Balance Druid
vs
Elemental Shaman
Debating whether to play a Elemental Shaman or Balance Druid? Knowing which currently performs better DPS in PvE might help make a decision.
This page analyzes multiple simulations for both Elemental Shamans and Balance Druids using profiles and settings intended to achieve their maximum DPS. Multiple sim environments are used to test how they perform in various conditions. Is one the AoE king? Does one scale better with gear upgrades? Is one more bursty, and more reliant on big cooldowns? Below analyzes the data to find the strengths of each.
Simulation results were created with SimulationCraft
Using game data from Patch 10.2.7 • WoW Dragonflight •
- Balance Druid
Best boss DPS (in perfect settings)
Balance Druid achieved 1.69% more maximum boss DPS than Elemental Shaman when there was no movement or lag.
Best boss DPS (in realistic settings)
Balance Druid achieved 2.65% more maximum boss DPS than Elemental Shaman when dealing with occasional movement, lag and crowd-control.
Least affected by movement (single-target)
Balance Druid’s single-target DPS was -8.62% less affected by increased movement compared to Elemental Shamans.
Best gear scaling
Balance Druid scaled better with increased item-levels, single-target DPS benefited 3.68% more from 446 ilvl to 488 compared to Elemental Shamans.
Simplest Gameplay
Balance Druid has fewer damaging abilities which could indicate a simpler rotation.
Elemental ShamanBest AoE DPS (in perfect settings)
Elemental Shaman achieved 12.32% more AoE DPS than Balance Druid when there was no movement or lag.
DPS less dependant on big cooldowns
Elemental Shaman’s DPS is less bursty, meaning it had more consistent damage. With 3.16% less difference in lowest and peak DPS during a fight when compared to Balance Druids.
While the above highlights the DPS advantages between Balance Druid and Elemental Shamans, the DPS potential should not be the only factor in your decision. Ultimately, you should also consider the playstyle that you enjoy most while crushing it in Mythics+ and Raids!
Resources
More Spec Comparisons