Beat Balance Druid

What they want to do

Moonfire and Sunfire both targets, Cyclone the extra DPS, Solar Beam your healer, then Starsurge and Starfall during Celestial Alignment or Incarnation. In Solo Shuffle they win if you interrupt Wrath and let Cyclone land.

Main danger

Cyclone plus Solar Beam silence. A healer inside Solar Beam cannot save you. Starfall punishes the clump you made for a stun.

Interrupt priority

1. 1 Cyclone

   Kick Cyclone first. A free Cyclone on a DPS turns the round into a 2v2 you cannot dispel. Instant Predatory Swiftness Cyclone still counts — break line of sight if you cannot interrupt.

2. 1 Solar Beam

   If Cyclone is down, step out of Solar Beam or interrupt the channel. A healer inside Solar Beam cannot peel. Drag them out.

3. 2 Convoke the Spirits if talented

   Interrupt or hard crowd-control immediately. Do not let Balance Convoke finish — it is damage and heals in one channel.

4. 3 Wrath / Starfire

   Do not spend the kick on Wrath. That cast is bait for Cyclone. Interrupt Wrath or Starfire only when Cyclone and Solar Beam are both down.

Watch for

• Cyclone on the extra DPS the second you press offensive cooldowns — that is the setup.
• Solar Beam dropped on your healer, not on you — step them out or the peel is gone.
• Celestial Alignment overlapping a successful Cyclone is when Starsurge kills. Press a defensive before the third Starsurge.
• Starfall on a stacked team — they want the clump you made for a stun. Spread after the stun lands.

Offensive cooldowns

• Celestial Alignment / Incarnation. Their damage window. Starsurge kills here. Break line of sight or press a defensive before the third Starsurge. Assume Cyclone already covered a partner.
• Starsurge. Instant burst. You cannot interrupt it. Stun the druid or break line of sight. Three of these during Celestial Alignment is the kill.
• Starfall. Area pressure on a clump. Spread. Standing stacked after your own stun is how Solo Shuffle rounds leak into Starfall.
• Solar Beam. Silence circle. Step out. Treat a healer inside Solar Beam as a full crowd-control on your peel — drag them, do not keep hitting.
• Convoke the Spirits if talented. Channeled damage and heals. Interrupt, stun, or Cyclone them first. Do not eat the full channel.

Defensive cooldowns

• Barkskin. Short damage reduction. Keep light pressure unless Bear Form is also up. Physical damage still works; caster cooldowns wait.
• Bear Form. Do not dump caster cooldowns into full Bear Form. Wait the shift or swap. Cheap physical pressure can hold them in bear until you are ready.
• Ironbark if talented. External damage reduction on an ally. Swap off that target or wait the duration. Same play as against Restoration.
• Renewal if talented. Large self-heal. Keep hitting unless Barkskin or Bear Form is overlapping. Stun them through the heal if you can.
• Heart of the Wild if talented. Hybrid defensive plus off-heals. Interrupt Cyclone first; the heals are second. Do not treat the off-heals as the kick target.

Crowd control

• Cyclone
• Entangling Roots
• Solar Beam
• Ursol's Vortex
• Mighty Bash if talented
• Typhoon if talented

Dispels

• Moonfire and Sunfire are magic — purge them off the healer if you can or the druid never has to recast.
• Cyclone cannot be dispelled. Do not trinket it. Play the remaining 2v2.

Mobility

Wild Charge, Typhoon, Ursol's Vortex, travel form, Dash in a panic. They kite in Moonkin and drop Ursol's Vortex on melee. Do not chase a charging druid in a straight line. Root the landing. Vortex is the answer to a gap closer, not a sprint — step out, then re-enter.

Kill windows

• After Cyclone is down and they are not in Bear Form
• Celestial Alignment burned without a kill, Barkskin already used
• Caught in Moonkin form in the open after a wasted Solar Beam

When to run

When Cyclone is covering the extra DPS and Solar Beam is on your healer. Break line of sight on the druid. Do not stand in Starfall to finish a cast.

When to attack

After Cyclone is down and they are not in Bear Form. Best if they already spent Celestial Alignment and Barkskin. Physical damage still works through Barkskin; caster cooldowns wait for Bear Form to drop.

Common tricks

• They fake-cast Wrath to steal your interrupt, then Cyclone.
• They Cyclone the partner, Solar Beam the healer, Starsurge the kill — that is the whole round. Watch the extra DPS, not the Moonfire ticks.
• Ursol's Vortex plus Starfall on the clump. If you stacked for a stun, spread before Starfall, not after.

Common mistakes against them

• Kicking Wrath instead of Cyclone.
• Trinketing Cyclone instead of playing the remaining 2v2.
• Standing in Solar Beam while your healer is also in it.
• Clumping for Starfall after a successful stun.