*sigh* Back to WoW I go--pointers anyone?

[Misfit702]

So after an unsucessful attempt at beating my MMO addiction I have decided to return to World of Warcraft. I tried DDO and the cons of that game outweigh the pro's enough for me to not pay 15 bucks a month for it. I will be joining a ready made group of family and friends consisting of a rogue, warrior, priest, and hunter. I decided a priest as a back up healer is the class I want to play but spec it as a shadow priest. Anyone here have a shadow specc'd priest that can give any insight on whether or not its a good idea? The other priest is my wife and she is holy specc'd. Or should I go entirely different class like another hunter or not? I used to play a hunter and got to 41 but it's a troll and they are all freakin night elves now so I have to go alliance. Thanks for the feedback in advance.

[avirez]

well first if you want to go priest make sure you roll a dwarf (fear ward!) shadowmeld is a cool and fun ability and ive used it alot but fear ward is so great for endgame raids you wont believe it.

Shadow spec priest, well i specced half shadow half disc for my leveling time then went holy for end game raids.

You simply most have shadow if you want to be able to solo or do any damage at all but if you are grouping most of the time a disc/holy build is very usefull in a group.

just dont advertise that you are a shadow spec while looking for PUGs and you wont get in trouble :)

[Misfit702]

I was just looking at the current DPS for our group and was thinking a bit more on top with back up healing would be better then another holy/disc specc'd priest. I am not entirely sure just how much dmg a shadow specc'd priest does anyhow but I am sure its more then a holy/disc spec. Is the dwarven fear thing one of the new class abilities?

[Jaarx]

Ironically, if you spec Holy/Disc damage spec, you WILL outdamage a Shadow Priest in most any case. I'm still pretty sure straight up Shadow will speed up the grinding and mob killing process, but if you want raw damage and the ability to heal well, Holy/Disc is the way to go.

If you guys know what DamageMeter mod is, one of our priests got #1 in raid damage simply by spamming Smite in Molten Core. It was stupid. :P

[Andara Bledin]

You can really pump up the power behind Smite. I'm doing a Shadow/Holy Priest, but I haven't gotten far enough to really have any insight into how it works, yet.

[Mutton]

When quest grinding in the Barrens, remember the old adage of 'when in Rome'.
I play a level 60 Shadow Troll Priest for a main (5/14/32)
The stand by advice of Shadow to level is still sound.
I've been the only healer for 10 man Strat/Scholo, 15 man UBRS and been successfull.
The Idea that you need to have a holy spec priest to be a healer is really fostered by end game raiding, and covering the asses of idiots.

In raid senarios it's all about mana pool. This means the Disc tree is more important than the Holy. Holy offers more crutches to allow you a cushion to lax on health bar whack-a-mole, but it's still how quickly can you regen your mana that matters.

In your standard 5/10man groups its all about Agro management. If the group you are with does not understand agro management then even a holy spec priest will have a hard time keeping up. But that's what the crutch of the holy tree helps with. If the e-diots draw agro, tank can't grab agro, something runs, pull goes wrong, sheep gets a dot or you have Leroy in your group. You will be blamed for the wipe. If you are shadow spec then they will just compound the blame.

Surprisingly, idiots calling me an idiot causes me no pain.

[Nokei]

When quest grinding in the Barrens, remember the old adage of 'when in Rome'.
I play a level 60 Shadow Troll Priest for a main (5/14/32)
The stand by advice of Shadow to level is still sound.
I've been the only healer for 10 man Strat/Scholo, 15 man UBRS and been successfull.
The Idea that you need to have a holy spec priest to be a healer is really fostered by end game raiding, and covering the asses of idiots.

My level 42 Shadow Priest has main-healed every instance thusfar (including most of Uldaman) without difficulty. Vampiric Embrace is a huge benefit until you get much higher level. Doing the Scarlet Monastery Cathedral, the only time I needed to shift out of Shadowform was mid-way through the final boss fight.

I have no doubt I could stay Shadow and still be effective, even in a 20 man instance like ZG.

[B_Delacroix]

My wife's sister played a shadow priest. She seemed to have a lot of fun with it and we did well as a group. Then again we aren't actually all that bad at the games we play having approached each game puzzle with the attitude of solving it with what we have rather than hoping to find what we don't have.

Unless you are min/maxing for whatever reason, shadow priest shouldn't be all that bad a thing to play with and you will still be effective.

[Jandau]

Considering that they already have a priest maybe you could go Druid for a little variety, or shaman/paladin. That way you would add more to the group than another priest and these are more suited for the backup healer role than the priest (which is more of a primary healer)...

[Dana]

Considering that they already have a priest maybe you could go Druid for a little variety, or shaman/paladin. That way you would add more to the group than another priest and these are more suited for the backup healer role than the priest (which is more of a primary healer)...

Good advice. I was going to reply saying to try Paladin but I forgot that Horde existed (:-P). Paladins have a range of really good buffs and auras for different situations. Druids are adaptable and could fill in as a spare tank or damage dealer instead of healing (although this is somewhat dependent on gear and talent spec, especially at higher levels).

[Zarithar]

This will probably get me flamed, but I have both a 60 holy specc'd pally and a 52 holy specc'd priest. I heal far more efficiently as a paladin, which seems to me more like a D&D cleric (plate wearing healer).

My priest just seems to not heal as efficiently... or maybe (quite possibly) I am just playing him wrong. Yes I realize my priest isn't max level yet, but he does have the majority of what would be considered "core" abilities.

Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the priest class, but I honestly believe that a paladin properly specc'd is a more efficient healer.

[Jandau]

Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the priest class, but I honestly believe that a paladin properly specc'd is a more efficient healer.

From what I've seen, Priests are the best Big Heal class. They got the big numbers and all. Not quite as efficient, but they tend to have more spi and int than Pallys

Pallys are efficient in their heals (mana-wise) but can burst out as much heal

Druids heal, but mostly HoT (Heal over Time)

Shamans... well, they fit in somewhere :p

[Pendraeg]

Well from my exeprience shadow or holy has little or no impact on youre heal capacity, skill as a healer is the only thing that matters. I've seen a priest that just to prove a point went to nefarian specced 0/0/0 and did comparably well to most other than our GM and our raid leader (both priests :p) So, my girlfriend is a shadow priest, and i leveled my first alt alongside her. From my experience in a small group environment, shadow is the way to go always (my personal reasoning is: its more fun to play, and it is indeed faster to do solo crap if thats necessary), and get as much mana gear as you can get- same for your primary healer tbh :). Don't pick shaman its dull to level and has limited healing capacity when levvling (if your horde that is), go druid way fun.

[Lythix]

Well for the most part i'd say go first 11 points straight into shadow.. take your pick of either spirit tap or blackout.. and then hook up sw:pain and a whatever else to make sure you get mindflay at the 11th point...

after that i'd put points in my shield and fort buffs.. and go from there with more shadow damage.... mind blast 4/5 times it just about right for you to mind blast sw:pain and mind flay and then be able to mind blast again... or you can fear mind blast flay and then sw:pain again and by that time most anything your levels just about dead or able to be wanded...

i'd keep buffing up your shadow damage and make sure to get the imp vamp embrace... not only does that really help you out flying solo.. but you'll be suprized that in a 5 man group.. you'r dmg output is really also your healing output.. sure some of its wasted on already full people but at around lvl 58 i was mindblasting for 800 consistantly i think.. (i'm sure some of you will laugh at that being so low or something) but thats a pretty decent 160 point heal on everyone around you.... and that was before the patch... anyway.. i guess i could say that the really nice thing about going shadow is your quite the force against other casters... aside from holy/disc priests who will.. unfortunettly exersize you unless they don't know what they're doing... but even then you have a really good shot at killing just about everything else with the exception of rogues who.. just eat clothies for dinner.. lunch brunch snacks tv meals and south beach diet snacks...

as for the idea that you have to be holy to end game raid theres a bit of truth there... sure if you go with people who know what their doing and have good gear.. you'll do just fine if your one of 5 or so priests and the group knows how to manage agg... me personally i'm a leader in a guild that consistantly fields 4 or so priests who are kinda young to the rank of 60... so i had to become a holy/disc hybrid in order to keep my boys alive... in the end i suppose going 0-60 in shadow spec is probibily one of the funnest things in the game.... i hope you really enjoy your return... if only someone would have told me to roll horde when i started /me hangs head

as for the pally vs. priest idea.. . healing really is a skill the player has to learn.. talent points aren't going to help you like they'd help a rogue or warrior.... knowing when to hot and how to time that Greater heal over the flash heal is something that really has to be learned.... i've seen some well done pally's do pretty well in the healing department.. i've never been out healed by a pally but then again i can see you outdoing a priest who's just being lazy.... priests mana effecency is really off the charts with greater heal... i'm not fully holy speced and i'm at a 4.5:1 hp to mana ratio... even my prayer of healing (aoe heal) doesn't beat that unless i'm with 4 other people at which point it goes to 5:1... i've never had the mana problems a pally has either... i guess the best way would be to run the numbers when your in the game and just see how close your 52 priest is to your 60 pally.. you also have to look at gear too... but i think you'll find your priest is really the mage of the healing classes.... but they can also sustain that healing power much longer...

[junior]

From the analysis that I've seen others do, the big paladin heal is the single most efficient mana->hp heal in the game. So yes, paladins will generally be more efficient than other classes. Blessing of Light, if used (and it frequently isn't outside of raids), will move things even more favorably in the paladins' direction.

On the other hand, paladin healing is the least flexible, since paladins are basically restricted to a fast cast heal that's too weak to be of any real use except to top hit points off, and their slow casting big heal which can sometimes see your intended recipient dying before the heal actually lands.

[bulldog]

Here's my advice: Run while you still can.

[Wolf]

So I quit for the 5th time I believe over a month ago (right after they billed me too, I hate how I always lose interest in a game right after they bill me) and found out a couple days ago they billed me for this month, apparently I forgot to cancel my account. So I'm coming back for the month if I can fix up this computer.

I'm going to throw my question in this thread instead of creating a whole new one since its basically the same topic.

So ya, I'm coming back, and I am also going to come back to Horde. I decided to join a server where I have a RL friend with a 60 Hunter who will be able to run me through things, help with a little cashflow, etc. I have a few questions.

I've read some Warlock hate information. Basically saying stuff like they're useless in end game content or they could be useful but they get threat fast. This class sort of interested me for a long time but I never got passed 24 (I was a Gnome and didn't look evil enough :D). I am also kind of leaning towards Shadowpriest though. Could some one please tell me who's DoT's are stronger, a Warlock or a SP?

For Warriors, what would you guys suggest for a race. I am planning on being a Fury spec'd and dual wield because I had a level 42 Human Warrior that kicked everythings ass but since I was human I wasn't really eager to buy a mount and that kind of ruined it for me. A friend of mine said Orc for PVP (stun resist) and Tauren for PVE (extra health).

Anyone have any experience with the server Thundersomething ( can't remember the full name). My question for this would be does anyone have experience with the BG's. Do people actually do them often? Are they all super twinks?

Thats about it, thanks for any advice.

[Jusen]

For a fury specced, 2handed, warrior I would suggest troll on the horde and either NE or Gnome on the alliance.
You need to squeeze every bit of agi you can out of your race since crits are the best way to overcome the way too high miss rate.
By equipping 2weapons you get -20% hit.
So you could get +hit, but a crit always hits and is calculted before hit. So with a good crit rate your miss rate becomes a minor issue.

Although you can always take Tauren, when you can stun, got more hp and just look like a big scary bull it dosen't really matter what you're using.



Locks are masters of DoT, sure they can still aggro but every class steals aggro if you go too far (except dps pallies...) sure, some people may compare shadowpriest DoTs with lock DoTs.
But the lock isn't just stronger on DoT, he has more! Sure, your shadow word pain might be tough, but check out my corruption+immolate+curse of agony.

[Carth]

Aside from the fact that Shadow Priests look more 'evil' with Shadowform, Affliction Warlocks *Such as myself* can do far more damage with DoTs than a Shadow-Priest can. For example, with my current talent spec, I Improve Curse of Agony, Immolate, Insta-Corruption, and Syphon Life, while having my succubus beat on the mob(s) and Drain Life'ing. I'll rarely lose more than 10% of my life per 2-3 mobs done this way.

As far as the warrior question, what you're looking for is +hit, not +crit, at least that's what the Fury-Specced warriors in my guild say. If you were more 2-handed Arms specced, then +Crit would be better in the long run. However, your choice in race is dependant on choice of gameplay. For PvE causal raiding, any race on alliance does well, as most servers are extremely Alliance heavy. For PvE Endgame, Human warriors are best simply because they get Weapon Specializations with +Swords and +Maces, which means Less Glancing Blows (Half Damage or less, no chance of crit), or Orc with +Axe Skill.

If you're PvP oriented, any horde race really, though Undead and Tauren tend to shine, due to Will of the Forsaken and Warstomp, respectively.

Admittedly, Horde tend to have more Mature players, over Alliance, be it due to sheer numbers Alliance side or some sort of inborn mentality. Incase that makes much difference.

[Keudiar]

I have two raiding mains in my guild. One warlock and one priest. This way I can fill in where needed. Both are 60th and I raid with both of them alot. Or at least for me alot. Average about 8 raids a week.

Warlock has been SM/Ruin, Full destruction, and full affliction. Currently he is full affliction.

Priest is currently holy/disc but was shadow till 58th.

I have been looking at the group the OP listed and thinking...Now what single class would be best for that team.

Ok the warlock would be good any spec. Another off tank and he can lay down some serious DPS. Fear is often useful depending on what and where you are fighting. Nothing wrong with the warlock at all.

But...The best for your group is full shadow priest without a doubt. There are several reasons. The single biggest one is vampiric embrace. That is just to good for your group. At max improved (I suggest this) it heals like 35% of your shadow damage as a group heal and yes it will even heal the hunters pet. Mind flay snare for runners is pricless. An extra shield guy. Two rezzers. And I will dare say even though many do not believe this that shadow priests can pump out some serious DPS themselves if they gear towards shadow.

IMO shadow priest is best for your team. As to which one solos best the warlock all the way. Yes my shadow priest can kill good. My warlock can solo a 63rd elite in AQ20 man:). My priest cannot come close.

[Mutton]

After rereading the original post. I would suggest having a shadow priest in any group as a utility class. The damage out put is comparable to other classes and the added utility of an extra shackle, silence, mind control and snare really goes a far way. After running SM strat with another priest, there's no other way I would want to attempt that instance.

Oh and as for raid viability, With the proper gear (mp5/+heal) you can easily compensate for your spec and maintain pace with the Holy/Disc Priest in 40 man instances. 0/19/32 (http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/classes/priest/talents.html?0000000000000002350510003000000050232 3103311251)

[NmEnforcer]

Ironically, if you spec Holy/Disc damage spec, you WILL outdamage a Shadow Priest in most any case. I'm still pretty sure straight up Shadow will speed up the grinding and mob killing process, but if you want raw damage and the ability to heal well, Holy/Disc is the way to go.

If you guys know what DamageMeter mod is, one of our priests got #1 in raid damage simply by spamming Smite in Molten Core. It was stupid. :P

He probably had clicky's. They also made a fix to smite priests (IIRC). He also probably had a ridiculously large mana pool. I'm quessing he was wearing T2.

Also, DamageMeters isn't even close to being accurate. It gives you a decent number, but one person is all it takes to mess up the sync.