Enhancement Shaman Castle Nathria Raid Tips - Shadowlands 9.2.5

By wordup Updated: 2022/08/02

Enhancement Shaman Castle Nathria TalentsWitch Doctor's Wolf BonesNight FaePrimal Lava ActuatorsNecrolordNote:HailstormFire NovaEnhancement Shaman Castle Nathria Covenant ChoiceFirst and Foremost before discussing each Covenant, my recommendation would be to make sure that you have access to Night FaeNecrolord

Kyrian
This choice really doesn't have a place currently due to Raging Vesper Vortex having such low synergy with the rest of our toolkit, alongside being extremely GCD hungry. When you can maintain Hammer of Genesis on fights and also get the cooldown reduction from Effusive Anima Accelerator the extra burst AoE from Vesper Totem can be useful, but is simply weaker than alternatives.

Necrolord
This serves as our primary AoE and Cleave build and is very strong in any situation where consistent windows of mulitple targets are available. Flame Shock spread allows us to leverage the multi-cast aspect of Primordial Wave in AoE situations to get extremely high value from Splintered Elements via Hasted DoTs buffed by Lashing Flames. Paired with Primal Lava Actuators this allows us to maintain the debuff on multiple targets consistently, and also make use of the cooldown reduction for extra funnel on primary targets. The potential to high roll as well with the Tumbling Waves Conduit gives room for really explosive windows if things go well. This falls slightly behind in pure single target though, but is the more flexible choice. Generally in raids, the Soulbind selected uses Plague Deviser Marileth for a more single target focus and a more open Soulbind tree to grab triple Potency slots.

Night Fae
This is the one Covenant that you do really need to have the option to swap to, due to the extreme synergy it has with all other aspects of the class at this stage. Given the role we're specialized in is single target, this really leans heavily into that so you want to have the option to focus on that even though it tends to provide less AoE. Fae Transfusion paired with Dreamweaver's Field of Blossoms follow up window gives us an actual burst component to our rotation we're otherwise lacking, and overlaps with the Seeds of Rampant Growth Crit window immediately after each cast. If a fight really doesn't allow you to make use of the circle due to heavy movement, Niya does serve as a slightly worse alternative thanks similarly to Grove Invigoration for the same reasons. This is the dominant pick in the majority of raid encounters.

Venthyr
While there are some fun things this Covenant can do, what it actually manages to pull off simply fall behind alternatives in every avenue in raid situations because it demands extra targets at all times. The cooldown reduction is for Elemental Conduit is strong whenever it can be used, providing a whole lot of AoE damage and group Healing (and even some additional utility via Theotar's Wasteland Propriety). It also has the benefit of wide range for the AoE damage delivery rather than the more limited point blank toolkit we have. It is, however, more niche and falls behind both Necrolord and Night Fae by quite a margin meaning it's not really recommended.

bestNight FaeNecrolordEnhancement Shaman Castle Nathria Legendaries

Best Legendary Combinations

Night Fae: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones and Seeds of Rampant Growth
Necrolord: Primal Lava Actuators and Splintered Elements

Night Fae: Witch Doctor's Wolf BonesSeeds of Rampant GrowthSeeds of Rampant GrowthFae TransfusionFeral SpiritNecrolord: Primal Lava ActuatorsSplintered ElementsSplintered ElementsPrimal Lava ActuatorsFlame ShockLashing FlamesFlame ShockUnityReveredMemory of Unityany slotHeadHaste alwaysMastery Clasp of Unity

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones | optional: Wind Rush Totem

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

Essential Extraction is important here, as it allows you to get one cast of Fae Transfusion off on the pull and another before the intermission so long as you use it immediately.

Earsplitting Shriek requires you to line of sight the cast, so use Spirit Walk or Ghost Wolf to quickly get behind a pillar then move back when the cast completes.

Wind Rush Totem can also be taken to assist the rest of the raid with this.

Stay spread from other players in case they trigger Echolocation. Move away if you are targeted by it.

If you are having trouble avoiding Echoing Screech pulses, sacrifice damage and just shift into Ghost Wolf to avoid the rings. Likewise, stay in Ghost Wolf to stack up Spirit Wolf in the intermission - the boss takes no damage here so it just makes life easier.

Astral Shift is an emergency tool in this fight - if you or someone else messes up and triggers a Descent cast, make sure to use it to survive.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones or Primal Lava Actuators

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae or Necrolord

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

Sinseeker is the most dangerous damage in the fight, so if you are targeted by this during other mechanics make sure to use Astral Shift and consider self-healing.

Cleave has value throughout this fight due to the Huntsman's Bond effect causing the boss to share health with Gargons. This means that Primal Lava Actuators is solid option to multi-DoT making sure you keep Lashing Flames up on both targets when they are stacked, but Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones also works fine as a pure boss damage focus.

Shades of Bargast require heavy burst damage, meaning that you should aim to have Primordial Wave / Fae Transfusion ready when they have the damage taken debuff stacked after being CCed.

Maintain Crash Lightning at all times throughout the fight whenever possible - the extra cleave damage is free and most of the time the boss will be close to another enemy to keep this up. Switch to Chain Lightning whenever this is the case.

Have Spirit Walk ready for the latter portions of the fight to get out with Petrifying Howl. Ghost Wolf can also be used to suppress the slow and get to the edge.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones | optional: Wind Rush Totem

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

Our toolkit has nothing that can naturally avoid the Dimensional Tear effects comfortably, so you'll need to make use of the portals to get safe.

Save Soulshape for situations where you need to get out of Seed of Extinction or Edge of Annihilation in a pinch and can't safely get to the Dimensional Tear.

Wind Rush Totem is really useful here to help the raid outpace the Edge of Annihilation casts.

There's scripted periods in the fight where the boss won't cast things that force you away, try to place your cooldowns here.

When Fleeting Spirits spawn you should shift into Ghost Wolf and use Spirit Walk to kite it before going into the Dimensional Tear when it gets too close - avoiding getting hit by this is much more important than your damage.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

Single target damage is the name of the game to deal with most of the fight, but you can opt into taking Hailstorm if you want a bit more cleave in the main phase without much issue.

Make sure you are topped before interacting with Soul Pedestal if you are assigned. You can use Astral Shift for safety here, and also use Healing Surge afterward to recover.

Be very careful of your positioning here, especially during burst AoE. Fragmentation is especially lethal because of how close we are during AoE, so watch enemy health.

Place Earthbind Totem at the back of the room when Soul Infusers spawn to stop them racing to the boss and give time to burn them down.

If you are having issues dealing with Cloak of Flames in the intermission, make sure you have Feral Spirit ready and potentailly adjust your Fae Transfusion timings to line up with it.

You can assist with healing duties on both Kael'thas Sunstrider and Essence Fonts that are dropped with Healing Surge to speed up the encounter. You can also opt to take Earth Shield and apply it to Kael'thas Sunstrider to increase your healing in the main phase.

On Mythic you should ideally save 10 Maelstrom Weapon to instantly cast two Healing Surges to break the Cloak of Flames absorb in the main phase.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones | optional: Wind Rush Totem / Feral Lunge

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

Expunge and Consume will force you out of melee range, so watch timers for these as they happen frequently. When they're coming up, try not to commit cooldowns and wait until the mechanic's resolved.

In an emergency you can use Healing Surge to shrink your Expunge circle if the raid is unstable (unless you have Gluttonous Miasma active, at which point just pray).

Save Astral Shift for situations where you have Gluttonous Miasma present and have to deal with either Expunge or Volatile Ejection, as the combined damage can be lethal when not receiving healing.

Wind Rush Totem is an option here to assist the raid when fighting against the pull in from Consume. Alternatively Feral Lunge can be taken as a selfish option to re-engage the boss after being forced out by various mechanics.

Similarly, shift to Ghost Wolf and also use Spirit Walk if needed to deal with Consume channels, as extra distance will reduce the damage.

Soulshape is best used here to get to the edge to drop your Expunge circles in a good spot.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

Wind Shear is perfect for dealing with the add Condemn casts, as we can usually still stay in range even when the boss is moving or we are forced slightly out of melee.

Shift to Ghost Wolf or use Soulshape to move to your spot if targeted by Shared Suffering.

Save Spirit Walk in case you need to catch Bottled Anima when no one else nearby.

Harnessed Specter and Conjured Manifestation should have the boss moved to them. Ideally have Feral Spirit ready to burn down the primary add before they become a problem, and otherwise focus down the boss.

Astral Shift is best saved for situations where you have to move far out to deal with Shared Suffering, as you'll be taking high damage and potentially be outranging some healers. Alternatively, if you get targeted by Concentrated Anima this can reduce the initial impact.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones or Primal Lava Actuators | optional: Wind Rush Totem

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae or Necrolord

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

Both legendaries work here, with Primal Lava Actuators being good as a funnel tool with Primal Lava Actuators, just focus on the primary burn target rather than maintaining Lashing Flames on multiple targets.

Night Fae is still good, but there is a slight loss because Fae Transfusion will split with targets.

Performing the dance correctly provides Fancy Footwork giving free Haste, which we love.

Avoid using Ghost Wolf and Spirit Walk when targeted by Dark Recital to splitting the link with your partner and placing circles ahead of them.

We are perfect for keeping Dreadbolt Volley interrupted with Wind Shear, even when not the primary target.

Save Astral Shift and Earth Elemental (with Vital Accretion) for the tail end of each phase when Oppressive Atmosphere stacks get high.

Keep Spirit Walk ready for intermissions in case you need to move a long distance to find your place on the dance floor. Wind Rush Totem is also useful here to help the raid.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

Ideally you should have Feral Spirit prepared for each Destructive Impact window, pre-casting it as the boss winds up the charge. As soon as the pillar is hit, follow up with Fae Transfusion and Elemental Blast. Aim to make sure all your cooldowns are spent during these periods if possible.

The first window happens roughly 40 seconds in, then every minute thereafter. That means you should plan your offensive cooldowns around this to get the most out of the damage amp.

Using Astral Shift on cooldown is fair here due to the high constant raid damage, in particular Colossal Roar.

Earth Elemental works for the tail end of the fight when the raid is the most unstable.

Watch your partner's position during Chain Link and make sure not to sprint ahead of them or use Feral Lunge, snapping the chain is lethal.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones or Primal Lava Actuators | optional: Wind Rush Totem

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae or Necrolord

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

On Mythic, you can take Primal Lava Actuators to funnel AoE to either the active General or the Stone Legion Goliath, and then transition to 2 target cleave in the final phase. Otherwise, Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones works fine especially on Heroic and below as a pure boss damage and Stone Legion Goliath burst focus.

If playing Necrolord make sure to only spend Primordial Wave when you have Primordial Wave spread to adds to get the most out of Splintered Elements.

Hold Sundering to use on add waves rather than as a single target filler.

Use Astral Shift if the raid is unstable when soaking Pulverizing Meteor.

Use Spirit Walk to stay in range of targets when Stonegale Effigy is channeled to kill them quickly. Wind Rush Totem can also be taken here to help the rest of the raid stay on the platform.

Try to have some type of cooldown ready like Feral Spirit to burst the Stone Legion Goliath during Soultaint Effigy to end the healing reduction.

Talents & Build: Witch Doctor's Wolf Bones | optional: Wind Rush Totem

Recommended Covenant: Night Fae

Soulbinds & Conduits: Kyrian | Necrolord | Night Fae | Venthyr

While there's a lot that goes on in this fight, it's mostly raid-wide mechanics and we are just here to burn the boss so focus on single target.

You can suppress the slow from March of the Penitent if you are in Ghost Wolf before it begins, but can't shift during the effect due to the silence, so cast it early. You can also pre-drop Wind Rush Totem to assist the raid.

Wind Rush Totem is also extremely helpful in the final phase to help the raid avoid the wide Ravage arc.

While we don't have a whole lot of AoE for the Echo of Sin adds in Phase 1 after Blood Price is cast. Ideally just get Crash Lightning active and follow up with Sundering then go back to boss damage.

Soulshape can be used in an emergency to stay on the platform if you're hit by Crescendo in Phase 2.

Try to make sure to spread Flame Shock Remornia in Phase 2 as it comes past the boss, and get Crash Lightning active as the health pool is shared.

On Mythic, if you're assigned to interrupt Vengeful Wail make sure to avoid the Searing Censure bolts as the silence will stop you casting Wind Shear.

Enhancement Shaman Castle Nathria Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Hot HandCrash LightningChain LightningPrimal Lava ActuatorsAstral ShiftEarth ElementalVital AccretionSpirit WalkGhost WolfWind Rush Totem

Enhancement Shaman Castle Nathria Raid Tips - Shadowlands 9.2.5

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