Shaman Restoration Rotation & Opener
Built from the current top-100 Mythic parses on WarcraftLogs — the real opener sequences, casts-per-minute and buff uptimes of the best Restoration players, not theorycraft.
AI coach — raid
How to play: Riptide on cooldown (top players: 10.8/min), Chain Heal is your group-heal workhorse (19/min, riding Riptide's Tidal Waves buff), Unleash Life empowers the next spell (2.9/min). Healing Stream and Surging Totems on refresh. Fill healing gaps with Lava Burst and Flame Shock (2.5 and 2.1/min). Watch: Tidal Waves (81.5% uptime) — Chain Heal wants to be cast under it; totem placement and remaining duration, pre-drop before big damage.
Real Opener Sequences — Vorasius
First ~12 casts of actual top-ranked kills. Trinkets and racials vary by setup; the skill order is what to copy.
Shampusikha — Revushchiy ford (EU)
1.
Bloodlust
2.
Healing Rain
3.
Surging Totem
4.
Riptide
5.
Riptide
6.
Flame Shock
7.
Flame Shock
8.
Lava Burst
9.
Lava Burst
10.
Riptide
11.
Unleash Life
12.
Nature's Swiftness
Poongers — Tarren Mill (EU)
1.
Flame Shock
2.
Flame Shock
3.
Riptide
4.
Unleash Life
5.
Earth Shield
6.
Riptide
7.
Flame Shock
8.
Flame Shock
9.
Lava Burst
10.
Riptide
11.
Healing Stream Totem
12.
Chain Heal
Khevengay — Revushchiy ford (EU)
1.
Flame Shock
2.
Flame Shock
3.
Lava Burst
4.
Lava Burst
5.
Spiritwalker's Grace
6.
Lightning Bolt
7.
Riptide
8.
Healing Rain
9.
Surging Totem
10.
Unleash Life
11.
Nature's Swiftness
12.
Stormstream Totem
Casts Per Minute — Raid Benchmark
| Ability | Top-player CPM |
|---|---|
| Chain Heal | 19.0 |
| Riptide | 10.8 |
| Healing Stream Totem | 3.4 |
| Unleash Life | 2.9 |
| Lava Burst | 2.5 |
| Flame Shock | 2.1 |
| Healing Rain | 2.1 |
| Surging Totem | 2.1 |
| Stormstream Totem | 1.6 |
| Spiritwalker's Grace | 0.9 |
| Nature's Swiftness | 0.9 |
| Healing Wave | 0.7 |
| Gust of Wind | 0.5 |
| Totemic Projection | 0.5 |
CPM = median casts per minute across the sampled top kills. If you're far below on a core ability, that's usually the first thing to fix.
Buff Uptimes to Watch
| Buff | Top-player uptime |
|---|---|
| Deepening Temptation | 88.5% |
| Amplification Core | 85.2% |
| Tidal Waves | 81.5% |
| Whirling Water | 78.3% |
| Arcanoweave Insight | 72.7% |
| Might of the Void | 59.4% |
| Alnscorned Essence | 53.6% |
| Coalescing Water | 46.9% |
| Black Attunement | 43.9% |
| Riftwalker's Temptation | 43.3% |
Mythic+ Differences
AI coach — Mythic+
How to play: Spot healing leads — Riptide first, Healing Wave follows, Chain Heal saved for group damage moments. When bars are stable, contribute Lava Burst and Flame Shock. Pre-place Healing Stream and Surging Totem before pulls. Watch: keep Riptide rolling on the tank; make sure totem range follows the group's movement — relocate them when left behind.
Casts Per Minute — Mythic+ Benchmark
| Ability | Top-player CPM |
|---|---|
| Riptide | 7.6 |
| Healing Wave | 6.7 |
| Chain Heal | 5.9 |
| Lava Burst | 3.0 |
| Healing Stream Totem | 2.7 |
| Flame Shock | 2.3 |
| Unleash Life | 2.1 |
| Surging Totem | 1.9 |
| Healing Rain | 1.9 |
| Chain Lightning | 1.3 |
| Lightning Bolt | 1.3 |
| Totemic Projection | 1.2 |
| Stormstream Totem | 1.2 |
| Ghost Wolf | 1.0 |
Mythic+ Buff Uptimes
| Buff | Top-player uptime |
|---|---|
| Battle Shout | 94.9% |
| Earth Elemental | 87.0% |
| Amplification Core | 80.5% |
| Tidal Waves | 69.8% |
| Ancestral Vigor | 66.8% |
| Elemental Resistance | 66.6% |
| Arcanoweave Insight | 62.5% |
| Earthliving Weapon | 62.5% |
| Void-Touched | 58.1% |
| Might of the Void | 55.7% |
Compare yourself in-game, live
The GearInsight addon overlays your own CPM and buff uptimes next to these benchmarks during combat.