[Glider Guide] How to guide a Druid efficiently!

[K3zzeR]

I made this guide originally on MMOGlider.com in the Druid section, where it got stickied.

Welcome to FAQ and my guide to efficient Druid gliding.

FAQ BEGINS!

Why is my guide half-decent?

I believe I have the knowledge to correctly glide a druid to 70. I do not intend that past statement as 'dissing' others knowledge of the druid class.

I have glided a druid successfully 1-70 within the 30day limit of buying a regular WoW CDKey and TBC key. I achieved this in the minimal amount of time necessary and choosing talents which only applied to gliding. My druid ended up having 4/5 t5 before he was finally banned.

Why is a druid efficient at gliding? They just seem second-best to the 'main' classes

Wrong. Druids are extremely efficient gliders because of two major factors. These are:-

1) Druids have the ability to supply constant DPS and heal the damage they take. A druid will averagely kill 2-4mobs before a heal is required - this gives enough time to regen the mana required for a heal. Based on the previous sentance, this gives druid's next to zero downtime. Glide 4mobs, heal, and to glide another 4 - druids specialise in repetitive single mob gliding.

2) Druids have the ability to take on rolls suited to the mobs you are gliding. You can be a bear, high armored and hp'd, with slow to high damage, or a cat, low armored, medium hp'd with fast high burst damage. You can also choose be an owl and follow the art of spellcasting. An owl is also known as Moonkin.

Should I use a CustomClass to Glide a druid?

I strongly suggest you do. Druids are an extremely hard class to master, and require that every spell and shapeshift is done correctly and efficiently to ensure that your gliding process is smart. CustomClasses allow you to tweak your pulling type, what forms to use & when, and ultimately make you look legiter than Glider's class.

Where can I find a CustomClass?

I highly recommend using a CustomClass known as UberDruid. I have used UberDruid from levels 10-70, and at 70 to glide over 10K gold. It is an extremely efficient class and allows you to choose the spells & abilities you want to use. UberDruid was originally built for Moonkins, but it has since been tweaked for Ferals to use - and it works for Ferals damn nice.

Link to UberDruid: Glider Forums

UberDruid & CustomClasses require that you have Glider Elite.

Feral or Balance? What to choose?

Feral all the way for the fastest gliding. Balance uses mana while gliding, which effectively means mana breaks. Feral has the ability to regen mana used for healing while fighting mobs in feral forms. Feral can match & beat Balance's DPS. Also, Feral is not as gear-dependant as Balance.

OK... So explain Feral to me...

Sure. Feral is the art of specialising in feral forms, such as Cat and Bear form. The feral druid will usually spec down to the 40point talent to get Mangle. Mangle is your cat's version of Claw, but deals alot more damage. Mangle is also available in Bear form.

Feral druids boast the ability to glide efficiently with minimal to zero downtime. Feral druids regenerate the mana needed for heals while fighting in Feral forms. This effectively means that a Feral druid can constantly glide repetitively over and over. Also, the art of Bear shapeshifting allows you to control add's with high armor and HP, which could save a death.

OK... Now explain Balance!

Sure. Balance is the druid's version of being a spellcaster. A balance druid boasts the art of being able to shapeshift into an owl (Moonkin) which increases armor by 400% and allows mana regeneration on melee hits (useless).

Balance druids are less efficient at gliding than Feral because they require mana breaks. They are also more gear dependant than Feral druids because they require a substantially high amount of spelldamage gear in order to be able to pump out high-hitting critical hits. However, Balance druids are more suited to spellcasting and ranged mobs because of the nature of the spec - do not go against Balance because it's less efficient - it certainly is fun.

At what level should I begin gliding?

I suggest gliding at level 10 when your druid gets Bear form. Gliding pre-level 10 really is a struggle since you only have a few spells available to you. You could however do the following to glide before level 10:

1) Use a spellcaster class such as a Mage or Warlock
2) Fill the spell slots with Wrath and Moonfire appropriatly
3) Fill the classes buff spots with your Mark of the Wild spell

Where should I glide my XX druid?

This is explained in my next post, 'How to efficiently glide'.

What talent points should I use from 1-70?

This is explained in my next post, 'How to efficiently glide'.

I have a question that is not explained here.. How can I get an answer?

Post in this thread and I will reply and try to answer your question. If I cannot answer your question, I will research the problem myself and give you an answer. I pride myself in Customer Support - in this case answering your questions.

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FAQ FINISHED. THIS FAQ WILL BE UPDATED WHEN I FEEL THE NEED TO, AND IT MAY BE CHANGED WITHOUT NOTIFICATION

Read the next post for my guide on how to efficiently glide, appropriate macros and talent spec.

[K3zzeR]

HOW TO GLIDE A DRUID BEGINS!

Okay, so let's begin with how to actually Glide as a druid. Below you will find what talent specs to choose, appropriate macros, and my Profile pack which has over 100profiles for Horde & Alliance. You should also be able to choose whether to go Feral or Balance.

Bear in mind this is my Guide as how to glide as a druid, and others opinions may vary, and some may disagree with what I have said. By using the information I state, you are using my personal preferance in Druid gliding.

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What gear to use:

Feral: - Feral druids should choose Strength and Stamina, while keeping an average amount of Agility to keep up a high crit chance. Strength gives 2attackpower, Agility gives 1attackpower, and 1AP gives 1AP. Agility also gives crit chance and dodge chance - so you need to balance Agility so that you have a relatively high melee crit chance.

Moonkin: - Moonkins heavily rely on spelldamage, intellect & armor. Moonkin gives a 400% armor buff, and you should utilise this boost in armor. Moonkins are also spelldamage dependant, which means you should stack spelldamage. To prevent alot of downtime with Balance, you should also stack Intellect to prevent alot of mana drinks.

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What talent specs to use as Feral & Balance:

Feral talent spec:

=========]FERAL TREE=========

14 // 5points into Ferocity
16 // 2points into Brutal Impact
19 // 3points into Thick Hige
22 // 3points into Sharpened Claws
24 // 3points into Feral Swiftness
26 // 2points into Primal Fury
29 // 3points into Predatory Strikes
31 // 2points into Savage Fury
32 // 1point into Feral Charge
33 // 1point into Faerie Fire
34 // 1point into Nurturing Instinct
39 // 5points into Heart of the Wild
40 // 1point into Leader of the Pack
42 // 2points into Improved Leader of the Pack
45 // 3points into Survival of the Fittest
49 // 4points into Predatory Instincts
50 // 1point into Mangle

=========RESTO TREE=========

55 // 5points into Furor
60 // 5points into Naturalist
61 // 1point into Omen of Clarity

=========FERAL TREE=========

62 // 1point into Predatory Instincts
63 // 1point into Nurtury Instinct
65 // 2points into Shredding Attacks

=========RESTO TREE=========

68 // 3points into Natural Shapeshifter
70 // 2points into Intensity


Balance talent spec:

=========BALANCE TREE=========

14 // 5points into Starlight Wrath
16 // 2points into Focused Starlight
18 // 2points into Improved Moonfire
19 // 1point into Control of Nature
20 // 1point into Insect Swarm
22 // 2points into Nature's Reach
24 // 2points into Control of Nature
29 // 5points into Vengeance
30 // 1point into Nature's Grace
33 // 3points into Lunar Guidance
34 // 1point into Celestial Focus
39 // 5points into Moonfury
40 // 1point into Moonkin
42 // 2points into Balance of Power
44 // 2points into Dreamstate
49 // 5points into Wrath of Cenarius
50 // 1point into Force of Nature
51 // 1point into Dreamstate
53 // 2points into Celestial Focus

=========RESTO TREE=========

58 // 5points into Improved Mark of the Wild
63 // 5points into Nature's Focus
66 // 3points into Intensity

=========BALANCE TREE=========

69 // 3points into Moonglow
70 // 1point into Brambles

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How to Glide 1-70:

FOR INFORMATION ON HOW TO SETUP YOUR ACTION BAR WITH UBERDRUID - PLEASE VISIT Glider Forums

This part of the guide is currently only for FERAL. I am working on updating it for Balance, but I am extremely busy right now.

For this I am presumeing you will be gliding at level 10 since it is the best level to begin gliding. If you wish to glide before level 10, use the short guide written in the FAQ.

THIS SETUP IS ONLY FOR THE CUSTOMCLASS, UBERDRUID. Most of the Glider members are now Elite, and this guide is to cater for the general audience, which is usually Elite members. I may write a normal Glider setup later. Please do not PM me about it - I am working on it.

Level 10-20
For levels 10-20, replace Healing Touch with Regrowth since Regrowth will usually heal you to full and supply you with a HoT.

Screenshot: http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/3130/1020af1.jpg

For level 10-20 you will be using Bear form, and using alot of mana for healing and shapeshifting. I suggest buying alot of water. Also, glide mobs 1-2 levels lower than you.

Level 20-33
You can replace Regrowth with Healing Touch again now since you should be getting alot of HP. By now, you should also have full greens with strength + stamina and reasonable Agility.

Screenshot: http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/6529/2033at1.jpg

We will now be using Cat form for faster DPS. You should replace tigers fury with Claw to utilise the Claw spell, which will maximise DPS.

33-50
We will now be using Faerie Fire to initiate combat. This will mean we will be using a 'ranged' pull - which should result in fewer deaths, and also reduce the targets armor. You can also enable the 'Innervate' spell in the 'Caster' tab at level 40.

Screenshot: http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/9316/3350ll7.jpg

We will still be using Cat form as primary attack form with Bear on adds. We will use this setup up to 50. I AM ASSUMEING YOU DON'T HAVE AQUATIC FORM. IF YOU DO HAVE AQUATIC FORM, TICK 'HAS AQUATIC FORM' IN GENERAL OPTIONS OF UBERDRUID.

50-61
General options remain the same - we are only updating Cat & Bear form to allow the use of Mangle. We are still using Feral Faerie Fire to pull. Bear form now can use Frenzied Regeneration & Bash efficiently. Also - put Mangle in the appropriate bar slot, and also put Mangle in the 'Claw' bar slot to utilise the use of Mangle.

Screenshot: http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/9756/5060yl5.jpg

61-70
We now have Omen of Clarity and we are flying through mobs like nothing before. You should now have high strength, and stamina, and have run Hellfire Ramparts for the blue Feral druid staff (Yes, it owns!).

Screenshot: http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/3623/6170bz5.jpg

We are only updating UberDruid to allow the use of Innervate (If you haven't before this) & Omen of Clarity.

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HOW TO GLIDE EFFICIENTLY FINISHED. THIS PART OF THE GUIDE WILL BE UPDATED VERY REGULARLY - SO STAY UPDATED!

Read the next post for my guide on efficient and useful macros, my Druid profile pack download, and also my thanks & credits.

[K3zzeR]

Now, It's time for some macros. I've come across hundreds & hundreds of useful macros over the time of gliding - here's just a few:

Cast innervate on yourself without changing target

/cast [target=player] Innervate

A useful macro for feral druids self-buff is:

      #show Omen of Clarity
/castsequence [target=player]  reset=20/combat Omen of Clarity, Mark of the Wild, Thorns

Rejuvenation + Lifebloom on Yourself

Use this macro if you don't have Nature's Swiftness either to quickly (and cheaply) heal yourself on the run or between fights.

      #showtooltip Rejuvenation
/castsequence reset=12 [target=player] Rejuvenation, Lifebloom

Mangle (Bear) if you have enough rage and its cooldown is up, else Maul, turning on autoattack

      /cast Mangle (bear)()
/cast maul
/startattack

Mangle (Cat) then start autoattack

      /cast Mangle (Cat)
/startattack

Variation to use a trinket before Cat mangle.

      /use <trinket name>
/stopcasting
/cast Mangle (Cat)
/startattack

Balance Druid Opener

This is a very useful macro for balance druids to deal some nice damage when beginning a fight outdoors. This macro will only work if the druid has learned Insect Swarm in their balance talent tree

      /castsequence reset=target Entangling Roots, Insect Swarm, Faerie Fire, Moonfire, Starfire

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I will update this post if I come across more useful macros.

END OF HOW TO GLIDE A DRUID EFFICIENTLY.

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KezzeR's Profile Pack for Druid Gliding:

As promised, here's my profile pack which will take you 1-70, and also provide some nice Profiles for reputation, primal and gold farming at 70. It is your decision as to which profile to use - utilise secluded single mob spots, and you will fly through the XP.

Download Link: RapidShare: 1-Click Webhosting
Mirror 1: MEGAUPLOAD - The leading online storage and file delivery service
Mirror 2: KezzeR's Profile Pack.zip - - Free file hosting - Files upload - Max 1 GB per file via FTP, 300 MB via HTTP, Subdomain, FTP access, the fastest 1-click free file-hoster

If the Download Link or Mirrors expire, please PM me and I will put up additional download links. If you cannot download from any of the above hosting services because of your ISP - PM me and I will add an upload link you can download from.

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Thankyou for reading another one of my hugely lengthy guides on what druids are about, and how to glide one.

Credits:

Thankyou to Mercury & Hamut for creating Glider and allowing the usage of CustomClasses.

Thankyou to the moderation team for the great job you do managing the forums.

Random TY's: KooKoo, Ali, Kanox, ALL of the CustomClass developers, (Sorry if i've missed you out, PM me and I'll put you up).

Have fun gliding a druid, my personal favourite class. The shapeshifter of World of Warcraft and the most versatile class. May your bear form protect you against exceptionally powerful foes.

[[Soul Eater]]

Very nice guide for leveling druids with glider. One question though, do you play EU or US with your druid, because the thing of"My druid got 4/5 T5 before he was finally BANNED" worries me a bit for leveling my druid with glider :P if it is US then it is understandable, here on EU they are not that so rough on glider users....I think :P

[K3zzeR]

I'm on EU, and I wasn't banned for gliding - I was banned for having an offensive arena team name.