Why is a non-Resto shaman so frowned upon in Lordaeron?

I so wanted to make an Enhancement/Elemental Shaman my first alt after I I start getting heirlooms on my Prot Pally, but everyone I've spoken to says "Go Resto or don't play Shaman."

Is Shaman DPS really that abysmal here? I was always led to believe that Shaman DPS in WotLK is pretty solid, maybe not top tier but definitely competitive, with the difference being that Elemental is super easy to play, whereas Enhancement is much more complicated with a difficult rotation and a complex list of priorities, but can outparse Elemental in capable hands.

Enhancement Shaman is really something I want to learn and commit to, but I need the security of knowing I'll be able to find a spot in ICC raids if I play it.

the problem with non-resto shamans is that they don't bring any raidbuffs to the raid that you wouldn't get from other must-have classes.

for example: totem of wrath is useless because you already get an even better sp buff from the demo lock, rets already bring the 3% crit, 5% spell crit is also useless because you already get that from moonkins.

the only unique raid buff you can bring is the 15% more stats on strength of earth totem as enhance but that only +23str and agi to the raid which isn't a big deal.

as for the dps, enhance is the hardest dps spec to play in pve so most people don't play it correctly and do abysmal dps so people think that enhance sucks. in reality, your dps can be good if you can actually play the spec correctly and get good RNG on t10 procs.
elemental is easy but it's dps is okay at best, but with both of these specs not bringing any buffs to the raid makes people reluctant to invite you.

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Originally Posted by paroka

the problem with non-resto shamans is that they don't bring any raidbuffs to the raid that you wouldn't get from other must-have classes.

for example: totem of wrath is useless because you already get an even better sp buff from the demo lock, rets already bring the 3% crit, 5% spell crit is also useless because you already get that from moonkins.

the only unique raid buff you can bring is the 15% more stats on strength of earth totem as enhance but that only +23str and agi to the raid which isn't a big deal.

as for the dps, enhance is the hardest dps spec to play in pve so most people don't play it correctly and do abysmal dps so people think that enhance sucks. in reality, your dps can be good if you can actually play the spec correctly and get good RNG on t10 procs.
elemental is easy but it's dps is okay at best, but with both of these specs not bringing any buffs to the raid makes people reluctant to invite you.

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Ele is dog**** dps and is used as a replacement to specific missing buffs atbest
Enhance is middle of the pact dps and is easily overshadowed by the insane single target dps and strong AOE of frost DK.
Resto shaman is mandatory in every raid and is non-negotiable. Every raid should have 2 hpala and 2 resto shaman, but 1 of each is mandatory or else your raid is sub-optimal at best.

The fact that Resto shaman is god tier makes it expected from shammy.

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Originally Posted by xTheLichKingx

Ele is dog**** dps and is used as a replacement to specific missing buffs atbest
Enhance is middle of the pact dps and is easily overshadowed by the insane single target dps and strong AOE of frost DK.
Resto shaman is mandatory in every raid and is non-negotiable. Every raid should have 2 hpala and 2 resto shaman, but 1 of each is mandatory or else your raid is sub-optimal at best.

The fact that Resto shaman is god tier makes it expected from shammy.

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So it really is a case of "Play Resto or don't play at all?"

That's really, really disappointing, that this kind of class/spec bias exists in an era at old as Wrath. And that's a real turn-off from playing Shaman then. I don't mind learning healer, but it's not the only thing I want to be doing as a raid Shaman.

What buffs does Resto Shaman bring that make them non-negotiable? The way my Resto Shaman would've been specced, 52/19, anything nice that they seem to bring, namely enhanced Strength of Earth/Flametongue Totems, still gets overwritten by other class buffs.

https://wotlkdb.com/?talent#hZhxxIZx0ezIeoxkrhRt:0LscmM

So, in any case, what should I do? Is it wrong then to play Enhancement Shaman while soloing/questing and keep Resto for RDF/Raids only? I'd go Orc if that's the case, for Axe Mastery and Command, since all three races seem relatively equal as far as Resto goes, and I absolutely hate Troll.

i play rsham/enh on my sham and i get to raid with both specs since i do good enough dps on enhance because i can play the spec correctly. you don't have to give up on enhance.

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Originally Posted by paroka

i play rsham/enh on my sham and i get to raid with both specs since i do good enough dps on enhance because i can play the spec correctly. you don't have to give up on enhance.

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Well, it does mean I'll have to invest in two sets of Heirlooms, but I guess that's not a huge deal. Only thing is one of the enchants is pricy (two Venerable Masses, one with Mongoose, the other with Crusader).

As long as someone doesn't try to make the argument that the Troll's Berserking Haste racial blows both other races away in Resto, because if I'm going to play Enhancement at all, I'm dead set on Orc.

yeah troll is best for resto but it's not a big deal at all. my main spec is resto but if i would play horde i would be orc as well.

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

What buffs does Resto Shaman bring that make them non-negotiable?

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Ancestral healing; Mana Tide totem

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Originally Posted by paroka

yeah troll is best for resto but it's not a big deal at all. my main spec is resto but if i would play horde i would be orc as well.

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Troll is only best by a very small margin, I would hope. They have haste, but Orc has an AP/SP clicky, which I would assume the SP also applies to healing power.

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

Troll is only best by a very small margin, I would hope. They have haste, but Orc has an AP/SP clicky, which I would assume the SP also applies to healing power.

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Nevermind, it doesn't. Figures it only increases Spell Damage and not Spell Power, which means no Healing Power from it. *sigh* So apparently Troll is the only Horde race that has any synergy with Resto.

Well, screw it then. Forget Ret as my Paladin's off-spec, I'll take Holy instead, and this Shaman will be Enhancement/Elemental as planned. So my Prot Pally will play healer when needed, and this Shaman will be DPS only, and whatever guild I play with will have a choice of melee DPS or ranged DPS when they need to fill spots.

If optimally playing a specific spec requires me to play a specific race (in this case, Troll seems like the only logical choice for a Resto Shaman because of Berserking, and I HATE the Troll race), I'd rather not play that spec at all.

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

So it really is a case of "Play Resto or don't play at all?"

That's really, really disappointing, that this kind of class/spec bias exists in an era at old as Wrath. And that's a real turn-off from playing Shaman then. I don't mind learning healer, but it's not the only thing I want to be doing as a raid Shaman.

What buffs does Resto Shaman bring that make them non-negotiable? The way my Resto Shaman would've been specced, 52/19, anything nice that they seem to bring, namely enhanced Strength of Earth/Flametongue Totems, still gets overwritten by other class buffs.

https://wotlkdb.com/?talent#hZhxxIZx0ezIeoxkrhRt:0LscmM

So, in any case, what should I do? Is it wrong then to play Enhancement Shaman while soloing/questing and keep Resto for RDF/Raids only? I'd go Orc if that's the case, for Axe Mastery and Command, since all three races seem relatively equal as far as Resto goes, and I absolutely hate Troll.

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If you're playing in Icecrown, you can play whatever you want. If you're on Lordareon, people will frown upon Ele/Enhance just because there's no real point ein bringing one when you can just bring another Fire Mage or Fury Warrior. As far as Resto Sham, it's not just the buffs/utility it brings, but how resto heals in that it has the best 4-target burst healing and great mana sustain through improved water shield. It is also capable of pumping out massive single target heals with a built-in smart heal bonus when you crit, and Resto Shams have the "unique" tank buff in Ancestral Fortitude, which is 10% physical damage reduction. Both priest specs get this as well, but discs typically don't pump single target heals and are more focused on getting shields on the raid. The spec you listed drops one of the best restoration talents, ancestral awakening.

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

Troll is only best by a very small margin, I would hope. They have haste, but Orc has an AP/SP clicky, which I would assume the SP also applies to healing power.

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

As long as someone doesn't try to make the argument that the Troll's Berserking Haste racial blows both other races away in Resto, because if I'm going to play Enhancement at all, I'm dead set on Orc.

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To be honest Berserking feels really good for Resto. But really, play whatever you want.

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Originally Posted by Frysharry

If you're playing in Icecrown, you can play whatever you want. If you're on Lordareon, people will frown upon Ele/Enhance just because there's no real point ein bringing one when you can just bring another Fire Mage or Fury Warrior.

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But why? Why is there such huge class/spec bias on Lordaeron in a game that's well over 10 years old at this point? You'd think people would just be like "play whatever you want, all the content is easily clear now."

Also, I dropped Ancestral Awakening because I figured I'd rather take more raw spellpower in the form of a better Flametongue Totem. 10% of a heal to the lowest member doesn't sound like much to me, especially when I already have Chain Heal and can just manually heal a low player in need.

I'm probably sticking to Enhancement/Elemental just because my Prot Pally is taking Holy as his off-spec, so I'll already have a healer.

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

But why? Why is there such huge class/spec bias on Lordaeron in a game that's well over 10 years old at this point? You'd think people would just be like "play whatever you want, all the content is easily clear now."

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Because iCeClOwN is easy mode, and Lordaeron is the true hardcore version everybody is supposed to play /s. If you want to play those less ideal/meta specs, come to Icecrown and have some fun. Though there's resistance to those specs too, just not as much as Lordhardmodaeron.

The tuned up content of Lordaeron makes the players lean even more towards meta than us IcEcLoWnS. Enhancement/Spellhance/Elemental isn't meta. So they like to **** on those specs, while making fun of Icecrown players "not knowing" the "big DPS difference" of Enha/spellhance, while both being fill-the-last-spot-with-any-DPS -classes.

Referencing this topic: Is it true that spellhancement in wotlk is a good dps contrarily to enhancement?

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

But why? Why is there such huge class/spec bias on Lordaeron in a game that's well over 10 years old at this point? You'd think people would just be like "play whatever you want, all the content is easily clear now."

Also, I dropped Ancestral Awakening because I figured I'd rather take more raw spellpower in the form of a better Flametongue Totem. 10% of a heal to the lowest member doesn't sound like much to me, especially when I already have Chain Heal and can just manually heal a low player in need.

I'm probably sticking to Enhancement/Elemental just because my Prot Pally is taking Holy as his off-spec, so I'll already have a healer.

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The bias towards certain classes on lordaeron stems from the quite scarce spots you have in 12/12 hc guilds. 10ish guilds clear lod on a weekly basis, nobody else does. If you just feel like derping around you can ofc play whatever you want, if your goal is clearing lod you're sort of forced to oblige to the rules made by these guilds or just make your own (and good luck with that).

If you're at the point of having a safe spot in your desired guild most loosen the reins quite a lot and it's not terribly uncommon to see someone play enha or elemental, affliction, survival or something "not optimal". Your issue is mainly getting a spot in the first place.

Btw dropping 30% of your critheals as smartheal towards lowest health member for ~45 sp (and 0 when there's a demo present) seems like an awful trade to me. Also not having healing focus 3/3 is quite a statement if you ever intend to raid.

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

But why? Why is there such huge class/spec bias on Lordaeron in a game that's well over 10 years old at this point? You'd think people would just be like "play whatever you want, all the content is easily clear now."

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Because people want a smooth raid experience and want their time in raid respected. Among big guilds like Illusion, someone playing a non-meta spec is fine since they can 24 man every boss easily, but if you're in a guild actually progressing bosses, it's disrespectful to 24 other people in the raid to perform intentionally suboptimal when you're not farming all the content.

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Originally Posted by Loadsamoney

Also, I dropped Ancestral Awakening because I figured I'd rather take more raw spellpower in the form of a better Flametongue Totem. 10% of a heal to the lowest member doesn't sound like much to me, especially when I already have Chain Heal and can just manually heal a low player in need.

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Demo lock buff is the same spell power buff as Flametongue Totem and it is significantly better, giving 650+ SP in BIS gear, compared to the 300 or so you would get from Flametongue Totem, so it's a complete waste of talent points while removing one of the best Restoration talents.

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Originally Posted by OhieMitzen

Because iCeClOwN is easy mode, and Lordaeron is the true hardcore version everybody is supposed to play /s. If you want to play those less ideal/meta specs, come to Icecrown and have some fun. Though there's resistance to those specs too, just not as much as Lordhardmodaeron.

The tuned up content of Lordaeron makes the players lean even more towards meta than us IcEcLoWnS. Enhancement/Spellhance/Elemental isn't meta. So they like to **** on those specs, while making fun of Icecrown players "not knowing" the "big DPS difference" of Enha/spellhance, while both being fill-the-last-spot-with-any-DPS -classes.

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If you don't want your time in raid respected and don't mind people playing suboptimal specs during progression, then by all means make things more challenging for yourself and the other 24 people in your raid, but not everyone wants this. Considering you can probably clear 25m HC 30% ICC with Naxx25 gear with an ideal comp, your comp at 5.8k+ GS doesn't really matter on Icecrown, and for the record, at least the people in this forum aren't saying this with condescension; it's simply just making a note of the differences of the realms. I would transfer all of my characters to Icecrown if I could, and this is coming from a Lordareon veteran since 2015 and I would recommend any new player starting on Warmane to play on Icecrown over Lorda.