Shaman: Which axe for my Shaman?

[tclkage]

I have both a Singing Crystal Axe and a Crystalforged War Axe sitting in the bank waiting for my Shaman once it hits 70. I only want to equip one of them of course, the other one will be given away or sold, and I can't for the life of me figure out which one to use. I'll be doing pretty much exclusively battlegrounds and arena with that Shaman, and I'll be using something like this for a build, with maybe a point or two moved around in the resto tree. On paper the Crystalforged War Axe looks quite a bit better to me, but I'm perfectly willing to agree that I may not fully appreciate the Singing Crystal Axe's haste proc. Has anyone here ever used the Singing Crystal Axe? Will that haste proc and the higher max damage actually be worth the 50 stamina and 80 attack power I'll be giving up? Note that the money difference in cost is not important for this decision, I just want to use whatever is better for the arena and battlegrounds. Thanks for any help you can provide, I'm really stumped on this one!

[Morganfaey]

I'm kind of a nub about Enhance, I've been resto for ages. However let me point you over to http://elitistjerks.com/f31/t13297-e...rycraft_vol_i/ if you like lots of math or http://elitistjerks.com/f38/t19461-s...p_enhancement/ if you like things written in English Neither specifically answers your question but both have useful information.

To answer your actual question, I would imagine the Crystalforged stats would be better, especially in pvp. However, I think it is generally recommended that you go dual weild as enhance.......

I looked over your spec, briefly. Is it your plan to be able to dps and then throw heals as needed? If so, that can be a bit difficult because of drastically different gear. Ele/resto usually make a better hybrid. However, it is about how you enjoy playing the charecter.

[olyphant]

You're in the Warlocks Den. We don't need no stink'n Axes! lol

[maiko]

My original main is an enhance shaman and IMO, DW is the only way to go (PVP/PVE/Arena). That being said, no stats on a weapon=fail. I would personally stick with the War Axe if you are determined to stay with a 2H.

Also, if you really wanna do amazing in arena, it is my personal experience to not attempt to give half heals. Though they look promising, all the DPS stuff you miss out on really cripples you.

[Morganfaey]

Originally Posted by olyphant

You're in the Warlocks Den. We don't need no stink'n Axes! lol

In the Shaman section Though I must say I don't think my shaman has ever had an axe...

[maiko]

Originally Posted by Morganfaey

In the Shaman section Though I must say I don't think my shaman has ever had an axe...

aw, my orc has only ever had axes /sniff

[Bodhisage]

Just wondering how others here like the Shaman. I have been debating myslef for a good alt to my lock (who i am in love with lol) for a while and the class that appeals the most is the shammy. I like the idea of combining melee and some spells in pvp, plus throwing out heals in those "oh shit" moments. But I have heard VERY mixed reviews... i.e. no mana, jack of all trades master of none, hard to solo level....totems are boring...

If anyone has some advice to inspire my shaman urge plz let me know how your exp. has gone.

[maiko]

I love my shaman. LOVE. Enhance from my first talent point Never been anything different. I top DPS meters easy and it is SO much fun. People talk a lot of trash. I mean, your main goal is to buff the other melee. No doubt about that. You throw down WF totem regardless of it not benefitting you personally. But if you know how to play, have some skill and some patience, you can really be at the top. I leveled solo and had no problems. You own so much face. WF is OP at low lvls. And totems are never boring, sometimes they get annoying, but never boring. Just my take on it

[Bodhisage]

sweet thanks maiko, gonna give it a roll (thinking a nice sexy draini chick haha). My other alt is a rogue that I got to lev 34 until I kinda got bored of spamming SS 5 billion times. I like the idea of putting together diff sets of gear at end game, but am planning on leveling as enhance.

Can you let me know what leveling build you used?


p.s. sorry if this is in the wrong thread but I havnt scene much life in the shaman thread the last few months.

[tclkage]

However, I think it is generally recommended that you go dual weild as enhance.......

Well I don't want to have to itemise for 17% hit on my gear, and I'm also aiming at the higher burst damage from a 2-Hander. Same reason Warriors go Arms instead of Fury, but maybe I'm missing something? It also frees up talent points for the resto tree. It's an experiment, so if it doesn't work I'll dual wield, but I'd really like to avoid it because =>

I looked over your spec, briefly. Is it your plan to be able to dps and then throw heals as needed? If so, that can be a bit difficult because of drastically different gear. Ele/resto usually make a better hybrid.

Also, if you really wanna do amazing in arena, it is my personal experience to not attempt to give half heals. Though they look promising, all the DPS stuff you miss out on really cripples you.

Normally I would agree with these two quotes 100% However, in this case it's actually a bit of an experiment me and a couple of buddies are trying out. The team consists of all hybrid builds, with each person leaning towards one role, but able to pinch hit for the other role. So far we have 2 Enhancement/Resto Shamans and 2 Feral/Resto Druids. We'll either do a 3v3 or a 5v5 depending on how many we have on the team in the end. We're all pretty experienced and we use vent with our other teams and we're really in sync with each other, so it might just work. It might not though, which is fine with us - this'll just turn into the goofy fun team if it doesn't take off. The reason I'm going Enhancement/Resto instead of Elemental/Resto is that I want to avoid having 100% of my DPS come from mana in order to conserve more for healing. Same kind of deal as the Feral/Resto Druids avoiding one resource pool for two roles. I'll be stacking as much attack power as possible to take advantage of Mental Quickness. If it works cool, if not - no worries. This is a low pressure team.

To answer your actual question, I would imagine the Crystalforged stats would be better, especially in pvp.

That's my thought as well. It looks like the War Axe is quite a bit better, having better stats and lacking an inconsistent buff. Just figured I'd see what other people thought since to not use as awesome a resource as the Warlock Den seems silly

Thanks people!