Feral talents and play

Feral leveling: every talent point

A solo-first build with early Swipe damage and enough Bear tools for regular five-player tanking. Final split 5 / 33 / 13. Balance / Feral / Restoration: 5 / 33 / 13

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Talent notes

Row n unlocks at 5 × (n − 1) points in that tree. “(Classic)” marks an effect carried over from Classic that Forever sources don’t restate.

Cat or Bear?

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Cat for regular quest mobs

1. Keep Mark of the Wild and Thorns up.
2. Open from Prowl if it saves travel, gets you behind the target, or sets up a useful opener: Ravage from 32, Shred before that.
3. Use Rake when it isn’t ticking and the mob will live another 9 seconds.
4. Spend 4-5 combo points on Rip when the target will live long enough.
5. Use Claw face to face and Shred from behind.
6. Use Ferocious Bite as a finishing hit or on bleed-immune targets. Skip the finisher if an auto-attack will do it.
7. From 42, use Shifting Power below 50 Energy when your mana is comfortable.

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Bear for packs, elites and dungeon tanking

1. Before pulling, keep Mark of the Wild and Thorns up. Enrage out of combat if you need starting Rage.
2. Pull with Faerie Fire (free in forms, 6 s cooldown), or use line of sight to bring casters to you.
3. On packs, Swipe early and rotate targets.
4. On sturdy targets, build Lacerate stacks. Use Primal Bite on cooldown once learned.
5. Use Maul when you have Rage to spare. It replaces an auto-attack, so it costs more than it shows.
6. Save Growl for a mob that leaves you, then follow with threat.
7. Use Feral Charge or Bash to stop a cast.

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A solo pull

• Heal between pulls, or root a mob to make room for a heal mid-fight.
• Pre-cast Regrowth before a tougher pull. Its HoT carries into combat.
• Keep enough mana to heal yourself and shift back.
• In Cat, run or Prowl while Energy refills. Drink when low.
• Potions and most consumables work without leaving form.

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A dungeon pack as Bear

• Start with small pulls, mark a kill target and check your healer’s mana before every pull.
• Use Demoralizing Roar on harder melee packs.
• For dangerous pulls, plan Frenzied Regeneration (36) and use Barkskin (44) before the damage, not after.
• Challenging Roar (28) is your emergency answer when several mobs peel off at once.
• Bear threat was raised to 115% to make up for the removal of Blessing of Salvation.

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What to train when gold is tight

Early: Wrath while you still cast to kill, then Maul, Swipe, Faerie Fire and your main self-heals. Keep current ranks of Claw, Rip and Rake once you use Cat. Pick up Prowl and key control or recovery spells as they appear. Revive at 12 and Rebirth at 20 cover different jobs.

Later: buy the important new ranks for your form and the heals you actually cast. Prioritize Travel Form, Dire Bear, Innervate and Barkskin. Pick up Lacerate ranks after taking the talent, and Primal Bite’s trainer ranks at 50 and 60. Delay unused offensive caster ranks (Wrath, Moonfire, Starfire, Hurricane) while Feral.

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Save time between pulls

• Keep Track Humanoids, Dash and Aquatic Form available when the route benefits.
• Log out at an inn for rested experience. Buy enough bag space to avoid frequent vendor trips.
• Cooking buffs add 5% experience from kills. Leatherworkers can place a Camp Tent once an hour.
• Gather quests before a dungeon: kill experience inside is low, and quests are where the experience is.

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Cat and Bear gear

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