Shaman, Hunter, or Druid - which class?

[Fallen Star]

I've played a alliance PvE mage to 60 before giving the account to a friend due to lack of time. But, I have a little more spare time now, and I like the direction the game seems to be going in, so I'm probably going to buy it again sometime in the next few months.

To try something new, I think I'm going to make a Horde PvP character. I'm looking for some advice on what class to play.

The classes I'm considering:

Shaman: My first choice - I love all of the abilities (healing wave, shocks, walking on water, wolf form, etc), I'm excited about eventually getting Bloodlust, I like the lore and the shamans from WC3, and I want something that's good at PvP. So why not? Put simply, I think a lot of other people will be rolling Shamans on a PvP server, and even though I don't really intend to join a "hardcore" guild and take on the hardest encounters, I also don't want to have difficulty finding a good guild and a group whenever I need one. Are those fears justified?

Hunter: I like the pet and ranged attack, but I also like healing. Same thing goes for not being useful enough in groups, though I would guess not as much as with a Shaman.

Druid: I had originally discarded this class because it levels too slow from what I've heard and is too "mixed", not being very good at any one thing, but the new talents look nice and from what I've seen they can be good in PvP, so it's a possibility, and as a bonus, they're wanted in groups - what do you guys think?

The rest:

Mage: Already played one to 60. Warrior: I've tried one to level 26, fun but too dependent on items for a first character I think. Rogue: I don't like the style of play much. Warlock: I've played one to 22. Leveling too slow; too much like my mage. Priest: I like the healing and shields, but it's also like my mage in a lot of ways, and I don't like having to choose between being good at healing and good at PvP when I'm at 60.

[Baboon]

A shaman is indeed very popular and therefore in my opinion not very interesting, and boring too. And overpowered :), at least everybody will tell you that and Alliance hates you.

A hunter is great for solo, and good for instances although a lot of people expect you to not be able to control you pet and therefore don't want you.

I'd take Druid, because there aren't many and you'll get to be main healer end game. And the talent changes seem to look good. And you can do absolutely everything with it, just grinding is currently slow.

My personal pick is Priest though, tried a Druid but went back to Priest. Fast soloing, Good Pvp, great for instances. It's cool to be the backbone of a group along with the Warrior.

[Serrat]

only comment on the shaman as not played hunter or druid, however on my server there are lots of shaman but i never had problems getting groups, i have more trouble on my warrior than shaman, many times people just wisper me to come join group, its great, plus i find shamans easy to level up with.

some people say shamans have god mode etc, however not seen it myself, every shaman ive seen can and has died.

they are slightly easier to use than other classes decent healing good damage, pretty good protection have many useful items that are great for pvp and pve, can res self res others remove poison/desease etc everything put the kitchen sink.

shaman for teh win :happy34:

[kazan]

Shaman are great, I've really enjoyed mine. Have had no problems with lack of invites, quite the opposite in fact. I'm quite a casual player, so I don't head off into instances much.

Having said that, I've just rolled up a hunter and I'm loving the whole 'ranger' thing. I like having the cool range of pets, and I can't wait to get traps and start using them.

These two have been my favourites so far. Couldn't choose between them, but wish I'd gone leatherworking with my shaman to start off with as my armor's a bit low now and I'm feeling the pinch.

Much preferred to the druid I played to 28. Bit boring. On the other hand, those new talents are tempting... Good luck!

[garzahd]

After playing a cloth-wearer in pretty much every RPG I've played in the past 10 years, trying a shaman was an interesting change of pace. They have a lot of nice utility features but don't really have a "panic button" to get them out of a tough situation, like frostnova/blink or vanish. Ghost Wolf is about the only escape option, and it has its own pros and cons. Also, unlike warriors and rogues, shamans don't get real melee abilities like Sinister Strike. Most of the shaman abilities are instant-cast totems or nukes intended to be used while autoattacking. They also can be pretty mana-intensive.

I recommend trying a shaman to L20 or so to see if you like the play style. Most people, once they play shamans, have a better feel about why they aren't overpowered.

[thejdawg2]

If you're drawn to shaman, play a shaman. If you don't like it, play something else. No reason to pick another class because other people told you to.

[PaithanQuindiniar]

A shaman is indeed very popular and therefore in my opinion not very interesting, and boring too. And overpowered :), at least everybody will tell you that and Alliance hates you.

True. At least, my character will try to kill you :winky47:

[Fallen Star]

My personal pick is Priest though, tried a Druid but went back to Priest. Fast soloing, Good Pvp, great for instances. It's cool to be the backbone of a group along with the Warrior.

Interesting you should say that, a priest was actually on my original list of classes I was considering. I took it off for the reasons I listed - I didn't really want to play another cloth/caster class, and I couldn't be great at instance healing and PvP at the same time. But, now that you said that maybe I'll reconsider.

If you're drawn to shaman, play a shaman. If you don't like it, play something else. No reason to pick another class because other people told you to.

Well, I haven't really played any of the classes I mentioned past level 12 and I want to see what a few people who've taken them to 60 think.

[Bokar]

My troll shaman was my first class, still my highest level class at 52, though my warlock might catch up.

He does have an AWFUL lot of spells, perhaps as many as the warlock, more than mages have. Shamans are well armored, behind warriors and paladins but ahead of everyone else if they use a shield. I went Restoration/Elemental Combat, so he's not as good at melee as some shamans, but has long lasting healing and mana totems, plus powerful and fast-casting shock spells. I've been the designated healer in a number of instances, with no priests in sight, and when I had a priest in Sunken Temple, I did Chain Lightning and Fire Nova Totem instead.

[Fallen Star]

*Bump*

Anyone else have any advice? I'm still trying to decide. :chinny: I think my two top picks would be Priest or Druid now, after reading the stuff posted here and doing a bit of research other places, but I haven't been able to decide between them yet. And, I haven't given up shaman/hunter completely.

[SuAside]

rather hard to find decent guilds as a shaman, since there are already more than enough of us. also, you should know that if you intend to go for endgame dungeons, you'll be gimped in pvp & your work will be completely unnoticed or taken for granted by other classes. our job only becomes obvious when we fail. :)

hunters is about the most chill & troublefree class you can have. they are useful, they can grind like hell & they can feign death when the **** hits the fan.

druids, should become rather interesting with the next patches coming. while your main occupation will remain healing, you'll also have good survivability & plenty of diversified skills. on the other hand, you'll have pretty lame dps.

i'm currently playing a shaman full time & if i were to make an alt, i'd probably pick a druid.