Hi, as a main Mage I have decided to step over to become a healer. I have always enjoyed playing Priest and want to learn how to play Shaman now. The main issue with this is that as a main Mage have always felt that Shamans were the easiest to kill class throughout the entire game. For example playing against RLS, in our Shatter Play we would usually go berserk on the rogue, until cc cd reset full frost nova on rogue, sheep lock go ham on Shaman and he would always die on the spot. Even in 2v2, we have seen some duelist Affliction Lock / Resto Shaman that would easily be countered versus my Shadow Priest / Frost Mage comb.
So I have a few questions PvP based.
-What are the Pro's And Cons of a Shaman
-Why does it work so well with a lock (according to lots of people)
-Why does it seem (to me) the easiest to kill class
Pros:
#Bloodlust, one of biggest reasons to have shaman in team, especially in 3v3
#Tremor Totem, very good fear counter
#Purge, offensive dispelling makes enemies just drop dead
#Wind Shear, tell your sham to kick healer while blowing up his team, gg
Cons:
# Forced to cast to heals most of time (riptide is pretty low healing, so is earth shield), healing stream barely helps
# No damage reduction cooldowns apart from Stoneclaw totem absorb
# No short instant heals or near instant heals like other healers (holy shock, prayer of mending + penance, Swiftmend)
# No absorb effects on your team (you have to keep your team topped)
-Why does it seem (to me) the easiest to kill class
Check cons list. Most of shamans play kind of wrong, instead of escaping before healing they try to tank damage and outheal (like almost any other healer can do).