michael.barton
New Member
Guys and Gals,
I wrote this a while back (May 09) for my old guild and thought it might be useful here. I wrote it during 3.1 right before I stopped playing, but now that I am back, I am finding it still applicable.
I've had a lot of fun reading on forums, trying addons, and working with different tools to try and improve my DPS. This thread is an effort to pass on the valuable things I've found. I will try update this from time to time but I'm making no commitments. I am also happy to receive constructive criticism.
EP Values
The webpage that got it all started for me was a guide on Elitist Jerks. http://elitistjerks.com/f47/t20765-shaman_enhancement/ This site has great information about spell rotation, weapon imblues, gems, trinkets, totems, yada.... There is also some information on EP (enhancement point) values. The info on EP values has been BY FAR THE MOST VALUABLE. The idea behind EP is that an Enhancement Shaman's DPS will benefit by one stat more than another (ex. will get more DPS from hit rating than armor penetration). The Elitist Jerks link above has some EP values included on the page, but they are a little outdated and since not all stats are linear your greatest need may be different.
This isn't a problem because there exists a tool to determine your own EP values. There's a little bit of a learning curve, but it's fun to figure out. The tool is called Enhsim. It can be found here. http://enhsim.codeplex.com/ It takes a while to put all your stats into this tool but it is worth it. If you have any questions about the abbreviations used the Enhsim webpage will provide a full list and explanation. The tool will simulate the kind of DPS you should be getting with your particular stats. The tool will also run your spec with slight changes and measure which stat would give you the largest DPS advantage. My current EP values are as follows:
Hazak 12/7/10 WoW version 4.03 EP values (see attached file)
As you can see I would benefit most from a weapon that has more raw DPS. Since that would be hard to get, I notice that I also benefit a great deal from hit rating and expertise. Reforging is a very valuable feature!
Addons
Enhancement Shaman should use at least one addon aside of recount to help with DPS. This will help you see cooldowns on spells and most importantly when Maelstrom's Fury is stacked and ready to cast.
I am currently using Enhaprio. It's simple and shows which best spell is next on rotation. I wish it had more customization as I would like to take a spell out of the rotation but it still serves well. You can find the link here: http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/enhaprio.aspx
Another good addon is Totem Timers. This addon provides a handy way of organizing totems and also gives big flashing lights when maelstrom's fury is ready to go. It's not all goodness though, sometimes random totems are cast for no apparent reason. Nothing stinks more than seeing your fire elemental randomly join the fight on trash knowing your best DPS is blown for the upcoming boss. There is probably a way to disable the autocast features of the addon and I have been too lazy to find it. Since I am used to the interface, I still use it. The addon can be found here. http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/totemtimers.aspx
Another addon called Shock and Awe seems to be popular. I don't use it because it doesn't organize my totems. Otherwise it has all the bells and whistles needed to function well in a raid. That addon can be found here. http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/shockandawe.aspx
(Addon edit for December 2010: Blizz has added so many good things to their UI so I am only using Enhaprio. Anything more causes some redundancy.)
Misc.
USE SLOW WEAPONS!!! Aim for weapons that have 2.6 sec attack speed. Faster weapons will destroy your windfury procs. Also a fast off-hand will hurt your lavalash spell.
Windfury imbue on mainhand and Flametongue on offhand. I have taken a big hit to DPS with any other combination.
I wrote this a while back (May 09) for my old guild and thought it might be useful here. I wrote it during 3.1 right before I stopped playing, but now that I am back, I am finding it still applicable.
I've had a lot of fun reading on forums, trying addons, and working with different tools to try and improve my DPS. This thread is an effort to pass on the valuable things I've found. I will try update this from time to time but I'm making no commitments. I am also happy to receive constructive criticism.
EP Values
The webpage that got it all started for me was a guide on Elitist Jerks. http://elitistjerks.com/f47/t20765-shaman_enhancement/ This site has great information about spell rotation, weapon imblues, gems, trinkets, totems, yada.... There is also some information on EP (enhancement point) values. The info on EP values has been BY FAR THE MOST VALUABLE. The idea behind EP is that an Enhancement Shaman's DPS will benefit by one stat more than another (ex. will get more DPS from hit rating than armor penetration). The Elitist Jerks link above has some EP values included on the page, but they are a little outdated and since not all stats are linear your greatest need may be different.
This isn't a problem because there exists a tool to determine your own EP values. There's a little bit of a learning curve, but it's fun to figure out. The tool is called Enhsim. It can be found here. http://enhsim.codeplex.com/ It takes a while to put all your stats into this tool but it is worth it. If you have any questions about the abbreviations used the Enhsim webpage will provide a full list and explanation. The tool will simulate the kind of DPS you should be getting with your particular stats. The tool will also run your spec with slight changes and measure which stat would give you the largest DPS advantage. My current EP values are as follows:
Hazak 12/7/10 WoW version 4.03 EP values (see attached file)
As you can see I would benefit most from a weapon that has more raw DPS. Since that would be hard to get, I notice that I also benefit a great deal from hit rating and expertise. Reforging is a very valuable feature!
Addons
Enhancement Shaman should use at least one addon aside of recount to help with DPS. This will help you see cooldowns on spells and most importantly when Maelstrom's Fury is stacked and ready to cast.
I am currently using Enhaprio. It's simple and shows which best spell is next on rotation. I wish it had more customization as I would like to take a spell out of the rotation but it still serves well. You can find the link here: http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/enhaprio.aspx
Another good addon is Totem Timers. This addon provides a handy way of organizing totems and also gives big flashing lights when maelstrom's fury is ready to go. It's not all goodness though, sometimes random totems are cast for no apparent reason. Nothing stinks more than seeing your fire elemental randomly join the fight on trash knowing your best DPS is blown for the upcoming boss. There is probably a way to disable the autocast features of the addon and I have been too lazy to find it. Since I am used to the interface, I still use it. The addon can be found here. http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/totemtimers.aspx
Another addon called Shock and Awe seems to be popular. I don't use it because it doesn't organize my totems. Otherwise it has all the bells and whistles needed to function well in a raid. That addon can be found here. http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/shockandawe.aspx
(Addon edit for December 2010: Blizz has added so many good things to their UI so I am only using Enhaprio. Anything more causes some redundancy.)
Misc.
USE SLOW WEAPONS!!! Aim for weapons that have 2.6 sec attack speed. Faster weapons will destroy your windfury procs. Also a fast off-hand will hurt your lavalash spell.
Windfury imbue on mainhand and Flametongue on offhand. I have taken a big hit to DPS with any other combination.
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