Phaelia: This week, I’m honored to share a guest post from Graylo of Gray Matter, a premier Balance blog featuring tons of theorycraft beneficial to any Balance (or Restoration) Druid seeking to improve her DPS or learn vital feather-preening techniques.

The night after patch 3.0.2 dropped my guild was running Black Temple and the [Naaru-Blessed Life Rod] dropped off of the Reliquary of Souls, and my GM, who plays a Warlock, said “looks like a Warlock item to me.”

Before you start writing angry comments about how my GM is an idiot, rest assured that he was joking. Though his comment does highlight one of the issues we are going to have after Wrath of the Lich King is released. With the merger of Healing and Spell Damage into a single stat, Moonkin and Trees are going to be seeking some of the same gear. However, this does not mean that every piece of leather gear with Spell Power is ideally suited for a Tree or a Moonkin. While any item with Spell Power maybe good for both builds, it is my opinion that most items with Spell Power will lend themselves more to one spec than the other.

In this article, I will take a look at each of the relevant stats to see how they lean. Then I will look at a couple of examples to answer the question: Is it Resto gear or Moonkin gear?

Spell Power

I only mention it to get it out of the way. This is the primary stat for both builds and provides no insight into who benefits from this item most. Plus, when considering items of a similar level the amount of Spell Power will be fairly close on both items.

Hit Rating

Unless something has changed in WotLK, a heal is not going to be miss or be resisted by its target. Therefore Resto Druids have no use for Hit Rating. This is the most obvious indicator of how an item leans. If it has Hit then it’s Moonkin gear.

Note from Phae: If it’s “hit” then it’s sh— … er … that is to say, it’s not something you want to GET.

Crit Rating

Crit is a little more ambiguous. It is not the most important stat for either build, but definitely has its purpose in both builds. In TBC, Crit Rating was good for Moonkin, but horrible for Trees since few Druid heals could crit. That has changed somewhat in WotLK. Regrowth will play a much bigger role in Druid healing, Healing Touch can now be cast in Tree of Life, and the new spell Nourish can crit. All of this points to a bigger role for Crit Rating in a Resto Druid’s life.

However, it is my opinion that Crit Rating favors Moonkin more. Over 80% Moonkin DPS comes from spells that can crit. Critical hits not only increases Moonkin damage but also increases our average casting speed for Starfire and returns mana. A majority of druid healing will still come from HoTs, and critical heals have an increased risk of wasted heals due to overhealing.

Note from Phae: Yes, spell crit is better for Restoration Druids than it once was, but try not to go overboard. HoTs still can't crit, and the 50% additional crit from Improved Regrowth actually makes spell crit less desirable to Restoration Druids, not more. To understand why, imagine you have 0 crit chance and pick up gear that gives you 10% crit chance. Your net improvement would be 1.1/1.0 or 10%. Now imagine you have 50% crit chance and pick up gear that gives you an additional 10% crit chance. Your net improvement is 1.6/1.5 or 6%, a substantially lower improvement. For the sake of clarity, this assumes you get exactly double the benefit from a crit, which is actually close due to Living Seed but not exact.

Haste Rating

Haste rating has the biggest question mark. When I talked to Phae about this stat she said she was slightly inclined to defer to Moonkin on this stat, but I think it is much more even.

Haste can be a significant DPS increase for Moonkin but it comes at a cost. It doesn’t increase mana efficiency at all so if you don’t have the mana pool for it, it won’t help your DPS much. From a Restoration perspective, haste does not decrease the duration of your HoTs, but it does have several benefits that can make a Resto Druid more effective. A shorter global cooldown means you can roll Lifebloom on more targets, or allow you to get more direct heals off in between refreshes. It also will help you to get off an emergency heal if both Nature’s Swiftness and Swiftmend are down.

In my opinion Haste doesn’t lend itself to one spec over the other. So, there is no help here.

Note from Phae: The value of haste depends almost entirely upon your style of healing. A healing style that relies primarily upon insta-cast HoTs – Lifebloom, Rejuvenation, and Wild Growth – will little benefit from haste; its global cooldown reduction is overpriced. On the other hand, an unglyphed Healing Touch or heavy Regrowth build would benefit from stacking spell haste. Still, it’s rare for a Restoration Druid to so vigorously eschew her HoTs to focus instead on direct heals.

Spirit

In the Burning Crusade, Spirit clearly lent itself to Restoration build,s and it is still a good stat for Trees in WotLK due to talents like Intensity, Living Spirit, and Improved Tree of Life. Moonkin on the other hand had very little use for Spirit. It was good for mana regeneration because most Moonkin picked up Intensity, but it did little for our DPS. That is changing with the addition of Improved Moonkin Form, which increases Spell Damage by 15% of your total Spirit.
Despite this change, I still believe that Spirit lends itself more to Restoration then Balance. The Resto Tree has more talents that benefit from Spirit, and I think healers in general benefit more from mana regen then DPSers do. Restos can easily blow through their mana really quickly trying to keep someone up and prevent a wipe. A Moonkin’s mana usage is much more consistent and can be managed in other ways. Plus, the extra DPS a Moonkin will get from Spirit is fairly small.

Note from Phae: I’m the one with Spirit; I don’t wanna hear it! Living Spirit means a Restoration Druid gets 1.15 Spirit for every 1 Spirit that a Moonkin would get. If said Moonkin doesn’t even have Intensity, I’d punch it in the beak for trying to take an item with a ton of Spirit.

Intellect

Obviously both builds need some amount of Intellect, but an item with an extraordinary large amount of Intellect probably lends itself more to a Moonkin. The Balance tree has two talents, Lunar Guidance and Dreamstate, that buff the druid based upon his level of Intellect. Restos can’t get these buffs without putting over 20 points in the Balance Tree.

Note from Phae: I believe that the new mana regeneration effect, Replenishment, makes Intellect desirable for all casters since the amount of mana restored is based on your total mana. As a result, I would be less inclined to consider this a stat that favors solely Moonkin, though I agree that Lunar Guidance and Dreamstate does seem to give the slight advantage to Balance Druids.

MP5

To be honest this isn’t a great stat for either build. It is a very expensive relative to the other stats listed above. Plus, it has only a situational impact on performance. If you don’t have mana issues currently, then more MP5 isn’t going change anything.

That being said, I believe that MP5 lends itself more to Restoration builds. As I said before I believe that mana regen is a little more important for healers then it is for DPS.

Note from Phae: Ewwwww … MP5! This stat continues to be overpriced for those casters with an Intensity-esque ability (ex. Meditation, Arcane Meditation). I’d look the other way on an item who sinks a large portion of its item budget into MP5.

Examples

To illustrate these points lets look at two pairs of boots that drop in Naxx25:

I think both boots would be good for either a Restoration or Balance Druid, but I think I know which one Restos would prefer. Despite having 38 Crit rating, I believe the [Boots of Septic Wounds] are more of a Resto item. They have a large amount of Spirit and the gem socket allow for more potent heals and greater longevity. On the other hand, the [Boots of the Escaped Captive] favor a Moonkin build in my opinion. The sheer quantity of Haste means that they will provide more DPS at the expense of less valuable base stats.

For another example look at these two chest pieces, also drops from Naxx25:

In my opinion, the [Vest of Vitality] is clearly a Moonkin item. The large quantity of Crit and complete lack of Spirit say this item is for all out DPS. The [Tunic of Prejudice] is a much more balanced item that has lots of Spirit that I think Restos will find more attractive.

Leather vs Cloth

I want to make a quick comment on the Leather vs. Cloth debate. Moonkin are used to having to fight with Mages, Warlocks, and Priests for cloth gear because there was very little leather caster DPS gear in the Burning Crusade. My guess is that in Wrath of the Lich King we are going to see clothies push back and say they should get priority over Druids.

I still believe that armor type doesn't matter for the most part. The stats on the gear are what cause you to do more DPS or be a more effective healer. Therefore, I say rolling on cloth items that are clearly better then the other options available should be okay. That being said, be mindful of the clothies' needs. Don't roll on a cloth item when there is a leather item that is equally accessible. For example, a Moonkin should probably pass on [Slippers of the Seacaller] if a clothie wants it, because the [Naturewarden's Treads] are available just a few bosses later.

Final Note

None of this means that Restos shouldn’t roll on the [Vest of Vitality], or that Moonkin shouldn’t use the Boots [Boots of Septic Wounds]. All of these items could be upgrades for either spec. These are just guidelines to help you navigate your gear choices.

My suggestion is that you talk to the other caster druids in your guild and see what gear they are looking for and how big of an upgrade it is. This type of planning with your shape shifting brethren can prevent arguments and feelings of animosity. It can also save you DKP and help you get the item that best suits your needs when it drops.

I want to say thanks to Phae for giving me this opportunity and supporting my blog. The Druid community would be at a loss without you. Note from Phae: <3 Thanks, Gray!

Related Posts

• Pre-Raid Gear: Back, Waist, Wrist, Neck, and Fingers
• Guest Post: So You Want to Rip Some Face?
• Pre-Raid Gear: Head, Shoulder, Chest, Hands, Legs, Feet

I’ve received several e-mails asking me about the best way to level in Wrath of the Lich King. Some Trees despair at the idea of abandoning their Healing roots for the kind that entangle while others seem to want to roll up their bark and don the feathered suit of a DOOMkin to pew pew all the way to Arthas! With as much variation as there is among readers and their playstyles, it’s safe to say that there is no clear ONE AND ONLY spec that you should use for leveling. So instead of linking you a talent build, I’m going to help you make the decisions that will determine which talents you should choose then show a couple of different specs that include them to – what I feel – is best effect! Let’s begin:

Question #1: How much do you want to heal?

This is a simple question that’s related to how much healing ability you are willing to sacrifice for the sake of improving your damage output. This assumes that the dual spec system won’t be immediately available after the release of Wrath and that you’re a cheapskate like me who is unwilling to respec to run instances. I’ve created a sliding scale of possible choices:

Question #2: How do you like to kill things?

Are you an “in your face” type of player that doesn’t mind getting her foliage mussed or are you more of a delicate flower who prefers the safety of killing things that can’t fight back?

Since the “lolwut” response to Question 2 isn’t actually a valid one (I love symmetry), there are six possible combinations that we can create. Here are six builds I would recommend to you, based on those preferences:

Build #1: The Pokey Peep, a.k.a. the Panzerkin

This type of build is heavy (HAHA) on the damage because it’s based on Moonkin, initially eschewing many of the trappings of Restoration in favor of many fun and powerful abilities at the bottom of the Balance tree. You’ll start at level 70 with a 55/0/6 build. This build focuses on many of the abilities that allow you to take a beating while you machine gun Wrath the mobs to death. Key abilities include:

• Brambles: Let the mobs munch on your thorny exterior while you gleefully blast them with Wrath, Moonfire, and Insect Swarm. You’ll pick this up instead of Nature’s Reach since root-and-nuke isn’t your goal.
• Insect Swarm: Insect Swarm is a cheap DoT that essentially costs the Global Cooldown to cast. It’s also uninterruptible. I opted to skip over Improved Insect Swarm because there are better options further down the tree.
• Moonglow, Lunar Guidance, and Dreamstate: These are pretty much staples for any caster dipping into the Balance tree, and you’d have feathers for brains if you skipped them.
• Moonkin Form / Improved Moonkin Form: Pretty obvious benefits. This gives you a lot of armor to stand in the face of your enemies. Not to mention an awesome dance.
• Owlkin Frenzy: What could be better than actually deriving a benefit from things hitting you in Moonkin Form? You’d opt to skip this 3-point talent if you were using root-and-nuke techniques.
• Typhoon and Force of Nature: It’s hard to pass up two 1-point talents as fun as these.
• Earth and Moon: Sounds like the name of a ballad-writing 80s band, doesn’t it? Well, it’s not. This ability provides a big boost to your damage output.
• Wrath of Cenarius: Another expensive talent at 5 points. Provides a bonus to spell damage for Starfire and Wrath.
• Starfall: This spell is pretty mana efficient, even for single-target DPS.

As you continue to level up to 79 (because you ARE going to switch back to deep Restoration the moment you hit 80, RIGHT?), you’ll continue investing points in the Restoration tree, picking up such abilities as Omen of Clarity, Intensity, Natural Shapeshifter, Master Shapeshifter, and Furor. A level 79 version of this build ends up being 55/0/15 .

Build #2: The Marshmallow Peep

Unlike her Pokey brethren, the Marshmallow Peep cringes at the idea of having her feathers ruffled and prefers to keep her opponents at a distance. As a result, she will skip over talents like Brambles and Owlkin Frenzy, picking up Nature’s Reach instead. This build starts out at 70 as 52/0/9 ; as you may notice, our lower investment in tanking frees up more points for us in Restoration. We’ll start with three points in Furor, three in Nature’s Focus, Natural Shapeshifter and continue investing until we have all the Balance-oriented Restoration goodies, including Intensity, Omen of Clarity, and Master Shapeshifter. We end up with a free point at 79 to place in a Balance talent of choice. I’d probably opt for a point of Improved Insect Swarm. This build ends up being 53/0/17 .

Build #3: Hybrid Close-Combat

If you’re planning to level up with a mixture of solo-questing and instancing with guildmates (but are too cheap to pay for respec costs), a hybrid build might be just what you’re looking for. I’ve started this build with Moonkin Form, one point away from nabbing Swiftmend, but there’s nothing to say you couldn’t do it the other way around if you want. This build begins at level 70 as 31/0/30 . Because we don’t have the points needed to bolster Regrowth, we’ll instead focus on Healing Touch, picking up Naturalist and Empowered Touch. Key abilities from the Balance tree include:

• Brambles: This is a staple in any “tanking” build.
• Insect Swarm: Once again, Insect Swarm is a really cheap form of damage that only costs 1 point to acquire.
• Moonglow and Lunar Guidance, and Dreamstate: We won’t initially have the points we need to pick up Dreamstate, but it’s a priority for talent point expenditures between 70 and 80.
• Moonkin Form: This is the reason we start with 31 points. We’ll pick up 3/3 Improved Moonkin Form as we level, though the points aren’t available at the start.

As you level up to 79, you’ll want to pick up Dreamstate, Owlkin Frenzy, and 2 points in Improved Moonkin Form (though you could opt to substitute points in Wrath of Cenarius for IMF). This build ends up being 39/0/31 at level 79.

Build #4: The Confused Cannon

This is the root-and-nuke variation Build 3, Hybrid Close-Combat. It also begins as 31/0/30, though again you can choose to start with Swiftmend and pick up Moonkin Form at 71 if you prefer. We’ll drop Brambles in favor of Nature’s Reach + Nature’s Splendor. As you level up with this build, you’ll similarly pick up Dreamstate and Improved Moonkin Form, though with no need for Owlkin Frenzy, you’ll make the choice to pick up Wrath of Cenarius. This build ends up being 39/0/31 at level 79.

Build #5: The Thorn Bush

This build is perhaps the least efficient in terms of suitability to tank since it doesn’t pick up Moonkin Form at any point and even the armored Tree of Life can’t cast Balance spells. Nonetheless, its strong HoTs may make this a feasible option for the player who wants to stay as true as possible to her Restoration “roots” but still pack a bit of firepower. In terms of Balance abilities, I’ve selected Starlight Wrath, Moonglow, Nature’s Majesty, Nature’s Grace, Nature’s Splendor, and Brambles. The 17/0/44 build at 70 is comprised of most of the “core” Restoration abilities up to and including Tree of Life but eschews Naturalist, Tranquil Spirit, and Empowered Touch, instead emphasizing Regrowth. Improved Tranquility is also omitted, though you may wish to consider it if you plan to do a lot of instancing.

Leveling up with this build, you have three options:

• Spend your points in Balance to boost your firepower with 5/5 Vengeance and Insect Swarm. Spend the remaining three points on additional spell power from Lunar Guidance. An example of this build is 26/0/47 .
• Spend your points in Balance to boost your healing with 5/5 Genesis and Insect Swarm. Spend the remaining three points on additional spell power from Lunar Guidance. An example of this build is 26/0/47 .
• Spend your points in Restoration to acquire Wild Growth. Definitely pick up Improved Tree of Life for its aura improvement and Spirit –> healing power conversion. Other talents that I recommend you consider include: Improved Tranquility and Empowered Touch. Spend any remaining points in Genesis once you have Wild Growth. An example of this build is 19/0/51 .

Build #6: The Conscientious Objector

You are a delicate flower. You cringe at the idea that something should actually hit you. It might be carrying a Tree-eating parasite, after all. In any case, this build is quite similar to the Thorn Bush. You might even opt to include a point or three in Brambles as a damage shield for your adoring tanks. Should you not, your starting build would look something like 16/0/45 . You can choose to follow any one of the three approaches outlined under Build #5: The Thorn Bush above to help you decide where to spend your remaining points as you level to 79.

Final Notes

Keep in mind that these are suggested builds that you should feel free to adapt to your own preferences and playstyle. These are also recommendations from a Restoration Druid. Should you choose to pursue one of the more deeply Balance-specced builds, I can’t recommend Graylo’s articles over at Gray Matter highly enough. Read up over there, too, so you don’t look like a n00bkin.

So which (potentially modified) playstyle will you be trying out? (And don’t say “Feral” or I shall beat you about the shoulders with my branches.)

Related Posts

• Leveraging Insect Swarm as a Healer
• Balance Tree … Uprooted and Transplanted
• Shake My (Talent) Tree

Thelyne of Eonar (US) writes in with the following great question:

My name is Thelyne and I’m a blooming Resto druid from Eonar. I’d like to know how you got this lovely blog started as I’d like to start my own! Thanks!

What an exciting question to be asked! I’m always happy to see new blogs being created, especially by other Druids like myself, and I’m flattered that Thelyne chose to ask me for some advice. Because I think a blog reader is 10x more likely to create their own blog than a non-reader, I thought I’d share step-by-step, the process of creating a blog to show you just how easy and rewarding it can be.

Step 1: Decide on a Focus

This is really important. As enthusiastic as you might be to start writing immediately, it’s helpful if you can first refine what you want your blog to accomplish. There are limitless options to the type of blog you can create. Here are just a few and examples of each:

• Spec/Class Niche: Haelz, Unbearably HoT, Yet Another Warlock Nerf, Parry! Dodge! Spin!
• Guild Leadership/Officership education: Lume the Mad, Chick GM
• Role Niche: ThinkTank, Tank Hard!
• Roleplay: Too Many Annas (though not exclusively), Blogatelle, Need More Rage
• PvP (Mis)adventures: Out of Mana
• One or More of the Above: Big Bear Butt, BigRedKitty

Step 1a: Familiarize Yourself with the Other Players in your Niche

Learn about the other bloggers who write about the same topics you do. Pick out things you like and don’t like to help you refine the plans for your own blog. Take note of their blog titles to avoid stepping on any toes with too similar a name. Familiarizing yourself with your fellow bloggers will also help later on when you’re trying to gain exposure.

Step 1b: Pick a Title

Don’t get "Trapped" by your title later on!

Hand-in-hand with your blog’s focus, you will want to choose a title that reflects that focus. Be careful here; if you choose a focus and title that’s super-specific, you may find yourself feeling restricted later on. When I created Resto4Life, for instance, I recognized that — unless I wanted to switch focus to playing a Restoration Shaman — I was pretty much committed to Phaelia. Common inspiration for class or spec-specific blog titles include talents and spells, forum-based pop culture references, and in-game places associated with that class or spec. Don’t name your blog after your character unless you’re relatively certain you won’t be switching mains or renaming them (or are considering a server transfer).

Step 2: Choose a Platform

Focus defined and prospective blog title in hand, you’ll want to pick out a space for your new home. There are several different options for a blogging platform, and I’ll discuss the most common here:

1. Blogspot.com
   This is Google’s blogging platform. It’s extremely popular among new bloggers due to its ease of use and relative customizability. Many bloggers also already have a Google account, making creating a blog a relatively simple process. Theme selection is relatively limited, but you can customize available themes to your heart’s content. Image uploading can be cumbersome.
2. WordPress.com
   This is the company-hosted version of WordPress. Similarly easy to use. There are many different themes available, but once selected, your ability to make changes is extremely limited unless you wish to pay. Extremely limited customization.
3. WordPress.org
   This is a downloadable copy of the WordPress blogging platform for use with your own web host. Requires a bit of technical know-how to set up as well as paid web space and a custom domain name. Extremely customizable and flexible with practically unlimited available themes, but much more difficult to use than the previous two options.

It is not uncommon for a blogger to initially create a blog through Blogspot or WordPress.com only to move to a self-hosted option later on when he/she is more certain of her future commitment. Resto4Life actually started out at Blogspot.com before moving to a self-hosted option. (A detailed walkthrough of completing such a migration is available here.)

If you’re pretty certain that you’ll want to be self-hosted eventually but find yourself daunted at the idea of creating a database and completing a WordPress installation yourself, I recommend choosing a web host that includes an automatic install (and upgrades) of WordPress. Resto4Life is hosted with HostMonster.com, who is not only affordable but reliable and includes one-click installs for several packages, including WordPress. They’ll also throw in a free domain registration.

Step 2a: Register a Domain Address (Optional)

This step is optional for those choosing to host their blog through Blogspot.com or WordPress.com, but at $10 or less per year, I recommend it. Having a custom domain name lends a feeling of permanency and can make you easier for readers to find and remember. Just be careful. If you are considering purchasing a domain name, do not search for that domain name unless you are ready to purchase it. There are unscrupulous types that monitor domain searches so they can buy them up and "squat" on them to resell them for higher prices and/or to advertise on them. Also be aware that there have been some cases where squatters will purchase domain names that match the titles of blogs on Blogger or WordPress.com on the possibility that the author will later want to purchase a custom domain.

Help registering a custom domain name is available here.

Note: Many web hosts will include a complimentary domain registration when you choose them as your web host. Be sure to check to see if this feature is included with purchased web space before registering a domain separately.

Step 3: Write, Write, Write!

The best way to improve your writing is through practice… or so I’ve read.

So you have your blog named, hosted, and created. Before you go shouting to the rooftops about your admirable accomplishment, you’ll want to shore up your concept with a few posts. Remember what you’ve learned from others sharing your blogging niche and start sharing your own thoughts. If you get stuck for ideas, you can always choose or pull inspiration from one of the Blog Azeroth Shared Topics to help get the words flowing!

Step 3a: Refine Your Style

This includes the style of your blog as well as the style of your posts. While you might have great things to say and share, if they aren’t in an easily digestible format, it will be difficult to attract and keep readers. There are a million-and-a-half recommendations on this topic, but here are a few of the easiest to implement:

1. Avoid critting your readers with a wall of text. Break up huge paragraphs which can be difficult to digest. Use special formatting like bold, italics, and subheadings to make things more readable and organize your thoughts. A couple of examples of blogs that make good use of formatting include Yet Another Warlock Nerf and Parry! Dodge! Spin!
2. Include pictures. Try to be consistent with the images you choose, be they in-game screenshots, pictures from the Model Viewer, or stock photography. For some great examples blogs that leverage images to best effect, check out /hug and Too Many Annas!
3. Use a spell checker. It’s easy. It’s free. If you use Google Bar, it is that button labeled "Check" at the top of your browser. Firefox users will find spell-check is built in to their browser, as well.
4. Categorize or tag your posts to make it easy for readers to find more information on those topics. For help learning about the difference between tags and categories, click here.
5. Give your blog a unique personality. Try to make your blog’s aesthetics and writing style speak to its focus so that you’re not only easily identifiable but memorable, too. In the words of Runycat:

   Choose a title that will make wayward porn searchers stumble upon your site.
   I cannot tell you how many keyword hits I get for " bare ass"

   Obviously, this is hyperbole (well, for most people anyway), but you get the idea. Find some way to make your blog stand out from the rest! Great examples of blogs with distinct personality that shines through in every post include Need More Rage, Big Bear Butt, and BigRedKitty.

6. Tip from Valenna: Work towards consistency in your posts, speech and tone. If you are in character 100% of the time and you switch out to talk about your real life, your readers are going to jolted.  The same applies to the way you write. If you post even-keeled, balanced posts that look at all sides of an issue and then post a rant, your readers will be surprised. Let your readers know what to expect when returning to your blog, and they’ll keep coming back.

Behemothdan of More Pew Pew, Less QQ shares a great resource for helping to improve your blog’s overall aesthetics here.

Step 3b: Grow Your Blog

Grow your blog … but hopefully not into a rust-colored fern like this one.

Once you’re happy with the content and appearance of your blog, start getting your name out there! Here are a few different ways you can do this:

• Offer to swap links with other blogs within your niche (and, of course, it’s helpful to add a link to the blog in question before asking if they’d be willing to link to you). Druid blogs can request to be added to the World Tree listing here at Resto4Life, a project designed to specifically help new and old blogs increase their exposure.
• If you write on a topic that’s similar to one written by another author, try to incorporate what they’ve already written by providing a brief quote or a link back to their original post. Many blog authors monitor incoming links, and this can be a great way to get some free link love in return.
• Join and participate in Blog Azeroth. Learn from others and share what you’ve experienced. Ask (and answer) questions. Meet other bloggers.

For non WordPress.com bloggers, I recommend Statcounter or — for the more technically savvy — Google Analytics to help you monitor your blog’s growth (WordPress.com includes built-in stats). Try not to get discouraged by slow growth, though. Building a blog takes both time and commitment.

Conclusion

I hope that I’ve been able to show you how easy it is to create your own web presence. I know that it can be daunting when faced with some of the more well-established blogs out there, but we all started somewhere. In fact, I’d like to share a small snippet of a chat conversation I had with Valenna back in March of 2007:

[11:26:07 AM] Phaelia: I would like to blog about being a Resto druid
[11:26:31 AM] Valenna: Make a new blog and call it Resto For Life?
[11:27:00 AM] Phaelia: good idea
[11:28:36 AM] Phaelia: I like that idea a lot.
[11:31:09 AM] Phaelia: resto4life.blogspot.com

Just remember: you’ll never get there without taking the first few steps!

Additional Resources

The number of resources available to bloggers is practically endless. For World of Warcraft bloggers, the Blog Azeroth forum is a great repository of knowledge and friendly faces willing to help you with just about anything. Additional recommended resources include:

• Lorelle @ WordPress
  Don’t let the title discourage you if you happen to choose Blogger. Lorelle’s has tons of information for bloggers of all types.
• WoWModelViewer.org
  The model viewer is a fantastic program that will let you model and take pictures of your character, creatures, and items from within the game. This can be an invaluable resource for creating a consistent style.
• Twisted Nether
  A brand new "blogcast" each week featuring interviews with other bloggers. Can be a great way to learn more about the world of blogging!
• News Sources
  MMO Champion and WoWInsider are great resources for newly-released information. Just don’t fall into the trap of simply reposting news, though. Include your own commentary and personal take on the info.

Related Posts

• Welcome to the New Resto4Life!
• Starting Over
• Druids vs. Priests

By now, you’ve almost certainly heard about the change to itemization whereby the +Healing and +Spell Damage stats are being retired for the less specialized Spell Power stat. What, exactly does this mean, though, and what can you expect at the release of Patch 3.0?

Converting +Healing to Spell Power

Balance Druids should see a direct translation of their spell damage into spell power at a 1:1 ratio. (This doesn’t account for the loss of spell power due to the reduction being made to Lunar Guidance, however.) Restoration Druids – or anyone wearing their healing kit – can expect to see their +Healing converted to Spell Power in the following manner:

Spell Power = +Healing * 0.532

In other words, players can expect to see a 46.8% reduction in their +Healing when converting to Spell Power. Note that this change will not affect your effective healing as spell coefficients are being adjusted to account for this reduction (more on this below). 0.532 was derived by comparing the ten staves with the highest +Healing values available in TBC:

At the same time, you can expect to see your Bonus Spell Damage (in the form of spell power) increased by approximately 60%. This increase in fire power – or Arcane/Nature power, as the case may be – should make leveling in your Resto-kit a lot more viable than it would have been otherwise.

Adjusting Coefficients

While it was Blizzard’s intention to streamline spellcaster gear by having DPS and Healer casters use the same items, it wasn’t their intention to nerf the effectiveness of our spells. Therefore, the +Healing coefficients for Healing spells pre-WotLK will be increased to compensate for the reduction of +Healing. In order to keep the effective amount healed for a given spell the same, we’d expect the original coefficients to be multiplied by 1/0.532 or 1.88. To verify this, I returned to Outlands on the Beta server (no small feat for someone bound in Borean Tundra) and did some coefficient testing for the HoT portion of Rejuvenation and Regrowth. In both cases, using the same gear and same level of +Healing, each spell ticked for the same amount on beta and live (there was a very small difference in a few HoT ticks, but that is no doubt due to rounding issues).

Note: At some point, I hope to publish some revised spell power coefficients for Wrath, but haven’t had the time to perform data collection, yet.

Talent Implications

In Wrath of the Lich King, the Spell Power afforded by Lunar Guidance will be reduced from 25% to 12%. This is a reduction of 52% which is, not coincidentally, about the same percent reduction being applied to +Healing. I believe this talent was reduced in effectiveness to avoid making it too desirable to Healers (as it otherwise would have afforded more than twice the benefit that it did in TBC). This had the unfortunate side effect of harming Balance Druids in the process, however. I suspect that the relocation of both Nature’s Grace and Moonglow to much higher in the Balance tree was similarly meant to discourage Restoration Druid’s from dipping so deeply into Balance. Blizzard probably didn’t want to repeat the perceived mistake of making a hybrid build like the Dreamstate healer even close to as viable as a deeply Restoration-specced Druid.

At first glance, it might appear that the effectiveness of Empowered Touch is being doubled from its previous value of 20% to its post-Wrath value of 40%:

However, the wording of the bonus afforded by Empowered Touch is significant. Note that its description reads, “gains an additional X% of your bonus healing effects.” This means that the bonus is applied additively (X + 0.2). This is in comparison to the bonus from Empowered Rejuvenation whose description reads, “The bonus healing effects of your healing over time spells is increased by 20%.” From its description, we can tell that Empowered Rejuvenation’s bonus is applied multiplicatively (X * 1.2) and will, therefore, automatically scale with the conversion to spell power. With the change to spell power cutting +Healing almost in half, the HT spell power coefficient had to be increased to compensate. The increase to 0.4 is actually a slight buff over the value of 0.38 that would have been necessary for Empowered Touch to maintain its effectiveness.

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Many Restoration Druids probably remember speccing into Omen of Clarity at one point or another while leveling (unless you happened to read about how worthless it was). It has traditionally been considered an ability that’s more useful to Ferals who rely on melee than to Moonkin or Resto Druids. However, with the recent changes in the beta for Wrath of the Lich King, this may all be changing:

As you can see, Omen of Clarity will now equally benefit Druids of all specs who opt to drop a point into it. It’s so good, in fact, that I suspect it will become a core ability to all three specs. Interestingly, they’re doubling the proc rate from 3% to 6% but simultaneously adding a 10 second internal cooldown. As long as your casting frequency is greater than 1/sec, this is at minimum a 0.75% increase in proc frequency.

Expected Proc Rate

We know that the formula for the proc rate of something with an internal cooldown can be expressed as:

PPM = 60 / ((casting frequency/proc rate) + internal cooldown)

Applying this to the new values for Omen of Clarity, our formula will look like this:

PPM = 60 / ((casting frequency/0.06) + 10)

Applying this formula across a wide range of reasonable cast speeds, we find the following PPM:

* A cast speed of 1.0 is only possible while chain-casting Lifebloom with 5/5 Gift of the Earthmother and 0 latency. It’s really just included to make the table look pretty.

MP5 Value

As we would expect, Omen of Clarity will proc fewer times per minute as we cast fewer spells that can cause it to proc. Logically, it makes sense to use these “free” spell casts on one of our most expensive spells. Although Healing Touch (Rank 15) costs 1400 Mana, a more convenient and useful choice will probably be Flourish:

At 1125 mana and a seven 7 duration, Flourish appears tailor-made to fit into our Lifebloom rotation. If we assume it’s used while in Tree of Life (and there will be virtually no reason not to use Tree of Life anymore), it costs 900 mana. We can use this number to determine the average MP5 value of Omen of Clarity using the following formula:

MP5 = (PPM * Mana Cost) / 12

If you were to cast a Flourish every time Omen of Clarity procs, OOC would be worth the following MP5:

If, however, instead of using a Flourish (which may not always make sense given the dynamics of an encounter) and instead substituted a Rank 15 Healing Touch, the MP5 values would look like this:

Obviously, what you use will depend on your circumstances (and sometimes you won’t be able to allow it to disrupt your Lifebloom rotation), but I wanted to show just how much potential Omen of Clarity has just in case some Restos weren’t sure how good it is.

Additional Notes

Druids aren’t the only class to have some form of clearcasting. Shamans, Mages, and Priests do, as well. However, the frequent use of instant-cast spells like Rejuvenation and Lifebloom make clearcasting even more desirable for Druids. Clearcasting procs are determined server side, so it can take more than half a second to find out that your next spell will be free once you’re spell has finished casting. If you were casting a spell with cast time, it’s usually not worth it to cancel and cast another spell that costs more mana instead.  If, however, you’ve cast an insta-cast spell that procs Omen of Clarity, you’ll probably notice the proc while waiting for the global cooldown to expire. Gift of the Earthmother, a 5-point talent that reduces the GCD associated with Lifebloom and Rejuvenation to 1.0 seconds, will make these procs more difficult to catch and adjust to, but it should still be possible, especially since there’s an audible sound when OOC procs.

Finally, it’s worth noting that since casing a spell under clearcasting doesn’t use mana, it also doesn’t contribute towards keeping you inside the 5SR. Druids already spend most of their time inside the 5SR, so it’s less significant for us, but consider a situation wherein a Lifebloom cast procs clearcasting, and you switch to casting a spell with a casting time (ex. Healing Touch, Nourish, or Regrowth). Casting that spell won’t put you back inside the 5SR. If you then cast another non-instant spell, you wouldn’t return to the 5SR until after it completes, giving you a 50-75% chance of getting a tick of mana regeneration outside of the 5SR, depending on spell haste, latency, and spell selection. Obviously, encounters where this is plausible will probably be uncommon, but it could be useful in 5-man instances where you generally only have to maintain a triple-stack of Lifebloom on one person.

Omen of Clarity as a non-Restoration Druid

So that’s the good news regarding the changes to Omen of Clarity. The bad news? Unfortunately, it’s still not 100% accessible to Balance Druids; they’ll almost certainly have to spend a couple of “dump” points if they want to get down to the third tier where it resides: 2/2 Improved Mark of the Wild and 3/3 Nature’s Focus (Tier 1), 3/3 Natural Shapeshifter and either 2 points in healing threat reduction via Subtlety or 0.2 seconds off the cast time of Healing Touch via Naturalist.

Luckily, Feral Druids still benefit from 5/5 Furor (Tier 1) and 5/5 Naturalist as well as 3/3 Master Shapeshifter (Tier 2) , making Omen of Clarity an easily-acquired addition to their Restoration investment.

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