So you’re thinking of becoming a healer but don’t know what to choose for WOTLK? We’ve covered you with our take on the best healer rankings in WOTLK Classic. All healers in WOTLK serve a specific purpose, and each healer will be uniquely different, allowing for various gameplay throughout the WOTLK Classic. In this Tier list, we will go over the best overall healing, top raid healer, best dungeon/heroic healer, and best PVP healer. As an additional bonus, we will throw in the community’s favorite healers and most fun-to-play healers.
Healing in WOTLK Classic – A Comparison
Healing in previous expansions was a drag for undergeared players and, most importantly, stopped main healers from progressing. In TBC Classic, if you were a healer and particularly undergeared, you’d spend countless hours sitting and eating/drinking mana. If you struggle with mana consumption during raiding, check out our range class guide as we go into depth on mana consumption.
The previous expansions had their charm, however, as the higher mana costs and low mana regeneration rates would require a certain amount of focus between levels of healing. For example, a priest would not use max level flash heal for a simple top-up for the tanks HP; instead, they would use a previous low-level spell that would cost less mana to top off tanks.
WOTLK Classic is different in this respect. Most healers/caster classes gained higher regeneration rates, better scaling, and lower costs per healing spell, meaning you no longer had to split between different spells to heal. Instead, you’d have to know when to use your mana regeneration spells, and the timing of bigger cool-down heals. Healers are excited to embrace this change and will see more play in World of Warcraft. If you are preparing for WOTLK, check out SSEGold for great deals on gear and WotLK gold to get you ready for the next expansion in style.
WOTLK Classic Healing Tier List
Now that we’ve had an analysis of healers from previous expansions and what players can expect in WOTLK Classic, let’s dive into the Tier List, beginning with:
Top Average Healer
This grouping on the tier list is for the most versatile healers, meaning they are the jack-of-all-trades and would be viable in any scenario. All healers in WOTLK are viable in all situations, but these classes will shine through the most.
S-Tier
Discipline Priest
Holy Paladin
A-Tier
Restoration Druid
Holy Priest
B-Tier
Restoration Shaman
Restoration Shaman’s ranking as B is due to the knock they took with the nerfs to their heals and major mana cost spikes. Their setting up of totems and longer casting times per spell means that a low-geared shaman would struggle through early dungeons/heroics and beginner raids. The others are self-explanatory; Discipline Priest ranks as one of the top all-around healers for both PvP and PvE content as their shields prevent damage and can buff DPS during dungeons making strong party members even stronger. Holy Paladin makes it up there as their heals make for some of the strongest low-geared heals and lowest mana costs, making any dungeon, Arena, or raid easy.
Top Ranking Dungeon/Heroic Healer
This selection is dedicated to players who love running dungeons and heroics, and this list will reflect the best healers to go into harder dungeons/heroics. These classes will also be ranked according to difficulty, so if a class is difficult to play and not user-friendly, it will bump to a lower score than its competitors.
S-Tier
Holy Paladin
A-Tier
Holy Priest
Restoration Shaman
B-Tier
Restoration Druid
Discipline Priest
I know a lot of WoW players and fans are angry with this list but let’s explain why we have chosen the list as it is.
Discipline Priest is a more challenging class requiring precision; as a beginner to the class, most players will struggle through dungeons/heroics without proper gear, but on the counterpoint, if played properly, it could easily become an S-Tier class.
As for Restoration Druid being at the bottom of the list, this is simply because a low-geared druid will struggle running dungeons as their heals are HOT’s (Heals over Time), which means if your tank is low geared and taking massive crits, chances are the party will wipe.
Holy Paladin making it to the top of the list is an easy choice as their low-cost mana spells, and great CC (Crowd Control) can make any large pull a piece of cake. Holy Paladin pulls off the highest-based healing in WOTLK, and it is no wonder why they will be taking most S tiers on this list.
Top Ranking PvP Healers
PvP isn’t for everybody, but these healers can expect amazing things. In WOTLK Classic, Arenas, World PvP, and Battlegrounds are extremely fun, so if you want to be a healer for all of these encounters, be sure to pick the following:
S-Tier
Holy Paladin
A-Tier
Discipline Priest
Restoration Druid
B-Tier
Holy Priest
Restoration Shaman
Due to the sheer tankyness of Paladins being in plate armor, they can resist most damage while still being able to produce massive heals. Their protection bubbles and stances allow for freedom of CC and continuous healing. In Arena, Holy Paladin is the strongest class to fight alongside, as their mana costs and tankiness can cause them to be formidable foes and allies.
The B-Tier Holy Priest and Restoration Shaman are due to the lack of instacast abilities for the Shaman and squishiness for the Priest. Many rogues/mages can assassinate Priests far too quickly to be viable in all PvP situations, alongside the Shaman, who gets silenced and has no real way of getting out of CC (Not many prevention tactics).
Top Ranking Raid Healers
Last but not least is the Raid Healers. These classes are best suited for any raids and work well in tandem with each other. So let’s get on with the list:
S-Tier
Holy Priest
Holy Paladin
Discipline Priest
A-Tier
Restoration Shaman
Restoration Druid
As you will notice, we didn’t include a B tier as these classes all serve a specific purpose in raids, making them extremely viable. The Holy Priest/Holy Paladin combo is one of the strongest combos in raiding, allowing for burst healing and controlled mana usage. Discipline Priest is an excellent S-Tier class due to its flexibility in terms of partners in raids, as they will reduce the overall damage taken from the raid from their barriers.
The Restoration Shaman and Restoration druid share the A-Tier class list as Shaman can pull off massive heals with great versatility in raid fights. Their heroism/bloodlust is always needed in raids. As for the Druids, their buffs, along with amazing HoT, make raiding a sinch as all members of the raid can slowly be topped off throughout the fight.
Summary
If you enjoyed this list, check out our other in-depth WOTLK Classic guides to prepare you for this much-anticipated expansion. If you are tired of grinding gold with professions and dungeons, check out SSEGold.com for great boosts/gold and gear deals. As always, happy healing!
