WotLK [Guide] [PVP] Elemental Shaman Guide

[jocajoki]

Man ,you live the life :D As an elemental shaman i have never seen an option to be optimistic due playing with one, and i especialy couldnt emagine that anyone would say that shamans bring panic to their enemies... Well guess that i just need more skill and better gear score :D

[jocajoki]

I just wanted to ask you, as an elemental shaman, a couple of questions please.

1. I Saw your guide and its awesome, i really haven't seen anything like this before... I wanted to know will you add any other guide or anything for shamans in Wotlk cuz.. that would be even more awesome!

2. I Have two buddies: A Shadow Priest and a Retribution Paladin. Do you think we can work out in arena if perhaps Priest turned to be Holly?

3. You said that in arena Shadow Priest and An Elemental Shaman are good Pair.. Do you still stick to that?

4. These items you've mentioned as a part of a guide, these in Gear part, can i find and get one of those with voting points here on molten??

Keep doing best work,
one of friendly shamans... :D

[UrbanJuggernaut]

I just wanted to ask you, as an elemental shaman, a couple of questions please.

1. I Saw your guide and its awesome, i really haven't seen anything like this before... I wanted to know will you add any other guide or anything for shamans in Wotlk cuz.. that would be even more awesome!

2. I Have two buddies: A Shadow Priest and a Retribution Paladin. Do you think we can work out in arena if perhaps Priest turned to be Holly?

3. You said that in arena Shadow Priest and An Elemental Shaman are good Pair.. Do you still stick to that?

4. These items you've mentioned as a part of a guide, these in Gear part, can i find and get one of those with voting points here on molten??

Keep doing best work,
one of friendly shamans... :D

basically quit WoW, dont know when/if ill be returning so no promises on video guides, ill try to keep sharing my knowledge though.

1. im a decent enh sham and novice rsham so i dont feel comfortable talking about other specs that many are more qualified to do. there are rsham and enh sham pvp guides already you can check those for info on those 2 specs.

2. with coordination that could be a good team, you have offensive dispel w the sham, defensive dispel w the pally and a combo of both w the spriest, which = no sheeps/fears/hoj on pretty much anyone on your team. spriest has fantastic CC if you can get a good chain and coordinate burst w bloodlust i could see this going 1800 or 2k if youre rly good.

3. yes, double dispel, double offheals, great dmg. practice makes perfect!

4. i do not know, check the marketplace for more info on that. platinum disks of sorcery seems like smth that might be there but for high end PVE trinkets you will have to do PVE or donate.

[dragonhero112]

is it me or on wotlk theres not the glyphs there?

[PervyPanda]

No, it's not just you. I cannot seem to find Glyph of Thunder anywhere, sadly.

[4u64ica]

Very helpful and well structured. Thanx!

[Mbruno905]

I think you forgot about the Retri/elemental combo, you still got a huge burst from both, and besides the retri can realy protect a shammy. That hands of freedom, that hands/divine sacrifice, sacrated shield, that cleanse, using 'art of war' to instant flash of ight you, and even hands of protection, really gives to a shammy all that he need to survive. And ofc the HoJ+wings burst :p

[UrbanJuggernaut]

im back! got a new comp will be getting my groove back and adding stuff to the guide as well as making a video! stay tuned :)

[UrbanJuggernaut]

Added Unholy DK and Frost Mage duel guides, let me know what you want to see next! If anyone has knowledge of any elemental shaman comp w 1800+ exp in said comp i will take your information about it and add it to the guide crediting you :D

[Rexarjr]

--=-- DUELING GUIDE: ELE SHAMAN VS ROGUE --=--
Hi!
I have a nice guide vs Rogues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9s7lJ...UYF9XKVMB2Iy7w posted by another player.

The trick is to keep up Cleansing Totem and Magma Totem all time (Probably the only one class where Magma is required). Then switch Earthbind and Stoneclaw totems by situations. That draenei pl dont usings Frost Shock, but its very important also (I tested FrS well a lot). Next very important counter strike is Thunderstorm after rogue's Kidney Shot, otherwise he will bring your hp below 50% in 4 sec (with "full combo points").

Next important tip, posted by UrbanJuggernaut, keep spell hit over 4.5 - 5%. Rogues have exceptional defensive skills. With spell hit under 3% you will miss 50% = fail.

To fight vs skilled Rogues you should have one more important ability - 6th sense --> you should be able to drop both Stoneclaw and Magma just before his stuns!

I am not hi-end geared PVPer (5.8kGS Relentless), but with Rogues, with the same gear, I have no many problems.

[UrbanJuggernaut]

Hi!
I have a nice guide vs Rogues: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9s7lJ...UYF9XKVMB2Iy7w posted by another player.

The trick is to keep up Cleansing Totem and Magma Totem all time (Probably the only one class where Magma is required). Then switch Earthbind and Stoneclaw totems by situations. That draenei pl dont usings Frost Shock, but its very important also (I tested FrS well a lot). Next very important counter strike is Thunderstorm after rogue's Cheap Shot, otherwise he will bring your hp below 50% in 4 sec.

To fight vs skilled Rogues you should have one more important ability - 6th sense --> you should be able to drop both Stoneclaw and Magma just before his stuns!

I am not hi-end geared PVPer (5.8kGS Relentless), but with Rogues, with the same gear, I have no many problems.

Thanks for the input, even though you kind of just reiterated what I said, its always good to have reinforcement. Still did some 2s lately and starting to get back into a regular schedule of playing :D Hmu on Ragnaros if you wanna do some 2s/3s anyone ;D

[Rexarjr]

Thanks for the input, even though you kind of just reiterated what I said, its always good to have reinforcement. Still did some 2s lately and starting to get back into a regular schedule of playing :D Hmu on Ragnaros if you wanna do some 2s/3s anyone ;D

Well, Thx!

Your guide is the best for PVP ele shaman WoW3.3.5 I had found in Internet. But I mean you missing "vs Rogues" dueling guide in "Duels" section. I hope that you will post a well formatted guide on the first page :).

At this moment i am studying ele shaman PVP fighting tactics and raise my PVP reflexes. You know, vs some class+spec I have low reaction (losing about 0.5-1sec) to countercast something... yea, yea ... -Keybind, keybind, keybind... Also I am doing, mostly, ICC25HC with guild.

Moreover, I think it must be introduced a new terms in "Urban dictionary": "skill-needy" (requires high play skills to effectively operate a game character) and "skill-so-so" (avg play skills) :). Damn, ele shaman is hard to play in PVP. It requires tank, dps and healer style at once and half of his spells requires the best reflexes to block hostile attacks. During dpsing we should track: Purge, Windshear, Grounding Totem, Ghost Wolf, Thunder Storm, Orbs and a douzen of other totem combinations (which are not dps-spells). Probably ele shamans, druids and frost mages (maybe hunters) are the hardest characters to control well in PVP, otherwise they are easy to conquer. But at high skill level they become the most dangerous.

For example, a skill-needy ele shaman DremLock, I know (played before WoW 3.3.2): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hneJi1HxCPE (5:50 duel vs Frost Mage) and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPOVjttkcl8 (5:50 duel vs skilled Boomkin).

More fun from patch 3.3.5 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xugcC4Ws3Yk

A skill-so-so Shadow Priest with epic spell rotation :D : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dxro...ature=youtu.be

[Rexarjr]

--=-- SPELL PENETRATION & HIT DILEMMA --=--

I've seen a lot of questions about the usefulness of Spell Penetration stat on my realm and the overall of Internet. Some players say that Spell Penetration didn't work... Well, let see this basic concepts introduced by Blizzard (for patch3.3.5):

The effective resistance rating of the target was calculated as follows:

effective resistance rating(ERR) = Rb + max((Lt - Lc) * 5, 0) - min(P, Rb)

Rb - target base resistance (as advertised on the character sheet)
Lt - target level
Lc - caster level
P - caster spell penetration

Look at min() and max() functions! min(a, b) - returns the minimal value among a and b values!!! For lvl80 PVP Lt=Lc!!!! Then:

1.With Rb>P: ERR = Rb - P (with Gift of the Wild(75 resistances to all) you have the formula ERR = 75 - P);
2.With Rb<=P ERR = Rb - Rb = 0 ->> no character resistances.

Keep in mind, ERR is a relative parameter. ERR can be Arcane, Frost, Fire, Nature and Shadow (It's not universal!!!). (Paladins holy damage can't be resisted).


HOW IT REDUCES THE DAMAGE????

Damage reduction percentage (DRP) = 100% * effective resistance rating (ERR) / ( K + effective resistance rating (ERR) )

K = 400 for most lvl80 mobs and pl characters (seems). Then, if you have not any Spell Penetration:

1. Gift of the Wild (75 to all) reduces your damage to DRP = 100%*75/(400 + 75) = 7500%/475 = 15.8% !!!
2. Totems, Auras (130 to specific resist type) DRP =100%*130/(400 + 130) = 13000%/530 = 24.5% !!!



RESISTANCES TRICKS

Well, we can stack Spell Penetration in next order: 75, 85, 100, 130, 135 from enchants and gems. (75 SPe with 3xStormy Majestic Zircon or 85 with 2xStormy Majestic Zircon and Cloak Enchant: +35 Spell Penetration ). UrbanJuggernaut posted, that 130 is the cap. But how useful it can be for ele shamans?. Shaman's offensive spell are NATURE (Lightning Bolt, Chain Light, Lightning Shield, Earth Shock, Thunderstorm), FIRE(Lava Burst, Flame Shock, Magma Totem, Searing Totem, Fire Elemental) and only ONE FROST(Frost Shock) kind.

Main question: Who have a good protection against NATURE and FIRE???
1. NATURE: Hunters with Aspect of the Wild (130) and, of course, other shaman's :) Nature Resistance Totem(130).
2. FIRE: Paladins Fire Resistance Aura(130) and other shaman's Totem of Fire Resistance(130). --> IDK exactly about Mages and Locks fire resistances.
3. FROST: Paladins Frost Resistance Aura(130), DK Frost Aura(100??) and shaman's Totem of Frost Resistance(130).

Conclusion: With 85 Spell Penetration only Hunters, Paladins and other Shamans can reduce about DRP = 100%*(130 - 85)/(400 + (130 - 85)) = 100%*45/(400 + 45) = 4500%/445 = 10% elemental ehamans offensive spells(non-Binary) in duels, for exaple!!! Although resilience is generally considered to be a more useful stat when choosing between the two. So, resistances will stack only a few players probably. In most battlegrounds and arenas nature resistance is rarely applied, as I have seen... With 85 SPe we can cover the most useful and common druids resistance buff Gift of the Wild (+75 to ALL resistances!).

Recomendations: In most Worldwide, Duels, Battlegrounds and half of Arena matches 85 SPe is enought for elemental shamans. 130 SPe can stack hi-end geared (Wrathful set) ele shamans to gain 90-95% hit for shock spells and Binary Spells (if no else to stack is needed). Who needs 130-135 SPe? Well, I think only Locks and Shadow Priests(especially). In most arenas, party or raids there is always a Shadow Resistance(130) auras on everybody. Their offensive spells are Shadow based for Locks and ALL for Shadow Priests.



SHAMAN'S BINARY SPELLS

They are: Purge (the best spell in WoW :D which removes 2 buffs), Wind Shear(interrupt spells, but not all; makes mobs less likely to attack you), Hex(CC into a frog for 10 sec), Roots(passive: from talent tree after ET; CC all!!! hostiles in 10yrd range for 5 sec), Slow(passive: after Earthbind Totem is dropped; reduces the speed for all hostiles in 10 yrd range for 50%).
Semi-binary spells: all shock spells( after damage they doing next effects --> 50% slows a single target - Frost Shock, 10% haste reduced - Earth Shock, DoT - Flame Shock(rogues cant hide with this debuff, opponents tremble awaiting Lava Burst :D).

Binary spells are spells which can only have full effect (hit) or no effect (resist); partial resists are not possible. Normally, damage spells are only binary if they have an additional non-damage effect. Some examples are Death Coil and Mind Flay. Frostbolt is no longer a Binary Spell.
For binary spells, both spell penetration and spell hit rating can be used to overcome resistances. From official resource.

DoTs used to be binary spells, but this was changed.

Spell resistance was the second of two rolls to determine whether or not a spell was resisted. (Spell hit was the first roll.) The spell resistance roll would calculate in one of two different ways: one way for Binary Spells, another way for non-Binary spells.

Resistance reduced the chance for the binary spell to land by a certain percentage. Spell hit would not reduce this chance (hmmm). It was assumed that this percentage was exactly the damage reduction percentage given above

For Binary Spells is useful next formula:

Average Resistance (AvR) = (Target's Resistance / (Caster's Level * 5)) * 0.75;

- in this formula is not any Hit rating and SPe. Officially posted, that Hit not improves Binary Spell, but I have no evidience about how Spell Penetration improves Binary Spells...

Why is it called "average resistance"? For spells that have a non-damage effectÔÇösuch as slow, root, stun, purgeÔÇöyou'll either take the hit or avoid the hit altogether; these are examples of binary spells. The average resistance is the chance you'll totally avoid the hit. Adding the word "average" is a little redundant in this case.
However, when spells do only damage, it's not just a full hit or full miss situation. Pure damage spells can be resisted for 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, etc. (in 10% increments up to 100%) of their regular damage. Your average resistance can still be anywhere betweeen 0% and 75%.



OVERALL CONCLUSION

For ele shamans below 6kGSPVP next stats are priority: Hit (5%) > Spell Penetration (85) > Haste > Spell Power > Crit > Stamina > Intellect.
Above 6kGSPVP: Hit(5%) > Spell Penetration(130 - 135) > Spell Power > Haste > Crit > Intellect > Stamina.

Spell Penetration is absolutely useless for PVE.

Elemental Shaman's PVE DPS, with less than 390 Hit (15%), suffers catastrophically.

P.S. Thanks for reading!

[KoNuNgRr]

Sup Dude ! :D

Thanks for a really great guide ! Great to hear that you are back to WOW, :cool: !! gratz
Ive been Playing Enhance and now have been inspired to make an Ele :D

May I ask what Realm you are playing on Wotlk ?

Thanks again for a great Guide!
Shamans FTW !
:cool:

[UrbanJuggernaut]

Sup Dude ! :D

Thanks for a really great guide ! Great to hear that you are back to WOW, :cool: !! gratz
Ive been Playing Enhance and now have been inspired to make an Ele :D

May I ask what Realm you are playing on Wotlk ?

Thanks again for a great Guide!
Shamans FTW !
:cool:

I'm on Ragnaros, however, due to crippling lag I still can't play here :/ Playing AT now, but due to comp nerfs I might be rerolling...