Small notes #372

# Earth Elemental Totem: The summoned Earth Elemental should now have significantly more health and slightly more armor.
# Fire Elemental Totem: The summoned Fire Elemental should now have moderately more health and mana, and its damage scaling has been increased. In addition, the Fire Elemental’s spells now cost less mana.

About time!

Glyph of Riptide: Increases the duration of Riptide by 6 seconds. (Up from 3 sec)

This should really give something that doesn't consumes the HoT but still increases the effect AND increases the duration. E.g. like [Glyph of Flame Shock].

Totem stomping macros

Woh, 3.1 coming up and blizzard announces there is no defense for totem stomping macros. Must be hard playing a hunter these days...

From our POV, there is no defense of totem-stomping macros.

If you want to take the time to give your pet a command and a target to kill a totem, great. But to be able to neutralize a core mechanic of the class so easily because you are clever enough to copy a macro off of the Internet is not skill.

The only reason they still exist are technical limitations, not because we like the design. (And please don't feel the need to offer your technical suggestions. :) )
- Ghostcrawler (source)

3.1 talents

While arguing with myself about maintank healing or not it's important to know a few things.

• As a maintank healer you will need alot of crit, because crit means mana return (HW, LHW, Riptide).
• Riptide is necessary every cooltide since Tidal Waves (30% lower cast time on HW, LHW).
• You are not a paladin, meaning LHW-spam probably will get you oom.
• Everybody loves chain heal.
• With a glyph, HW will also heal yourself
• With a glyph, CH will hit one more target (4 targets)
• With a glyph, LHW will heal 20% more on a target with ES
• With a glyph, Riptide will last longer (+6 sec, total 21 sec)
• With the 2-piece setbonus, Riptide will get lower cooldown (-1 sec, 5 total)
• With the 4-piece setbonus, CH will get lower cast time (-0.2 sec)

The question is still there. Will it be fun?

• Possible main tank healing talent spec: http://ptr.wowhead.com/?talent=hZ0xxIZx0euIjoxkbIRt
• Possible PvP talent spec: http://ptr.wowhead.com/?talent=hZ0xgh0VZVcxucxsEk0hot
• Possible chain heal style talent spec: http://ptr.wowhead.com/?talent=hZ0xxIZx0euIxoxkrIRt

I'm gonna look into this and write some more about it. Cheers

Tier 8

Woh, every tier comes with a setbonus.
10-man set
25-man set

By looking at the stats it seems that we are going to be more critbased (MT heal?) since now every item in the set, except shoulderpads, provides crit rating. From tier 7 only shoulders and hands provided crit.

(2) Set: Reduces the cooldown on Riptide by 1 sec.
(4) Set: Reduces the cast time on Chain Heal by 0.2 sec.

The two piece bonus is fair. You only got two pieces so it shouldn't be imba. I must say, since i cast riptide every cooldown in an intense fight it gives us a 16% increased uptime on Riptide (in theory, if cast every cooldown).

The four piece bonus might seem boring and dull but it actually equals to 262 haste rating or 8% haste (but only on chain heal).
(0.2/2.5)*100 = 8 (8% haste)
8*32.79=262.32 (~262 haste rating)
32.79 is 1% haste at level 80.

Other then that, as it might turn out that we won't need to keep mana spring out next patch, instead, we will probably have Healing Stream / Mana Tide Totem out (Cleansing totem?). Restorative totem are now 3 points instead of 5 and gives 45% increased healing by Healing Stream Totem (3/3). That's also two points spare when it only requires 4 points instead of 6 points to learn Mana Tide. Yeyy!

User Interface 3.1

Some nice changes coming up imo...

Lexicons of Power will not be necessary for switching between saved talent specs and glyphs. Players will be able to switch between their chosen talents anywhere.

Another new feature in the upcoming patch is the equipment manager. Once turned on, players will be able to save sets of gear by simply equipping them and creating a hotkey with the currently equipped set. Switch easily between PvP gear, PvE gear, or even your fishing gear for a quiet time next to your favorite lake.

Use items needed for quests without searching through bags.

Players will now be able to queue for Battlegrounds from anywhere in the world via the Battleground tab in the PvP section of the interface. Once the match is complete, players will be returned to the location where they entered it from.

http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/underdev/ui.html

Pre-patch 3.1 thoughts

Hey,

I'm Sermor and I'm a resto shaman. I've been playing my shaman for a long time now and i can see how Blizzards new concept Bring the player, not class is actually hurting us. Vanilla we always were the fifth player even tho our healing wasn't that good, our totems were awesome.

The portal to Outlands opened and we were still loved among other classes. Increased spell damage and healing, windfury as it used to be and more damage. Bloodlust was still the shit without the debuff, only groupwise tho, but still. Shamans was the must have in a raid.

Now; The Lich King is out. Windfury grants haste (instead of pure awesome), just as Improved Icy Talons do. Horn of Winter does what Strength of Earth Totem do (except improved). Well, that's two totems away. And oh, all buff totems are raid-wise. Bloodlust is 10 min CD with a 5 min debuff. And totems aren't used that much anyways so woho, only 2 shamans needed. Down from 5. Wait, 3.1 makes mana spring totem act as Blessing of Wisdom, and Bloodlust is now down to 5 min CD with a 10 min debuff. If there is more then one paladin in the raid only 1 shaman is needed. Cleansing totems are merged (poison + disease) . Wow, only Mana Tide Totem that is actually useful now, but it's only groupwise. That gives us the Water Totem: Cleansing Totem (Mana Tide when needed).

What about air totem? Well, Windfury is beaten by Improved Icy Talons since you have to improve Windfury Totem to make it as good as Icy Talons. Nature Resistence Totem? No, doesn't stack with Gift/Blessing of the Wild. Wrath of Air Totem grants spell haste. Soooo; Air Totem: Wrath of Air Totem.

Fire totem? Well, if no Elemental shaman is present then Flametongue Totem is a good choice. Else you have Frost Res Totem which doesn't stack with Gift/Blessing of the Wild nor Paladin aura. Searing Totem? Doesn't really cut it either. Fire Totem: Flametongue Totem (if no Elemental Shaman).

Earth. Stoneskin Totem does not stack with Paladin aura, and an improved Stoneskin Totem is far away from as good as an improved Paladin aura. Trashcan you go. Strength of Earth Totem is actually better then Horn of Winter, but only if improved thru talents. So, Earthbind Totem? Bosses will be immune to this. Put a few points in Enhancing Totems and voila: Earth Totem: Strength of Earth Totem.

Summary
Water Totem: Cleansing Totem (Mana Tide when needed)
Air Totem: Wrath of Air Totem
Fire Totem: Flametongue Totem (if no Elemental Shaman)
Earth Totem: Strength of Earth Totem

Since the Bloodlust changes there will only be use for one resto shaman (along with an Elemental) if you are looking at buffs. Earth Shield is a very strong buff, and with talents + glyphs it's pure awesomeness. Improved shield = 15% extra healing, Improved Earth Shield = +10% extra healing (and two charges) and Glyph of Earth Shield = +20% healing. That's alot. Glyph of Lesser Healing Wave also increases the healing done by LHW by 20% on a target with Earth Shield. This along with 3/3 Ancestral Healing (+25% armor on target when crit healed) makes me just wanna go MT heal instead of the constant Chain Heal-spam. Improved Water Shield 3/3 also consumes one orb from your Water Shield when you crit (60% LHW, 100% HW and Riptide).

Well fuck it, let's see how it turns out.