Welcome to the World of Warcraft Classic Season of Discovery healer tier list! We will rank each healing class available for the season and explain each class’s position on the tier list.
- Holy Priest (S Tier)
- Discipline Priest (S Tier)
- Holy Paladin (S Tier)
- Restoration Shaman (A Tier)
- Restoration Druid (B Tier)
- Arcane Mage (B Tier)
Phase 5 of the Season of Discovery features many balance changes and rune modifications, along with a plethora of new items and sets that became available with the release of Blackwing Lair, The Crystal Vale, and Zul’Gurub. Such changes result in performance variations by many classes, with some of the stronger specializations from the previous phase having their spots completely altered. Furthermore, with the addition of the new raid sets and brand new class-specific epic items, the performance in phase 5 of many of the builds is much more gear-dependent, with some specializations having stronger bonuses than others.
Similarly to how things worked in Phase 4, Phase 5 of Season of Discovery features some of the expected specializations such as Holy Paladin maintaining their spots on the tier list with other specializations such as Holy Priest turning the page completely and climbing all the way up to the top spot! Additionally, some of the specializations such as Restoration Druid and Arcane Mage display such a similar performance that it is especially hard to create a distinction, apart from an encounter-based overall review.
This Healer Ranking List is based on the currently available information that can be observed on Warcraft Logs, along with all the current changes based on the recent patches and hotfixes.
Additionally, due to the Human Error component and the individual player skill involved in high-end PvE content, Tier A through B is highly relative, with only a few select specializations ranking higher than others based on the current adjustments made by the hotfixes.
S-Tier
The S-Tier represents the most powerful classes in the current meta – those with the highest healing and utility. These specializations are usually recruited in larger numbers due to their outstanding performance.
Holy Priest
Phase 5 of Season of Discovery comes with a huge surprise. flipping the script entirely and placing the Holy Priest on top of all other Healing Specializations, ranking it as the first S-Tier specialization. This is not necessarily due to a balance change but rather thanks to the new items in the game and the instant-cast nature of the class/specialization itself which fit perfectly with the new raids. Holy Priests have a similar setup with Discipline Priests favoring castable spells such as Binding Heal and Circle of Healing and instant-cast abilities such as Prayer of Mending, Power Word: Shield, and Renew!
It is uncertain whether it’s a change in player skill or the dynamic of the new Blackwing Lair, The Crystal Vale, and Zul’Gurub raids, however, both Holy Priest and Discipline Priest certainly saw a tremendous spike in overall performance. By analyzing both the rankings of individual bosses and the overall statistics at different percentiles such as 95th, 80th, 75th, and 50th percentiles, we can clearly see that Priest in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery is pumping numbers unlike the ones seen in the previous phase.
As for precise gameplay analysis, Holy Priests have a few specific distinctions when compared to Discipline Priests! Holy Priests have talents tailored toward mana management and increased overall healing. As such, Holy Priests may choose the Binding Heal rune which is quite strong, being quite a powerful addition to Circle of Healing. Alternatively, they can stick to Circle of Healing and rely on it and Prayer of Mending as their highest HPS tools. The specializations are fairly similar in terms of what spells they use, however, Holy Priests have a hybrid specialization between Holy and Discipline as the most optimal build. This makes them lack a powerful ability like the Power Infusion offered by Discipline Priests.
In terms of viable sets in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, Priests have 3 distinct choices they can go with. They can choose to wear a hybrid between the new Core Forged set and the Draonic set or fully invest themselves in either one of the sets. So far, the players recorded on Warcraft Logs which show the highest performance use a combination of 6 pieces in the T1 set (Core Forged) and 2 pieces from the new Draconic set.
Priests gain access to a powerful new trinket this phase, Cassandra’s Tome, which increases their overall healing by a considerable amount. It also gives them a powerful on-use effect that acts as a “Panic Button” for saving any of their allies, improving their overall performance considerably.
As for utility, they offer all the utility they have offered so far in the Season of Discovery, with spells such as Shadow Resistance and Power Word: Fortitude being some of the most recognizable.
Lastly, in terms of stackability, multiple Holy Priests can be brought in the same raid composition, as their performance is clearly spectacular in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery. Considering the current meta, raid leaders may choose to stack their groups with Priests and Paladins if we are talking about the Alliance or stack Priests and Shamans if we are talking about the Horde.
Discipline Priest
Similarly to Holy Priest, Phase 5 of Season of Discovery comes with a plot twist in regards to Discipline Priests, with their overall performance placing them in the S-tier! Just like with the Holy Priests, the ascendance of Discipline Priests is not necessarily due to any balance change but rather the new items and the favorable encounters that allow their instant-casts to offer an extremely good performance.
It is uncertain whether it’s a change in player skill or the dynamic of the new Blackwing Lair, The Crystal Vale, and Zul’Gurub raids, however, both Holy Priest and Discipline Priest certainly saw a tremendous spike in overall performance. By analyzing both the rankings of individual bosses and the overall statistics at different percentiles such as 95th, 80th, 75th, and 50th percentiles, we can clearly see that Priest in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery is pumping numbers unlike the ones seen in the previous phase.
Analyzing their respective gameplay, we notice that Discipline Priests tend to fall into two distinct categories. Either their logs show a massive dominance by spamming Power Word: Shield or by combining Circle of Healing and Prayer of Mending. In this regard, they are extremely similar to Holy Priests, although the clear distinction is the focus on Power Word: Shield. They also have a very powerful cooldown, Power Infusion, which they can either use on themselves or the most powerful caster, depending on what the situation calls for.
In terms of viable sets, they find themselves in the same position as Holy Priests, being able to use the new Draconic and Core Forged sets in three separate ways. So far, the best combination seen on the logs remains the 6-item Core Forged set combined with a 2-item Draconic set.
Priests gain access to a powerful new trinket this phase, Cassandra’s Tome, which increases their overall healing by a considerable amount. It also gives them a powerful on-use effect that acts as a “Panic Button” for saving any of their allies, improving their overall performance considerably.
As for utility, Discipline offers all the utility that Holy Priests can offer as well, with the added benefit of also bringing Divine Spirit!
Lastly, in terms of stackability, multiple Discipline Priests can be brought in the same raid composition, as their performance is clearly amazing in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery. Considering the current meta, raid leaders may choose to stack their groups with Priests and Paladins if we are talking about the Alliance or stack Priests and Shamans if we are talking about the Horde.
Holy Paladin
Holy Paladins maintain their godlike performance in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, as they retain their spot in the S-Tier! While most of the changes that occurred in the previous phases remain the same, Phase 5 does bring some changes and nerfs to Holy Paladin. Nevertheless, the specialization remains a powerhouse, even outperforming both Holy Priest and Discipline Priest in some encounters.
Based on the 95th percentile and 80th percentile, Holy Paladin’s performance seems to fluctuate a lot when compared with Restoration Shamans, with some of the logs showcasing their performance a bit under them while others show their performance slightly above. However, looking at individual fights and the top performers, Holy Paladins seem to be displaying a better performance overall, with many of the logs showcasing Holy Paladins in the top spots when compared to Restoration Shamans.
One thing we can certainly say is that their overall performance is highly related to the individual skill level of each player, but their current kit makes it quite easy even for inexperienced players to perform extraordinarily.
As mentioned previously, most of the changes and effects Holy Paladins received in Phase 4 remained the same, however, the most impactful change is that Beacon of Light now transfers only 75% of the healing done instead of 100%. Additionally, Infusion of Light also receives a change, reducing the cooldown of Holy Shock by 3 seconds whenever it lands a critical strike. The second change can be considered quite a powerful buff, as opposed to the huge nerf that Beacon of Light received. Their most powerful abilities continue to be Holy Light and Divine Light yet Flash of Light also seems to be among the top contenders in terms of HPS.
In terms of viable sets, the Core Forged Set is the clear winner between the two as it allows for AoE healing thanks to its 6-item set bonus. The 2-item set bonus from the new Draconic set also seeing quite a lot of play thanks to the change to Infusion of Light. Alternatively, Holy Paladins may choose to prioritize the Draconic set, becoming a form of “Shockadin” that aims to heal their allies while damaging a target, but this playstyle is yet to be seen or properly tested.
Holy Paladins also get access to a powerful new epic weapon just like all the other classes, Truthbearer. The weapon is strong enough to be considered BiS in most cases, with its stats facilitating both the normal build and the Shockadin version. The weapon alone is strong enough to maintain Holy Paladins in the S-Tier once they acquire it!
In terms of utility, Holy Paladins still bring all of their specific auras and blessing buffs, providing a plethora of different effects! Their utility is by far the most diversified among all Healer Specializations from the Alliance.
Lastly, in terms of stackability, one Holy Paladin is generally enough for a single raid group, although it really depends on the size of the group. For 40-man groups, you may choose to bring up to 3 Holy Paladins as their overall performance is great in both Single-Target and AoE encounters.
A-Tier
The A-Tier represents strong healing specializations that offer a great amount of output and utility, but not the absolute best. They will be found in almost every raid group and it will be common to see more than one of each.
Restoration Shaman
Phase 5 of Season of Discovery brings forth a bit of volatility for Restoration Shamans, as they fall into the A-Tier. While their performance is not considerably worse than the previous phase, the reality is that the current logs show a lot of randomness. Looking at the 95th, 80th, and 75th percentiles, their performance seems to shift by the day, with their spot being consistently swapped with Holy Paladins. This indicates that they do have the potential to overcome Holy Paladins and perform better; however, when looking at the overall performance per individual fights in the new Blackwing Lair, The Crystal Vale, and Zul’Gurub raids, Restoration Shamans are clearly eclipsed by their Alliance counterparts.
In terms of overall balance changes, Restoration Shamans keep most of their effects from Phase 4, but Phase 5 also brings in a few nerfs and buffs. The most notable nerf is the one to Power Surge, with Flame Shock no longer making Chain Heal an instant cast. As for buffs, Riptide will no longer be consumed by Chain Heal while Tidal Wave now correctly applies to Chain Heal. While the loss of an instant cast Chain Heal is quite a hurtful nerf, the other changes allow Restoration Shamans to display quite an astonishing performance.
Phase 5 of Season of Discovery also brought Restoration Shamans some interesting choices, considering the new Draconic and Core Forged sets. The most obvious choice for most shamans will be to stick to a combination of the two, acquiring 6 items from the Core Forged set and 2 from the Draconic set. As they maintain their 6-item set bonus, Restoration Shamans keep the overpowered AoE healing that brought them so much fame!
Furthermore, just like with the other classes, Restoration Shamans also receive a sweet new epic item, namely Terrestris. The item boosts their overall performance considerably, as their utility skyrockets even further!
In terms of utility, Restoration Shamans are considered powerhouses, bringing a vast plethora of effects for themselves and their allies! With the addition of Terrestris, their utility skyrocketed even further, making them one of the most powerful specializations utility-wise.
Lastly, Restoration Shamans can be stacked in a raid, with larger raids being able to bring multiple Restoration Shamans without any issues. For the most optimized comps, Restoration Shamans are stacked together with Holy/Discipline Priests, bringing the best possible healer comp for the Horde.
B-Tier
The B-Tier represents mediocre healing specializations. They are still considered viable, as they do a decent amount of throughput, but they typically cannot compete with the A-tier specs on the healing meters. However, in many cases, they provide valuable raid buffs that make them worth bringing anyway, as their utility makes up for their deficiency in raw heals.
Restoration Druid
Restoration Druids have fallen off considerably in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery, as they land themselves in the B-Tier. This is not necessarily due to any specific nerfs but rather to the fact that their tier-set bonuses, even with the new Draonic set are rather bad when compared to the other Healing Specializations.
They keep most of the changes that occurred in Phase 4, with Wild Growth, Efflorescence, and Nourish remaining the top-performing spells in their kits. The issue with Restoration Druids is that their Draconic and Core Forged set bonuses are weaker when compared with others, mostly focusing on Mana Regeneration. The new Draconic set does indeed empower Wild Growth; however, it also ties it to Moonkin Form, which is limited to the Balance Tree and directly counters Tree of Life.
Examining the 95th, 80th, 75th, and 50th percentiles clearly shows that Restoration Druids have fallen off when compared to the previous phase, with only some headliners appearing by examining individual boss fights. Overall, their performance can be considered lamentable when compared to overpowered specializations such as Holy/Discipline Priests.
What somewhat saves them in terms of performance, specifically AoE performance besides Wild Growth, is the addition of the new epic weapon, Gla’sir, which has a chance to provide additional AoE healing based on critical strikes.
In terms of utility, Restoration Druids are the only ones that can bring a combat resurrection, making them quite desired in a raid thanks to it. Innervate is the other utility spell that is highly recognizable and desired by most raid groups.
Lastly, Restoration Druids are often brought to raid groups for their “battle rez,” but their overall reduced performance when compared to S-Tier or A-tier specializations clearly makes them less desirable when it comes to stacking.
Arcane Mage
Phase 5 of Season of Discovery brings Arcane Mages to the bottom of the pack, as they are considered one of the worst Healing Specializations in the game. The main reason for this is their clunky playstyle, as it combines the consistent need for mana management of the Arcane Specialization with a rather impractical way of healing allies. However, the devs attempted to buff Arcane Healing in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery by reducing the cost of Regeneration and Mass Regeneration.
While the buffs to Arcane seem to be overall helpful, the reality is that simply reducing the mana cost doesn’t actually improve their effective HPS when compared to some of the other top contenders. As most of the healing is being done by Mass Regeneration and Chronostatic Preservation, it can be argued that Arcane Mage received a huge buff, yet the actual amount of healing done by the spells remains mostly the same, with only additional casts adding to the overall HPS provided by a Mage Healer.
When looking closely at the logs, the overall performance for Arcane Mage for the 95th, 80th, 75th, 60th, and 50th percentiles showcase that it outputs a similar HPS to Restoration Druid, in some cases even outperforming it. However, on individual boss fights, Arcane Mage is seen far lesser than Restoration Druids are, with Restoration winning when directly compared to Arcane Mage. Their overall performance can be considered extremely mediocre, with only some fights such as Hakkar and Edge of Madness showcasing higher numbers than what is expected.
In terms of sets, Arcane Mage benefits mostly from the Core Forged set, with the new Draconic set being used for the 2-item set bonus. The Draconic set would be optimal if chosen specifically for the 4-item set bonus while also having the Core Forged 4-item set bonus.
As for specific new epic class items, they gain access to the Staff of Order, which has one of the worst passive effects among the new epic weapons for Arcane Mage, simply ensuring frequent casts of Presence of Mind by reducing its cooldown each time Arcane Damage is dealt to the target. While in theory it might sound cool for launching huge damaging spells, in reality, it just facilitates a fast Chronostatic Preservation in cases of emergencies.
In terms of utility, Arcane Mages bring a decurse, infinite food, and portals for their allies just like all the other Mage Specializations, with Advanced Warding being the only effect which is exclusive to the Healer Mage Specialization.
Lastly, Arcane Mages can theoretically be stacked in a raid, owever, due to their performance and lack of general utility, it is undesirable to stack multiple Arcane Mages in a raid comp.
C-Tier
The specializations that make up the C-Tier are on the weaker side of the healing spectrum. They can still be considered viable, occasionally offering useful buffs and debuffs, and can very often be very fun to play. However, you aren’t likely to be on the top places of healing meters with these specs, and you won’t have the easiest time finding a raid group, as they aren’t in high demand.
No Healer Specialization in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery is weak enough to be recognized as a C-Tier Specialization!
D-Tier
Simply put, specs in the D-tier are considered to be not viable. They can be fun to play, but you will struggle to get invited to raids when playing one of these, and you may even find yourself getting kicked from groups, as your healing will be really bad.
No Healer Specialization in Phase 5 of Season of Discovery is too weak to be recognized as a D-Tier Specialization!