I have advanced arthritis in both of my hands and am coming back to game for DF. I only solo (WQ’s, Questlines, open world, mount farm etc), almost never group, PVP, raid or Mythic plus. I have to instalog without warning throughout the day so just am not a good group partner.
I want to play a DPS spec that allows me to solo well, but also doesn’t require either a ton of APM or a whole bunch of hotkeys past the base rotation, and has some self healing for soloing. So hopefully I can get a few good answers here on a couple specs that would fit my playstyle.
I know it is a weird question, hopefully I don’t get too flamed on these scary forums…and again, no DH or Hunter please.
You could try a Frost DK. You can do pretty well with the base rotation (especially if you spec Obliteration). Death Strike gives you a decent self heal without a CD; its only restricted by RP (except when you have a Dark Succor proc that makes it free). There are also some good CDs that can make a pretty big difference if timed right (eg. AMS to prevent dot applications, IBF to get out of stuns).
Plus, if you want to solo some tougher things (eg. big rares) Blood is good for that. For high-level play (eg. M+, Mythic raiding) it can get messy but for the content you’re interested its pretty straight forward.
I like destruction warlock. They have a tanky pet and as casters they don’t have so many APM. They have a lot of fancy spells, but I find myself using only a few on a regular basis.
They can steal hp from mobs and funnel it to their pet and use healthstones.
Just to be upfront, I’m by no means a good warlock, but I do OK on solo content and quests.
Sounds like you want to play a druid / monk or paladin, all of which can play the three roles, but are very survivable and all have self healing - the druid also has stealth and if you go Night Elf, you benefit with Shadowmeld, a get-out-of-combat instantly button!
Tho’ i see that you’ve posted on a Horde toon, so perhaps not, but i figured i’d throw that option in there as some people play both factions!
Check out the class discords or icy-veins!
Other than that, my heart goes out to you for having arthritis in both hands, but have you considered goldmaking as a playstyle? Especially with the emphasis on crafting and professions in Dragonflight, this may benefit you greatly, as you can then go at your own pace!
Mage or Warlock is a good option. If your hands aren’t that steady a melee class can be challenging. Mage or Warlock don’t generally need to move as much, and you can use your keyboard a little more. Classes like Rogue, Feral Druids, and tanks can be a lot more of a challenge.
For the same reasons, healers might be a better option for you.
That actually sounds fun (and thanks for the sympathy, it does suck) - I am going to read all your links, really appreciate you taking the time. That might be a fun alternative.
There’s more to keep track of and micromanage from various dot applications and pet management. Frost is more straight-forward, in my opinion.
Side note: It might be worth looking into playing with a controller if you haven’t tried it. I haven’t done it myself but I’ve heard that a lot of people with things like arthritis or wrist issues find it a lot less taxing than using a keyboard/mouse.
While Fury Warrior is pretty keyboard smash heavy, you could always try Arms Warrior. It’s much slower paced relying more on heavy hits with long CDs and Rage management.
They just added an option where you can hold down a key instead of continually pressing it. So if Frostbolt is set to 1, you can just hold down the 1 key and it’ll keep casting.
I’m not sure if that would help, but I thought I’d throw that out there.
Retribution Paladin would work fine. You only need use the mouse to click 5 or so skills max as normal rotation. You get fantastic healing of 3 separate skills and 3 damage litigation skills. In questing pve, you are basically in god mode.
Another good possibility is Destruction Warlock. Use the voidwalker/voidlord to tank. You only need 4 skills: immoliate, conflagrate, chaos bolt, perhaps incinerate. Use drain life if needed.
I would number#1 recommend Hunter, I know you do not want that (or are tired of it). Literaly just 3 or 4 skills needed. Pets tank.
Create temporary class test characters and use the training dummies for your rotation/damage testing. Download Details Damage Meter to see the results. I do this all the time for testing a range of different classes/specs.
Tanking classes are terrific - so, BM hunter (and pet) or Destruction (or even Demo) Warlock so that the pet keeps the aggro and you then only need to hit a few spell buttons while it keeps the enemy at bay.
I vote Balance Druid. Ranged tends to be easier on the hands. Balance can have good self heals with the right talent choices, and good mitigation with Moonkin form. Instant flight is always nice, too.
I have difficulty with arthritis as well, and have found enhancement shaman to be fairly good. They have a an elemental on a 5-minute timer that can handle most of the quest bosses (the ones that recommend 3 people) and ghost wolves are nice. Plus healing.