Shadow Cleave 5-man: Feral Druid bear tank talents (levels 40–60)

Theorycrafted before the WoW Forever beta (September 17, 2026). The group plan follows how cleave groups played in Classic, the talents use the pre-release WoW Forever trees on this site, and ability levels quoted from Classic may differ in Forever. Expect updates once the beta is testable.

The group at a glance

Shadow Cleave for levels 40–60: a Feral Druid bear, a Shadow Priest, an Affliction Warlock, a Demonology Warlock and a Discipline Priest.

Shadow cleave kills medium pulls with damage over time instead of burst. The bear holds three to five mobs with Swipe, the Shadow Priest and the Affliction Warlock put their damage over time spells on every mob, and the Demonology Warlock adds Rain of Fire and interrupts casters with the Felhunter. Vampiric Embrace heals the whole party from the Priest’s Shadow damage and the Discipline Priest shields whoever takes the hits, so the group drinks less than a burst group.

Role	Spec	Job in the pull
Tank	Feral Combat Druid	Swipes three to five mobs and holds them through the damage over time
DPS	Shadow Priest	Shadow Word: Pain on every mob, Vampiric Embrace for party healing, Silence on casters
DPS	Affliction Warlock	Corruption and Bane of Agony on every mob, Curse of Exhaustion on runners
DPS	Demonology Warlock	Rain of Fire on the pack, Felhunter Spell Lock on casters, summons
Healer	Discipline Priest	Power Word: Shield on the bear, Penance on spikes, Power Infusion on a Warlock

Every spec in the table links to its own guide with talents for that slot.

How the shadow cleave plays

1. Pull size: three to five mobs. Damage over time needs a few seconds to work, so every mob has to live long enough to take the full effect.
2. Threat first: the bear gathers and Swipes three times before anyone casts. Suppression and Shadow Affinity cut the casters’ threat, but damage over time on every mob still adds up.
3. Spread the damage: the Warlock casts Corruption and Bane of Agony on each mob, the Priest uses Shadow Word: Pain and Vampiric Embrace, the Demonology Warlock places Rain of Fire on the bear.
4. Spread on death: with Devouring Contagion, a mob that dies with the Priest’s Devouring Plague passes it to a mob within 5 yards, so the last mobs of the pack die faster.
5. Interrupts and shields: the Felhunter’s Spell Lock stops casters, the Discipline Priest puts Power Word: Shield on the bear before the pull and on any caster who draws aggro.

Your job as Feral Combat Druid

Your pulls last longer than in a burst group, because damage over time needs time to tick. That means steady threat on every mob rather than one big opener. Swipe three times before the casters start, then keep Swiping and Mangle whichever mob the Shadow Priest or the Warlocks are about to pull. Leader of the Pack stays on as long as you stay in form.

Pull by pull

• Enrage for Rage, then gather three to five mobs and turn them away from the group.
• Three Swipes before the first damage over time lands; the casters wait for them.
• Mangle and Lacerate on the mob with the most damage over time on it.
• Feral Charge or Bash the caster the Felhunter could not reach.
• Berserk when the pack is larger than planned.

Mistakes that wipe the group

• Moving the pack after Rain of Fire is placed.
• Pulling the next pack while the last mob still has damage over time on it: it may flee into the new pack.
• Dropping out of bear form to heal yourself: the Discipline Priest has shields for that.

Talent order by level

One point per level from level 10. The talent tree above shows the finished level 60 build; use the level slider to see it at any level.

• Levels 10–14 · Ferocity 5/5 — 5 less Rage for Maul, Mangle and Swipe.
• Levels 15–17 · Feral Instinct 3/3 — +30% Swipe damage: more threat on every mob in the pack.
• Levels 18–19 · Thick Hide 2/3 — More armor in bear form.
• Level 20 · Feral Charge 1/1 — Charge and interrupt a caster that would otherwise stay out of the pack.
• Levels 21–22 · Savage Fury 2/2 — +10% Maul and Swipe damage; required for Mangle.
• Levels 23–24 · Sharpened Claws 2/2 — +6% critical strike chance in forms, which also feeds Primal Fury.
• Level 25 · Mangle 1/1 — Strong single-target threat on a 6 sec cooldown.
• Levels 26–27 · Primal Fury 2/2 — A chance for 5 extra Rage on every critical strike in bear form.
• Levels 28–29 · Predatory Strikes 2/3 — More attack power in forms.
• Level 30 · Leader of the Pack 1/1 — +3% critical strike chance for every party member within 45 yards while you are in form.
• Level 31 · Predatory Strikes 3/3 — finish the talent.
• Level 32 · Thick Hide 3/3 — finish the talent.
• Levels 33–34 · Heart of the Wild 2/5 — +4% Stamina in bear form.
• Levels 35–39 · Natural Reaction 5/5 — +5% dodge and 5 Rage on every dodge.
• Level 40 · Berserk 1/1 — For 15 sec Mangle hits up to 3 targets with no cooldown. Also clears and blocks fear.
• Levels 41–43 · Heart of the Wild 5/5 — finish the talent.
• Levels 44–48 · Rend and Tear 5/5 — +10% melee damage against bleeding targets: keep Lacerate on the mob you Mangle.
• Levels 49–50 · Brutal Impact 2/2 — Longer Bash stun and a 15 sec shorter Bash cooldown for casters.
• Levels 51–52 · Feral Swiftness 2/2 — +4% dodge.
• Levels 53–55 · Shredding Attacks 3/3 — 3 less Rage for Lacerate.
• Levels 56–57 · Predatory Instincts 2/2 — Bigger melee critical strikes, which also means more threat.
• Levels 58–60 · Furor (Restoration) 3/5 — A chance for 10 Rage when you shift into bear form, for pulls that start right after a buff or a heal out of form.

Dungeons by level

Every WoW Forever dungeon that overlaps levels 40–60. Dungeons marked New were added in WoW Forever; the rest are the original Classic dungeons.

Levels	Dungeon	Notes
34–40	Scarlet Monastery Library	Original Classic dungeon.
35–40	The Drowned City (New)	Trolls, naga and pirates off the Stranglethorn coast.
37–43	Scarlet Monastery Armory	Original Classic dungeon.
38–44	Razorfen Downs	Original Classic dungeon.
39–45	Scarlet Monastery Cathedral	Original Classic dungeon.
40–55	Krol’dok Stronghold (New)	New WoW Forever dungeon.
44–50	Uldaman	Original Classic dungeon.
45–51	Zul’Farrak	Original Classic dungeon.
48–53	Alcaz Prison (New)	New WoW Forever dungeon.
48–54	Maraudon	Original Classic dungeon.
52–58	Sunken Temple	Original Classic dungeon.
52–60	Blackrock Depths	Original Classic dungeon.
55–60	Dire Maul East	Original Classic dungeon.
55–60	Blackmaw Hold (New)	New WoW Forever dungeon.
57–60	Lower Blackrock Spire	Original Classic dungeon.
58–60	Dire Maul West	Original Classic dungeon.
58–60	Scholomance	Original Classic dungeon.
58–60	The Shapers Terrace (New)	New WoW Forever dungeon.
59–60	Stratholme (Undead)	Original Classic dungeon.
59–60	Stratholme (Live)	Original Classic dungeon.
59–60	Dire Maul North	Original Classic dungeon.

Krol’dok Stronghold and Uldaman give this group long corridors of medium packs from level 40. Zul’Farrak, Alcaz Prison and Maraudon are good at 48–54, and Blackrock Depths is a strong 52–60 home because its many humanoid casters meet Spell Lock and Silence. At 58–60 the undead of Scholomance and Stratholme take full damage from Shadow spells in Classic, so check resistances in the beta before committing to a route.

Where the group struggles

• Short fights: mobs that die in a few seconds waste most of the damage over time. On weak trash, pull more or single-target it.
• Crowd control: damage over time breaks Polymorph, Sap and Fear on anything it spreads to. Keep crowd-controlled mobs far away from the pack.
• Shadow-resistant mobs cut the damage of three players at once. Use Rain of Fire, Mind Blast less, and let the bear hold longer.
• Runaways: feared or fleeing mobs carry their damage over time into the next pack. Curse of Exhaustion and Silence stop them.