Restoration Shaman (“Resto Shaman”) is one of the most sought-after specs in Phase 6. In Naxxramas and large-scale events with constant raid-wide damage, Chain Heal shines, while Shaman totems bring unique group utility no other class can replace. On the PvP side, Purge, Grounding Totem, Tremor Totem, and Nature’s Swiftness give powerful play-making tools. If your guild is building out a healing roster for Phase 6, Resto Shaman is a first-pick, and proper preparation with consumables and raid supplies is equally important—many players choose to buy WoW Anniversary gold to speed up this progression.
Why Restoration Shaman Is In Such High Demand in Phase 6
Raid Healing: Chain Heal delivers unmatched raid-wide throughput in stacked groups, making Shamans essential for Naxxramas.
Efficiency: Down-ranked Chain Heal offers top-tier healing per mana, perfect for long encounters.
Cooldowns: Mana Tide restores healer mana, while Reincarnation provides raid wipesaves.
PvP Utility: Purge, Grounding, Tremor, and Nature’s Swiftness make Shamans highly disruptive and clutch in PvP.
Naxxramas (Phase 6) BiS Gear
Tier 3 – Earthshatter is the centerpiece: excellent +healing, regen, and set bonuses, making it the default end-game choice for most slots. Supplement with strong Naxx off-pieces, weapons, trinkets, and rings. Representative BiS resources:
Representative Phase 6 (Naxx) BiS highlights for Resto Shaman (exact choices can flex by raid needs and what drops):
Head: Earthshatter Headpiece (T3)
Neck: Choker of the Fire Lord (pre-Naxx) or Naxx options as available
Shoulders: Earthshatter Spaulders (T3)
Back: Cloak of Suturing (Loatheb)
Chest: Earthshatter Tunic (T3)
Wrists: Earthshatter Wristguards (T3) or high-healing Naxx bracers
Hands: Earthshatter Handguards (T3)
Waist: Earthshatter Girdle (T3)
Legs: Earthshatter Legguards (T3)
Feet: Earthshatter Boots (T3)
Rings: Band of Reanimation / Ring of the Earthshatter (T3 ring) when available
Trinkets: Eye of the Dead (Naxx), Scarab Brooch (AQ), with situational swaps
Weapon: Naxx healing mace (e.g., Hammer of the Twisting Nether) + Keliseth’s style shields or equivalent Naxx shields (for +healing/regen)
Idol/Relic: Totem of Life/Flowing Water equivalents, depending on patch availability
(Use the linked BiS lists to track your realm’s exact loot tables and patch rules.)
Pre-Raid & AQ Catch-ups: If you’re late gearing up, AQ40 and even AQ20 pieces (plus ZG enchants) remain strong stepping-stones into Naxx. The BiS compendia above include progressive paths.
PvE (Raid & Dungeons)
Talent Builds (Classic-Style Resto)
A common Naxx healing setup emphasizes Nature’s Swiftness, Improved Chain Heal, Tidal Mastery, Purification, and survivability points such as Ancestral Healing. Flex into Totemic Mastery/Improved Reincarnation depending on assignment, death-run risk, and how many Shamans your raid fields.
Spell Priorities & Assignments
Default Spam: Chain Heal (appropriate rank) on stacked groups. Target an injured melee or a tank-adjacent player to maximize bounces.
Single-Target Spot Healing: Lesser Healing Wave for quick top-offs, Healing Wave (with Nature’s Swiftness for emergencies).
Totem Kit (baseline):
Tranquil Air (caster groups) or Windfury/Grace of Air/Strength of Earth (melee)
Healing Stream (or Mana Spring when mana-limited)
Tremor pre-fear fights; Grounding on caster-heavy encounters
Poison/Disease Cleansing situationally
Proper party-by-party totem coverage is a big part of why raids stack Shamans.
Mana & Efficiency Fundamentals
Down-rank Chain Heal for efficiency; only rank up when incoming damage warrants it.
Drop Mana Tide early enough to tick through its full duration and benefit fellow healers. Chain your Tides across multiple Shamans.
Consumables & enchants matter (see Enchants & Consumables below).
Positioning & Macro Tips
Stand where Chain Heal bounces will capture the most targets (melee, hunter melee stack on some fights, or ranged clumps if mechanics force stack points).
Simple stopcasting/Rank-swap macros help you weave efficient ranks and emergency casts. (General PvP/PvE Shaman macro guidance exists across Classic resources.)
Enchants & Consumables (PvE)
Core Consumables for Long Naxx Fights Include:
Flask/Elixir: Greater Arcane Elixir or Elixir of Healing Power (if flasking, Distilled Wisdom for max mana on longer encounters)
Potions: Major Mana Potion, Demonic/Dark Runes, Mageblood Potion, Limited Invulnerability Potion (emergency), Free Action Potion (mechanic-specific)
Food: Nightfin Soup (mana regen), or well-fed healing options where available
Oils/Stones: Brilliant Mana Oil on weapon for extra regen
Key Enchants:
Head/Legs: ZG / AQ healing arcanums
Shoulders: Zandalar Signet enchant (ZG)
Cloak: Subtlety (threat), or Healing Power, where applicable
Chest: +Mana or +All Stats
Bracers: +Healing
Gloves: +Healing
Boots: Minor Speed or Stamina
PvP (BGs, World PvP)
Playstyle Pillars
Purge kills enemy momentum by stripping crucial buffs (Power Word: Shield, Ice Barrier, HoTs, etc.).
Grounding Totem can absorb key nukes or crowd-control if timed well.
Tremor Totem enables your team to push through fear comps.
Earth Shock interrupts; Frost Shock snares.
Nature’s Swiftness + Healing Wave is your panic button; Ghost Wolf (with Improved Ghost Wolf if specced) gives mobility when mounted is not possible.
Cleansing (Poison/Disease) keeps teammates functional.
Stat/Gear Priorities in PvP
Stamina + Resilience (if available on your realm rule-set) / Survivability > +Healing > MP5/Intellect. In pure Classic rule-sets (no resilience), stack Stamina, +Healing, and Intellect/MP5.
Trinkets with on-use saves or mana returns are premium; continue to carry Free Action Potion, Limited Invulnerability Potion, and Restorative Potion.
Totem Discipline
Pre-drop Grounding when expecting sheep/poly/fear;
Layer Tremor on fear setups;
Keep Poison Cleansing down vs rogues/hunters;
Stoneclaw for peel;
Earthbind to kite. (Many PvP guides and community resources reiterate the timing nuances.)
Gold-making for Restoration Shaman (Phase 6)
Resto doesn’t top solo-farm charts, but several methods fit the toolkit and phase economy:
Healer-for-hire Dungeons
Fast queues and guaranteed spots. Chain farm Scholomance/Stratholme/BRD or AQ20/ZG pugs for raw WoW Classic Fresh gold, BOEs, and mats. Healers are rarely idle in Phase 6 markets.
Professions
Herbalism + Alchemy will supply high-demand raid consumables (Free Action, Greater Frost/Shadow Protection, Mana Pots).
Enchanting pairs well with dungeon spam (shard your group’s DE-ables for steady income).
Event-driven farming
Scourge Invasion (pre-Naxx launch) yields Necrotic Runes and limited-time gear/consumables—solid resale opportunities depending on your realm’s economy.
AH Flips & Prep
Stock Nightfin, Dem. Runes, Mongoose/GM agility mats, resistance pot mats, etc., ahead of progression race weeks.
Tip: If you want to farm solo as a Shaman, a light Elemental off-spec with spellpower greens can dramatically speed open-world gold/hour compared with staying pure Resto.
Leveling to 60 (and beyond) efficiently as a future Resto
Spec path: Most players level Enhancement (2H or DW) or Elemental for faster kills, then respec to Resto for raids. Enhancement 1–40 with Windfury and slow 2H weapons is a tried-and-true route; Elemental becomes smoother once you have enough spell power/mana sustain.
Milestone Abilities & Quests
Ghost Wolf (20) speeds questing.
Totem quests (Earth/Fire/Water/Air) unlock key tools; do not skip Water Totem—mana tricks are valuable while leveling.
Weapon Imbues: Rockbiter early, Windfury once you get a slow mainhand; Flametongue has niche use for fast off-hands.
Combat Loop Basics (Enhancement Leveling)
Pull with Lightning Bolt, Earth Shock to finish casts, Stormstrike (if available), then auto with Windfury procs. Earthbind to kite/tether packs; Stoneclaw for peel when needed.
Mana & Downtime
Carry water, use Bandages, and rotate between Healing Wave ranks and Stoneclaw/ Earthbind to minimize downtime. For those who prefer to skip some of the grind, many players also look for a professional WoW Classic Anniversary boost to reach max level faster.
Advanced Raid Tips for Resto Shamans
Plan Your Totem Grids
Coordinate with other Shamans so each 5-man subgroup always has the right Windfury/Grace/Strength/Tremor/Mana/Healing coverage. This planning is part of why raids “stack” Shamans.
Stagger Mana Tide Totems
Communicate cooldown order so Healer Party gets continuous regen windows across the fight.
Down-Rank Smartly
Maintain high effective HPS/HPM by weaving lower ranks of Chain Heal and LHW except during burst phases.
Pre-Drop Grounding/Tremor
On encounters with heavy fears or incoming nukes, placing these totems in advance can prevent raid-wide wipes.
Carry Alternatives
Swap Healing Stream ↔ Mana Spring and resist totems as mechanics demand; build a small totem-swap macro bar.
Quick Checklist (PvE)
Spec: Resto with NS, Improved Chain Heal, Purification.
Spam: Chain Heal (ranked to need); LHW/HW for spot and emergencies.
Totems: Windfury/Grace/Strength + Healing/Mana + Tremor/Grounding + situational cleanses.
BiS path: Push Earthshatter (T3) pieces and Naxx off-pieces; keep AQ trinkets like Scarab Brooch as swaps.
Consumables/enchants: Flask or double-elixir sets, Major Mana/Demonic/Dark Runes, Nightfin Soup, Brilliant Mana Oil; healing enchants everywhere.
Quick Checklist (PvP)
Openers: Purge → pressure → Grounding/Tremor pre-emptively; NS+HW for clutch saves.
Totems by matchup:
vs. Mages/Locks: Grounding, Poison Cleansing (vs. hunters), Tremor vs. fears
vs. Rogues/Warriors: Stoneclaw peel, Earthbind kite, Frost Shock snare
Stats: Stamina/Survivability first, then +Healing and mana sustain; carry FAP/LIP/Restoratives.
Final Thoughts
Resto Shaman is a raid cornerstone in Phase 6 and a PvP playmaker with unmatched utility. If your goal is to secure a stable raid spot, contribute massive raid-wide healing, and elevate your team with totem coverage and mana tools, Restoration is arguably the best way to play Shaman in the Naxxramas era. Lean into Chain Heal efficiency, coordinate totems, and gear toward T3 Earthshatter plus top Naxx pieces—and you’ll understand exactly why “Resto Shams are in highest demand” this phase. And if you want to add more fun outside the game, feel free to join our Discord Mini Game Channel, where plenty of exciting prizes are waiting for you.