About to start on Nostralius PvE: Not sure about Shm or Pal.

[Foxhound3857]

I don't know if this server allows you to have characters on both factions so I'm currently deciding what I want to play incase I can't do both, Femtaur Shaman or Human Pally.

In both cases I want to learn how to do Healing. Tanking has always been my primary focus in retail and in games like SWToR (had a 55 tank Jedi Guardian in RotH PvP) and I wanted to learn Healing as well but never bothered with making another toon out of laziness. But on this server I've been firmly told that if you want to tank, you need to be a Warrior or a Druid, neither of which are classes I am interested in, and that apparently Paladins cannot tank raid bosses or raid mobs (I assume the lack of taunts and mana management are the big reasons for this?), which is something I was accustomed to doing in WotLK/BC eras. But Pallies are desired for healing, and Shaman being my other favorite class and healing is something they can do, I thought this would be a good time to try and learn the art.

I'm leaning towards Shaman because I always liked playing Horde, I like the Tauren/Undead races and Shamans look like they would be more fun as healers because of a more complicated rotation and a steeper learning curve (having to manage totems being part of it), which I think would make me a better player overall if I could overcome it. But if I played Paladin I could also assemble a set of Tank gear to take up Trash tanking if needed. Otherwise my Shaman would focus on DPS, although what kind I'm not sure. It's a tough choice, not really sure which one to go for. Are you allowed to have both Alliance and Horde characters on the same server?

Regardless of which I choose to main, I would go Herbalist/Alchemy to make my own potions and consumables, and would also take up Fishing and Cooking on the side to provide my own food, and hopefully have extras to spare for teammates and guildies. Hopefully Herbalism is good at making money on the side because I'm STRONGLY tempted to take Mining instead to just sell mats on the AH for a bankroll, but I want to be more self sufficient and be able to supply my own potions, because I know I'm playing a class that is desperately going to NEED them.

Assuming I get to the end game though, one thing I will not tolerate is loot priority. I consider it rude and highly unethical and unfair for an item to drop that has EVERYTHING a Ret Pally or Prot Pally wants, the Ret or Prot Pally to bid and roll the highest, and that item gets handed to the Warrior or Rogue instead because of loot priority going to the more efficient class. Every class deserves an EQUAL chance at an item they can use, it should never be denied to a certain class just because another class that can use it is better at the role. My heart sincerely goes out to anyone who has been a victim of that and I will not play with any guild or group that enforces it. I will make this point clear when I look for a guild.

Other than that, if I screw up, I will take responsibility for it, because it is very much a learning experience for me, and I've never played a Healing role in an MMO before, so it's going to be a long road for me. But hopefully it's one that I will overcome and be able to enjoy. I am here to have fun and make friends, after all, so I won't take criticism personally. It's intended to help me get better, after all.

Anyway, yeah, that's about it. Nice to meet you all, and see you on the PvE server.

[Valandar]

Welcome to Nost! On PvE realms you are able to make both horde and alliance. However, i would suggest pick one side and stick with it so you can establish a good source of income and stability. Just my opinion. As far as what class to play, go to the class forum here and read through the shaman threads and pally threads. There are also lots of threads asking about which classes are best to play under certain circumstances. Read through those. In vanilla, pallys were a little stronger at healing due to having nice cheap heals. Pallys are more single target and tank healers, while Shamans are better at raid healing. Regardless, this is a 10 year old game, play whatever class fits your playstyle.

As far as loot priority, thats just how things work in MMOs. If a class has more use, or more viable than another they will get the gear. Because they utilize that gear to its full potential. Thats why you hardly see raids taking offspecs like ret to raids, because they have lower than average dps and people rather see damage plate gear in a fury wars hands.

Thats how it works with guilds that are min/maxing and hitting progression hard. Good luck

[Foxhound3857]

Welcome to Nost! On PvE realms you are able to make both horde and alliance. However, i would suggest pick one side and stick with it so you can establish a good source of income and stability. Just my opinion. As far as what class to play, go to the class forum here and read through the shaman threads and pally threads. There are also lots of threads asking about which classes are best to play under certain circumstances. Read through those. In vanilla, pallys were a little stronger at healing due to having nice cheap heals. Pallys are more single target and tank healers, while Shamans are better at raid healing. Regardless, this is a 10 year old game, play whatever class fits your playstyle.

As far as loot priority, thats just how things work in MMOs. If a class has more use, or more viable than another they will get the gear. Because they utilize that gear to its full potential. Thats why you hardly see raids taking offspecs like ret to raids, because they have lower than average dps and people rather see damage plate gear in a fury wars hands.

Thats how it works with guilds that are min/maxing and hitting progression hard. Good luck

Is there a lot of good MP5/Int/+Healing Mail/Plate utilized by Holy Pallies and Resto Shamans at end-game, or are they mixing a lot of leather or cloth into their loadouts too?

As far as loot priority goes, if the Ret Pally sees a drop he can use and rolls higher than the Rogue/Warr, and it goes to the Rogue/Warr just cause that class is better at DPS overall, then why would you even bring that Ret Pally in the first place? That's just torturing the poor guy trying to get better gear, waving the carrot in his face and saying "yeah, you want this tasty DPS plate, you rolled the highest, well nope, goes to the Warrior cause Pallies are inferior, sucks to be you." Nobody should be subjected to that.

[Valandar]

Yea, they both have good item sets for healing in later end game. However to start out youll probably be mixing a lot, because your looking to stack specific stats and not armor. You just pick up the best healing gear you can to get geared.

As far as bringing ret to a raid, reread what I said. Thats exactly why raids hardly take ret pallies or offspecs, they dont want to deal stuff like that. Also if you're in a guild its usually DKP or loot council, not rolls.

[Foxhound3857]

Yea, they both have good item sets for healing in later end game. However to start out youll probably be mixing a lot, because your looking to stack specific stats and not armor. You just pick up the best healing gear you can to get geared.

As far as bringing ret to a raid, reread what I said. Thats exactly why raids hardly take ret pallies or offspecs, they dont want to deal stuff like that. Also if you're in a guild its usually DKP or loot council, not rolls.

Well, thank you for your input, it is appreciated. I was REALLY hoping you'd say "Yeah, but Ret/Prot pallies are highly desirable after in raids if you..." and then you spill the beans on everything. But I guess that's just not the case in Vanilla.

I guess I'll try a Resto Shaman and see where it takes me. I've never played a Warrior before, but if I find a guild eventually and they need a Tank, I'd be willing to make one for an alt and give it a try. Good thing Tauren can cover both classes.

Shame that Ret/Prot pally is so gimped in Vanilla. I don't really want to play a Holy pally for end-game if I do roll a Pally, but if that's the way it has to be then "ce la vie."

[Arick]

I don't know if this server allows you to have characters on both factions so I'm currently deciding what I want to play incase I can't do both, Femtaur Shaman or Human Pally.

You can play both factions on both servers.

[Valandar]

Well, thank you for your input, it is appreciated. I was REALLY hoping you'd say "Yeah, but Ret/Prot pallies are highly desirable after in raids if you..." and then you spill the beans on everything. But I guess that's just not the case in Vanilla.

I guess I'll try a Resto Shaman and see where it takes me. I've never played a Warrior before, but if I find a guild eventually and they need a Tank, I'd be willing to make one for an alt and give it a try. Good thing Tauren can cover both classes.

Shame that Ret/Prot pally is so gimped in Vanilla. I don't really want to play a Holy pally for end-game if I do roll a Pally, but if that's the way it has to be then "ce la vie."

No problem, if theres anything else you need feel free to PM me here or whisper me ingame on Valandar. But yeah i feel you, I've been a pally since late vanilla and I truly love the class. Sucks not being able to tank or DPS as efficiently as others but its how vanilla was. That is for PvE progression though, if you and your whole raid team is geared to the brim you can tank and dps farmed raids for fun. So its not like you can never use ret or prot. They just dont compete with the best of the best.

[Foxhound3857]

I went Paladin instead for my first toon. I read a guide regarding a Resto Shaman and discovered, sadly, that Shaman's cannot drop all four Totems at once in Vanilla, which adds a headaches worth of micromanagement to the job. Also, the list of consumables that are listed as "mandatory" for end-game is pretty ridiculous, you'd have to devote an entire bag or two to consumables. I don't mind doing that for potions, food, and maybe an elixir or scroll of some kind, but 20 different kinds of elixirs and scrolls to consume all at once for one battle? Isn't that a bit overkill on the buffing?

Anyway, yeah, going Paladin, it's what I know best after all. Although I'm not sure I want to go Herbalism/Alchemy as a Human. I'm considering Mining/Enchanting for money making and being able to enchant my own gear (also Enchanted Thorium Bars).

My toons name is Loadsamoney.

[Robotron]

Also, the list of consumables that are listed as "mandatory" for end-game is pretty ridiculous, you'd have to devote an entire bag or two to consumables. I don't mind doing that for potions, food, and maybe an elixir or scroll of some kind, but 20 different kinds of elixirs and scrolls to consume all at once for one battle? Isn't that a bit overkill on the buffing?

Welcome to Vanilla raiding.

[Foxhound3857]

Also, the list of consumables that are listed as "mandatory" for end-game is pretty ridiculous, you'd have to devote an entire bag or two to consumables. I don't mind doing that for potions, food, and maybe an elixir or scroll of some kind, but 20 different kinds of elixirs and scrolls to consume all at once for one battle? Isn't that a bit overkill on the buffing?

Welcome to Vanilla raiding.

Yeah, I guess I can't be surprised since I've never done Vanilla raiding before. WotLK raiding was an entirely different beast I guess.

Also, it's amazing how much activity the newbie area around Stormwind has. I get the feeling herb/mining nodes are gonna be a rare sight.