So I’m not one for posting, but I’ve been thinking lately and just wanted others opinions (other feral druids mostly).
I mostly only PvP on my Feral, had to level up a different class for PvE because feral can’t bring to the table what other melee classes bring. Whether that be just pure dps or just utility in general. So I won’t be able to speak much on the PvE side of things.
To the main point:
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I started playing feral due to the 1v1 capability the class had back in cata and especially in MoP, everyone knew feral druid as the class best in 1v1s. Unbeatable. Even though they were never really top damage, they had all they needed as a support class that just put them on top for 1v1. Then monk came and that took place up next to feral in the 1v1 but not quite there. Whereas now… it depends if there is a pillar, LoS capability (had to separate the two because you can cast through trees and such in world PvP), and dampening, just a regular 1v1 in Goldshire or outside the SW gate… well… this leads into next points…
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Over the years, every class in this game keeps getting more and more mobile, which is an indirect nerf to feral. (I know if you’re a good feral you can still get away and still kite, but what I am trying to say it is not what it was. Speaking for the average joe.) Here are just some examples:
-Warriors have 2 charges, leap, intervene, reduced cd on charges.
-Mages have roots, blinks, alter, insta slows
-Rogues have perma slow from poison which they can throw, steps, vanish, sprint
-Monk can have 3 charge rolls, FSK, lust, ports
-Demon Hunters… not gonna say anything due to… well… everyone knows.
Now I’m not saying Feral isn’t still a mobile class, it is, but its mobility gained in comparison to other classes over the years is minimal. Feral druid had always been known for being the most mobile class in game, not anymore, now it’s debatable. Every class (from the change of enchants) runs speed enchants which makes every class quicker. Every class has abilities that are or has a ranged capability now. Almost every class has an escape from roots which is a big portion of feral kiting. Feral has had it’s mobility and survivability nerfed over the years whether it was nerfs to feral druids themselves or indirect nerfs to them from buffs to others, I understand one or the other being nerfed but both is pretty tough. And seeing how the game is now - I don’t expect the mobility to slow down for any classes, so just help a feral out with some survivability, self heals, or even just heals in general.
Feral healing is NOTHING compared to what it once was, not even the self heals but the heals in general.
-If my healer is cc’d in 3’s and my hunter needs some off heals, my 28-32k regrowth on a regular world cast, now has to go through not only the general PvP reduction of healing but dampening AND mortal wounds… My heal already went to 22k just from joining PvP, now that dampening is there its at 16k… add mortal wound… it’s not even worth it.
-When the dps incoming is 45k (overall average) and your regrowth heals are only doing 10-15k heals due to PvP reduction, dampening, and mortal wounds, I mean my health pool is 600k … I can only cast the ability 4 times before going oom, I might get 60k. That’s potentially 10% hp heal if I get the crits.
I mean even self healing… come on… What happened to feral self heals, a fury WARRIOR will out heal a feral druid, heck ARMS will too, it’s bad when warriors are doing just as much if not more than a feral druid… might I add, a HEAVY support class. The nerf on frenzied regen tough, the nerf on regrowths healing output, the nerf on the lotp (leader of the pack) passive healing, taking away yseara’s gift, the things we have to go through for natures vigil. Like… Ferals die in a stun now if they didn’t pre bear it, and they can still die in a stun in bear form. FERALS are now the kill target in arenas over classes that are known for being too squishy (i.e. Mage, hunter, and the trainability of lock or spriest).
Now I would understand the taking of all that away if Ferals were toping the DPS every single game, if the damage feral was doing was just absolutely unhealable, or if the feral was able to heal more than an actual healer (free casting). The lack of the ability for the feral to off heal and self heal, or just live took away so much from the class. The class was one of the best support classes, does a bit of it all. Now feral is strictly dps, and not even high dps at that. By the nerfing of the self healing and off healing it’s almost not feasible for feral to run double dps in 2s at a decent rating due to all the nerfs the class has received.
Bring back Feral. Make the utility the class has worth it to play with, or bring into the raid group, or the rbg, or make people want to run a comp in arenas with a feral. The way the class is now it’s just a bummy version of a ret or rogue. Now I personally still love the class and the potential but I always will just due to the idea of it but… there’s some work that needs to be done, make natures vigil baseline on a bit of a shorter cd - buff lotp or just bring back yseras gift - increase the healing of regrowth - increase the survivability.
There’s so many things that could be brought back or changed now just need someone to do it.
Now I know people now are still like “dang, if the feral is good it’s gonna be scary”. But the thing is - war, dh, ret, rogues, other classes that can one shot, maintain their dps, and have a BUNCH of utility… Those are classes that are a lot easier to be good at, heck, be bad at and still do insane damage. Whereas if you’re bad at feral… well… it’s a lot more punishing.