#0 - Sept. 13, 2010, 8:27 p.m.
Hello, all. It is nearly impossible to keep a thread like this mature on the PTR forums so I thought I would make this in a more appropriate location, the Tanking Forum. I really appreciate everyone who is participating maturely to this topic and all the great points and details everyone is giving.
I know a lot of Prot Paladins are very frustrated at first, so I'm going to take a little space right here to review a few issues people have and respond with some of the collective answers people have been contributing across this thread. If you see any other issues, or see any issue with these answers, please feel free to reply to this topic.
THREAT
A major concern of Prot Paladins has been threat. Please keep in mind that we have new mechanics and your sources of threat are now different. First of all your rotations will make a big difference. With damage dealers not being able to use AOE on small groups, they will be single targetting mobs. It's essential you are using a single target rotation on small groups, not multi target, or you will be generating a bit lower threat than you may need. Avenger's Shield is also a major part of our rotation now and should be prioritized above anything else. Watch your Holy Power and use it effectively. I would recommend using Shield of the Righteous at two Holy Power in quick (under 30 seconds) fights, and at three Holy Power on all longer fights. Also be certain you are judging within 15 seconds of Shield of the Righteous for the +50% crit bonus it gives. Also be sure you are using Holy Wrath on both single and multi target fights. You can also glyph for and open with Exorcism for some added zing.
SURVIVABILITY
If you are having Survivability issues you should take a look at what kinds of pulls you are taking on. We are not going to be able to handle some of the really big groups (I'm referring to tanks in general), and some pulls will simply require some Crowd Control. Take a few seconds to think through things. Also don't forget you have some great survivability mechanics like Ardent Defender, Lay on Hands, your bubble, etc. If you are having continued issues you may wish to do a quick, One Holy Power Shield of the Righteous at the beginning of the fight to apply Holy Shield early on. Don't forget about Devotion Aura and Resistance Aura. Also keep in mind the ICC level mobs are still overtuned right now and will do bonus damage.
HOLY POWER
Many players are feeling there is not enough Holy Power. Generally it seems people want more Holy Power so they can use WoG. If you are in a fight that is dealing so much damage that you feel healing yourself is called for, don't forget that Vengeance will be up very very high in that fight and will be helping a lot with threat. Feel free to substitue in some WoG's for SotR, and if you spec'd right you'll have a chance for your WoG to not consume Holy Power at all allowing you to still use that SotR. Outside of those situations, WoG is not intended for situational use. Rely on Ardent Defender and Lay on Hands for those times instead.
ROTATION
If you are having issues managing your rotations you may wish to use a macro. Some find macros helpful for learning the rotations, and possibly even for permanent use. I've compiled a few useful macros below. Essentially you will use Avenger's Shield first whenever it is up. Next you will use either a Primary single-target or multi-target macro, hitting these whenever they're up (except when Avenger's Shield is up). Finally you would use the Secondary macro, hitting these only if AS and your primary macro are on CD. You can also use Exorcism for pulling.
These macros below have a built-in +1 SotR starter so you can quickly apply Holy Shield. The Primary macros also have a /startattack function so that you don't need to have the Auto-attack button on your action bar.
PRIMARY: +2 SotR, Single-Target (Short Fights, Small Groups)
Q u o t e:
/startattack
/castsequence reset=combat Crusader Strike, Shield of the Righteous, Crusader Strike, Judgement
PRIMARY: +3 SotR, Single-Target (Long Fights, Small Groups)
Q u o t e:
/startattack
/castsequence reset=combat Crusader Strike, Shield of the Righteous, Crusader Strike, Judgement, Crusader Strike, Crusader Strike, Shield of the Righteous, Judgement, Crusader Strike, Crusader Strike, Judgement
PRIMARY: +2 SotR, Multi-Target (Short Fights, Large Groups)
Q u o t e:
/startattack
/castsequence reset=combat Hammer of the Righteous, Shield of the Righteous, Hammer of the Righteous, Judgement
SECONDARY: Single and Multi Target Fights
Q u o t e:
/castsequence reset=combat Holy Wrath, Consecration, Holy Wrath
I hope this information is useful. Please feel free to post any questions before assuming the class is broken or horrible, we may be able to help you. Paladins are shaping up to be quite fun.
