 years ago (Beta)
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Hey it's ok my guy druids are cool!
Nobody in they right mind would think that you are a furry

   Tec
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Elian wrote:
4 years ago
Hey it's ok my guy druids are cool!
Nobody in they right mind would think that you are a furry

   Elian
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4 years ago (Beta)
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It's refreshing to see 'lore' coming up more and more these days (at least for me) as a genuine point of consideration for class/race selection. I love the RPG aspect of WoW and sometimes it's nice not to feel so alone in that sense :)

Rinkusan wrote:
4 years ago
Night Elves and Tauren, putting aside faction conflict for the greater good of the Earth-mother within the Cenarion Circle, keeping the balance in Azeroth despite the petty wars of mortals; I find this badass.
Not to bring BFA into this, but I've always wondered how Tauren druids felt about the burning of Teldrassil... :sad:

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Alnir wrote:
4 years ago
Not to bring BFA into this, but I've always wondered how Tauren druids felt about the burning of Teldrassil...

Sorry, couldn't resist :D

Joking aside, they better be fucking disgusted.

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Unfortunately the lore have been pretty poor in game at least and I can’t seem to find much about horde druids thought on the burning of teldrassil either so I have no clue.

As far as I know Baine was more or less blackmailed into this and Baine was sent to lead the horde side of the Cenarion Circle along with the horde side of the Earthen Ring to help heal the wound during the burning, I don’t think any Tauren or druids was around it when it was happening, and Sylvanas probably did it for this reason. Nobody to stop her, although the in game story don’t add up with the novels.

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Alnir wrote:
4 years ago
Not to bring BFA into this, but I've always wondered how Tauren druids felt about the burning of Teldrassil...
In before Thunder Bluff burns?

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4 years ago (Beta)
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Rinkusan wrote:
4 years ago
druids somewhat identify as the hippies of Azeroth
100%!

druid was my first character, and you will feel like the definition of speed out there once you hit 30 and start blazing around in travel form.

my favorite story from my druid was soloing the spider boss in LBRS https://classic.wowhead.com/npc=10596/mother-smolderweb by alternating hibernate/starfire. it took a while each time and ended up taking many runs, but i eventually got my https://classic.wowhead.com/item=16715/wildheart-boots from her.

   Rinkusan Selexin Faendor
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4 years ago (Beta)
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Hi all,

Are druids viable tanks for end game? I know warriors are the master class but can bears tank mc and so forth, or are they just an upgrade on paladin tanks?

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Rolopolo wrote:
4 years ago
Hi all,

Are druids viable tanks for end game? I know warriors are the master class but can bears tank mc and so forth, or are they just an upgrade on paladin tanks?
Like a lot of things in WoW, the answer is "It depends." Any of the tanking classes can tank 5-man content without issue, so if that's your goal, you will do just fine as Warrior, Paladin or Druid. However, raiding beyond MC and Ony is another story.

Druid tanks have significant limitations in endgame raiding:
  • Cannot drink potions in forms
  • Cannot hit the defense cap, resulting in crushing blows and crits and more damage spikes
  • Poor "Oh shit" defensive cooldowns
  • Poor itemization until AQ
  • BiS weapon consumable needs to be farmed from Gnomeregan in large quantities

They also have a few advantages:
  • Generally higher armor and HP pools than warriors, given equal itemization
  • Easier to gear (in AQ) as there's less competition for your stuff - although expect very stiff competition for ring, neck and trinket slots.
  • Highest potential Threat-Per-Second, meaning DPS can burn harder, resulting in shorter fights and less strain on healers
  • Effectively no issues with rage, no need to take your shield off or trade damage for threat

Warrior is the undisputed tanking class. If you want to tank 40-mans regularly, roll a warrior. Paladins cannot reliably tank in raids, but druids certainly could tank MC and BWL/Onyxia with the right gear. It remains to be seen if an AQ-geared bear can tank in Naxx on a Classic server, but on Pservers it was possible (optimal?) on certain bosses in Naxx.

In general you'll need better gear than a warrior to provide a similar level of tanking ability. Druid tanks make excellent offtanks for packs of monsters due to swipe, but they take more damage than warriors, full stop. The lack of tanking cooldowns also makes them less helpful on certain fights, but this can be partially overcome with consumables.

Guilds who prioritize speedrunning in Private Servers have occasionally used feral tanks due to the higher TPS when the tank uses charges of their Manual Crowd Pummeler, but the math behind boss hit & parry rate was incorrect on private servers, so that meta may change in classic. Druid form damage was also potentially overtuned (buffed) on Private Servers, which will make them less appealing in classic in comparison.

Check out Skarm on youtube for comparisons between druids and warriors, and also for examples of druid tanking at endgame.

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4 years ago (Beta)
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Frosted wrote:
4 years ago
Rolopolo wrote:
4 years ago
Hi all,

Are druids viable tanks for end game? I know warriors are the master class but can bears tank mc and so forth, or are they just an upgrade on paladin tanks?
Like a lot of things in WoW, the answer is "It depends." Any of the tanking classes can tank 5-man content without issue, so if that's your goal, you will do just fine as Warrior, Paladin or Druid. However, raiding beyond MC and Ony is another story.

Druid tanks have significant limitations in endgame raiding:
  • Cannot drink potions in forms
  • Cannot hit the defense cap, resulting in crushing blows and crits and more damage spikes
  • Poor "Oh shit" defensive cooldowns
  • Poor itemization until AQ
  • BiS weapon consumable needs to be farmed from Gnomeregan in large quantities

They also have a few advantages:
  • Generally higher armor and HP pools than warriors, given equal itemization
  • Easier to gear (in AQ) as there's less competition for your stuff - although expect very stiff competition for ring, neck and trinket slots.
  • Highest potential Threat-Per-Second, meaning DPS can burn harder, resulting in shorter fights and less strain on healers
  • Effectively no issues with rage, no need to take your shield off or trade damage for threat

Warrior is the undisputed tanking class. If you want to tank 40-mans regularly, roll a warrior. Paladins cannot reliably tank in raids, but druids certainly could tank MC and BWL/Onyxia with the right gear. It remains to be seen if an AQ-geared bear can tank in Naxx on a Classic server, but on Pservers it was possible (optimal?) on certain bosses in Naxx.

In general you'll need better gear than a warrior to provide a similar level of tanking ability. Druid tanks make excellent offtanks for packs of monsters due to swipe, but they take more damage than warriors, full stop. The lack of tanking cooldowns also makes them less helpful on certain fights, but this can be partially overcome with consumables.

Guilds who prioritize speedrunning in Private Servers have occasionally used feral tanks due to the higher TPS when the tank uses charges of their Manual Crowd Pummeler, but the math behind boss hit & parry rate was incorrect on private servers, so that meta may change in classic. Druid form damage was also potentially overtuned (buffed) on Private Servers, which will make them less appealing in classic in comparison.

Check out Skarm on youtube for comparisons between druids and warriors, and also for examples of druid tanking at endgame.
Top answer, thanks for that!

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A gif worth a thousand words

   Latsiv
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Hey Mom, this happened to me over closed beta.

I was an Orc Warlock and I had gotten to around level 11? 12? and I was questing at the oasis' in Barrens when I got ambushed by 3 pathing Centaurs that were all higher level than I. No way I was living through this.

I did as best as I could to redirect as much aggro to my voidwalker as possible to make an escape but they were on me pretty hard. As I was running for my life I saw a tauren running the opposite direction toward me. I ended up dying right at his feet.

He stopped and shouted "NOOOOOOO!!!!!!" and went bear form

I'm thinking "Alright awesome, this druid's gonna defend my honor, take these guys out for me, then ressurect me and-oh shit! He's level 16 he's gonna smoke these gu-... and he's dead..."

He whispered me "I didn't have ressurect anyway. We died together."

Prob my single fav experience from beta for ClassicWoW

   Alnir
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pan0phobik wrote:
4 years ago
Prob my single fav experience from beta for ClassicWoW
Why do experiences like these just not happen in BFA anymore? :sad: this is great! I've also had similar experiences playing years ago. My theory is that all of the kind, social players are all finally returning and bringing life to Azeroth again.

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Alnir wrote:
4 years ago
pan0phobik wrote:
4 years ago
Prob my single fav experience from beta for ClassicWoW
Why do experiences like these just not happen in BFA anymore? :sad: this is great! I've also had similar experiences playing years ago. My theory is that all of the kind, social players are all finally returning and bringing life to Azeroth again.
Sharding and a player base being trained over a decade+ that you simply don't need to give a fuck about other people as much anymore imo.

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Nymis wrote:
4 years ago
A gif worth a thousand words

I don't get it. Help me out :)

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What’s happening in that gif? I’m blind?

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The Druid is the maintank/line leader of a PvP raid on IF.