Feral Druid DPS Easy Mode — Battle for Azeroth (BfA) 8.3

This section is intended for players who are new to the game or class, have no intentions of raiding Mythic difficulty, or simply want a more straightforward way to play their specialization without being overwhelmed by the numerous priorities and active abilities that need to be taken into consideration for optimal play.

Feral can be quite overwhelming to the new player due to the focus on dual resource management and maintaining numerous buffs/debuffs at once. Despite the quite complex base toolkit however, talents offer a number of options that can simplify some of the management mechanics that are required of a Feral player. This page will focus on a build that negates some of the more extreme management requirements that the advanced sections encourage, to make the playstyle more forgiving.

An important thing to take note of here, however, is that bleeds are still omnipresent in a Feral build. Due to that, you will need to be able to track them and your Energy/Combo Points effectively so you do not fall behind. This build will grant a lot more room for failure but will not compensate for more egregious mistakes, as Feral has a naturally unforgiving nature toward mismanagement.

The talents selected below have been chosen due to their ease of use and low impact on the rotation. In many cases they also increase the room for failure on core mechanics, whilst not strictly being the best for bottom line performance. You will always find a better benefit from playing around the more advanced rotation, but this provides the best way to ease into the spec and get a feel for its mechanics.

• Level 15: Sabertooth
• Level 30: Wild Charge
• Level 45: Balance Affinity
• Level 60: Mighty Bash
• Level 75: Soul of the Forest
• Level 90: Brutal Slash
• Level 100: Moment of Clarity

The current Feral stat priority is as follows when using this build:

1. Critical Strike;
2. Mastery;
3. Versatility;
4. Haste;
5. Agility.

Critical Strike is currently the ideal choice due to the additional Combo Point generation alongside free damage. Mastery comes in a very close second to enhance both Bleeds and Finishers, so these are the stats to focus on if possible.

• Use Berserk to grant a period of free Energy expenditure.
• Use Tiger's Fury when under 40 Energy to increase damage and gain Energy, or if Berserk is active.
• Cast Rip if at 5 Combo Points and it is not present on the target.
• Maintain Rake if it is not present, this can be refreshed if under 4 seconds remaining.
• Maintain the Thrash debuff with 2 or more targets nearby.
• Cast Ferocious Bite if at 5 Combo Points with Rip active to refresh it.
• Cast Brutal Slash to build Combo Points.
• Cast Shred to build Combo Points if no Brutal Slash charges are available.

Take note here that due to the fluid nature of the Feral DPS style being based around dual resources and Bleed uptime, you will have a less strict rule to using your skills. Talents selected minimize the number of effects that you need to actively maintain, and allow for a reduced Energy requirement to sustain your rotation. You can opt into taking Primal Wrath if you want a better AoE package, but Sabertooth provides an easy solution to Rip management when learning the specialization. It is still imperative, however, to make sure that Rake is active as much as is allowed and Rip is activated as soon as possible to allow for it to be refreshed.

Currently, the best trait to aim for as Feral in most situations is Jungle Fury and you should stack as many as possible. After this, you want a mix of as many Wild Fleshrending traits as you can, and some good one point traits, such as:

• Gushing Lacerations;
• Blood Mist.

Middle Ring traits to aim for are Overwhelming Power, Unstable Flames, Heed My Call, and Gutripper, in any order.

Ideally, Feral should be aiming to use Blood of the Enemy Major essence, unlocked via gaining Honor in battleground content. However, the following essences are good substitutes:

• Worldvein Resonance (in groups) — unlocked via Island Expeditions;
• Essence of the Focusing Iris — unlocked via Mythic+;
• Condensed Life-Force — unlocked from The Eternal Palace raid content;
• The Crucible of Flame — unlocked via leveling your Heart of Azeroth.

In the Minor slots that you unlock at Heart of Azeroth Level 55, 65 and 75, you should be using the following Minor essences:

• Memory of Lucid Dreams — highest priority unlocked via your Nazjatar followers;
• Breath of the Dying — unlocked via 8.3 content and the Uldum Accord reputation;
• Worldvein Resonance (in groups) — unlocked via Island Expeditions;
• The Crucible of Flame — unlocked via progressing your Heart of Azeroth level;
• Conflict and Strife — unlocked via Rated PvP.

Please refer to our Feral Essence page, for more information.