Shaman • Enhancement • PVE
Enhancement Shaman (PVE)
Melee DPS with Windfury synergy and burst-heavy gameplay.
Overview
Enhancement Shamans are melee support powerhouses in The Burning Crusade, combining weapon-based damage with one of the most impactful buff toolkits in the entire expansion. TBC introduces major upgrades to the specialization, most notably Dual Wield, Shamanistic Rage, and Water Shield, fixing many of the Mana and scaling issues Enhancement suffered from in Classic. While Enhancement does not top raw DPS meters, it is arguably the strongest physical damage support spec in the game. Windfury Totem alone defines melee group composition, and TBC further amplifies this role with Unleashed Rage, providing a raid-wide Attack Power bonus that scales directly with gear. Combined with Bloodlust / Heroism, Strength of Earth Totem, Grace of Air Totem, and flexible utility totems, Enhancement Shamans are nearly mandatory in optimized melee groups. Enhancement scales extremely well with weapons and gear, rewarding long-term investment. At higher gear levels, Enhancement becomes both a meaningful damage contributor and an irreplaceable force multiplier for its group. The tradeoff is complexity: proper totem usage, cooldown timing, and Mana management separate strong Enhancement players from average ones.
Strengths
Best Melee Support in TBC
Enhancement provides unmatched physical DPS buffs through Windfury Totem, Unleashed Rage, Strength of Earth Totem, Grace of Air Totem, and Bloodlust / Heroism. Their presence alone dramatically increases melee group damage.
Excellent Gear Scaling
Enhancement scales extremely well with weapons and secondary stats. As gear improves, both personal DPS and the value of Unleashed Rage increase, making the spec stronger each tier.
Powerful Raid Utility
Beyond damage buffs, Enhancement brings Tremor Totem, Poison Cleansing Totem, Grounding Totem, Earthbind Totem, and emergency off-healing—tools that can trivialize mechanics and protect the group.
Mana Recovery Tools
Shamanistic Rage and Water Shield provide reliable Mana regeneration, allowing sustained performance even when totem twisting or using high-cost abilities.
Weaknesses
Highly Gear Dependent
Enhancement relies heavily on weapon quality and gear. At low gear levels, personal DPS can feel underwhelming compared to other melee classes.
Low Melee Survivability
Operating in melee range without strong defensive cooldowns makes Enhancement vulnerable to raid damage, positioning errors, and cleave mechanics.
High Skill Ceiling
Totem management, cooldown alignment, weapon imbues, and optional totem twisting add significant complexity. Mistakes can heavily reduce both personal and group effectiveness.
Races
Alliance
Draenei
BiSInspiring Presence provides 1% Spell Hit to the party, which is less impactful for Enhancement but still offers minor group utility. Gift of the Naaru provides a free emergency heal.
Horde
Orc
Axe Specialization grants valuable Expertise, Blood Fury provides a strong Attack Power cooldown, and Hardiness offers excellent PvP value.
Draenei — Only Alliance Choice
The only Alliance race available to Shamans. Inspiring Presence offers minor group value, and Gift of the Naaru can assist with survivability. Best for: Alliance-only option
Orc — Best Overall Choice
Axe Specialization and Blood Fury provide the strongest PvE throughput, while Hardiness makes Orcs excellent in PvP. Best for: Maximum DPS, PvE and PvP versatility
Troll
Berserking offers strong burst potential when used at low health, with minor bonus value from Beast Slaying. Best for: Throughput-focused playstyles
Tauren
Endurance increases health and War Stomp provides reliable crowd control, especially useful in PvP or emergencies. Best for: Survivability and utility