vindication
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The Light and How to Swing It: Prot talents in Cataclysm
With the Light as his strength, Gregg Reece of The Light and How to Swing It faces down the demons of the Burning Legion, the undead of the Scourge, and soon, an entire flight of black dragons. Please send screenshots as well as any comments to gregg@wow.com. If you saw my column last week, you'll notice that I've been less than thrilled with the way the protection tree had been progressing in the beta. Sure, things have been getting better, but it has felt as if the whole tree is fairly unsettled. With the latest build, we're finally starting to see things get a little smoother and the mechanics to make a little bit more sense. Keeping Holy Shield up is easier than in previous builds, and a lot of depth to the types of strategies we can have while tanking has greatly improved. Also, our mastery bonus has been official revealed. I'm going to use the same type of disclaimer that I did on the ret talents article. These may not be the talents we'll end up seeing when the expansion hits, but they're getting there. Some talents will look pretty close to how they exist currently, while others have absolutely nothing to do with their current versions. Let's go take a look.
Anti-Aliased: The Quest of Vindication
Happy Holidays everybody! Hope you're all having an exciting time that's full of epic loot drops from purple gift packages sent by the jolly NPC in the red suit. This week's column is a holiday-tacular rant fest as I feel like tackling one of the major sticking points of an MMO player's behavior: the need to pursue vindication. This isn't something unique to MMO culture or even video game culture at large. We all feel this rather odd need to defend our decisions or opinions to others, even if they will never ever agree with us.However, when it comes to MMOs, vindication can be a bad thing. When communities become polarized in thought and begin to shut out others it can hurt the game's growth and the game's sense of community.
World of Warcraft Patch 3.2 Paladin Guide
WoW.com has covered patch 3.2 extensively. Everything from the surprising changes to flying mounts, to the latest and greatest loot, and all the changes in between. In our patch 3.2 class, raiding, and PvP guides we take a look at exactly what changes and how the changes will affect your playing. More than any other class, I think, Paladins underwent significant changes in Patch 3.2. There were changes across all three specs that palpably impact gameplay and challenge players to take a different approach to the way they play their class. I went through most of the changes in detail in an older post, and many of those initial thoughts still hold true, albeit tempered with some experience on the PTR and changes over the past weeks.There are buffs and there are nerfs, but the main thing to keep in mind is that this is Blizzard's constant balancing act. As the game progresses, I feel that they're finally honing in to the proper vision for the class. We won't go through all the changes here, but we'll break them down according to what impacts the class in general and according to spec. Let's bathe in the Light after the break...
Tuesday's in-game fixes
We love in-game fixes, right? Blizzard blue poster Bornakk has announced a couple new in-game fixes. The updates are as follows:First, the nerf to the Paladin's Vindication talent that set the Pally community on fire yesterday is now live. The nerf removed stamina and intellect from the 20% reduction that Vindication gave. All other primary statistics are still affected by Vindication.Secondly, Maim, Bash, and Hammer of Justice will no longer cause a player's spell to be interrupted when they're immune to stun. They will still interrupt the NPC's spells however.There have been a handful of other hot fixes that we've covered the past few days, and those are recapped after the break.
Vindication hotfixed, no longer affects Stam or Int
A hotfix is in the works for the Retribution Paladin talent Vindication. When the fix goes live ("as early as this afternoon"), Vindication will no longer reduce the Intellect or Stamina of affected targets. It will continue to reduce Agility, Spirit, and Strength. As usual, tooltips will not immediately update to reflect this change; the tooltips will be incorrect until they can be fixed in a content patch. Bornakk says this fix was put in place to address Retribution paladins being "very prominent" in PvP, "especially in the lower Arena brackets," without hurting Ret PvE DPS. Nerfing a class based on performance in lower brackets seems a little weird to me, but whatever. We did have some rumblings that something like this was coming - a PvP nerf that doesn't affect PvE. This certainly covers those bases. It leaves Vindication a pretty lackluster talent, though. Will you still keep it in your talent spec?
Patch 3.0.2 primer for Retribution Paladins
Let's face it. Retribution blows.Blows things up, that is. Out of all the trees -- and I mean all including the other classes -- no tree got more love than Retribution in the Echoes of Doom patch. For many of us, it's been a long time coming. No other class spec has been the butt of more jokes and the target of such derision as Retribution. Not anymore. Not in Patch 3.0.2 and the days leading up to Wrath of the Lich King. Retribution deals so much pain that we've sent the rest of player base running to Ghostcrawler crying for a nerf. And we're getting nerfed. To the ground.Don't panic. The changes are really, mostly aimed at PvP Paladins -- okay, that's me -- but will largely leave Paladin PvE damage output the same. That's excellent news. Because I've grown accustomed to the idea that quite a lot of you guys prefer PvE to PvP, we'll take a look at a PvE Retribution build that will make you the darling of your Heroic runs and more than welcome in raids. Let's bring on the pain after the jump.
Season 4 Brutal Gladiator gear guide
Now that Season 4 has finally arrived, it would probably be good to take a look at the Arena gear you'll be purchasing with all those stored Arena points. Even though most people have concurred that the new Brutal Gladiator gear is appropriately brutally ugly, a lot of the pieces are excellent and many players will need to purchase them in order to stay competitive in the latest, harshest Arena season. Most of the Brutal Gladiator armor sets and equipment require personal ratings in order for players to be able to purchase them, so the new Season 4 gear will not flood the community the same way past seasons did. Even Honor-bought items such as bracers, boots, and rings will require participation in the Arenas in order for players to qualify for purchasing them. We've put together a review of all the Brutal Gladiator armor sets for you to review, with a brief analysis of each piece and an assessment of whether it's worth the Arena points and the bother to grind for the personal ratings. We've also compared Season 4 gear with their equivalent Vengeful Gladiator pieces so you can tell at a glance how much of an improvement each piece is from its predecessor. Take a look after the jump at our extensive gear guide.%Gallery-25440%
Brutal Gladiator's Vindication
The Brutal Gladiator's Vindication is the armor set for Retadins, or Paladins specced deep into the Retribution tree. It is a scaled, or plate armor usable only by Paladins and is usually matched with Guardian's Scaled armor pieces. The armor set can be purchased from Big Zokk Torquewrench in Netherstorm and Ontokk Shatterhorn in Shattrath City. The matching Guardian items may be purchased from Doris Volanthius in the Hall of Legends and Lieutenant Tristia in the Champion's Hall. Brutal Gladiator's Scaled GauntletsThe Brutal Gladiator armor piece for the hands are the cheapest and easiest Season 4 Arena gear to obtain. With no personal rating requirements, most players will be able to purchase this piece and is the Arena gear likely to be most widespread as soon as the season begins. Arena gloves are also the only item with the exception of relics to have spec-specific bonuses, and the scaled gloves bonus is one of the best in the game for Retribution. The gauntlets have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent): 1239 Armor (+98)+44 Strength (+4)+46 Stamina (+6) +27 Intellect (+5) +34 Critical Strike (+8) +26 Resilience (+0)Increases the damage dealt by Crusader Strike by 5%.Classes: Paladin WoW Insider says: If only for the on-equip bonus alone, these gloves are worth the price of admission -- which is free. With no ratings requirements and only 1125 Arena points, these gloves are the best Season 4 purchase a Retribution Paladin can make outside of the Brutal Gladiator 2-handers.Brutal Gladiator's Scaled LegguardsThe leg armor possesses a personal rating requirement of 1550, which isn't too difficult to obtain. For many players on median-ratings teams, it might take a few weeks to purchase at a cost of 1875 Arena points. While not as accessible as the gloves, the leg armor is highly visible on a character and is also likely to be a popular purchase. The legguards have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1735 Armor (+138)+59 Strength (+5)+73 Stamina (+7)+28 Intellect (+5)+17 Hit (+5)+41 Critical Strike (+5)+36 Resilience (+0)Classes: PaladinWoW Insider says: The lack of sockets mean that the only customization that can be done will be through Tailoring or Leatherworking enchants, but the important thing about this armor piece is the improved +hit, which will free up yellow gem slots in other pieces. The Arena point requirement is fairly easy to achieve and the improvements in almost all areas over its Season 3 predecessor make it an advisable purchase.Brutal Gladiator's Scaled ChestpieceWith three sockets, the chestpiece is the most customizable Arena armor piece, and is the next best purchase after the gloves. Although the personal rating requirement of 1600 may be prohibitive to some players, it costs the same as the leg armor and players should try to obtain it. In PvE, the chest armor is traditionally a drop from the final boss in a series (Magtheridon drops Tier 4 chest token, Kael'thas drops Tier 5 chest token, Illidan drops Tier 6 chest token, etc.). Arenas are different in this regard, but the item level of the chest is identical to PvE chest pieces. Sunwell Plateau breaks from tradition in that the final boss, Kil'jaeden, does not drop chest tokens or armor. However, the Brutal Gladiator chest armor is equivalent to the drops from Entropius and is the best combination of cost and restriction among all the armor pieces. The chestpiece has the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1983 Armor (+158)+46 Strength (+5)+61 Stamina (+7)+32 Intellect (+5)+17 Hit (+5)+41 Critical Strike (+5)+36 Resilience (+0)Socket Bonus: +4 Critical StrikeClasses: PaladinWoW Insider says: A team and personal rating of 1600 isn't an impossible goal, and Retribution is somewhat viable at those levels. If you can manage it, the chest piece is the best armor piece you can get for its cost and low barrier of entry. Because of its PvE equivalent, obtaining the Brutal Gladiator chest armor is almost like killing Entropius in Sunwell Plateau. Well, ok not really, but if you don't raid, that's about as close to a raid drop as you're going to get.Brutal Gladiator's Scaled HelmThe helm is very likely the last Brutal Gladiator armor piece that many players will obtain. With the shoulders at an extremely prohibitive 2200, most players will only manage 4/5 of Season 4. At 1700 personal rating, some players will have a more difficult time obtaining this piece, which costs the same as the chest and leg armor pieces. With a personal rating attached to it, the Brutal Gladiator helm might be one helm graphic that players would like to leave on. It is also identical in model to the pieces that drop off Kil'jaeden in Sunwell Plateau. The helm has the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1611 Armor (+128)+52 Strength (+5)+61 Stamina (+7)+32 Intellect (+5)+17 Hit (+5)+33 Critical Strike (+5)+36 Resilience (+0)Socket Bonus: +4 Resilience RatingClasses: PaladinWoW Insider says: If you've managed to obtain the chest piece, there's little reason not to try and go for the helm, which has a Meta Socket. Although it is an improvement over its Season 3 equivalent, the disparity is not so great that players unable to obtain the helm can easily make do with the ratings requirement-free Vengeful Gladiator version.Brutal Gladiator's Scaled ShouldersThe 2200 personal ratings requirement for the shoulders are almost Gladiator-level for most Battlegroups, and will likely be a very rare sight in most realms. Although it is the cheapest item after the gloves, it is also the most difficult to get. Blizzard's reasoning for this is that the shoulders are the most "visually impacting" armor piece, confirming Blizzard's opinion that PvP achievements should be on display. The shoulders have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1487 Armor (+118)+37 Strength (+4)+45 Stamina (+5)+25 Intellect (+5)+30 Critical Strike (+4)+26 Resilience (+0)Socket Bonus: +3 Resilience RatingClasses: PaladinWoW Insider says: Brutal Gladiator shoulders are purely for show. The low improvement over its Season 3 equivalent and the lack of +hit make these shoulders very, very poor items for their difficulty. Retribution Paladins also have their work cut out for them in Arenas should they try to go after these shoulders. Guardian's Scaled BeltBecause it is a visual match for the Brutal Gladiator's Vindication, and because it comes with no personal ratings requirement, the belt is most likely to be the most widely distributed Season 4 gear. It is purchasable with Honor points, so even players who do not participate in Arena PvP can obtain it. The belt has the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1115 Armor (+88)+44 Strength (+4)+45 Stamina (+6)+31 Intellect (+5)+31 Critical Strike (+4)+26 Resilience (+0)Classes: Warrior, PaladinWoW Insider says: Unless you don't PvP at all, there's very little reason not to get the Guardian's belt. The improvements are a modest upgrade from Vindicator's Scaled Belt, but Retribution Paladins may want to explore the Guardian's Plate Belt, which offers less Strength and no Intellect in exchange for higher Stamina, Critical Strike Rating, and Resilience.Guardian's Scaled BracersThe only other Guardian piece with a socket is the amulet, which doesn't have a personal rating requirement. Coupled with the fact that bracers are visually insignificant, being hidden under gloves or robes, the urgency to obtain them is very low. They also have a modest 1575 personal rating requirement, necessitating participation -- and moderate success -- in Arena play. The bracers have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):841 (+69)+32 Strength (+3)+32 Stamina (+4)+18 Intellect (+3)+18 Critical Strike (+3)+19 Resilience (+0)Socket Bonus: +2 Resilience RatingClasses: Warrior, PaladinWoW Insider says: Because the improvements of the bracers are so minimal over its Season 3 counterpart, it's not such a compelling purchase. The personal rating requirement of 1575 is also higher than what's required for the leg armor, which is more visual. Players might want to explore Guardian's Plate Bracers for more Stamina and Critical Strike Rating, foregoing Intellect and a few points of Resilience and Strength.Guardian's Scaled GreavesThe most visually important match of all Guardian items, the boots are a big jump from a 1575 personal ratings requirement and is as demanding to get as the head piece at 1700 personal ratings. It is also as expensive to purchase as the belt, which has no ratings requirement. The greaves have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1363 Armor (+108)+44 Strength (+4)+45 Stamina (+6)+30 Intellect (+4)+31 Critical Strike (+3)+26 Resilience (+0)Classes: Warrior, PaladinWoW Insider says: The greaves are the best Season 4 Honor-bought pieces that players can buy. Although players should probably purchase the belt first, achieving a 1700 rating is worth the grind for an armor piece that is a decent upgrade from its predecessor and a visual match for the rest of Brutal Gladiator gear. %Gallery-25440% Looking for more Season 4 info? We've rounded up everything you need to know about the Brutal Gladiator season right here.
AFK is fixed... for now
First thing I did after getting the patch installed was head into Alterac Valley, and I am very glad to say that the anti-AFK measures Blizzard put in place are working... for now.It was amazing to see Horde up and at 'em again-- coordination still needs work, as we didn't wait around long enough to capture Stonehearth Graveyard and had to recapture it a few times (and I heard that earlier in the day, Balinda was double spawning), but once we cracked into Stormpike, it was all over. Horde is winning in AV again, at least in the Vindication battlegroup. As Foxx says, things haven't been this fun in a while.We reported two folks out in our first match-- a flurry of messages in the chat line had them leaving the BG quick. One guy, however, actually came out of the cave to AFK, but he had a reputation, and we all voted him out before long. It'll be interesting to see how this all pans out going towards the future-- will the AFKers just stop trying, or will eventually they find another place to hide on the map where people won't notice? While I was playing, someone came to my door, and I actually went AFK for about 5 minutes, but because I was standing near the bridge where combat was going on, no one actually reported me.So the system still isn't perfect, but it is many, many times better. If you were plagued by AFKers before, Alterac Valley is definitely worth another try. It's much more fun in there-- at least until the AFKers come up with another plan.
