DPS Rotation & Cooldowns

This rotation offers a general priority list for Elemental Shaman abilities, along with key cooldowns at the bottom. It's based on a standard build and is here to help while we work on a smarter, build-aware system. If you are very new to the game or this class, we added info on the new assisted rotation features at the bottom of this guide. Updated for the latest patch in World of Warcraft: The War Within (11.1.7).

Single Target

Cast Storm Elemental, Fire Elemental, and Stormkeeper before the pull.

• Lava BurstView detailsCast ~1.5 seconds before pull to land after pull.
• Flame ShockView detailsCast before Lava Burst lands.
• Liquid Magma TotemView detailsCast before Lava Burst lands.
• Primordial Wave
• AscendanceView detailsUse with on-use trinkets and potion.
• Lava Burst
• IcefuryView detailsCast immediately if it procs, but prioritize Lava Burst before Stormkeeper-empowered Lightning Bolt.
• Lightning BoltView detailsUse when empowered by Stormkeeper.
• Earth ShockView detailsUse if Maelstrom is near cap.
• Elemental BlastView detailsUse if Maelstrom is near cap.

Start with pre-pull abilities like Storm Elemental and Fire Elemental. Use Lava Burst and Flame Shock in sync, followed by Liquid Magma Totem and Primordial Wave. Maintain Maelstrom management with Earth Shock and Elemental Blast.

AoE

Cast Storm Elemental, Fire Elemental, and Stormkeeper before engaging.

• Liquid Magma TotemView detailsUse early for AoE damage.
• Primordial WaveView detailsCast before Ascendance.
• AscendanceView detailsUse with trinkets and potion.
• Chain LightningView detailsUse when 3+ targets are present.
• EarthquakeView detailsUse if Echoes Of Great Sundering buff is active.
• IcefuryView detailsConsume Fusion Of Elements buffs before recasting.
• Frost ShockView detailsUse while moving if empowered by Icefury.

For AoE, prioritize Liquid Magma Totem and Primordial Wave early. Use Chain Lightning for multiple targets and Earthquake with Echoes Of Great Sundering. Manage Icefury buffs effectively.

Cooldowns

• AscendanceView detailsSync with Bloodlust, trinkets, and potion.
• Storm ElementalView detailsUse before Ascendance for synergy.
• StormkeeperView detailsUse on cooldown or delay for AoE scenarios.
• Surge Of PowerView detailsEmpower Chain Lightning or Lightning Bolt based on target count.

Coordinate Ascendance with major buffs and trinkets. Use Storm Elemental and Stormkeeper strategically for burst or AoE. Optimize Surge Of Power for additional damage.

New to Class? Try Assisted Rotation

Patch 11.1.7 introduced new features that make it eaiser to pick and play new characters. These new settings can be enabled from settings » gameplay enhancements:

• Single-Button Assistant
• Assisted Highlight
• Cooldown Manager

If you are new to World of Warcraft or a certain class, enabling Assisted Highlight and Cooldown Manager can help you learn which abilities to prioritize and use.

While the Single-Button Assistant can be a much easier and more accessible way to play the game, it does come with a slight performance hit due to a small GCD penalty, as you will have to wait 25% longer in between spells and abilities.

To see which specs are best with the Single-Button Assistant feature, you can check out our DPS Rankings which uses SimC to sim every class using this feature.