Restoration gets a bad rap, but honestly you're not wasting perks if you're actually committing to it. The thing is, the tree's designed around sustain and support, not burst damage, so it feels weird coming from stealth archer where you're used to one-shotting things.
Here's the real value: grab the perk that lets you cast healing spells while moving, then the one that makes your healing spells cost less. That second one is huge because it lets you spam heals without chugging magicka potions constantly. After that, the perk that boosts your Restoration spell magnitude is worth it - sounds boring but it actually matters when you're keeping yourself and followers alive in tough fights.
The issue is you're level 24 and probably don't have enough magicka or spell power yet to feel the difference. Restoration scales hard with your Restoration skill itself and with magicka investment. If you grab the Atronach standing stone and pump some perks into magicka regen, it clicks faster. Also, don't sleep on pairing it with Destruction - a support mage who can also throw out damage spells feels way more viable than pure Restoration.
That said, if you want Restoration to feel like a "real combat tool" in the sense of being your main damage output, yeah, that's not what the tree does. But if you mean feeling essential and powerful in keeping yourself and your party alive through hard content, it absolutely can be. Just needs patience and the right setup.
