News · Reported ·

Shaman Classic Discord closes in protest against the shaman changes

One day after Blizzard's notes, the moderators of the Shaman Classic Discord locked their server. Their complaint is not about damage but about how the specs feel: Lava Burst gone, Improved Ghost Wolf further down the tree, Enhancement drifting towards spell power. Blizzard has not responded so far.

Type
Community

This is reported: a community reaction, not a Blizzard statement. We know the Discord posts from players who copied them into Blizzard's forum, and from Wowhead. Wowhead puts the server at about 80,000 members; we have not checked that.

What the moderators write

The server was locked on 3 November, "active immediately". The reason given is "how the developers are approaching all shaman specs in WoW Forever": feedback was ignored, class fantasies destroyed. A follow-up post says the lock is "not an attempt at blackmail or coercion", and the server will reopen "regardless of the outcome". And: "this is not about damage output."

The criticism in detail:

  • Enhancement: Windfury Weapon would not be the main weapon imbue for raiding, which runs against the two-handed Enhancement fantasy. Spell power and Intellect gear would beat physical gear. The changes to Maelstrom Weapon and Intellect would make that worse, not better.
  • Elemental: Moving Improved Ghost Wolf from row 2 to row 4 is aimed at PvP and hurts every shaman. Without Lava Burst, Elemental has no second school against nature-immune enemies. Flame Shock has no link to the rest of the kit. The mana situation is "dire", and Water Shield should not use up charges on critical strikes. The change to Totemic Projection hurts Elemental most.

What the notes actually changed

All of these points refer to the notes of 2 November. Lava Burst is gone and replaced by Call of Thunder, Improved Ghost Wolf moves from row 2 to row 4, Maelstrom Weapon procs twice as often, and Mental Dexterity turns up to 150% of Intellect into attack power. Totemic Projection becomes Totemic Call, which pulls the totems to you.

Not everyone agrees

In the forum thread the reaction is split. Several players welcome the stronger Lightning Bolt and Chain Lightning and say they don't feel represented by the moderators. Others share the criticism, especially about Improved Ghost Wolf. When we wrote this on 3 November, Blizzard had not replied in the forum.

What this changes here

Nothing on the topic pages. The talent calculator shows the shaman tree as it stands in the client.

Last checked November 3, 2026.