WoW Forever Priest Guide: Healing, Gear & Macros

Snapshot boundary: The beta is closed. The level-20/30 talent tables below are archived examples for fixed build 1.60.1.69876, not current level caps or verified level-60 builds. Role choices are editorial guidance; announced class mechanics have their own source.

Shadow is the practical Priest leveling recommendation because Spirit Tap and Mind Flay support a controlled solo rhythm. Discipline and Holy remain better choices when healing dungeons is the primary beta objective; you do not need to level in a healing tree to heal early content.

Choose the activity before choosing gear

Activity	Practical decision
Solo	Shadow is the archived damage example; manage mana and avoid spending more than the pull needs.
Dungeon healer	choose direct heals, shields or periodic healing for the damage pattern rather than following a damage sequence.
PvP	protect positioning and teammates; a race-specific spell is not a substitute for planning escape and support.

For the rank and currency systems, see PvP rewards and reputation.

A Forever change worth checking

Blizzard makes Fear Ward and Devouring Plague available to all Priests at level 20. Divine Spirit becomes baseline at 30. Do not use old race-exclusive availability or the archived point tables to infer the current spellbook. Blizzard — class deep dive, announced mechanics.

Level 20 Shadow build — 11 points

Talent	Rank
Shadow Focus	5/5
Spirit Tap	5/5
Mind Flay	1/1

This reaches Mind Flay while investing in spell reliability and post-kill recovery.

Level 30 Shadow extension — 21 points

Keep the level-20 points, then add:

Talent	Added rank
Improved Shadow Word: Pain	2/2
Shadow Reach	2/2
Improved Mind Blast	5/5
Devouring Contagion	1/2

The extension passes the fixed snapshot's 21-point constraints. It does not verify later tuning or a release-client build.

Combat priority

1. Apply Shadow Word: Pain when the enemy will survive for most of its duration.
2. Use Mind Blast for controlled burst, then Mind Flay while maintaining safe distance.
3. Finish with wand attacks when that preserves enough mana for the next pull.
4. Try to receive the killing blow when Spirit Tap recovery matters.
5. Use Power Word: Shield and healing proactively when a death would cost more time than the mana.

Gear direction

Intellect, Spirit, Stamina and useful spell damage are natural leveling directions. Blizzard says caster weapons can now provide spell damage and healing, and bonus healing also grants one third as much bonus damage. That makes healing-oriented upgrades less punishing while soloing, but exact stat weights still depend on spell ranks and downtime.

Use the Talent Calculator to prepare a separate Discipline or Holy dungeon build.

Known beta interaction

Blizzard's September 24 notes say Starshards now benefits from Twilight Focus against spell pushback; this site has not independently re-tested it in a client. Check Beta Known Issues before planning around that interaction.

Early gear sources and alternatives

These are lookup examples from the 42-item loot snapshot, reviewed September 24, not new October item testing or a BiS ranking. That dataset does not contain full attributes, class restrictions or confirmed boss attribution. Inspect the actual tooltip, trained weapon type and role before rolling; two items in the same slot are not automatically interchangeable upgrades.

Slot / type	Beta lookup candidate	Source	Another candidate
Two-Hand Staff	Golemheart Stave — requires level 13	The Hall of Thanes	Segmented Spider Leg — requires level 15
Chest Cloth	Robes of the Disgraced Thane — requires level 13	The Hall of Thanes	Robe of Evocation — requires level 13
Feet Cloth	Frostbane Treads — requires level 19	Ruins of Lordaeron	No second same-slot sample in this snapshot

If the tooltip is unsuitable, compare an already-owned quest or crafted item instead of farming a name on this list. No drop rate or guaranteed upgrade is promised.

Enchants and consumables for this role

Keep healing and damage goals distinct when comparing spellpower, Intellect and Spirit; stamina matters when survival is the constraint. Check the healing value of an item instead of choosing by cloth armor alone. Prepare water, food, a usable mana/healing potion and affordable caster or healing enchants.

Use Enchanting for formulas, Merchant's Favor for vendor requirements and Camping for non-stacking class buffs. Check item level, slot restrictions and temporary-effect compatibility before paying.

A practical macro template

#showtooltip Renew
/cast [@mouseover,help,nodead][help,nodead][@player] Renew

This attempts Renew on a living friendly mouseover, then a friendly target, otherwise yourself. It does not check missing health or choose a heal rank; the self-cast fallback may spend mana when the intended ally is not under the cursor.

Target priority is conditional, not a retry after a failed cast: an otherwise valid out-of-range mouseover still takes priority.

This is English-client syntax, not an in-game Forever test. Replace spell names with the exact names from your own spellbook. Use the macro setup and troubleshooting guide for binding, target checks and limitations.

Sources

• Blizzard — September 18 Known Issues
• Blizzard — Forever Deep Dive
• Blizzard — class deep dive, announced mechanics