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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsTotem Talk: Restoration gets buffed edition
by Joe Perez 
Feb 22nd 2011 at 2:00PM
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Totem Talk for elemental, enhancement and restoration shaman. Want to be a sultan of swing healing? A champion of Chain Heal? Totem Talk: Restoration, brought to you by Joe Perez (otherwise known as Lodur from World of Matticus and co-host of the Raid Warning podcast), shows you how.
Last week, we talked about healing post patch 4.0.6. I shared with you my experiences healing after our initial tweaks, and you were kind enough to share your experiences as well. It was interesting to see how everyone is handling the changes and how their healing has changed, if at all.
This week, I was going to go back into our normally scheduled posts, but as seems par for the course lately, Blizzard has seen fit to throw at us another set of changes. We're a healing class in flux right now, there is no denying it, and we're going to be going through a lot of changes in the weeks to come. Now, while Matt Low already discussed some of our changes and I've talked about it a bit elsewhere, I thought this week we could take some time and talk about it a little further and get your opinions on it from the one place it really counts: the shaman!
Last week, we talked about healing post patch 4.0.6. I shared with you my experiences healing after our initial tweaks, and you were kind enough to share your experiences as well. It was interesting to see how everyone is handling the changes and how their healing has changed, if at all.
This week, I was going to go back into our normally scheduled posts, but as seems par for the course lately, Blizzard has seen fit to throw at us another set of changes. We're a healing class in flux right now, there is no denying it, and we're going to be going through a lot of changes in the weeks to come. Now, while Matt Low already discussed some of our changes and I've talked about it a bit elsewhere, I thought this week we could take some time and talk about it a little further and get your opinions on it from the one place it really counts: the shaman!
What's the hubbub, bub?
So if you haven't heard, we got ourselves a blue post indicating that even after patch 4.0.6, Blizzard isn't quite happy with how restoration shaman are performing. While we got a bit of a boost and could certainly push some good numbers, the tweaks did not have the desired effect Blizzard had planned on.
NethaeraSince the release of patch 4.0.6, we've been keeping an eye on healers and how they are performing and are currently in the process of making some additional adjustments.
Shaman
We are also applying a hotfix for Purification for the Restoration shaman passive from 10% to 25%. We think that shaman healing per second is not as competitive with other healers and while we hoped to bring down Holy priest and Holy paladins (in particular) in 4.0.6, which we did, shaman still appear to be behind. In this case, it is simply easier to buff Restoration shaman rather than nerf everyone else or rebalance the encounters.
In Addition- Restoration Druids and Restoration Shaman
We agree with the sentiment among some players that Restoration druids and Restoration shaman are lacking in the healing cooldown department. The shaman buff and Power Word: Shield adjustment above should bring all healers reasonably close in terms of throughput. The decision on who to bring then might end up being dictated by the strong cooldowns offered by paladins or priests. This isn't the kind of thing we can address via a hotfix, but it is something we are looking at for the next major content patch.
As always, we appreciate your continued constructive feedback and will do our best to keep you informed of ongoing developments.
Shaman
We are also applying a hotfix for Purification for the Restoration shaman passive from 10% to 25%. We think that shaman healing per second is not as competitive with other healers and while we hoped to bring down Holy priest and Holy paladins (in particular) in 4.0.6, which we did, shaman still appear to be behind. In this case, it is simply easier to buff Restoration shaman rather than nerf everyone else or rebalance the encounters.
In Addition- Restoration Druids and Restoration Shaman
We agree with the sentiment among some players that Restoration druids and Restoration shaman are lacking in the healing cooldown department. The shaman buff and Power Word: Shield adjustment above should bring all healers reasonably close in terms of throughput. The decision on who to bring then might end up being dictated by the strong cooldowns offered by paladins or priests. This isn't the kind of thing we can address via a hotfix, but it is something we are looking at for the next major content patch.
As always, we appreciate your continued constructive feedback and will do our best to keep you informed of ongoing developments.
Pretty substantial tweak incoming there. The buff to Purification boasts a hefty jump from 10% passive bonus to 25% passive bonus to our healing effectiveness. So essentially, this means flat out that every single healing spell we have will be increased by an additional 15%. That is pretty darn good, if you ask me, and honestly was more than I could have expected. This change does come with a few very interesting points, though, beyond just a flat out boost.
The mentality behind it is that it is easier to buff a class than it is to nerf all the other healers or to nerf the various encounters. That makes sense, really, considering Blizzard already tried to bring down the healing numbers on two classes, but it didn't work as intended.
The other interesting thing is that this is being done as a hotfix. While we've been seeing quite a few of these hotfixes since patch 4.0.6 was released, the types of changes we've been seeing are ones that previously we would have had to wait for a major content release or a major patch before we would see them. Now, though, when Blizzard needs to fix a problem, it seems the developers don't have to wait and can just get it taken care of. This is good news for us, because that means we don't have to wait too terribly long for this tweak to go through.
Anything you can do ...
The second part of the big blue announcement is that of Blizzard's acknowledgment that restoration shaman are lacking in the healing cooldown department. From the sound of it, the developers seem to be leaning toward giving us one with the next major content update.
Despite our offensive cooldown, Spiritwalker's Grace, I think that a defensive cooldown is exactly what the doctor ordered, especially with regard to smaller content. Looking at healer composition for 10-man raids and even healing through heroics, it can easily be seen why some people would prefer to have healers with some great defensive cooldowns. Shaman unfortunately do not have a Pain Supression or a Guardian Spirit to pop when tank healing gets rough, and there are several fights when it does in fact get rough.
So now it's time for some speculation, I think.
The first thing to consider is how the developers would fit this into our arsenal. Adding it as a base spell available to all shaman would potentially unbalance our DPS counterparts and would defeat the purpose of giving it to us in order to balance us against other healers. I think the most logical thing would be to move it in as the top-tier talent in the restoration tree. Every restoration shaman I know takes Riptide, so to me, it would also seem logical that Riptide could be made a spell given to a shaman who has chosen restoration as his specialty. Basically, make it a perk of choosing the role. This will also add another healing tool to early restoration shaman, making healing earlier dungeons a little bit easier and allowing starting players more time to get acquainted with the spell. This also lets the cooldown be reserved for later on in the levels when a healer is more likely to need it.
The other question, then, is what would the cooldown be? Should we get a copy of an existing spell like Pain Supression or Guardian Spirit? Should we get something completely different and unique? My money is on something unique, and as I said to Matt for his post and in my previous ramblings, I think it should have something to do with the element of air. All the other elements are well represented already. We use water to heal and fire and earth to blow things up, but air is woefully underrepresented. We get one spell in the form of Wind Shear and a few totems, but otherwise that's about it.
So far, my favorite idea was the following.
It's unique in that it increases dodge, something the other cooldowns don't do, while still reducing damage. It's expensive enough compared to the other cooldowns, considering what it does, and gives us another air spell to use. Is it perfect? No, probably far from it, but it's something.Aegis of the Tempest
15% of base mana
40-yd. range
3-min. cooldown
The shaman summons the spirits of the very air to protect a friendly target in the form of circling cyclones. Increases dodge rate by 80% and reduces incoming damage by 30% for 10 seconds.
So now I'd like to hear from you, the readers. What do you think of the buff to purification? Do you think it will be enough to remain competitive when compared to other healers? Are you excited at the idea of a cooldown? What ideas do you have for a new restoration shaman defensive cooldown? How would you work it in for our use?
Totem Talk: Restoration will show you the basics of endgame resto shaman play as well as how to find the expansion's best reputation gear for resto shaman and tips for easier leveling. Happy healing, and may your mana be plentiful!Filed under: Shaman, (Shaman) Totem Talk
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 3)
Shmey Feb 22nd 2011 5:10PM
i agree with air being under represented. that said i think spirit link could make a return. perhaps somthing like (15% mana 40 yd range 2 min CD lasts 15 sec, "fancy intro" link target with two party or raid members hp togeather dividing all damage equally and causing your chainheal to give thoes lincked presadent over other members) what ya think, no damage reduction but i think adding the chain heal thoes group members fixes that. one could also see it link only the highest % hp members or simply closest so a HR could also be tossed in the frenzy.
matt Feb 22nd 2011 6:22PM
cast-able evasion!? neat idea!
I also like the idea that somebody offered in the previous post concerning a dmg reduction spell based on the number of ES stacks on the target. something like 4.5% dmg reduction per stack of ES.
I would like to avoid something totem based since sacrificing a raid buff during a high dmg phase seems pretty silly. Other Air type ideas could involve something dmg reduction cyclone type thing. but the evasion idea is the best air based ability I can think of
Onebaddude Feb 28th 2011 7:47PM
I really like the idea of our earth shield have a cooldown affect. The cooldown would consume the earth shield, and have a pain suppression type affect.
Harvoc Feb 22nd 2011 6:57PM
The problem with giving Riptide as a primary skill that you get when you first choose Restoration at 10 is that Restoration shamans would have 2 primary abilities unlike everyone else's one. Unless, you mean switch Earth Shield for Riptide, but then the problem is where would you put Earth Shield in the talent tree?
Powatodapeople Feb 22nd 2011 7:20PM
i think this would be a great time to somehow make the soul link mechanic that they wanted to implement a reality. of course, splitting the damage between two people would completely imbalance some encounters and make designing them a nightmare, so they would have to change it somehow.
I think the idea of a stacking damage reduction would be awesome. maybe the next few consecutive spells will stack 20% damage reduction and then when the target eats 60% damage, it could give the shaman or target some buff to healing done or received, respectively. some kind of visual like a twister growing around the target would be amazing as well
mibu.work1 Feb 22nd 2011 10:20PM
I agree that air elements are a good idea thematically, but I'm not sure how to implement it. While I believe that all the lightning spells are representative of the air element, I also feel that a more wind/cloud/storm aspect needs to be stressed. Perhaps something like this:
Whipping Wind Armor
15% of base mana
40-yd. range
2-min. cooldown
The shaman calls a servant of the tempest down for protection. The spell's target gains deflection of ranged attacks and reduces damage taken by 40%, also grants 50% of the shaman's haste rating to the target. Lasts 10 seconds.
That way, if it's an ability the boss charges up and chucks, like a spell, it automatically misses, rather like a hunter's deterrence. It reduces overall damage taken, and it would give tanks extra haste to pull out their own techniques, essentially giving them a nice buff. The only problem I can think of is stacking...
Sally Bowls Feb 22nd 2011 10:21PM
I loved totems but not some of the convenience is gone (tremor/cleansing) and the stacking with blessings/marks. I just find they are an inconvenience. So a totem cd would be the most annoying but better than nothing.
Eurrie Feb 22nd 2011 11:08PM
First Time Long Time
I think this is a great time to nail two birds with one stone.
Shaman do need a defensive cool down - proper use of these tools separate the great from the good.
Personally I haven't been a fan of Deep Healing as our "Mastery" talent.
I'd rather see Ancestral Awakening moved to the Mastery slot, then tie but our defensive cool down in that spot of the tree (what ever form it takes).
There it is deep enough that only a Resto Shaman would take and leaving it optional for PvP build.
In moving Ancestral Awaking to the "Mastery" spot, leave it a some base amount (maybe 20%) on a crit heal that scales up with mastery.
HunterD1120 Feb 23rd 2011 2:24AM
I have an idea for a shaman cooldown, but it would only work with a DK tank. It would be a talent that has an internal cooldown and is activated by specific spell being cast. First, you cast earth shield on the tank, then flame shock on the boss, then wind shear on the boss, then riptide on the tank, and then the tank uses heart strike and you summon Captain Planet. I don't know what he would do though . . .
Pepijn Feb 23rd 2011 5:43AM
Spiritwalker (like in warcraft3) Increases your healing done by 30% your movement speed by 30% and reduces your damage taken by 30% but you are unable to cast damaging spells, lasts 20 seconds
Despil Feb 23rd 2011 5:17AM
Not sure i like the dodge part of the proposed(lets say) def cooldown...as a warrior tank, that would basicly mean no rage(apart from autoattacks) income during the defensive cooldown. Flat our damage reduction is boring,but still effective
lostboy001 Feb 23rd 2011 5:29AM
What happened to the time when my shaman was a raid healer and didn't need to have a defensive cooldown? Can't I just have my chain heal back? That was what made my shaman fun, before they nerfed it's healing amount and increased it's mana cost in cataclysm. Sure, we did get a slight buff to it recently, but I use it rarely now that it is so expensive, and it used to be our signature spell. I don't like the idea of homogenizing all the healers. The dps would not be satisfied with all their spells doing the same thing, but given different names.
testeryff Feb 23rd 2011 8:50AM
I'd like to see something connected to the spirit world instead of the elements. Maybe some kind of swanky channeled spell that would summon the ancestors to go apeshit with healing on those who need it.
Blessing of the Ancestors
15% of base mana
8 sec Channeled
4-min. CD
The shaman channels the spirit of three ancestors to appear and throw cool potent chain heals on the lowest health target for eight seconds. Party or raid members will take 20% less damage during the spell.
Snouty Feb 23rd 2011 10:06AM
Empowered Earth Shield:
Any charges of Earth Shield currently existing become Empowered Charges and provide 10% dmg reduction each. The effect lasts 10 seconds or until the charges are consumed.
So with 8 charges of ES on the tank when you pop this CD, he will receive 80% dmg reduction intially, dropping by 10% each time a charge is consumed and dissapearing completely after 10 seconds. Recasting ES during the 10 second duration would overwrite the Empowered Earth Shield, preventing it being spammed to keep it at the full 80%.
It would mean a bit of forward thinking on the part of the Shaman to make sure he had a high number of ES stacks on the tank befoe he used the Empowered Earth Shield spell in order to get the maximum benefit.
Using a spell graphic similar to the current ES one but with larger more obvious orbs would make it easy to see when it had expired and it was time to recast your ordinary ES.
Anonymous Mar 1st 2011 12:31AM
I'd really like to see a cooldown that cosmetically looks like Chain Heal. My first thought was that of a channelled heal. For example, you press your cooldown button, then you can actually choose which healing spell you'd like to use, and it shoots out like a laser and has different colours depending on which spell you chose. I dunno, I really like chain heal. :P