Shaman: Resto| Enhance| Elemental|Follow

Okay I've decided to make a Troll Shaman on Altar of Storms and I need some help deciding which spec I should use. I like Elemental but I don't want to end up healing the whole time during BG or Instances.

I tend to do alot of PvP so I just want to know which would be the best to pick all around, and which would be most needed in a group.

This kinda happens to ALL shaman specs, regardless. While you "should" cover heal your teammates, and that just comes with being a Shaman...I don't remember signing up paying my monthly's just to be someones personal heal bot!

F 'um! Pick/play what you want!

This being said, without making one of my 10 page long manuals;

Enh- Scary Single target burst dps! No hate management! One dimentional dps PvE spec. Ok+ BG PvP skillz but horrible 1v1 PvP/2v2 Arena. Melee gear specific roll limits flexibility. Dependant on additional gear sets on hand to fit situational needs. Easy to lvl/solo 1-70.

Elem- Controlled hate management. Very respectable dps in both PvE and PvP, though does better in cluster fights BGs and like situations. Most "flexable" of shaman specs. Respectable backup healer without changing elem specific gear (though its still difficult to MH without a devoted healing gear set). Dead in the water when MP runs dry, and is VERY cabable of blowing MP QUICKLY! On par as far as "ease" to lvl from 1-39, compared to Enh. Difficult to find gear from 40-Outland. Expect downtime.

Resto- Respectable MH, and even more respectable raid healer! High surviability, and Die hard! Highly capable PvP spec (played similar to a Pally). ZERO DPS, expect LONG drawn-out fights! Hardest to lvl due to timer spent killing things and just like Elem...hard to find gear from 40-outland. Obviously stuck in a healers roll constantly!

Realize this, only 4 of the 9 classes can heal, 2 of those 4 healers can tank, that means since your not the tank type your probably gonna be asked to heal if you join a group and there is no other healer there, or the other healer just so happens to be a tank and then cant heal...

Listen this is the way I see it if I join a group and they ask me to heal, is it worth it for me, is there something I need/want in that instance, maybe a quest with a nice reward? Here is the plus side as an elemental shaman that means you don't need to carry a dps and a healing set of armor.

I know what you mean you want to be a DPS with heals, but you don't want to be locked into healing, but in lower level groups you can be limited on what you can do, if anything think of it as a blessing, if there is an instance you want to do you can pretty much get in a group for it as a healer, I wish I could join groups as a healer at 70 sometimes but people want people spec to heal as healers at level 70 =P

well take it easy and have fun buddy