Prot healing nerf incFollow

A simple enough change is to make Touched by the Light use Defense instead of Stam, the same as AD. Now, Defense doesn't really scale. You go for 540, usually no higher, and certainly no lower. +30% critical heals for 540 defense would work; but the bonus spellpower should scale with level, and then you get a percent of that based on your defense.

Increases your spell power by up to 3/7/10 times your level (based on your Defense), and increases the amount healed by your critical heals by up to 10/20/30% (based on your Defense).

And no one would ever pick up this talent specifically to heal arenas ever again.

Edit: Actually, no.. that wouldn't work. Only an extra 100 spell power at 90. Some other tank stat, then.. Block value? *shrug*

Edited, Aug 10th 2009 4:31pm by Ehcks

I imagine this announcement is a reaction to the total dominace of warrior/prot healer teams since the resilience changes.

To be totally honest, i was more upset about that prot-healing thing before i discovered tactics on how to break it over my knee in my particular arena team. In a way it is a very clever use of game mechanics, but you have to admit it's a bit gimmicky. An arena healing spec with no instant cast spells? And paladins are notoriously vulnerable to spell lockout (there is no holy tree, getting CSed or kicked locks out all paladin spells). You're only a powerful healer as long as aura mastery and bubble lasts and a team who know how to reset the fight during those cooldowns are going to punish you as soon as they run out.

The real strength i guess is how you can stack stamina and have it turn into extra spellpower, wheras other healers balance survivabilty with effective healing. There's a prot healer in my guild who will likely make gladiator this season with a little over 30k hp in her furious gear.

Edited, Aug 10th 2009 11:25pm by ArtemisEnteri

Interrupting is powerful against the spec, in context. For example, despite the big gear imbalance i can reliably beat that player in a duel with my rogue. That's just because i can pick my time to vanish (during a bubble or aura mastery) and then re-open the fight after diminishing returns on all my stuns and interrupts have reset. Then i can stunlock, interrupt all heals (which because of the spec all have cast times). Kidney shot, gouge, vanish-garrote etc saving the 6 second lockout for when they're at <8k hp.

In a 2v2 match, i would get destroyed every time. You can't blind after a trinket and wait 6 seconds to restealth, because there is a raging ironclad juggernaut who will cut me to tiny ribbons for hitting his healer.

In a duel, i get to pick my times easily. In an arena match when i *need* to lockout that holy light to finish off the warrior the paladin will almost certainly be bubbled, or immune.. And then she's back to full hp, and the warriors back to full hp, and me and my partner are stealthed and invised on 70% from not getting out of bladestorm in time, or taking a few too many ret aura backlashs etc. I think prot healing is so powerful because in the decently long amount of time you have to be immune to any spell interruption, your partner will have murdered someone, or at least forced them to blow cooldowns needed to shut down your healing after that point in the match.

Edited, Aug 11th 2009 10:02pm by ArtemisEnteri

Flametongue and Earthliving weapons work the same way for shamans. Earth living only increases healing power and flametongue only increases offensive spell power. Seems like a very, easy, simply, undamaging fix. But then you kind of punish soloing prot paladins across the board since they can no longer heal themselves as effectively.

With duel spec available this is not a downside at all. Changing it to spell damage only is a great idea.

FTFY :)

ALso, I posted this in a new topic already. Almost posted it here, but thought it'd get more attention in its own topic :) Off to check that one next!