The Shaman: RvR Guide
Part 1
In this guide, we will be taking a look at the Shaman in PvP. There is already a lot of great information on the Shaman, but we are going to look at the Shaman through purely PvP eyes. We will be discussing viable builds, and tips and tricks to playing a Shaman to their fullest.
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Let me start by saying that this is a guide, not a rule set. We will discuss several different play styles, both optimal builds, and others not quite so optimal. This will help guide you in the right direction for your desired play style. Don't get caught up to much on the numbers. While you can min max your character for the perfect HPS (heal per second) and DPS (damage per second), there is no "right" build, or way to play the class. If you aren't having fun playing the class that way, what's the point? Discover your own play style, and then use this guide to help complement that (man, I am going to be trolled in the forums for saying that)!
Class Overview
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Bunch of Waaagh!
The Shaman is the Greenskin healer. A lot of guides will tell you that a Shaman is a hybrid, or that they are capable of being a decent Ranged DPS class with healing. This is simply not the case. You are a healer, a healer that has some utility, but after the first couple of tiers it will become very apparent that you are designed to keep your team standing, and to be an annoying Git to your enemy.
If you want people to fear you, or want to be able to take out other classes after the first couple of tiers, find another class. The Shaman is not for you! We heal, it's what we do. We push out a bit of damage, we have a decent debuff or two, but at the core we are healers. Even in this class guide, while I will show different specs to improve DPS or utility, realize these will not make up for the core of the class. Shaman = Healer. So if you are looking for a class to solo with, or you don't enjoy standing back and influencing the fight from the back lines, don't play a Shaman!
Oh, you're still here? So I guess I can't scare you off that easy… Fine, you want to be responsible for keeping everyone else alive, you want to stand back and debuff enemies as your Tanks tear them apart, and you want EVERYONE to target you as that they believe that you have to die first! Oh, ok then, let's get started…
Stats & Their Effect on Shaman
We are going to start by looking at the different stats that the Shaman uses to enhance their abilities. There is much debate over which stats are more important, and no matter what you decide, there will be plenty of people to tell you how wrong you are, and how only a noob would spec that way. My suggestion is to therefore keep your spec to yourself!
The math behind stats can be mind boggling, and you can come up with many different situations, where different stats would work better than others. Let's start with the basics.
Toughness : Toughness decreases the amount of damage taken. To be specific, for each point of Toughness divided by 5, damage is reduced by X DPS. So for example, if you have 10 points of Toughness, you would reduce the damage you take every second by 2 for each enemy attacking you If you had 10 points in Toughness, and had 5 guys all hitting you at the same time, it would reduce each of their DPS by 2. Toughness is great against a constant low DPS being done to you and as such it is usually a stat for Tanks, who are constantly taking damage, but the Shaman will use it as well.
Wounds : Wounds are your health, to be specific, for each point of Wounds you have, you gain 10 hit points over your base. For example, if you increase your Wounds by 10, you would pick up 100 hit points. Wounds are good for spike damage, meaning that unlike Toughness where you have many opponents whittling you down, Wounds help with that damn Witch Hunter that deals a lot of damage to you all at once.
Intelligence : Intelligence increases the amount of damage your offensive spells do. To be specific, for each point of Intelligence divided by 5, damage is increased by X DPS. For example, if you have 10 points of Intelligence, you would increase the damage of your spells by 2 DPS. So it's pretty simple as that the higher your Intelligence, the higher your DPS.
Willpower : Willpower increases the amount of healing per second your spells do. To be specific, for each point of Willpower divided by 5, healing is increased by X HPS. Therefore, if you have 10 points of Willpower, you would increase the heals of your spells by 2 HPS. Willpower has the added benefit of giving you a bonus to your chance of disrupting enemy spells. To be specific (for you number guys that have your calculators out), your chance to disrupt spells is your (Level * 7.5 + 50) / Willpower * .075 * 100 = +% disrupt. So with Willpower, your heals are generally stronger (though some spells aren't effected by this) and you increase your chance to stop an attack or two on you.
Initiative : Initiative decreases your chances of being critically hit. To be specific, you can reduce your chances of being critically hit by your (Level * 7.5 + 50) / Initiative * .1 * 100 = +% to take a crit. Remember, that other classes have abilities that increase their chance to critically hit, so this formula is just a guide line. This can very useful, especially when those Bright Wizards are blasting you to dust with their huge crit bonuses, you can tone down those hits, at least a little.
Tip: There are of course other stats, but these are the ones that really effect the Shaman, and what you should be paying attention to. You can ignore all of the others.
Wow! You are still reading this? I haven't put you to sleep yet? Well, let's get on to the fun stuff now that you have a basic understanding of the stats used by the Shaman. We will start with Tier 1 and work our way up from there!
Tier 1
Tier 1 for a Shaman in PvP is great fun. You are a god among men, capable of dealing death and keeping yourself and your team healed through the worst of fights. Enjoy this time, it won't last for long, but while it does, you will feel like a great hybrid. You will hit pretty hard and can heal as fast as most guys can hit you. You are not squishy yet, soft yes, but not squishy. Everyone loves playing a Shaman in tier 1. There is nothing not to love.
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Pretty Shaman!
Use your Renown Points to increase your Toughness, and make sure to buy the tactic that gives you 5% bonus to your XP during PvP. You can completely ignore the extra gold tactic, you should have no problem with always having more than enough gold on hand. Toughness decreases all incoming damage, and staying alive is priority number one. While Willpower and Intelligence does affect the spells you cast, you have to be alive in order to cast them. So go high in Toughness, then dump whatever you have left into Willpower, Intelligence, or Initiative depending on what you want more. Willpower for stronger heals, Intelligence for better DPS, or Initiative to decrease the chance of being critted. You don't have access to improving your Wounds yet, so you will have to wait for that. Use gear that increases Wounds, Toughness, Initiative, Willpower, and Intelligence in that order. This isn't necessarily the order of most important stats (though some argue it is) but in order of what is the hardest to find. You will find plenty of gear with Willpower bonuses, so if you find something with a Wounds bonus, use it as that your other slots will be full of Willpower.
In combat, use "Life Leeka" and "Bleed Fer' Me" as soon as your enemy is in range. These 2 DOTs will start softening them up, and gives you or your defensive target a small HOT. Follow up with "Ey, Quit Bleedin" on yourself or your Tank (basically anyone keeping hits that should be hitting you) to keep yourself standing as they close. Then go with "Bunch o' Waaagh" and "Brain Bursta". Anytime "Bunch o' Waaagh" is available, cast it as that it's one of your best offensive spells. Keep your eye on your team and use "Gork'll Fix It" and "Ey, Quit Bleedin" on anyone that gets hurt. Ignore "Bigger, Better, An' Greener" even though it's a nice big heal, but it takes a long time to cast and is easily interrupted. Stick with "Gork'll Fix It" and "Ey, Quit Bleedin" and you will be fine. Once you get to level 9, you will get "Yer Not So Bad" which is basically an Action Point Tap over time. Any time you run out of Action Points, throw this at enemy healers. Not only will this give you more Action Points, but it takes them from your target, making it harder for them to have Action Points to cast heals on their group.
Stay queued up for Scenarios at all times, and adventure out into the RvR lakes. This is a great time to be a Shaman, you are strong and can heal. Your enemies are green and haven't read our guide, so you have room to experiment and try different strategies out. Enjoy it, it won't last for long!
Summary
That's it for Part 1, we have looked at the stats that influence the Shaman, and some basic spells that are a staple of what you will be using in Tier 1. In Part 2 we will look at Tier 2, and start to examine the different Mastery Paths. Stay tuned to Ten Ton Hammer for more class guides, and Part 2 of the Shaman Guide.
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