Totem Talk: Restoration shaman, say hello to Spirit Link Totem
by Joe Perez 
Mar 15th 2011 at 6:00PM
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 the upcoming changes for restoration shaman in patch 4.1. The update contains a couple of significant things for restoration shaman. First was the change that mastery will now have an impact on all of our healing spells. While last week I said that mastery did not affect Healing Rain, I'd like to thank everyone who commented and lended a hand. On live, mastery does affect Healing Rain, but my math was just off. On my first pass, it appeared as if the bonus to HR was due to crit, not mastery, and I am happily corrected there.
The second change and the one I'm most excited about is the re-introduction of the much sought-after Spirit Link. This mythical restoration shaman cooldown has been talked about for the better part of three years now; it has been promised to us many times over, only to be taken away. It has recently been added to the latest build of the PTR, and I'd like to talk a little bit about my experiences with it so far with the new Spirit Link Totem.
Last week, we talked about the upcoming changes for restoration shaman in patch 4.1. The update contains a couple of significant things for restoration shaman. First was the change that mastery will now have an impact on all of our healing spells. While last week I said that mastery did not affect Healing Rain, I'd like to thank everyone who commented and lended a hand. On live, mastery does affect Healing Rain, but my math was just off. On my first pass, it appeared as if the bonus to HR was due to crit, not mastery, and I am happily corrected there.
The second change and the one I'm most excited about is the re-introduction of the much sought-after Spirit Link. This mythical restoration shaman cooldown has been talked about for the better part of three years now; it has been promised to us many times over, only to be taken away. It has recently been added to the latest build of the PTR, and I'd like to talk a little bit about my experiences with it so far with the new Spirit Link Totem.
So what's the story?
A long time ago, in a magic land called Azeroth, there once lived a plucky little spell that bound the spirits of three fighters together in order to share and redistribute damage. The spell captured the hearts and imaginations of all those who laid eyes upon it. Sadly, though, it wasn't meant to be, and the spell fell to the Wrath of the Lich King. Then, as the world trembled and shook with the violent intensity of an angry dragon, heralding the coming Cataclysm, the long-dead spell resurfaced in the hushed whispers of the expectant. Now, after years of anticipation and heartache, it has been reborn! And the shaman rejoice.
Honestly, though, this is something that has been a long time in coming. The developers at Blizzard and the vast majority of restoration shaman really fell in love with the idea when it was introduced in the closed beta for Wrath. The problem was that the spell created some weird imbalances, was clunky to use and did not fit with the proposed healing model of the time. When Cataclysm was first announced, the gang at Blizzard made the statement that they wanted a chance to bring the spell back and were looking at ways to integrate it without causing too much of a disturbance. Then last month, we got the announcement that restoration shaman were in the sights of the developers in order to improve our performance and to provide us with a defensive cooldown. Speculation began, and the sense of anticipation was high as we anxiously awaited news on what this cooldown would be. Then came the news that this cooldown would indeed be none other than Spirit Link, reborn as a totem.
How does it work?
Right now, it has been put in as a brand new talent in the restoration tree. It is at the same tier as Telluric Currents, Mana Tide Totem and Ancestral Awakening. It costs a single talent point to obtain the spell, and as of the time of writing this article, no other talents were moved or reduced to make room for it. Well, since a picture is worth a thousand words, here's a comparison of the talent trees on the live server and patch 4.1 on the latest PTR build.
The spell costs 1,803 mana, has a 3-minute cooldown and lasts for 8 seconds. It has a 10-yard radius and reduces all incoming damage by 10%, and every second that the totem is active, it rebalances the health of everyone in the affected area so that everyone winds up with the same percentage of their maximum health. At this time, it is affected by Totemic Focus and counts as an air totem. When the spell is cast, it creates a swirling, glowing green circle as if the area were being circled by the spirits of air. The totem can be killed if targeted and hit with damage, and it is protected by the bubble from Stoneclaw Totem.
Is it worth it? Are we overpowered now?
Unfortunately, I haven't been able to test out Spirit Link Totem in a raid quite yet, as everyone on the PTR seems to want to run Icecrown Citadel or Ulduar and not any of the Cataclysm raids. (This is a phenomenon I don't quite understand. If anyone can shed any light on this, I would appreciate it, as I'm quite puzzled by this.) Anyway, while I haven't been able to test it out in Blackwing Descent or Bastion of Twilight yet, I have gotten the opportunity to test it out in the new Zul'Aman and Zul'Gurub heroic dungeons. When I first tried Zul'Aman a few days ago, the group I was with got stonewalled at Akil'zon and his new mechanics. I won't spoil anything, but needless to say, the fight was not kind to shaman healers. After the patch, though, when faced with the same boss, I was able to push through the encounter with liberal use of the Spirit Link Totem. It allowed me to keep the group alive through some very difficult-to-heal damage. It didn't negate the difficulty of the encounter but rather gave me the tool I needed to handle the fight.
In each of the other heroics, I'm finding plenty of places where this cooldown is very useful, various fights where we can take full advantage of this mechanic, and I'm already beginning to plan on places that our new cooldown will very useful for us -- fights like Nefarian in phase 2, when you are on the pillars and there is a ton of damage to attempt to mitigate, or Al'Akir phase 2 and 3, when there are so many things that can cause one person a ton of damage. I don't think it will trivialize any of those fights, but I do think that it will make it much easier for us now that we are given a new and useful tool to work with.
Is it worth it? Are we overpowered now?
Unfortunately, I haven't been able to test out Spirit Link Totem in a raid quite yet, as everyone on the PTR seems to want to run Icecrown Citadel or Ulduar and not any of the Cataclysm raids. (This is a phenomenon I don't quite understand. If anyone can shed any light on this, I would appreciate it, as I'm quite puzzled by this.) Anyway, while I haven't been able to test it out in Blackwing Descent or Bastion of Twilight yet, I have gotten the opportunity to test it out in the new Zul'Aman and Zul'Gurub heroic dungeons. When I first tried Zul'Aman a few days ago, the group I was with got stonewalled at Akil'zon and his new mechanics. I won't spoil anything, but needless to say, the fight was not kind to shaman healers. After the patch, though, when faced with the same boss, I was able to push through the encounter with liberal use of the Spirit Link Totem. It allowed me to keep the group alive through some very difficult-to-heal damage. It didn't negate the difficulty of the encounter but rather gave me the tool I needed to handle the fight.
In each of the other heroics, I'm finding plenty of places where this cooldown is very useful, various fights where we can take full advantage of this mechanic, and I'm already beginning to plan on places that our new cooldown will very useful for us -- fights like Nefarian in phase 2, when you are on the pillars and there is a ton of damage to attempt to mitigate, or Al'Akir phase 2 and 3, when there are so many things that can cause one person a ton of damage. I don't think it will trivialize any of those fights, but I do think that it will make it much easier for us now that we are given a new and useful tool to work with.
My first impression
So after getting to play around with it, I think Spirit Link Totem is a fantastic new addition to our healing arsenal and something I think most shaman will embrace quite readily. Right out of the box, it feels pretty well balanced, and I don't think we're going to see too much tweaking of the ability before it makes it to live.
There are some limitations to the spell, such as the 3-minute cooldown, the fact that it only affects those within a 10-yard radius and that it is a totem that must be dropped at the caster's feet. These factors help balance out the fact that it redistributes group health. It isn't overpowered; it isn't underpowered, either. It is something we will have to get used to and learn when to use and when not to, but ultimately I think it was well worth the wait. I'm looking forward to spending even more time with the spell and getting to know the intricacies of using it even more. It has been amazing watching the health totals rebalance and someone who was close to death get a second wind long enough for my heals to land and bring them safely out of the danger zone.
So what do you think? Have you had a chance to test it out yet? What are your first impressions?
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 1 of 3)
JiBJUB Mar 15th 2011 6:10PM
Once we learn how to throw totems, this will be much nicer!
techvoodooguy Mar 16th 2011 10:25AM
That's what hunters said about traps, and now look what they say!
techvoodooguy Mar 16th 2011 10:26AM
WTB Edit button. Submitted too soon. Basically, people complain that throwing traps is clunky and useless. It has mostly to do with the small trap trigger radius, but it is quite useful, however clunky it may be.
Phantom Mar 15th 2011 6:16PM
My guess is that people want to run ICC because they know and outgear the content. You can play with new toys in a risk-free environment.
Ice Mar 15th 2011 8:30PM
Also the "players are not ready for firelands" argument comes to play here too. PTR people are lonewolfs sometimes when it comes to "deeper testing", or guilded who log in to smash target dummies. Not many even know tacts or want to wipe to test some new stuff at all.
Specially after firelands was "pushed to 4.2" many "raiders" just stopped going to PTR so no raiding from them, so its basically just people who "pug LFD" in live and in PTR.
Specially when premade gear is "merely blues" it wont encourage to jump straight to pug raid for halfus
Chmmr Mar 16th 2011 10:50AM
The PTR is already a risk-free environment...
Titusx Mar 15th 2011 6:21PM
Totem Launcher FTW!
MusedMoose Mar 15th 2011 7:23PM
I'm picturing us launching totems with a slingshot. A slingshot made of LIGHTNING.
Joe Perez Mar 15th 2011 7:47PM
"Totem Launcher: Formerly used to throw Gnomes into combat, this device has been modified by an enterprising shaman to throw totems over short distances."
R. Mar 15th 2011 6:22PM
Why does throwing totems bring to mind Lawn Darts?
dj.clayden Mar 15th 2011 6:31PM
...what shape lawn darts do you play with?
R. Mar 15th 2011 6:35PM
custom ones that look dwarven hammers. cost a pretty penny too.
dj.clayden Mar 15th 2011 6:29PM
Question on the mechanics:
Does the totem redistribute the health fully every tick, or does it somehow redistribute the health gradually over the course of totem? I'm not sure how the gradual redistribution would really work due to damage being taken between ticks, but..
Also, does this totem take the percentage health pools, distribute the percentages based on that, then calculate the health? Or (more likely) does it average the number of health points, then use this "health pool" to give everyone the same % health?
If it's the first option, then the totem would in fact heal or damage the raid, which would be "interesting", although this makes me suspect the latter option.
P.S. I can never phrase questions simply. Sorry for writing them badly, I hope someone can be bothered to read/answer =)
Saeadame Mar 15th 2011 7:18PM
I think this video demonstrates how it works pretty well: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9lReLePe_E
Basically, it rebalances the health right away, but you can also keep healing people after it's dropped but during the duration, and it will continue to rebalance the health of the people in range.
Ice Mar 15th 2011 7:49PM
If you keep healing it will notice it and try to balance it out.
Basically like in the video linked (for brief moment tho, my bad on that)
With 2 persons, something like "person A" has 90% hp and "person B" has 10% hp, it will balance to about 50% (Yeah % not health numbers)
If you heal person A to 100% it will also heal person B to 100% ! Its very neat on that part. Its more trickier on raids tho since healing one wont make everyone go to 100% I assume
Joe Perez Mar 15th 2011 7:49PM
"Basically, it rebalances the health right away, but you can also keep healing people after it's dropped but during the duration, and it will continue to rebalance the health of the people in range."
This is pretty much the case. It also means that every heal, for lack of a better comparison, redistributes as well across all targets.
Hidendragon Mar 16th 2011 7:55AM
I was interested in this stat.
If ICE is correct then this would mean, we drop it and top up our cloth wearing friends as fast as possible as this would mean a greater % increase.
If it is a major health Pool then we would want to spam Greater heal on the tank/s to boost this.
i feel the logarithms required for the later, while doable will possible mean that the % redistribution is most likely favoured by Blizz.
Either way i am very much looking forward to this new, and long over due spell
Robert Mar 16th 2011 8:31AM
"If you heal person A to 100% it will also heal person B to 100% ! Its very neat on that part."
That doesnt sound correct to me, If you had 2 players A and B both on 50% HP and fully healed A to 100%, they would rebalance at 75% each. Or atleast thats how i see it.
Some interesting thoughts that came to mind.
- Overhealing will have no effect, as healing some one at 99% would only redistribute that 1% increase out to the raid. Else imagine a Lay on Hands Crit spread across the whole party :) - aka one heck of a raid heal!
- As stated before - "If ICE is correct then this would mean, we drop it and top up our cloth wearing friends as fast as possible as this would mean a greater % increase."
Here by taking the player with the smallest HP pool means each heal is the biggest % increase it can be.
- Does it take into account abilities like a rogues Quickening (?) which increases the amount of healing they recieve? as obviously a heal on this player potentially could have the most % increase. Or will it be the healing before? (some how I don't think it will be).
To me the ability seems in a well thoughtout place and i look forward to seeing it strategically poped in my raids :)
BB Crisp Mar 16th 2011 4:45PM
@Robert
The comment system ate my first attempt at a response, so let's try this again...
You've got the way this totem works a bit wrong. It redistributes health, not healing, which affects a number of your examples. Since health is being redistributed every second, it is still possible to overheal and your Lay on Hands crit effect is not possible. For example, if in the middle of the effect 5 players were at 30% and a pally were to bring one up to 100% health with Lay on Hands, the redistribution would take place afterwards and bring everybody to 44% ( (30+30+30+30+100)/5 ). It's not be possible to bring other players to full health by targeting one player. Say there are 2 players that start out at 50%. If you top off one at 100%, the tick of the totem will bring you both to 75%. If you heal him up to 100% again, the next tick will bring you both to about 87.5% and so on, never bringing you both to full health.
As to your other example with a rogue, the bonus to healing received would indeed benefit the raid, but only in terms of the bonus redistributed health. It's somewhat of a moot point, however, as aoe heals will likely be your best healing option during the duration of the totem. While it's active, every member in its radius will either be at full health or have some level of damage, making aoe heals very efficient.
BB Crisp Mar 16th 2011 4:56PM
Another thing I just thought of to point out. In the same way that this totem does not make you share healing (it redistributes health at one second intervals), it also does not make you share damage. Any effect that will one-shot a player will not be prevented by using this totem.
Also, if an effect that a player is supposed to avoid does something crazy like 1,000,000 damage to a targeted character, the totem will not cause the effect to one-shot your entire raid. The targeted character will just be very, very dead on his own. Actually, this is probably one of the reasons that the totem redistributes health rather than making players share healing and damage.