Leveling as a Healer

(This deals exclusively with WoW)

I have seen a few articles around on the subject, most notably on wow.com. I thought I might join in the fun, since this is how I leveled my own main, and to this day, only 80. Her name (the female model of draeneis is just so much better than the beefy male model, especially for a healer!) is Elekaylla (Norgannon-A, US). Although I started as a healer, I prefer DPSing for now, although the new tools we will get in Cataclysm will undoubtedly make me at least try healing again.

Now if you have 10 level 80 characters and are looking for the latest in raid strategy, go elsewhere, this is strictly about leveling!

I started this character after one of my friend started playing a Hunter. I wanted to try healing, and so I did. As soon as I could, I started queueing in the Dungeon Finder. For a healer, this tool is a blessing. It allows us to practice our trade, while leveling quite fast and racking up good items.

I know for some people, the Dungeon Finder is less efficient than questing for leveling. I guess your mileage may vary on that, but as I picked quests, I had usually a few good xp-boosters each time I set foot into a new dungeon. Of course, if you plan to level as a healer, you’ll probably quest a bit too.

This is the reason I picked a shaman. First, the priest is more fragile, so questing is more often interrupted by healing and drinking. The Water Shield and Mana totems of the shaman means less downtime, and as a shaman, I can bolt things up to oblivion or smash them with a big club. While leveling, I usually set my totems (Earthskin, Searing and Mana) and then cast lightning bolt, immediately followed by a Flame shock. Why not the Shock first? Simply because the time for the lightning bolt to travel is not instantaneous. Thus, when the enemy would start running toward me, it would get hit by the first bolt, and then I would either cast more bolts or start hitting hit, depending on mana.

Against tougher enemies, I’d use Frost Shock, then run back, lightning bolt, flame shock, and then either spam LB or attack. This tactic would avoid me a few hits when I knew enemies could hit me hard.

Eventually, I caught up to my friend’s Hunter and would even reach the final levels before him. Now, to be fair, eh spent a lot more time chatting than I did, but I still managed to level to 80 before him in about half the time! When I say the Dungeon Finder is a boon, I mean it!

What does this story tells us? First, healing and leveling is totally possible. Sure, things fall faster as DPS, but until level 40-50, the difference is not as great, which is why I bought Elemental spec at level 64. Second, the Dungeon Finder is infinitely useful for healers. The same leveling strategy would undoubtedly work for tanks too, and I might try it sometime (maybe a Paladin), but I already have too many alts!
I am also leveling a Blood-Elf hunter (Artémis, Norgannon-H, US; notice the “é” on the “e”), and I am doing so mostly through PVP, which is harder due to longer queues, but once I get into the battlegrounds, boy do I level fast! Last weekend was Arathi Basin Call to Arms, and in three BGs, I gained three levels, moving from level 31 to 34 in about two hours and a half of play time, including a long time spent at the auction and flying on taxis! Try it as well, it might means longer queues for me!