Guardian Druid Midnight Gearing Guide

Midnight Season 2 Guardian Druid Tier Set Bonus:

• (2) Set Bonus: Thrash has a 20% chance to make your next Mangle deal 100% increased damage
• (4) Set Bonus: Thrash calls up 3 thorns, each dealing nature damage to your target and up to 5 nearby enemies while also extending the duration of Incarnation by 0.5s, up to a max of 5s

Tier Set Discussion:

This is another passive tier bonus that you won’t really think about, basically just passively giving more damage to both Thrash and Mangle while also adding 5s to your Incarnation duration. Overall this isn’t an amazing bonus but its decent overall, and has nice synergy with the changes to the Apex nodes.

You should still prioritise the gear you use by running a sim for your character, but the lists below will give you a good idea of what items are considered good for Guardian Druid, and help you target the right content for each piece of loot.

• Overall
• Raiding
• Mythic+

Special Items

Abyssal Broodfiend's Bardiche (Polearm, Ula’tek) - While this weapon comes with Mastery instead of a more valued stat, it offers so much of it due to its cantrip effect that it remains a strong option on its own. On top of that, the Mythic version of this weapon is equivalent to 9/6 Myth track, making it the highest item level weapon available in Season 2.

Gaze Of The Coiled Watcher (Helmet, Ula’tek) - Similar to the weapon, this helmet has a cantrip effect for increased stats and higher item level, but in this case it actually offers Guardians best stat, Haste, making it the clear best option available to use as is or turned into a tier piece via the catalyst.

Aqirbane Reliquary (Neck, Ula’tek) - The third and final cantrip item available to Guardian druids, this one instead boosts Crit, but again it comes at an increased item level and drops with two sockets instead of one, causing it to give more overall stats than any other neck available.

Trinkets

Keeper's Seething Core (Entombed Sentinels) - This stat stick trinket gives flat primary stat along with a stacking haste proc that gives bonus value if you have multiple stacks at once. Since this is Guardians best stat, this is looking like one of the best all around options this season.

Gebbo's Bottomless Bag (The Lost Explorers) - Another stat proc trinket, this one rotates between buffs to each secondary stat, and since Guardian doesn’t hate any of the stats this is a decent option, especially if you’re looking for something passive.

Idol Of The Howling Nexus (Sszorak) - While this trinket is an interesting concept, unfortunately the proc rate and amount are a bit undertuned, making this a relatively weak passive option.

Voracious Heart Of Ula'tek (Ula’’tek) - With more rage generation in Season 2, Incarnation is looking to line up with 1.5min CD trinkets, and this is looking like the best option in that regard, especially with it dropping at an increased item level.

Font Of Venomous Rage (Ula’tek) - This pure damage option likely won’t be good in most situations, however in raid encounters with damage amps or when the fight timer works out nicely for this 4min CD effect this can be extremely potent.

Permafrost Essence (Den of Nalorakk) - This trinket unfortunately caught significant nerfs in season 1, and while the crit rating it provides is still respectable, the consistency of maintaining the effect is a bit lacking, so I generally recommend going for something else.

Resonant Bellowstone (Murder Row) - A passive crit stat stick, nothing super exciting but it is the best passive stat option available from dungeons this season.

Freightrunner's Flask (Murder Row) - A 1.5min CD on-use alternative from dungeons, not as powerful as the raid version but stronger passively as it has primary stat on it.

Manaheart's Binding Flame (Murder Row) - One of the few defensive trinkets available in season 2, unfortunately the absorb amount is extremely undertuned, so if you want defensive value you’re better off using a stat stick.

Lightspire Core (The Blinding Vale) - This Mastery stat stick is a bit annoying to get value out of as you need to stand inside the light procs it does, which combined with Guardian not being a huge fan of the stat in general leads to it being a bit underwhelming.

Mchimba's Ritual Bandages (Kings’ Rest) - Just like with the Murder Row absorb trinket, the absorb here is very lackluster and is generally best to avoid.

Ruby Whelp Shell (Ruby Life Pools) - While this trinket was a decent option back in Dragonflight, with the tank damage reduction on cantrip effects that path is no longer great, and the stat proc isn’t as good as what some of the other trinkets this season provide.

Trinket Recommendations

Raid - Voracious Heart Of Ula'tek and Keeper's Seething Core

M+ - Keeper's Seething Core and Gebbo's Bottomless Bag

Other Good Options - Font Of Venomous Rage, Freightrunner's Flask, Resonant Bellowstone

Arcanoweave Lining (Armor) - The go-to option in season 1, this is looking like it’ll remain one of the top options in season 2 with its primary stat proc that also buffs a nearby ally for extra value.

Adorned Fang (Armor) - One of the new embellishments coming in 12.1, this instead gives you a stacking Haste buff with a fairly high proc rate, making it competitive with Arcanoweave Lining.

Darkmoon Sigil: Hunt (Weapon) - While this isn’t amazing on its own, since you can throw this onto a weapon craft it has extra value early on when Myth track weapons are scarce, though it loses value later in the season.

Embellishment Recommendations

If you have access to Mythic Coiled Altar Loot - Arcanoweave Lining on Bracers and Boots

If you don’t - Arcanoweave Lining x2 on Cloak, Bracers, Belt, or Boots

Nebulous Voidcores (Bonus Rolls)

The Midnight Season 2 Bonus Rolls (Nebulous Voidcores) will be available from the start of the season as an alternative reward from your Great Vault when you’ve filled at least 3 slots. On top of this, later in the season you’ll be able to obtain one of these a week for a small cost.

Nebulous Voidcores let you target specific loot from a Raid Boss or Mythic+ Dungeon, and once an item is received via Bonus Loot, that item is removed from the Bonus Loot Pool.

Below are the High Priority bonus roll target items and where they drop from:

Omnium Folio

The Omnium Folio is a new player power system released Patch 12.0.7 that will be active for the duration of the Midnight Expansion. By completing a weekly quest, you will unlock more of the Omnium Folio upgrade Tree and can choose from a number of player power enhancements.

Recommended Omnium Folio Powers for Guardian Druid:

• Row 1: Rune Of Unleashed Fire
• Row 2: Rune Of Self-Mending
• Row 3: Rune Of Lingering
• Row 4: Rune Of Burning Haste (can sim to see which stat is best for you)
• Row 5: Rune Of Overload

For more information on this system, check out Method’s Omnium Folio Overview Guide.