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WWI '08 Panel: Priest
Before I begin, if you haven't seen our notes from the class discussion Dev Panel at the Worldwide Invitational, you should go take a look. Skip down to the Priest section, look it over, and come on back. I'll wait here for you, okay? Okay, go. Are you back now? Good.We knew of the existence of the three spells Chilton discussed for quite awhile now, but the confirmation is nice, especially since there's no need to dance around the 'it might not be real, oh no' bit. The three spells I refer to are Divine Hymn, Guardian Spirit, and Dispersion. The stated goal of these abilities is to solidify the role of the current Priest specs. I can definitely agree with that on the part of Divine Hymn and Guardian Spirit, but not so much Dispersion. That doesn't mean Dispersion is a bad ability for what it does, it just doesn't reinforce the role of a Shadow Priest necessarily.
Brutal Gladiator's Investiture
The Brutal Gladiator's Investiture is the armor set for Holy and Discipline, or healing Priests. It is a mooncloth, or cloth armor usable only by Priests and is usually matched with Guardian's Mooncloth 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 Mooncloth Gloves The 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. The bonus is the same for both Priest-specific sets, reducing the cooldown to Psychic Scream. The gloves have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent): 306 Armor (+13)+56 Stamina (+7)+28 Intellect (+5) +25 Resilience (+0) +77 Healing / +26 Spell Damage (+11 / +4)Reduces the cooldown of Psychic Scream by 3 secs.Classes: Priest WoW Insider says: These gloves are low-cost and have no rating requirements, and the high Stamina and good +Healing make it making it one of the best Season 4 purchases, specially for starting Arena players. Brutal Gladiator's Mooncloth LeggingsThe leg armor possesses a personal rating requirement of 1550, which isn't too difficult to obtain, particularly for healing Priests. 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, even at 1875 Arena points. The leggings have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):442 Armor (+18)+77 Stamina (+7)+34 Intellect (+6) +31 Resilience (+0) +95 Healing / +32 Spell Damage (+14 / +5)16 Mana / 5 Secs (+2 / 5)Classes: PriestWoW Insider says: The lack of sockets mean that the only customization that can be done will be through Tailoring or Leatherworkingenchants. The leggings are an excellent Brutal Gladiator piece, with a massive mp5 as an added bonus. Brutal Gladiator's Mooncloth RobeWith three sockets, the chestpiece is the most customizable Arena armor piece, and is the next best purchase after the gloves. Furthermore, 1600 should be an easy goal for many experienced healers. 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 robe has the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):476 Armor (+22)+68 Stamina (+7)+33 Intellect (+6) +28 Resilience (+0)+73 Healing / +25 Spell Damage (+14 / +5)11 Mana / 5 Secs (+2 / 5) Socket Bonus: +4 Resilience Rating Classes: PriestWoW Insider says: The Mooncloth Robe has the lowest stamina compared to other cloth pieces, similar to the Mage's Silk Raiment. It has very good mp5 that comes in handy during long (or drain) matches. 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 Mooncloth HoodThe 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. Discipline Priests, popular in Arenas, should have an easier time getting a 1700 personal rating to get this hood, 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 hood has the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):426 Armor (+17)+82 Stamina (+9)+30 Intellect (+7) +33 Resilience (+0)+86 Healing / +29 Spell DamageSocket Bonus: +4 Resilience RatingClasses: PriestWoW Insider says: One of the higher stamina Brutal Gladiator pieces for healing priests, the hood is worth the purchase. It is far superior to the other Priest Season 4 head piece, the Satin Hood, as well.Brutal Gladiator's Mooncloth Mantle The 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. It is quite likely that more than a few Discipline Priests will be sporting these through the season, though. It is the cheapest item after the gloves, but 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 mantle has the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):339 Armor (+16)+56 Stamina (+7) +26 Intellect (+5)+25 Resilience (+0)+68 Healing / +23 Spell Damage (+11 / +4)Socket Bonus: +3 Resilience RatingClasses: PriestWoW Insider says: Brutal Gladiator Shoulders are peacock gear. There's nothing particularly special about the Season 4 shoulders, and is not such a big upgrade from Season 3. Players not able to reach 2200 personal rating -- and there should be plenty -- will do just fine with last season's gear, even if it does require 1950 personal rating. Guardian's Mooncloth Belt Because it is a visual match for the Brutal Gladiator's Investiture, 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):219 Armor (+11)+56 Stamina (+7)+36 Intellect (+5) +31 Resilience (+0) +88 Healing / +30 Spell Damage (+11 / +4)Classes: Priest, Mage, WarlockWoW Insider says: Hands down the best purchase for a healing Priest in Season 4, the low Honor cost and ratings-free belt is a no-brainer. Even outside of PvP, this belt trumps most PvE healing belts outside of Sunwell Plateau, with a higher +Healing and overall stats than even drops from the Illidari Council or Kaz'rogal. Guardian's Mooncloth CuffsThe 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, most players feel that there's little urgency to get them. A 1575 personal ratings requirement also requires decent performance in Arenas. The cuffs have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):183 (+10)+38 Stamina (+4)+24 Intellect (+4)+17 Resilience (+0) +64 Healing / +22 Spell Damage (+9 / +3)Socket Bonus: +2 StaminaClasses: Priest, Mage, WarlockWoW Insider says: Despite the 1575 personal ratings requirement, the cuffs are a worthy purchase for healers as they are the best healing wrist armor outside of Sunwell Plateau. They are roughly as powerful as the Bracers of Martyrdom from Rage Winterchill in Mount Hyjal.Guardian's Mooncloth SlippersThe 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 slippers have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):253 Armor (+15)+56 Stamina (+7)+36 Intellect (+5) +31 Resilience (+0) +88 Healing / +30 Spell DamageClasses: Priest, Mage, WarlockWoW Insider says: Although 1700 is the highest personal ratings requirement outside of the weapons and shoulders, even PvE healing Priests would do well to strive for it as the slippers are the best healing boots before Sunwell Plateau gear. It is better point-for-point than Archbishop's Slippers from Anatheron in Hyjal Summit. %Gallery-25440% Looking for more Season 4 info? We've rounded up everything you need to know about the Brutal Gladiator season right here.
Brutal Gladiator's Redemption
The Brutal Gladiator's Redemption is the armor set for Holy, or healing Paladins. It is an ornamented, or plate armor usable only by Paladins and is usually matched with Guardian's Ornamented 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 Ornamented GlovesThe 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 a +2% crit bonus to Flash of Light is a good one. The gloves have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent): 1239 Armor (+98)+60 Stamina (+16) +33 Intellect (+4) +33 Spell Critical (+5) +18 Resilience (+0)+79 Healing / +27 Spell Damage (+9 / +3)Increases critical effect chance of Flash of Light by 2%Classes: Paladin WoW Insider says: The gloves are cheap, have no personal rating requirements, and a whopping +16 Stamina upgrade to the previous season's gear. These gloves are the best purchase for starting Arena players, as well, due to the low barrier of entry.Brutal Gladiator's Ornamented LegplatesThe 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 legplates have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1735 Armor (+138)+69 Stamina (+7)+45 Intellect (+6)+46 Spell Critical (+6)+35 Resilience (+0)+103 Healing / +35 Spell Damage (+13 / +5)Classes: PaladinWoW Insider says: The legplates have a good +13 healing improvement, but the lack of sockets mean that the only customization that can be done will be through Tailoring or Leatherworking enchants. Although the arena point requirement is relatively low, the chest armor is probably a better purchase if you can attain the required personal rating.Brutal Gladiator's Ornamented ChestguardWith 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 should be sought after. 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 chestguard has the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1983 Armor (+158)+67 Stamina (+9)+42 Intellect (+5)+42 Spell Critical (+8)+28 Resilience (+0)+68 Healing / +23 Spell Damage (+13 / +4)Socket Bonus: +4 Spell CriticalClasses: PaladinWoW Insider says: A team and personal rating of 1600 is a very realistic goal for Holy Paladins, particularly in 5v5 set-ups. 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 Ornamented HeadcoverThe helm is very likely the last Brutal Gladiator armor piece that many players will obtain, although Holy Paladins will have a better shot than either a Shockadin or Retadin at completing 5/5 of Season 4 items. 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 headcover has the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1611 Armor (+128)+71 Stamina (+7)+40 Intellect (+6)+32 Spell Critical (+6)+32 Resilience (+0)+88 Healing / +30 Spell Damage (+13 / +5)Socket Bonus: +4 Resilience RatingClasses: PaladinWoW Insider says: 1700 should be a fairly easy target for a Holy Paladin in a 5v5 team. The +13 Healing upgrade, as well as the good improvements to +Intellect and +Spell Crit make the helm a good purchase. The Red Socket can add to +Healing, as well.Brutal Gladiator's Ornamented SpauldersThe 2200 personal ratings requirement for the shoulders are almost Gladiator-level for most Battlegroups, and although rare, it's likely that more than a few Holy Paladins will be sporting them deep into the season. 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 spaulders have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):1487 Armor (+118)+46 Stamina (+6)+32 Intellect (+5)+32 Spell Critical (+4)+23 Resilience (+0)+59 Healing / +20 Spell Damage (+8 / +3)Socket Bonus: +3 Resilience RatingClasses: PaladinWoW Insider says: Brutal Gladiator shoulders are purely for show. The ornamented spaulders also have the lowest improvement from Season 3 compared to other Paladin shoulders. The Brutal Gladiator Spaulders are not worth the grind to 2200, but only something that players pick up for bragging rights. Guardian's Ornamented BeltBecause it is a visual match for the Brutal Gladiator's Redemption, 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)+49 Stamina (+6)+35 Intellect (+5)+34 Spell Critical (+4)+26 Resilience (+0)+75 Healing / +25 Spell Damage (+5)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 Ornamented Belt, but the accessibility of this Level 146 item makes it a good and easy purchase. It is also identical in every way to Guardian's Lamellar Belt with the exception of +Healing.Guardian's Ornamented BracersThe only other Guardian piece with a socket is the amulet, which doesn't have a personal rating requirement. Bracers are also visually insignificant, being hidden under gloves or robes, so there is no urgency to obtain them for vanity's sake. They also have a modest 1575 personal rating requirement, necessitating moderately successful Arena participation. The bracers have the following stats (number in parentheses are the improvements over its Season 3 equivalent):841 (+69)+33 Stamina (+4)+20 Intellect (+3)+23 Spell Critical (+3)+15 Resilience (+0)+57 Healing / +19 Spell Damage (+6 / +2)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 looking to purchase new items can hold off on the bracers unless they have nothing else to buy. On the other hand, Guardian bracers are also the cheapest Honor item available for Season 4 and Shockadins may want to explore purchasing this instead of the Lamellar counterpart.Guardian's Ornamented 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)+49 Stamina (+6)+35 Intellect (+5)+34 Spell Critical (+4)+26 Resilience (+0)+75 Healing / +25 Spell Damage (+9 / +3)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.
Gearing a Holy Priest for Karazhan, part two
Hey, Priest fans! Here is part two of our guide to some sweet gear that will get you ready to run Karazhan, everyone's favorite entry-level raid. If you missed part one, go check it out; I'll wait. Previously on "Gearing a Holy Priest for Karazhan" we talked about three relevant sets, as well as items for the head, neck, back, chest, and wrist. Today I'll be going over the rest of the slots, as well as gems. Let's get started. Gloves Hallowed Handwraps (Kargath Bladefist, Shattered Halls). You'll want to be running Hellfire instances anyway to get your Honor Hold/Thrallmar rep up for the head glyph. Blood Surgeon's Mitts. These drop from Broggok on normal Blood Furnace, oddly enough, but they're darn nice pre-KZ gloves. Gloves of Piety (world drop BoE). If you really can't get either of the above items, you might be able to snag these at the AH for cheap. Enchant Major Healing. A bit expensive; personally I might wait till Hallowed if not until a KZ drop (there are two good priest gloves in KZ) to enchant that. But if you have the spare cash/mats, go for it.
Frost Mages and Frost Death Knights
Over on the forums, Scorp brings up a Death Knight concern that I haven't heard before: as we all have known since last BlizzCon, the Death Knight's three talent trees are "Blood," "Unholy," and "Frost," and the one that Scorp has a problem with is the last one. Should Blizzard change the "Frost" tree on the Death Knight class so people don't confuse it with Mages?If you're asking me: no. "Restoration," "Holy," and "Protection" are all reused in a few different talent trees, and for both of those, while the talents are different, the intent is the same. "Frost," for both Mages and Death Knights, will have the same aim as well, as far as we've been told so far -- both classes will aim for DPS in those trees, with extra consideration given to crowd control and slow debuffs. In fact, depending on exactly how the Death Knight's talents work, the "Frost" title might help newer players understand the tree a little better anyway, especially if they've played with a Frost Mage before.Not that people don't have ideas -- "Ice" (yes, Ice, baby), "Chill" and "Really, really cold stuff" are all names being thrown around on the forums. But Blizzard will probably stick with "Frost" -- no reason to change it up, especially if the abilities line up with the Mage tree as much as we expect them to.
Priests in Wrath: Analysis of Alpha talents
I would like to take a moment to talk about the leaked Priest spells and talents from the Wrath friends and family alpha. We have decided not to keep this information on the site for legal reasons, but there are many other places on the internet to find it, such as this wiki (which, by the way, seems to have been semi-locked to prevent recurrences of Tuesday night's rampant vandalization). Note that these are alpha leaks (for those not conversant with software testing, alpha comes before beta, and beta comes before release), and most of these talents and spells will change before Wrath goes live. Some of them will probably not be recognizably the same, or even there at all. Nevertheless, it's certainly something to talk about in a game that, in my opinion, has had far too little change over the past couple of years.
Spiritual Guidance: Priestly tips for Mount Hyjal
Our Priest column is back! Every Sunday, Spiritual Guidance will offer practical insight for priests of the holy profession. Your host is now Matt Low, the grand poobah of World of Matticus, and this week he's written different "If" statements to follow. Summer is almost upon us and I hear Mount Hyjal is lovely this time of year! Honestly, I believe everyone playing right now needs to go in at least once and just experience the place. It is essentially the successor instance to Black Morass with multiple incoming waves consisting of various Undead trash. Not since Karazhan have we Priests needed to utilize our Shackle Undead extensively in another raid environment. The latest patch has opened the raiding doors wider and allowed more players to experience some of the most complex encounters in the game. This week, I'll help walk you through Mount Hyjal and offer some advice and tips in what I consider the most punishing raid instance devised.
The Light and How to Swing It: Seals, Blessings and Auras part II
Last week we took a look at one of the Paladin's core class mechanics, the Seal, which is a short-duration buff that is both preparatory (for Judgement) and integral to a Paladin's attack cycle. Last week, I also mentioned how Seals fail to play a part in a healers spell cycle because of how they operate. Because seals require a Paladin to make a melee attack in order for a seal to work or proc, they are similar to Rogue poisons or Shaman weapon buffs. But seals are not weapon buffs, allowing them to proc off unarmed melee attacks (although why anyone would want to is anyone's guess) but also making them susceptible to dispel mechanics. I personally think there was a wasted opportunity in this design because it locks out one key aspect of the class from an entire spec. Because of the short seal duration, healers must get into melee range and whack at opponents constantly. Even if a Retribution Paladin is in the raid keeping up a Holy Paladin's judged seal, the Holy Paladin himself won't reap the benefits of his own judgement -- most likely Wisdom or Light -- because he won't be hitting the enemy. A healing Paladin's two-button spell cycle consists of Holy Light and Flash of Light which both have cast times, necessitating periods of no movement and often precluding melee combat. If EA Mythic's Warhammer Online follows through with the hype, there won't be any, as animated designer Paul Barnett would call it, "namby pamby healer classes."While Retribution is fun and can dish out some hurt, and while Protection are kings of tanking entire armies, when a Paladin specs Holy, she becomes exactly that -- a namby pamby healer class. The Holy spec is somewhat ironic and goes against the grain of the core class design. Paladins are a heavily-armored melee class. When they spec Holy, that armor often goes to waste and the melee aspect is shelved away. If the spec was built to take advantage of the seal system rather than be hindered by it (putting up seals activate the GCD, pushing back healing or cleansing), we'd have a very different story. We would have Holy Paladins rushing into combat -- I don't care if they deal piddly damage -- in order to be effective, rather than standing in the back of the raid. I attribute that playstyle dichotomy to the failure of seals.
The Light and How to Swing It: Seals, Blessings, and Auras part I
In the Burning Crusade intro cinematic, we see an extremely cool sight with a Draenei Paladin reading from a libram, casting a spell, and walking dramatically away with his Hammer of the Naaru over his shoulder. That spell that he cast was a Seal, one of the core features around which the class is designed. A Seal lasts thirty seconds (which makes you wonder why the Draenei in the video cast it, seeing as how he'll probably need to refresh it once he's out of the building) and can be unleashed through a Judgement for a particular effect. Seals are self-affecting magic effects while Blessings, the other core class mechanic, can be cast on others and often have longer durations. Auras are an area-of-effect buff and the third core class feature that rounds out the Paladin's playing mechanics. Although other classes have persistent area-of-effect buffs such as a Shaman's totems or a Druid's 41-point talents, only Paladins have passive, permanent aura. Understanding and mastering the use of these three core features are key to playing the Paladin class.
The Light and How to Swing It: Support class in disguise
I re-specced to Holy again a few weeks back to concentrate on our 5v5 after quite some time of running around whacking things with a hammer. This is one of the best things about being a hybrid class. We have the option to play a particular way. Before I had decided to focus on Retribution for a couple of months, I would re-spec about 4-5 times a week depending on what our raid needed and spec Ret when I wanted to muck around in the Battlegrounds.The trouble is, between Holy and Retribution, there is a world of difference in how to play. Granted, most of your spells will be pretty much the same, but the playing style is completely different. As much as Shockadins will protest, the truth is, Holy is a support spec. It is terrible for questing and the best thing to do is find a partner who can kill things for you. Despite the improvements to Holy Shock and the spell damage included with healing gear, the experience pales in comparison to pure DPS classes or specs. This is fine. The only real beef I have is in the disparity in play experience and the nagging feeling that, at the heart of it all, Paladins are glorified sidekicks.
Spiritual Guidance: Thirteen dos and don'ts of a raiding holy priest
Our Priest column is back! Every Sunday, Spiritual Guidance will offer practical insight for priests of the holy profession. Your host is now Matt Low, the grand poobah of World of Matticus, and this week he has compiled a list that raiding holy priests may find beneficial whether they consider themselves new or veterans. I've raided for a long time on my priest. My first real raid started with Zul'Gurub before I graduated to Molten Core and Blackwing Lair. Unfortunately, I started late in the game to the point where I never really appreciated AQ 40 or Naxxramas. Years later, I am now working my way towards Illidan after mopping the floor with Archimonde. It's difficult for a holy priest to begin raiding. The learning curve can be steep at times because there are so many options available. That being said, there are a few lessons I've learned from raiding that have proven universal. They had as much application back then as they do now and I wanted to pass them on to any new budding raid priests. Check out all thirteen tips, from reagents to situation awareness, right after the break.
Shattered Sun Offensive exalted reputation pendants make some regret their faction choice
While Blizzard has made some steps to homogenize the playstyle of the Horde and Alliance a bit with the whole Paladin/Shaman swap, they've also done a bit of experimenting in the Burning Crusade with allowing people to make choices about certain paths, namely the Aldor and Scryer factions. While patch 2.4 has bought as an "end" to the Aldor/Scryer rivalry lore-wise, the mechanics remain the same: You cannot enter the other side's tier without being attacked, you can't use the other side's bank, and the item and shoulder enchant vendors will still only sell to those with proper faction. In addition, there's a new twist to the sides from this patch: At exalted reputation with the Shattered Sun Offensive, you can purchase 4 different neckpieces that have seperate bonus that depending on whether you're Scryer or Aldor.
Build Shop: Paladin 5/8/41 + 7
Every Tuesday, Chris Jahosky contributes Build Shop, which takes a look into one of the many talent specs available to players.Welcome back to the wonderful world of Build Shop! I've got a lot to say this week, since this is a spec that is near and dear to my heart (even though my Paladin is Protection spec these days) -- Retribution. I've tried to strip it down to the essentials (or what I think is the essentials) so that you can shift points around depending on what you want to do with it.
The Light and How to Swing It: Badge rewards in 2.4
Now that the patch is upon us, it's a good time for reflecting upon all the new badge rewards available to us in the near future. As a hybrid class with 3 main viable specs (healing, tanking, DPS), it's no wonder that there's a lot of new badge gear for paladins in this patch. Allison did a fantastic write-up of new badge gear for druids a few days back, so I figured I'd follow her format as it relates to paladins! HolyItemization for Healing specs has been pretty solid when it comes to badge gear, and the new stuff is no exception. Just like the Pier 1 set that 2.3 introduced, you'll find lots of healing, spell crit and mana per 5 on the new gear... just more of it.
The Light and How to Swing It: State of the class
When I first decided to roll a Paladin, I had no interest in healing or tanking. I rolled one back in the days before Burning Crusade, back in the heyday of the Reck Bomb. The idea of having what seemed essentially like a Warrior who had access to spells and could self-heal was extremely enticing. I've also had a fascination with the Paladin ever since I played Final Fantasy IV (released here in the States as Final Fantasy II). I've had a Paladin in every game I ever played where it was possible to have one.I used paladins to great effect when I played Warcraft 2, and as anyone who's ever played Warcraft 3 can tell you, paladins were central to the story (Arthas Menethil, better known these days as The Lich King, started out as a Paladin of the Silver Hand under Uther the Lightbringer, the original Paladin). Oddly enough, when I started playing WoW back in June of 2005, my first character wasn't a Paladin (I rolled Horde, and thus couldn't). However, as soon as I started playing as Alliance on a different server, I created one immediately.
Hybrid Theory: What can I do? part 2
Hybrid Theory comes to you yet again from blogger and columnist Alex Ziebart. You're in for thrills, chills, and quite possibly some useful information, but I doubt it. Last week on Hybrid Theory, I got into some of the basic details of what would make you and your spec desirable in a raid. I covered the DPS specs, and this week I'll be covering tanks and healers. Warriors, priests, I'll be leaving you out of this one. I love you, really, I do! But it's that conditional love, where I only love you if you're specced how I like. I hear Rossi, Knox and Harper still love you! Man, they sound way cooler when you refer to them by their last names, don't they? Like detectives, or super heroes....Right. Anyway! I'll be detailing the strong points of the tanking and healing specs of our beloved hybrids, and the utility you provide. Should you be looking for a new raid group anytime soon, these will be the things you'll want to keep in mind when asked what you can offer a raid. Having good gear and knowing how to play is also a plus, but this is a start.Never fear you QQasuals(just kidding!) out there, next week I'll take a step back from the raiding scene and cover some of the new toys in Patch 2.4 and what they mean to you. However, it isn't next week yet, so read on!
Hybrid Theory: What's a hybrid? v2.0
Hybrid Theory returns under the banner of column-newb Alex Ziebart. Incredibly biased opinions await you. If you are reading this, you have already been made a victim of his inability to create interesting graphics. No World of Warcraft players were harmed in the creation of the previous image, though that does not mean it won't hurt you.When I decided on my topic for today, I was mighty excited. A fire raged within me, and my fingers flew over the keyboard as soon as I sat down at the computer. My first column! Awesome! Yes! About three paragraphs in, I realized I should probably make sure my predecessor, Jason Lotito, hadn't done the topic yet. Unfortunately, he did. Fortunately, I completely disagree with what he said in every possible way.Perfect.What is a hybrid class? The basic answer is pretty simple: A class with multiple viable roles. Paladins, Druids and Shaman are obvious examples of a hybrid class. If you disagree with the fact that they're hybrids, you must be playing the wrong game. Holy, Retribution, Protection. Feral, Balance, Restoration. Elemental, Enhancement, Restoration. All of them are viable specs, especially in raiding. As fun as it is to mock Retribution Paladins, even they have a place in the end-game.Basically, Shamadruidins are hybrids. Don't try to argue that they aren't because you will lose.
Spiritual Guidance: Holyform and lesser Holy talents
There are a few things that have been desired by the players ever since WoW began. Rideable pets for hunters, player housing, guild banks (now in the game! yay!), and additional classes (one coming in Wrath of the Lich King) are a few examples. Here's one more, close to my heart since I have a Holy priest main: Holyform. The dark side of the Priest talent tree has a form; why not the light side? It would supplement our legendarily bad 21/31/41-point talents with something that was truly compelling for the dedicated healer, and of course it would look awesome.Well, Wowhead and WOWDB now have entries for a spell called, indeed, Holyform, as shown above right. It's hidden in the data files for the 2.4 patch; note that it is not currently trainable by priests on the PTRs. It could be there for any number of reasons: it could be an NPC spell, it could be an ability usable only during the Kil'Jaeden fight, like the Kael'Thas legendaries, or it could just be a cruel joke. The most compelling explanation I've seen is that Blizzard is distributing some of the Wrath patch files early, to lessen the initial download, and this is going to be the new 51-point Holy talent. Please let that be it. Update: comments are reporting that this is an NPC spell in Sunwell. Too bad.
The Light and How to Swing It: Year in Review
Wow. I don't know about you, but 2007 just flew by for me. It seems like only yesterday I was standing in line at midnight to grab my copy of Burning Crusade, and now it's almost a year later. While the new year has already started, it's not too late to look back on some of the changes the Paladin class has seen in '07.So this week on The Light and How to Swing It, I'm doing just that -- going through this past year and reminiscing about the good (and the bad) changes that paladins have experienced. If you've got any left over champagne feel free to break it out and join me as we toast this past year, and look forward to the year ahead!
Spiritual Guidance: Mind Vision of 2007
Every Sunday, Eliah or Elizabeth will bring you their thoughts on the Priest class with Spiritual Guidance. Whether it's keeping your fellow players alive or melting their faces, you can read about it here! One of the first things you'll notice is I'm neither Eliah or Elizabeth. My name doesn't even begin with "E". It's probably not even be Sunday, either. Crazy? Yep, but that's how we roll. It's been quite the year for Priests, just like most other classes. About this time last January, the big ol' Burning Crusade expansion rolled out, essentially taking WoW's most loved clothies (ok, maybe just mine) and turning them on their ears. Been a while since you thought about BC: The Early Months? Let's take a stroll down memory lane...
