Classic Restoration Druid Healer Guide
Welcome to our Restoration Druid Healer guide for WoW Classic, tailored for PvE content. Here, you will learn how all you need to know to play the Druid class as Restoration Healer. Click the links #below to navigate the guide or read this page for a short introduction.
If you were looking for TBC Classic content, please refer to our TBC Classic Restoration Druid guide.
Introduction
Druids are most often described as, "the jack of all trades, but master of none." This is quite accurate since Druids are the only class in the game capable of fulling all four roles: tank, healer, ranged DPS, and melee DPS. However, every Druid specialization and build is considered sub-par for PvE and is outclassed by other classes that share the role.
Restoration Druids are the one exception out of the Druid specs and are used in almost every raid group, usually holding 2-3 spots. While Resto Druids do not do as much raw healing as a Priest or a Paladin, they offer situationally good healing through their powerful heal over time (HoT) effects along with their instant cast healing spells that allow them to heal while moving. Additionally, Druids offer incredibly powerful utility spells with Innervate and Rebirth, both of which are vital in most raid encounters.
In PvP, Resto Druids are incredibly strong due to their amazing versatility and survivability due to their strong defensive and kiting ability. With Travel Form to kite with and Dire Bear Form to tank within tight situations, Resto Druids are much harder to kill than any other healer, making them a force to be reckoned with in the open world and in battlegrounds. In Warsong Gulch specifically, Resto Druids are the best flag carriers that top teams will use due to their incredibly defensive, healing, and kiting capabilities. With a large and versatile toolkit, Resto Druids offer a unique play style that makes them excellent for anyone looking for an interesting and varied Druid PvP experience.
Restoration Druid in the Season of Mastery
Although the Season of Mastery brings with it a number of changes to how you may experience the content of WoW Classic, these tweaks do not include any adjustments to how you play Restoration Druid. As such, this guide will cover all you need to know regardless of which version of Classic you wish to play.
However, due to certain pieces of content from later Phases now being available at an earlier date, gearing recommendations for Restoration Druid will be different. Because of this, we have created additional pages detailing your best in slot items for both pre-raid gear and the current raids available.
Restoration Druid Strengths
- Versatile in PvP;
- Incredibly mobile;
- Strong defensive abilities;
- Strong utility through Innervate and Rebirth;
- Well rounded healing toolkit.
Restoration Druid Weaknesses
- Low healing output compared to other healers;
- Easy to run out of Mana if you are not careful;
- Only healer without a normal resurrection ability.
Best Races for Restoration Druids
Unlike other classes, Druids do not have a choice when it comes to race. If you want to go Alliance, you must be Night Elf. If you want to go Horde, you must be Tauren. Thus, your only choice is which faction do you want to choose, which you should make based on your guild, friends, or any other number of reasons.
Night Elf
- Nature Resistance increases your Nature Resistance by 10.
- Quickness increases your Dodge Chance by 1%.
- Shadowmeld is an ability that allows you to become stealthed while standing still when used, on a 10-second cooldown. This cannot be used in combat.
- Wisp Spirit causes you to transform into a wisp upon death, increasing your movement speed by 50% while dead.
Tauren
- Cultivation increases your Herbalism skill by 15.
- Endurance increases your total health by 5%.
- Nature Resistance increases your Nature Resistance by 10.
- War Stomp is a 2-minute cooldown that stuns up to 5 enemies within 8 yards for 2 seconds, with a 0.5 second cast time.
Best Professions for Restoration Druids
The best profession to have as a Restoration is Engineering. It provides powerful items that you can use in both PvE and PvP content to either deal damage or help you get out of a tough spot.
While Engineering is a great profession, probably the more important thing to think about is how you plan to make gold. Gold is incredibly important in WoW Classic for a number of reasons and will be quite hard to come by especially at the start. Check out the Druid Goldmaking section for more information on other potential professions for making gold.
Restoration Druids in the Season of Mastery
Although the Season of Mastery
Changelog
- 02 Dec. 2020 (gear page): Updated for Phase 6.
- 02 Dec. 2020 (enchants page): Updated with Phase 6 Naxxramas Enchants.
- 06 Aug. 2020 (gear page): Reworked for Phase 5 BiS with alternatives.
- 30 Jul. 2020 (gear page): Reformatted page after Phase 5 release.
- 26 Jul. 2020 (gear page): Updated with Idols.
- 21 Jul. 2020 (gear page): Added link to AQ BiS.
- 13 Jul. 2020 (enchants page): Added enchant for Hands slot and updated potions list.
- 25 May 2020 (gear page): Minor ZG gear update.
- 18 May 2020 (enchants page): Updated with current World Buffs as of Phase 4.
- 14 Apr. 2020 (gear page): Updated with Zul'Gurub gear.
- 14 Apr. 2020 (enchants page): Updated with Zul'Gurub enchants.
- 13 Mar. 2020 (gear page): Updated with Arathi Basin gear.
- 23 Feb. 2020 (gear page): Updated for P3.
- 10 Dec. 2019 (gear page): Added note on PvP BiS.
- 09 Nov. 2019 (gear page): Updated with Raid BiS.
- 22 Oct. 2019 (gear page): Updated Pre-Raid BiS to include Dire Maul.
- 24 Jul. 2019 (gear page): Page added.
- 24 Jul. 2019 (enchants page): Page added.
- 24 Jul. 2019 (stats page): Page added.
- 24 Jul. 2019 (rotation page): Page added.
- 24 Jul. 2019 (talents page): Page added.
- 24 Jul. 2019 (spells page): Page added.
- 24 Jul. 2019 (this page): Page added.
- 13 Mar. 2019 (enchants page): Added Phase 3 enchants.
More Classic Druid Guides
More Classic Guides from Other Classes
Classic Dungeon Guides
Classic Profession Guides
Classic Reputation Guides
This guide has been written by Impakt, an Officer in BDGG, the #2 North American guild on retail. In addition to live WoW, he has also been a classic theorycrafter and enthusiast for many years. You can watch him stream on Twitch, or follow him on Twitter.
- Molten Core Tuning Detailed, Coming After Weekly Reset
- Molten Core Trash Mob Immunity Hotfix
- Molten Core and Onyxia's Lair Now Live in Season of Discovery Phase 4
- Higher Libram and Burning Essence Droprate Hotfix Coming + Fire Resist Explanation in SoD P4
- Molten Core Season of Discovery Details and Launch Date and Time
- Rise of the Zandalari Patch Coming to Cataclysm Classic on July 30th!
- SoD World Boss Resurrection Issues: July 18th
- World Bosses Live Now in Season of Discovery Phase 4