Feral Druid DPS Guide (Legion 7.3)

Table of Contents

• ×Introduction
  • 1. Class Overview
  • 2. What has changed in Patch 7.3?
  • 3. What has changed in Patch 7.2.5?
  • 4. Strengths
  • 5. Weaknesses
  • 6. Viability in the Current Patch
  • 7. Contents
  • 8. ChangeLog
• +Easy Mode
  • 1. The Basics
  • 2. Talent Choice
  • 3. Stat Choice
  • 4. Basic Rotation
  • 5. ChangeLog
• +Spell Summary
  • 1. Spell Summary
  • 2. Main Resources
  • 3. Artifact Ability
  • 4. Basic Abilities
    • 4.1. Bleeds
    • 4.2. Other Abilities
    • 4.3. Offensive Cooldowns
    • 4.4. Additional Utility
  • 5. ChangeLog
• +Builds and Talents
  • 1. Talent Choices
  • 2. Talent Cheat Sheet
    • 2.1. Open World, Levelling and Questing
    • 2.2. Dungeons and Raids
      • 2.2.1. Single Target
      • 2.2.2. AoE
  • 3. Tier 1 (Level 15) Talents
  • 4. Tier 2 (Level 30) Talents
  • 5. Tier 3 (Level 45) Talents
  • 6. Tier 4 (Level 60) Talents
  • 7. Tier 5 (Level 75) Talents
  • 8. Tier 6 (Level 90) Talents
  • 9. Tier 7 (Level 100) Talents
  • 10. ChangeLog
• +Artifact Traits and Relics
  • 1. Artifact Progression
    • 1.1. Early Progression
    • 1.2. Patch 7.2 Progression
  • 2. Artifact Ability
  • 3. Relic Choice
    • 3.1. Tear the Flesh/Razor Fangs
    • 3.2. Razor Fangs/Ashamanes Energy/Feral Power
    • 3.3. Feral Instinct
    • 3.4. Sharpened Claws
    • 3.5. AoE Relics
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Netherlight Crucible Relic Paths
  • 1. Optimization between Light/Shadow Tier 2 and Relic Tier 3 Choices
  • 2. Tier 2 Priorities
    • 2.1. Best
    • 2.2. Good
    • 2.3. Average
    • 2.4. Weak
  • 3. Tier 3 Priorities
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities
  • 1. Single Target Rotation
    • 1.1. Opening Sequence
  • 2. Multiple Target Rotation
    • 2.1. Ashamane's Frenzy
    • 2.2. Brutal Slash
    • 2.3. Long Duration Adds
      • 2.3.1. 2-3 Targets
      • 2.3.2. 4-8 Targets
      • 2.3.3. 9+ Targets
    • 2.4. Short Duration Adds
    • 2.5. Priority Targets
  • 3. Cooldowns
  • 4. Optional Read: Mastering Your Feral Druid
    • 4.1. Mastery: Razor Claws
    • 4.2. Combo Points and Energy
    • 4.3. Single Target Rotation in Detail
      • 4.3.1. Bleeds & DoTs
      • 4.3.2. What to do the Rest of the Time
      • 4.3.3. Energy Management
      • 4.3.4. When to Refresh Bleeds
      • 4.3.5. When to Refresh Savage Roar
      • 4.3.6. Ferocious Bite
    • 4.4. Detailed Cooldown Usage
      • 4.4.1. Tiger's Fury
      • 4.4.2. Fury of Ashamane
      • 4.4.3. Berserk
      • 4.4.4. Tier 1 Talents
      • 4.4.5. Tier 5 Talents
      • 4.4.6. Tier 6 Talents
      • 4.4.7. Tier 7 Talents
  • 5. Tier 19 Set Bonuses
  • 6. Tier 20 Set Bonuses
  • 7. ChangeLog
• +Stat Priority
  • 1. Basics
    • 1.1. Jagged Wounds Builds:
    • 1.2. Incarnation Builds:
  • 2. Getting a Better Understanding
  • 3. Advanced Stats
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Gems, Enchants, and Consumables
  • 1. Gems
  • 2. Enchants
  • 3. Consumables
  • 4. ChangeLog
• +Macros and Addons
  • 1. Macros
    • 1.1. Generic Macros for Druids
      • 1.1.1. Rebirth
      • 1.1.2. Remove Corruption
    • 1.2. Specific Macros for Feral Druids
      • 1.2.1. Regrowth Macro
  • 2. Addons
    • 2.1. Generic Addons for Druids
      • 2.1.1. ElvUI
      • 2.1.2. Boss Mods: Deadly Boss Mods or Bigwigs
      • 2.1.3. GTFO
      • 2.1.4. Omen Threat Meter
      • 2.1.5. Parrot or Mik's Scrolling Battle Text
      • 2.1.6. Weak Auras
      • 2.1.7. Recount / Skada / Details!
      • 2.1.8. Grid and GridClickSets (Optional)
      • 2.1.9. TellMeWhen
    • 2.2. Specific Addons for Feral Druids
      • 2.2.1. DotFocus
  • 3. ChangeLog
• +Gear, Legendaries, and Best in Slot
  • 1. Best in Slot List
    • 1.1. Trinkets
    • 1.2. Tier 19 & 20 Bonus Combinations
    • 1.3. Evaluating Upgrades with dynamic Item Levels
  • 2. Racial Bonuses
  • 3. Legendary Items
    • 3.1. 7.1.5 Legendaries
    • 3.2. 7.2 Legendaries
    • 3.3. 7.2.5 Legendaries
    • 3.4. Recommended Choices
  • 4. Loot Competition
  • 5. ChangeLog

General Information

Welcome to our Feral Druid DPS guide for World of Warcraft Legion 7.3. Here, you will learn everything you need to know about playing a Feral Druid in a raid environment and in Mythic+ dungeons.

About Our Author and Reviewer

This guide has been written by Wordup, a frequent theorycrafter involved in a number of class communities. He is also an experienced player who has been in the world top 100 since the days of Sunwell, currently raiding in Echoes. You can also follow him on Twitter.

This guide has been reviewed and approved by Xanzara, a top-ranking Feral Druid, who sometimes streams on YouTube.

1. Class Overview

Feral, the Melee DPS specialisation for Druids, forms its core gameplay around balancing two separate resources whilst also leveraging those to apply powerful Bleed Damage over Time effects on targets. In terms of single target DPS, Feral is extremely powerful and can often shine in these situations. When it comes to multiple target situations, Feral can perform relatively well generally, but does not shine.

2. What has changed in Patch 7.3?

• Feral has received significant changes leading into patch 7.3 to ease the gameplay difficulty for new players, allowing for a smoother entry into the spec.
• All damage has been increased by 33%.
• Significant changes to Talent strength and positions on the tree which is addressed on the Talent page.
• Predatory Swiftness is no longer a requirement to cast Rebirth.
• Rebirth can now be cast instantly in any form.
• Energy cost of Swipe and Thrash has been reduced by 5, and Thrash now generates one Combo Point.

3. What has changed in Patch 7.2.5?

• Tier 20 bonuses have now been added with the opening of the Tomb of Sargeras, opening up new gearing options.
• Ferocious Bite has received a damage buff increasing its value as a finisher.
• Soul of the Forest has been reworked to now also increase the damage of finishers by 5%, but generate less Energy per combo point.
• Two new legendary items have been added, the Behemoth Headdress headpiece, and the Soul of the Archdruid ring.

4. Strengths

• Consistent sustained single target damage.
• Reasonably high mobility and flexibility in a Raid environment.
• Powerful low target cleave achieved through maintaining DoTs on multiple targets.
• Flexible talent choices allowing for advantages in different fight archetypes.

5. Weaknesses

• Can require ramp up to reach full damage on priority targets.
• Gameplay relies on pooling and smart resource management, and can be punishing.
• AoE is somewhat limited compared to other Melee specialisations.

6. Viability in the Current Patch

New set bonuses being introduced alongside potentially powerful legendary options to work with them indicate that 7.2.5 could be a strong patch for Feral. Having a lot of fight archetypes that allow for Bleed effects to shine could prove very powerful. They still remain a relatively solid choice in Mythic+, but nothing spectacular.

7. Contents

To make it easy to navigate the guide, we have split it into 10 pages:

• Easy Mode: TL;DR to own without reading much;
• Spell Summary: see a summary of all your useful spells;
• Builds and Talents: learn how to choose your talents;
• Artifact Traits and Relics: discover how to level up your Artifact;
• Netherlight Crucible Relic Paths: choose the right paths on your Netherlight Crucible;
• Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities: master your rotation and your cooldowns;
• Stat Priority: read up on the respective values of your statistics;
• Gems, Enchants, and Consumables: choose the best gems, enchantments, etc.;
• Macros and Addons: step up your game with useful macros and addons;
• Gear, Legendaries, and Best in Slot: find the best gear you can wear.

8. ChangeLog

+ show all entries - show only 10 entries

• 18 Sep. 2017 (easy mode page): Updated to remove Sabertooth note.
• 12 Sep. 2017 (Netherlight Crucible page): Added Netherlight Crucible page for Feral Druid.
• 29 Aug. 2017 (easy mode page): Updated talent recommendations for new 7.3 trees and updated stat priority to match that of the stats page.
• 29 Aug. 2017 (artifact page): Updated relic section for Patch 7.3 changes.
• 29 Aug. 2017 (stats page): Updated with notes for Incarnation stat priority in 7.3.
• 29 Aug. 2017 (gear page): Added note regarding Convergence of Fates for Incarnation builds in 7.3.
• 29 Aug. 2017 (rotation page): Updates to all affected abilities and effects for 7.3, including updated use of Savage Roar, and details of new talent combinations.
• 29 Aug. 2017 (spells page): Adjusted for new Thrash/Swipe cost changes and Thrash now granting Combo Points.
• 29 Aug. 2017 (talents page): Updated for new 7.3 talent tree layout changes with new build recommendations.
• 28 Aug. 2017 (enchants page): Added Lightforged Augment Rune and new 7.3 epic gems.
• 28 Aug. 2017 (this page): Updated for 7.3 Feral rework updates.
• 03 Jul. 2017 (artifact page): Small formatting change in relics.
• 16 Jun. 2017 (gear page): Updated 4pc/2pc combinations following Tier 20 set bonus nerfs.
• 16 Jun. 2017 (rotation page): Updated page for new Tier 20 bonus values.
• 14 Jun. 2017 (gear page): Added note regarding Tier 19/20 2/4pc combinations.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (this page): Added summary of Patch 7.2.5 changes.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (gear page): Updated with Tomb of Sargeras gear and 7.2.5 Legendaries.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (easy mode page): Page reviewed and deemed updated for 7.2.5.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (spells page): Page reviewed and deemed updated for 7.2.5.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (talents page): Updated for 7.2.5.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (enchants page): Page reviewed and deemed updated for 7.2.5.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (artifact page): Updated for Patch 7.2.5.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (stats page): No changes needed for Patch 7.2.5.
• 12 Jun. 2017 (rotation page): Updated for 7.2.5 with new Set Bonus information.
• 22 Apr. 2017 (talents page): Clarified that Wild Charge when in Travel Form causes you to jump to the location of an ally, and not to fly to them.
• 28 Mar. 2017 (enchants page): Changed food recommendation to Lavish Suramar Feast.
• 27 Mar. 2017 (talents page): No changes needed for Patch 7.2.
• 27 Mar. 2017 (this page): Added summary of Patch 7.2 changes.
• 27 Mar. 2017 (rotation page): Added section regarding Fury of Ashamane.
• 27 Mar. 2017 (artifact page): Added path for the Artifact traits added in Patch 7.2.
• 27 Mar. 2017 (gear page): Updated for 7.2 with new Legendary changes.
• 27 Mar. 2017 (stats page): No changes needed for Patch 7.2.
• 05 Mar. 2017 (gear page): Updated note on Fiery Red Maimers to indicate they are no longer bugged.
• 10 Jan. 2017 (artifact page): Updated for new trait values.
• 10 Jan. 2017 (gear page): Added trinkets.
• 09 Jan. 2017 (gear page): Updated gearlist for Nighthold - Trinkets pending.
• 09 Jan. 2017 (enchants page): Checked and confirmed for Patch 7.1.5.
• 09 Jan. 2017 (rotation page): Added Tier 19 set bonus section.
• 09 Jan. 2017 (talents page): Updated for Patch 7.1.5.
• 09 Jan. 2017 (easy mode page): Checked and confirmed for Patch 7.1.5.
• 09 Jan. 2017 (this page): Updated for 7.1.5 with new changes.
• 09 Jan. 2017 (stats page): Checked and confirmed for Patch 7.1.5.
• 26 Nov. 2016 (easy mode page): Added section for easier playstyle.
• 25 Nov. 2016 (gear page): Updated trinket simulations.
• 25 Oct. 2016 (gear page): Added Karazhan trinket to the trinket simulations.
• 25 Oct. 2016 (enchants page): Added a mention about Potion of Prolonged Power.
• 25 Oct. 2016 (talents page): Patch 7.1 updates
  • Added a mention that Incarnation is now off the global cooldown.
  • Updated Guardian Affinity's description (Thick Hide now passively reduces damage by 6%, down from 10).
  • Updated Bloodtalons' description (Regrowth has replaced Healing Touch for non-Restoration Druid specs).
• 25 Oct. 2016 (addons page): Replaced mentions of Healing Touch with Regrowth (the latter has replaced the former for non-Restoration Druid specs).
• 25 Oct. 2016 (rotation page): Replaced mentions of Healing Touch with Regrowth (the latter has replaced the former for non-Restoration Druid specs).
• 21 Sep. 2016 (enchants page): Made Potion of the Old War the potion of choice.
• 18 Sep. 2016 (enchants page): Page was inexplicably advising to gem/enchant Crit, when our stat priority said otherwise.
• 29 Aug. 2016 (artifact page): Added.
• 29 Aug. 2016 (rotation page): Updated for Legion's launch.
• 29 Aug. 2016 (stats page): Updated for Legion's launch.
• 29 Aug. 2016 (this page): Updated for Legion's launch.
• 29 Aug. 2016 (gear page): Updated for Legion's launch.
• 29 Aug. 2016 (enchants page): Updated for Legion's launch.
• 29 Aug. 2016 (spells page): Added.
• 03 Aug. 2016 (enchants page): Updated the enchants page to match the new stat priority.
• 30 Jul. 2016 (rotation page): Made a few tweaks and improvements to the bleed refreshing section, and removed a few archaic elements.
• 30 Jul. 2016 (talents page): Updated tier 1 talent discussion.
• 25 Jul. 2016 (addons page): Removed DroodFocus addon since it is no longer being maintained.
• 22 Jul. 2016 (rotation page): Made slight fixes and improvements, without affecting rotation.
• 22 Jul. 2016 (talents page): Improved tier 1 talent discussion slightly.
• 20 Jul. 2016 (talents page): Updated the amount by which Bloodtalons increases the damage of the next 2 abilities to 40%.
• 19 Jul. 2016 (talents page): Updated some small details regarding Soul of the Forest and Savage Roar to account for changes that came about in a recent hotfix.
• 18 Jul. 2016 (addons page): Updated for the Legion pre-patch.
• 18 Jul. 2016 (this page): Updated for the Legion pre-patch.
• 18 Jul. 2016 (talents page): Updated for the Legion pre-patch.
• 18 Jul. 2016 (stats page): Updated for the Legion pre-patch.
• 18 Jul. 2016 (rotation page): Updated for the Legion pre-patch.
• 18 Jul. 2016 (gear page): Updated for the Legion pre-patch.
• 18 Jul. 2016 (enchants page): Updated for the Legion pre-patch.