WoD Affliction gameplay ideas

[Deleted]

Hi,

I originally posted this in the WoD Alpha/Beta talk thread but it seems that was the wrong place for this!

These are a few ideas on how Afflicition could be engaging when snapshotting is removed.

Affliction will be ‘make sure that DoT’s always have ample time left on them (slightly different to just not letting them fall off) so that you don’t have to recast during procs – instead concentrate on Haunt and filler uptime’. On cleave/multi-target, keeping DoT’s everywhere so we’re ready for Haunt spam in procs.

Drain Soul as a filler and execute just doesn’t sound fun! Although it does reduce button bloat…Yes it will gain effects and damage under 20% HP, but that doesn’t make the execute phase more engaging. However does having a separate filler and execute make for ‘compelling gameplay’; which is a phrase I hear Blizz using a lot?At the moment, there is some skill in sniping dying adds for shard regen, but then WoD DS will just make that easier; only have to press one button :P

Now I know short term maintenance buffs aren’t popular – Inquisition (removed to the joy of Ret) and WW Tiger power – and I wouldn’t want my next few suggestions to turn into that! I’m going to suggest things in two categories: Affliction-no Shadow bolt, and Affliction-shadow bolt.

No SB:

• To make our Single target and Cleave (few targets) better, add a small, stacking debuff on the target from channelling DS; for a certain amount of time. Increases ‘something’ (maybe damage, tick speed, chance to Multistrike etc) of DoT’s. Each stack could be at slightly larger intervals e.g. 2%, 5%, 9%. Good on ST because you can keep the maximum stack rolling continuously. Makes Cleave/multi target interesting as you have to tab through mobs and decide how many stacks to put on each target. Not viable for AoE; I guess unless mobs last a long time. Important that this is a debuff on target and not buff on us because then our Multi-dotting potential would become far too powerful. A downside I can see is that we may just get overloaded with timers.

• Soulburn: Drain Soul – make it tick faster! More shard regen, direct DoT damage etc. Some thinking going into Shard management – rather than just pooling for procs - and possible interplay with SB:Haunt e.g. when is it the best time to start SB: DS/Haunt; what if I get a proc and don’t have a shard for Haunt; is there a multi-Haunt opportunity coming up and I don’t have enough shards? Of course, above Execute range this would mean a SB: DS would have to regen shards every other tick, for example; I’m not clear on that from Alpha notes.

SB lives!:

• SB and DS interplay - casting SB leaves a debuff on the target, that makes your next DS ‘more powerful’ (damage, tick speed, shard regen, multi strike?). Or, DS leaves a rebuff on the target, making your next SB hit like a truck.

• SB takes stacking debuff mechanic from ‘No SB’ and DS stays as an Execute.

I’ve read that many people believe Affliction will be a very dull spec without snapshotting (keep DoT’s up, Haunt on procs) and I agree. I would like a mechanic that is involving or make you think - even a tiny bit - so that we have something to do.
I think that just bringing back SB as a filler and having DS as an execute would hardly be any more interesting than just channeling DS as a filler and execute; we change spells below 20%, yipee…
Personally I would rather channel than cast due to:
if something interrupts your cast, then you’ve lost time and damage, whereas even if you get one tick off of a channel, you’ve at least done something.

as affliction i want to be draining and tearing the essence of my enemy out of them and greedily empowering myself with it. SB thematically doesn’t do that for me.



If Blizz do anything, they could at least change the graphic of DS when we hit 20% to something EPIC - imagine the the channel going into your whole body and not just your hands!
Let me know what you think. You may love, like, or despise these suggestions. There may be one part of an idea that struck a chord, but the rest sounds awful. Remember I’m thinking about the gameplay of Affliction, so any numbers etc are just placeholders and aren’t even trying to be balanced

[ComputerNerd]

Another, and a substantial stacking debuff is simply horrible, and will result in us being balanced around its full stack.
Makes us weak on fights where we can't get that.