Restoration Druid build and talents in WoW Forever

Is Restoration right for you?

Restoration is the Druid’s healing spec. You heal mostly with heals over time: you put them on people before the damage comes, and they keep working while you look at the next target. Groups always need healers, so it is easy to find dungeon and raid spots.

Many of your heals work while you move, and you can still shift into Bear or Cat Form when you need to. Restoration is slow on your own, so many Druids level as Feral or Balance and switch for dungeons. See the Druid leveling guide.

Key talents

These are the talents experienced players build Restoration around. The Warcraft Tavern build puts 38 points in Restoration and 13 in Balance. For the exact points, use the Wowhead talent calculator until we add a full order.

• Reflection. You keep half of your Spirit-based mana regeneration while casting. Healers run out of mana without it.
• Bloom. New in WoW Forever. When your Rejuvenation or Regrowth ends, the target is healed for 100% of your Spirit (50% if the heal is dispelled). This is why Spirit matters more for Druids now.
• Swiftmend (16 points). A fast emergency heal on a target with your own Rejuvenation or Regrowth. In WoW Forever it no longer uses up that heal.
• Nature’s Swiftness. Makes your next nature spell instant. Use it for a big emergency Healing Touch. Since November 10 it also makes Wild Growth instant.
• Improved Tranquility. A shorter Tranquility cooldown, so you can use it in more fights.
• Wild Growth (31 points). The capstone. It heals the target’s whole party over 7 seconds, on a 6-second cooldown, with a 3-second cast. The Naturalist talent cuts that cast by up to 0.5 seconds.
• Nature’s Splendor (Balance). Your heals over time last longer, so you recast them less often.

How to heal

Healing reacts to damage, so there is no fixed rotation. Use your spells like this.

Healing the tank:

1. Rejuvenation on the tank before the pull, and keep it up.
2. Swiftmend when the tank needs health fast.
3. Regrowth when the tank is missing a good chunk of health and doesn’t have it yet.
4. Healing Touch for damage your heals over time can’t keep up with. Use a lower rank when a full one would be wasted.

Healing the group:

1. Swiftmend on anyone who needs a fast heal and has your Rejuvenation or Regrowth.
2. Wild Growth when several people in one party take damage.
3. Rejuvenation on anyone taking steady damage, or about to.
4. Regrowth and then Healing Touch for the rest.

Tips for new players

• Mana is your real health bar. Plan to have mana left at the end of the fight. Drink between pulls.
• Use mouseover healing. Turn on mouseover casting in the Combat options. You can heal people without losing your target.
• Heal on the move. Rejuvenation, Swiftmend and spells made instant by Nature’s Swiftness all work while moving.
• Give Innervate to the right person. Often that’s you, but sometimes another healer or caster needs it more.
• Only start Tranquility if you can finish it. It is a channel, and moving ends it.
• Save Rebirth. It brings a player back in combat and has a long cooldown.
• Omen of Clarity is now baseline for every Druid at level 20. You don’t need a talent for it.