Spiritual Guidance: Preparing disc and holy priests, page 2
Spec recommendations
(31/5/0) discipline PvE spec This spec will let you practice using Smite, Evangelism and get some pretty angel wings in the process while skipping out on some mandatory Cataclysm talents. Sadly, we aren't high enough level to go deeper into the holy tree to get Surge of Light yet, but we've got plenty of new toys to play with for now.
(5/31/0) holy PvE spec Unlike discipline, where you can choose to shun some of the new healing mechanics, there isn't a lot of variation with holy because you basically have to pick up every single talent in the tree to get to the bottom. That's why you'll notice this recommended spec takes talents like Lightwell and Improved Power Word: Shield both of which you can swap about if you like. I do recommend getting some practice using the new Lightwell, since it's becoming increasingly important to group survival in beta. When you finish in the holy tree I recommend you put three points in Twin Disciplines, and you can use the last two to either buff up your Power Word: Shield, get 2/3 of Darkness or max out Test of Faith at the bottom of the holy tree. Again, because mana isn't a problem, I skipped Mental Agility.
"4.0.1 Wrathful Gladiator" disc PvP spec OK, so the name of this spec is a joke. I use it because most hardcore PvPers don't really take anything seriously about the game in the patch right before a new expansion. Regardless, it can be a lot of fun, and there are a ton of possible specs you can pick up and experiment with as a PvPer. Thus, the tree I've linked isn't really a recommendation so much as it is an example of one direction you can take. I honestly suggest finding something that works well for you, because I don't even think I'd use this spec given my current gear.
Still, if you want to build off this tree, it mixes up some defensive, offensive and healing talents. If you want to go a bit more defensive, then I recommend you grab more from Inner Sanctum by maybe dropping points in Borrowed Time or Reflective Shield, depending on what kind of healing style you want to use. Just take in mind that at level 80 only half of Inner Sanctum is usable, since we don't have Inner Will yet. Maybe you'll even want to move some points over to Darkness so you've got more haste on your shadow spells. Experiment! My guess for now is that you won't see much use of Strength of Soul just because there aren't many penalties for using fast spells like Flash Heal right now.
"A brave new world" holy PvP spec So you're going to be one of the pioneers into the new world of holy PvP, huh? All I have to say is good luck. I mean that sincerely. You'll want to do as much direct healing as you can, since that will stack up your Echo of Light HoT. This, along with talents like Blessed Resilience, tell me that holy's main PvP defense is being able to heal for more when you're being assaulted. Who knows if that will actually be viable, but I'd recommend the Heal stance in Chakra since it will let you refresh the duration of your Renew (which should be glyphed for 25 percent buffed win) and will gain some nice burst healing when you use Holy Word: Chastise and Revelations.
Since you'll be do a lot of single-target casting, you may want to scrape together a couple extra points out of the holy tree and dropping them into Darkness in the shadow tree. What you drop is real dependent on your strategy and your environment though.
Glyph recommendations
Since the new glyph system is getting launched in the next patch as well, I've decided to make my recommendations for what glyphs you'll want to use. I've listed more than you can possibly slot, so if you want to know which ones I think are best, I've ordered them from my most recommended to my least recommended. If it's not listed, I don't recommend it for anything other than specific cases.
Holy -- Prime Glyphs
Guardian Spirit Even though the glyph is nerfed, it's still a really important cooldown for PvE and PvP.
Prayer of Healing If you're raid healing with the Prayer of Healing Chakra stance, you'll need to cast Prayer of Healing a lot. This glyph will make it go a little further.
Renew If you're tank healing as holy, you can refresh your Renew with Chakra and Heal. That makes this glyph really strong, since you'll constantly be refreshing it. If you're still trying to Renew spam, then it's up to you if you want this glyph or not. Obviously, with the Renew Chakra stance, you'll have less need for it.
Lightwell More charges are particularly useful for Lightwell in beta, but for right now, this glyph is probably overkill.
Flash Heal If you're inclined to cast Flash Heal, then by all means, grab this glyph. Just remember that come Cataclysm, using Flash Heal often will run you dry.
Major Glyphs
Circle of Healing Your mandatory raid healer glyph, just the same as it ever was.
Dispel Magic Because there simply isn't anything else.
Holy Nova There isn't much else to get, so go ahead and grab this glyph for emergency filler heals.
Mass Dispel If you PvP, you'll want this, but if you don't, you can save slotting this glyph for fights where you actually need to use Mass Dispel.
Discipline -- Prime Glyphs.
Penance This glyph remains mandatory for discipline.
Power Word: Shield No change to this glyph either, so go ahead and grab it.
Power Word: Barrier (No tooltip: Increases the healing received while under the Barrier by 10%.) I'm not sure about this glyph being available with patch 4.0.1 either, but again, if it is, it will give your Power Word: Barrier a little buff.
Flash Heal A disc tank healer will enjoy this glyph while we're still able to spam Flash Heal for a few more months. Just don't get used to it.
Major Glyphs
Divine Accuracy This glyph is absolutely mandatory for using Evangelism and Archangel, but again, we'll have to wait and see if it can be crafted before Cataclysm.
Holy Nova Holy Nova was nerfed in build 12984, but I suspect disc priests will still find a use for it, even with our new AoE shield.
Mass Dispel Since there aren't many major glyphs for disc priests to choose from, you can go ahead and keep this one slotted all the time.
For minor glyphs, you can choose whatever works for you. There are no new minor glyphs to choose from nor any changes to the existing ones, so whatever you have slotted right now will probably work just fine.
That's it for this week. I'll let you know if this all turns into rubble.
Want to find more great tips for carrying out your priestly duties? Spiritual Guidance has you covered with all there is to know. Check out Holy 101 or Disc 101 for an introduction to healing as a priest; for the party-minded healer, check out a priest's guide to tanks.
