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Patch 3.2.2 changes for Shamans

Matthew Rossi
Updated ·4 min read


No, technically they didn't just go ahead and let you race change your draenei shaman into a dwarf in patch 3.2.2. I guess Blizzard didn't get my letter. It's a shame, because I used glitter and star stickers and I drew a picture of a pink pony Frost Shocking a Rogue. Perhaps the graphic illustration on page 2 of the Rogue stun locking the pony to death wasn't to their taste. Ah well.

Let's assume that the next letter with the pony ankhing and hitting him in the back with a Flame Shock will be well received. For pony! What are the changes to Shamans in patch 3.2.2 to discuss? Let us look, cannot we? (Space Mutiny voice off.) For the changes follow us behind the jump please.


Shamans

  • Cleansing Totem: No longer pulses instantly when dropped.

  • Flame Shock: The duration of all ranks has been increased by 6 seconds.

  • Lava Burst: This ability no longer ever consumes a Flame Shock debuff off of the target.

  • Talents

But the changes don't stop there. There are also bug fixes to consider. What are those, you may ask?

  • Grounding Totem will now properly protect against the Death Grip spell.

  • Lava Burst can no longer deal critical damage to targets who are immune to critical strikes (due to, e.g. Roar of Sacrifice, Blessed Resilience).

  • Lightning Shield: This spell will no longer set off some trinkets when it is cast.

  • Stoneclaw Totem's pulses will no longer break stealth on nearby hostile units.

  • Thunderstorm and Shamanistic Rage can no longer be used while Frozen, Cycloned, Sapped, or Incapacitated.

On behalf of Elemental Shamans in PvP (and Enhancement to a lesser extent) let me just say thanks for that shovel to the back of the head. We'll just toddle off to that shallow grave, shall we? The loss of Thunderstorm while sapped is basically saying "Shamans, we don't want you to be able to ever successfully fight off a rogue, or even be able to inconvenience him or her while she works tirelessly to pull your kidneys out of your body." And I get that it's a lot of hard work to beat a guy to death while he stands there, unable to fight back, so by all means lets speed that process up for them. I wouldn't want to make them feel bad about having to use the Sprint key.

If you think I'm unfairly harshing on Rogues here, it's true that this change also leaves us helpless before Druids, Mages, and Paladins, as well as possibly against those Warriors charging here and there. But I hate Rogues more than all of them put together so that's who I complain about. It's petty and small of me, but I'm a wicked, wicked man.

The other changes are a mixed bag. Don't like the change to Cleansing Totem clearly (to me anyway) aimed at keeping us from chain dropping it to clear DK diseases in PvP. I like folding the old Flame Shock glyph into the spell. I like the new Flame Shock glyph. Lava Burst getting more juice from Shamanism? This is good. Shamanism effecting Chain Lightning as well as Lightning Bolt ad doing more for LB? This is good. Grounding Totem grounding Death Grip? Also good. The changes to Lava Burst and Lightning Shield as well as Stoneclaw not breaking stealth were expected.

Overall, this wasn't a huge nerf to Shamans(in some ways it was a pretty nice little buff), but if you PvP (and especially if you PvP as Elemental) it wasn't a sunshine and pixies magical parade to the land of wonderment either.