Cataclysm Classic Enhancement Shaman Guide

Enhancement has a ton of utility and is powerful area damage dealer, but is somewhat lackluster on single target, and is not the most intuitive class to play. It also has good off-healing capabilities with Maelstrom Weapon allowing for free instant healing casts.

While often underestimated in Cataclysm tier list predictions, Enhancement has a lot going for it:

• The best sustained area damage in the game with the Improved Lava Lash and Fire Nova combo;
• A very strong defensive in Shamanistic Rage;
• High mobility with instant Ghost Wolf (now usable indoors!) thanks to Ancestral Swiftness;
• Good off-healing during a fight if needed with Maelstrom Weapon procs.

Besides middling single target damage, its main weakness is that Agility gear is useless for Restoration and Elemental, forcing completely different gear setups for off-speccing, and the lack of strong unique utility. Enhancement still brings the strong baseline Shaman utility kit, regardless.

Strengths

• Excellent area damage with Improved Lava Lash and Fire Nova;
• High mobility with Ancestral Swiftness and survivability with Shamanistic Rage;
• Good support capabilities with Shaman totems such as Windfury Totem, as well as Bloodlust/ Heroism.

Weaknesses

• Average to low single target damage potential;
• No unique utility like Restoration and no important raid buffs like Elemental;
• Completely different gear than Restoration or Elemental makes off-speccing difficult.

Without going too deep into detail, Orc is still the best race for Horde Enhancement Shamans due to Axe Specialization, Blood Fury for more burst damage and Command for more Feral Spirit damage. In PvP they will also benefit from Hardiness, one of the best PvP racials in the game!

Goblin is also alright if you need extra mobility due to their Rocket Jump, and you will also get 1% extra Haste while playing one.

Alliance Shamans will now be able to be Dwarf and while Stoneform can help get rid of debuffs Shamans can no longer dispel, Draenei should generally be superior due to their free Hit from Heroic Presence and some free healing from Gift of the Naaru.

The best DPS professions in Cataclysm are Engineering, which provides more burst damage with Synapse Springs and extra mobility with Nitro Boosts, and Tailoring, which provides even more burst with Swordguard Embroidery.

Addons and Macros can greatly improve your quality of life during Cataclysm. Listed below are some of our recommendations on Addons and Macros to help get the most out of your time playing the game.