Question.. I'm new to wow but not boxing ...

[Ualaa]

A very basic choice...

a) Tank + 3/4x DPS that can heal, possibly with another class.
b) Tank + 3x DPS + 1x Dedicated healer.

Both approaches have merit, strengths and weaknesses.

Another option, I'm seeing people having success with:
Tank + 2x Healers + 2x DPS.
Especially if the 2x Healers can add some amount of DPS to almost equal a 3rd DPS.
Gunsun has a thread on this composition, with others trying several variants.
2x Holy Pallies, each doing Beacon on 2x Elemental Shammies and then healing 1x Tank, is an example; each heal on the tank, hits the entire group with 1x Heal per other toon and 2x Heal on the tank.

[gunsun]

This is an iconic question on these boards, and you'll get a lot of different responses from people who've made different compositions work successfully at all levels of the game.

However, if you want the optimal group, my belief is still that it will be a tank with 4 of the same dps that can offheal well. This generally means the dps are all either shaman/paladin/druid.

The reason I say this is, if all 4 of the dps are the same class, it is VERY easy to keep their actions in sync. This means fewer keystrokes and less mental effort spent keeping the rotation right, and properly using CDs, etc.

Some people disagree with me, and say that a more diverse team brings a greater number of buffs and abilities, and is therefore, theoretically, more powerful. Perhaps true theoretically, but since we (the people driving) aren't computers, we have to factor in how many different things we can simultaneously keep track of. I'm sure seasoned experts at diverse compositions will tell you that they are very comfortable with their class comps, and I'm sure they are. I still assert that, if they had a simpler rotation, they'd have more time to play more effectively in other ways (like noticing what more of your opponents are doing in pvp, or moving away from environmental effects in pve, that kind of stuff). That type of awareness is, imo, more important than an extra CD here or there.

In some ways, this reminds of the argument whether or not to run addon mods in the game. I have a friend that is a great healer, but he refuses to run any addons. Obviously, it's possible to heal very well at the game without healbot/grid/et al, but I always ask him "how much better would you be if you could heal at the same level with even more free time to do other things?"

So that's my opinion on which is optimal. Having said that, I'll tell you to run whatever sounds the funnest to you. Seriously, it's a game, have fun at it and who cares if it's best or not. Or, if best is how you have fun, then I just told you what I think.

Hope it helps.

I'd agree with most of this. Personally I like mixed teams and run Pally tank, 2 shaman, mage and druid. This maximizes drop usage and buffs and you have ports. Ranged dps tend to play the same once you get used to the mechanics.

But my first real successful team was a pally and 4 shaman. It's a great team to learn on and can brute force certain encounters. After that team I moved on to mixed teams.

The only warning I'd give is that WoW content changes a lot. I haven't tried any of the old instances since the face lift, but a lot of teams that worked for me from 1-60 started to fall apart in 60-70 instances. The few that survived that tier really fell apart in 70-80 instances.

I tried things like a healer and 4 dps, which doesn't do well later in the game. You really need a tank, especially if you are a new player and don't have anyone to help you farm drops or buy gear.

With a Pally and 4 shaman I could run all the five man content from 1-80. Haven't tried it yet in Cata, but I'd assume it still works fine. You might need 1 of them to be resto for cleaning magic, but that is really boss-situation specific and not that common.

[gunsun]

A very basic choice...

a) Tank + 3/4x DPS that can heal, possibly with another class.
b) Tank + 3x DPS + 1x Dedicated healer.

Both approaches have merit, strengths and weaknesses.

Another option, I'm seeing people having success with:
Tank + 2x Healers + 2x DPS.
Especially if the 2x Healers can add some amount of DPS to almost equal a 3rd DPS.
Gunsun has a thread on this composition, with others trying several variants.
2x Holy Pallies, each doing Beacon on 2x Elemental Shammies and then healing 1x Tank, is an example; each heal on the tank, hits the entire group with 1x Heal per other toon and 2x Heal on the tank.

I did write up a thread on a team that almost plays itself. Shaman are very versatile as primary heals and backup dps. It's the same idea as 4 dps that backup heal, but reversed. You almost never crowd control in the 80-85 instances, which i think is a lot of fun.

I'm not sure if you want to learn that team to start because you have to learn multiple classes and specs. You could run a pally and 4 shaman, and then play with 2 of them as resto shaman. Then you could see if you like it or not.

[Mickthathick]

You can take advantage of every drop by using a vendor.

Or level enchanting on one toon, so that everything can be sharded

[d0z3rr]

I'm the same as the Op. I made my melee team diverse so no melee drops would go to waste.

When I ran my 5x pally group (again, biggest mistake was rolling 5 pallies, hated that group), I saw so much gear go to waste, made me sick.

So yeah, go with a mixed team. They're the most fun, and the complexity is not overwhelming at all. They take a bit more time to set up, but I enjoy setting up mixed groups, personally.

As for melee vs. casters? Toss a coin. There are so many boss fights where you'll be like "damn, if I had a melee team this would be cake!" and vice versa. I don't believe melee is gimped vs casters, although my knowledge of WoW only extends to level 80, not 85...melee teams might very well be total crap at 85.

[Ualaa]

When I ran my 5x pally group (again, biggest mistake was rolling 5 pallies, hated that group)

To each their own, I suppose.
I've recently rolled a 5x Paladin group, with the intention of going Holy Shockadin / Healers, with a primary focus on non-rated 25-40 man battlegrounds.

Not sure if I'll play them all the way up.
But have configured their set up, UI/IS Boxer/Addons, etc.
And they seem to be fun, so far.
Actually kept going with them last night, stayed up a few hours past my usual bed time with them, which is a nice sign.

Then again, I have no intention of running instances with them.
Or going Tank + Heals + DPS.
So a different style of play might mean the team is more fun, without gear going to waste.

[d0z3rr]

Went to BG a few times on my pally team. Wasn't fun getting two-shot by mages.

[Ualaa]

A pally is a plate class.
So they'll be on the upper edge of hit points, for any character - at equal gear level/type of gear.

They do have resistance aura, making them as resistant as anyone is likely to be.
I suppose if you don't have Grounding Totems...
Every class can be two-shotted by mages then.
Although that didn't seem to be the case with my druids, in Cata PvP.