I think shamans aren't much played because they suffer in comparison to priests. Priests got some cool new stuff in the religion-based spells. And once you get to Expert and above, where the game is largely played, priests get more interesting stuff. Compare the spell lists for Expert and above, excluding duplicates:
Priest: detect aura, enchant armor, enchant weapon, gate, harm, holy word, mass healing, recharge, resurrection
Shaman: seance, spirit horde, voodoo
Not a hard choice here, mechanically, unless you're a real voodoo fan. Granted, this comparison isn't totally fair, considering lower levels. And priests are deliberately a top class for good game reasons. The real problem is that priests and shamans are so similar. I think shamans could use a high-level skill or spell to help with tanking or debuffing, even if the skill itself isn't that powerful.
|