The Druid is one of the most versatile and complex classes in World of Warcraft, but with so many different options to choose from, your best bet to get to 85 is a Feral Druid Leveling Build. However, as complex as a Druid is, many players make some detrimental mistakes that can significantly set back their leveling speed. Read on, and I'll share with you a few secrets on the perfect WoW Druid Leveling Build for Cataclysm.
Why Choose a Feral Druid Leveling Build?
First off, it's the highest DPS with the fastest regenerating resource. Energy fills up much more quickly than mana. As a Balance Druid, you will constantly be running out of mana, and stopping to drink. In addition, you will be using that same mana to heal yourself in between fights. However, as Feral, you have talents like Predatory Instincts and Nurturing Instinct which enhance your heals, and make them instant with no cost. This boosts your survivability and leveling efficiency way above any spec besides a Feral Druid Leveling Build.
Strategy for a Feral Druid Leveling Build
You have two options. You can either tank dungeons for 85 levels, you can solo quest, or you can do a combination of the two. Dual spec is great for this. If you don't mind tanking, a bear spec will give you almost instant queue times for dungeons. While questing, a Feral Cat Leveling Spec is absolutely the fastest way to go. For the earlier levels you will be finishing with Ferocious Bite, until you get Rip at level 54, you can start chain pulling as soon as you get that heavy DoT up. You will want to initiate combat with a Feral Charge, Pounce, Mangle, Rake, (One more mangle if you need the combo point) and Rip. Don't finish that mob, Rip will do it for you. Pop an instant heal if you need it, and move on to the next one immediately, and pull with a Feral Faerie Fire. Mangle and Rake to five combo points and finish. With this Feral Druid Leveling Build, you can repeat this process of chain pulling with no end, except when you run out of mobs to kill. Use this strategy while questing, and the experience gains will be ridiculous.
Gearing up for a Feral Druid Leveling Build
As a Feral Druid, you gain attack power in your Cat and Bear forms from Weapon DPS, and agility on all of your equipment. Agility also gives you extra chance to crit and dodge, making it our most powerful damage stat. With Nurturing Instinct, you also gain extra healing power from agility. This is a great survival talent and should not be skipped. Stamina is also important for your survival while questing. Obviously, the more hits you can take, the less time you spend running away from mobs, or back to your corpse. With a Feral Druid Leveling Build, you should only be wearing leather, as it is the highest level armor you can wear. You also get a bonus to agility after level 50 for wearing all leather. Also, cloth has none of your DPS stats on it, so stick to leather. For secondary stats, Haste and Crit are your best friends. Haste regenerates your energy, and Crit gives you extra combo points. I wouldn't worry about stacking Hit until endgame. Focus on the burst damage.