#0 - Aug. 13, 2007, 6:55 a.m.
Some of you are probably wondering who the flippin’ eck I am. Well, I’ll tell you. I’m no one special. I’m not an expert theorycrafter, I’m not an uber player, not in a BT/MH guild, not in a 2100+ rated arena team. If you don’t believe that someone in this position can offer some advice, or some tips, or try to help other people then stop reading now. I can live without the flaming.
Nehoo, enough with the proverbial horse pucky. This is a RESTO Arena guide for those who want some new tips, or a little help in understanding where our skills in the arenas actually are!
Step 1: Picking the correct spec.
Unfortunately for us a 0/0/61 PvE spec doesn’t suit us well in PvP and Arenas. You are wasting a lot of points in very non-PvP talents and will probably take you so far and not much further (skill dependant of course). The spec that I am focusing on here is what most people would call a Cookie Cutter Resto PvP spec. Some people take a more even balance between Feral and Resto talents in order to do some damage as well. Some take a few more points in Balance for increased range on spells. Or perhaps slip in another point or two in Feral for improved stealth. This, however, is the spec that I have always loved for PvP.
Resto Utility : 8/11/42
http://www.wowhead.com/?talent=MzjZVMhoZVVIxcq0xsh
If you are a true blood PvP healer then this is the spec for you. It takes all the essential Resto tree talents for HoT’s, instant heals, and versatility you will need when the opposing team is trying its very best to CC you. It also takes few needed survival talents in both the Balance tree and the Feral tree.
Balance Points:
> Improved Natures Grasp: Brilliant tool in pvp if there’s a rogue/warrior/shammy beating on you. Pop into bear form; nip out of LoS of his healer/dispeller and insta root him. Also helps with Warlocks Felguards.
> Control of Nature: Despite people complaining about Cyclone being less than perfect, and Roots being a sub par CC device this is still an essential talent. As long as you don’t SPAM your CC, and have a teammate with some form of CC you can rotate out of diminishing returns very effectively. Thus removing an opposing player for a significant amount of the battle.
Feral Points:
> Feral Aggression: You generally don’t have a whole lot of use for Rage as a Resto Druid in PvP. If your in bear form you are either using feral charge to interrupt a caster, using it to escape from taking a beating, or just generally getting wailed on. Throw out a quick Demoralising Roar. If your getting hit then chances are you will have plenty of rage. Every little helps in this game as far as survivability goes. This won’t do a heck of a lot, but even a small damage reduction in damage from melee classes helps.
> Thick Hide: Despite what you may think this talent does help with incoming melee damage reduction. I have approx 16k armour in bear form in my PvP Resto gear. That’s a 60% reduction on incoming damage. Just that extra little edge gives you the added protection to perhaps survive an extra few hits. Rogues damage on me in Bear form combined with resilience is sometimes pretty laughable.
> Brutal Impact: Every little counts in the stuns game. Be it Pounce or Bash.
> Feral charge: The other three talents are possibly considered by some as just filler points for this 1 talent that I would consider essential as a Resto Druid in arenas. It has a huge amount of usability. Interrupt spell casts; keep an enemy in one position for a short period of time, using it to get out of range of melee opponents by targeting an enemy and then popping into Travel form.
Resto Points:
> Furor: Essential in order to get off Feral Charge. Nuff said. Improved MoTW for arenas as far as I’m concerned is a waste of 5 talent points better used further down the Resto tree.
> Natures Focus: 70% Chance to reduce interruptions whilst casting your Regrowths. Must have.
> Natural Shapeshifter: You’re a hybrid, you WILL be shapeshifting a lot.
> Subtlety: Im not sure some people would even consider this as a talent for PvP. But
reducing the chance that your HoT’s will be dispelled is a huge advantage. Having a Felhunter chewing your furry behind all through an arena match devouring your HoT’s is not a pleasant experience.
Please Note: This talent also affects non-healing spells such as Moonfire's DoT component, Entangling Roots, Insect swarm and Faerie Fire.
> Swiftmend: An obvious one. I’ve had Swiftmend crit for 4-5k on rogues and warlocks.
> Improved Regrowth: You might not be able to get Regrowth off an awful amount in Arenas other than the initial few. But when it hits you need it to hit for as much as possible. Especially with healing debuffs such as Mortal Strike or Wound Poison.
> Natures Swiftness: With a 3 min cooldown on this spell you really need to be carefull when this get’s used. I would almost say this should be reserved 100% of the time for Healing Touch. In normal PvP however it can be nice to throw a NS Cyclone on a flag carriers healer for example.
> Natural Perfection: This one kind of explains itself. Combined with a decent amount of Resilience it makes a nice dent on the incoming Crit damage. This however is only applicable up to 300 resilience. See this post for more info:
http://forums.wow-europe.com/thread.html?topicId=508261453&sid=1
> Empowered Rejuvination: Your mainstay is HoT’s. If they tick for more, there’s more chance of your teammates staying alive.
Alternative specs:
12/11/38 :- Kheletarr
http://www.wowhead.com/?talent=MzjM0bZVMhoZVVIocq0xsh
This spec gives you the ability to Cyclone and Root opposing players outside of the normal sheep/CS/fear range. For this you sacrifice a small amount of healing from your HoT's and some points in Subtlety but still retain all the essential talents in the Resto Tree. A perfectly viable spec.
Q u o t e:
The options you have here is to move one point from emp rejuvenation to get insect swarm. If you want 5/5 subltety which is really personal preference you can take points from a) imp rejuvenation b) imp regrowth c) nature's focus.
12/0/49 :- Loneya
http://www.wowhead.com/?talent=MzjM0bZZVVIxcqMesx
This keeps a strong healing ability and utility, but removes the Feral talents. If you avoid jumping into Bear form and dont consider it as part of your arsenal this might be a preferable spec for you.
Addons and Macros:-
Macros and addons can make your life a little easier. Setting a focus target on the opposite team can avoid having to click about to find that warrior to cyclone/root him in the heat of the battle.
You can set a focus target by targetting someone and typing /focus (of course you can make it into a macro to get a clickable button as well).
From Lugh
Q u o t e:
/cast [button:2,target=focus] Abolish Poison; Abolish Poison
I find macros like this very useful for 2v2. Just focus your team-mate and turn on the option to self-cast when you don't have a friendly target. Left clicking a spell will cast it on yourself, right clicking on your buddy.
Also since you don't need to switch targets your opponents can't tell who you're gonna heal.
/cast [button:2,target=focustarget] Cyclone; Cyclone
Similar but casts Cyclone on your target with left click and your focus' target with right click.
