The [item]Whitemend Hood[/item] is the best way to go here, but you’ll probably need some time before gathering up the World of Warcraft gold it costs, so you might want to grind for some alternatives beforehand. Whichever head item you choose, if you plan to use it for a longer period of time, make sure you get a [item]Glyph of Renewal[/item] on it to boost its efficiency:

Unfortunately, 2 of the best pre-raiding necklaces in World of Warcraft The Burning Crusade are Heroic drops, but fortunately the other 2 are quest rewards and can be obtained with relative ease). Here’s the stuff:

Regardless of the item you choose for, if you’re Aldor you should get the [item]Inscription of Faith[/item] (Honored) or [item]Greater Inscription of Faith[/item] (Exalted) shoulder enchants if you think you’ll use the item for a while. If you’re a mooncloth tailor, the [item]Primal Mooncloth Shoulders[/item] are the way to go, combined with the other 2 set items. However, there are a few other options available, such as:

There are basically 5 items you could go through for your chest slot as a holy priest. The decision as what to wear will depend on how much you’re willing to spend for your chest piece, your profession (if you’re a tailor or not) and ultimately your other items, since your chest item may increase its value if it completes a set. Here’s the loot:

That pre-TBC [item]Hide of the Wild[/item] won’t keep you warm in Outland, but fortunately there’s quite a selection of items you can replace it with. Here’s what I’d go after:

The wrists, just like the waist slot is one of the most problematic for holy priests due to the lack of options. Earning Exalted Keepers of Time reputation for the [item]Bindings of the Timewalker[/item] is not that difficult with a bit of grinding effort and a helpful group of guildies or friends, but it still takes a while. Here are some of your options:

Since there are no craftable items for your hands slot, it’s best to focus on grinding one of these items:

Unfortunately, the waist slot will be problematic for holy priests. Few options and most of them are craftables, so that means you’ll have to spend some of your hard earned World of Warcraft gold on making them. It helps if you’re a mooncloth tailor, but if you’re not, your choices are reduced even further. Here’s what I recommend:

Not a lot of options for holy priest cloth pants, but that’s a good thing since it will be easier to decide what you’re going to farm. If you’re going to use your obtained healing pants for a while, I recommend you buy [item]Silver Spellthread[/item] or [item]Golden Spellthread[/item] and apply it on them for a nice boost. Obviously, if you have the money for Whitemend Pants[/item] (especially if you have the hood as well), go for it, but if you’re short on World of Warcraft gold, try farming some of these other items:

Again, fewer options than other item slots, but at least you know what to farm for. As Horde, you have even fewer options since the [item]Curate’s Boots[/item] are only available to Alliance players and if you don’t have Tempest Keep rep to go in Mechanar Heroics, the [item]Boots of the Pious[/item] are ruled out for you too…nevertheless, here are my options:

Rings shouldn’t be a problem, since you can get some nice holy priest pre-raiding rings from all directions, namely reputation rewards, normal and heroic instances and quests. Depending on your build and playing style, you can go for mana regeneration, +healing or stats. Here are some rings to choose from:

This is one slot that holy priests won’t whine about, since there are plenty of awesome pre-raid trinkets to get. There are plenty of combinations you can get, based on your spec, your playing style and your Aldor/Scryer faction, so it’s really up to you to find the best one. Here’s what you should go after:

Since holy priests can choose between using 2-handed staves and a combination of a dagger or hammer and an off-hand, the choices here are quite varied. A 1-hand + off-hand combo worth aiming for includes any of these items:

Some 1-hand mace/dagger + off-hand combinations may be better than using a 2-handed staff, but in case you’re missing one of the components of the above combination, a staff comes in very handy. You’ll have to decide for yourself whether or not it’s better to use a staff over the 1-hand + offhand weapon combination. Here are some staff options for your holy priest:

Lots of options for shadow priests for the head slot item, but your main goal should still be gathering enough World of Warcraft gold in order to buy mats for [item]Spellstrike Hood[/item] or [item]Battlecast Hood[/item]. If you plan to use a head item for a while, try enchanting it with [item]Glyph of Power[/item] for an extra boost. Anyways, here's what you can get from pre-raid Outland:

Not a lot of options here, but with a little grinding of Shadow Labs or The Mechanar you should have a solid choice for your neck slot as well. Here's what you should be looking after:

Plenty of options here, with shoulder slot items dropping from normal and heroic bosses and some good quest rewards as well. If you're a Shadowcloth tailor, your main attraction should be [item]Frozen Shadoweave Shoulders[/item], provided you have the necessary World of Warcraft gold to buy the mats. You'll also have to save up some gold for [item]Inscription of Discipline[/item] or [item]Inscription of the Orb[/item], which you get when you're Honored with Aldor or the Scryers respectively. At Exalted, you'll have the option to enchant your shoulder slot with [item]Greater Inscription of Discipline[/item] and [item]Greater Inscription of the Orb[/item] from the same factions:

Many spell damage options here as well for Shadow priests and Discipline priests alike. Shadow priests that are Shadowcloth tailors should obviously aim for [item]Frozen Shadoweave Robe[/item] if they can spare the hefty amount of WoW gold that item will eat up:

The cloak slot is one of the hardest to fill by shadow priests and offensive casters, since you have few viable options at hand at first:

Unfortunately there are no +shadow damage high level bracers, so you'll have to go for spell damage if you're a shadow priest. Unfortunately, most of the good damage bracers are from Heroics, although you have some options before you can get to them:

Lots of nice gloves waiting for your shadow or discipline smite priest. The [item]Jaedenfire Gloves of Annihilation[/item] are the only gloves with +shadow damage on them, although there are several other gloves out there that have better Spell Damage and stats:

It might seem like you don't have a lot of options for the waist slot as a shadow priest, but actually this just makes the choice easier for you. [item]Girdle of Ruination[/item] should probably be on your list, provided you have the WoW gold for it, but there are other waist items you can get as placeholders for it:

Thank God, a shadow priest will never be butt-naked, since there is quite a collection of useful leg items that you can grind, buy or craft. If you have the money, base the decision between Spellstrike and Battlecast on what stats you need, as Battlecast has more Stamina and Intellect, but Spellstrike has the best Spell Effects. Regardless, [item]Mystic Spellthread[/item] or [item]Runic Spellthread[/item] should not miss from your pants if you plan to use them for at least a few weeks:

Happy feet! A shadow priests' ones will be happy at least, cause there's a large array of boots and slippers to grind for, as you can see below:

Good spell Damage rings are only hard to get before you're heroic-attuned to a few instances, after which it becomes a breeze to 'equip' your fingers with some shiny fingerwear:

Getting 2 quality trinkets as a shadow priest might be a bit problematic, but only until you are heroic attuned to most instances. Initially, Arcatraz runs for [item]Shiffar's Nexus-Horn[/item] should be your main trinket target:

The debate around wether or not to use a 1-handed weapon + offhand combination for offensive casters over a 2-handed staff applies to Shadow priests as well as Discipline priests, but it's ultimately your own choice to determine what you need. Here are some useful pre-raid 1-handed weapons as well as some offhands to go with them:

2-handed weapons are slightly easier to get than a good 1-handed+offhand combo. Normal instances can drop some nice staves, but if you're unlucky, the AH is bound to have something for you in this sense, provided you have enough World of Warcraft gold to pay. Here's what I consider to be a good selection of pre-raid items:

Few wand choices for offensive casters, but fortunately those few that we have are quite nice (and relatively easy to get). Here's a list of items you should keep your eyes open for: