So last week, we went over a series of common questions players were asking about restoration shaman changes in both the Cataclysm beta and patch 4.0.1., and the week prior, we talked about healing in heroics and normal dungeons. With everything going through massive amounts of changes and still two months to go before the release of the Cataclysm, some things are starting to feel like they are becoming settled and stable.

Luckily for us, restoration shaman seem to be pretty settled, with maybe a little minor tweaking necessary before the full release. Today I'd like to talk about some of the numbers you can expect to see when you hit level 85. I'm talking about the base mana costs, stat values you will need to know and to start talking a little bit about the coefficient of healing spells you can expect come Cataclysm.

All theorycrafting has to start with the basics really. Totals of mana usage, spellpower coefficients and stat values.

Basic stat values

First on the list is to know exactly how much of what counts for what. Everything we do as healers is based on these stats. Knowing what they are worth and how they affect derivative stats is important to understanding our totals later. These totals are accurate as of beta build 13117.

Intellect Int is the stat from which we derive our spellpower and our mana pool. As it stands right now, my math shows 1 point in int is equal to 1 point of spellpower. No fancy math here; it is a straight 1:1 ratio. There is a slight adjustment with your base int, but that is the contribution that you will receive through gear. The conversion of int to mana is that 1 point in int equals roughly 15 points on your max mana. So a ratio of 1:15 in terms of mana gained.

To sum up:

int 1:1 spellpower
int 1:15 mana

Spirit Spirit is the mana regeneration stat for all healers. It determines our out-of-combat mana regeneration rate, and combined with Meditation, our in-combat mana regeneration rate. The exact formula to find the contribution of spirit to mana regeneration still isn't finalized, as regen takes into account to a lesser degree your level and your int score. The current equation works up to level 80, but from level 81 to 85, it no longer seems to be entirely accurate. We will keep you posted once a solution of spirit to regen is found.

Crit A lot of our abilities and talents trigger from critical heals. Knowing how much crit rating you need to equal a single percent chance to crit can be important. Crit percentage is derived from your crit rating, found on gear and your int value. At level 85, it takes roughly 649 int to equal 1 percent crit. As far as crit rating, it looks like it will be roughly 179 crit rating to equal 1 percent crit.

int 649:1 percent crit
crit rating 179:1 percent crit

Haste This stat has long since dominated the endgame as far as important restoration shaman stats in Wrath of the Lich King, but once Cataclysm is released, the value of our haste is going to plummet like a stone. My math is showing that it will take roughly 128 haste to equal 1 percent at level 85. Do not expect to have a ton of haste once you hit level 85.

haste rating 128:1 percent haste

Spell descriptions and coefficients

Let's take a look at what our healing kit looks like at level 85. All numbers assume talents of Spark of Life, Soothing Rains Tidal Focus, Improved Shields and Elemental Weapons at max ranks. These numbers do not include spellpower increases from gear and assume the average totals for healing done without gear. Healing coefficients are estimated as per the current build.

Healing Surge 5,946 mana, heals for 7,694. Estimate coefficient of 60%. 1.5 second cast time.

Healing Wave 1,981 mana, heals for 3846. Estimated coefficient of 30%. 3.0 second cast time.

Greater Healing Wave 6,607 mana, heals for 10,258. Estimated coefficient of 80%. 3.0 second cast time.

Chain Heal 3,744 mana, heals primary target for 4,225. Estimated coefficient of 32%. 2.5 second cast time.

Earth Shield 4,183 mana, heals 2,036 per consumed charge, 9 charges. Estimated coefficient of 19%. Instant cast, cooldown between charge consumption.

Riptide 2,202 mana, heals friendly target for 3,029 and applies a heal over time that restores 4,775 over 15 sec. Your next Chain Heal cast on that primary target within 15 sec. will consume the healing over time effect and increase the amount of the Chain Heal by 25%. Estimated coefficient 23% direct heal, 37% HoT. Instant cast.

Healing Stream Totem 702 mana, heals all party members in range for 45 every 2 seconds. Estimated coefficient 8%. Instant cast.

Healing Rains 10,130 mana, heals 616 to all friendly targets in affected area every 2 seconds. Estimated coefficient 4%. 2.0 second cast time.

Earthliving Weapon 2,108 mana, chance to apply a heal over time healing 3,228 over 12 seconds. Estimated coefficient 23%. Instant cast.

Unleash Elements (ELW) 1,640 mana, heals 2,235. Increases next healing spell cast by 20%. Estimated coefficient 20%. Instant cast.

Cleansing Waters (requires Improved Cleanse Spirit and Cleanse Spirit) 3,280 mana (cost of Cleanse Spirit) Reduces the cost of Cleanse Spirit by 40%, and when your Cleanse Spirit successfully removes a harmful effect, you also heal the target for 3,265. Estimated coefficient, still being determined.

What is spellpower coefficient and why is it important?

Spellpower coefficient is the part of a spell that determines how much bonus damage or healing it gets from your spellpower total. This takes into account your total spellpower as augmented by buffs, consumables and talents. The coefficient is a fixed rate per spell, unless a talent or ability specifically states otherwise. Knowing what the coefficient is for your spells allows you to see exactly what type of benefit you get from your spellpower totals.

These are just the foundation numbers, so to speak. Keep in mind that even though these numbers have been pretty stable for several of the beta builds now, with less than two months to go until the official Cataclysm release, these numbers can still change. I will keep you up to date with any changes that do occur to these spells and abilities. We will be using these as we move forward. In the next couple of weeks, we will talk more about the interaction between the spells and the various augments they can provide each other. I will also go over the two talent specs that I have been using and their results. As always, if you have any questions feel free to email me or leave comments here, and I will do my best to answer them in a timely manner.

Special thanks to the healing community at PlusHeal and TotemSpot for all the help with number gathering over the course of this beta and to Naithin for the late-night math discussion.

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