WoW Forever Shaman Guide: How Elemental, Enhancement and Restoration Play

The WoW Forever Shaman is the Classic Shaman with a bigger toolbox: for the first time both factions can play one (the Dwarf is a Shaman on the Alliance), totems are placed four at a time with a single button, and every spec gets a new finisher, Lava Burst for Elemental and Riptide for Restoration. According to Blizzard, Enhancement centers on two-handed weapons. This guide explains how each spec plays, what you learn along the way, which talents to take at level 30, which stats to look for and how to level. It does not say which one is "the best": all three reach 60 and all three have a place in a group.

Everything comes from the beta client (build 1.60.1.70205, level 30) and from what Blizzard has said. It may change before November 4.

In short:

• Elemental: ranged Nature and Fire caster. Instant shocks, Lightning Bolt as filler and, later on, Lava Burst. Hits hard and burns through mana fast.
• Enhancement: melee with a two-handed weapon, Stormstrike and shocks to finish. Intellect turns into attack power with Mental Dexterity. It is the most comfortable spec for soloing.
• Restoration: group healer with waves, healing and mana totems, and Riptide at the end of the tree. Slow to level alone, but warmly welcomed in dungeons.

What changes from Classic

What Blizzard touched in the beta notes:

• Lightning Bolt: ranks 3 and 4 hit harder, so every rank is always better than the previous one (September 24).
• Lava Burst: ranks 1 and 2 deal 10% more base damage than the Lightning Bolt of the same level.
• Elemental Fury and Elemental Alacrity swap places: Alacrity drops to the third row so Elemental feels the jump sooner. Blizzard warns that this takes some spell crit damage away from Enhancement and says it will compensate for it.
• Riptide can now crit.
• Rage of the Farseer no longer speeds up spell casting, only attacks.
• Flametongue Totem has no duration and does not stack with itself, with Flametongue Weapon or with the Windfury Totem. Windfury Totem, Tranquil Air Totem and Grace of Air Totem no longer stack with each other even when placed by different Shamans: two Shamans in the same group do not double the effect.
• Ghost Wolf is easier to see in brightly lit zones (October 1).

What you learn from 1 to 40

The Shaman trainer teaches this (first rank of each spell; later ranks are bought as you level). The full list, rank by rank, is in the Shaman spellbook.

Weapon enchantments (Rockbiter Weapon, Flametongue Weapon, Frostbrand Weapon) are in the client, but without the level at which the trainer teaches them. When we know, we will add it.

Elemental: how it plays

Elemental is a spellcaster in a Shaman's body: it wears Shaman armor, carries a shield if it wants one and stands 30 yards away throwing lightning. It deals a lot of damage in a short time and does it at range, which is comfortable in a group and for finishing off fleeing enemies. What it struggles with is mana: chaining three or four fights in a row without drinking is hard at low levels, and if a melee enemy reaches you, your casts get pushed back with every hit. That is why the build below takes cost and pushback talents before the pure damage ones.

Talents at level 30, in order

1. Concussion (5): 5% more damage on shocks, Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning. These are the spells you will always use, so this is the first point you notice most.
2. Call of Flame (3): 15% more damage on your Fire totems, Flame Shock and Fire Nova, and later Lava Burst. At low levels the Searing Totem is a serious share of your damage.
3. Convection (3): makes shocks and lightning cheaper. For Elemental, mana decides how many fights you can take without stopping.
4. Elemental Alacrity (3): 0.5 s less cast time on Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning and Lava Burst. This is the jump Blizzard has moved up to this row so you feel it early: your filler comes out much sooner.
5. Elemental Focus (1): 10% chance that your next damage spell is free. One point, a lot of mana saved.
6. Call of Thunder (1): more crit on your lightning. It is mandatory to reach Elemental Fury later on.
7. Improved Fire Nova (2): 20% more damage on Fire Nova and 4 s less cooldown. With the Fire totem down, it is your answer when several enemies bunch up.
8. Eye of the Storm (2): less pushback when you are hit while casting. Leveling solo, enemies end up on top of you; this keeps Lightning Bolt from dragging on.
9. Lightning Overload (1): chance for your lightning to cast a second spell for free at half damage and no threat. It is point 21 and opens the way to Lava Burst as the final talent.

With the 5 points of the Legacy perk Talented (the Legacy perk that grants talent points earlier): raise Lightning Overload to 3, complete Eye of the Storm, put one point in Reverberation to reach 25 points in the tree and the last one in Elemental Fury, which doubles the crit damage of your spells and of the Searing and Magma totems.

Load these 21 points in the calculator

With the 5 points from Talented (Legacy), up to 26:

Load all 26 points in the calculator

Priority against a single target

1. Searing Totem (10) before you start, if the fight will last more than a few seconds: it fires on its own while you cast.
2. Flame Shock (10) at the start: it leaves Fire damage for 12 s. From 40, it also sets up Lava Burst.
3. Lava Burst (40) every time it is ready and the target is burning from Flame Shock: +20% damage.
4. Lightning Bolt (1) as filler the rest of the time.
5. Earth Shock (4) to finish a target or, above all, to interrupt a caster. Shocks share a 6 s cooldown: if you are saving one to cut off a heal, do not spend it on damage right before.
6. Frost Shock (20) against anything that flees or chases you: slows by 50% for 8 s.

Against several enemies

Put a Fire totem in the middle (the Magma Totem from 26 if they are going to stick to you, the Searing Totem if not) and use Fire Nova, which bursts around that totem. From 32, Chain Lightning jumps to three targets with a 6 s cooldown. If they pile on you, Earthbind Totem slows them (or roots them for 5 s with Earthbound) and Stoneclaw Totem takes them off you for a few seconds.

Stats

Spell hit, spell damage and spell power come first, almost tied; then crit, then damage of your school (Nature or Fire), mana regeneration and, well behind, intellect, stamina and spirit. In short: make your spells land and hit hard; you recover mana better with regeneration than with intellect.

Gear worth looking for

See this role's full BiS

Enhancement: how it plays

Enhancement hits in melee with a big weapon and uses shocks as finishers. Blizzard said it clearly in the spec's short video: Forever's Enhancement centers on two-handed weapons, with Maelstrom Weapon to make Lightning Bolt faster and cheaper, Mental Quickness to turn intellect into spell power and Rage of the Farseer as an attack speed burst (3 min cooldown, according to Blizzard). It is the most comfortable spec for leveling alone: it takes hits, does not depend on casting with an enemy on top of you and spends little mana between fights. What it struggles with: it has no clear way to deal with several enemies at once at low levels, and its damage depends a lot on keeping the weapon up to date.

Talents at level 30, in order

1. Thundering Strikes (5): 5% more crit with your weapon attacks. More crit means more Flurry later.
2. Mental Dexterity (3): you gain attack power equal to 100% of your intellect. It is what stops the melee Shaman of Forever from wasting the intellect on their gear, and it is a requirement for Flurry.
3. Improved Ghost Wolf (2): Ghost Wolf (20) comes out instantly and can be used indoors. Leveling, it is time saved on every trip between quests.
4. Elemental Weapons (3): 40% more effect on your Windfury weapon and more damage from your other weapon enchantments. From 30 you wear Windfury Weapon all the time.
5. Shamanistic Focus (1): 45% less cost on shocks and Lightning Shield. With this you can use shocks in every fight without running dry.
6. Anticipation (1): 2% more dodge per point; here it mostly serves to reach 15 points and open the fourth row.
7. Stormstrike (1): a weapon strike that increases the damage of your next Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning or Earth Shock by 20%. With this build it arrives at level 25 and is the center of your rotation.
8. Flurry (5): after a melee crit, +25% attack speed on the next three swings. This is where all the earlier crit pays off.

With the 5 points of the Legacy perk Talented: Mental Quickness (2), which adds part of your intellect to your spell damage and is the key to Rage of the Farseer at the end of the tree; Improved Stormstrike (2), which resets the Stormstrike cooldown when you dodge or parry and lets you regenerate mana while casting; and a point in Maelstrom Weapon, which reduces the cast time and cost of your next Lightning Bolt with each hit.

Load these 21 points in the calculator

With the 5 points from Talented (Legacy), up to 26:

Load all 26 points in the calculator

Priority against a single target

1. Lightning Shield (8) up before you go in: free damage every time you are hit.
2. Windfury Weapon (30) on the weapon, always. Careful: if you wear it in the main hand, you stop benefiting from another Shaman's Windfury Totem.
3. Strength of Earth Totem (10) if the fight will last: more strength for you and for melee allies.
4. Stormstrike (talent, 25 with this build) as soon as it is ready.
5. Earth Shock (4) right after Stormstrike, to take advantage of the +20%. If the enemy casts spells, save it to interrupt.
6. Flame Shock (10) against enemies that will live more than 12 s, instead of Earth Shock when you do not need to interrupt.
7. With Maelstrom Weapon stacked, a faster, cheaper Lightning Bolt between swings.

Against several enemies

Enhancement has no melee area attack. Its answer is totems: Magma Totem (26) at your feet and Fire Nova (12) around the Fire totem. Stoneclaw Totem pulls in some of the enemies for 15 s and lets you hit one without taking damage from all of them. If they overwhelm you, Earthbind Totem and Ghost Wolf to get out.

Stats

Hit goes first, then strength and crit almost tied, then agility, and further back attack power, physical damage and stamina. And above everything, weapon damage per second: in our calculation it weighs as much as several stats combined, so a better two-handed weapon almost always comes before any other piece. The weights in our BiS do not count intellect, but with Mental Dexterity it does give you attack power: a piece with strength and intellect is not a bad buy.

Gear worth looking for

See this role's full BiS

Restoration: how it plays

Restoration is the Shaman's group healer: Healing Wave for big heals, Lesser Healing Wave for urgent ones and totems that heal and give mana to everyone without you having to look. In dungeons it is very comfortable: the totems do part of the work and Chain Heal (40) heals several with a single cast. What it struggles with is leveling alone: its talents barely touch damage, so solo you rely on Lightning Bolt and Flame Shock with no bonuses and drink often. One option is to level as Elemental or Enhancement and switch to Restoration for dungeons: in Forever you can change talents with the trainer, and dual specialization arrives at level 40.

Talents at level 30, in order

1. Improved Healing Wave (5): 0.5 s less cast time on Healing Wave. Your main heal comes out noticeably sooner.
2. Tidal Focus (5): 5% less cost on your heals. Mana that lasts a whole dungeon.
3. Water Shield (1): three orbs of water that give you back 2% of your maximum mana when you are hit or when a heal crits. It is the healer's shield; Lightning Shield is left for the other specs.
4. Healing Focus (3): 70% chance of not losing casting time to hits. When the tank loses an enemy, it goes after you.
5. Mindfulness (1): part of your mana regeneration keeps going while you cast. One point here gets you to 15 and opens the fourth row.
6. Mana Tide Totem (1): a totem that returns mana to the group every 3 s for 12 s. With this build you get it at level 25, well before the trainer's (40).
7. Tidal Mastery (5): 5% more crit on your heals and your lightning. More crits mean more Water Shield orbs recharging you.

With the 5 points of the Legacy perk Talented: Healing Way (3), 25% more healing on Healing Wave, which is also the requirement for Riptide; Nature's Swiftness (1), which turns your next Nature spell into an instant cast to save a bad situation; and Purification (1), 2% more healing per point.

Load these 21 points in the calculator

With the 5 points from Talented (Legacy), up to 26:

Load all 26 points in the calculator

Priority against a single target

As a healer, "a single target" is the tank:

1. Water Shield (talent, 20 with this build) always up.
2. Healing Stream Totem (20) and Mana Spring Totem (26) at the start of the fight, or all at once with Call of the Elements (20).
3. Healing Wave (1) as your main heal, starting it before the tank is low.
4. Lesser Healing Wave (20) when health drops suddenly and there is no time for Healing Wave.
5. Nature's Swiftness (with Talented) + Healing Wave for the moment everything goes wrong.
6. Mana Tide Totem when you drop below half mana in a long fight.
7. From 40, Riptide on the tank at the start and on every cooldown.

Against several enemies

In a group, what changes is that several members take damage at once. Up to 40, the Healing Stream Totem covers the loose hits and you place waves where needed; from 40, Chain Heal jumps between group members, and if you cast it on someone with Riptide, it heals 25% more. If someone is hit by poisons or diseases, Cure Poison (16), Cure Disease (22) or your cleansing totems (22 and 38) clear them without spending your casts.

Stats

Mana regeneration comes first; then healing and spell power, and then intellect, spirit, crit and stamina. In short: what lets you last a whole dungeon without stopping to drink is worth more than what makes each heal a little bigger.

Gear worth looking for

See this role's full BiS

Interrupt, control and survive

How to level

The usual rules work here too: fight enemies of your level, upgrade your weapon as soon as you can (Enhancement feels it twice as much) and do not skip the trainer, because the new ranks of your spells are half of your progress. Cooked food gives 5% more experience per kill while you are well fed, and the Cozy Sleeping Bag adds more when you rest in the field. The zone-by-zone route is in the 1-60 leveling guide, and What should I do at my level? tells you where to go, which dungeons fit and what to train.

Which spec is most comfortable for soloing? Enhancement: it takes hits, spends little and is not slowed down by blows. Elemental kills faster but stops more often to drink. Restoration is the slowest alone and the most requested in groups. If you want to heal dungeons from the start, you can level as Enhancement or Elemental and change talents before going in.

Shaman-specific leveling tricks:

• Call of the Elements (20): set up one totem combination for killing (Searing + Stoneskin) and another for group. One button instead of four.
• Totemic Recall (20) at the end of every fight: you recover mana instead of leaving it on the ground.
• Reincarnation (30) saves you the spirit walk once an hour.
• Ghost Wolf (20) between quests, especially with Improved Ghost Wolf.

Professions that fit

• Herbalism and Alchemy: mana and healing potions for every spec. If you are a Tauren, Cultivation lets you harvest an herb without knowing Herbalism.
• Mining and Blacksmithing: two-handed maces and axes for Enhancement, and maces and shields for the rest.
• Skinning and Leatherworking: easy money while you level and your own pieces for your slots.
• First Aid: bandages to heal without spending mana. Useful for any Shaman, including Restoration when it runs dry.

The shopping list for each profession is on the professions page.

Races that fit

There is no "best race": pick the one you like. This is what each one brings to a Shaman:

Alliance

• Dwarf: the only Alliance Shaman, new in Forever. Stoneform removes bleeds, poisons and diseases and reduces physical damage by 10% for 8 s: very useful in melee and when soloing. Mace Specialization gives 1% more crit with spells and attacks if you carry a mace, which is a very common Shaman weapon.

Horde

• Orc: Blood Fury raises attack power and spell power by 10% for 15 s; it serves all three specs. Axe Specialization gives 1% crit if you carry an axe. Hardiness shortens stuns and Shatter Curse removes fears and curses from you.
• Tauren: War Stomp stuns up to 5 enemies for 2 s, a way out when you are surrounded or a way to cut several casts. Endurance adds 5% health and 1% chance to hit, which is the first stat for Elemental and Enhancement.
• Troll: Berserking raises attack and casting speed by 10% for 10 s, for all three specs. Rapid Regeneration recovers half of your health if you can stand still for 6 s.
• Skyborne (Windshapers): Wind Blessed gives 1% haste with spells and attacks. Walk on Air and Skysight help you get around, and Elemental Insight adds 5% damage against elementals.

More detail in Which race should you pick?.

Consumables

• Cooked food: restores health and gives the 5% extra experience while you are well fed. Always carry it.
• Drinks: the Shaman lives on mana; buy water from every vendor you pass.
• First Aid bandages: heal yourself without mana after every hard fight, especially as Enhancement.
• Healing and mana potions: the mana one is the one you will use most as Elemental and Restoration in dungeons.

Useful macros

A macro packs several commands into one button. These use the official spell names and the current game's syntax, which works in the beta. To create one: type /macro, click "New", paste the text and drag the icon to your bar. All of them, with a copy button, are on the shaman page; what each piece means is in the macro guide.

Stances, forms and aspects

Two totems on one button (Intermediate · from level 10). Each press drops the next totem in the list; it resets when you leave combat. For the early levels, before Call of the Elements.

#showtooltip
/castsequence reset=combat Searing Totem, Stoneskin Totem

Ghost Wolf on and off (Intermediate · from level 20). One button turns you into a wolf if you aren't one and back to normal if you are. Outdoors only.

#showtooltip Ghost Wolf
/cast [noform] Ghost Wolf
/cancelform [form]

Recall or move your totems (Intermediate · from level 22). With no modifier you recall your totems and get some mana back; with Shift you move them to where your cursor points.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift,@cursor] Totemic Projection; Totemic Recall

Totems for healing or casting (Intermediate · from level 26). Mana, steady healing, less physical damage and a totem that shoots. For Restoration and Elemental in dungeons.

#showtooltip
/castsequence reset=combat Mana Spring Totem, Healing Stream Totem, Stoneskin Totem, Searing Totem

Totem calls on one button (Intermediate · from level 30). Drops the set on your totem bar in one go; with Shift, the second set (Call of the Ancestors). Set up the combinations on the totem bar first.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Call of the Ancestors; Call of the Elements

Totems for a melee group (Intermediate · from level 32). Press it a few times: strength, extra attacks, mana and damage. Built for Enhancement or groups with warriors and rogues.

#showtooltip
/castsequence reset=combat Strength of Earth Totem, Windfury Totem, Mana Spring Totem, Searing Totem

Attacking

Trinkets plus Lightning Bolt or Chain Lightning (Advanced · from level 1). Fires both trinkets (slots 13 and 14) and casts Lightning Bolt; with Shift, Chain Lightning. If a trinket has no use effect or is on cooldown, the macro just carries on.

#showtooltip Lightning Bolt
/use 13
/use 14
/cast [mod:shift] Chain Lightning; Lightning Bolt

Assist your focus and cast Lightning Bolt (Advanced · from level 1). If the tank is your focus, takes their target and casts Lightning Bolt at it; with no focus, casts at your own target. Keeps the whole group on the same enemy.

#showtooltip Lightning Bolt
/assist [@focus,help,nodead]
/cast [harm,nodead] Lightning Bolt

Attack and Earth Shock (Intermediate · from level 4). Starts your melee auto-attack as you cast Earth Shock. For Enhancement while levelling.

#showtooltip Earth Shock
/startattack
/cast Earth Shock

Enhancement: attack, trinkets and Flame Shock (Advanced · from level 10). Starts melee only if you have a living enemy, uses your trinkets and opens with Flame Shock. For the first seconds of a boss or a duel.

#showtooltip Flame Shock
/startattack [harm,nodead]
/use [harm,nodead] 13
/use [harm,nodead] 14
/cast [harm,nodead] Flame Shock

All three shocks on one button (Intermediate · from level 20). Earth Shock by default, Frost Shock with Shift and Flame Shock with Ctrl. They share a cooldown, so grouping them saves bar space.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Frost Shock; [mod:ctrl] Flame Shock; Earth Shock

Magma Totem and Fire Nova (Intermediate · from level 26). With Shift you drop Magma Totem; without it you detonate Fire Nova around your Fire totem. For packs of enemies.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Magma Totem; Fire Nova

Lightning Bolt or Chain Lightning (Intermediate · from level 32). Lightning Bolt as your filler and, with Shift, Chain Lightning when enemies are bunched up.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Chain Lightning; Lightning Bolt

Flame Shock then Lava Burst (Intermediate · from level 40). Flame Shock first, then Lava Burst, which hits harder on a burning target. Needs the Lava Burst talent; it resets when you change target.

#showtooltip
/castsequence reset=target/12 Flame Shock, Lava Burst

Interrupts

Earth Shock on your focus (Intermediate · from level 4). Earth Shock interrupts: it stops your own cast and hits your focus without switching targets; with no focus, your target.

#showtooltip Earth Shock
/stopcasting
/cast [@focus,harm,nodead][] Earth Shock

Earth Shock on mouseover (Intermediate · from level 4). Interrupts the enemy under your mouse even if it isn't your target; handy against several casters.

#showtooltip Earth Shock
/stopcasting
/cast [@mouseover,harm,nodead][] Earth Shock

Earth Shock on focus, mouseover or the tank's target (Advanced · from level 4). Stops your cast and interrupts, in order, your focus, the enemy under your mouse, your enemy target or, if you have the tank targeted, whatever the tank is hitting. Built to heal without switching targets.

#showtooltip Earth Shock
/stopcasting
/cast [@focus,harm,nodead][@mouseover,harm,nodead][harm,nodead][@targettarget,harm,nodead] Earth Shock

Crowd control

Earthbind or Stoneclaw (Intermediate · from level 8). Earthbind to slow your pursuers; with Shift, Stoneclaw to draw attention away when you get swarmed.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Stoneclaw Totem; Earthbind Totem

Frost Shock on mouseover (Basic · from level 20). Slows whoever is running away under your mouse without losing your target.

#showtooltip Frost Shock
/cast [@mouseover,harm,nodead][] Frost Shock

Defense and survival

Tremor or Grounding Totem (Intermediate · from level 30). Tremor against fear, charm and sleep; with Shift, Grounding to soak one harmful spell.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Grounding Totem; Tremor Totem

Resistance totems (Intermediate · from level 30). Fire with no modifier, Frost with Shift and Nature with Ctrl. For bosses that hit with one school of magic.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Frost Resistance Totem; [mod:ctrl] Nature Resistance Totem; Fire Resistance Totem

Lightning Shield and Windwall (Intermediate · from level 36). Refreshes Lightning Shield; with Shift, Windwall Totem against ranged damage.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Windwall Totem; Lightning Shield

Healing and support

Healing Wave on mouseover (Basic · from level 1). Heals whoever is under your mouse without switching targets; with Shift, yourself.

#showtooltip Healing Wave
/cast [mod:shift,@player][@mouseover,help,nodead][] Healing Wave

Heal an ally or hit an enemy (Advanced · from level 1). With an ally under your mouse or targeted, Healing Wave; with an enemy targeted, Lightning Bolt. One button to heal and chip in damage in quiet moments.

#showtooltip
/cast [@mouseover,help,nodead][help,nodead] Healing Wave; [harm,nodead] Lightning Bolt

Healing Wave on party members with modifiers (Advanced · from level 1). Shift heals party member 1, Ctrl member 2 and Alt member 3; with no modifier, whoever is under your mouse or your target. Works without mouseover party frames.

#showtooltip Healing Wave
/cast [mod:shift,@party1][mod:ctrl,@party2][mod:alt,@party3][@mouseover,help,nodead][help,nodead][@player] Healing Wave

Ancestral Spirit on mouseover (Basic · from level 12). Resurrects whoever you point at on the party frames, or your target.

#showtooltip Ancestral Spirit
/cast [@mouseover,help,dead][] Ancestral Spirit

Lesser Healing Wave on mouseover (Basic · from level 20). The quick emergency heal, on whoever you point at or, with Shift, on yourself.

#showtooltip Lesser Healing Wave
/cast [mod:shift,@player][@mouseover,help,nodead][] Lesser Healing Wave

Cure Poison or Disease on mouseover (Intermediate · from level 22). Removes a poison from whoever you point at; with Shift, a disease.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift,@mouseover,help,nodead][mod:shift] Cure Disease; [@mouseover,help,nodead][] Cure Poison

Cleansing totems (Intermediate · from level 38). Poison Cleansing Totem; with Shift, Disease Cleansing. For bosses that poison or infect the whole group.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Disease Cleansing Totem; Poison Cleansing Totem

Chain Heal on mouseover (Basic · from level 40). Starts the chain on whoever is under your mouse and jumps to nearby wounded allies.

#showtooltip Chain Heal
/cast [@mouseover,help,nodead][] Chain Heal

Riptide then Chain Heal (Intermediate · from level 40). Riptide first, then Chain Heal on the same ally, which then heals more. Needs the Riptide talent.

#showtooltip
/castsequence [@mouseover,help,nodead][] reset=8 Riptide, Chain Heal

Mana Spring and Mana Tide (Intermediate · from level 40). Mana Spring as your standing totem; with Shift, Mana Tide to refill the group in a long fight. In Classic, Mana Tide was a Restoration talent.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Mana Tide Totem; Mana Spring Totem

Chain Heal: right-click on yourself (Advanced · from level 40). Left-click the button: Chain Heal on whoever you point at; right-click: it starts on you, handy when you stand in the middle of the group. The keybind acts like the left click.

#showtooltip Chain Heal
/cast [btn:2,@player][@mouseover,help,nodead][help,nodead][@player] Chain Heal

Utility

Water Walking or Water Breathing (Intermediate · from level 1). Water Walking on whoever you point at (or your target); with Shift, Water Breathing.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift,@mouseover,help][mod:shift] Water Breathing; [@mouseover,help][] Water Walking

Equip your shield and heal (Advanced · from level 1). If you aren't wearing a shield, it equips your one-hander and shield and then heals. Put your one-handed weapon on button 11 and your shield on button 12 of the right bar (MultiBarRight). Swapping weapons in combat resets your swing.

#showtooltip Healing Wave
/click [noworn:Shields] MultiBarRightButton11
/click [noworn:Shields] MultiBarRightButton12
/cast [@mouseover,help,nodead][help,nodead][@player] Healing Wave

Purge on mouseover (Basic · from level 12). Strips magic buffs from the enemy under your mouse; with nothing there, from your target.

#showtooltip Purge
/cast [@mouseover,harm,nodead][] Purge

Purge the tank's enemy (Advanced · from level 12). Purges the enemy under your mouse, your enemy target or, if you're targeting an ally, that ally's target. Strips shields and buffs without letting go of the tank.

#showtooltip Purge
/cast [@mouseover,harm,nodead][harm,nodead][@targettarget,harm,nodead] Purge

Weapon imbues (Intermediate · from level 30). Windfury with no modifier, Flametongue with Shift and Rockbiter with Ctrl. Pick by spec and weapon.

#showtooltip
/cast [mod:shift] Flametongue Weapon; [mod:ctrl] Rockbiter Weapon; Windfury Weapon

Back to your two-hander and imbue it (Advanced · from level 30). If you're wearing a shield, equips your two-hander and applies Windfury; with Shift, Flametongue. Put your two-handed weapon on button 10 of the right bar. Enhancement in Forever uses two-handed weapons.

#showtooltip
/click [worn:Shields] MultiBarRightButton10
/cast [mod:shift] Flametongue Weapon; Windfury Weapon

What we don't know yet

• The beta is at level 30. Everything beyond 30 (Lava Burst, Riptide, Chain Heal, the talents of the last rows) is in the client, but nobody outside Blizzard has played it at those levels.
• Blizzard has not published a written explanation of the Shaman, as it did for Hunter, Druid, Priest and Warrior. What we know about Enhancement comes from its short video.
• Enhancement and spell crit damage: Blizzard said it would compensate Enhancement for the Elemental Fury and Elemental Alacrity swap. It has not said how yet.
• Weapon enchantments (Rockbiter Weapon, Flametongue Weapon, Frostbrand Weapon) are in the client without a trainer level. They may be learned another way; we will find out when someone plays it or Blizzard says so.
• Lava Burst, Riptide and Mana Tide Totem appear both as a trainer spell (40) and as a talent. How the two versions coexist in the game we will check when the beta reaches those levels.
• Everything can change with each build. The exact numbers for each talent are on the Shaman page and in the calculator.

Frequently asked questions

Can the Alliance play Shaman in WoW Forever?

Yes. The Dwarf can be a Shaman in Forever, which did not exist in Classic: there, the Shaman was Horde only. On the Horde, the Orc, Tauren, Troll and Skyborne Windshaper can be one.

Which Shaman spec is most comfortable for soloing?

Enhancement. It hits in melee, takes hits well and spends little mana between fights. Elemental also levels well, but has to stop more often to drink. Restoration is the slowest alone.

Does Enhancement dual-wield in WoW Forever?

Blizzard has explained that Forever's Enhancement centers on two-handed weapons, and its new talents (Maelstrom Weapon, Mental Quickness, Rage of the Farseer) are designed for that. That is why our Enhancement BiS uses a two-handed weapon.

What does Call of the Elements do?

It places up to four totems at once, the ones you have on the totem bar. It arrives at level 20, and at 30 and 40 you learn Call of the Ancestors and Call of the Spirits to store two other combinations. You no longer need to press a button per totem in every fight.

When do Lava Burst and Riptide arrive?

The trainer teaches them at level 40. They are also the last talent of the Elemental and Restoration trees. The beta is at level 30 today, so they cannot be tested yet.