Elemental: Make Open World/Outdoor Content Easier?

Classes Shaman
1

I leveled this alt as Enhancement, which seems to be signifcantly easier in open world/outdoor content, and have reached 595 ilvl (just started this past week). Switching to Elemental, because it feels great to play in group content, but in solo content, I’m struggling. Constantly having to kite, root, and wait on cooldowns hasn’t been very fun, even at ilvl595 and the rest of the content is entry level 80 - I can’t even imagine Delves.

But I’m wondering if I’m missing something. Are there talents I should be prioritizing to make open world/solo content easier? I can’t help but feel if there was a way to enable a permenant Earth Elemental as a pet with a small cost wouldn’t be a bad thing and would greatly benefit Elemental in situations like this.

But I still can’t help but feel like I’m missing something?

3

I haven’t gone elemental in world content only in some time walking dungeon so. I will have to try depending on your spec it seems you should do fine with minimal to zero kiting needed. But I haven’t tried it. Do not forget you have a earth ele for tank if needed.

4

What hero talents are you running? The theory at the expansion start was “Go stormkeeper and nuke” but it became more even somewhere along the line.

Personally i prefer the meatball launcher. But im not really having to kite.

Need more info to help.

5

I mean, that’s casters in a nut shell.

Way back when, Blizz decided that casters would take more damage, and have long cast times at the benefit of dealing more damage. So you’d have to stay at range, but you could kill things before they got to you.

Then the melee’s complained and everything got evened out in terms of damage, but the casters still take more damage, have less healing and have to kite in order to not get push back on their casts ect…

There is 100% a caster tax compared to melee who are generally tougher and can deal their damage on the go. Melee some times have to move for mechanics that casters don’t, but it’s generally only for a second then they move back in, where when a caster has to move they generally have to rely on instant casts that hit like wet noodles. Melee also deal their damage up front of the GCD rather than on the back end of a cast. Which means more damage gets out faster with melee than with casters. (Since you don’t have to wait on the next cast to deal the damage. Plus travel time of the spell if there is one.)

Casters in solo content have always had a harder time than melee. That’s just how this game works. If you’re in love with Ele, you’ll make it work. Otherwise there’s another spec just to the right that’ll make life significantly easier for you.

As for some advice, throw down your eathbind totem, start by popping Stormkeeper then follow up with a Lavaburst and immediately apply flameshock before the lavaburst gets to the target so you get that automatic crit. Then nuke them with your Lightning bolt overflows.

At this point in the patch, there really shouldn’t be any open world content that should be giving you any problems. If you’re trying to solo world bosses, or delves as a caster, than… Well… Nobody’s going to be able to help you there. Gotta find a tank.