Shaman

Shamans are strong leveling class in both Elemental and Enhancement specs, but we will focus on the latter due to their abundance of instant cast spells and procs that can be used for both damage and sustain on demand. Where Elemental is more dependent on mana and drinking in early game, Enhancement is dependent on its weapons which can be totally ignored if you have access to Heirloom items. All in all, the Enhancement Shaman is a speedy leveler with focus on killing 1-3 targets at a time and sustaining with heals and totems in-between pulls.

Gameplay

We recommend leveling as Enhancement as a Shaman in Wrath of the Lich King. Elemental is simply too gear and mana dependent early on, whereas Enhancement gets a lot of raw value from talents and weapon buffs. Enhancement also gains extra bonuses in the form of instant cast spells at later levels, allowing continuous grinding between packs without downtime spent healing.

For most of your leveling until the End Game rotation, you will be focused on using Lightning Bolts until the target reaches you, keeping your various Shock spells on cooldown, then whittling the targets health away with melee attacks while your mana regenerates. Once you have access to Maelstrom weapon procs, you can start to weave in more damaging abilities during combat.

Below is an example of ability rotations you can use by level bracket while leveling your Shaman.

Early Gameplay

Level 1-3:

Maintain the Rockbiter Weapon buff
Lightning Bolt x2 -> Auto Attack until the mob dies so you start regenerating mana

Level 4-7:

Lightning Bolt -> Earth Shock -> Auto Attack

Level 8:

Start maintaining the Lightning Shield Buff

Level 10:

From now on, maintain the newest rank of Flametongue Weapon/Rockbiter Weapon that you have
Lightning Bolt x2 (depends on strength of mob/how far away other mobs are) -> Flame Shock (once on pull) -> Earth Shock -> Searing Totem (if you’re not melee kiting) ->Strength of Earth Totem if the mob still has above half health -> Auto Attack

Level 12:

Add in a Fire Nova Totem in place of Searing Totem if you are fighting Multiple Targets

Level 20:

From now on, Maintain the Water Shield buff if you’re having mana problems or you’re travelling, or the Lightning Shield buff if you wish to have more damage

Midgame Gameplay

Level 30:

From now on, maintain the Windfury Weapon buff. You no longer have to use Flametongue/Rockbiter
Use Call of the Elements to summon all your totems at once
You are strong enough now to pull multiple mobs at once regularly now

Single Target: Lightning Bolt x2 (for elites only) -> Earth Shock -> Searing Totem -> Fire Nova -> Auto Attack

AoE: Lightning Bolt x2 (to pull more mobs) -> Earth Shock -> Wind Shear (to pull more mobs) -> Call of the Elements (Magma totem, Stoneskin Totem, Grounding Totem, Mana Spring Totem) -> Fire Nova -> Auto Attack

Endgame Gameplay Rotations

Level 54-59:

From now on, you’ll get Maelstrom Weapon Procs – this will allow you to instantly cast any spell (Primarily Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning, and Healing Wave)

Single Target: Lightning Bolt x2 (for elites only) -> Earth Shock –> Call of the Ancestors (Searing totem, Strength of Earth Totem, Windfury Totem) -> Lightning Bolt/Healing Wave (Maelstrom Proc) -> Shamanistic Rage -> Stormstrike -> Lava Lash -> Auto Attack

AoE: Lightning Bolt (to pull more mobs) -> Earth Shock -> Wind Shear (to pull more mobs) -> Call of the Elements (Magma totem, Stoneskin Totem, Windfury Totem, Mana Spring Totem) -> Fire Nova -> Chain Lightning/Healing Wave (Maelstrom Proc) -> Shamanistic Rage -> Stormstrike -> Lava Lash -> Auto Attack

Level 60-80:

At level 66, you unlock Earth Elemental Totem. Use this to help you solo elites
At level 68, you unlock Fire Elemental Totem. Use this to help you solo elites and kill bigger AoE packs
At level 70, you unlock Heroism/Bloodlust. Use this to help you solo elites and kill bigger AoE packs

Tip: When you use Feral Spirits, be sure to bind the sprint ability (Spirit Walk) which will allow you to sprint. You can use this two times in their duration if you use it early enough. For this reason, you can use Feral Spirits inside of large buildings to save time.

Single Target: Feral Spirits -> Lightning Bolt x2 (for elites only) -> Earth Shock –> Call of the Ancestors (Searing totem, Strength of Earth Totem, Windfury Totem) -> Lightning Bolt/Healing Wave (Maelstrom Proc) -> Shamanistic Rage -> Stormstrike -> Lava Lash -> Auto Attack

AoE: Feral Spirits -> Earth Shock -> Wind Shear (to pull more mobs) -> Call of the Elements (Magma totem, Stoneskin Totem, Windfury Totem, Mana Spring Totem) -> Fire Nova -> Chain Lightning/Healing Wave (Maelstrom Proc) -> Shamanistic Rage -> Stormstrike -> Lava Lash -> Auto Attack

Stat Prio

Crit > Haste > Agi > Stam > Int > Spell Power > Str

Helpful Macros

Binds:

Shamanistic Focus+Trinkets Bind:
/cast Shamanistic Focus /use 13 /use 14

Water Shield on Mount:
/cast Water Shield /use mountname

Glyphs

Major

15: Fire Nova
30: Shocking
55: Swap Shocking for Flametongue
68: Swap Flametongue for Fire Elemental

Minor

Renewed Life/Water Shield/Water Walking