The new Hero Talent system shook things up in the class meta for World of Warcraft, with some class specs climbing their way to the top and others falling far from grace. Since Hero talents are accessible from level 71 onwards, most players will be wondering which spec is currently considered top tier. Don’t worry, we got you covered. Here, we’ll be listing them all down from the best to the least powerful healer specs for The War Within.
S-Tier
Restoration Shaman
The Resto Shaman spec has been given a complete update to its overall class design for The War Within. Their Hero talents Farseer and Totemic has made their healing skills easier to pull off while also requiring less input in their rotation. Not only that, they’re capable of dealing solid damage and even provide raid utilities to the team with some defensive spells and a bit of crowd control for good measure. Shamans currently are doing well for this expansion, especially when their Hero talents give them a significant boost in performance.
A-Tier
Preservation Evoker
This class and spec have very short-ranged spells compared to the other support classes in WoW, but makes up for it with its extremely high burst healing and DPS. The new Flameshaper and Chronowarden Hero talents help accentuate this class’s strength in short-ranged performance with massive boosts to their healing output. However, due to its short range, this class is difficult to play with when not grouped up with a static since positioning is key for this spec. This one glaring weakness is what keeps Preservation Evoker away from S-Tier.
Restoration Druid
Not much has changed for the Restoration Druid playstyle, but the Keeper of the Grove and Wildstalker Hero talents have augmented its current playstyle since Dragonflight. It’s still a powerful healing class with top-tier DPS, but what keeps this spec in A-tier is the sheer difficulty of its rotation, requiring a keener understanding of its synergies and proactive thinking on raid encounters. If you’re able to fully master Restoration Druid, this could become an S-tier class.
B-Tier
Holy Paladin
This class and spec have been on the receiving end of nerfs from Blizzard, toning down its healing and DPS effectiveness by 8 and 12 percent, respectively. Compared to its performance back in Dragonflight and before, it’s lost its spot as the absolute best healer for The War Within. However, the Hero talents Lightsmith and Herald of the Sun help patch up some of its weaknesses, and Blizzard has not touched its other utilities for CC and defensive buffs for raid comps. Overall, while it isn’t the greatest healer, it’s still a good addition for any party.
Mistweaver Monk
Mistweaver Monk has taken some updates to its kit, further boosting its performance as a solid heal-per-second support class. Its Hero talents, Conduit of the Celestial and Master of Harmony, extends this spec’s healing duration for a better QoL in providing heals for others. While its role as a healer is in a good spot, it lacks any other utilities, such as a defensive cooldown to mitigate raid-wide damage. As it stands, this spec is in a fairly balanced position in the meta, excelling in one aspect in exchange for another.
C-Tier
Holy Priest
The new Hero talents have brought in new spells or passives that make most classes feel different, yet the Holy Priest spec’s overall gameplay flow has not changed much from Dragonflight. Most of its Hero talents with Oracle and Archon improve its healing output but does nothing else special for the spec. As healers and damage dealers, they’re solid in performance but still suffer the same glaring lack of utility and mobility that can make them particularly vulnerable in certain mechanics. It’s a simple class to play, with an easy and intuitive playstyle, but this comes at the cost of higher team utility.
Discipline Priest
Like the Holy Priest, this spec suffers the exact same issues, with it having the worst mobility out of all the healing classes. Again, its Hero talents only serve to accentuate its role as a pure healer without adding anything else new to its gameplay. Running Mythic+ raids, especially in encounters where players must be mobile, is far more daunting as a Priest and will require more foresight at certain mechanics to survive them. This spec is better served as a safety net healer that
