Attack Priority List: A To Do List

A priority list means that you will always choose to attack with whatever is highest on the priority list as long as the cooldown is up.  If you have the choice between two or more spells, refer to the list and choose whatever is higher up on the list.

So what is this list?

The Attack Priority List

• MW5 LB
  
• Stormstrike
  
• Earth Shock
  
• Lava Lash
  
• Totem Refresh
  
• Shield Refresh
  

We talked ad nauseam about MW5 LB’s here and how Maelstrom Weapon works.  You noticed how MW5 LB’s are the highest on the priority list?  The reason is because we need to keep those Maelstrom Weapon stacks going smoothly and consistently.  Let’s say you have five stacks and DON’T let that MW5 LB loose.  You stormstrike, then earth shock, then lava lash following the list.  During that whole rotation you could have had ANOTHER 5 Maelstrom weapon stacks allowing you to let loose yet another Lightning bolt.  But you didn’t.  Because you still have 5 stacks that you haven’t let loose yet.  Always always always always let loose the lightning bolt when you have 5 stacks.

The Stormstrike seems somewhat obvious.  With the Stormstrike glyph it’ll beef up several of your attacks: Static Shock, Earth Shock and MW5 LB’s. You need that debuff to be on the boss.  The stormstrike debuff increases all nature damage that you put out so it needs to be up 100% of the time and it’s possible to keep that debuff on the boss 100% of the time.    You can do it, so do it.

Earth Shock is our highest damage shock.  I know that it used to be that flame shock with its initial damage and full dot duration was the highest damage, but with our Stormstrike glyph and the debuff being for the enhancement shaman only, Earth Shock totally blows flame shock out of the water.  The only time I use flame shock is in PVP when I’m trying to keep a stealthed person unstealthed.  Sometimes I’ll use it to proc Lava Burst on mobs where Melee Pif would die and Caster Pif has to come to the rescue.  Moral of the story?  Use Earth Shock, and love it.

I don’t know how to put this, Lava lash stinks.  It is so annoyingly bad and it’s only on the list because it’s just another instant attack we can fit into the rotation.  Lava Lash does about 3-4% of my total damage on boss fights.  Lava lash does do more damage with flametongue imbued on your OH weapon and I always run with the Flametongue weapon imbue.  Lava lash will do better damage with a slower OH because it’s based on your weapon’s damage (not it’s dps), but like I said, lava lash is such a bad attack that you don’t want to waste itemization options on your lava lash.  Focus on your other attacks.

This attack is exactly the reason why we have an attack priority list (other than MW5 LB’s being completely random in timing).  Let’s say two minutes into a boss fight and you’re about to lava lash but notice your earth shock cd is available.  You earth shock because it’s higher on the list.  Then MW5 LB is ready so you let that loose.  By that time you’re stormstrike is up so you stormstrike,  THEN you lava lash.  All those things were higher on the attack priority list so they went before lava lash.

After that notice I put down totem and lightning shield refreshes.  To be honest, totem refreshes should be first.  A loss of your totems in the fight is a major loss of dps not only to other classes but to yourself as well.  Now I put it there on the list because if you are watching your cooldowns you can keep up your totems without interrupting your attack priority list.  Stormstrike is an 8 second cd, Earth shock is a 6 second cd, Lava lash is also a 6 second cd. After going through those three attacks you may have one or two GCD’s (global cooldowns = 1.5 seconds for us shaman) free while your just auto attacking.  Use them.  Use them to refresh your totems and lightning shield.  Just make sure you aren’t interrupting your attacks. 

And that, my sexy enhancement shaman brothers and sisters, is our attack priority list.