The biggest problem for Elemental in M+ and VOI is its long ramp-up time for AoE, it’s incapability of doing solid ST and AoE in the same talent specc and its low survivability.
Concrete suggestions for Blizzard to consider 10.0.5 / 10.1 to give Elemental some love:
1. Make Earthquake deal damage quicker - increased burst;
Currently Earthquake is 7 ticks for 7 seconds; change either to 7 ticks over 3-4 seconds or 3 ticks for 3 seconds. This way, Earthquake is slightly burstier and more viable when Tank kites mobs in M+ or raid encounters where adds move a lot.
2. Increase Earthquake AoE ;
A simple suggestion to increase the area of Earthquake so it hits more mobs and doesn’t make Ellys loose all their DPS when tank kites.
3. Elemental needs a quick Flameshock spreader like Enha Lava Lash!;
Liquid Magma Totem is the closest thing but has 1 min cooldown. The ramp-up time for Ele AoE is too long. Enhancement can Primordial Wave + LL + Lightning Bolt for 300k+ burst AoE. Why not Elemental?
4. Add Electrified Shocks as baseline ability;
Another suggestion to give the high DPS single Fire/Ice Fury build more light AoE cleave - would help a lot on fights like Broodlord and Dathea adds.
5. Find another way to give Elemental burst-AoE;
And not 5-10 second ramp up time AoE. Elemental fire build AoE is something like this 0. Stormkeeper
- Liquid Magma
- Primordial Wave
- Lava Burst
- EarthQuake
- CL
- EarthQuake x2
- CL
- EarthQuake x2
This deals ENORMOUS damage if, and only if, mobs stay alive and stationary during the rotation. In 90% of the cases, DHs and WW monks have already cleaved down all the mobs before half of this rotation is complted.
6. Give Sundering to Elemental;
Edited of course to give range. Please Blizzard, I just want this quick burst-AoE when adds pop up and raidleader screams to kill adds quickly. Please, just that 1 button “BOOM” for spiders in Shadowmoon Burial Grounds, that 1 button big AoE that virtually all speccs have except like Elly.
7. Elemental needs survivability!;
Give insta-heal similar to 5-stack maelstrom weapon Enhancement Healing Surge. Give another defensive to Astral Shift. Elemental is so squishy it’s brutal. I would say that the squishiness of Elemental is the main reason I decided to main Enhancement, I just CBA to always die in M+ from slightest mistake while almost every other class (Warlock, WW, Pala, etc.) have significant abilities to heal themselves. As Enha, I can always Primordial Wave + Healing Surge back to almost full. As Ele, bye bye.
Feedback on Elemental - late end HOV HC and high-key M+;
I really want to play Elemental. I’ve tried my best to go Elemental despite all odds. But like so many other shamans (except Petko), I now have switched to Enhancement. Should it be like this?
Elemental is a very good example of a specc that is theoretically extremely good. It looks good in sims. I hit harder on target dummys than with Enhancement. I sim higher than with Enhancement. That’s theory. In the “real” world of VOI and M+, it doesn’t work like that.
- Heavy movement fights
- Adds that get killed in 1-2 seconds by DHs and WW monks / Fury Warrs
- Tank kiting big packs (e.g. Nokhud Offensive) making Earthquake do only 30-40% of its damage
- Cooldown-reliant AoE
- Problems with ST-only or AoE-only talent builds; inability to do ST + Light Cleave like e.g. Enhancement Elementalist
- Elemental is probably among the squishiest classes together with Devastation
Hope this helps.