Dwarves are the only Alliance race that can be a Shaman in Forever, and Blizzard’s Deep Dive panel showed the Dwarf racials with that pairing in mind. Since Blizzard’s October 26 notes, Artisan’s Precision adds 1% hit with spells and attacks in place of Earth Fury, and Stoneform cuts Physical damage however much armor you wear.
Racial effects are Blizzard’s, from its September 23 race article; talents come from the same beta talent data as our calculator (where it comes from); hands-on reports are named where we use them. Last reviewed: .
Image: Blizzard Entertainment
Dwarf racials for a Shaman
Every Dwarf racial, what it does in Forever and how much it does for a Shaman, with the Shaman talents it works with. Hover or tap an icon for the full text.
Artisan’s Precision
Artisan’s Precision
+1% hit chance with spells and attacks
Core for a Shaman
+1% hit chance with spells and attacks
1% hit chance with spells and attacks. The October 26 notes add it in place of Earth Fury (2% critical damage and healing from the October 15 build). Shamans still do not need a mace for it.
Stoneform
Stoneform
Removes and grants immunity to Bleed, Poison and Disease effects, and reduces Physical damage taken by 10%, for 8 sec; 3 min cooldown
Core for a Shaman
Removes and grants immunity to Bleed, Poison and Disease effects, and reduces Physical damage taken by 10%, for 8 sec; 3 min cooldown
Eight seconds of immunity to Bleed, Poison and Disease, and less Physical damage taken no matter your armor, which Blizzard says was the point of the change: 10% less in the beta client, on a 3-minute cooldown. A melee Enhancement Shaman takes the most Physical hits; if you tank with Rockbiter Weapon and Spirit Weapons (a chance to parry, 30% more threat), it doubles as a defensive cooldown.
Works with Spirit Weapons
Spirit Weapons
Enhancement · tier 5 · max rank 1
Formerly Parry
Gives a chance to parry enemy melee attacks, reduces all threat generated by your attacks by 30% while Rockbiter Weapon is not active, and increases all threat generated by 30% while Rockbiter Weapon is active.
Big Game Hunter
Big Game Hunter
+5% damage against Beasts
Situational
+5% damage against Beasts
5% more damage to Beasts, which fill many leveling zones. It does nothing against anything else.
Find Treasure
Find Treasure
Shows nearby treasure on the minimap and can stay active alongside other tracking abilities
Minor
Shows nearby treasure on the minimap and can stay active alongside other tracking abilities
Now runs alongside your other tracking. A convenience for any class, nothing Shaman-specific.
Shaman talents that pair with Dwarf racials
The talents named above, each once, with the racial it works with. Hover or tap for every rank; ★ marks a talent new in Forever.
Spirit Weapons
Spirit Weapons
Enhancement · tier 5 · max rank 1
Formerly Parry
Gives a chance to parry enemy melee attacks, reduces all threat generated by your attacks by 30% while Rockbiter Weapon is not active, and increases all threat generated by 30% while Rockbiter Weapon is active.
Builds players posted for the Forever beta, checked point by point against our talent data. None of them depends on race, so each works for a Dwarf Shaman.
Elemental, with Restoration points
Elemental Combat 10Restoration 11level 30
Ten points in Elemental and eleven in Restoration. The Restoration points are the level 20 build’s: Improved Healing Wave, Mindfulness to keep half your Mana regeneration while casting, Tidal Focus and Water Shield. The ten new ones are Concussion for Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning and Earth Shock damage, Call of Flame for Flame Shock and Fire Totems, and two points of Convection for cheaper spells.
Built around (★ new in Forever):
Call of Flame
Call of Flame
Elemental Combat · tier 2 · max rank 3
Increases the damage done by your Fire Totems and by your Flame Shock and Fire Nova spells by 5%, as well as increases the duration of your Flame Shock spell by 3 sec.
Rank 3: Increases the damage done by your Fire Totems and by your Flame Shock and Fire Nova spells by 15%, as well as increases the duration of your Flame Shock spell by 9 sec.
3/3
★ Mindfulness
Mindfulness
Restoration · tier 2 · max rank 3
★ New in Forever
Allows 17% of your Mana regeneration to continue while casting.
Rank 3: Allows 50% of your Mana regeneration to continue while casting.
3/3
★ Water Shield
Water Shield
Restoration · tier 3 · max rank 1
★ New in Forever
The caster is surrounded by 3 globes of water. When a spell, melee, or ranged attack hits the caster or when one of the caster's spells gets a critical result, 2% of maximum mana is restored to the caster, expending one water globe. Only one globe will activate every few seconds. Lasts 10 min. Only one Elemental Shield can be active on the Shaman at any one time.
The healing build of Wowhead’s Restoration guide (its leveling build has the same points as the Elemental one): all 21 points in Restoration, down to Nature's Swiftness for an instant heal. Improved Healing Wave; Mindfulness and Water Shield for Mana; four points of Tidal Mastery for heal crit and Ancestral Healing, which turns those crits into armor on the target; Mana Tide Totem for the group; two points of Natural Grace, the renamed Healing Grace, for less threat; and a point of Healing Focus.
Built around (★ new in Forever):
★ Mindfulness
Mindfulness
Restoration · tier 2 · max rank 3
★ New in Forever
Allows 17% of your Mana regeneration to continue while casting.
Rank 3: Allows 50% of your Mana regeneration to continue while casting.
3/3
★ Water Shield
Water Shield
Restoration · tier 3 · max rank 1
★ New in Forever
The caster is surrounded by 3 globes of water. When a spell, melee, or ranged attack hits the caster or when one of the caster's spells gets a critical result, 2% of maximum mana is restored to the caster, expending one water globe. Only one globe will activate every few seconds. Lasts 10 min. Only one Elemental Shield can be active on the Shaman at any one time.
1/1
Nature's Swiftness
Nature's Swiftness
Restoration · tier 5 · max rank 1
When activated, your next Nature spell with a casting time less than 10 sec. becomes an instant cast spell.
Wowhead’s Elemental guide puts no points into Elemental at level 20: Improved Healing Wave, Mindfulness to keep Mana regenerating while casting, Tidal Focus, and Water Shield for dungeons. The level 20 guide suggested moving into Elemental around levels 38 to 40; the level 30 build already has ten points there.
Built around (★ new in Forever):
Improved Healing Wave
Improved Healing Wave
Restoration · tier 1 · max rank 5
Reduces the casting time of your Healing Wave spell by 0.1 sec.
Rank 5: Reduces the casting time of your Healing Wave spell by 0.5 sec.
5/5
Tidal Focus
Tidal Focus
Restoration · tier 1 · max rank 5
Reduces the Mana cost of your healing spells by 1% and improves your chance to hit by 1%.
Rank 5: Reduces the Mana cost of your healing spells by 5% and improves your chance to hit by 5%.
2/5
★ Mindfulness
Mindfulness
Restoration · tier 2 · max rank 3
★ New in Forever
Allows 17% of your Mana regeneration to continue while casting.
Rank 3: Allows 50% of your Mana regeneration to continue while casting.
3/3
★ Water Shield
Water Shield
Restoration · tier 3 · max rank 1
★ New in Forever
The caster is surrounded by 3 globes of water. When a spell, melee, or ranged attack hits the caster or when one of the caster's spells gets a critical result, 2% of maximum mana is restored to the caster, expending one water globe. Only one globe will activate every few seconds. Lasts 10 min. Only one Elemental Shield can be active on the Shaman at any one time.
Dwarf Shamans get their own class quests for each element’s totem, starting in Coldridge Valley. Warcraft Tavern walked through them on the Forever beta: Earth opens at level 4, Fire at 10, Water at 20 and Air at 30. Each quest teaches your first totem of that element; the other totems of the element are then trained as usual.
Element
Quest from
Where it takes you
Totem it teaches
Earth
Level 4
Starts with the Shaman trainer in Anvilmar. Bring two pendants from the Frostmane troll whelps nearby, then drink Earth Sapta at a spirit stone at the top of a mountain path close to Anvilmar.
Stoneskin Totem
Stoneskin Totem
Rank 1 · level 4
Cost 30 Mana
Cast time instant
Summons a Stoneskin Totem with 5 health at the feet of the caster. The totem protects party members within 30 yards, reducing Physical damage taken by 4. Lasts 5 min.
Fire
Level 10
Any Shaman trainer starts it. It sends you to a cave at the Loch Modan end of Dun Morogh, then to Loch Modan for reagents from Tunnel Rat Geomancers and Stonesplinter Seers (up to level 14: bring a group or come back later), and to a mountaintop where you defeat a fire elemental.
Searing Totem
Searing Totem
Water
Level 20
The long one, about two hours of travel by Warcraft Tavern’s count: from Loch Modan to a cave behind a waterfall in the Wetlands, water samples from the Wetlands, Redridge Mountains and Ashenvale, then a corrupted water elemental at a shrine in Westfall.
Healing Stream Totem
Healing Stream Totem
Rank 1 · level 20
Cost 40 Mana
Cast time instant
Summons a Healing Stream Totem with 5 health at the feet of the caster for 5 min that heals group members within 30 yards for 5 every 2 seconds.
Air
Level 30
Opens at level 30. Warcraft Tavern hasn’t published this step yet.
Not covered yet
Summarized from Warcraft Tavern’s beta walkthrough, the only hands-on source so far; quests can still change before launch. The totem spells’ names and tooltips come from the beta client’s ability data.
Dwarf vs the other Shaman races
5 races can be a Shaman in Forever. Each row lists the racials its race page picks out for a Shaman; filter by faction to see your side’s options.
+15% movement speed for 15 sec; 2 min cooldown. Using it at an elemental convergence also grants Charged for 1 hour: while Charged the bonus is +30% movement speed, and Charged persists through death and is removed when you enter a raid. Could be cast while moving since October 15; until October 26 it was +10% movement and mounted speed for 15 min at a convergence or 30 sec elsewhere
Wind Blessed
+2% spell, melee and ranged Haste (3% from October 15 until October 26; 1% before that)
Windshaper only: Skysight run speed; Wind Blessed Haste.
Still unknown
The Air totem quest: Warcraft Tavern’s guide hasn’t covered it yet
Whether the Dwarf totem quests change before launch (they come from one beta walkthrough)
Artisan’s Precision
Stoneform
Spirit Weapons
Big Game Hunter
Find Treasure
Call of Flame
Nature's Swiftness
Improved Healing Wave
Tidal Focus
