Feral vs Balance Druid
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Robert the Noble
Legend
In my experience you get more respect as Balance, I (as a druid) see Feral as the melee hunters of this bracket, your burst is ridiculous, on par with hunters but you just can't avoid damage from other melees by kiting.
Pros for Feral:
-Burst from hell, ungeared, gods forbid you're geared
-Sustain, their damage is pretty good sustain, just spam mangle and win basically
-Feral Swiftness is pretty nifty, flag carrying and such, kiting even
-In MoP Displacer Beast will give you a Vanish/Cloak of Shadows/Blink, so you'll have two ways of stealthing in combat (As a Night Elf) It's not feral specific, balance can choose it also, but I guess as a melee it might come in handy more for you maybe?
-Ferocious Bite can do ridiculous damage
Pros for Balance:
-Kite all day, if someone focuses you Cheetah, Moonfire, Insect Swarm, Cheetah, Moonfire, Cheetah, Moonfire, Cheetah, Moonfire, Insect Swarm, etc, etc
-Heals (Sure Feral can as well, but you go oom in no time flat, Balance has some mana to back up healing)
-Damage, you do pretty good damage when you're geared, in full BoAs it can get pretty bad, pre-boas and pre-boa-bis you'll struggle a little bit, but you will have no problem coming around top damage in the battleground.
-Respect, I've made friends solely due to being Balance instead of Feral, so I'm putting respect down as a pro because in a community like ours it's good to have friends
As for Cons to be honest I can't think of any for either of them, they're both good specs, from what I'm hearing about Mists of Pandaria druids are getting a disengage, so that takes out the *slight* con of balance being susceptible to range damage, but that's a con to any ranged spec I suppose.
Sources -
Main is an 85 feral druid
Twink is a 20 balance druid
Mists of Pandaria Talent Calculator
Pros for Feral:
-Burst from hell, ungeared, gods forbid you're geared
-Sustain, their damage is pretty good sustain, just spam mangle and win basically
-Feral Swiftness is pretty nifty, flag carrying and such, kiting even
-In MoP Displacer Beast will give you a Vanish/Cloak of Shadows/Blink, so you'll have two ways of stealthing in combat (As a Night Elf) It's not feral specific, balance can choose it also, but I guess as a melee it might come in handy more for you maybe?
-Ferocious Bite can do ridiculous damage
Pros for Balance:
-Kite all day, if someone focuses you Cheetah, Moonfire, Insect Swarm, Cheetah, Moonfire, Cheetah, Moonfire, Cheetah, Moonfire, Insect Swarm, etc, etc
-Heals (Sure Feral can as well, but you go oom in no time flat, Balance has some mana to back up healing)
-Damage, you do pretty good damage when you're geared, in full BoAs it can get pretty bad, pre-boas and pre-boa-bis you'll struggle a little bit, but you will have no problem coming around top damage in the battleground.
-Respect, I've made friends solely due to being Balance instead of Feral, so I'm putting respect down as a pro because in a community like ours it's good to have friends
As for Cons to be honest I can't think of any for either of them, they're both good specs, from what I'm hearing about Mists of Pandaria druids are getting a disengage, so that takes out the *slight* con of balance being susceptible to range damage, but that's a con to any ranged spec I suppose.
Sources -
Main is an 85 feral druid
Twink is a 20 balance druid
Mists of Pandaria Talent Calculator
Last edited by a moderator:
Gulbon
Legend
I am not sure about Balance, but I hear it is very solid (A good balance druid dueling a good feral druid can be a good duel, taking 10-20 minutes, maybe even 30 minutes, from my experiences.
Robert is true, ferals are OP, but they aren't as OP, or as hated, as Robert makes them out to be. It's your choice, and both choices are very viable. I personally find Ferals more fun, because we are very viable in melee, while keeping ranged spells to keep people in combat.
Comparing feral druids to hunters is like comparing meat to fruit. Both are edible, but both are vastly different in what they give you, and how they effect you, and the people around you.
I can guarantee that Balance requires alot of skill, but so does feral.
Pretty much, for the most mobile caster, go Balance, and for the most mobile melee, go feral.
Balance Pros:
Underestimated (Can open a can of Kick-Ass on underestimater people.)
Mobile (You have roots and cheetah to get away from anything. Don't underestimate it)
Thorns (Crapload of damage to whoever melees you. Can kill a rogue with just thorns if you heal yourself.)
Better spell power compared to ferals (As a Balance druid, you will be focusing on caster based stats. That means you do better spells and heals than a feral.)
(I have never played balance, so I can't assume the cons)
Feral Pros:
Mobile: Most mobile class in the 20-24 bracket. A feral's main form (Cat form) (A feral should never be in their original form unless powershifting or healing/rooting/moonfire), has a 30% speed increase if I remember correctly (That is, if you spec in that talent, which all ferals should do). That means that cat form should do the dirty work, whereas human form should do the heals/moonfire/thorns/root. If you are not in/near a fight, you should be in travel form. You should only be in bear form if you are tanking a dungeon, or being an FC.
Bursty: A feral druid is one bursty son of a biotch. That's no lie. The problem is, though, that you are not invincible. You are melee, remember that. You have to get up and at 'em. Healers can be tricky without help. A pro feral druid should win against anybody below his skill level. People at your skill level, or above, in most classes, can beat you, sometimes. You may be slightly OP, but people can kill you if they are patient.
Thorns: Thorns pretty much, is destruction. Best way to use thorns, IMO, is to put thorns up, go into cat form, and mangle the heck out of the enemy. Most people aren't that aware, and thorns combined with mangle is a deadly combination. If you are FCing, you could play it safe, or do what I just said a few seconds ago (thorns + mangle). To play it safe as an FC, you thorn yourself, pop up a heal, and either go bear and heal if necessary, or go cat, or travel, and run.
Anti-Hunter: Your increased speed, and your ability to decrease speed (If you spec correctly), should allow you to destroy hunters. I feel that if it is group vs group, as a feral, you should focus on the enemy hunters. Most cannot kite you, thankfully. You have to worry about the good hunters. The huntards (Bad hunters), will most likely keep auto attack when you get in melee. Guess what. Thorns + mangle.
Feral Cons
Terrible spell power: Not the best heals, but hey, atleast it works well with thorns. You should never rely on offensive spells (Spells that do damage). The only one you should rely on is moonfire, it keeps people in combat, so that pesky rogue can't get away. Even better if you use it on a 24. You'll either kill him (Assuming he's low on health since he's running), or people will notice and kill him. Pretty much, try to rely on someone else for healing if you can.
Smart people can counter you: If someone is smart enough, they might be able to beat you easily. Ferals rely heavily on their speed and burst. We're useless if we cannot get to the enemy (That's unlikely, but some people know how to kite a feral.) Be careful, though. If you can't beat somebody, you have the speed to go away. You can powershift out of snares.
Feral Druids are fragile: We may be bursty, but we are fragile. Don't forget that. We can easily beat one person, maybe easily beat two or three, but we lose health fast. Cat feral druids are meant to be played aggressively, and by aggressively, I mean that we want to pull off as much damage as we can before we die, or run. All it takes is one bad battle and your health will be low, and in the BGs, you are a sitting duck because our heals are slow (HoT and casted heals). It is up to you on how you play, but the way I see it, the most potential out of a feral druid is through aggressive play. Charge right in it. Tear 'em up. I play aggressively, but with strategy.
___
Now, here's a pro for both. We can choose our own battles. Both feral and Balance have Cat form. We both have prowl. What does that mean? We can stealth. We can choose who we fight. Remember that. It may be simple, but remember that nobody can see us if we are stealthed. We can see them. We have the time and the safety to determine who to fight, who's what class, and all that.
I'd pick Feral, but I can guarantee that Balance is good, and fun too, if you enjoy casters.
Robert is true, ferals are OP, but they aren't as OP, or as hated, as Robert makes them out to be. It's your choice, and both choices are very viable. I personally find Ferals more fun, because we are very viable in melee, while keeping ranged spells to keep people in combat.
Comparing feral druids to hunters is like comparing meat to fruit. Both are edible, but both are vastly different in what they give you, and how they effect you, and the people around you.
I can guarantee that Balance requires alot of skill, but so does feral.
Pretty much, for the most mobile caster, go Balance, and for the most mobile melee, go feral.
Balance Pros:
Underestimated (Can open a can of Kick-Ass on underestimater people.)
Mobile (You have roots and cheetah to get away from anything. Don't underestimate it)
Thorns (Crapload of damage to whoever melees you. Can kill a rogue with just thorns if you heal yourself.)
Better spell power compared to ferals (As a Balance druid, you will be focusing on caster based stats. That means you do better spells and heals than a feral.)
(I have never played balance, so I can't assume the cons)
Feral Pros:
Mobile: Most mobile class in the 20-24 bracket. A feral's main form (Cat form) (A feral should never be in their original form unless powershifting or healing/rooting/moonfire), has a 30% speed increase if I remember correctly (That is, if you spec in that talent, which all ferals should do). That means that cat form should do the dirty work, whereas human form should do the heals/moonfire/thorns/root. If you are not in/near a fight, you should be in travel form. You should only be in bear form if you are tanking a dungeon, or being an FC.
Bursty: A feral druid is one bursty son of a biotch. That's no lie. The problem is, though, that you are not invincible. You are melee, remember that. You have to get up and at 'em. Healers can be tricky without help. A pro feral druid should win against anybody below his skill level. People at your skill level, or above, in most classes, can beat you, sometimes. You may be slightly OP, but people can kill you if they are patient.
Thorns: Thorns pretty much, is destruction. Best way to use thorns, IMO, is to put thorns up, go into cat form, and mangle the heck out of the enemy. Most people aren't that aware, and thorns combined with mangle is a deadly combination. If you are FCing, you could play it safe, or do what I just said a few seconds ago (thorns + mangle). To play it safe as an FC, you thorn yourself, pop up a heal, and either go bear and heal if necessary, or go cat, or travel, and run.
Anti-Hunter: Your increased speed, and your ability to decrease speed (If you spec correctly), should allow you to destroy hunters. I feel that if it is group vs group, as a feral, you should focus on the enemy hunters. Most cannot kite you, thankfully. You have to worry about the good hunters. The huntards (Bad hunters), will most likely keep auto attack when you get in melee.
Guess what. Thorns + mangle.Feral Cons
Terrible spell power: Not the best heals, but hey, atleast it works well with thorns.
You should never rely on offensive spells (Spells that do damage). The only one you should rely on is moonfire, it keeps people in combat, so that pesky rogue can't get away. Even better if you use it on a 24. You'll either kill him (Assuming he's low on health since he's running), or people will notice and kill him. Pretty much, try to rely on someone else for healing if you can.Smart people can counter you: If someone is smart enough, they might be able to beat you easily. Ferals rely heavily on their speed and burst. We're useless if we cannot get to the enemy (That's unlikely, but some people know how to kite a feral.) Be careful, though. If you can't beat somebody, you have the speed to go away. You can powershift out of snares.
Feral Druids are fragile: We may be bursty, but we are fragile. Don't forget that. We can easily beat one person, maybe easily beat two or three, but we lose health fast. Cat feral druids are meant to be played aggressively, and by aggressively, I mean that we want to pull off as much damage as we can before we die, or run. All it takes is one bad battle and your health will be low, and in the BGs, you are a sitting duck because our heals are slow (HoT and casted heals). It is up to you on how you play, but the way I see it, the most potential out of a feral druid is through aggressive play. Charge right in it. Tear 'em up. I play aggressively, but with strategy.
___
Now, here's a pro for both. We can choose our own battles. Both feral and Balance have Cat form. We both have prowl. What does that mean? We can stealth. We can choose who we fight. Remember that. It may be simple, but remember that nobody can see us if we are stealthed. We can see them. We have the time and the safety to determine who to fight, who's what class, and all that.
I'd pick Feral, but I can guarantee that Balance is good, and fun too, if you enjoy casters.
Last edited by a moderator:
DubbsBegins
Legend
if you think you are skilled and up for a challenge and getting gimped, go balance
if you want to play a class with good damage and high skill cap, go feral (not that balance has low skill cap)
if you want to play a class with good damage and high skill cap, go feral (not that balance has low skill cap)
Robert the Noble
Legend
Everytime I crit with Starfire, in my head I go "BOOM".
Never gets old.
Never gets old.
VCheetah
Legend
Well I like playing difficult classes. The Feral looks really fun, but I believe I will be going BALANCE.
Thank you all who have commented in detail. Very very helpful, and I am very thankful. I like being a gimped class. : P haha idk why either, and It seems as if I learn to play balance however the gimp turns to pimp.
Thank you all who have commented in detail. Very very helpful, and I am very thankful. I like being a gimped class. : P haha idk why either, and It seems as if I learn to play balance however the gimp turns to pimp.
suntimehappy
Legend
Robert can you give me an idea of what your dmg would be like.
Just tell me what your spells crit for without beserker buff.
Moonfire Crit
moonfire dot and insect swarm dot over 10 seconds
Wrath
Starfire
and starsurge ( i think that's what it's called).
thanks in advance
Just tell me what your spells crit for without beserker buff.
Moonfire Crit
moonfire dot and insect swarm dot over 10 seconds
Wrath
Starfire
and starsurge ( i think that's what it's called).
thanks in advance
Kearbear
Legend
My advice would be to resto until you get into some of your BoAs, simply because it will make the process a little less painful. Balance can hand out some nice damage when you get fully geared (heck, when the fire festival holiday buffs were available it was practically a viable spec lol) but before you get geared dealing enough damage to make a difference will probably be difficult, and it'd probably be mroe effective to heal. You'll be going for pretty much the same gear anyways, I have no problem switching back and forth between resto and balance depending on mood.
You can't really feral/balance tho, simply because due to accepting some quest rewards (the ring most notably) you'll be missing out on one or the other's BiS.
kwatee
Legend
Gear for both ... if you plan on playing horde.... the only quest I can think of that gear choice would effect your outcome would be the "of the hero" where you should pick the caster leather gloves ....(even though the hit is nice don't be fooled by it) and take the agility ring from argas quest .... many good caster rings not enough feral rings for horde .... other than BoAs there not hard to gear for all 3 specs
VCheetah
Legend
and by sup-optimal you mean not "cookie cutter." There are lots of playstyles. I might just even go for full agility set on my Feral
youakim
Guest
Ring of Precision is not BiS for feral, meaning just stick with the pvp ring. Hit over cap does almost nothing for ferals, so don't bother farming bfd.
VCheetah
Legend
Miight not be "BiS" but for a full agi set? I would be aiming for maybe 1200 HP as Feral, and as much Agility as possible. Will make my armors/Weapon selections and will be back to post on here
youakim
Guest
I'm not 100% sure, but I think that agi gives 2 ap per point while str gives 1 per point, giving the pvp ring the same ap as RoP. That makes the only difference 3 hit vs 2 stam, and since you're going to be already hit capped with patch+ello's, the 2 stam is the better option.
VCheetah
Legend
Good observation and input. Thank you
I feel some hostility from you today Kain? The point of this forum is to discuss, and help each other. Once again you did NOT answer the question I asked.
Have a great day Kain.
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