Druid Leveling Guide 70 to 80 for WotLK Classic

The following WotLK Druid leveling guide is a beginner-friendly guide for players to follow, highlighting and explaining how to level a Druid from level 70 all the way to 80 in WotLK Classic.

This guide will provide a detailed overview of choices, decisions, and recommendations about the leveling journey to improve the experience for newcomers to the game or returning players who would like some leveling assistance. Leveling in World of Warcraft has changed drastically in recent and live iterations, so it is important to read up-to-date guides like this one.

The Druid is one of playable classes in the game that is able to play as each of the three roles – damage, healer and tank – which gives the class a lot of flexibility in how players choose to level it up. This is due to it being able to perform the healer and tank roles which are the most in-demand roles when it comes to dungeons.

Especially at the lower level dungeons, players are able to quickly find dungeon groups which makes dungeon spamming an often-times reliable and efficient method of gaining experience quickly. As opposed to more traditional routes of experience gain and general leveling such as questing throughout Azeroth. This makes Druids one of the most versatile classes to play in the game, even when leveling, performing whichever role is necessary in both solo and group content.

Top 5 Tips for Leveling a Druid 70 to 80

1 - Choose the right Spec for Leveling

When leveling your druid from 70 to 80, it's important to choose the right specialization (spec) that suits your playstyle and leveling goals. Each spec offers unique abilities and playstyles, so it's important to consider what you enjoy and what will help you level efficiently. For example, if you prefer a more tanky playstyle, you might want to choose the Guardian spec. If you prefer dealing high damage, the Feral spec might be the right choice for you. Take some time to research and experiment with different specs to find the one that suits you best for leveling your druid.

2 - Utilize your Druid's versatile abilities

One of the greatest advantages of playing a druid is their versatility. They have the ability to switch between different forms, each with its own unique set of abilities. Take advantage of this versatility while leveling your druid from 70 to 80. For example, in bear form, you can tank multiple enemies at once, making it easier to complete quests and take on tougher enemies. In cat form, you can deal high damage and quickly dispatch enemies. Additionally, druids have access to healing spells in their restoration spec, allowing them to heal themselves and their allies during challenging encounters. By utilizing your druid's versatile abilities, you can adapt to different situations and level up more efficiently.

3 - Take advantage of rested experience

Rested experience is a bonus that accumulates when your character is logged out in an inn or a major city. It provides a 200% experience boost for a certain amount of time, depending on how long you were logged out. This is a valuable resource that can greatly speed up your leveling process. Before logging out, make sure to find an inn or a major city and rest your character there. When you log back in, you'll see a "rested" icon on your character's portrait, indicating that you're receiving the bonus experience. Take advantage of this rested experience by focusing on leveling during this time. Complete quests, defeat enemies, and explore the world to make the most of this valuable boost.

4 - Complete Quests efficiently

One of the most efficient ways to level your druid from 70-80 is by completing quests. Quests not only provide valuable experience points, but they also often reward you with useful gear and items. To complete quests efficiently, it's important to prioritize them based on their level and proximity to each other. Look for quests that are in the same area or require you to defeat similar enemies, as this will allow you to complete multiple quests at once. Additionally, make sure to read the quest objectives carefully and plan your route accordingly. By efficiently completing quests, you'll be able to level up your druid quickly and effectively.

5 - Utilize Dungeon runs for extra experience

In addition to completing quests, another great way to level your druid from 70-80 is by running dungeons. Dungeons not only provide a fun and challenging experience, but they also offer a significant amount of experience points. Make sure to queue up for dungeons that are appropriate for your level range and try to complete them as efficiently as possible. Communicate with your group members and work together to clear the dungeon quickly. Additionally, don't forget to complete any dungeon quests that are available, as they often provide extra experience and rewards. By incorporating dungeon runs into your leveling strategy, you'll be able to gain valuable experience points and level up your druid even faster.

Best Druid Leveling Spec

As outlined above, Druids can perform each of the three in-game roles – damage by playing as a Feral or Balance Druid, healer by playing as a Restoration Druid, and tank also by playing as the Feral spec but by attuning one’s talent and gear choices to match defensive decisions, also referred to as Guardian Druids.

For new players to the game, it is advised to stick to the easier role out of the three which is the damage role. This can be done by playing either a Balance Druid, which is a ranged DPS caster class derived from the Druids astral abilities, or the Feral Druid, which is a melee DPS class derived from the Cat Form and Cat Form-only abilities of the Druid class. Both specializations, or specs, are great entry points into learning and playing as a Druid – and a player can make the decision if they wish to be a melee DPS or ranged DPS themselves. However, there are certain differences in the playstyles with regards to leveling which should be considered when selecting a spec to play.

For Balance Druids:

• Balance Druids excel at remaining at distance from enemy mobs and beasts, pulling them from a distance and dealing as much damage as possible before being dealt much if any at all return damage – and can often include downtime as the Balance Druid regenerates their lost mana by drinking consumables in between fights.
• At early levels, when you still have not geared up effectively or have access to certain abilities or talent choices, the Balance Druid class can be a fairly slow leveling experience and play-style. This can pickup once the Starfall ability is obtained in which Balance Druids can comfortably pull multiple masses of enemies at once and are able to comfortably and consistently clear groups of enemies as such, making it an efficient class to level at around level 30.

For Feral Druids:

• Feral Druids on the other hand do not rely on mana consumption as much as it is not used when in Cat Form, which is the form you will be in most of the time as most major Feral abilities are performed when in cat form. And so have in theory, next to no downtime as mana is regenerated when in Cat Form.
• Feral Druids excel at quickly bursting down individual enemies and single targets, and paired with the lack of downtime thanks to less reliance on mana as opposed to a Balance Druid. Feral Druids initially can be a faster option to level as until the Balance Druid gains the option to AoE enemies.
• One of the benefits of a Feral Druid spec choice however, is that if you do play as a Feral you can still tank some-what in dungeons provided you have a set of tank gear in your inventory. And especially at low levels, as differences between tank and damage Feral Druids at low level dungeons is virtually indistinguishable – so this can be beneficial as you have the option to tank should you ever need to.

It is generally discouraged for new players to play anything other than a damage spec when leveling their first character, as unlike later iterations and expansions to the game. In Wrath of the Lich King there is no dual specialization or ability to switch specialization such as what is implemented in live World of Warcraft. And as such, talent tree and spec choices and decisions are permanent unless one is able to cough up a hefty gold fee to certain in-game NPCs who will reset your talent tree for you. As a new player, this is not something you want to be doing often as you should preserve your gold for more important purchases.

However, experienced and returning players to the game may choose to build and level as a tank-focused Feral Druid or a Restoration Druid and may benefit off-of dungeon spamming to acquire experience points and levels. As opposed to relying on quests for the main chunk of XP required to reach max level.

It is not impossible to quest as a healer or tank, since the line between damage and tank Feral is so blurry anyway in early levels of the game in WotLK. But for beginner players, being a damage-focused spec is a much easier and simpler decision that in certain scenarios might not be the most efficient. However, it provides the most versatile and consistent leveling experience where one only has to focus on learning one aspect of the game – dealing damage.

Dungeon vs Questing

When it comes to dungeons as a Druid, it is easy to find a place in a group as Druid’s are versatile classes that can excel at any of the three respective roles. Unlike in the classic era of the game, tanking-focused Feral Druids are also reliable and viable options for a tank that are not discriminated against as they were in classic. As such, dungeon spamming and cleaving as a Druid is a reliable and good method of leveling and acquiring experience. It has two main advantages as opposed to other leveling methods such as questing:

• When on a PvP realm, you avoid being targeted by the enemy faction in ganks and the like.
• You negate the competition for mobs and targets when in questing zones – although as a Druid you have access to Moonfire which is an instant cast damage ability which can come in very hand to tag mobs and targets. Even then, fighting with other players for respawns and such can be an annoying and painstaking process, especially on high population realms.
• You do not have to know about optimum quest routes or zone knowledge unlike if you were reliant on quests for your experience.

As such, dungeons can be a great way for Druids to level up fast and painlessly in Wrath of the Lich King Classic. Although it can also be a particularly repetitive process and for new players, it is unrecommended as you miss out on the game’s world, lore, and beauty by confining yourself to the dungeons.

As a Druid, questing is also not an awful experience – if you have chosen a damage specialization that is - due to their versatility, high sustainability, and decent damage output. Furthermore, the ability to go stealth when in Cat Form can come in handy in certain scenarios, such as sneaking through large groups of mobs to skip engaging in combat with mobs that are unnecessary. And also for hiding and sneaking past enemy players if you are on a PvP realm.

Even if you choose to go a questing-focused leveling route, it is still advised that you complete the most relevant dungeon for their level at least once when it becomes available. As each dungeon itself has dungeon-specific quests that often reward good loot and equipment, as well as decent amounts of experiences that oftentimes are towards the upper-spectrum of quest experience for the relevant level.

Druid Professions

Learning professions early on as a Druid is often a great way to begin profession progression whilst leveling, which will avoid extra work in doing so when you reach max level. And can also be a good way for players to accumulate an extra income of gold as they level that again can be useful at max level.

Gathering professions are always recommended no matter the class, and these can often be learnt from trainers in the first major hub a player encounters in their starter zone. Such as Elwynn Forest’s Goldshire for the human starter race, or these can also be picked up from capital cities for your faction.

As a Druid, you gain the ability to skin beasts when in Cat Form, and so skinning is oftentimes a good gathering profession to take for a Feral Druid as it is something that can be done quickly after each beast you kill. Skinning is also a good source of income and the materials gained can be sold to other players on the auction house.

Furthermore, as a leather-armor wearing class, skinning goes together with leatherworking, as Druids may craft themselves leather gear as they level and when they reach maximum level. Which can be a fun and rewarding experience and not to mention lucrative and profitable.

Furthermore, herbalism also lends itself well to the Druid-lore, as the atonement towards nature of the Druid class ties in well with gathering and foraging herbs and plants found around Azeroth.

From a more efficient stand point however, First Aid can be a good choice for Druid’s to take when leveling. Particularly if they are questing as opposed to dungeon-spamming, as especially if you play as a Balance Druid, mana-sustainability can become an issue when you are efficiently killing mobs and clearing targets. And so, choosing to learn the First Aid profession can take some pressure off of your mana reserves by preserving some of the mana that otherwise would have been spent on casting healing abilities for yourself. 

Gear Stat Priorities

Depending on the specialization that you select, there are certain stats and bonuses provided by the gear and armor that you acquire that can provide beneficial for your spec by increasing damage output, increasing defence, or increasing spell power to name a few. Although this guide does not seek to give a full detailed outline of these, it shall provide a brief overview of which stats should be prioritized for each of the recommended damage specs:

Feral Druid:

• For Feral Druids, you want to focus on Agility and Strength if you are playing as a damage-focused Feral, as these two stats will increase your damage more than other stats you can accumulate on gear and items. Increases to your Critical Hit Rate and Haste can also be good additions.
• As a tank-focused Feral Druid however you want to focus on Stamina gear, as this stat will provide you with more health which will increase the amount of damage you can soak up when in bear form, thus making you harder to kill.

Balance Druid:

• Balance Druids should focus on Intellect and Spell Power bonus stats, as these will increase the damage output of your astral and Balance Druid focused abilities.
• Increases to Crit or Haste can also be good additions as these will increase the rate at which you hit critical attacks and increase the speed at which you cast abilities respectively.

It is not recommended that you level as a Restoration Druid unless you are an experienced WoW player. If you wish to do so, the stat priorities of a Balance Druid can be followed.

Important Druid Quests

Each class in the Wrath of the Lich King Classic have class-specific quests, much like what was originally implemented in the vanilla era of the game. In modern expansions, these class-specific quests have largely been removed, however.

For Druids, there are some class quests that award players with abilities that are critical to their class, such as the various animal forms that are rewarded from said quests. As such, the following quests are some that are essential to your Druid leveling experience and should not be skipped:

• Bear Form Quest – At level 10, Druids will gain the ability to learn Bear Form from the first class-specific quest in the game. This ability is great for early level questing. Regardless of the spec that you are eventually going to build into, as the added HP bonus when in Bear Form can be very useful in early level combat situations. It is also essential for Druids that aspire to tank.
• Sunken Temple Quest – At around level 50, Druids gain access to a quest chain starting at the quest Torwa Pathfinder, which eventually rewards the player with the choice between three rare pieces of gear to choose between. Although oftentimes considered redundant due to the massive gear gap between end-game vanilla and TBC entry-quest gear, this quest is often skipped by most speed levelers. For beginner players, the item rewards here are still valuable for the remaining 10 levels of the vanilla World of Warcraft, and thus can be very beneficial in transitioning to Outland as they increase your damage-output and effectiveness at clearing and killing mobs.
• Swift Flying Form Quest – Introduced in The Burning Crusade, the Swift Flying Druid-specific class quest available at level 70 is an essentially important quest that rewards Druids with the Swift Flight Form – the ability to instantly enter high speed flying in the form of an owl-bird hybrid polymorphed form resembling the race that your character is playing. Although this is such a late-game quest, it is still a very useful shapeshift form to have in your arsenal and can make moving around zones much easier once you acquire your flying license. Especially useful to level professions at max level and the like.

Max Level Progression

Once you have reached level 80, the most important thing to do now, besides having fun, is to learn your class and chosen specialization so that you can maximize your effectiveness for whichever aspect of end-game content you choose to pursue. Either PvP or PvE.

Furthermore, acquiring and progressing end-game professions such as crafting professions is oftentimes a good thing to consider as this can reward new players with a reliable income as well as crafted items that can be useful towards gearing.