Druid

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Other classes: Warrior, Paladin, Hunter, Rogue, Priest, Shaman, Mage, Warlock

Druids are shapeshifting hybrids that can heal, tank in bear form, fight in cat form or cast as Moonkin. Forever adds a real bear toolkit, and the new talent tree adds Lacerate, Feral Charge and Primal Bite for Feral and Wild Growth for Restoration, plus the out-of-combat Revive. Insect Swarm is now a Balance talent, and Omen of Clarity a trainer ability at 20.

Balance (Caster DPS)

Balance casts Moonfire, Insect Swarm, Starfire and Wrath from range, and from level 40 does it in Moonkin Form, the Balance capstone. Insect Swarm is now a Balance talent (tier 4, level 25), Nature's Grace speeds your casting by 10% for 3 sec after non-periodic crits, and Omen of Clarity, now a passive every Druid learns from the trainer at 20, procs free spells.

Feral Combat (Tank)

Feral Combat covers bear tanking and cat DPS. Forever gives bears a proper toolkit: Lacerate, a tier 4 talent, stacks a high-threat bleed up to 5 times, Feral Charge, a tier 3 talent from level 20, closes gaps and interrupts, and Primal Bite (Blizzard's renamed Mangle), the level 40 capstone, is a 6 sec cooldown bite with high threat. Maul remains the rage dump and Swipe the AoE threat.

Restoration (Healer)

Restoration is a HoT healer that now has real group healing via Wild Growth, the tier 7 capstone: a party-wide front-loaded HoT on a 6 sec cooldown. Rejuvenation and Regrowth cover the tank, Swiftmend (now a tier 4 talent) instantly heals a target that has Rejuvenation or Regrowth, and Nature's Swiftness enables an instant Healing Touch.

Tips & tricks: what ForeverDB learned

Balance

Updated 7 November 2026 for build 1.60.1.70862 · From the DPS simulator, the game client

Learning from players: DPS. Collecting comparable fights before publishing observed cast patterns.

Observed cast patterns, not a proven optimal rotation. Gear, buffs, healing assignments and incoming damage can explain performance differences. HPS is effective healing; overhealing does not increase it. HPS counts effective healing, APS counts recorded shield absorption, and EHPS is their combined rate. Shield application sizes and overhealing do not increase EHPS. Healing assignments and incoming damage still limit healer comparisons. Build groups use the version reported by the log; some logs omit the hotfix build number.

Speculation: The class guide's rotation card uses Moonfire here and the simulator disagrees: check it in game before trusting either: Leave Moonfire out of single-target fights at level 60: the simulator's 60 s fight did 2.3% more damage without it. The class guide disagrees, so treat this as a lead to test. (level 60)
Simulator: Nature's Grace: Cast Starfire within 15 sec, before it fades. In the simulator it comes 2.673 times a 60 s fight. (level 60)
Simulator: Best consumable at level 60: Elixir of Greater Intellect (+5.9% DPS in the simulator); then Greater Arcane Elixir (+4.3%). (level 60)
Simulator: The party buff that helps you most at level 60 is Arcane Intellect from a Mage: +7% DPS in the simulator. (level 60)
Simulator: Where your damage comes from at level 60: Starfire 72%, Moonfire 15%, Insect Swarm 14% (simulator: recommended build, best gear for the level, 60 s single-target fight). (level 60)
Simulator: Insect Swarm is worth 4.2% of your DPS at level 60: the simulator's fight without it did that much less damage. It kept it on the target 91% of the time. (level 60)
Simulator: Mana runs short at level 60: in the simulator's 60 s fight you spend 8.9 s unable to cast. Drink between pulls and start full. (level 60)
Simulator: Stat values at level 60 (simulator, 1 spell power = 1): Intellect 1.7, crit rating 0.38. (level 60)
Simulator: At levels 20-29, Scroll of Intellect IV is your best consumable (+5.2% DPS in the simulator). Greater Arcane Elixir is second (+2.8%). (levels 20–29)
Simulator: At levels 20-29, Blessing of Wisdom from a Paladin is the best party buff for you, adding +6.1% DPS in the simulator. (levels 20–29)
Simulator: At levels 20-29, Starfire makes up 83% of your damage and Moonfire 17% (simulator: recommended build, best gear for the level, 60 s single-target fight). (levels 20–29)
Simulator: At levels 20-29, the simulator's 60 s fight has you unable to cast for 9.8 s. Drink between pulls and start full. (levels 20–29)
Simulator: When Nature's Grace procs, cast Starfire within 15 sec before it fades. The simulator sees it proc 2.447 times in a 60 s fight. (levels 30–39)
Simulator: At levels 30-39, Greater Arcane Elixir is your best consumable (+5.7% DPS in the simulator). Baked Salmon is second (+5.4%). (levels 30–39)
Simulator: At levels 30-39, Arcane Intellect from a Mage is the best party buff for you, adding +1% DPS in the simulator. (levels 30–39)
Simulator: At levels 30-39, Starfire is 70% of your damage, Moonfire 16%, and Insect Swarm 14% (simulator: recommended build, best gear for the level, 60 s single-target fight). (levels 30–39)
Simulator: Moonfire is worth 7% of your DPS at levels 30-39: the simulator did that much less damage without it, and kept it on the target 93% of the time. (levels 30–39)
Simulator: Insect Swarm is worth 3.9% of your DPS at levels 30-39: the simulator did that much less damage without it, and kept it on the target 91% of the time. (levels 30–39)
Simulator: Nature's Grace: Cast Starfire within 15 sec, before it fades. In the simulator it comes 2.053 times a 60 s fight. (levels 40–49)
Simulator: Best consumable at levels 40-49: Elixir of Greater Intellect (+7.7% DPS in the simulator); then Baked Salmon (+5.4%). (levels 40–49)
Simulator: The party buff that helps you most at levels 40-49 is Blessing of Wisdom from a Paladin: +6.9% DPS in the simulator. (levels 40–49)
Simulator: Where your damage comes from at levels 40-49: Starfire 68%, Moonfire 17%, Insect Swarm 14% (simulator: recommended build, best gear for the level, 60 s single-target fight). (levels 40–49)
Simulator: Insect Swarm is worth 3.8% of your DPS at levels 40-49: the simulator's fight without it did that much less damage. It kept it on the target 91% of the time. (levels 40–49)
Simulator: Mana runs short at levels 40-49: in the simulator's 60 s fight you spend 7.9 s unable to cast. Drink between pulls and start full. (levels 40–49)
Simulator: Nature's Grace: Cast Starfire within 15 sec, before it fades. In the simulator it comes 1.797 times a 60 s fight. (levels 50–59)
Simulator: Best consumable at levels 50-59: Elixir of Greater Intellect (+11.6% DPS in the simulator); then Greater Arcane Elixir (+6.4%). (levels 50–59)
Simulator: The party buff that helps you most at levels 50-59 is Arcane Intellect from a Mage: +10.2% DPS in the simulator. (levels 50–59)
Simulator: Where your damage comes from at levels 50-59: Starfire 66%, Insect Swarm 18%, Moonfire 16% (simulator: recommended build, best gear for the level, 60 s single-target fight). (levels 50–59)
Simulator: Insect Swarm is worth 6.7% of your DPS at levels 50-59: the simulator's fight without it did that much less damage. It kept it on the target 83% of the time. (levels 50–59)
Simulator: Mana runs short at levels 50-59: in the simulator's 60 s fight you spend 16.1 s unable to cast. Drink between pulls and start full. (levels 50–59)

How to play it at level 60: priority, procs and cooldowns

What to press, in order. Cast the first one that is ready and whose condition holds.

Insect Swarm: When it's missing from the target: Keep it on the target: up 91% of the sim's fight; worth 4.2% of your DPS (Simulator, Forever client, ForeverDB guide)
Starfire: Fill the gaps with it: Your filler: cast it when nothing above is ready; worth 68.6% of your DPS (Simulator, Forever client, ForeverDB guide)

React to:

When Nature's Grace procs: Starfire within 15 sec: Nature's Grace makes Starfire better: use it before it fades (Simulator, Forever client)

Keep up:

Insect Swarm on the target, at least 90% of the time (Simulator, Forever client)

Before the pull:

Arcane Intellect (Simulator, Forever client)
Blessing of Wisdom (Simulator, Forever client)
Elixir of Greater Intellect (Simulator, Forever client)
Blessing of Kings (Simulator, Forever client)
Greater Arcane Elixir (Simulator, Forever client)
Scroll of Intellect IV (Simulator, Forever client)
Mark of the Wild (Simulator, Forever client)
Baked Salmon (Simulator, Forever client)

Avoid:

Leave Moonfire out of single-target fights at level 60: the simulator's 60 s fight did 2.3% more damage without it. (Simulator)

Latest changes:

7 November 2026: 50-59: Insect Swarm worth 1.4% -> 6.7%; 60-60: removed Moonfire; 2 new tip(s) (client build or hotfix rebuild)
7 November 2026: client build 1.60.1.70790 -> 1.60.1.70862; new Blizzard post (new client build 1.60.1.70862)
6 November 2026: 20-29: added Moonfire; 40-49: added Moonfire; 40-49: Starfire worth 65.1% -> 67.4%; 50-59: Starfire worth 64.8% -> 61.7%; 60-60: added Moonfire; 3 tip(s) dropped (client build or hotfix rebuild)

Feral Combat

Updated 7 November 2026 for build 1.60.1.70862 · From the game client

Learning from players: DPS. Collecting comparable fights before publishing observed cast patterns.

Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The rotation shown is the site's rotation card for level 60, using cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (level 60)
Forever client: Frenzied Regeneration has a 3 min cooldown at level 60 (client data), which is about once every second or third pull. (level 60)
Simulator: At level 60, the simulator values Strength at 2.2, Agility at 1.99, and hit rating at 1.74 per point (1 attack power = 1). (level 60)
Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The rotation shown is the site's rotation card for levels 20-29, using cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (levels 20–29)
Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The rotation shown is the site's rotation card for levels 30-39, using cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (levels 30–39)
Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The rotation shown is the site's rotation card for levels 40-49, using cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (levels 40–49)
Forever client: Frenzied Regeneration has a 3 min cooldown at levels 40-49 (client data), which is about once every second or third pull. (levels 40–49)
Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The rotation shown is the site's rotation card for levels 50-59, using cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (levels 50–59)
Forever client: Frenzied Regeneration has a 3 min cooldown at levels 50-59 (client data), which is about once every second or third pull. (levels 50–59)

How to play it at level 60: priority, procs and cooldowns

What to press, in order. Cast the first one that is ready and whose condition holds.

Feral Charge: Whenever it's ready: Talent: charge a caster to interrupt it. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Lacerate: When it's missing from the target: Talent, rank 5 at 58: stack it to 5 on the boss and keep it up. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Primal Bite: Whenever it's ready: Talent: whenever it's off cooldown. Rank 3 at 60. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Maul: Whenever it's ready: With spare Rage; rank 7 at 58. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Demoralizing Roar: When it's missing from the target: Keep it up on the boss; rank 5 at 52. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)

React to:

Under 30% mana: Dire Bear Form: Shift before the pull. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Under 30% mana: Enrage: Instant Rage to open with; Furor (every level 60 Feral build) also gives 10 Rage on each shift. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)

Keep up:

Lacerate on the target, at least 0% of the time (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Demoralizing Roar on the target, at least 0% of the time (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)

Cooldowns:

Bash: as needed (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Frenzied Regeneration: as needed (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)

Latest changes:

7 November 2026: client build 1.60.1.70790 -> 1.60.1.70862; new Blizzard post (new client build 1.60.1.70862)
6 November 2026: tip wording or values (client build or hotfix rebuild)
4 November 2026: client build 1.60.1.70755 -> 1.60.1.70790; new Blizzard post (new client build 1.60.1.70790)

Restoration

Updated 7 November 2026 for build 1.60.1.70862 · From the game client

Learning from players: Healing + absorbs/s (EHPS). Collecting comparable fights before publishing observed cast patterns.

Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The order shown for level 60 uses cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (level 60)
Forever client: Nature's Swiftness has a 3 min cooldown at level 60 (client data). That is about once every second or third pull. (level 60)
Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The order shown for levels 20-29 uses cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (levels 20–29)
Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The order shown for levels 30-39 uses cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (levels 30–39)
Forever client: Nature's Swiftness has a 3 min cooldown at levels 30-39 (client data). That is about once every second or third pull. (levels 30–39)
Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The order shown for levels 40-49 uses cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (levels 40–49)
Forever client: Nature's Swiftness has a 3 min cooldown at levels 40-49 (client data). That is about once every second or third pull. (levels 40–49)
Forever client: There is no simulation for this spec yet. The order shown for levels 50-59 uses cooldowns and costs from the Forever client. (levels 50–59)
Forever client: Nature's Swiftness has a 3 min cooldown at levels 50-59 (client data). That is about once every second or third pull. (levels 50–59)

How to play it at level 60: priority, procs and cooldowns

What to press, in order. Cast the first one that is ready and whose condition holds.

Rejuvenation: When it's missing from you: Keep it on the tank; rank 11 at 60. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Regrowth: When it's missing from you: For big hits; rank 9 at 60. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Swiftmend: Whenever it's ready: Talent: instant heal on a target with your Rejuvenation or Regrowth on it. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Healing Touch: Whenever it's ready: Rank 11 at 60; lower ranks when the full heal would overheal. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Abolish Poison: When it's missing from you: On the tank against poison mobs. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Remove Curse: Whenever it's ready: Clear harmful curses, tank and healer first. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)

React to:

Under 30% mana: Innervate: On yourself when you're nearly dry. (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)

Keep up:

Rejuvenation on you, at least 0% of the time (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Regrowth on you, at least 0% of the time (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Abolish Poison on you, at least 0% of the time (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)

Cooldowns:

Nature's Swiftness: as needed (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)
Barkskin: as needed (ForeverDB guide, Forever client)

Latest changes:

7 November 2026: client build 1.60.1.70790 -> 1.60.1.70862; new Blizzard post (new client build 1.60.1.70862)
4 November 2026: client build 1.60.1.70755 -> 1.60.1.70790; new Blizzard post (new client build 1.60.1.70790)
3 November 2026: tip wording or values (class pages reworked for 70755 and the level 60 cap)

Every spec's latest changes. Re-studied every week and after each new game build.

Best in slot gear at any level: Balance, Feral Combat, Restoration

Best professions for Druids: Leatherworking + Skinning.

Druid abilities

Healing Touch (level 1)
Mark of the Wild (level 1)
Wrath (level 1)
Moonfire (level 4)
Rejuvenation (level 4)
Thorns (level 6)
Entangling Roots (level 8)
Bear Form (level 10, from the Classic class quest Body and Heart)
Demoralizing Roar (level 10)
Growl (level 10, from the Classic class quest Body and Heart)
Maul (level 10, from the Classic class quest Body and Heart (rank 1))
Nature's Grasp (level 10)
Teleport: Moonglade (level 10)
Enrage (level 12)
Regrowth (level 12)
Revive (level 12)
Bash (level 14)
Cure Poison (level 14, from the Classic class quest Power over Poison)
Aquatic Form (level 16, from the Classic class quest Aquatic Form)
Swipe (level 16)
Faerie Fire (level 18)
Hibernate (level 18)
Cat Form (level 20, from the quest The Great Cat Spirit)
Claw (level 20, from the quest The Great Cat Spirit (rank 1))
Omen of Clarity (level 20)
Prowl (level 20, from the quest The Great Cat Spirit (rank 1))
Rebirth (level 20)
Rip (level 20, from the quest The Great Cat Spirit (rank 1))
Shred (level 20)
Starfire (level 20)
Soothe Animal (level 22)
Ferocious Bite (level 24)
Rake (level 24)
Remove Curse (level 24)
Abolish Poison (level 26)
Dash (level 26)
Challenging Roar (level 28)
Cower (level 28)
Tranquility (level 30)
Travel Form (level 30)
Poised (level 32)
Ravage (level 32)
Track Humanoids (level 32)
Frenzied Regeneration (level 36)
Pounce (level 36)
Pounce Bleed (level 36)
Dire Bear Form (level 40)
Feline Grace (level 40)
Hurricane (level 40)
Innervate (level 40)
Moonkin Aura (level 40)
Barkskin (level 44)
Gift of the Wild (level 50)

No longer trainer abilities in the live client

Lacerate

Data from the WoW Forever client, build 1.60.1.70862, extracted 2026-11-07.