Unbearably HoT

I was at this totally sweet rager a few months ago. There was Texas-style barbeque and Jell-o shots, pontoons and a bonfire stoked with jet fuel. We’d just lit a desk on fire and rode it Reverse Cowboy style down the hill into the canal when Mortality suggested that hey, maybe it’d be a great idea to reroll Horde on Mal’ganis. At least, I’m pretty sure I must have been drunk to A) play a cow B) play a Boomkin and C) start over with nothing. And although you could argue that I’ve only been playing the bomb owl part time, I first stepped into the Trial of the Champion raid encounters as ranged DPS. Interestingly, ranged DPS is the easiest role I’ve ever played in this game—don’t let those crazy-ass caster types tell you otherwise. Sure, you need to move around sometimes and that whole shrinking blue bar is problematic, but you mostly kick back, crack open a beer, and nuke.

Now don’t worry—this blog isn’t going the way of the chicken. I do, however, have a semi-helpful tip for all you Balance-things out there. As you probably already know, the Moonkin casting rotation has changed significantly; namely, it’s a lot easier. Instead of stacking Haste to 400 and following a lunar cycle, your goal is to actually proc both a solar and a lunar eclipse. Graylo calls this “twisting.” At a very basic level:

1. FF, MF, IS
2. Wrath until Lunar Eclipse
3. Starfire until Solar Eclipse
4. Make sure DoTs are up and shit.

Obviously the goal here is to make sure that you’re fluidly switching spells while keeping DoTs refreshed. Wrath makes this interesting. If you’ve got ~400 Haste, your Wrath spells are already casting at ~1.3 seconds. That’s pretty fast. With a Nature’s Grace proc (Wrath at ~1.0 seconds), you’re a veritable chain-casting machine. Chances are good that by the time you’ve gotten a Lunar Eclipse, you’ve already ripped off three to four Wraths. Grats, excitable Owl. You’ve just wasted four seconds of your Eclipse!

Here’s how to be a little more wary. Wrath, as you know, has a travel time. This means that when you cast Wrath, it doesn’t instantly hit the target. The ball of crackling Nature energy leaves your feathered grasp, zooms along, and then hits the target by the time you’ve already got another one or two queued up. Nature’s Grace (spell critical have a 100% chance to increase casting speed by 20% for 3 seconds) can proc when the spell leaves your hands. Nature’s Grace tells you that you’ve gotten a critical strike, meaning that you then have a 60% chance to proc a Lunar Eclipse. The Lunar Eclipse will not proc until the spell hits the target.

So if you’re using a mod such as Power Auras or even SCT, you’ll get a notification when you’ve procced Nature’s Grace with Wrath. That’s your cue to stop spamming your Wrath button like a squirrel on crack. By paying attention to your Nature’s Grace proc as the spell leaves your fingers, you can slow down and prepare to queue up a Starfire if you get the telltale Eclipse on the spell hit.

Is it a guaranteed win? No, but when you’re actively anticipating the switch, you’re able to maintain a more fluid rotation, which in turn means more DPS.

Let’s provide a little background. We Druids have had a stormy relationship with our Idols—they were either tiresome or difficult to obtain, and their equip effects haven’t always been ideal. Even after Wrath came out, Bears either suffered through content using a Level 70 item as best-in-slot or participated in a series of daily PVP quests to pick up the threat-boosting Idol of Perspicacious Attacks. It wasn’t until Ulduar that Bears cheered the Idol of the Corruptor—and then simultaneously booed when they realized it dropped off of Heroic Vezax. For Cats, life was a little simpler: just pick up the Idol of the Ravenous Beast for a few Emblems of Heroism and then hope you could eventually snag the Idol of Worship from Naxxramas.

Now, just about everything is purchasable with the right sort of currency—if you know what I mean—including the Idol of the Corruptor and the Idol of Mutilation. But which do you really need, and should you have more than one on hand? The short answer is: YES, ALL OF THEM. But if you’re not crazy, don’t raid very much, or only have the means to obtain one in the near future, the below information will help you get started.

Idol of Worship < ArP 230 < Idol of the Ravenous Beast
Idol of the Corruptor ← Manglebot? → Idol of the Ravenous Beast
Idol of the Ravenous Beast ←ArP > 230 and 25 EoT → Idol of Mutilation
See Above ← Bear → Idol of the Corruptor

What if I swing both ways? Is there a quick answer for Bears?

If you function in any capacity as a Bear tank, I strongly recommend spending the Emblems on the Idol of the Corruptor. For a full and complete breakdown, please see Kalon’s post (and his whole blog, really:) “Don’t get Idol of Mutilation for Bear!” But wait, you say, doesn’t the Idol of Mutilation give you 200 Dodge Rating for 9 seconds every time you use Swipe or Lacerate? Well, yes. At first glance, it sure does sound better than the Idol of the Corruptor. If you break the numbers down, however, it looks a little like this:

Better than you thought, right? Fuck yes, kids. The Agility proc is enhanced by Blessing of Kings, Survival of the Fittest, and Mark of the Wild. With a near 100% uptime for every time you Mangle, you can gain nearly as much Dodge as the Idol of Mutilation boasts, in addition to threat and mitigation boosting stats. And, since the Idol of the Corruptor rolls in at the bargain price of 19 Emblems of Conquest, it’s a steal.

I’m already sick of looking at the ass end of my bear. Let’s get back to DPS.

Despite all that shit I just said, you should still buy the Idol of Mutilation—but for DPS purposes. Why? Even at a basic level, it makes sense: the Idol of the Ravenous Beast, which most top-end Druids use now, only benefits Shred damage. Previous incarnations of Idols required a Mangle to proc the AGI effect, and with the advent of other abilities that provide bleed augmentations (read: TRAUMA), Cats really weren’t (and still aren’t) Mangling very much at all anymore. The best option was thus to gem for ArP and boost your main damage dealing ability as much as possible: Shred.

The Idol of Mutilation allows you to proc the 200 AGI effect for 16 seconds when you Mangle or Shred. Rather than increasing Shred damage by 203, the Idol of Mutilation amplifies all of your damage dealing attacks by the 200 AGI proc effect. In addition, initial reports suggest that this Idol has a near 100% uptime—if you’re Shredding and/or Mangling. Presumably, if this functions similarly to the Idol of the Corruptor, the 200 AGI is also affected by Survival of the Fittest, Mark of the Wild, and Blessing of Kings. Thus, that 200 AGI gives you:

So is the Idol of Mutilation better than the Idol of the Ravenous Beast?

This is where it gets complicated, and you’d be best served by taking a peek at one of your most recent damage breakdowns. As a Cat, your goal is to make sure that you keep Savage Roar, Faerie Fire (if you don’t have anyone else who can apply it), Mangle (if you have no bot), Rake and Rip up at all times—without clipping DoTs. In between all those fun things, you Shred like a mad beast and use Ferocious Bite when you’ve got five combo points and extra time on all your other debuffs/buffs. That’s the basic version, anyway.

The idea is that the AGI proc effect will give you the most kapow if you’re spending a reasonable amount of time micromanaging those debuffs/buffs—which will apply to most of us. There is speculation, however, that using two-piece T8 and two-piece T9 (which extend the durations of Rip and Rake, respectively) gives you more time to kick back and Shred. A lot more. If that is the case, the Idol of the Ravenous Beast may once again edge out the Idol of Mutilation.

Additionally, you need to take a look at your total %Crit. Remember Tossk’s DPS Gear Methodology? At some point, AGI (contributing to %crit) loses value to AP. If Coliseum gear pushes Cats (raid buffed and all) well over ~60% Crit, again, the Idol of Mutilation may lose value to the Idol of the Ravenous Beast (which will provide a raw damage increase).

Tentatively, I want to say that the Idol of Mutilation is better than the Idol of the Ravenous Beast. I obviously do not have the capability at this point in time to test those two prior theories out. Once everyone starts acquiring more gear and there’s a healthier portion of data to dick around with, we’ll have to come back to this—and please, if you’ve got some sample numbers and corresponding stat information, send it on over!

A “filler arc” is a phrase used to describe a short side story in a serial comic book or TV show that diverges from the main storyline. It’s often used as a device to prolong the life of a series, give the producers/creators more time to work on the plot, and ostensibly to give the viewer time to catch up to the main story. Remember when your elementary school teacher would take a day off and leave the substitute with four thousand worksheets to keep you busy? It takes up time. Patch 3.2 essentially functions as Blizzard’s filler arc: a semi nonsensical diversion that appeases the content-mongerers and passes out catch-up loot to everyone else.

I mean really—let’s set up a tournament on Arthas’ doorstep where we can hang out and practice fighting shit. He’ll obviously ignore everyone (after having interfered in such minor affairs as Utgarde Keep, for example) and wait until we’re ready to charge through the Citadel itself. But despite Blizzard’s new round of sweeping class changes, Feral model update, and lackluster boss encounters, it really is an excellent time to round out your gear sets and snag some muchly needed updates.

Just in time for Patch 3.2, I’ve updated the Cat DPS Gear Spreadsheet to include all the new Feral DPS items—except for trinkets, idols (which I’ll cover in another post), and PVP gear. This list will exist in a constant state of flux as numbers change, items are added, and I decide to integrate other useful features, such as gear weights based on the FBN model (which I generally follow). I am, however, trying to stay away from designated “best-in-slot” items. Why? Although I’ve suggested super jawesome high-end items to aim for, it’s exceptionally pertinent to note that you need to build your gear around your stats and playstyle. Blindly following any suggestions and/or lists are a sure fire way to look like a retard at some point down the road.

Here are a few things to remember:

• Armor Penetration hard cap is 1231.6. Generally, we Druids talk about reaching an ArP “soft cap;” that is, the ArP hard cap minus the ArP proc from a trinket. For example, 1231.6 – 612 (proc on Grim Toll) = 619.6. That 619.6 is your soft cap. Until you hit 619.6 ArP, that’s the best stat to stack for both gems and gear (but don’t take a lame piece of loot JUST for the ArP).
• Expertise and Hit still exist for a reason. You don’t necessarily need to be at the cap these days, but you’ll want to be close.
• Keep slots open for tier gear! The two-piece T9 bonus extends the duration of Rake by three seconds. This is pretty cool, especially when you consider that’s three more seconds for you to dick around with other things. Like Shred. The two-piece T8 bonus, if you recall, harkens back to the days of T4 and free energy gains. This time, however, the periodic damage dealt by your Rake, Rip, and Lacerate abilities has a chance to cause you to enter a Clearcasting state. Right now, it looks as though wearing two-piece T8 and two-piece T9 will be optimal. If you’re currently wearing four-piece T8 or two-piece T8 with two-piece T7, I don’t recommend breaking your set bonuses until you have two pieces of T9.

If you were actively raiding Ulduar (especially hard modes), you may not find considerable gear upgrades until you’ve been through the Heroic versions of the Coliseum. If you’re looking for quick and dirty upgrades, however, you’ll likely get the biggest bang for your badge buck by going with items such as:

• Hood of Lethal Intent (75 Emblems of Triumph). Arguably BiS until Heroic T9.25.
• Leggings of Wavering Shadow (39 Emblems of Conquest). Definitely not BiS, but very easy to obtain right now.
• Broach of the Wailing Night (19 Emblems of Conquest). Again, not BiS, but with the changes to Conquest Emblems, you’ll have no trouble picking this up after a night of Heroics. It’s a very well rounded and well-itemized accessory with both ample ArP, AP, and AGI.
• Dexterous Brightstone Ring (35 Emblems of Triumph). Basically the best ring you can get your paws on until you get one to drop out of the Coliseum.
• Duskstalker Shoulderpads (45 Emblems of Triumph). Although a shoulder slot generally gives it up for a piece of tier gear, these are essentially better than everything until the Heroic T9.25 spaulders.
• Death-warmed Belt. Sure, you’ll have to shell out some cashmoneys, but you’ll get an incredibly shiny belt with the capability to sport three sockets. This will tide you over until you can pick up the Belt of the Merciless Killer/Belt of the Pitiless Killer from the Twin Valkyrs.

Still going to run hard modes in Ulduar? Even if you just try and pick up some easy 10-man achievements, you can still score totally sweet gear. Here are a few pieces you shouldn’t overlook:

• Drape of the Faceless General (Vezax Hard, 10 man). This is only marginally “worse” than the two shiniest cloaks from the Coliseum (that we know of): Drape of the Untamed Predator/Cloak of the Untamed Predator. Why? This cloak sports ArP and two sockets. Awesome. I still haven’t seen this drop.
• Embrace of the Gladiator (Thorim Hard, 25 man). While you’ll go far with the newest chestguards from the Coliseum, three sockets are nothing to sneeze at.
• Seed of Budding Carnage (Freya Hard, 10 man). Although this isn’t BiS anymore, it’s still a fantastic necklace with ArP, AGI, Hit Rating, and a socket.
• Loop of the Agile (Iron Council Hard, 10 man). The socket on this ring really makes it great.
• Soul-Devouring Cinch (Yogg Hard, 10 man). With the capability to slot another socket here, this belt still remains one of the best. Good thing Yogg is pretty cake right now.

This spreadsheet isn’t the end-all-be-all on what you want or need: think about it as a resource for quickly skimming through gear to aim for. If you notice any mistakes and/or items that are not included, please feel free to drop me a line, either via comments or the Contact page.

Looking for info and gear suggestions for Bomb Owls and Bears? Go see Graylo and Kalon, respectively.

While I don’t like making excuses, I just wanted to alleviate some concerns: Unbearably HoT is not shutting down, nor have I quit playing WoW. In fact, I’ve been pretty busy in game:

Work, however, has elevated past “busy” and climbed into the “not a good time to have a life” spectrum. I anticipate making a full return to writing as soon as August rolls around. In the meantime, feel free to track me down on Twitter, Mal’ganis (US PVP) or Silver Hand (US PVE)—or just drop me a line and let me know what you’d like to see in the future.

According to Nethaera:

A long time ago, I rerolled a Horde Druid on Mal’ganis so that I could potentially try and play with some of the fantastic people over there. Eventually, I missed all the perks that came with my Night Elf (you know, armor, achievements, ten million pets) and went back to the Alliance. But if I could simply wave a magic wand, pay a “nominal” fee and transform Runy into a Tauren…would I?

Obviously there are a million implications here. What would the faction transfer entail? Would you be able to pick your appearance? Would it reset your server transfer timer? What about your faction-based reputations? Would those transfer or reset? Will the best Horde guilds now get slammed by 6 million giddy Alliance players?

What will you do?