Melee Cleave 5-man: Restoration Shaman healing and totem talents (levels 20–40)

Theorycrafted before the WoW Forever beta (September 17, 2026). The group plan follows how cleave groups played in Classic, the talents use the pre-release WoW Forever trees on this site, and ability levels quoted from Classic may differ in Forever. Expect updates once the beta is testable.

The group at a glance

Melee Cleave for levels 20–40: a Feral Druid bear, two Arms Warriors, a Combat Rogue and a Restoration Shaman.

Melee cleave kills packs with attacks that hit several targets at once: Sweeping Strikes, Cleave and Whirlwind from the warriors, Blade Flurry from the rogue, and Swipe and Berserk from the bear. Everyone stands on the same spot, so buffs, heals and the Shaman’s totems reach the whole group. It comes online later than spell cleave, because Sweeping Strikes, Blade Flurry and Leader of the Pack all sit on the 21-point row (level 30).

Role	Spec	Job in the pull
Tank	Feral Combat Druid	Gathers with Swipe, holds with Mangle, Leader of the Pack aura
DPS	Arms Warrior	Sweeping Strikes, Cleave and Whirlwind on the pack
DPS	Arms Warrior	Sweeping Strikes, Mortal Strike on elites
DPS	Combat Rogue	Blade Flurry on packs, kicks and stuns casters
Healer	Restoration Shaman	Heals the melee, totems at the pull spot, Mana Tide Totem

Every spec in the table links to its own guide with talents for that slot.

How the melee cleave plays

1. Levels 20–29: play a normal group with slightly larger pulls. The warriors Cleave, the rogue kills the most dangerous mob, and the bear holds everything with Swipe.
2. From level 30: the bear gathers two packs and faces them away from the group. Leader of the Pack gives the whole party 3% critical strike chance while the druid is in form.
3. Burst window: both warriors use Sweeping Strikes and the rogue uses Blade Flurry on the same pull, then save them for the next large one. Restless Blades lets the rogue get Blade Flurry back sooner.
4. Casters first: the rogue kicks or stuns casters that do not come into melee, the bear uses Feral Charge on the other one.
5. Totems: the Shaman places totems at the pull spot before the bear arrives. In Classic, Windfury Totem (level 32) is the single biggest damage boost for this group.

Your job as Restoration Shaman

Everyone in this group stands in the same place, which is exactly what totems want. Drop them where the bear will stop, not where you are standing. The bear takes most of the damage, but cleaving warriors and a rogue take splash, so budget mana for the whole group and use Mana Tide Totem on every other big pull.

Pull by pull

• Agree the pull spot, drop totems there, then let the bear gather.
• Healing Wave on the bear; Riptide at 40 as your fast heal.
• Nature’s Swiftness for an instant heal when the bear spikes.
• Mana Tide Totem on a big pull so the whole group regains mana, not just you.

Mistakes that wipe the group

• Totems out of range after the bear drags the pack a few steps back.
• Healing the warriors to full mid-pull and pulling threat.

Talent order by level

One point per level from level 10. The talent tree above shows the finished level 40 build; use the level slider to see it at any level.

• Levels 10–14 · Improved Healing Wave 5/5 — 0.5 sec faster Healing Wave.
• Levels 15–19 · Tidal Focus 5/5 — 5% cheaper healing spells.
• Levels 20–22 · Healing Focus 3/3 — 69% chance that damage does not interrupt your heals.
• Level 23 · Water Shield 1/1 — Restores 2% of your maximum mana when you are hit or when a heal crits.
• Level 24 · Natural Grace 1/3 — 15% less threat from your spells.
• Levels 25–26 · Totemic Focus 2/5 — Cheaper totems: you drop a new set every pull.
• Level 27 · Mana Tide Totem 1/1 — Restores mana to every group member within 30 yards for 12 sec.
• Levels 28–29 · Restorative Totems 2/5 — Stronger Mana Spring and Healing Stream totems; Healing Stream heals the whole melee stack.
• Levels 30–32 · Healing Way 3/3 — +24% Healing Wave healing.
• Level 33 · Nature’s Swiftness 1/1 — Your next Nature spell is instant: an emergency Healing Wave.
• Level 34 · Restorative Totems 3/5 — finish the talent.
• Levels 35–39 · Purification 5/5 — +10% healing.
• Level 40 · Riptide 1/1 — A fast direct heal plus a heal over time.

Dungeons by level

Every WoW Forever dungeon that overlaps levels 20–40. Dungeons marked New were added in WoW Forever; the rest are the original Classic dungeons.

Levels	Dungeon	Notes
15–20	Ruins of Lordaeron (New)	Scourge forces in the ruined city.
18–24	The Deadmines	Original Classic dungeon.
19–25	Wailing Caverns	Original Classic dungeon.
23–29	Shadowfang Keep	Original Classic dungeon.
24–29	Excavation Site (New)	Rogue Titan constructs above Whelgar’s Excavation in the Wetlands.
25–31	Blackfathom Deeps	Original Classic dungeon.
26–32	The Stockade	Original Classic dungeon.
28–33	City of Dalaran (New)	Constructs, broken enchantments and demons; a wider city layout.
30–36	Razorfen Kraul	Original Classic dungeon.
31–37	Scarlet Monastery Graveyard	Original Classic dungeon.
31–37	Gnomeregan	Original Classic dungeon.
34–40	Scarlet Monastery Library	Original Classic dungeon.
35–40	The Drowned City (New)	Trolls, naga and pirates off the Stranglethorn coast.
37–43	Scarlet Monastery Armory	Original Classic dungeon.
38–44	Razorfen Downs	Original Classic dungeon.
39–45	Scarlet Monastery Cathedral	Original Classic dungeon.
40–55	Krol’dok Stronghold (New)	New WoW Forever dungeon.

Hall of Thanes and Ruins of Lordaeron are too early for this group; level those characters normally or run them as a regular party. Start the melee cleave in the Excavation Site and the City of Dalaran, and push big pulls in The Drowned City once everyone has their 21-point talent.

Where the group struggles

• Ranged and caster mobs stay out of melee. Break line of sight, or kick and pull them in.
• Healing load is high: five people stand in melee range of the pack. The Shaman needs Mana Tide Totem and the group needs to drink.
• Cooldown gaps: without Sweeping Strikes, Blade Flurry and Berserk, pull smaller until they are back.