Moonkin 101 - PvE DPS

It's been apparent to me for quite some time that I needed to rewrite my old PvE DPS post. The information in the old one continued to be accessed even though it was stale. It's been on my plate, and I kept pushing it off. Then, a post by Bellwether over at 4Haelz prompted me to get off my butt and finally write it! I was going to point her over to Raider101, but I went over there myself and saw that the moonkin entry was pretty lacking. (EDIT: Turns out Bell was actually talking about DPSing on her paladin - oh well, it still motivated me to write this post!) Since the Death Knight Tanking entry I wrote was pretty well received, I figure I'll write it in that format. Without further ado...

Druid - Balance

Purpose
Balance druids have a dual purpose - both ranged DPS and support. With abilities such as an in-combat ressurrection, a giftable mana regen ability, and a 5% buff to spell crit, moonkins bring much more to the table than similar spellcasters of other classes.

Talents
Standard Build (link)

If you find you are having some mana problems, move 2 points from Improved Insect Swarm over to Intensity in the Resto tree.

Ability Rotation
As with most dps classes in WotLK, there is no set dps rotation but rather a priority system. The generally accepted method of dps as a moonkin rotates around a particular talent, Eclipse.

1) Apply Faerie Fire
2) Apply DoTs, Insect Swarm and Moonfire
3) Cast Wrath until an Eclipse proc happens (this is what is referred to as a "Lunar" Eclipse).
-- 3a) If an Eclipse proc does not occur before Insect Swarm and Moonfire fall off, reapply those and go back to (3)
4) Starfire until Eclipse falls off.
-- 4a) If your DoTs fall off, refresh moonfire only during the first third (5 seconds) of an Eclipse proc. Do not refresh Insect Swarm during Eclipse.
5) Refresh Insect Swarm, Moonfire, and Faerie Fire (if needed) and continue again at (3)

Put another way, try to keep 100% uptime on Faerie Fire, Insect Swarm, and Moonfire. If all 3 are up and you have no Eclipse buff, cast Wrath. If the Eclipse buff is up, cast Starfire.


Key Cooldowns

Force of Nature (Treants) - Your treants will, on average, provide about 5% of your total DPS. (This percentage, while not insignificant, is why most builds do not include the Brambles talent, it is simply not worth 3 talent points) Try to use them every cooldown, and use them smartly! If you know a boss has a Whirlwind or Shadowbolt Volley, use them immediately after to get the most uptime.

Starfall - Be very cautious where you use this ability. On most raid boss fights it is safe to use it immediately and upon every cooldown, but in smaller dungeons such as heroics it can easily pull unwanted groups of mobs. Test it out on your own time in the world to get a feel for the range this spell has. Other than pulling extra mobs, this ability is excellent because it does not need to be tended to. One global cooldown, then let it run it's course.

Innervate - As with most talents on a cooldown, it is better to use this early rather than late. Usually when you're at about half mana is a good time to use Innervate. This will ensure you still get the maximum benefit out of it, and possibly have it available later in the same fight.

Stats (In Order of Importance)
Hit Rating (Numbers include both Balance of Power and Improved Faerie Fire)
- - 263 rating for Raid Bosses (17% miss chance vs level 83, minus 7% from the previously mentioned talents = 10% to make up in hit rating)
- - 0 rating for Heroic Bosses (6% miss chance vs level 82, minus 7% from the previously mentioned talents = 0% to make up in hit rating)
- Spell Power
- Haste = Crit (Generally accepted that whatever you have less of is more valuable to you than the other)
- Intellect - Improves crit rating and mana pool, as well as the mana returned from Replenishment. If you have mana problem, this might be an area you want to look at.

- Spirit - Improves in-combat mana regeneration via Intensity and with Improved Moonkin Form adds to spellpower. Generally a weaker stat than those previously mentioned. Do not stack it, but you do not have to avoid it.


Recommended Glyphs
Major
Important to have both:
Glyph of Starfire
Glyph of Moonfire

Also good, but replaceable if need be:
Glyph of Insect Swarm

Minor
Glyph of the Wild - useful for rebuffing after a Rebirth mid-combat

The other two minor glyphs are your choice.

Recommended Enchants
Head - Arcanum of Burning Mysteries (+30 spellpower/+20 crit rating, Kirin Tor Revered)

Shoulder - Greater Inscription of the Storm (+24 spellpower/+15 crit rating, Sons of Hodir Exalted) or Lesser Inscription of the Storm (+18 spellpower/+10 crit rating, Sons of Hodir Honored)

Cloak - Greater Speed (+23 haste rating) or Speed (+15 haste rating)

Chest - Powerful Stats (+10 all stats) or Super Stats (+8 all stats)

Wrists - Superior Spellpower (+30 spellpower) or Greater Spellpower (+23 spellpower) or Exceptional Intellect (+16 intellect) or Greater Stats (+6 stats)

Gloves - Precision (+20 hit rating) or Exceptional Spellpower (+28 spellpower)

Legs - Brilliant Spellthread (+50 spellpower /+20 spirit) or Shining Spellthread (+35 spellpower/+12 spirit)

Boots - Icewalker (+12 hit rating/+12 crit rating) or Tuskarr's Vitality (+15 stamina /Minor Speed)

Weapon - Mighty Spellpower (+63 spellpower) or Exceptional Spellpower (+50 spellpower)

If you can augment your own armor with tradeskills often those are better than the ones listed above. For example:
Enchanters - Enchant Ring - Greater Spellpower (+19 spellpower)
Leatherworkers - Fur Lining - Spell Power (+67 spellpower)

Recommended Consumables
Flask - Flask of the Frost Wyrm (+125 Spell Power)

Battle Elixir - Spellpower Elixir (+58 spellpower)

Guardian Elixir - Elixir of Mighty Thoughts (+45 intellect)

Food
Tender Shoveltusk Steak (+46 spellpower/+40 stamina) or Firecracker Salmon (+46 spellpower/+40 stamina) or Shoveltusk Steak (+35 spellpower/+30 stamina)

Additional Tips
- Download the addon Squawk and Awe to help manage DoTs, Eclipse Procs, and the Eclipse internal cooldown.

- Never cancel a cast unless finishing it will result in your own death or the death of others. The time lost canceling and starting over is worth more dps than casting another spell. In particular, this means that if you see an Eclipse proc but start another Wrath because of latency, let it go and start the Starfire right after.


Sources and Other Resources
Elitist Jerks Druid Forum
Gray Matter - A theorycrafting moonkin blog
WoWWiki Spell Hit page