Legion Enhance Shaman preview changes.

[Trallnar]

Why would anyone want to cast LB then? I guess Maelstrom can't run out? I mean, there has to be SOME difference to rage, right? So why use LB and waste your MS if you can wait until you can run to the enemy again and hit it with your highdmg melee skills? Except maybe we get skills which generate a lot of MS without needing us to hit the enemy.

Ascendance maelstrom dump? SS and auto-attacks are ranged during ascendance (and the new spells are 10 yard), so maybe you use LB instead of LL during the burn?

They could turn LL into LB, they could make LB hit harder, or reduce LB MS cost while in ascendance. Any of these would keep them as melee dps but make them feel like casters with control over storms during their cooldown.

[Deleted]

Ascendance maelstrom dump? SS and auto-attacks are ranged during ascendance (and the new spells are 10 yard), so maybe you use LB instead of LL during the burn?

They could turn LL into LB, they could make LB hit harder, or reduce LB MS cost while in ascendance. Any of these would keep them as melee dps but make them feel like casters with control over storms during their cooldown.

Well, Ascendance would have to buff it real good, like make it an instant cast and raise its damage (that's really important for Enhancer playstyle. Cast times just don't work with him).

And we don't even know whether Ascendance is still a thing.

[wordup]

Typical Enhance player - "OMG BLIZZ why you no rework us after 37 expacs?!"
Typical Enhance player after reading the new rework - "OMG BLIZZ this rework sux, why you do change us?!"

I haven't read the complaints nor understand what people were asking for and why this isn't it: the sentence.

[Deleted]

I know, just like I said, you don't really see how this spec will work with those changes without getting more information. But what they showed are THE basic skills of our rotation and they are all melee skills. They wanted to show the idea behind the playstyle. If Legion enhancer would be a spellcasting melee hybrid, they would have shown a mix of spells and melee skills. It's pretty safe to assume that they want to push us into the full melee category with just an "element flavor" which distinguishes us from other melees.

Do explain please, how we can be considered melee/ranged class today (or ever). Outside of melee we are dead in the water, except for those 15sec Ascendance where we do deal some damage, but we still prefer to be melee because of LL.
LB/CL are 95% of the time cast in melee range. Simply because at range you cannot generate MS stacks.

Even if we do not get a single ranged spell in Legion, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference in positioning between before and after.

So shut up, please.

Why would anyone want to cast LB then? I guess Maelstrom can't run out? I mean, there has to be SOME difference to rage, right? So why use LB and waste your MS if you can wait until you can run to the enemy again and hit it with your highdmg melee skills? Except maybe we get skills which generate a lot of MS without needing us to hit the enemy.

So you claim there's a ranged gameplay of enhas today? You are either never played it and judge by the spell descriptions, or simply trolling.

edit:
It's really weird. I don't have the feeling with other class blogs that I have no clue how that class will be played. They completely revamped Survival hunter but they did a good job explaining how it will be played. With enhancer, it's all weird. What will stay, what will be cut? How will his "playstyle" be? They didn't really explain anything in this blog and I think that's why people are mad right now.

Let me answer you: the gameplay will be more structured. No more button mashing and whack-a-mole game style, trying to hit the keybind that will do the most in the situation among the several glowing in your action bar.
You build a resource and then spend it. I bet all totems, utility and mobility skills will be without resource cost, only cd, soyour resource will be spent on either dps or survival abilities.
Might seem like warrior, might not. If you only look at core rotations, you can say that feral and rogue gameplays are identical, but is that the case in practice?

So wait and see. What is presented is just the backbone of the spec. But when you add the meat around it, you can get either Angelina Jolie or your own mother as a final result. Same backbone, different meat, so to say.

[Deleted]

Do explain please, how we can be considered melee/ranged class today (or ever). Outside of melee we are dead in the water, except for those 15sec Ascendance where we do deal some damage, but we still prefer to be melee because of LL.
LB/CL are 95% of the time cast in melee range. Simply because at range you cannot generate MS stacks.

Even if we do not get a single ranged spell in Legion, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference in positioning between before and after.

So shut up, please.



So you claim there's a ranged gameplay of enhas today? You are either never played it and judge by the spell descriptions, or simply trolling.

You know, the game is more than just a Patchwerk bossfight. In PvP, for example, the range of Enhancer skills was really important. And in PvE there are also lots of moments where you can attack one target and use your instants to attack another target.

Let me answer you: the gameplay will be more structured. No more button mashing and whack-a-mole game style, trying to hit the keybind that will do the most in the situation among the several glowing in your action bar.

Are you fucking kidding me? Rockbiter is THE button mash skill. It's a freaking instant Steady Shot!

You build a resource and then spend it.

But it's not structured! You don't just build resource. You have RNG which builds resource for you aswell. And you have RNG which makes your best skill immediately ready to use. The new playstyle is even more a freaking button mashing with procs to react to.

[Kithelle]

I don't know...I was really looking forward to some love for Enhancement...but I will reserve primary judgement for when the full picture of abilities and talents are released, but based on this preview I feel kinda meh...it's like we went from mana to rage...from having free flametongue to having cast it every 12 seconds (Which honestly looks and kinda feels like how terrible pally seals were in early WoW) and reduced the proc chance of WF (Which better hit like a semi for such a reduction).

Stormstrike still does physical damage...could of at least made it nature...

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I´m trying to make sence of this new spells/attacks. The way I see it, for this to be workable because we already have one of the largest number of spells in our rotation:

Rockbiter replaces Earth Shock.
Flametongue replaces Unleash Elements.
Frost Shock may or may not be back (hopefully it will).

This sort of leaves a gap in the "rotation". Which means theres still room for LB and CL to part of the rotation.

I exited about sundering and it potential for PvP (although I don`t really pvp much). But at last, the changes are too fundamental because now its a resource based rotation rather than a CD management deal.

At first I was skeptical but after thinking about it a bit I`m hopeful.

Rockbiter has no cooldown and generates ra...err maelstrom...seems like the goal will be to spam rockbiter to get malestrom for stormstrike and keep flametongue up

[Deleted]

Are you fucking kidding me? Rockbiter is THE button mash skill. It's a freaking instant Steady Shot!

I literally cannot comprehend how anyone can't see this.

[Trallnar]

Well, Ascendance would have to buff it real good, like make it an instant cast and raise its damage (that's really important for Enhancer playstyle. Cast times just don't work with him).

And we don't even know whether Ascendance is still a thing.

They haven't previewed cooldowns for any class that isn't a talent yet. I would assume that enhance version of LB is passively instant now, since they made maelstrom the resource, sorry.

My thoughts were along the lines of:
1. LL and LB do comparable dmg, LL at 30 ms and LB at 60, when in ascendance LB reduced to 20.
2. LL changes into LB in ascendance. Basically makes a melee fire more into a ranged nature move, kind of how SS becomes ranged and elemental.

Either change would make the cooldown fit the caster feel without cast times to me. Just need to get within 10 yards to get flametongue buff, and if you have spare gcd to spam rockbiter.

[wordup]

Let me answer you: the gameplay will be more structured. No more button mashing and whack-a-mole game style, trying to hit the keybind that will do the most in the situation among the several glowing in your action bar.

Current situation; assuming EotE & Unleashed Fury:

Maintain Flame Shock with Unleash Flame debuff
Monitor MSW -don't cap, spend at 5, ideally with Unleashed Fury buff active
Don't Cap Stormstrike
Keep Lava Lash empty to make room for procs
Fill with Frost Shock

Proposed gameplay post-resource change:
Keep Flametongue up
Keep Stormstrike on Cooldown & react to Stormfury proc
Use Lava Lash if >70~ MW power
Spam Rockbiter

I don't see more structure there.

[Renchard]

I´m trying to make sence of this new spells/attacks. The way I see it, for this to be workable because we already have one of the largest number of spells in our rotation:

Rockbiter replaces Earth Shock.
Flametongue replaces Unleash Elements.
Frost Shock may or may not be back (hopefully it will).

This sort of leaves a gap in the "rotation". Which means theres still room for LB and CL to part of the rotation.

I exited about sundering and it potential for PvP (although I don`t really pvp much). But at last, the changes are too fundamental because now its a resource based rotation rather than a CD management deal.

At first I was skeptical but after thinking about it a bit I`m hopeful.

Since Rockbiter both generates Maelstrom and has no cooldown, it's the filler ability.

Basically, you'll open with Flametongue, Rockbiter till 60, Stormstrike, Rockbiter to 30, and then either Lava Lash as a dump or Stormstrike if Stormfury has procced. You'll Flametongue when it's off cooldown unless Stormstrike is going to be off cooldown in the next 2 sec or so and you're < 40 MS.

Windfury procs will be the variable in this rotation, since each proc will give you 15 MS. You'll obviously have some cooldowns in there as well to manage, and I expect talents to modify/replace these spells to give different weights as to their priorities.

[Deleted]

You know, the game is more than just a Patchwerk bossfight. In PvP, for example, the range of Enhancer skills was really important. And in PvE there are also lots of moments where you can attack one target and use your instants to attack another target.

In PvP the only use for the ranged skills of enha is to freeze someone in place with FS, or as gap closers (UE). LB is never used as ranged ability by intent, only when your target escapes melee range and you have the MsW stacks. But it's damage is so slim that noone even notice. Lastly, FlS is usually used at range while you approach your target. And that's it. In PvE... these are very niche moments, in fights where you want to pull some trash towards the group, or CC with FS.
And, FS and UE are not core rotation of the class. Who said we won't have similar skills in Legion?

Are you fucking kidding me? Rockbiter is THE button mash skill. It's a freaking instant Steady Shot!



But it's not structured! You don't just build resource. You have RNG which builds resource for you aswell. And you have RNG which makes your best skill immediately ready to use. The new playstyle is even more a freaking button mashing with procs to react to.

This is pure speculation. It's not at all clear which skill will be our primary Ms generator. Could be RB, could be autoattacks. In case it's RB, perhaps you can call it button mashing spec, although this is just one button to mash. But it could be autoattacks, then you use RB only from time to time.

SS procs are no different than LL/LB procs we use today. Now we react to at least two procs, if we don't count EotE. So decreasing that in half i see as great improvement against whack-a-mole gameplay.

[Renchard]

This is pure speculation. It's not at all clear which skill will be our primary Ms generator. Could be RB, could be autoattacks. In case it's RB, perhaps you can call it button mashing spec, although this is just one button to mash. But it could be autoattacks, then you use RB only from time to time.

SS procs are no different than LL/LB procs we use today. Now we react to at least two procs, if we don't count EotE. So decreasing that in half i see as great improvement against whack-a-mole gameplay.

The relative spamability of Rockbiter implies to me that there will be at least one option for a rotational MS generator in the talents with a small to nonexistent cooldown. It just feels like Rockbiter is meant to be the attack of last resort.

[Trallnar]

The relative spamability of Rockbiter implies to me that there will be at least one option for a rotational MS generator in the talents with a small to nonexistent cooldown. It just feels like Rockbiter is meant to be the attack of last resort.

Stonechomper?

[Zerovii]

Stonechomper?

Be a good opportunity to give us frostbrand back as a snare through some kind of cc tier on the tree or in our artifact weapon tree...

[Deleted]

The relative spamability of Rockbiter implies to me that there will be at least one option for a rotational MS generator in the talents with a small to nonexistent cooldown. It just feels like Rockbiter is meant to be the attack of last resort.

Rockbitter definitely won't be attack of last resort. It's resource generating spell and unless you can replace it with some talent, not pushing it will hurt your dps a lot. Only other option is that majority of maelstrom will come from auto-attacks and that is even worse.

[Aleksej89]

Fellas you can't be serious and claim "rockbiter is a spell".
Then you can say any warrior/rogue/hunter attack is a spell, regardless of the "damage type" it deals.

A spell is a spell, and a battle MAGE (as they said in the class preview) is supposed to cast spells.
Enhancement uses element-empowered attacks and spells, that has been what Enha IS for the past X expansions.

If they want to turn Enha into a warrior-clone then that is their choice, but coloring Mortal Strike blue and calling it Storm Strike does NOT make it a SPELL.
But some info coming from twitter and such, it seems that Enha's AOE will be "spell based alongside melee stuff", while the melee attacks are for single target.

[Trallnar]

Rockbiter could have the animation of throwing a rock at the opponent. It would still be a spell if the shaman used magic to do it.

[Deleted]

Rockbitter definitely won't be attack of last resort. It's resource generating spell and unless you can replace it with some talent, not pushing it will hurt your dps a lot. Only other option is that majority of maelstrom will come from auto-attacks and that is even worse.

You won't let go easily, don't you?

You see a fraction of the picture, also no numbers shown are set in stone yet, but you already make general conclusions and rant over it.

There can be talents to improve Ms generation, there can be cds to bump it up, there can be skills to supplement it.
The numbers you see now can change drastically.

All in all, it can turn out that you use RB to build up for SS once every 20sec.

Also, i might be wrong.

What devs said is that they just want us to get general idea about the class gameplay. Now in all forums whiners gathered to dissect what little information there is to fuel their unending thirst for whining. Just for the sake of it.

[Renchard]

Rockbitter definitely won't be attack of last resort. It's resource generating spell and unless you can replace it with some talent, not pushing it will hurt your dps a lot. Only other option is that majority of maelstrom will come from auto-attacks and that is even worse.

By attack of last resort I mean it's the spell that's at the bottom of the priority list. It's what you hit when you don't have anything else to hit. Like LB for eles.

[Kagdar]

By attack of last resort I mean it's the spell that's at the bottom of the priority list. It's what you hit when you don't have anything else to hit. Like LB for eles.

There doesn't seem to have much more to press. Stormstrike has a cooldown and you don't want to cast LL unless you have more than 90 maelstrom in case you get a SS reset so you can double SS.

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What devs said is that they just want us to get general idea about the class gameplay. Now in all forums whiners gathered to dissect what little information there is to fuel their unending thirst for whining. Just for the sake of it.

Well the general idea of most enh shaman players is that it will be just what fury warrior is and not what enh was always about.

If they want to give a general idea they have to provide enough info for us to make a clear idea of what it will be like. With what little they gave us it will be blue fury warrior in mail. If there is something that makes it completely different they should have told us.