Pugnacious Priest's Warcraft Blog

I wrote  a while a go  that your healers should be dpsing too and I would rather a bored healer dps then do stuff like pull for the tank, or *get distracted and not be quick enough to heal when the tank actually needs it.

* raises hand – Guilty your honor  I was in cat form when the tank died.

I regularly try to slot some Dps in on my two priests when I am healing,  but I’ve not gotten to try the smite dps/healing style of a disc priest in a 25 raid. I went Disc this week  on my 2nd priest for our  LK 10 kill and achievement , and the earlier weeks H LK attempt, and was too busy bubbling and penancing to have time to Smite to build up my stacks to get my pretty wings.  (bad enough I forget I have barrier and Power Infusion)  

So as for Dpsing as a  Resto druid, I have been leveling mostly through dungeons, holiday quests, cloth hand ins, and the rare bg ( 30-40 bracket getting one shot by rogues. NOT FUN)  and she has a few things she can do to help an encounter along damage wise,  she will moonfire every now and then, cast inspect swarm but considering I am getting tanks screaming ” BIG PULL LOL”  and running off in the distance. I don’t always have mana to spare. 

There are two non healing spells I am trying to use as often as possible though.

Faerie fire

“Decreases the armor of the target by 4% for 5 min. While affected, the target cannot stealth or turn invisible. Stacks up to 3 times”

Thorns

thorns sprout from the friendly target causing * nature damage over 20 seconds. 

I try to get the three stacks of Faerie fire up on the Boss Target because it all helps right?  a 12% armour reduction is nothing to sneeze at especially if there are no Rogues or Warriors – or they aren’t putting up their own armor reductions – though things die so fast I don’t really need it.

The biggest offensive ability I am using  – for which I do not get credit for which I think sucks, is Thorns.     I am using Thorns on the tank when there is a need for Aoe.  This has been awesome in keeping threat off me, and thorns does well for damage done when fighting groups of mobs. Things die quicker, I don’t get hit as often,  I help the tank do better dps,  I posted a recount for damage by ability of the tank in a Sunken Temple run, and thorns was # 2.  I like not getting hit by dragons,  and those trash packs can be interesting.

With content as is now – pre cata – there certainly is opportunity for more healers to throw out some damage as well, but like overzealous, mob pulling dps – it could teach us some bad habits.  You heal because you heal.  That’s your job,  your main focus needs to be on that role or the reason why roles exists fail. The party fails.

I got too cocky, and was in cat form skull bashing, and shredding mobs in Mara. I got silenced and couldn’t heal the tank. My pre hots had worn off,  he died because I was reaching outside the bounds of my role. It was all good though.  One Battle rez later, and an apology, and I never did it again that instance.

I like feeling more useful than just as a health bar toper upperer  ( the Faerie fire in a 25 man should not even be required with the other classes in the raid doing their thing)  and I can certainly see the benefit of casting thorns on the tank. It’s only one more GCD, I have a power Aura set up for it so I know its ready to be cast.  It does more damage. Better agro, and I probably don’t have to cast it at all. No one will notice.   Parties only realise that I am being a little more useful than a healing machine when I point out ” wow look how much damage my thorns are helping you do”

It’s a tool that I think that even though I am healing and have to remember to keep using it  – it makes sence to make use of something that is so beneficial for the good of the party.