Druid Addons

Hey, do you guys read or subscribe to WoW Insider? I do, although since I check it at work there’s a lot of fluff I delete through. Don’t get me wrong - they do a great job with lots of content to appeal to the varied readership I’m sure they have. I just tend to be attracted more to the in-depth article vs. the short breakfast topics and shots around Azeroth.

So it dawned on me yesterday when I was reading the latest Shifting Perspectives, that I had yet to give a shout-out to this little corner of WoWI that focuses on Druids. Two bloggers, Dan O’Halloran and David Bowers contribute to the column, which is completely about us, the most versatile, fun to play class in all of WoW. I’m adding the Shifting Perspectives feel link to my blogroll with this post.

The latest column discusses some Druid-specific add ons you may want to consider. In fact, after reading the article, I’m tagging this post with “Must have addons”.

The first set of addons addresses the issue of how to keep track of your mana bar when you are in a feral form. Personally, I’ve never had a big problem with this. I’m not sure if that makes me a crappy Druid since I rarely shift out to heal, or a great tank since I rarely need to. No matter - it’s an issue. David offers a couple solutions. There doesn’t seem to be a clear winner on this one and your “best” solution may be more dependent on your current addon configuration.

The second class of addons he tackles though, is something I’ve really been struggling with especially in Outland. Comparing gear is just getting out of hand for me. Not only are we all carrying around multiple sets of gear, but with the item specialization in Outland and the great greenies available here and there - what to keep and what to DE isn’t that simple anymore. David lays out a number of addons here, and ends up recommending two in particular:

1. EquipCompare, which lets you see your equipped items’ tooltips right next to the tooltip of whatever you’re looking at, just like in the Auction House or on the Armory.
2. DruidStats gives you a more direct look at what stats each item will give you after the various druid talents have been applied, so that you can judge its usefulness for yourself.

David gives a good overview of other tools along with their strengths and weaknesses for Druids. This is the kind of honest, helpful information that keeps me coming back to WoW Insider.

Check out the article, and if you haven’t subscribed or bookmarked the Shifting Perspectives column, take a second to do it now.